Sam Willatt first played Australian Rules as an 18-year-old student after signing up for trials at freshers week. Now he’s close to a professional AFL careerBy Jonathan Drennan for Behind the Lines,part of the Guardian Sport Network Sam Willatt arrived in Melbourne in November after graduating from university. The 21-year-old from Peterborough slept on a friend’s sofa, managed to find part-time work as a lifeguard and also started training with an Australian Rules team after playing in England. That fairly well trodden path deviated radically after he was recruited into the Footscray Bulldogs VFL side, and partnered to the AFL’s top flight Western Bulldogs side. In layman’s terms,this is the equivalent of an Australian playing Sunday League football in Melbourne, flying to London and getting picked up by West Ham’s reserves.
Four years ago Willatt arrived at Birmingham University in search of a fresh sport at freshers week. He had played football and rugby at school without distinguishing himself in either and wanted a change. A poster for the Australian Rules team caught his eye and he found himself on a rutted rugby field trying to pick up to grips with the game. “I fell in cherish with the sport instantly. It was this unbelievable range of so many things, and a different range of skills and speed,but I really was terrible initially. I was just trying to survive in all honesty.”Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com