The move to Gunnedah might have put the cork in Jakob Vearing's wine-making career - for the time being anyway - but it has given him the freedom to indulge in one of his other great passions.
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Last year the 27-year old played his first season of AFL for "five or six years".
"It was just really good to get a full season," he said, his work circumstances previously meaning he was often required to work weekends.
He had missed it, having been "pretty much born" with a footy in his hands.
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His dad was was he put it: "football mad". He played under-20s for Hawthorn before being contracted out to Narrandera, who he would go on to play over 200 games for.
Vearing was himself a bit of a gun in his junior days. He made his first grade debut when he was 15, was in rep sides and talented pathway programs pretty much from when he was old enough to be, and for a time, he admits, did harbour ambitions of playing in the AFL.
But he took 'the road less travelled' by probably many in his position, putting sport on the backburner in his later teens and giving his studies precedence.
The hard work paid off with Vearing getting into uni to study forensic science. Discovering that wasn't really something he wanted to pursue, he started getting into bar managing.
When he then moved to the Hunter Valley he started working in restaurants, which saw him working closely with the local wineries and piqued his interest in the industry.
After starting an applied science degree of wine science he then got a job as an assistant winemaker for a small boutique winery called Piggs Peake.
But when COVID hit and showed it wasn't going away any time soon, Vearing admits he "didn't have a lot of confidence" in the job security of the industry.
So when his partner, who had recently graduated as an environmental scientist, was offered a full-time job with Whitehaven they decided to relocate.
They moved up to Gunnedah in September 2020 with Vearing also taking up a job with Whitehaven.
He was initially on a shift roster, which meant while he was able to play most weekends he could only train every second week.
Now on a more regular roster, this season he has stepped up to coach the Bulldog's women.
It's (coaching) something that he's always had an interest in. He did a bit basketball coaching when he was younger and "always wanted to get into football coaching" but was "a little bit too young at that point". Then life got in the way.
"I've got a massive passion for developing women's football," Vearing said.
"I want to see the game grow."
From what he has seen he believes there is "a lot of growth and potential" for the women's game in the North West.
There are more numbers joining all the time, and in a landmark for the AFL North West, this year will see the introduction of a girls only competition.
Ahead of that the Bulldogs will be holding a come-and-try session for interested girls at Wolseley Oval this Saturday (February 12).
The women have been a dominant force, losing just one game in the last two seasons.
Speaking before their first training last Thursday, Vearing said they are all "super keen".
Andy Mack is meanwhile coaching the Dogs' men again.