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In-stadium commentary at Mt SmartBailey Smith hailed for handling pressure of Dogs grudge match
Andrew Slevison • May 23rd, 2025 10:54 am
Bailey Smith put all the drama behind him to help Geelong to a stirring win over the Western Bulldogs on Thursday night.
The 24-year-old was the central focus of the Cats v Bulldogs grudge match following a jab at his former club a few weeks ago.
His words rattled the cage of the Doggies and subsequently sparked frenzied interest in the Round 11 fixture with Smith the centrepiece given his past allegiance to the red, white and blue.
There was plenty of chatter in the lead-up, mainly around whether or not the Dogs players would target him.
But Smith did not let the circus he inadvertently created impact his performance even though he did feel some pressure.
“Yeah, I’d be lying if I didn’t,” Smith said on Channel 7.
“It was more excitement. I do my meditation each day and just try to be in the present about what I’ve got to do today and not too much into the future.
“I certainly was sh---ing myself for this game. It was almost reverse psychology to not giving me attention. It was good, they didn’t go after me.
“I loved it, so glad we beat them.”
In the high-scoring 14-point win, Smith had an equal game-high 33 disposals and a game-high 810 metres, as well as seven tackles, seven inside 50s, seven score involvements and six clearances.
Kane Cornes praised the former Dog for walking the walk after talking the talk.
“It was a big week for him, no one has had a bigger week,” Cornes said of Smith on SEN’s Fireball.
“I thought for him to be able to absorb that, to put his head in the hole multiple times and impact the game like he was able to do.
“25 kicks in the end, seven score involvements and started really strongly. For him to be able to cope with that showed a great level of maturity because that wouldn’t have been easy. Nothing had been built up bigger than that game and he’s been the centrepiece of that.
“So to be able to deliver individually, I thought it was an amazing performance.”
Smith again hit the Dogs through a cheeky drive-by when saying he is afforded the luxury to be himself at Geelong.
“That’s the beauty of the club, they let you be yourself,” he said.
“They probably don’t make you try to conform to something you’re not like previously in previous years.
“I’m just grateful that they’re welcoming me.”
Cornes’ Fireball co-host David King loved Smith’s honesty and believes his words only serve as a recruitment tool for the ever-attractive Cats.
“Whenever I hear this I think it’s advertising for the next acquisition, the next player,” King said.
“Let’s say they’re in for Jamarra (Ugle-Hagan) - let’s just pluck a name. ‘Come down here, be yourself, it’s not like other clubs, it’s more relaxed’.
“‘It’s not like I was hamstrung previously’. Gee whiz. I thought he spoke brilliantly last night.”
Cornes: “I think he speaks brilliantly all the time.”
King: “He’s such an entertainer, more of it please.”
Cornes: “He’s the most marketable player in the game, Nick Watson second.”
Smith is enjoying a career-best season with the Cats, averaging 30.9 disposals, 6.1 inside 50s, 5.9 tackles and 5.1 clearances.
The 7-4 Cats, who now sit fifth, next meet West Coast in Perth on the Sunday night of Round 12.
