STRENGTHS:

+ Kicking
+ Vision
+ Footy IQ
+ Outside game
+ Versatility
+ Overhead marking
+ Clean hands

IMPROVEMENTS:

- Physicality
- Defensive pressure
- Contested game

First and foremost, Smith's skills are up there with the best going around, particularly by foot. She wins the ball and can execute well in any third of the ground, utilising some footy smarts and vision to pick out and find targets downfield. Her ability to get into space and be an option is also very good, and playing in that wing role aids in exemplifying her best traits.

Smith's outside game is where she shines. Though the Dragons top-ager has spent time on-ball, her skills are most damaging with time and space, so she was sent to defence for Vic Metro and eventually the wing for Sandringham, where others could feed her the ball and she goes to work. The ability to be that distributor going inside 50 is always important, which is why she initially spent time at half-forward, and did hit the scoreboard with five goals this season.

Overhead, Smith is comfortable, albeit in an uncontested setting. She stands at 173cm, so is a good height for a winger as well, and is the reason she was trialled through that inside role. Her areas of improvement are all related to being an inside midfielder however, which is why Smith is best suited as an option in transition, particularly between the arcs where she can get-and-go, driving the ball forward.

On her improvements, Smith's big one is her physicality. Despite being 173cm, she does not quite have the same strength or physical nature that some others have, and therefore her contested game is not as strong as her uncontested one. She loves to run, can find space so easily, and then utilise her elite skills in transition.

On top of that, Smith's defensive pressure - such as running defensively on turnover or being able to stick tackles - can also further improve. At the national championships, by playing in a defensive role, Smith was able to see the game from behind the play rather than in front of it, and she was able to mop up and send the ball inside 50.

That lead to her defensive running improving upon return to the Dragons, with the smart wing able to learn more about her positioning in the defensive 50, winning a lot of intercept possessions deep in the backline. Given her clean hands both overhead and ground level, she can certainly win the ball around the ground, and while athletically she is solid, her best work is done once the ball is in her hands.

Put simply, Smith is an elite user of the footy, she can spot targets around the ground and hit them up with precision. She does not mind to run-and-carry and is capable of getting involved in transition, while ducking out to wide spaces where she can be a target then delivering the ball forward effectively. Smith does have some key improvements to make in her game, but has those strengths that hold her in good stead.