TALENTED teenager Hamish Davis played two of the best games produced by a draft prospect this year during WAFL club Claremont's finals series, but it was the down week in between that he learned most from.

Davis, who has risen rapidly this season as a 191cm forward/midfielder, was the star of the Tigers' elimination final win when he booted four goals at league level, returning to his colts team a fortnight later to earn best-on-ground honours in a winning Grand Final.

Sandwiched in the middle, however, was a game Davis would want back after he rode the high of his four-goal performance and backed it up with a handful of possessions in a losing semi-final.

"I was just stoked to be playing in a league final and winning it, and after playing the best game of my season I was obviously on a high, and people were talking about me," Davis told AFL.com.au.

"But I didn't play the game I wanted to the next week, and we lost by one point and the season was over.

"I certainly learned immediate lessons to always stay grounded, because footy is going to change very quickly. I was lucky that my season wasn't done, but for all my teammates it was.

"I could play the next week in the colts Grand Final, so I took those lessons into the game and really did my best for my colts team. So, I'll learn from that going into next year."

Staying resilient, having a positive mindset and moving on quickly from poor performances were other lessons Davis learned, and he emerged to star in the colts Grand Final, winning the Mel Whinnen Medal as best afield with 30 disposals and seven inside 50s.  

It was the highlight of a year that built quickly and then went into overdrive when Davis achieved a tightly held goal of playing league footy in July after an impressive Marsh Under-18 Championships with Western Australia.

"That was always an internal goal of mine and I didn't really talk to anyone about it, but from the start of the year I always wanted to play some league footy," Davis said.  

"I guess I just wanted to kind of keep it to myself. Go about my kind of business from an internal point of view. But I knew I was good enough internally and I guess it was just internal motivation.

"To get the opportunity was awesome and I was very thankful for that. 

"It was a great experience, and I guess quite daunting at first. But I got more confident as I played each game, and the boys were really good at helping me transition from colts to the league side.

"Then to finish off with a colts flag was awesome as well, so I was really happy with my year both individually and from a team aspect."

Davis shone as a high forward for most of the year, and it's where he played most of his footy during the championships and during a seven-game stint at league level with Claremont.

But some stints in the midfield with the Tigers' colts side, particularly in the 35-point Grand Final win, underlined his confidence that the former state runner could eventually develop into an inside midfielder or wingman.

"High forward would be my main position and where I've played most of my footy and my best footy. I use my running ability to work high up the ground and to get really hard back as well," Davis said.

"That's where I feel most comfortable going forward into next year and probably where I see my best position, but I also think that as I develop and work on some of my deficiencies I can turn into an inside midfielder or winger as well. 

"I haven't played much midfield over the past few years, but I just felt that the more games I played in the midfield, the more comfortable I got and the more I learned. 

"With my size and using my bigger body in the contest, I found that pretty beneficial and started to understand how to use my body as much as I can."

Davis' running power was on show at the Telstra AFL Draft Combine, recording the fifth best 2km time trial nationally.

It's a trait that came naturally early in his junior career but has also been honed through hard work as a cross-country and athletics competitor and then as a bigger-bodied footballer.

The players he now models himself on are the AFL stars who mix their size advantages with a running edge that grinds down opponents, such as Geelong superstar Jeremy Cameron.

Hawthorn midfielder Will Day has also become a favourite, while Western Bulldogs captain Marcus Bontempelli has the on-field and off-field traits Davis aspires to.

"It's the way he plays the game and can impact in so many ways. He uses his body around contests and he's someone I've admired and just love to watch," Davis said on Bontempelli. 

"His skills on top of that and the way he pushes forward and hits the scoreboard so much.

"Then the off-field stuff. I've never met him, but he seems like a professional off the field and such a great leader, so that's something I've tried to look at and emulate in my game off-field."