Straight in the deep end for son of a gun
By Jack McAnespie
Twenty-five years ago, Geelong immortal Gary Ablett Snr and Hawthorn’s fullback of the century, Chris Langford faced off in the 1989 AFL Grand Final, a decider that is still to this day, revered as one of the best of all time.
That day, it was Langford’s Hawks who proved victorious.
Two and a half decades later, the sons of those two men, Gary Ablett Jnr and Will Langford faced off in an AFL time warp.
For Langford, it was just another step in what has been a tough initiation into AFL football.
Recruited to the Hawks in 2011 as a defender, the 21 year-old has made in impact throughout football circles this year, after been given a run-with role on some of the biggest names in the game in 2014.
“I played mostly as a defender from the age of about 15 or 16, so I was probably recruited as a defender,” said Langford.
“They [the Hawthorn coaches] came to me at the start of last season and said ‘we think you have the attributes to be a good run-with player, and develop as a midfielder’.”
Thus far in season 2014, Langford’s run-with assignments have included the likes of Daniel Rich, Jobe Watson, Joel Selwood and of course, Gary Ablett Jnr.
However, New South Wales-born Langford hasn’t been daunted by the challenges he has faced, despite his history playing junior football in Sydney.
“I was coming from a fair way back… I was a bit of a footy tragic as a young boy up in New South Wales, in Sydney, but obviously there weren’t too many of us,” said Langford.
“It was certainly a matter of lots of kicks in the backyard with the old man and my two brothers, and playing club footy, because it’s not in the schools up there.”
Despite not coming through the Victorian system, Langford gained invaluable experience through the NSW Scholarship program as a junior.
“Fortunately, as a 17 year-old on the NSW Scholarship program, I got the opportunity to spend a couple of weeks at Hawthorn in the pre-season, to get a taste and see what it’s like at the top level and see how hard all the guys train,” said Langford.
“Being at the club for a few years now, I’ve got to know the guys pretty well… to be involved in an organisation that has that sort of success is certainly a learning experience, so I got a lot out of that.
“I think that one of the great strengths of Hawthorn currently as a football club is that there is a really large group of guys down there that are terrific leaders. To pinpoint any single player I think would be unjust,” said Langford.
The Hawks face St Kilda on Saturday afternoon, and will be looking to consolidate their firm grip on a top four spot.
