New Western Bulldogs signing Anthony Scott is determined to make the most of his AFL opportunity.

Scott, a Footscray VFL product and 2019’s best and fairest, was one of four train-on players invited to join the Bulldogs during the 2021 pre-season.

His hard work saw him sign with the Bulldogs on Wednesday, taking the list spot vacated by retired forward Sam Lloyd.

“I don’t know if it’s fully sunk in yet, but obviously I’m absolutely stoked that the Bulldogs have given me the opportunity now to be on an AFL list,” Scott told westernbulldogs.com.au.

“It’s pretty overwhelming, but it’s what I’ve always wanted to do and what I’ve worked so hard to do, so it’s pretty gratifying now to know that an opportunity is now there for me.

“Because I’ve been working for so long for this chance, I definitely won’t take it for granted.”

Standing at 180cm tall, Scott spent the 2019 VFL season with Footscray and was elevated to vice-captain for 2020 before the season was abandoned.

He previously spent time with Old Trinity in the VAFA and playing for Richmond’s reserves.

He said having been part of the ‘Scray helped frame his mindset and how he went about the pre-season opportunity.

“I just thought if I did the things that I knew I was capable of – working really hard on the training track, always looking to improve – and then using the experience that I had here in the VFL in 2019, I knew a few of the boys, I knew the ground, and I knew the game-plan,” Scott said.

“I thought if I just translated all the work put in so far from VFL training and the AFL program, then I had faith in my ability that I’d show what I’m capable of, and that it’d be enough to get me onto an AFL list.

“The Footscray experience in the VFL was definitely a huge help coming into this AFL pre-season – that relationship I have with the club has definitely been advantageous.”

The 25-year-old impressed with his run in the senior practice match against Hawthorn on Wednesday morning, playing a mix of wing and half-back.

He was told he’d done enough to secure a spot on the list via a phone call from senior coach Luke Beveridge.

“’Bevo’ let me know the news (Tuesday) afternoon – I was just at home and saw his name come up on my phone and thought ‘maybe this is the news I’ve been working for the last couple of months here’,” Scott said.

“When he told me I was over the moon – I let the girlfriend know and the family, and everyone was just super ecstatic for me.

“It was just an awesome feeling.”

Scott joins Mitch Hannan, Will Hayes and Ryan Gardner as the fourth Footscray VFL product currently on the Bulldogs’ list.