Devon Smith opens up on life as an AFL player, his knee operation and dealing with the footy bubble

Devon Smith was lying in his hospital bed feeling very sore and lonely when one of his teammates showed up, sat by his bedside for hours and gave him the mental lift he needed.

Jake Stringer was the first person to go see Devon Smith in hospital. Picture: Getty

Teammates are so much more than blokes you play footy with.

I spent a bit more than 24 hours in hospital last month for my knee operation and the first person who came to see me was Jake Stringer.

I was really battling with pain and feeling pretty low and he certainly gave me a lift.

I couldn’t talk much, but he sat by me for at least four hours, which I appreciated.

Our club doctor, Bruce Reid, also visited me in hospital which was particularly selfless of him considering he’s going through his own health battle.

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Then about day four after the op, Michael Hurley came around on the Saturday with my physio Dave Rundle. It was actually Hurls’ birthday. It was a super effort and made me feel good.

I couldn’t attend Friday night’s game against the Hawks. I can’t drive for some time and I can’t get up and down stairs.

But I still watched and cheered from home and took down notes for certain players around what they did well.

My aim is to stay busy.

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Jake Stringer was the first person to go see Devon Smith in hospital. Picture: Getty

I plan on mentoring big VFL ruckman Sam Draper, who had an ACL reconstruction last month, and spend some extra time watching and taking players such as Darcy Parish through their weekly vision.

There has been plenty of talk this year about the mental health of footballers. It’s a growing issue.

My life outside the game in Sydney consisted of fishing, catching up with teammates, walking my dog — all the normal things.

Yet I found myself constantly in work mode. It was very hard to find an outlet from football that didn’t lead back to the game or club.

Yes, it was nice to go to the pub and have a beer or two without thinking someone is going to take a photo or this is going to be on the front page tomorrow.

Everyone I knew was from Greater Western Sydney and if you went for dinner it was with a teammate or a coach.

Although I was there for six years it does take time to get to know people and build a base away from home.

I am thankful for my time with the Giants. I definitely grew up faster and learnt to fend for myself much quicker than if I had been drafted to a Victorian club.

One of my biggest worries about returning to Melbourne was being consumed by the football fishbowl. But the transition has generally been seamless.

Smith does some rehab on his injured knee.

Yes, you get recognised a lot more in Melbourne and everything you do is under the microscope 1000-times more compared to Sydney, but strangely enough I’ve found a much better balance when I’m away from the club and switching off.

Before my knee operation I played golf once or twice a week and I am roughly 30 minutes to home, which is Geelong.

If I want to go camping for a night here or there, I can.

My partner Simone’s family farm at Colac is brilliant — you don’t get reception there so it’s one or two days away from the phone.

My mates outside the club don’t even ask about football and obviously spending time with my family has been something I missed while being in Sydney.

My advice for drafted kids is to get out and meet people outside the bubble of the football world.

Smith enjoys playing golf in his spare time. Picture: Supplied

The football environment can be a stressful place for all sorts of reasons — selection, form, injuries, contracts, earning respect of older players. The list goes on and on.

Find a hobby that’s not connected to footy, such as study, golf, fishing, reading, community help, even PlayStation.

Also tap into the older and experienced players and ask about their strategies for dealing with all that comes with being an AFL footballer.

At Essendon we have a sport psychologist and plenty of experienced past players such as Luke Ball, James Kelly and Hayden Skipworth to talk to. Their knowledge is invaluable.

I am nearly three weeks post-operation and everything is going well. It was a tough couple of days post op, the first 3-5 days especially.

Simone and I will travel soon to New York and Hawaii. It is a good time for a mental freshen up as I won’t get away next off-season.

At that point it will be head down and bum up as my rehab program ramps up.