For a 24-year-old, Box Hill’s David Mirra has already had a remarkably decorated career in the Peter Jackson VFL.
In his first season of regular senior football with the Hawks in 2011, Mirra burst onto the scene as a versatile and reliable defender, earning selection in the VFL Team of the Year.
Two years later, the former Eastern Ranges player made both the Team of the Year and the Victorian representative team in Box Hill’s 2013 premiership season.
When Marco Bello took over from Damian Carroll as the club’s coach for 2014, Mirra was voted in as the new captain of the defending premiers, replacing Daniel Pratt.
He had played with Bello in 2010 at Development League level and had developed rapidly in the time since.
But perhaps the biggest feather in Mirra’s cap is that he then went about his usual business, again named in the Team of the Year and Victorian representative side, all while leading his team to another VFL Grand Final, which it lost to Footscray by 22 points.
His success to date in the new leadership role has only elevated his standing as one of the finest VFL players of the last five years.
“Setting the standard is important to me,” Mirra said.
“I like to teach the game plan and give little tips I’ve learnt along the way to my teammates, while off the field we are very big on involving everyone in social aspects to develop our relationships, which in turn will help our performance.”
Mirra has been helping develop several VFL-listed defenders at Box Hill, players who have been part of 2015’s stingiest back lines in both the VFL and Development League (in terms of points conceded).
“I've worked closely with most of the younger guys playing in the back line, guys like Sam Gibson, Joseph Fisher, Julian Soccio, Xavier Dimasi and Sam Switkowski,” Mirra said.
“I’m working with them on positioning and setting up, and sharing my experiences.”
Mirra is not only striving to have a positive influence on his teammates, but also the community in his role a VFL Multicultural Ambassador.
Of Italian heritage, Mirra used to enjoy watching Mark Mercuri – also of Italian descent –play in the strong Essendon midfields of the late 1990s and early 2000s when he was growing up, and still holds out hope of being able to emulate one of his heroes by being drafted to the ranks of the AFL.
While he’s putting together another good year in the second-placed Hawks defence, Mirra said he’s still working on bringing certain aspects of his game up to “AFL standard”.
“I’m working hard on pushing up the ground, getting more inside 50s and getting a good balance between attack and defence,” he said.
His record as a player has been there for all to see for several years now, but David Mirra’s growing record as a leader might be adding another important string to his bow in the eyes of recruiters.
Last Modified on 07/08/2015 15:08
