When it comes to a player of Max Holmes' calibre, it can be easy to forget the journey and the hardship they have to endure to get to that point.
Every player begins their career in the same way; fresh, young faces looking to find their feet in a new system, full of excitement, nerves and uncertainty.
Perhaps one influential factor that is not spoken about enough is the transition from local grounds to packed stadiums, with thousands of people shouting at the top of their lungs.
The difference in noise was something that Holmes said he struggled to get used to, forced to change the way he played to be ready for the pressure of Australian Rules Football at the highest level.
"It is hard to explain, I really enjoy the crowds now," Holmes said.
"It is something that is different at first, you are not used to playing with sound.
"I was actually speaking about it the other day, that in juniors I used to work out where people were by listening to them.
"But at AFL level, I struggled early because I couldn't hear where other people were on the ground. I couldn't hear their footsteps, so it was hard to work out where they were.
"It is different and it is something you become excited about. We play at the MCG where we might get 70,000 there during the year, compared to at GMHBA Stadium where we get 35,000.
"You get really excited about that and the idea of the pressure kind of goes away, it just becomes excitement in that sense."
Holmes participated in a school visit and a Question and Answer segment during Geelong's Community Camp this week, providing valuable insight for keen students at Emmanuel College in Warrnambool.
The star Cat visited alongside Lenny Hofmann and former Emmanuel College student, George Stevens, with the trio sharing their experiences after joining the AFL.
While it has been a meteoric rise for Holmes in recent years, it is also easy to forget that the two-time Carji Greeves Medallist will head into 2026 at just 23 years of age, yet to enter his prime years in football terms.
Along with his triumph in Geelong's top award, the speedy on-baller averaged an impressive 27 disposals and six inside 50s per game, leading the Cats in a number of key metrics and polling a career-high 18 votes in the Brownlow Medal.
But despite now sitting amongst the top echelon of players in the competition, Holmes said that at the beginning it certainly was not easy and reminded the students at Emmanuel College that there will always be tough challenges to work through.
"My biggest challenge in the early days was a bit similar to that," Holmes explained.
"When I would play AFL games, I wouldn't go as well as I had hoped.
"I think that is pretty natural, but it is pretty frustrating as someone that would want to get out there and try to be one of the best on the ground.
"There is only so much you can do at that stage, so it was difficult to not be great early and I had some stinkers.
"Then I just warmed into it and became more comfortable as it went on, but early days that was tough."
