Pearce: Hungry for more

[bornadog]

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Running through the Western Bulldogs banner for the first time against Geelong Friday night, young defender Daniel Pearce made sure he paused to look around and soak it all in.

It was only for a moment, but the 19 year-old debutant was keen to embrace the occasion before being thrust into battle against the reigning premiers.

With his attention switched quickly back to the task at hand, Pearce produced a very serviceable debut, providing glimpses of what is to come with his ability to run and carry out of defence and his willingness to put his head over the ball.

“I am hungry for more, very hungry for more, so I will keep hitting the track hard and do what I can to try to become a regular in the team,” Pearce said.

“There is still a lot to learn before I become a regular in the side but that is the same with any young player.

“I think I made a few steps forward, so I will see how things go this week.”

The first player in the rooms before Friday’s match, Pearce’s game day preparations were not helped by the dreary Melbourne weather.

“I couldn’t really get out of the house because it was bucketing down with rain, so I tried to just watch the NBA and distract myself as much as I could,” he said.

“Before I went under the banner I had a look around to soak it all in and then just concentrate on the footy.”

Drafted from the Oakleigh Chargers, Pearce relished the chance to play alongside Robert Murphy, Brian Lake and Ryan Hargrave in the back six.

Pearce said their encouragement and guidance particularly during the heated final term made the hard task of AFL footy that little bit easier.

“People like Rob Murphy behind me telling me directly where to go makes it a lot easier but man, it is pretty intense,” he said.

“There was a lot of urgency, a lot of people talking to you and telling you where to go.

“The game is not easy but they make it a little easier with their direction and encouragement to keep on going - it is fantastic.”

Turning heads with one particular passage of play running out of the Bulldogs’ defensive half, Pearce said having a vocal crowd behind him is a moment he will never forget.

“It was a good feeling and then when the person behind you gets a bit closer and people start screaming you know when to kick it - it was great,” he said.

While he is eager to add to his tally of senior games, Pearce is realistic that it will take a couple of pre-seasons to build his endurance to run out the full four quarters.

“You have to be in the game for 100% of the game - If you drop off for 5% of the game then you get hurt,” he said.

“That constant pace that keeps moving - I am going to have to go through a few more pre-seasons to fully run it out.

“It’s a very different pace to the VFL and TAC Cup that I am used to, so it will take a while to adjust.”

While the Bulldogs didn’t come away with the four points Pearce was more than enthused by the team’s performance on the night believing they are well on track.

“We won the contested ball quite convincingly, we were cracking in hard and everyone is doing the right thing,” he said.

“We just need to clean it up around the edges and the rest will start to come."

[The Bulldogs Bite]

Speaks well, appears to have a good attitude.

Good learning experience for him. Did a few OK things, but he did get touched up a few times defensively.

Still a fair way off it, but it was good for him to get a game in.

[chef]

Didn't look out of place, which isn't bad for a first year player.

2011 drafts are looking pretty good so far, hopefully we can repeat that again this year.

[Sockeye Salmon]

He didn't look as quick as I'd hoped

[LostDoggy]

He didn't look as quick as I'd hoped

May have been a fitness issue as much as anything. When he's got a bit more in the tank, he'll have more to burn.

[w3design]

Thought it was a fair effort first up for a kid.

Some times I feel that a moderate first game is better for their long term,and particularly immediate futures, than a blinder first up. If kids have a real high on their first effort, they get attention on and off field some times before they are ready to handle it.
A moderate start, and some times they can slip under the radar a bit, and just concentrate on steady improvement without all the added attention. Say compare Tutt's and Wallis's starts, and where they are now.
I do think both will be good players long term though.

[Mantis]

He didn't look as quick as I'd hoped

His bio was pretty much as was viewed, hard at it, but not overly blessed with pace.

[Cyberdoggie]

He didn't look as quick as I'd hoped

Do you mean in that run he had out of defence?

True he didn't look super quick but, he was really struggling with to keep up with the game fitness wise, and i believe it was a super quick Motlop that was chasing him down.

He's as fast as Murph, not quicker than DJ but i don't think i've ever seen DJ run at his quickest because he always fumbles the ball and never utilizes his pace, so if Pearce can be clean and agile with the pace he has got then he'll be quick enough.

[DragzLS1]

Tutt scored 3 goals in his first 3 kicks in AFL. Smith kicks 4 goals in 3 quarters in his debut against West Coast. Puts alot of pressure and expectation on them to do this week in week out which can become overwhelming.

Think Pearce will be good for us who isnt exactly quick, but isnt slow and will get quicker as he matures and builds a tank.

Be good to give him another crack so he can get the feel of it and then send him back to the VFL for a few weeks to work on everything.

Wallis expectation was way too high as Libbas wasnt, Libba turned out to have a ripper first year and 2nd year as Wallis felt the pressure and expectation. Think only now Wallis has shown he is living up to the expectation but it took its toll in his first year.

Great drafting of kids soo far and am excited to see how we go when these kids get 50 games under their belts and are a little more developed