Fresh Western Bulldogs trade recruit Nick Coffield has detailed his keenness to get to the Kennel following a difficult stint as a Saint to start his AFL career.
After being selected No. 8 overall by St Kilda at the 2017 National Draft, Coffield went on to play just 52 senior games across six seasons at Moorabbin as he battled persistent injury.
Coffield was traded as part of a deal that was finalised on deadline day; offloaded by Stephen Silvagni's St Kilda as it welcomed Paddy Dow from the Blues.
The rebounding defender, who sought a "fresh start" after a torrid Saints tenure, described his happiness at arriving at Whitten Oval following the conclusion of the trade period.
"It's awesome, obviously [I'm really] stoked to be on board, pretty keen to get started, but yeah, pretty keen to have a fresh start and get to work with all the boys," Coffield told WesternBulldogs.com.au.
"Yeah, it's pretty cool, I know dad's pretty stoked and my grandpa would be, too, it's a bit of a weird feeling but it is pretty cool."
The 23-year-old cited his pre-existing relationship with Bulldogs assistant coach Brendon Lade, who was previously assisting at St Kilda, as well as his subsequent discussions with a number of Dogs higher-ups as the catalyst for his cross-town switch.
"I caught up with 'Bevo' (Luke Beveridge), Sam (Power), and 'Ladey' (Brendon Lade) as well, probably three or four weeks ago now, had a few chats to them," continued Coffield.
"Obviously [I've] got a pretty good relationship with 'Ladey', I probably [spent] about three years with him at the Saints, so yeah, they sort of ran us through everything, [we] had a great chat and I was pretty keen to come before then, but that definitely got me over the line.
"[I've been] battling injuries the last couple of years, but sort of felt like I got on top of them at the end of last year, playing the last four games in the VFL, so hopefully that's all past me.
Coffield revealed his likely position among the Bulldogs' 2024 lineup, adding his praise for the club's "unreal" list construction heading into the new season.
"Probably just in the backline, I had a couple of chats with 'Bevo', I think that's where he probably sees me, I think that's where [my] strengths are as well, so I think I'll probably just stay there," Coffield said.
"[We've] got an unreal list, I think the group's got a lot of potential to do a lot of damage, so if I can be a part of that, and potentially contribute, that'd be awesome."