{"id":496162,"date":"2026-02-22T05:32:10","date_gmt":"2026-02-22T05:32:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/496162\/"},"modified":"2026-02-22T05:32:10","modified_gmt":"2026-02-22T05:32:10","slug":"trust-in-my-body-devils-recruit-keen-to-represent-tasmania-afl-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/496162\/","title":{"rendered":"“Trust in my body”: Devils recruit keen to represent Tasmania – AFL News"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a><\/p>\n

Proud Tasmanian Hugh Dixon<\/a> is looking forward to spearheading the Devils’ forward line.<\/p>\n

The former West Coast Eagle and Fremantle player has returned home after a stint at Southport following his time at the top level.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I always had plans to come back to Tasmania in the long-term and then the opportunity came up to play footy at a high level down here and with the AFL<\/a> team looming for a third lifeline all those things fell into line and so I came back.<\/p>\n

“I’m a very proud Tasmanian, I love the state, I love the people down here, it’s brought me a lot of good things in my life and to be able to repay that on the footy field will be a massive honour,” Dixon told Zero Hanger.<\/p>\n

“They’re a passionate bunch so I can’t wait for Round 1.”<\/p>\n

Up to 11,000 people are expected to pack into North Hobart Oval for the season opener against Coburg on March 21.<\/p>\n

There is an expectation within the club, the state and wider football industry that Tasmania will compete quickly after assembling an impressive list<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Part of the leadership group, with 38 games of AFL<\/a> experience and after kicking 83 goals across his last two VFL seasons, Dixon will have a significant role to play.<\/p>\n

Embed from Getty Images<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThere’s a long list of things I’d do differently (if I got another chance). Things I’d like to do more and things I’d do less of. With the AFL<\/a> you learn a lot,\u201d Dixon said.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy career was up and down – I had some good moments and had some moments I wasn’t as focussed or committed as I should be and with this group looking to learn off us, there’s knowledge I can pass on that can help them along their journey.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now 26, injuries limited Dixon as a younger player, but having played 36 games across the past two seasons, the 197cm forward is confident that a consistent year awaits as he pushes for a return to the top level.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the last three or four years I’ve stayed injury-free, which has given me trust in my body and trust in the work I’m doing off-field, putting me in good stead,\u201d Dixon said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI’m doing the little things in the gym more now, prehab and rehab so those injuries don’t come back and I’ve developed a bit and my body got stronger after being a lanky and loose young fella.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think I’ve added some one-on-one marking and strength to my game and my athletic profile and as you get older you learn about the game and become more of a student from playing on different opponents and figure out what did and didn’t work against them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tasmania coach Jeromey Webberley highlighted what Dixon would bring to the new colours.<\/p>\n

“I think clubs build off big guys in front of the ball who allow you to get field position and Hugh’s a proven commodity at the level so we know what we’re going to get and it’s great to have him back in Tasmania playing for the jumper again,” Webberley said.<\/p>\n

“He’s fantastic around the group with engagement. He’s such a loveable character and he’s brought a level of energy<\/p>\n

Get set for the footy with the FREE Zero Hanger 2026 AFL Season Guide!<\/a> Packed with 150+ pages of player profiles, team previews, insights and analysis, the 2026 AFL Season Guide<\/a> is built for fans who want the full picture. Download your free Season Guide HERE.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Proud Tasmanian Hugh Dixon is looking forward to spearheading the Devils’ forward line. The former West Coast Eagle…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":496163,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[560],"tags":[638,64,63,55,639,85],"class_list":["post-496162","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-afl","tag-afl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-australian-football-league","tag-australianfootballleague","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/496162","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=496162"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/496162\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/496163"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=496162"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=496162"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=496162"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}