North Melbourne forward Lachie Hosie admits he wasn’t up to standard in his debut, but is using the experience as motivation.  

The South Australian was omitted from the following week’s side despite kicking two goals in his first game in Round 10, before being recalled for the Round 12 clash against Brisbane.

“It was running patterns and quick reaction time to get over to the contest and I had a look at [the vision] and I’d agree, kicking two goals was pretty good but that wasn’t quite up to standard,” Hosie told SEN SA.

“Those are the things that I probably didn’t think of when I was playing SANFL footy so have been an area of growth for me. 

“To come back in last week where we were pretty competitive against the Lions was good. 

“I felt a lot more comfortable out there on the weekend and we had a pretty young side and contested a top four team, we were pretty proud of it.” 

With a mounting injury list, the mid-season recruit said it has provided an opportunity for the younger guys to step up.

“We’ve been hit with some pretty big injuries to some key players but I guess that’s opportunities for other guys to step up,” he said.

“I’ve got an opportunity through injuries, obviously you want team success and want to compete for a flag but at the moment it’s seeing the young guys coming through and seeing how exciting it is for the club.” 

The number 46 said he was riddled with self-doubt before his AFL dream came true but has been hard at work since. 

“Start of last year and before I got picked up I didn’t see myself playing,” Hosie said. 

“I definitely doubted myself around that time. 

“But the hard work I’ve put in over the off season and through the COVID period when we went home and now up in the hub now to get here has been good and hopefully there’s a few more [games] to come.”