Geelong best and fairest Max Holmes lauds recruit Bailey Smith’s training intensity

Bailey Smith hasn’t been at the club for long, but he is already impressing his teammates — including best and fairest Max Holmes. Plus, the speedster reflects on their heartbreaking loss.

Max Holmes at pre-season training. Picture: Brad Fleet

Reigning Carji Greeves medallist Max Holmes says bumper recruit Bailey Smith will drive standards at Geelong and believes the preliminary final loss will be a motivate his side this pre-season.

Holmes, 22, won Geelong’s 2024 best and fairest convincingly after a stellar season off half back and in the midfield, with Smith poised to join him in the engine room next year.

The speedster has been thoroughly impressed by the former Bulldog’s training intensity in his short time at the club and feels it will lift Geelong’s standards overall.

Training kicked off for Geelong’s first to five year players this week, but Smith, 23, declared it was “day one” on social media on Monday.

The hardworking midfielder was in at the club on Tuesday for a light session but wasn’t at training on Monday at Deakin University.

Holmes is happy to play wherever dual premiership coach Chris Scott wants him, but he said the Cats will walk little taller with Smith’s magnet on the board.

Max Holmes has been impressed by Bailey Smith. Picture: Michael Klein

“I’ve done a couple of training sessions with Bailey and he loves training, works the house down,” Holmes said.

“He’s a fantastic bloke and I think he’s going to be really good for us as a team. We do have a lot of older players, we’ve got a lot of younger players. We actually don’t have that many around his kind of age, so I think it’s good to just have that kind of diversity.

“He comes in as someone that a lot of boys will look up to and he’s really just going to set some standards around here.

“Obviously he’s a fantastic player, he’s a top ten draft pick team, we’ve seen some incredible footy from him, so I can’t wait to start playing with him in the future.

“He’s very versatile. I obviously have no idea what the team looks like for round one next year, but he’s obviously a guy that can run all day and he’s very skilful. Obviously right now we see him playing in the midfield round one, but like who knows, it might be on a wing, it might be half back.”

Like Smith, Holmes says their nailbiting preliminary final defeat to Brisbane will also help them push it to the limit on the training track.

Max Holmes at pre-season training on Monday. Picture: Brad Fleet

Picture: Brad Fleet

“I think last year in that prelim we had a lot of young boys playing and a lot of guys that kind of haven’t experienced that kind of that kind of loss and heartbreak yet,” Holmes said.

“I think there’s a lot of boys that have worked really hard in this off season and a lot of boys who are going to work hard in this pre-season and it’s really spurring a lot of guys on.

“And there’s obviously guys that have missed out on that team last year as well that really want to step forward and make their mark this year.

“You don’t necessarily need a motivator to try and play good footy and win, but it definitely is one that sits in the back of our minds most of the time I reckon.”

Holmes made the move down back at the start of 2024 and provided the Cats with exhilarating run from behind.

The former sprinter was then shifted into the midfield more often in the back-half of the season and turned games there, including the preliminary final where he was the best player on the ground until his untimely hamstring injury.

“I think I have the most influence in the midfield (rather than the midfield). But it’s not really up to me at the end of the day, so I’ll do what I’m told and then just keep doing it,” Holmes said.

“Scotty is a master mind in the coaching sphere, so I really enjoy the midfield, I really enjoy the backline and I think preferably maybe midfield in the future. But look, I’ll just play wherever it’s necessary as a team.”

Holmes would love to be the one to call a Cats 2025 breakout. And if he had to pick one, it’d be emerging key forward Shannon Neale.

Will Shannon Neale go to another level in 2025? Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images

Neale stepped up to the plate after retired champion Tom Hawkins’ injury blow, booting 23 goals in 15 games, and kept Hawkins out of the side when he returned during the finals series.

“I want you to go… ‘Yeah, Max said this guy day one of pre-season last year’,” Holmes chuckled.

“I know Shannon played last year, but I want to say Shannon. I think he’s been slowly working and putting it together.

“I think from when he came to the club (compared) to where he is now, it’s like a completely different person.

“I’m confident that we’ll see a ripper Shannon playing next year and I really hope we see it too.”

Originally published as Geelong best and fairest Max Holmes lauds recruit Bailey Smith’s training intensity