Bailey Smith has committed to the Western Bulldogs but admits he still needs to work on accepting roles away from his preferred midfield position.
The AFL star endured a tough season where he faced criticism that he was less committed than he needed to be – but he has now turned to business off the field in the hopes of helping his performance on it.
The 22-year-old social media juggernaut has launched vodka label Barry, which he says will help him focus when it counts.
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“There’s only so much you can train and I’ve fallen into the trap of over-training and being too obsessed,” he told 7NEWS Melbourne.
“On my days off, I can surf, go play golf, but I’m more into building businesses and it’s something I’m passionate about that’s also productive too.”
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Smith’s off-field move comes as he declares he won’t be switching clubs.
He has received interest from Hawthorn and Geelong but is “very committed” to the Bulldogs, though for now he remains contracted only for 2024.
“I just want to keep fuelling the fire there. I just want to go all the way, so the red, white and blue is the best place to do it,” Smith said.
Western Bulldogs midfielder Bailey Smith. Credit: Getty
Yet Smith admits he wasn’t always on board with coach Luke Beveridge’s plan to play him forward of the ball.
“It was a different change this year … I hope I play more midfield next year,” he said.
“I probably wasn’t good at just accepting the (forward) role. I did a bit, but more was I just want to play in the midfield.
“Next year, whatever is thrown at me I’ll just attack it as well as I can. I just want to win.”
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Smith said he has a “great relationship” with Beveridge.
“There’d be days where we spend an hour or two because we can’t get out of the conversation,” he said.
“We just talk about life.”
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