TALENTED defender Jess Smith was wondering last year if he'd ever play football again.

Crippled by a chronic ankle complaint that just didn't seem to be getting any better, Smith was told he might have to shelve his dream of following in the footsteps of his former Kangaroo father, Ross.

"It was a very frustrating injury," Smith told kangaroos.com.au, after winning the round seven nomination for the NAB AFL Rising Star award.

"It was a pretty unlucky injury to have. It was very frustrating, and at times, I doubted whether I would come back the same as what I was before I did the injury.

"To be back out there playing … it's been that long coming, that I'm just really excited to be back out there and playing senior football, and being part of a winning side at the minute."

Smith, who ripped his ankle ligaments off the bone in the unlucky incident in last year’s pre-season, spoke of the complications that threatened to end his AFL career before it had effectively started.

"It can be related to a knee reconstruction, I suppose. There was a lot of stiffness within the joint, and a lot of scar tissue build-up, which restricted the movement and was causing a lot of pain," he said.

"It's gone away a bit, in a way, as it just needed a lot of time to heal. It's starting to come up pretty good for games, and there's only a little bit of soreness during the week.

"On game days, it usually doesn't give me trouble at all."

While confident he can continue to manage the on-going discomfort that comes with such an injury, he's unsure if it will be something that plagues him throughout his career.

"I hope it's not always going to be a problem," he said.

"It doesn't really bother me during the games, which is the most important thing. If I pull up a bit sore during the week, I'm happy to put up with it.

"As long as I'm ready for the game the next week, it doesn't matter."

Smith played six senior games in his first year at the club in 2005, before missing the entire season last year as his ankle slowly mended.

The two appearances he has put in so far this season have shown a more confident and mature player, compared to the youngster who played almost two years ago.

"The nerves have settled a lot, considering in my first few games at AFL level, I was pretty nervous and a bit fumbly," he said.

"I probably didn't belong at the level at that stage. I hope I've come along in that regard, but I know I'm not as nervous out on the field.

"I feel a bit more composed within myself, and I definitely feel I can play at that level, while I doubted myself in my first few games."

Smith bears the number of club great Anthony Stevens, who he knew through his father before becoming a listed player, and said he is proud to wear the blue and white No. 10.

"At first I didn't know I was going to wear it because Anthony Stevens had just retired the year I got to the club," he said.

"There was talk they were going to retire the number for a year, and he rang the club up and didn't want any of it.

"He wanted his number given to a player straight away, and I was more than happy to take it."