By Grant hitzman
After playing in a losing Grand Final with Springwood last season, veteran Puma, Dom Nash, was looking for a fresh start.
Mt Gravatt ticked all the boxes for the hard-bodied 26-year old, who made a last minute decision to join the Vultures in 2014.
Vultures head coach, Brad Pollock, said the move has brought out the best in crafty forward, who played a blinder on the weekend to claim the Round 18 Syd Guildford nomination.
“Dom came at the start of the regular season and didn’t really have a pre-season behind him, but was hitting the training track really well,” he said.
“Unfortunately for us, he got himself a job in the mines early in the year and flew over to Western Australia for about eight to ten weeks.
“When he came back he was pretty hungry, fought his way back into the team and started playing some really good footy.”
Despite going down by 6-points to Palm Beach in near cyclonic weather, Nash was clearly the best afield in the clash, causing havoc across the half-forward flank.
“The conditions were pretty wet on the weekend and Dom handled it as well as anyone I’ve ever seen,” Pollock said.
“It was a very classy performance, I think he kicked four goals and the manner he went about it was exceptional.
“That’s probably the best way I can describe it, just classy, his team assists were very good and the effort in the weather was great.”
Pollock, who was also Nash’s coach at Springwood five years ago, said the matured-aged forward had come a long way since his early Puma days.
“I was coach at Springwood in 2009/10 and had some experience with Dom as a younger fella, he had a lot of ability back then too, but was quite volatile,” he said.
“Since he has come to Mt Gravatt I’ve seen the great impact he has had, he is very much a team player and really good around the younger blokes.
“He is one of the older boys in the squad but I think he is relishing it, he is having a very good influence on the team.”
Mt Gravatt hung on to the fifth and final spot on the ladder to qualify for the 2014 QAFL finals series by percentage, despite winning just two of their last five games.
Heading into a do-or-die clash with Broadbeach this Sunday, Pollock is confident the Vultures will rise to the occasion with Nash leading the way.
“This young group have been under the pump for pretty much the last nine or ten weeks, where we had to win or do well to keep those finals aspirations alive,” Pollock said.
“I’m pretty proud of them and I expect them to do well on the weekend.
“Dom being a bit older and playing in a Grand Final at Springwood last year, I think he is going to bring a much needed level of experience and play mentor to the younger boys in this one.”
