Former forward/midfielder Chris Knights spent eight seasons with the Adelaide Football Club.
And he featured in a star-studded side which included Andrew McLeod, Mark Ricciuto, Simon Goodwin and Tyson Edwards.
But there were three people inside the four walls at West Lakes who helped shape Knights’ football career.
Speaking on Triple M’s The Crows Radio Show, Knights said an ex-senior coach, senior recruitment officer and a high performance boss had the biggest influence on him during his 96-game career at Adelaide.
“Some of my fondest memories were with the Crows,” Knights said.
“I was lucky enough to play in an era with so many champions - the likes of McLeod, Ricciuto, Goodwin, Edwards, the list goes on.
“There’s obviously a lot of good players who impact your career.
“But Neil Craig as a coach - he was a hard task master, he was all about discipline and the right way to go about training hard to get the best results.
“Other guys like Alan Stewart played a big part in my development behind the scenes.
“I also worked really close with and he is still a dear friend of mine, Charlie Walsh. He taught me how to train bloody hard. He was just brilliant in showing me how to work and what I can do.”
Knights enjoyed a standout campaign with Adelaide in 2009, playing 20 AFL games and booting 43 goals.
He said a switch into a half-forward role from the midfield was behind the strong form that year.
“I remember training really hard during the pre-season and got into the midfield Rounds One and Two,” Knights said.
“You look back on it and people talk about the statistics.
“But for me it was just about making sure I played my role and I really focused on working hard to provide a fair bit of spread for our midfielders to run into a space you create.
“I was just lucky the midfielders were bloody good and could hit me on the end of it.”
Knights became the first player to switch Clubs through the AFL’s free agency system at the end of 2012 and crossed to Richmond.
He was on the Tigers’ list until injuries forced him to retire mid-way through 2015.
The now 35-year-old runs a digital marketing business he established while on an AFL list, called Zib Digital.
“I’ve kept that business going for the past 11 years and it’s really flourished,” Knights said.
“There’s about 125 crew now in the business… and we just work with businesses to help them grow through digital marketing solutions.”
Also on The Crows Radio Show, AFLW Head of Football Phil Harper chats about Adelaide’s dynasty and Sam Jacobs recalls a cold, wintery time he played in Ballarat.
Tune in this Sunday at 9am on Triple M Adelaide for the next instalment of Sauce and Thomo.
