OVERCOMING a fear of failure brought out the best footy in reliable Carlton backman Liam Jones.

Starting his football journey as forward at the Bulldogs, Jones was able to make the switch down back and breathe new life into his AFL career at Ikon Park. 

Reflecting on his change in mindset, Jones spoke on establishing his position as a defender in this week’s episode of Yokayi Footy. 

03:51

Jones on career transformation

Liam Jones spoke to Yokayi Footy about his cultural background and his career to date.

“I think the biggest thing that probably changed was just the fear of failure I tried to get rid of,” Jones said. 

“I was always with the criticism I was getting from other people: I was really hard on myself as well.”

What flipped for Carlton’s No.14 was bringing enjoyment back into his game and making the most of his time at the Club.

Few will forget the run of form that Jones had in 2017, firstly in the VFL and then at AFL level once he got his chance in a key defensive post.

“That last year when I was coming to my last year of contract: up until that point, things weren’t really working out for me and I just thought I’m just going to do my absolute best,” he said.

“Leave no stone unturned and just play and have fun and remember what it was like when I was a little kid kicking the ball around.

“Enjoy the opportunity if it was going to be one more year, enjoy the last year playing AFL football and being surrounded by guys like Kade Simpson and Marc Murphy — all these great players.”

00:55

Jones' admiration of Simpson

Liam Jones talked to Yokayi Footy about his love for Kade Simpson and what he's learned from him over the years.

On the week of his retirement, Jones had plenty of admiration for the stalwart of Carlton’s backline.

Crediting Kade Simpson as a role model in terms of his preparation and resilience, Jones took the time to honour the veteran ahead of him hanging up the boots.

“He was seen as such a courageous and inspirational player to play against, someone that would never give up,” he said. 

“What he does behind closed doors, the amount of work that he puts into his body and his preparation, I would almost just sort of spy on him and watch the things that he did.

“The bits that I’ve taken from ‘Simmo’ is just prepare as well as you can and leave no stone unturned and when I started doing that, I started getting some positive results.”