Sam Reid’s impressive resurrection reflected by the talent he is keeping in the GWS reserves

GWS forward Sam Reid has spent years helping get some of the Giants’ best young players ready for senior football. Now he’s the man keeping them in the reserves.

Sam Reid of the Giants celebrates after kicking a goal against Richmond

GWS forward Sam Reid has spent two years helping get some of the Giants’ best young players ready for senior football. Now he’s the man keeping them in the reserves.

After being delisted in 2013 and taking up a coaching position with the Giants, Reid has made the most of his playing resurrection this season.

Reid kicked a career-high three goals in last Saturday’s 88-point demolition of Richmond in Canberra as the Giants won their third straight game to keep them in second place on the AFL ladder.

The measure of his amazing achievement can be gauged by the list of talent he’s keeping in the reserves. 2012 No. 1 draft pick Lachie Whitfield, No. 4 and No. 5 selections from 2011 Will Hoskin-Elliott Matt Buntine and James Stewart and Tim Mohr are all stuck behind the 26-year-old.

Sam Reid of the Giants celebrates after kicking a goal against Richmond

“It’s great for the club to have competition for spots,” Reid told The Daily Telegraph.

“You can’t go into a game thinking my spot is safe. You need blokes on the edge giving 100 per cent and doing the team thing.”

Doing the team thing is exactly what has earned Reid a remarkable call-up. And it was what he learned in his two years as a playing development coach with the GWS reserves which has rebuilt his playing career.

You can’t go into a game thinking my spot is safe. You need blokes on the edge giving 100 per cent and doing the team thing

Sam Reid

“I had to practice what I preached to the young players,” Reid said.

“I couldn’t take any of the young players through their game tapes and tell them to do something if I wasn’t doing it myself.

“Kevin Sheedy said look at Hawthorn, they’ve got on-field coaches. You look at the game differently as a coach. Coaching has helped my football massively.”

Reid is the journeyman from Queensland who came to the Giants in 2012 from the Western Bulldogs. He managed just 23 AFL games in six years before Leon Cameron delisted him in 2013 with a year left on his contract, and offered him a development coaching job with the reserves.

As Reid put his words into action on the field he also found himself falling in love with footy again as he kicked more than 60 goals in his two years playing in the Giants reserves.

“I started to love playing again,” Reid said. “My body was good for probably the first time ever. It allowed me to have a pre-season which I hadn’t had for five years.

“I never thought of becoming a coach but I loved the role working with the younger players. I was only 23 when it happened and I was very lucky it did because it’s made me as a player.”

Now Reid has possession of a spot in the Giants’ best 22 just four games out from their maiden finals appearance.

The Giants are on 52 points alongside Sydney and Geelong but are second thanks to their superior points differential.

Ahead are four winnable games against the Gold Coast (Metricon Stadium), West Coast, Fremantle (Spotless Stadium) and North Melbourne (Etihad Stadium).

“It’s exciting to be going into our first finals series as a club,” Reid said.

“We’re looking forward to getting up to the Gold Coast. We don’t want to flaunt with form going into finals, I can’t see Leon resting anybody from here. We don’t want to drop a game, we want to finish in second spot.”

Originally published as Sam Reid’s impressive resurrection reflected by the talent he is keeping in the GWS reserves