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A meeting in a Melbourne gymnasium with a Collingwood premiership star might turn out to be the moment that changed Matt Smith’s football career.

The Strathfieldsaye Storm premiership player is a personal trainer at the Melbourne gym that former Collingwood hard man Craig Kelly attends.

“I expressed to Craig that I was interested in getting back to VFL level and he said if I was really that keen that he’d put my name down at Collingwood,’’ Smith said.

“The rest was up to me as to how far I went with it.”

The hard-running midfielder/defender has grabbed the opportunity and run with it.

The 25-year-old has entrenched himself in the Collingwood midfield rotation and the prospect of him playing a handful of games with the Storm this year now appears slim.

“I didn’t go in with any expectations about how many VFL games I would play,’’ Smith said.

“I was just glad to be back training at that level again and was keen to make the most of it.

“To have played every game seven rounds in and to start finding my feet the last few weeks, I’m really happy with the opportunity.”

A two-time premiership player with Calivil United as a teenager, Smith played 12 senior games over four years with Port Melbourne in his first crack at VFL level. He returned to Bendigo to play with the Storm where he was an integral member of their 2014 and 2015 premiership teams.

Smith said the professionalism of Collingwood’s VFL program and the multi-million dollar facilities at the Holden Centre had already helped improve his game.

“All the VFL players get 100 per cent access to the Holden Centre,’’ he said.

“You want for nothing at the club. Everything is at our disposal…whenever you need physios or that sort of thing you are right to go to the club. Everyone is willing to help.”

The Collingwood VFL side is coached by Dale Tapping, while the line coaches are former AFL stars Anthony Rocca (forward), Tarkyn Lockyer (midfield) and Jared Rivers (defence).

“They all have involvement with the Collingwood senior side as well, so to be able to pick their brains is invaluable for me,’’ Smith said.

“It helps with my progress at the club.”

After a slow start to the season, the Collingwood VFL team has moved to eighth spot on the ladder with a 4-3 record.

“The last couple of weeks have been really good,’’ Smith said.

“We’re starting to get some continuity in our side. Obviously, AFL injuries play a big part in our side and then we’ve had some injuries to VFL-listed players as well.

“We’re starting to get some of those players back now and it’s starting to show in our consistency and in the way we play. We’re happy with where we’re sitting and we’re pretty pumped to be playing a couple of good sides in Werribee and Casey in the news few weeks.”

Smith has played alongside Travis Cloke the past month and couldn’t have been more impressed by the way the key forward has handled his demotion to the VFL.

“He gets a lot of attention, whether it be from the media or opposition players and fans,’’ Smith said of Cloke.

“It’s been good to see how he goes about it. He didn’t come back and fall in a slump. He’s been very pro-active and gets around all the players passing on as much knowledge as he can.

“He played really well last weekend. Hopefully, he’s enjoying it as much as we’re enjoying having him.”