Bont2Bruce
At the Destination Club
- Mar 15, 2012
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Toast The Lewis Young feel good thread
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Umm. Gary Dempsey went ok in long sleeves.
Admittedly he had bloody good reason to wear them. Hero !!
Admittedly he had bloody good reason to wear them. Hero !!
- Dec 21, 2005
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Adelaide 18-year-old Lewis Young has the footy world frothing over his AFL debut with the Western Bulldogs
Reece Homfray, The Advertiser
July 17, 2017 9:58am
Subscriber only
ADELAIDE teenager Lewis Young has been dubbed a 200-game player in the making by one of the game’s greats after sending the footy world into overdrive with a sparkling AFL debut for the Western Bulldogs.
Still just 18 and the youngest player in the competition, the former Sturt footballer said Sunday’s win over Carlton in his first AFL game was the best day of his life.
But it didn’t feel that way at the time.
“The first 10 minutes I said to one of the boys I thought I was going to die because my lungs were pumping and I was running all over the place, but as I settled into the game I felt more comfortable’,” Young said post-match.
“It was unreal, the best day of my life, I can’t ask for a better day on the G, to get a win, what else could you want?”
Young only scraped into last year’s national draft by 11 days, given he turned 18 on December 20, but the reigning premier was happy to pounce on him with Pick No. 49.
Young on his way to 21 touches on debut for the Dogs. Picture: Michael Klein.
After waving goodbye to his grandparents in Goolwa, he set off for Melbourne at just 17 to start his first AFL pre-season.
On Sunday he got his big chance and took it with both hands, playing a starring role across halfback against Carlton, helping himself to 21 disposals and nine marks.
AFL great Tim Watson said Young instantly reminded him of Adelaide Crows star Jake Lever and said both have 200 games written all over them.
“This kid is exactly the same, he has time, composure, confidence, awareness — he looks like he was made to play the game,” Watson said on SEN Radio on Monday morning.
Young’s teammate Lachie Hunter echoed Watson’s comments, saying he also enjoyed Young’s willingness to get in the face of the opposition.
“I was on the bench (at the time) but a couple of boys were talking about it in the rooms after the game and we didn’t address it, I thought it was pretty good, you don’t often see that from a first gamer so I think it’s a good sign as well,” Hunter said on SEN.
“That was one of the better debuts I’ve ever seen.
“I know he’s been playing really well and the boys say he’s been exactly like that in the VFL but often it doesn’t translate to AFL.
“But it pretty much seemed like he knew where the game was going and he read the speed well.”
Young, a former basketballer, went to Concordia College in Adelaide and played with Sturt in the SANFL.
Young at Double Blues headquarters last year. Picture: Sarah Reed
Last year he played under-18s, reserves and one league game in the Double Blues’ premiership season.
“We played him last year as a forward/ruck but then shifted him back midyear to have a look at him, they were looking for a tall backman in the state under-18s and he did show a bit as well,” Sturt’s high performance manager Chris Trapp said.
“I was very keen to watch it (Young’s AFL debut) and spoke to Lewis on Friday to wish him all the best.
“I was very happy for him, I wasn’t really surprised, from what I told him afterwards he just looked like he played his role perfectly.”
Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge described it as a “very good debut”.
“He did very well didn’t he?” Beveridge said.
“He was composed and as I said in the lead up to the game he’s done a lot of work with Jordan Russell and Rohan Smith, Steve Grace in our development program, and we’ve taught him to play in that back end a certain way.”
At 197cm and 88kg, Young was described by SA under-18 coach Brenton Phillips last year as quite raw but he has kicked on very quickly.
“In terms of his football maturity and development he’s still what we classify as a baby so he’s got a fair bit of upside to him,” Phillips said when Young was drafted.
Reece Homfray, The Advertiser
July 17, 2017 9:58am
Subscriber only
ADELAIDE teenager Lewis Young has been dubbed a 200-game player in the making by one of the game’s greats after sending the footy world into overdrive with a sparkling AFL debut for the Western Bulldogs.
Still just 18 and the youngest player in the competition, the former Sturt footballer said Sunday’s win over Carlton in his first AFL game was the best day of his life.
But it didn’t feel that way at the time.
“The first 10 minutes I said to one of the boys I thought I was going to die because my lungs were pumping and I was running all over the place, but as I settled into the game I felt more comfortable’,” Young said post-match.
“It was unreal, the best day of my life, I can’t ask for a better day on the G, to get a win, what else could you want?”
Young only scraped into last year’s national draft by 11 days, given he turned 18 on December 20, but the reigning premier was happy to pounce on him with Pick No. 49.
Young on his way to 21 touches on debut for the Dogs. Picture: Michael Klein.
After waving goodbye to his grandparents in Goolwa, he set off for Melbourne at just 17 to start his first AFL pre-season.
On Sunday he got his big chance and took it with both hands, playing a starring role across halfback against Carlton, helping himself to 21 disposals and nine marks.
AFL great Tim Watson said Young instantly reminded him of Adelaide Crows star Jake Lever and said both have 200 games written all over them.
“This kid is exactly the same, he has time, composure, confidence, awareness — he looks like he was made to play the game,” Watson said on SEN Radio on Monday morning.
Young’s teammate Lachie Hunter echoed Watson’s comments, saying he also enjoyed Young’s willingness to get in the face of the opposition.
“I was on the bench (at the time) but a couple of boys were talking about it in the rooms after the game and we didn’t address it, I thought it was pretty good, you don’t often see that from a first gamer so I think it’s a good sign as well,” Hunter said on SEN.
“That was one of the better debuts I’ve ever seen.
“I know he’s been playing really well and the boys say he’s been exactly like that in the VFL but often it doesn’t translate to AFL.
“But it pretty much seemed like he knew where the game was going and he read the speed well.”
Young, a former basketballer, went to Concordia College in Adelaide and played with Sturt in the SANFL.
Young at Double Blues headquarters last year. Picture: Sarah Reed
Last year he played under-18s, reserves and one league game in the Double Blues’ premiership season.
“We played him last year as a forward/ruck but then shifted him back midyear to have a look at him, they were looking for a tall backman in the state under-18s and he did show a bit as well,” Sturt’s high performance manager Chris Trapp said.
“I was very keen to watch it (Young’s AFL debut) and spoke to Lewis on Friday to wish him all the best.
“I was very happy for him, I wasn’t really surprised, from what I told him afterwards he just looked like he played his role perfectly.”
Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge described it as a “very good debut”.
“He did very well didn’t he?” Beveridge said.
“He was composed and as I said in the lead up to the game he’s done a lot of work with Jordan Russell and Rohan Smith, Steve Grace in our development program, and we’ve taught him to play in that back end a certain way.”
At 197cm and 88kg, Young was described by SA under-18 coach Brenton Phillips last year as quite raw but he has kicked on very quickly.
“In terms of his football maturity and development he’s still what we classify as a baby so he’s got a fair bit of upside to him,” Phillips said when Young was drafted.
TempletonTheRat
Premium Platinum
I'd be surprised if Caleb changes his number after Terry Wheeler's jumper presentation.
I'm also keen for Bailey Dale to keep the 31 jumper.
- Sep 27, 2005
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Wow, just wow. Make the jumper your own Lewis.
Zeno The Great
Club Legend
My favourite part was when he let Casboult Know about his miss on goal. The kid has a big set of balls to go with the talent. Loved it.
He has written a nice article for the AFLPA as well.
ANATOMY OF A DEBUT — LEWIS YOUNG
By Lewis Young Jul 17, 2017
4
Playing my first game on Sunday was a surreal experience, and is something that I’m still coming to grips with.
Like all kids who grow up playing AFL and idolising their heroes, it’s something that was always a dream and something that I worked incredibly hard for. To do it, however, is another thing altogether!
Despite being so young and turning 18 just 11 days before the end of 2016, I had my heart set on being selected in the 2016 draft, knowing that 2017 could be a fall-back option if I was to be unsuccessful.
My tender age meant that a lot of clubs looked at me as a developing player who could be good in a few years so snapping me up in 2016 would provide another year of development in the AFL system, so I don’t think it was a negative.
But it wasn’t until a week before the draft that the possibility started to become a reality. Prior to that I was just hopeful.
Looking back at everything, I couldn’t be happier to have landed with the Western Bulldogs, even if my parents were upset to see me leave home at such a young age.
Since moving to the Whitten Oval, I’ve learnt so much and have really bonded with the other young boys at the club. We all talk about relocation and what we’re getting up to on our days off and how we’re coping. It’s just nice to be able to have that release because we’re all going through the same thing.
As the season has progressed, I wasn’t sure if I’d debut or not, but my focus was just on playing strongly with the reserves.
My VFL form had been pretty good. I’ve moved around a little bit, starting up forward and then moving into defence. I did a lot of work with Rohan Smith and Jordan Russell to assist with my positioning in defence and that really helped me to get some form.
Then, the news I had been waiting for came last Thursday morning.
The match committee chose the team at 8:30am, and Rohan Smith came into the physio room and took me into his office.
There, Luke Beveridge, Rohan and Jordan Russell told me that I was playing. Then, Bevo announced it to the group later in the afternoon and everyone got around me.
I rang dad straight away. Rohan Smith told me that I needed to ring him immediately which I appreciated, so I ran over to my phone and gave him a call.
The next couple of days were a bit of a blur. Obviously, a lot of things changed with the build-up given I was playing for a new team — it was a lot more intense in terms of the scheduling of the day, but overall the morning of the game and in the week leading up I did all of the same things.
I didn’t want to change anything, I wanted to act as if I was just going into a normal VFL or under 18s game.
So I continued with my slightly weird pre-game ritual. I always get up and make myself an omelette, eat that, and then have a warm bath with some radox in it. That relaxes me and gets me in a good mindset before the game.
About 25-30 of my friends and family came over from South Australia, and the club set up all of the tickets for them which was a huge help. I even had some mates pile into cars on the Sunday morning as they commenced the drive over!
Despite having everyone in town, I did my own thing when it came to driving into the ground. I told mum and dad that I’d see them afterwards, so I left pretty early to ensure that I wouldn’t mess anything up when it came to carparks and getting into the MCG properly. I got there very early before the game because I didn’t know how to get in and was fearful of going in the wrong entrance. It was the first time I drove under the G’ so I gave myself plenty of time to acclimatise.
When I got to the ground I saw all of my teammates, they all came to me and wished me luck which was a nice moment.
Bob Murphy and Dale Morris pulled me aside at certain times to make sure I was fine and to provide some advice.
They kept telling me that it was my first game, and I would only get one shot at it, so when I ran out I should have a look around and smile and take it all in.
Earlier on, I spoke about how I’ve gelled off-field with the younger guys, but on the field it’s people like Dale, Bob, Zaine Cordy, Matthew Boyd and Easton Wood who have assisted me when it comes to my development as part of the defensive unit.
They’ve helped with my game plan work and getting my mental state right to ensure that I’m staying in the game at all times and to stop me from switching off and daydreaming.
If you watch closely yesterday, you would have seen the great leadership in the backline. There were a lot of times where I was out of position and Dale Morris and Zaine Cordy were in my ear telling me to move left or right which was needed.
Without that support, I would have really struggled out there.
Losing focus and daydreaming comes down to inexperience because I’m still learning the game and it’s also about focusing properly.
It’s such a long game and a lot of different things happen so you have to be thinking on your feet when it comes to defence, attack, when you’re going to the bench and all of those different aspects.
It can be overwhelming and it’s easy to lose focus. Having the right mindset at certain times is really important.
The game moves so fast so it’s difficult to remember a lot of what happened, but I guess I should talk about the mark I took.
The ball was just there and I ran at it and I happened to sit on Matty Suckling’s head which was exciting but also very lucky.
He put a photo on Instagram and joked that I posterised him which was funny, and nice of him to do.
After the game, all of my family and friends were in the rooms so I went over and had a good chat with them before I did my recovery.
We all then went out for dinner to a local pub on Spencer Street and we had a nice meal. I then stayed in the city with mum and dad and my sisters in an apartment and chatted and reminisced. I then had breakfast with my friends and family this morning which was nice.
Spending that quality time with everyone close to me is something I’ll never forget. You really can’t look too far ahead in this caper, you should take time to reflect and look back at where you came from. Those close to me will always keep me grounded.
For the moment, I’m just enjoying what happened yesterday and I’m going to lap it up while I can.
I’ll think about selection later in the week. I understand I’m still young and nothing comes easily in this game.
Decisions need to made and I understand that hard calls occur.
For now, I want to build on that first stepping stone.
ANATOMY OF A DEBUT — LEWIS YOUNG
By Lewis Young Jul 17, 2017
4
Playing my first game on Sunday was a surreal experience, and is something that I’m still coming to grips with.
Like all kids who grow up playing AFL and idolising their heroes, it’s something that was always a dream and something that I worked incredibly hard for. To do it, however, is another thing altogether!
Despite being so young and turning 18 just 11 days before the end of 2016, I had my heart set on being selected in the 2016 draft, knowing that 2017 could be a fall-back option if I was to be unsuccessful.
My tender age meant that a lot of clubs looked at me as a developing player who could be good in a few years so snapping me up in 2016 would provide another year of development in the AFL system, so I don’t think it was a negative.
But it wasn’t until a week before the draft that the possibility started to become a reality. Prior to that I was just hopeful.
Looking back at everything, I couldn’t be happier to have landed with the Western Bulldogs, even if my parents were upset to see me leave home at such a young age.
Since moving to the Whitten Oval, I’ve learnt so much and have really bonded with the other young boys at the club. We all talk about relocation and what we’re getting up to on our days off and how we’re coping. It’s just nice to be able to have that release because we’re all going through the same thing.
As the season has progressed, I wasn’t sure if I’d debut or not, but my focus was just on playing strongly with the reserves.
My VFL form had been pretty good. I’ve moved around a little bit, starting up forward and then moving into defence. I did a lot of work with Rohan Smith and Jordan Russell to assist with my positioning in defence and that really helped me to get some form.
Then, the news I had been waiting for came last Thursday morning.
The match committee chose the team at 8:30am, and Rohan Smith came into the physio room and took me into his office.
There, Luke Beveridge, Rohan and Jordan Russell told me that I was playing. Then, Bevo announced it to the group later in the afternoon and everyone got around me.
I rang dad straight away. Rohan Smith told me that I needed to ring him immediately which I appreciated, so I ran over to my phone and gave him a call.
The next couple of days were a bit of a blur. Obviously, a lot of things changed with the build-up given I was playing for a new team — it was a lot more intense in terms of the scheduling of the day, but overall the morning of the game and in the week leading up I did all of the same things.
I didn’t want to change anything, I wanted to act as if I was just going into a normal VFL or under 18s game.
So I continued with my slightly weird pre-game ritual. I always get up and make myself an omelette, eat that, and then have a warm bath with some radox in it. That relaxes me and gets me in a good mindset before the game.
About 25-30 of my friends and family came over from South Australia, and the club set up all of the tickets for them which was a huge help. I even had some mates pile into cars on the Sunday morning as they commenced the drive over!
Despite having everyone in town, I did my own thing when it came to driving into the ground. I told mum and dad that I’d see them afterwards, so I left pretty early to ensure that I wouldn’t mess anything up when it came to carparks and getting into the MCG properly. I got there very early before the game because I didn’t know how to get in and was fearful of going in the wrong entrance. It was the first time I drove under the G’ so I gave myself plenty of time to acclimatise.
When I got to the ground I saw all of my teammates, they all came to me and wished me luck which was a nice moment.
Bob Murphy and Dale Morris pulled me aside at certain times to make sure I was fine and to provide some advice.
They kept telling me that it was my first game, and I would only get one shot at it, so when I ran out I should have a look around and smile and take it all in.
Earlier on, I spoke about how I’ve gelled off-field with the younger guys, but on the field it’s people like Dale, Bob, Zaine Cordy, Matthew Boyd and Easton Wood who have assisted me when it comes to my development as part of the defensive unit.
They’ve helped with my game plan work and getting my mental state right to ensure that I’m staying in the game at all times and to stop me from switching off and daydreaming.
If you watch closely yesterday, you would have seen the great leadership in the backline. There were a lot of times where I was out of position and Dale Morris and Zaine Cordy were in my ear telling me to move left or right which was needed.
Without that support, I would have really struggled out there.
Losing focus and daydreaming comes down to inexperience because I’m still learning the game and it’s also about focusing properly.
It’s such a long game and a lot of different things happen so you have to be thinking on your feet when it comes to defence, attack, when you’re going to the bench and all of those different aspects.
It can be overwhelming and it’s easy to lose focus. Having the right mindset at certain times is really important.
The game moves so fast so it’s difficult to remember a lot of what happened, but I guess I should talk about the mark I took.
The ball was just there and I ran at it and I happened to sit on Matty Suckling’s head which was exciting but also very lucky.
He put a photo on Instagram and joked that I posterised him which was funny, and nice of him to do.
After the game, all of my family and friends were in the rooms so I went over and had a good chat with them before I did my recovery.
We all then went out for dinner to a local pub on Spencer Street and we had a nice meal. I then stayed in the city with mum and dad and my sisters in an apartment and chatted and reminisced. I then had breakfast with my friends and family this morning which was nice.
Spending that quality time with everyone close to me is something I’ll never forget. You really can’t look too far ahead in this caper, you should take time to reflect and look back at where you came from. Those close to me will always keep me grounded.
For the moment, I’m just enjoying what happened yesterday and I’m going to lap it up while I can.
I’ll think about selection later in the week. I understand I’m still young and nothing comes easily in this game.
Decisions need to made and I understand that hard calls occur.
For now, I want to build on that first stepping stone.
- Apr 26, 2013
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Zaine. Our premiership hero and backline General.
fronkalicious
Brownlow Medallist
Zaine is fast becoming one of my faves.
ossie_21
Premium Platinum
Considering he's only played about 25 AFL games & a fair chunk of those up forward, that's a massive compliment to him! Great to hear that straight from another player
bresker
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I bloody hope that he holds his place in the team after that debut!!
I know all young players half expect to be dropped in favour of the more experienced players and somebody will have to make way for Wood coming back into the team, there is not a chance in hell that he gets dropped surely. While hard calls do have to be made, the selection of Young in this weeks team is not one of the hard calls. In my view after his performance against Carlton he should be one of the first picked.
Last edited:
Pinch Hitters
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- Apr 16, 2017
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I thought this was an interesting review.
https://aussiefootyforums.com/news/sports/aussie-rules/afl-round-17-learned-liked-and-disliked/
https://aussiefootyforums.com/news/sports/aussie-rules/afl-round-17-learned-liked-and-disliked/
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I posted after the teams were announced that we need to hose down our expectations because it was likely to end in disappointment ... that I'd be happy with a few flashes of something special but otherwise just a serviceable game where Young tried to do the right team things, fitting in with the zone defence and making a few spoils etc.
So for him to come out and get 20+ possessions, 6 intercept marks, 2 CMs has blown me away.
Not sure how I can hose down the expectations for next week! It's an exciting time when you see a new talent emerge.
So for him to come out and get 20+ possessions, 6 intercept marks, 2 CMs has blown me away.
Not sure how I can hose down the expectations for next week! It's an exciting time when you see a new talent emerge.
There were times he looked a little bit lost and unsure and then he took a couple of backman-like marks and dished off the handball... and then he floated in with perfect timing and took that screamer over Kruezer and by-god it made me happy. Definitely the happiest I've been all year at the footy. Reminded me of one of the best things to see at the footy, and that is a great debut game.
Bloody hell that was great!
Bloody hell that was great!
He looks like Easton.
- Sep 27, 2005
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After an up and down year, that article by Lewis reminded me of everything that is great about footy.
So much joy, happiness and optimism. Sounds like a very switched on and mature kid and one who I hope will have a very long career with us.
So much joy, happiness and optimism. Sounds like a very switched on and mature kid and one who I hope will have a very long career with us.
- Apr 26, 2013
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Ha. Didn't notice before but he went the double jumper. Classic.
