Young skipper wasting no time putting his stamp on Supersaints
AT just 24, it would be easy for a first-year captain to just sit back quietly and observe while they get their feet under the desk.
But that’s not Zac Smith’s style. The St Albans Breakwater skipper has a simple mantra: back in his players and let them perform.
“I try to give faith to the players and back them all in 100 per cent,” Smith said.
“I haven’t picked a set of 11 yet that I haven’t believed could win the game, so I put it on them.
“I tell them it’s their moment, ‘This is what you have to do’. If it doesn’t come off, it doesn’t come off, but as long as I can work with them and guide them it usually seems to work.”
The player-first approach seems to be working for the Supersaints, who sit third on the GCA3 ladder after a finals appearance last season.
And it is their young captain leading the new era, thrust into the role during pre-season after plans for Chris Hester to captain-coach the club were dashed after the birth of his child.
“I’ve done a bit of captaincy through junior footy and cricket, but nothing in a senior side,” Smith said.
“My dad has played a lot of cricket at the club and I’ve grown up watching him captain sides, so it’s a surreal thing to be able to captain the first XI at the club I grew up at. It’s special for me.”
Smith’s self-described “laidback” approach is seemingly effective, with the skipper playing with a carefree attitude that springs life into his teammates. In his past six innings where he has faced 10 or more balls, the powerful middleorder hitter has attacked at a strike-rate of 128.
Last weekend, with 40 to win against Geelong West, Smith strode in at No. 9 and smacked 37 from 21 deliveries to lead his side to a vital twowicket victory over a fellow finals contender.
“It’s something I try to talk to the boys about a fair bit — you want to be that player when it comes down to you, whether that’s with the ball or bat,” said Smith, who made 389 runs last summer. “It’s something I urge everyone to try and do in the team. If it’s your time to go, just go. Fortunately enough I was out there and able to reap the rewards of it.”
Smith’s Supersaints sit six points off top place and face Lethbridge in this round’s twoday match before taking on the ever-improving Guild-Saints in the lead-up to Christmas.
“I’m pretty happy where we are at the moment,” he said. “Every win we can get before Christmas is absolute gold for us.”