Jacobs’ mind on job after ‘crazy’ month

ADELAIDE ruckman Sam Jacobs says the prospect of an AFL premiership has given his life a purpose since the death of his brother.

Jacobs says his teammates have helped him carry a heavy heart after his brother Aaron died on August 30, eight days before Adelaide’s first final.

“That’s a bit of an understatement, emotional rollercoaster,” he said.

“It has been a crazy past month — the tragic event I went through. But at the same time I had real purpose around trying to get [AFL] success.”

After Jacobs’s 31-year-old brother died of an undisclosed illness, the Crows rallied around the popular ruckman.

But before Saturday’s AFL Grand Final against Richmond, Jacobs was also at pains to not disrupt Adelaide’s finals campaign.

“When I lost my brother Aaron it wasn’t ever about me,” he said. “It’s about continuing the journey we started back in 2011 when I got to the club.

“As as a team we have gone through some really tough times,” he said, referring to the deaths of coach Phil Walsh in 2015 and assistant coach Dean Bailey in 2014.

“Unfortunately, I have been through it [grieving] before and I feel I have got some pretty good tools to be able to deal with it. And playing footy with my mates is part of that.”

After his brother’s death, Jacobs returned to Ardrossan on the Yorke Peninsula, where he found another community rallying in support.

“Ardrossan has gone to lengths to make sure my family and me are well supported, which has been amazing from back home,” he said.

“At the funeral I had mates come over from Melbourne to be there for me.”