"All the footy stuff I park aside when I go home. It's just all about my family and going out hunting." There's also a training program Rioli had to stick to while back home, which included running 5-6km three days a week and could account for his slimmer frame and exquisite ball skills going into pre-season. "I spent two weeks on the highland and a week in town, so it was good to get away from everything," he said. "Last pre-season we put a program together that helped me get back to where I needed to be to play. It helped last year, that was my first full season and I didn't want to change it too much. "It's a lot harder when you train by yourself in the off-season, so to be back with the boys, it's always good.

Loading "The bonus up there is the heat and the humidity ... running in that heat definitely helps with my skinfolds, that's why I like to go back there. "I'm lucky up there as a lot of my local clubs were still training so I got to run around and kick the ball and do a lot of the skills work, which a lot of the guys down here wouldn't have got the opportunity to do, so it's definitely a bonus. "The training is a lot different. I don't have green grass I can run on, so I've got to run on the rocky roads and we run to the water holes. "That's what me and (cousin) Daniel (Rioli) do a lot ... that's what my uncles used to do.

"We still do it today, run to the water holes, that's kind of how we train up there ... we got a little gym up there that's getting bigger and bigger thanks to some donations from the local community." Growing up, playing up there the humidity feels like you're playing with a wet footy down here. It's not a big gap to adapt to like if you go back to Melbourne to play. Lewis Jetta's mentorship of West Coast's young Indigenous players has been invaluable. Credit:AAP Rioli was crucial in West Coast's Grand Final win over Collingwood, with his first term goal sparking a fightback after the Pies had raced to a five-goal lead. He booted 28 goals in 24 games in his debut AFL season but chose to spend more time on the Tiwi Islands rather than attend West Coast's end-of-season player trip in Hong Kong.

Rioli didn't quite receive the rock star welcome from the Tiwi locals; they saved that for the arrival of West Coast's Premiership cup. "The first day I went up there everyone congratulated me but [there was no excitement] until the cup came up there, they were more happy about the cup coming up there," he said. Rioli also hinted there could be some hidden gems on the horizon of an AFL career if his eagle eye is any judge. "There's a lot of talent up there coming through," he said of the outlook on the Tiwi Islands. "I've got a fair few relatives playing seniors up there at a young age and that's why I love going back up there, to watch my family play and watch the talent as well."

Maurice Rioli Jnr and Daniel Rioli in August 2016 Credit:Instagram/@richmond_fc The retirement of veteran forward Mark LeCras will increase expectations on Rioli and fellow small forwards Jamie Cripps and Liam Ryan to hit the scoreboard but the young goalsneak hinted his improved fitness could mean more game time in the middle next season. "It's definitely something I want to add to my game. We've got a great midfield and if I can go in there and learn a bit of their craft each time, it will help take my game to another level," he said. Rioli also said first-year mentor Lewis Jetta had been in his ear again during the off-season and had encouraged him to take a more active leadership role now LeCras had retired. "He just said now I'm in my second year the leadership has to come and the voice has to go up another notch," Rioli said.