Young Crow Brodie Smith says a short stint with Woodville-West Torrens in the middle of the year has helped him find his feet in Adelaide’s defence in the second half of the season.

Smith played the opening 10 games of the season, switching between a wing and half-back, but was omitted after the Club’s win over Fremantle at Patersons Stadium prior to the bye.

It was déjà vu for the 20-year-old, who played the first 10 matches of his debut season in 2011, before being squeezed out of the team and managing only four more games for the year.

Determined not to meet the same fate in 2012, he starred in his SANFL return and was recalled to the Crows team after only two games. In the past month, Smith has averaged 20 possessions in a creative role across half-back.

“I played mostly on the wing last year and (prior to being omitted) I was just struggling a bit with my role in defence,” Smith told afc.com.au.

“I went back to the Eagles, played at half-back there and got a bit of the footy. It probably gave me the confidence to come back into the Crows side and win more of the ball.

“It took me awhile to get used to it, but David Mackay and I have gone back there now to try to provide some run and carry out of the backline. And we did that pretty well on Saturday.”

Selected by Adelaide with pick No.14 in the 2010 AFL Draft, Smith has already surpassed his games tally of last season (14) this year (17). Senior assistant coach Mark Bickley said the Club was rapt with the long-kicking utility’s development.

“We sometimes forget how young Brodie is, and that he’s only got about 30 games under his belt,” Bickley said.

“Last year, he played a lot of footy for a bloke in his first season. This year, he’s played more down back. It’s a slightly different role. We’ve given him a fair bit of responsibility this year and he’s had some big jobs, including (being opposed to Geelong star) Steve Johnson in round seven.

“He’s such a great lad with a really good work ethic and he has a lot of tricks. He has good speed and great length on his kick, so we hope he keeps improving as he is.”

Smith collected 20 possessions, seven marks, three rebound 50ms and two clearances in Adelaide’s 28-point win over Fremantle on Saturday. The quietly-spoken Crow said he was determined to hold his place in the team and get his first taste of AFL finals.

“My first year wasn’t a great year for the club,” he said.

“To come from where we were last year to where we are now has been huge.

“But now, we’re here we want to make the most of it and finish the year strongly.”