The 173cm crumbing, pressure forward was almost embarrassed he had the audacity to fly for a mark deep in the Hawks forwardline midway through the third quarter against Geelong on Monday.

 

After all he knows his number one job is to put pressure on the opposition defenders.

 

Launching above opponents and taking a screamer, as he did when he sat on Geelong's Jed Bews and crumpled a pack containing the opposition's Jared Rivers and teammates Ben McEvoy and Cyril Rioli, is not in the job description.

 

But with the team leading by 40 points and Will Langford's kick high, Puopolo's instinct kicked in.

 

"I guess I had the opportunity to go for it so I did. I don't think they want me flying for too many so I might have to put the cue in the rack for a while now," Puopolo told AFL.com.au.

 

It would be a pity if he did.

 

Pound for pound the best draft pick in recent times, the No.66 selection in the 2010 NAB AFL Draft is capable of doing the unusual.

 

After some hard lessons he now picks his moments more wisely.

 

It has made him a two-time premiership player, a fan favourite and someone respected within Hawthorn's four walls.

 

But it has not caused him to lose his humility, and the self-deprecating lines that flow as fast as his little legs pump when he does something that puts him in the footballing spotlight.

 

"[I was] lucky I had someone to sit on otherwise I would have looked like a fool just jumping in the air," Puopolo said.

 

He's nobody's fool.

 

Puopolo's a pocket rocket who knew immediately that taking the mark wouldn't count for much if he didn't kick the goal.

 

"I always put the team first and that is what I wanted: to finish off with the goal,” he said.

 

He cooly put the ball through the middle and extended the Hawks lead.

The smallest man on the ground had shown he possessed the big leap.

 

After the game he showed it didn't come with a big ego.

 

That is the 'Poppy' package.