Western Bulldogs debutant Lachie Smith could've missed his boat to carve an AFL career if not for the Covid-19 pandemic.
A state-level basketballer, that sport took precedent after three years playing up an age group for Bunyip aged 9-11-years-old, before remarkably not playing a competitive game of footy between the ages of 11 and 16.
Warragul coach and family friend Dave Carpenter recognised his talent and nagged him to play every year, but was always knocked back due to his extensive basketball commitments.
“I wouldn't have kept ringing him if he wasn't as talented as he was," Carpenter told Zero Hanger.
That was until Victoria's 2021 lockdown measures prohibited indoor sports, allowing him to play footy without compromising his basketball commitments.
It only took a few local footy games for Smith to decide that he would stick to the footy path.
"I could see his potential and knew he would make it if he could get into the Gippsland Power system,” said Carpenter, who has previously been involved in the Power program.
“His size was obviously appealing and he had a good work ethic and his ground balls were elite for a big fella.
“He had a beautiful left foot kick and had all the athletic attributes which is probably why it's taken him a few years - because he was out of football for so long as a junior.”
Despite minimal exposure to that point, Gippsland Power invited him to their summer trials and he was given a list spot in 2022 and built on his strong form the following year, making Vic Country.
The Dogs pounced on the combative and skilful big man with Pick 47 at the 2023 AFL National Draft, and he has spent the past two years developing in the VFL.
Smith follows Jasper Alger, the McKay brothers and the Serongs as Warragul alumni onto the big stage.
“It's reward for effort for a lot of people. You want talent and to attract good families and he definitely comes from that,” Carpenter said.
“He was always a quiet kid and very respectful. It's a really good advertisement for what we can do for young talent and the type of people we want.”
Nicknamed “fossil” at the Western Bulldogs given he looks much older than his 20-year-old age, Lonnie Collins, who coached Smith aged 9-11 confirms that has always been the case.
“He was very raw, tall and was like a baby giraffe running around. You could tell he had a little bit of talent and his basketball skills helped him out,” Collins quipped.
“He played up a grade and because he was so big, a lot of people thought he shouldn't have been with us because he was too old, no one could believe he was so young!"
He has one of the toughest assignments in footy first up, battling against seasoned Sydney ruck Brodie Grundy who has had a stellar career resurgence in the past 12 months.
“I think he's that laid back - he might be a little bit tense but he'll just take it in his stride,” said Carpenter, who has known him for more than a decade.
“Being scrutinised and going through the basketball selection process for underage basketball teams means the pressure of a game of footy won't be as arduous on him as it would for other country kids.”
Smith's work to get to the big stage is also having ripples in the nearby Bunyip community.
The Bunyip Bulldogs senior side went 2-52 across the 2023-2025 in a difficult chapter of the club's history, but counting Sydney star Tom Papley and Smith as alumni has been a source of pride.
“It's amazing having them - the young kids now work so hard and are talking about these boys,” Bunyip's Collins told Zero Hanger.
“They know how hard those guys worked and they're down every night working on their skills so these boys, especially Lachie being younger, has rubbed off on them a bit to inspire them to reach the highest level.”
