Numbered: Cats draftees Cameron Guthrie, Alby Smedts, George Horlin-Smith and Jordan Schroder try on their famous numbers before stepping out on Skilled Stadium for the first time.
Andrew Mathieson
GEELONG has put the past behind it – including Gary Ablett’s shock Gold Coast departure – by anointing the Cats’ latest four draftees with few familiar numbers on their backs.
Guernseys made famous by captain Tom Harley, Max Rooke and Ablett were handed out to the unknown teenage faces this week.
The club took the decision to reward each round’s draft picks in order of the lowest jumper numbers available from the Cats’ departed premiership heroes.
A fourth, worn by champion Peter Riccardi and vacated this year by Ryan Gamble, made up the lot.
Billie Smedts, a former Geelong Falcon utility from Warrnambool, was the first to receive his jumper, which was Harley’s famous number two.
“It’s awesome to have Tom Harley’s number – it’s definitely a big honour,” Smedts said.
The son of former Footscray backmen Alby Smedts, the pick 15 in this year’s AFL draft was pleased to land at Skilled Stadium after boarding at Geelong Grammar for the past two years.
“I came down here yesterday, got the tour of the club and mum and dad were pretty happy,” he said.
Attention soon turned to the Cats’ second selection, Cameron Guthrie at pick 23, when he was paraded in front of the waiting media.
All the questions should have been on the fact Guthrie took out the Calder Cannons’ best and fairest ahead of Mitch Wallis and Tom Liberatore, who are headed to the Western Bulldogs under the father/son rule.
But when he was offered Ablett’s number 29 jumper, Guthrie tried to play it down.
“It’s just a number,” he said.
He was aware the comparisons among the Cats’ faithful would be inevitable.
“It’s pretty big shoes to fill but I’ll try to do the number proud,” he said.
“One of the boys said to me that I’ll have 30,000 kids running around with my number on their backs before I play a game but I’ll just take it as it comes.”
Sturt recruit George Horlin Smith inherited Rooke’s number 33.
Staring out into the middle of Geelong’s home ground, the forward couldn’t help notice a cricket pitch being laid for an interstate Twenty20 game in a week.
It was a reminder of a potential future in a sport that he gave up for a tough pre-season after captaining the Australian under-16 cricket side to the West Indies last year.
“I’m not really sure what to expect to be honest but I’m looking forward to it,” Horlin-Smith said.
The Cannons’ Jordan Schroder, who will wear number 15, is built well-beyond most 18-year-olds with a body resembling a young Josh Hunt.
