Wednesday, June 2, 2021. 

Most of Melbourne likely remembers it as just another night in lockdown. Sam Durham likely remembers it as the night his life completely changed.

Essendon’s article announcing Durham’s selection in that night’s virtual Mid-Season Draft described him as a ‘predominantly outside’ player in good form as a half back/winger.

While that assessment might not hold up against the midfield bull you see on the MCG these days, it’s an important footnote that highlights the strides he’s taken in four seasons at the top level.

From toiling away in the ‘two’s as a 19-year-old apprentice chippie to finishing third in a Crichton Medal count, Durham has rapidly ascended to become one of the Club’s most important players, and it certainly hasn’t been lost on the fanbase.

His humble pathway into the league compared to many others is still a driving factor, felt in how he attacks his day-to-day training and most especially on gameday with his appetite for the contest.

Here, Durham opens up on what fuels his no-nonsense play, his influences around the Club, recent changes within the four walls and how he’s handling the added media attention stemming from his on-field performance.

The drive: ‘I’ll always give it 100 per cent’

I always say that if I got drafted straight out of school, I wouldn’t have made it as a footballer. I would have had it too easy.

I know what it's like to be working a normal full-time job and now I know what a blessing it is to be here every day, so I’ll never take this for granted.

It’s definitely something that plays on my mind when I'm out there and I’ll always give it 100 per cent.

From the mindset side of things, it comes down to just going out and playing footy - freely for one thing - and then knowing that I can actually help the team win, not just be a bystander.

When you're younger, you sort of go out there (at AFL level) and it can feel like it’s someone else's ball, before you get to the point where you just make it your own.

At the start, you're just trying to get a game and there’s obviously excitement to come into the league, but it's a bit different now that you want team success and not just to make it as an individual.

Being here and being able to say it’s my fourth pre-season, you're naturally more invested in Essendon as a whole Club.

The midfield: ‘It was definitely a real shift’

Early in the pre-season last year, I noticed I was starting to play different roles within the stoppage.

I was normally just the winger involved at the stoppage, but they sort of pushed me in there a few times and I actually went alright. From there, I just built confidence and they kept on throwing me back in, so it did happen pretty quickly.

Next minute, we were playing practice matches and I was starting in the middle up against the very best players in the game, so it was exciting and definitely a real shift in my game.

Jye Caldwell and I had a really good relationship last year at the front of the stoppage, but while I think it’s great that we did, the big thing for us is to keep growing that out to the five, six, seven guys rolling through there with the team we have now.

It's just exciting that we can keep building those broader relationships with the midfielders the more we play together.

The influences: ‘Just get the best out of myself’

I think the coaches are a lot harsher on me now for setting standards and helping the other guys out around me.

It’s easy to think ‘I'm a young guy and I need people to help me,’ which I still do, but it’s been about having a different mindset coming into training.

Some of the younger boys think I'm a bit of a key player in the team now and they want to learn off me, so it's exciting for me that I can focus on getting better as a player and in return, help those guys as well.

The Coaches, and especially ‘Gia’ (Daniel Giansiracusa) and ‘Stants’ (Brent Stanton), have been massive through my career so far, as well as the key, experienced players in the team like Zach (Merrett) and Andy (McGrath).

In the midfield, guys like Jye Caldwell and Will Setterfield have been so good for me, they're always really big on allowing me to just get the best out of myself.

The pressure: ‘The game always feels similar to me’

It’s a great feeling to get recognised by other players and some big pundits or ‘footyheads’ out there but I don't look too far into it.

I like to stay in my own lane and if I'm doing the right things by my coaches and teammates, the rest will take care of itself. I don't really get fazed by the external stuff either way.

The game always feels similar to me, I just try to go into every week as a non-stressed sort of guy.

I don't think I've changed my mindset but I suppose there is a bit more added pressure now in the role that I’ve been playing as opposed to being on the wing.

The coaches are always saying to play on instinct and not overthink or get too caught up in where I’m meant to be running and stuff like that, you just go out there to play footy and your natural game.

The Club: ‘It’s going to get even more competitive’

I think it's really exciting what the coaches have put together for us to succeed.

We always talk about the idea of ‘being a Don’ and that’s what we want on-field as much as off-field more than anything right now.

Even though you do come in without guys like Dyson Heppell and Jake Stringer, who were such big personalities throughout the Club, it's exciting for the young guys who can pave their own path now.

For us, it’s really important to let these kids be their own people and their own personalities. We want them to be free to show their own strengths of footy and do their thing.

It's going to get even more competitive as we move into the ‘black kit v. red kit’ setup for our match sim in the next couple of weeks.

We’re not going to shift too much (in our training) but that competitive side will really be there with boys wanting to get their spots.

Really, it's a good, healthy thing for our list. We’ve got a big bunch out there on the park cracking in, so it's exciting for the for the team and the Club.

It definitely feels different around the club this year with all the new faces, I do really feel like we’re building something special at the moment.