Fremantle forward Jye Amiss reveals off-season physical and mental transformation in bid to become dominant key forward

Jye Amiss has always had the talent to become one of the AFL’s premier key forwards. Now, he has the physique to match. The 21-year-old reveals his off-season physical and mental transformation to ELIZA REILLY.

Jye Amiss has always had the talent to become one of the AFL’s premier key forwards.

Now, he has the physique to match.

When the 21-year-old returned to pre-season training late last year, Dockers fans couldn’t help but notice Amiss’ stunning physical transformation.

After being regularly manhandled by opposition defenders last year, to the point that Fremantle pleaded with the AFL’s umpiring department for greater protection, Amiss spent his off-season adding size and strength to his 196cm frame.

All-Australian defender Luke Ryan was an early victim of Amiss, copping a heavy knee to the back during match simulation that sidelined him for two pre-season matches.

Fremantle’s Jye Amiss has added size and strength to his 196cm frame. Picture: Getty Images

Now, Amiss is learning how to maximise his transformation for good.

“I reckon (I gained) two or three kilos across pre-season but I feel really comfortable with where my body is at now,” Amiss told this masthead. “Especially in one-on-one contests.

“I back myself in there and use that strength. When you put on weight, you need to learn how to use it. I’m still learning that each week.

“A little bit of size is going to help me in the contest but I feel like I’ve been able to maintain my agility. At times last year, I was a ground-level threat so I want to still be able to move and impact the game in several ways.

“I’ve put on weight but it’s good weight.”

Jye Amiss has worked a sports psychologist to help his accuracy in front of goal. Picture: AFL Photos via Getty Images

As well as bulking up, Amiss has also done extensive work with a sports psychologist during the off-season to address his 2024 goal kicking woes.

Amiss was a revelation for the Dockers in 2023, kicking 41.17 at 61 per cent accuracy in just his second season. Last year, he kicked 36.28 at a rate of 48 per cent scoring accuracy.

He’s kicked 5.1 so far this year, including a bar of four against West Coast in the derby, after working on his mental game.

“It’s been a big part of my game, especially after last year when there was a fair bit of talk about my goalkicking and I knew during the year where to get my feedback from,” he said. “I was able to stay focused and concentrate on my game.

“Personally, we’ve found that balance between our mental and physical. I think that’s going to help us this year.”

Jye Amiss kicked four goals in the Dockers’ big win against West Coast. Picture: AFL Photos via Getty Images

Amiss did endure a quiet start to the season, kicking one goal in his first fortnight against Geelong and Sydney. As a result, some sectors started calling for the fourth-year forward to be dropped.

But fellow key forward Josh Treacy said Amiss has done everything that’s been asked of him and more in his bid to bounce back.

“He’s done a mountain of work,” Treacy said. “The fans might not be seeing the goals column tick over at the moment but he’s doing a lot of work for us.

“He’s a very intelligent footballer and he works extremely hard. It might not be clicking for him now but I guarantee it’ll start showing in the next few weeks.”

While they don’t care who is kicking the goals, Amiss and Treacy’s chemistry is set to play a massive role in Fremantle’s evolving forward line. The pair bagged seven majors between them against the Eagles.

Fremantle’s Jye Amiss soars above the pack for a mark. Picture: Michael Klein

“I feel like I’ve had a big pre-season and I’ve put a lot of work into myself and also my teammates and connecting with them,” Amiss said. “It’s so important to have that connection on-field and I think me and JT have a really good connection.

“It’s something I’m really excited about and I’m keen to keep connecting with him. He had a great year last year but we both want to go to the next level. We want to keep pushing each other.”

Ironically, Amiss could’ve had the chance to win the game for Fremantle against Sydney after taking a mark shortly after the final siren. He won’t get the chance to live out that moment but the Busselton product learnt plenty from the contest.

“I wasn’t too sure,” he said. “The siren went.

“I didn’t know if I’d marked it or not. We felt like we did a lot of stuff right and could’ve won with a couple more seconds.

“The last two weeks, I’ve been building. I had a good match-up with Dane Rampe that tested me. I learn a lot from those games. It was good to kick a few today.”

Originally published as Fremantle forward Jye Amiss reveals off-season physical and mental transformation in bid to become dominant key forward