It was the first practice match of the VFL season and James Appleford was a nervous man. He had not really pictured himself as a VFL player, but here he was about to take on the premiership favourites.
Predictably, that nervousness turned into a poor performance. Playing in the backline he was unable to stop his man and unable to win the ball. He was promptly placed in the early game the following week.
“I was so nervous,” Appleford said. “I was too worried to run off my man at all, I just didn’t want to stuff up.”
So when ‘Apples’ was recalled to the seniors for the crucial game against Box Hill after seven games in the development team that yielded just two appearances in the best players, some Dolphins fans were a little nervous themselves.
They need not have been, with the 20-year old from Rye putting in a strong and spirited performance.
Following the game he was a relieved and happy man. “It is so much better playing in the ones. It was really disappointing that we lost, but I felt I got a lot out of it. It feels good to know that I can do it.”
While Apples didn’t bother the scorers himself, his strong contest in the air and at ground level helped set up a number of goals as the Dolphins ran the Hawks close for most of the game - three late Box Hill majors sealing their fate.
For Appleford, his performance came down to having a more positive outlook than during his debut in the practice game. “I noticed how much quicker and more skilful it was in the midfield, but for me I just played the same, I didn’t think ‘oh my God that guy is really good because he is an AFL player’.
“Before the game Russ (Gabriel) said to me to just play like I was playing in the under 16s. That helped, and I thought I went pretty good.”
Ironically, Appleford actually made his senior debut for Rye while he was in the under 16s, taking on Dromana and Simon Goosey. The young Apples kicking a couple of goals to signal he could well be a player of the future.
The next he heard of Goosey was via the mail. “I just got a letter in the mail asking me to come down (to Frankston) and train. I thought I would come up and give it a go, but I was worried that I wouldn’t make the squad at all.
“My first thoughts were damn this pre-season is hard! But I’ve really enjoyed it and I think I have really improved with all the work,” he said.
Apples is now determined to consolidate his spot. He knows that many young players have made a strong debut only to fade away, and he knows exactly what he has to do to make sure he avoids that fate. “I am just going to do everything right to stay in the side. I haven’t been going out and drinking, I am really committed to my football.
“On the field I just have to play my role, doing the pressure acts, the tackling and chasing. Hopefully then I will kick a few goals too.”
As for looking to the next level, Appleford is realistic about that. “I think it’s everyone’s dream to play AFL, but really I just want to establish myself as a senior VFL player. If I can do that who knows what will happen, but that’s not what I’m thinking about at the moment.”
Paul Kennedy
Last Modified on 29/06/2011 23:23