EXPECT to see Collingwood dynamo Marty Clarke continue his rise and rise as an AFL footballer in 2008 – and not just because he’ll have a second pre-season under his belt.

The former Magpies rookie was one of the feel-good stories of last year, running out in 12 senior matches and playing a significant part in his club’s finals push.

And all that after having only joined Collingwood the previous summer.

Australian Football, Clarke said – when afl.com.au caught up with him at the Magpies’ community camp in Potchefstroom, South Africa – is still new to him. So it may send a scare through rival clubs to hear that the 20-year-old Irishman feels he will enter his second year at AFL level armed with a weapon more valuable than another pre-season – knowledge.

“It’s still totally new,” Clarke said when asked about his career.

“Every training session I’m learning different things. Everything that people think would be simple I’m learning every single training [session] I do.

“So absolutely I’m getting a bit more confident now on the ball and [with] where to run to, so I hope to improve this year, big time.”

The casual observer last year would be forgiven for assuming the former Gaelic footballer had been playing the Australian game all his life – especially as he was one of Magpies’ best in front of more than 98,000 fans in his team’s preliminary final loss.

But when speaking to the player whose dramatic rise captivated football followers, one gets a slightly different impression.

“I suppose every player is a bit like that,” he said.

“You know, you can sit in the office as much as you want going over tactics, but you know last year I think I was well informed of where to be on the day.

“Maybe players like Shane O’Bree or Scott Burns, I was able to just run up to them and say, ‘I’m not sure, here’, and they would tell me.

“This year I’d be hoping to maybe able to tell someone where they should be … but you know there’s a lot of good leaders on the ground at Collingwood.”

One thing is certain – Clarke is evidently a fast learner.

He didn’t debut until round 12 – against the Sydney Swans – but by the end of the season nearly everyone in the AFL world knew who Marty Clarke was.

Tough in a one-on-one situation and with a thumping left-foot kick, he was one of Mick Malthouse’s finds of 2007.

But whether he will continue to provide run off half-back or be switched and used more offensively remains to be seen.

“I suppose that’s still the thing, you know, we’re still sort of looking for a settled position for me,” Clarke said.

“Every training, every player’s been tried in different roles.

“I like it at half-back but I’d like to go through the middle as well, but it’s really up to the coaches. I’ll just play where I’m told because I’m really enjoying it.”