AS A CHILD, Nathan Buckley was always on the move. The former Collingwood captain attended 13 schools and countless football clubs as his family shifted across the country.

At one stage, he even played alongside fellow future Brownlow recipient James Hird, as an under-13 in Canberra.

Buckley says football was an essential tool for integrating into new places.

“I relied on football entirely. The first thing I ever did when I moved into a new place was get straight to the local club and just get into training,” he says.

“I suppose it’s something common to kids that age – just find other guys that have got the same interests and get down the footy club and start kicking the ball around, and you can be great mates in five minutes.”

Fellow Australian Football 150 Years Ambassador Chris Grant, who was recruited to the Western Bulldogs from Daylesford at the tender age of 17, says without a doubt, playing country footy in senior company in the Ballarat Football League helped his development.

“Being young, I stayed at home as a 16-year-old and played senior football back at home,” Grant says.

“So when I arrived down to start my preseason the following year at Footscray, I’d played a season against men already, some pretty rough men, in country footy. And that really did prepare me for the start of my AFL career.”

Grant and Buckley donned their junior club jumpers to celebrate Community Football Weekend, which will take place on May 9-11