“AS A young kid, I really loved my footy.”
The footyhead in Jagga Smith has relished the opportunity to be on the big stage in 2026.
After entering the 2025 campaign with so much hype before an untimely turn of events in pre-season, Smith has immediately added to the Blues in his first year of AFL football this year.
Playing every game this season and averaging 25 disposals in the last seven weeks, Smith has emerged as one of the Rising Star favourites alongside Harry Dean, who he’ll line up with once again this week, and West Coast’s Willem Duursma, who he’ll line up against this week.
So it’s quite appropriate that July marks Kids Footy’s Month, with some of the best kids in the game to be on show when the Blues host the Eagles this weekend.
While Carlton currently sits in a promising spot with five victories in a row, the excitement is palpable for Smith in regards to what’s to come.
“Harry Dean has been amazing this year, doing what he’s doing as an 18-year-old key position player is really rare,” Smith told media on Wednesday.
“It’s not just Harry doing it, it’s a lot of our young players. We’ve got about six players under 15 games that can really propel this club forward in the future.
“We’ve got players like Harry O’Farrell coming off a knee and hopefully Cody Walker next year as well. There’s some talent coming through.”
Smith has long credited the influence of the Blues’ senior players in settling into the line-up, with the young midfielder being one of many individuals who has risen to the occasion in recent weeks.
That’s been demonstrated in the coaches’ votes, with Smith polling in four of his last five games: only Patrick Cripps and Sam Walsh have polled more than Smith so far this season.
“We needed to take some ownership as players. We’ve lifted in a few areas, the main thing being playing four quarters of football,” he said.
“Getting back to things that don’t take talent and celebrating each other more. Those have been the main things… as players, we’ve lifted in the last five weeks.”
