Ballarat was a great place to grow up. I love the place.

It feels like I have two homes now; one in Adelaide and one back in Ballarat.

Footy is big in Ballarat and the nearby towns.

As a kid, I played footy in the winter and cricket in the summer and that was about it. I found time for a bit of school as well!

In the winter, it’s very cold in Ballarat. I played footy in the snow once and on some pretty bad days.

I remember one game in Under-12s when we used to play at 8 or 9 o’clock in the morning.

I was only 11-years-old and obviously pretty small. I ended up having to go to the doctor after one game because I was so cold. A lot of other times I couldn’t get my boots off because my hands were numb.

They’d call off the games later in the day, but because our games were so early and we were already out there and we’d play. Nowadays, games in wintry conditions don’t feel that cold because I’m used to it and we’re so much better looked after.

I’ve got a big friendship group of about 20-30 blokes when I go back home. A lot of them are working in trades or studying at Uni.

Nick O’Brien, who is at Essendon, Matt Begbie, who plays cricket for the Melbourne Cricket Club, and Scott Spriggs, who is in Adelaide playing for Glenelg, are probably my three best mates from Ballarat. I’ve grown up with them since I was 10 or 11.

We played a lot of cricket and footy together and also against one another other growing up.

We were all St Pat’s boys. Matt, Scott and I played together at the Beaufort Crows and we played against Nick. When we were young, none of us knew whether we would choose footy or cricket because we loved both sports equally.

The most competitive thing were our net sessions. We’d bowl as fast as we possibly could at each other. There were always blow-ups and we’d come out bruised and battered, but we’d get over it pretty quick and be best mates again.

Matt ended up choosing cricket. He was best-on-ground in the district competition Grand Final last year. He plays with Brad Hodge and those sort of blokes and he’s in England playing cricket at the moment. Hopefully, he might be a really good cricketer down the track.

It’s weird. Everyone goes their different ways, but we’re still really close. It doesn’t feel like much has changed when we all catch up.

At the end of the season, you look forward to going back and seeing everyone.

People say they miss their family, but I’m lucky I still get to see mine a lot. My parents come over to Adelaide to see me and my brother, Matt, about once a fortnight.

For me, the hardest part of being away from home is not seeing the people who don’t leave Ballarat, like my mates and also my grandma.

I love playing AFL. It’s always been my dream and I’m very lucky.

But you do miss out on things that most blokes my age take for granted. Even something as simple as birthdays. This year, all my mates have had their 21^st Birthdays and I haven’t been able to go. I wouldn't change it. It's just one of the sacrifices you have to make to be an AFL footballer.

It’ll be good to go back over the break and catch up with those guys.