Bairstow excited to reach 100 games with Bulldogs

SOUTH Fremantle has added motivation to return to the winner's list this Saturday when Toby Bairstow's rollercoaster WAFL journey reaches a high point as he plays his 100th match with the Bulldogs to book his name on the No. 4 locker at Fremantle Oval.

It hasn’t always been a smooth ride to 100 games for the 25-year-old since he graduated through the colts and reserves at South Fremantle after coming up from Bunbury to go and make his league debut in Round 6, 2008.

He played 16 games in the premiership year of 2009 including kicking in the winning goal in an incredible Anzac Day derby against East Fremantle and playing well in the second semi-final win over Subiaco, but he and Hayden North made way for Jeff Farmer and Peter Bell in the grand final.

Bairstow shook off the disappointment of that to continue to develop his game further in 2010 as a permanent midfielder averaging over 25 possessions a game and then backing that up in 2011 averaging over 23.

The departure of John Dimmer as coach saw Paul Hasleby take over and give Bairstow a new role on the wing in 2012 and that's something he was doing tremendously until a hand injury saw his season end after 10 matches.

He was back as a strong contributor again for the first 17 games of 2013 before being dropped for the final three matches and then also being asked to play reserves for the opening three games of 2014.

However, he put his head down and worked hard to get back into the league side where he has remained since starring in the Round 4 win over West Perth with him returning to playing as an inside midfielder.

Bairstow is now excited to be reaching the 100-game mark with the Bulldogs himself this Saturday against Claremont at the Showground.

"It's huge to get to 100 games. To be honest it's a big part of why you continue to play football. To have played at Souths, to now be about to play 100 games and getting my name on the locker means a lot," Bairstow said.

"When you are young and starting out it doesn’t mean much at all, but eventually over the years you start to understand how important it actually it is for you as a person. I'm really excited to hopefully get there now this week.

"It is something that is really special and it means a lot to me, and I've seen it mean a lot to other players. I remember when Ash and Kyle got his 100th game, and Whitey got his it meant a lot to them and now that it's fast approaching for me I really do understand how much of a great achievement it is."

Playing different roles over the years, missing the premiership (despite playing in the reserves flag) in 2009, having a season-ending injury in 2012 and now having to bounce back from being dropped all lead to the milestone meaning a lot to Bairstow now.

"Under John, I started as a half-forward and played as an inside mid, but when Hase came I started to play a lot on the wing and now this year I've gone back to being an inside mid. You have to be able to play a variety of roles and that's all part of it," he said.

"Over time you learn that everyone has their own opinions and that those opinions can change from year to year. To be honest, it is probably a good thing and it makes me appreciate playing back in the team again even more.

"It hasn’t been the easiest thing this year to get back into the side, but you probably do get a bit carried away when you keep getting games week after week, year after year and it can tick over pretty quick, but once you miss out you really start to realise how important it is to you."

As Bairstow began playing colts he got to watch the remnants of the 2005 premiership team top up again to build towards the 2009 flag, and given the Bulldogs missed the finals only once under Dimmer as coach between 2004 and 2011, he saw how a strong team operate.

"When I first started we were a very successful and strong team, and it was hard to get into the team. Then once you got into the team, it was hard to get out as long as you kept doing your job and playing well. That was a big part of those successful teams," Bairstow said.

"When you see blokes chopping and changing every week, at the end of the day it's because of the result. If we are winning, then everyone holds their spot and plays week to week. The worst part of football is blokes missing out and as a group it should be your biggest drive knowing that if you win games, everyone plays again the next week."

Since the losing first semi-final to Subiaco in 2011, South Fremantle hasn’t made finals and won't again in 2014 having now lost five straight matches, but Bairstow knows how important it is for the playing group to stick together and find new ways to measure themselves.

"As hard as it is, you have to try and not worry about the results and focus on the way you go about it. You have to look at if everyone has committed, if everyone has brought commitment and effort, and that's what you need to worry about when you are struggling," he said.

"As soon as you start worrying about wins and losses, and judge yourselves on that then you will be in trouble because realistically where we are right now, we're not going to get the wins at the moment.

"We need to judge ourselves on something else, we need another barometer. We just have to try and get back to enjoying our footy, getting around each other and as a group we have to look after each other, and make sure we are going forward together."

Bairstow has seen a huge change in not only the football club and the playing group at South Fremantle over the past five years, but also how quickly playing in the WAFL while trying to build your life outside of the game makes you mature and grow up.

"When you are young, it's just pretty much football and enjoying your weekends with your mates, but then you do start to grow old and mature – even though it might be slowly. I have a partner now and you look at things totally differently. You worry about your career outside of football and thinking about what's best for everyone, you aren’t just worried about yourself anymore," he said.

"Even from two years ago, our playing group has changed dramatically and that happens especially at WAFL level. You don’t have as many blokes sticking around for three, four or five years anymore, and that is becoming more and more rare.

"Blokes move on because of opportunities or work reasons and for the lifestyle, and that's probably the biggest difficulty WAFL footy has to try and maintain those blokes. There is a balance between being too professional and still enjoying it like you would at community level."

It has been impossible also for Bairstow to escape the endless comparisons and questions about his father – 1986 Sandover Medal winner with South Fremantle and 146-game AFL player and Geelong grand final captain, Mark.

He even inherited his father's nickname as his own first name, but he can't thank his parents enough for their dedicated support of his career over the years.

"I get asked a lot about my dad, but I didn’t feel any pressure at all. All he has done is make my pathway a lot easier and he hasn’t missed too many games," Bairstow said.

"He might have missed a couple because of the races on a Saturday, but we haven’t got that many going that quick at the moment. Both mum and dad come to every game to support me. Having that surname has made it easier if anything."