Young recruit Nathan Hrovat made his first impact at senior level with a goal assist, and now he’s had a taste, he is eager for more.

Substituted on in the fourth quarter against Richmond, the draftee’s foray into the seniors was limited but his work around the stoppages and in the Western Bulldogs attacking zone was immediately felt.

Hrovat was modest in his review of the game, with the 18-year-old just grateful for the exposure at the higher level before the premiership season begins.

“[I] just came on and had a couple of touches and tried to get amongst it a bit - it was a good experience,” Hrovat said.

Given the call up after an impressive showing for VFL affiliate Williamstown last fortnight, the onballer found the biggest challenge to be the anticipation while waiting to be substituted on.

“It’s a big step up from VFL last week, so just adapting to that change was a big thing,” he said.

“Obviously being [a]sub, it’s hard to mentally stay in the game as well as… prepare for it, so it’s a good challenge.”

The small midfielder has gained a reputation as a hard worker who is constantly looking to better himself, consulting players and coaches alike for advice.

Having already extracted a number of lessons from the experience on Saturday, last year’s Northern Knights captain specifically concentrated on body positioning to compete with the more mature opposition players. 

“[There were] a couple of learning curves of where to position yourself and that sort of stuff,” he said.

“It’s good to get out there and have a bit of a run around and go to the coaches and talk about it and take it from there.”

Known for his ball winning ability and prowess both inside and outside the contest, Hrovat is already eyeing his senior debut in season proper.

While unsure if Saturday’s exploits will earn him the ultimate call up, the Bulldogs’ first round draftee is just focussing on putting his head down at training and making every training session count.

“We will have to wait and see what happens, I guess that all comes off at the track and back at training… at the moment I’m not expecting anything but it would be nice,” he said.

“Excited to hopefully play some senior footy this year and develop [my skills].”