Zac’s big adventure
ZAC Smith can’t go too far in AFL-mad Geelong without being recognised.
It’s a far cry from his home town of Rockhampton, deep in the heart of league territory where few would know who he was if they passed him on the street.
“Yeah, it’s a little bit different down here,” says the Cats’ towering ruckman.
“A lot of people hang around the club especially. As you’re walking in they will want a photo or want something signed.
“They are pretty desperate sometimes. But I love it.”
Born in Biloela, the 27year-old has been soaking up the lifestyle along Victoria’s Bellarine Peninsula.
“It’s a really great environment, a really great community down here in Geelong,” he said.
“The people obviously thrive on the footy club.
“It’s really the heartbeat of the town. And it’s a really cool feeling ... win or lose, the town rides that with you. They are all in for the club.
“That’s one thing I’ve really been enjoying.”
“Sleepy Hollow’’, as it’s known, will be on the edge of its seat tonight when its beloved Cats contest a cutthroat semi-final against Sydney at the MCG.
They are aiming to avoid both an eighth defeat in their past 10 finals, following last week’s mauling by the Tigers, and a fourth straight loss to the Swans.
“It was obviously disappointing,” Smith said of the qualifying final defeat.
“But we moved on pretty quickly to be honest. You really have to. You can’t just dwell on it because we’ve got another massive challenge on our hands.
“We had a brief review of last week’s game and now look towards the Swans.”
Smith is now fully entrenched in Geelong as a “local” with his wife Aimee.
There’s certainly no regrets about the move from the Gold Coast Suns in 2015.
“I thought it was going to be the best thing for me at the time,” he said.
“My wife and I moved down and saw it as an adventure. On the Goldy, it really depended on whether you’re winning or losing
“I remember we had a pretty good run there for a while and the town was up and about.”