Sheezel shares his hopes for season 2024
"I'm so happy at the club – I think we have a great playing group and coaching staff, stability and a lot of understanding on the direction we want to go," says Sheezel.
Harry Sheezel is only 19, yet has already played 25 AFL games, won the AFL’s Rising Star Award in his debut season and last month signed a contract extension that will see him remain a North Melbourne Kangaroo until the end of 2030.
Speaking to The AJN ahead of the Good Friday round-three clash between the Kangaroos and Carlton, the former AJAX Footy Club junior and Mount Scopus College graduate said he couldn’t feel better right now.
“I’m so happy at the club – I think we have a great playing group and coaching staff, stability and a lot of understanding on the direction we want to go,” Sheezel said.
“Wins and success haven’t been there just yet, but I can definitely see the day-to-day progress we’re making and that we can get there, and I’m enjoying the journey.
“I feel very fortunate and grateful to the club, for giving me the opportunity to sign on until the end of 2030.
“It’s a long time, but I’m a pretty loyal person, so I do like it when players show faith in their clubs and sign long-term deals, but I appreciate that every situation is different.”
In the off-season, Sheezel achieved a personal goal of becoming part of the team’s six-man players’ leadership group.
“It was pretty cool to be voted in – there’s a bit more responsibility involved with it and I really love that and there’s a lot of leaders at the club helping me grow in the leadership space.”
Part of that role involves attending a weekly meeting to discuss specific learnings from the latest match and more general matters related to the club or individual players.
It also involves “being more vocal at training and approachable, so players can talk to you about anything, on and off the field, to build those relationships”.
On a personal note, Sheezel humbly said he feels he is “still nowhere near [reaching] my potential yet at AFL level”, yet he possesses an admirable and genuine confidence in his game.
In the first two games of this season, he was as busy as ever, with 32 disposals and nine marks against GWS, and 35 disposals and 527 metres gained against Fremantle.
“In my first pre-season, I just tried to pick up the pace of the game, put on some size and get quicker and fitter,” he said.
“I think I’ve adapted pretty well to the bigger stage of AFL footy, I still prepare well and I’m pretty knowledgeable about the game and practically aware.”
Sheezel also holds great confidence in his team’s potential.
“We are a very young group, so I think people naturally expect us to not be so successful this year.
“But that’s not what we believe internally – we believe that age doesn’t matter.
“The main message the coaching staff is driving is to try and get belief each week into our playing group.
“While we haven’t started this season with wins, I think both weeks we’ve shown really good signs, against really good teams.”
While preparing to play Carlton, Sheezel said he never forgets his roots and he was pleased to hear that three AJAX juniors have been selected into the Sandringham Dragons’ 2024 U18 boys’ Talent League squad.
“It’s really good to see more AJAX players coming through the system and I do have a connection to the club still.
“I have friends and cousins that play for AJAX and I go to training sometimes to speak to players.
“Hopefully we can get a few more drafted into the AFL in the near future.”
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