BEING dropped from the SANFL Women’s side back to the Development League was a blessing rather than a curse for Sturt’s Lily Smart who credits that as the catalyst behind her strong finish to 2025. Recalling the moment after a Round 3 win over Glenelg, Smart said her three weeks in the second tier helped her “flick the switch” which lead to her earning a State Draft Combine invite.

The athletic top-ager won the Double Blues’ Development League Best and Fairest in 2024, but after being added to the Croweaters’ Under 18s Academy, Smart found herself in the Sturt seniors for Round 1. The pace of the game was frenetic and over the next three weeks, Smart averaged just the 6.3 disposals.

Then she was told she would be dropped back to the Development League to work on her game. She did just that, earning a recall for the Round 7 match against West Adelaide. Almost like a completely different player, Smart won 19 disposals – the total touches she had in the first three rounds – as well as four marks, six tackles and eight inside 50s to win that week’s Breakthrough Player nomination.

“I think I played the first three games and then I had to go back to development league for a little bit,” Smart said. “I actually think that was good for me because I needed to be able to find something to come back for, improve myself a little bit. Then I was able to come back in that Round 7 and I just had more of the mindset that I’ve got nothing to lose, I might as well just go.

“I got Breakthrough Player that game, and ever since that game I was like ‘you can’t just go out there, if I want to actually get the ball I’ve got to go get it kind of mindset. Ever since getting dropped and coming back it was a bit of a flick of the switch in the mind to turn up a bit.”

Smart would play out the remainder of the season with Sturt, only dropping below the double-digit disposals once more and becoming a fully fledged winger. However that all changed when she went to the national championships as the athletic talent was moved to half-back, as her Double Blues teammate Monique Bessen – normally an inside midfielder/forward – was selected to play on the wing.

“I think it was interesting,” Smart said. “I think Mon was a bit surprised playing that but I guess she just had to do the same thing I did and just play on a wing because she doesn’t really have any other options. It was definitely different for the both of us, but I think it was actually good because you just can’t play one position, you’ve got to be happy to go anywhere so we figured it out.”

Smart is one of the humblest players going around, admitting that she “hadn’t been too good at footy” in the past, so she was glad that in her top-age season she was able to improve so much.

“This was finally my top-age 18s to finally come into the team and it was so much fun, I was able to play all the games,” Smart said. “Even thought I wasn’t able to play my preferred position, I got to play other positions and now I enjoy playing half-back. That’s definitely something that I really want to keep doing now, so it was really, really good and the girls are just amazing. Really enjoyed it.”

The hard-running Double Blues wing credits Talent Manager of Female Programs Robbie Neill with her evolved kicking action where the former Sydney and St Kilda player worked hard to build up Smart’s deficiencies.

“It’s still not one of my strengths, but definitely this year playing my first year of League and then getting coaching help at state from Robbie,” Smart said. “He focused with me a lot on my kicking and my technique so I think especially my kicking on the run has definitely been something that has improved a lot because it didn’t used to be so great.”

Fast forward to the end of the year and Smart received a State Draft Combine, something that suits her to a t given she represented Australia at the Oceania Athletics Championships last year, winning silver in the Under 18s Long Jump.

“I was so excited to get the combine invite,” Smart said. “I love this stuff and I was really happy to be able to because this is more what I’m better at so I’m really happy to be able to show people more of my strengths doing this.”

Off the field, Smart is in university with her first year studies wrapping up this month before getting stuck back into preseason with Sturt. The draft hopeful is keeping her fitness up and completing skills sessions with other Double Blues, as well as her father in order to hit the ground running whatever next year holds.

Heading into the December 15 draft, Smart said the possibility of being selected is “definitely more realistic now than had been a few months ago” and she was more than happy to relocate anywhere in the country to chase her dream.

“Relocating that’s something that doesn’t really concern me,” Smart said. “I’d be really happy to go anywhere and see what happens. I don’t have any expectations of getting drafted but if it happens there’s no way I’d pass up on the opportunity, I’d be straight into it.”