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Giants' developing star says too much pressure can be put on young players
The one thing Aaron Cadman didn't realise he would need in abundance when he arrived at GWS was patience.
At 17, he was a winger drafted in the prized number one spot to become a key forward, and by his own admission, "weighed nothing" and "was just skin and bone running on the wing".
"There's always a couple of man-childs getting around who dominate early … Obviously, I've got a bit of a thinner frame. I had to spend years in an elite environment for my body to develop the way that it needs to," Cadman told ABC Sport.
"Then there's also the craft stuff that's different to say a midfielder or small forward … It's much harder to shift someone who's 110 kilos than 70 kilos."
All that made one of the toughest components for him coming into the system his own impatience.
"I didn't want to wait for anything," Cadman said.
"And then also the pressure with being number one. You want to play straight away and showcase what you got and show people why you've been drafted at number one. So, it was really tough."
Now 21 and in his third year, Cadman feels that a good game for him might not be kicking multiple goals but rather bringing the ball to ground enough to get others involved.
This year, he has already had more goal assists than last season and he is on track to beat his goal tally.
"I've slowly reined in my emotions and really developed in that area, developed a lot of patience," he said.
But there are still days he thinks, "I should be dominating now".
In these moments — and wanting to be a premier goal scorer of the competition — he thinks of the likes of Carlton's Charlie Curnow.
Curnow debuted in 2016 after being taken by Carlton at pick 12. Six years later he became a two-time Coleman medallist and All-Australian (2022, 2023) after an injury-riddled start to his career.
Similarly, former Geelong star Tom Hawkins debuted in 2007 yet didn't start his five-time All Australian run until 2012. He is now ranked 13th highest in the history of the league for goalkicking.
Among some Cats fans, there was an impatience for him to develop quicker in his early years.
"Sometimes it takes you six years. So, it takes time — but I hate waiting," Cadman said.
"I guess it is a good mindset to have, in a way, but sometimes it does kill me"
Cadman has also been afforded time to develop in Sydney away from the limelight and in a side that is not dwelling down the bottom of the ladder.
While number one draft picks often find themselves in struggling or rebuilding sides — such as Harley Reid at West Coast, Jason Horne-Francis while at North Melbourne and Sam Lalor at Richmond — the Giants made a preliminary final in 2023, the year Cadman debuted.
"People think that just because they come in, they can swing everything around, but it's not a one-man show," Cadman said.
"I feel for those guys and the pressure that's put on them. They seem to be dealing with it. Everyone deals with it in different ways but they seem to be striving and playing some really good footy.
"But you can't expect someone in their first — you could almost say first three years — to be the best player on the team. It takes a lot of time.
"There's always going to be outliers with [Nick] Daicos and [Harry] Sheezel. They're unbelievable players. But people need to develop an elite environment and just have time in the system and to educate and hone in their skills."
Cadman is also in a forward line with the reigning Coleman medalist Jesse Hogan and 2023 All Australian captain Toby Greene, which helps things.
"Even if I compare me and [Nate Caddy] a little bit … but you can't even really compare us because he's basically been handed the reins to the whole forward line himself," Cadman said of the 19-year-old Bomber who coach Brad Scott hailed as a "point of difference" for the club after just three games.
"He's getting basically the number one defender every week, and sometimes he's got limited help. So he's flying for balls with three other people on him. He's doing it tough, but hats off to him, and he's going to be a superstar."
Cadman added that for key forwards, it's not always about what happens on the stat sheet, where a good game for him in his first two years was just bringing the ball to the front.
"That's all it was. [And] it's all these things, all these patterns that key forwards will run that set others up. It's the same with every other position," he said.
"And first-year players, I think there's way too much pressure being put on them … I'm just super grateful that I'm here in Sydney, where a bit of the limelight is off and just allows me to focus on what I need to focus on."
