It is not uncommon for players to experience mixed emotions ahead of an encounter with their old club.
Most athletes think about how they will be received by their former colleagues and wonder if they will be a target throughout the course of the contest.
That’s not the case for Belinda Smith, who told Eagles Media that she could not wait to line up against her former Western Bulldogs teammates at Leederville Oval on Saturday.
The first-year Eagle doesn’t mind having a chinwag on the footy field and she said lining up against old friends would give her all the more to natter about.
“I love lining up against old teammates; I like to have a bit of a chat on the field and I definitely like it when you have a bit of history and you know who you can have banter with,” Smith said.
“I’ll definitely be looking forward to this weekend. I’ll have a lot to say.”
The 24-year-old has already crossed clubs twice in her burgeoning AFLW career.
After two years with the Fremantle Dockers she signed with the Western Bulldogs as a free agent for the 2018 season.
Now with the Eagles, she has gone there and back again to familiar territory, changing more than just her colours.
Smith was originally signed as a forward, but when it became apparent that the Eagles’ talented but inexperienced defence could use a veteran’s presence the Pingrup product was thrown down back.
“We had a lot of things we needed to work on. I switched from forward to back realising we had a few holes in the backline,” Smith said.
“I was a defender for the first 15 years of my playing life, so it feels like I’m back at home.”
“We’ve kept it really simple; lock down, beat your player one-on-one and we’ll go from there.”
Smith hoped the transient nature of her playing career would reap some benefits for West Coast at the weekend.
“I’ve had a few chats with our backline coach (Andrew Di Loreto) about who I’d like to line up on,” Smith said.
“You know what tricks they have, what kind of speed and aerial ability they possess, so you can work out the match-ups a lot better,”
“I’ve definitely given everyone a few pointers.”
