Playing with a ‘nothing to lose’ attitude was the catalyst behind Jy Farrar’s impressive return to AFL football in Saturday’s Round 5 clash against the Bulldogs,

Farrar was impressive in his first AFL outing for 2021, and just the second of his young career, playing a key role in the SUNS defence and racking up 21 disposals, eight marks and a pair of tackles.

After soaking in plenty in his first season on the SUNS list, it was a debut in the last round of the 2020 season that ignited the hunger for the 24-year-old to earn his spot back in the senior squad.

“I put in a whole heap of work over the pre-season as did all the boys, but personally, it was a bit of reward for effort getting to run out there with the senior boys,” Farrar said.

“The first year was sort of like a learning curve for me. At the end [of the season] when I finally got an opportunity, it made me hungrier because we went into the off-season and there weren’t any more games.

“It was then about putting my best foot forward over the off-season, putting a whole heap of work in and be in good nick to put my hand up again.

“I was going in there [the Round 5 game] with some good form from the VFL so I thought I had nothing to lose. Going out there with that attitude, playing my brand of footy and doing as much as I can to help the team.”

After debuting as in the forward line and kicking a neat goal against the Hawks in Round 18 last season, Farrar returned to the senior squad at the other end of the ground against the Bulldogs.

While the role was in the versatile South Australia’s wheelhouse, who played as defender coming through the ranks, rising to the higher intensity of AFL football is a challenge he’s thriving on.

“It was about unlocking those traits and remembering what it used to be like, fine-tuning it and making it up to that AFL standard,” Farrar added.

“It’s been good, I’ve only switched the role up since we got back from the Christmas break. I’m only fairly new to it at an AFL standard but it’s been good so far.”

That versatility doesn’t faze Farrar who is willing to play wherever he’s needed and will give his all for his teammates.

“Wherever the team needs me, I’ll put my hand up and have a dip,” Farrar continued.

“Part of my learning curve in the first year was about bringing that high intensity to every training session and then kicking it up even more during games.

“It’s about having a dip, having a go and treating every game and every contest like it’s your last. That’s something I really pride myself on.”