“I’m sorry, I’m going to have to quit work because I just got drafted.”

It’s not a line commonly uttered by your average draftee. Certainly not by those who were chosen early in the National Draft.

But Josh Smith’s path to Collingwood isn’t as conventional as your average draftee.

Overlooked during National and Rookie Drafts gone by, Smith turned his focus towards performing well for his local Queensland club, Redland, and earning a living as a childcare worker.

That all changed when his name was called out by Collingwood during last Friday’s Rookie Draft.

STORY: Smith's morning of madness.

The toughest part, though, was informing his manager that his life circumstances had quickly changed.

“It was one of the most bizarre conversations I reckon I’ve had in my life,” Smith told Collingwood Media.

Watch Smith’s full interview with Collingwood Media in the video player above.

“My work is heavily rugby league orientated and I’m a huge Brisbane Broncos fan. I knew I couldn’t text them because it just wouldn’t make sense to them, so I gave them a call and said ‘I’m sorry, I’m going to have to quit work because I just got drafted’.

“My boss didn’t understand what being drafted was so I had to explain it to her. We eventually got to the end that it was Collingwood, like, the Collingwood Football Club.

“In hindsight, it was actually a good thing it was Collingwood, because I don’t know how many of the teams she knew. Luckily Collingwood is such a big club and they were rapt.

“I still had to go into work that afternoon but they put up a little farewell banner for me. It was incredible.”

Smith wasted no time in settling into life at the Holden Centre. In fact, he was leading the pack during the early stages of the team’s two-kilometre time trial on Monday morning, just hours after he landed in Melbourne.

“It helps that I’m a little bit older than the other draftees. I’m 21, but still, it’s everything you expect. It’s full on.

“I got in Sunday night and I rolled into the two-kilometre time trial early on Monday morning for a full session.

“I did plenty of weights, which is different from the semi-professional lifestyle. The body is getting used to it and I’m absolutely loving the journey so far.”

Watch Smith’s full interview with Collingwood Media in the video player above.