The testimonials for Tom Atkins from the foremost leaders of the football club are compelling.
“He’s become a real part of the fabric of what we’re about,” Selwood says.
“He lives and breathes the values of the place,” Dangerfield agrees.
There’s no doubt that pick 11 in last year’s rookie draft has made maximum impact in minimum time on the Cats list.
Playing 23 games in his first season of AFL football, Atkins quickly became an embodiment of the club’s early season success.
As the club shot out of the blocks to an early 11-1 start, it was manic forward pressure that became a feature of the club’s game style and Atkins was leading the charge.
“He plays hard, he’s got a killer instinct and he’s a guy that will do anything for the club,” Selwood says.
“He’ll play his role and he’ll do even more. He is a genuine AFL footballer now, from a kid that was just here to have a kick around and get the best out of himself, he’s taken it to the next level and that’s what we ask of all our young guys.”
Atkins’ rise has coincided with the transformation of his body from that of a part-time footballer to a professional athlete, something not lost on Dangerfield.
“When Tommy first arrived at the club, he was obviously in our VFL program for a while which is different to an AFL one because it’s a full-time gig in the AFL, he had an accountant’s body and now I think he has a footballer’s body,” Dangerfield says.
“It’s nothing against accountants,” he continues with a smirk.
Atkins had to do the hard yards to win his spot on an AFL list, toiling away in the Cats’ VFL program.
That’s why it comes as no surprise to Selwood that Atkins hasn’t let his shot at the big-time slip.
“That’s the killer instinct that Tommy has, he was never going to give up his chance,” he says.
“When we went out and picked him up as a rookie, we had a keen eye on him that he was going to play AFL footy.”
“Now the challenge for him is knowing that there are younger guys coming through and older guys wanting to hold on, so he knows that he has to get better and he’s gone out and done that.”
Dangerfield knows the brand of football Atkins brings to the table will be crucial if the Cats want to make another campaign deep into September.
“It was no surprise that the way he plays his footy was going to stand up in finals. He’s a competitive, contested player and we got that from him at half forward and I’m looking forward to seeing a bit more in the midfield because he’s just one you can trust in there.”
“With the players that we’ve got down there we do have players second guessing at different stages simply because of the energy that they play with and the speed that they have in defence. Whether it’s Tommy Atkins or Gary Rohan or Luke Dahlhaus, they’re just manic in the way that they defend and put pressure on the opposition.”
That’s a huge reason why we were successful last year and going forward it’ll be a huge reason why we’ll be successful again.
