It was barely a year and a half ago that Amy Smith decided to put all her energy into football, but the former basketballer has taken a massive leap in quick time.
Smith, daughter of Shaun, who played 47 games for North Melbourne and another 67 for Melbourne between 1987 - 1999 and sister to Melbourne player Joel, is the latest addition to the Kangaroos’ AFLW list.
“If you had asked my dad two years ago if I was going to play footy it wouldn’t even be a maybe it was definitely a no,” Smith told North Media.
“He never thought I would play footy and it was just a bit of a last minute decision.
“I saw so many girls going from basketball to footy and I thought ‘I can do that’ and I didn’t want to have regrets later down the track in not giving it a go.
“I had nothing to lose so I just thought I may as well give it a crack … and I’m really glad I did.
“I’m super excited and very grateful for this opportunity and I just can’t wait to go down to the club and meet everyone.”
Smith said she had drawn inspiration from her family from a young age.
“I always looked up to my brother and I always have from when we were little, I always kind of followed him around and did what he wanted to do,” she said.
“My dad’s been there form the start … he never forced me to go into footy, he was just there to support me.
“It was a very big shock to him (Amy’s switch to football), he wasn’t expecting it, but he was always there to support and we’ve been down to the park kicking heaps. He’s been great.
“It definitely makes it extra special being father-daughter and going down in history as the first father-daughter at North.”
While Smith admitted she still had plenty of improvement to come, it’s a challenge she’s excited to tackle.
“Obviously I haven’t played a whole lot of footy. It was disappointing that I wasn’t able to play this year, so I think I still have a lot of developing to do and I’m super excited to get down and start pre-season and build on my game and add things to my game.
“I think definitely my speed and clean hands are definitely a couple of my strengths.”
In her first year of football, Smith played for Aberfeldie in the Eastern District Football League (EDFL), who went on to win the 2019 Premiership. She was also named in the EDFL Team of the Year.
