It was Harry Canning’s Leo Barry moment.
With less than a minute on the clock and the ball sent deep into Doncaster East’s forward 50, six players went up for the footy, and the Berwick teenager came down with it.
It saved the game for the Wickers, giving them a one-point win, significant in the context of a season where they have been perennially competitive but, until Saturday, had just one win to show for it.
That the young defender took the mark against former AFL-listed tall forwards Josh Schache and Tim O’Brien, who have a combined 191 games of experience at the top level makes it all the more remarkable.
Kids dream of kicking a goal after the siren to win a match for their team, but this was a clutch moment of equal magnitude.
“I think everyone around the ground knew exactly where that kick was going: as long and as far as it could and I was lucky just to get a nice run and jump at it and a nice sit and it landed in my lap which was nice,” Canning said.
“I didn’t really want that ball to come to ground, I wasn’t really thinking too much in the moment and whatever happens, happens but fortunately it went my way and we were able to get it back outside the 50.”
Canning has always had the capacity to fly for big pack marks, which propelled him into Gippsland Power’s squad across 2023 and 2024 after having represented Vic Country under-16s in 2022.
The esteem with which the Power viewed him was evident by the assignments he was given, locking down now AFL-listed trio Jonty Faull, Jobe Shanahan and Jack Whitlock despite giving up significant size to each opponent.
But despite regularly proving a tough matchup, Canning missed multiple games in May last year with a concussion, which impeded his biggest strength: fearlessly launching in marking contests.
Shifting that mindset, while simultaneously adapting to the step of playing senior footy each week, has been a gradual process for Canning, who is a Box Hill VFL train-on player aspiring to make a state league list.
“It’s a part of my game I’ve been struggling with, that confidence flying for marks,” Canning admitted.
“But going to work, training it and having the faith that I still have that ability and it won’t hurt me too much and continuing to block out that noise inside my head is building my confidence.
“The more I fly; I might not mark them, I might not even touch the ball but just getting the reps in of competing in the air and going for it is important.
“It wasn’t really something I identified until early this year when I started to notice I was pulling out of marks but I sort of had to go back to my roots and knowing that the aerial ability is one of my strengths.
“Talking to people at Box Hill including the psychologist, (I’ve found) that confidence again.
“Every game I’m flying for more and more and starting to bring a few down.
Saturday’s mark was emblematic of a return to his best.
Despite winning just two of 10 games to date, Berwick sits fifth for points conceded in the 10-team competition, highlighting the discipline and reliability of the young backline, of which Canning has been a significant part.
“It was enormous for us and great for Harry’s confidence – he’s been building and playing good footy in the last few weeks,” Berwick coach Andrew Williams said.
“I’m really proud of the way he’s going about his footy.
“It was a big moment in the game and there was relief in the coaches’ box when he took the grab.
“He’s super talented and athletic and comes with a really good attitude.”
Glad to make such an explicit contribution to Berwick’s victory, Canning is hoping the moment and significant hard work which preceded it can provide him with a launchpad to get himself onto a state league list.
As a Box Hill train-on player, Canning does one session per week with the VFL squad and is in a position to be elevated onto the Hawks’ VFL main or development list if a long term injury sidelines a currently listed player.
His time at the club has given him an insight into the standard of the next level.
“I reckon I had the best pre-season of my life in terms of running and strength and how I feel,” Canning said.
“My body is feeling great, I’m feeling great in games. I feel like I’ve gotten cleaner and sharpened up my kicking a bit so the skill work has been great.”
