Adelaide forward Darcy Fogarty said self-belief had never really been one of his strong points.

But that slowly started to change this past season, when the 23-year-old joined teammate Riley Thilthorpe in a course to build confidence which has translated to improved form on the field.

The Lucindale product finished the 2022 season as one of the League’s most accurate kicks for goal with a total of 33 majors from 17 games.

Speaking to AFC Media post-season, Fogarty said having more faith in his ability led to him producing a stand-out campaign.

“I think one thing a lot of footballers struggle with is their belief and where they actually sit within a team,” Fogarty said.

“I was lucky enough to start doing a bit of a program that helps that and flip my mindset on its head which was really beneficial.

“I wasn’t the greatest self-talker before this year, but I’ve been lucky enough to turn that around and become a really positive person throughout games, even when things are going a bit tough. 

“I think just reassuring myself what I believe and what I want to achieve in a fairly big way throughout games and throughout the season.”

Despite ending the campaign strongly, Fogarty’s start to 2022 did not kick off the way he would have liked.

After lining up in the side for Rounds One to Three, the tall forward was left out of the team and went back to the SANFL to work on his craft.

He was then re-selected for the Crows’ Round Nine match against Brisbane and went on to kick 31 goals.

Fogarty, who notched his 50th AFL game in Round Seven against North Melbourne, said having the support of his teammates and coaches was also behind his strong form.

“It got pretty frustrating not playing as well as I would have liked,” Fogarty said.

“I think, as well, it was just a little bit of luck and being backed by the team and the coaches that gave me a little bit of confidence to play better football,” Fogarty said.

“It sort of takes a bit of the weight off the shoulders and you can focus on helping other people and trying to keep improving your own game so it makes it a bit easier.”

Fogarty said he would look to use the momentum of finishing strongly to help set him up for 2023.

“It gives me a little bit of confidence going into next year,” Fogarty said. 

“I think the focus is now trying to do it for a full year and keep learning and keep improving on how to do it. 

“It’s given me a little bit of belief that I can do it now, which is nice, hopefully now I can just keep backing it up and do it for a bit longer.”