Now and then: Gold Coast Suns' Josh Corbett reflects on first Hampden league game with North Warrnambool Eagles

DAVID Haynes approached an "undersized" 16-year-old prospect while training one night at Bushfield Recreation Reserve.

"If you get through tonight, I reckon you'll be ready to play seniors," he said.

The young forward, who would go on to play for AFL expansion club Gold Coast Suns, was Josh Corbett.

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Corbett was a tad sore, carrying a corkie, but nothing was going to get in the way of his first Hampden league senior match.

"All I could think of was that I was going to get through it," he said.

"We were in the rooms later that night having Thursday night dinners and David read out 'Josh Corbett' and it was an amazing feeling.

"It's not all that different from getting your first game at AFL level. All you want to do is play seniors so it's a similar feeling. It was a lovely moment."

The now 24-year-old was manned up on Port Fairy veteran Sam Rudolph, who was playing at full-back.

Corbett remembers the match - which was played at Gardens Oval - vividly.

"David Haynes put in a big, long kick inside 50 and I managed to get onto it. I ran in and had first kick, first goal," he said.

"I thought 'how bloody good is this?' as we went on to win by about 100 points.

"I reckon a few weeks later you start to realise it's not going to be like that every week. I reckon we played Koroit or something like that and ended up getting pumped.

"You come back down to earth a bit. My memory is as clear as yesterday. It's amazing reflecting on that and thinking they'd be right in the middle of finals at the moment."

Corbett said his Hampden league tenure helped his development as a youngster.

"I was sort of a bit undersized. I always have been with body shape," he said.

"I had to use things like running to find the footy. I think there's definitely room, as long as the kids are ready and able, to be able to play senior football.

"It helped learning to go and play against the men. I sort of learned little tricks with using my body without being able to push them over."

He said he still looked back on his time at North Warrnambool Eagles fondly.

"I have some of my best memories playing footy back home," he said.

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