Welcome to the Western Bulldogs: Cody Weightman

[comrade]

Just watching the interviews/bts stuff with him, he comes across as very bubbly and outgoing and seems to have a naturally positive vibe about him.

Reminds me a lot of young Dahl in multiple ways.

[Eastdog]

Watched this vid there is another just below it featuring a n international in Ireland went a rather feisty jack Russell gets on the ground who played very hard for the ball I thought this bodes well

That video was funny. The dog was right in the action in that game

[Twodogs]

Watched this vid there is another just below it featuring a n international in Ireland went a rather feisty jack Russell gets on the ground who played very hard for the ball I thought this bodes well

I watched it three times while googling ''Jack Russell, AFL" until I worked that you meant the dog, dawg!

[bornadog]

I think this kid will surprise us and star in his first year.

[GVGjr]

I think this kid will surprise us and star in his first year.

I hope so, with Lukas Webb moving on I was looking for another player to sponsor a few weeks back and settled for whoever we drafted with our first pick. I got an email yesterday morning confirming that I will be one of his sponsors next year

I liked Webby, he was always a friendly guy, so I'm looking to meeting Cody Weightman

[Twodogs]

Just as a matter of interest is Cody related to Dale Weightman?

[Bulldog4life]

Just as a matter of interest is Cody related to Dale Weightman?

No relation.

[Twodogs]

No relation.

Cheers. Dale was a gun and if Cody is anywhere near as good then we have got ourselves a star.

[Bulldog4life]

Cheers. Dale was a gun and if Cody is anywhere near as good then we have got ourselves a star.

Yep the Flea was a champ Td. Wonder if they will use the same nickname on Cody?

[Twodogs]

Yep the Flea was a champ Td. Wonder if they will use the same nickname on Cody?

Dale Weightman was a type 1 diabetic too. He is the only player that I can think of from the top of my head that overcame that illness (It's rife in my family so I keep a wary eye out for it in my kids) to have a decent footy career. I can remember saying to GVGjr when St Kilda took Paddy McCartin at #1 that I thought it was a mistake due to his condition. Sam Reid (our Sam Reid who went to GWS) also suffers with it. He say's it affects his stamina.

[BornInDroopSt'54]

Cody is very photogenic and the press seem to be using him as a poster boy for the draft. Blondes have more fun.

[azabob]

Twodogs Cripps at West Coast, Nathan Basset former crow, Jack Fitzpatrick former Hawk and Demon(?) and new Western Bulldogs AFLW assistant coach are also type 1 diabetic.

PS, I don’t reckon Sam suffers with it, he lives with it and would have helped his resolve to continue his career as an AFL footballer.

[Twodogs]

Twodogs Cripps at West Coast, Nathan Basset former crow, Jack Fitzpatrick former Hawk and Demon(?) and new Western Bulldogs AFLW assistant coach are also type 1 diabetic.

PS, I don’t reckon Sam suffers with it, he lives with it and would have helped his resolve to continue his career as an AFL footballer.

I didn't know that about Jack Fitzpatrick. It's a shame because I always a huge fan of his ability and I always wondered what it was that held him back. Now it makes sense.

[Axe Man]

Weightman joins the kennel

Cody Weightman is officially a Western Bulldog.

At pick #15, the Western Bulldogs selected Weightman, fulfilling his childhood dream to play at the elite level.

In the lead up to the draft, Weightman was publicised heavily touring the facilities of Whitten Oval, but before the tour he spent some time on the Western side of Victoria to clear his mind.

“In the last few days if you are doing an interview with a club, it is a pretty strong indicator they are showing interest, they just want to make that connection stronger and show the kid the future and what he might be stepping into,” he said.

“I got back from Bali and I went over to Torquay with a few other boys that got drafted, Sam De Koning’s place in Torquay, with Ned Cahill and Hayden Young.

“Basically we all wanted the same thing, to keep our minds active and get away from it; it is a pretty consuming time leading up to the draft.

“It is important to try and get away for us so we have done a few of those Torquay trips to get away, do a bit of surfing together, bit of golf and talk about life – rather than just footy.”

Going into draft night, many draftees are confident where their new home will be, but never certain. For Weightman it was no different, before a subtle hint from those at Fox Footy.

“For me, I didn’t care where it was or when it was but I wanted to go on the first night and make sure I got it over and done with on the first night, and move forward from then on,” he said.

“I knew the Dogs were certainly keen, I knew come pick 15 there was a really good chance I was going to be at the Dogs.

“The cameras started to walk towards me before the pick was even read out so I had a good idea that it was about to happen.”

As soon as his name was called, it was no rest for Weightman, whose phone was constantly buzzing. The were mainly messages from his friends and family, his Haileybury mentor, and his new teammates, but it was a now-opposition player who Weightman has idolised in recent times who provided a really special moment for the small-forward.

“Pretty much the whole team got on to me, which was pretty cool – all the players got around me,” he said.

“Billy Gowers and I were FaceTiming – I got to have a chat with him between media breaks.

“I had a chat to Lloydy and stuff and hopefully have a coffee with him soon now I live a bit closer to him.

“He has been huge for me and certainly will have another chat with him.

“Charlie Cameron actually got onto me, which I thought was pretty cool from him.

“He is a player I like to base my game around and threw out some help and encouragement, which was pretty cool from him.”

Weightman grew up as an invested Collingwood supporter, and if all goes well over pre-season he could be lining up in Round 1 against his childhood heroes in front of a packed house at Marvel Stadium. While that’s a goal for him, Weightman is aware and looking forward to the hard work that needs to be done before then.

“It would be unreal; it is certainly a bit of a goal,” he said.

“There is a lot that needs to happen before then but if all went to plan that would be absolutely crazy – a Round 1 debut against Collingwood at Marvel, would be a full house.

“That is certainly something to work hard on, but (there’s) no promise in footy and I have a lot to do before that opportunity potentially comes.

“You get in and work hard.

“You earn your respect to the players – that is the main thing for me, earning that strong respect from the playing group and earning trust from them because that is going to hold you in good stead for the future.

“For me, that is that the top of my list, getting in and showing I am willing to work hard and get towards the one direction they have been working towards.

“Do the part I need to do that suits the team culture the best, and if I can do that then hopefully opportunities will come on an individual basis, but team first to begin with.”

Weightman was among five Dandenong Stingrays who were selected in the National Draft over Wednesday and Thursday night. Hayden Young (Fremantle, pick #7), Sam De Koning (Geelong, pick #19), Bigoa Nyuon (Richmond, pick #54) and Ned Cahill (Essendon, pick #56) were also the Stingrays who achieved their dreams of the opportunity of pulling on an AFL club’s jumper in 2020.

[bulldogtragic]

Cody Weightman

2019 Stat Averages (inc. NABL & Champs): Games 10 - Goals 17 (8.1 NABL, 9.3 Champs = 17.4) - Kicks 10.8 - Handballs 2.8 - Disposals 13.6 - Marks 3.3 - Tackles 1.6 - Goals - 1.7, 0.4 Behinds

2019 Josh Schache - Goals 1.7, 0.6
2019 Tory Dickson - Goals 1.4, 0.5
2019 Sam Lloyd - Goals 1.6, 1.4