Sam Dwyer did not take your typical gateway into AFL. He worked his way up through the VFL competition with Port Melbourne after moving to Melbourne from his country hometown and after years with Port Melbourne, Sam began to doubt his chances of having an AFL career and started looking for other jobs.

“I knew that each year that went by, the opportunities were getting slimmer and slimmer, it got to a point at Port where I was contemplating leaving VFL.”

Port Melbourne Coach Gary Ayres has been a constant support for Sam, believing that he could make it to the AFL even when Sam didn’t believe it himself.

“I felt like he needed someone to show confidence in his football and the rest was going to be what Sam could do from that point on, there were some self-doubts initially”.

Sam can’t thank Gary enough for that support which was a driving force for him to enter into the 2013 Rookie Draft.

“He was massive, he really opened my eyes to what I was capable of, really gave me that self-belief” – Dwyer on Ayres

“He was massive, he really opened my eyes to what I was capable of, really gave me that self-belief.”

That same self-belief is what enabled Sam to be drafted to the biggest sporting club in Australia- the Collingwood Football Club.

“Walking out on ANZAC Day, the roar after the last post is just deafening, sends shivers down your spine, that was an unbelievable feeling.”

Gary is full of  praise for what Sam has been able to achieve , “he’s just a great story for a country boy who’s been able to keep persevering, keep chipping away and now he is very much reaping the rewards of his hard work.”

Sam’s story proves to all aspiring footballers out there that your career possibilities don’t end if you’re not drafted at 17 or 18 years old.  Determination, dedication and self-belief can get you to the top.

Words by Zoe Dunstan