A NUMBER of Geelong's young players are heading to Melbourne on Thursday night to support Blake Caparello, one of Australia's most talented emerging boxers, who worked with the Cats at Simonds Stadium over the summer.

Unbeaten after 16 fights, the 26-year-old is defending his Pan-Asian Boxing Association title against Daniel McKinnon, and George Horlin-Smith will be among the Geelong boys cheering him on.

"Not many of us have been to a fight before, so we're really looking forward to it," Horlin-Smith told AFL.com.au.

"When we heard he was fighting, we all wanted to get up there and see him go at it.

"Hopefully he comes out on top."

Horlin-Smith, Billie Smedts, Jed Bews, Mark Blicavs, Joel Hamling, Jackson Thurlow, Cameron Eardley, Mitch Brown, Brad Hartman, Jordan Murdoch, Cameron Guthrie and Shane Kersten were among the players who worked with Caparello over the summer.
"It was great. It was really good for us, and it was good fun as well," Horlin-Smith recalled.

"When we met him at the first session, we all thought, 'He's a boxer. He definitely looks like a boxer.' But he was a really nice guy and a great teacher.

"He was so patient with us. We were all really ordinary to begin with, but he took his time to get our technique right.

"It was a lot about improving our footwork, which helps when we're around stoppages and in contested situations on the footy field.

"Even though we only did short sessions, it was still hard work.

"For him to fight over 10 rounds, I find it unbelievable when I think about it now. I didn't appreciate it before I did some boxing."

Caparello, who is rated the 15th-best light heavyweight in the World Boxing Association,  was impressed by the application and enthusiasm of the young Geelong players.

"They were really good," he said. "The one who probably picked it up the quickest was Blicavs. He goes all right with the big reach."

If things go to plan, Horlin-Smith and his teammates might be watching Caparello fight for some far bigger prizes in the years to come.

"I want to win a world title in the next two years," Caparello said. "I'll be pushing for a world title.

Adam McNicol covers Geelong news for AFL.com.au. Follow him on Twitter at @AFL_AdamMcNicol