They say good things come in threes.
For livewire forward Cody Weightman, that couldn’t ring truer at the moment.
Just days after taking on the historic number three guernsey, the 21-year put pen to paper on a contract extension that will see him remain in the red, white and blue for the next three seasons.
He said a large part of his decision came down to the environment and the coaching staff.
“It’s an exciting place to be – I was pretty keen to stay on,” Weightman said.
“Year and year again, players speak on the influence Bevo has on their decision to come to the Dogs. That doesn’t surprise me at all.
“He’s a really good people person, and someone that I’ve got a really good relationship with.
“Having a director and a driver of the Club who is also someone you can be comfortable around and connect with is super important.”
Weightman said moving from #19 to #3 won’t bring about any added pressure, despite the weight that the number holds at Whitten Oval.
“I’m more just excited to try and get my name on the locker below those names, and see what I can do for this Club like the others have,” he explained.
“The only thing I felt bad for was the kids that already had #19 – but Liam Jones is pretty stoked.
“He reckons full-backs don’t get numbers on the back so he might gain a couple.”
The entire squad will commence pre-season training on Monday, at Braybrook’s Skinner Reserve while the Whitten Oval precinct undergoes redevelopment.
Weightman had no concerns about the disruptions.
“I think you’ve just got to harness what you get - we’ve become pretty good at being adaptable with COVID and being on the road, so I think we’re just more or less grateful to be in Footscray rather than being told (on-the-run) where we’ll be each week,” he said.
“As a group, we’re pretty resilient – I don’t think it should trouble us too much.
“It’s exciting for sure, to see where we’re going. The short-term pain will be worth the long-term gain that we’re going to get out of it.”
