STREAMING down the wing, first-year Hawk Isaac Smith receives a handball from teammate Shaun Burgoyne.

His team is three goals ahead but, even with less than 10 minutes left in the match, Carlton - as their membership slogan states - is coming.

Smith has a bounce and, confronted by three Blues opponents, looks ahead for an option close to goal.

Seeing none, he handballs backwards to Chance Bateman and keeps running to become that option himself.

He gets the ball back from Bateman near the boundary line, steadies, curls a left-footed drop punt through the goals from 45m, and then turns to the 52,000-strong crowd, arms outstretched in jubilation.

This is what footy is all about.

It was only a year-and-a-half ago that Smith was playing for Redan in the Ballarat League in central Victoria.

By September of 2010 he was starring for North Ballarat in the VFL finals, and a short time later was at Waverley Park after being drafted by the Hawks with their first selection in the NAB AFL Draft.

Through his first season as a professional footballer, he's had to remind himself that even though footy is now his job, it's still that same game he's always loved.

"I reckon early on I sort of got in a bad headspace, with viewing footy as a business and not enjoying it," Smith said after Hawthorn held on to beat the Blues by 12 points at Etihad Stadium on Friday night.

"I always played footy to enjoy it with my mates and have fun.

"So I just thought, 'you know what? Bugger it. If I'm going to play footy, I'm going to enjoy it'.

"That's the reason I started playing and that's the reason I've always played, (but) you can get caught up in it all."

Smith's play against the Blues spoke of that enjoyment.

He ran "like a headless chook" ("It's the only thing I'm good at"), breaking lines, pumping the ball inside attacking 50, and looking dangerous as often as he could.

When he debuted at the elite level against Port Adelaide in round seven, Smith's focus was mostly on getting to where he was supposed to be so that he didn't let the team down.

With 11 games now against his name, the 22-year-old has become comfortable enough to trust his instincts and allow more "natural flair" to show through.

Several times he was willing to back his leg speed against the renowned fleet-of-foot Blues.

There might be more people watching, more instructions to follow, and media interviews to do once the final siren has sounded, but the essence of it all is unchanged.

"I was talking to Mum this afternoon and she asked, 'how is it out there?" Smith said.

"I told her it was just like playing a normal game of footy, once you're out there.

"The intensity is obviously a lot quicker, and there's just that perceived pressure.

"Sometimes you've got time, but you get rid of it because you're thinking, 'oh no, someone's on my back'.

"But still, it's just a game of footy."

Mark Macgugan writes for hawthornfc.com.au and covers Hawks news for afl.com.au. Follow him on Twitter: @mmacgugan