SEEING fellow Bulldogs draftee Marcus Bontempelli make his mark in the AFL with a NAB Rising Star nomination in round 13 has been a major driving factor for debutant Mitch Honeychurch.
The 19-year-old attacking midfielder will make his debut on Sunday against Melbourne after a number of standout performances in the VFL for Footscray which has seen him average four goals in his past three outings.
Taken at pick 60 in last year's NAB AFL Draft, it's been a long wait for Honeychurch who has had to sit back and watch as others around him, like first-round draftee Bontempelli, make an impact.
"[Watching Bontempelli] did make me want it more," Honeychurch told AFL.com.au.
"Marcus obviously played some very good football early on in the season and got his reward with six or seven AFL games now. That was definitely a driving factor for me.
"We're pretty competitive and we always want the same as each other. It was pretty good watching him out there at AFL level and I'm just looking forward to joining him out there on Sunday."
At 176cm, the ferocious midfielder is best known for his ability to win plenty of contested ball and his nous around goal.
But it was his defensive game that coach Brendan McCartney demanded he improve on before being considered for senior selection.
With the help of the Bulldogs' coaching staff in former triple premiership Cat, Joel Corey, and former premiership Eagle Ashley Hansen, Honeychurch worked tirelessly to become a more well-rounded player.
Fittingly it was Corey himself who called the 19-year-old on Wednesday night with the news he would debut.
"I owe a lot to both of them so far," Honeychurch said.
"Joel's been helping me with my defensive side of my game. AFL nowadays is all about defence. We often go though vision after training, he's got a lot of knowledge and has been able to pass some of that on to me.
"Throughout the pre-season Brendan harped on a lot about defence and that's usually what he rewards. He doesn’t really care about who kicks goals, he cares about the tackles and what you're doing when you don't have the ball.
"That was a key indicator of what I needed to improve on in the pre-season and now I think I've hopefully got that to a level that's satisfactory."
Honeychurch's family and friends will all be present at Etihad Stadium when he runs out in the red, white and blue for the first time. A moment he still can't quite believe is here.
"I was pretty surprised in a sense but I've been playing some OK footy over the last few weeks and was just waiting for my opportunity," he said.
"I've just been working hard and I'm just so happy to get a go and get my first game.
"I will be a bit nervous, all my friends and family will be there. I'm representing the Doggies for the first time, it'll be a massive thrill."
