St Kilda forward Josh Bruce says the disappointment of a round-one loss overshadowed his mark of the year contender as he focuses on taking pressure off star teammate Nick Riewoldt.
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Bruce flew high against the GWS Giants on Sunday, climbing above three defenders to take a spectacular mark in the nine-point loss at Etihad Stadium.
It was a bright moment for the Saints despite falling at the first hurdle of the year.
But Canberra junior Bruce says the pain of a defeat to his old Giants teammates will drive St Kilda to greater heights and he's on a mission to play a support role for skipper Riewoldt.
"I'm just looking to help out [Riewoldt] as much as I can, working together and giving him a chop-out because he's got the best defender every week," Bruce said.
"If I can lay a little block here or there and take a bit of pressure off in any way then it's beneficial for the team."
Bruce is playing a dual role up forward as well as pinch-hitting in the ruck as the Saints look to rise up the ladder.
Bruce played 14 games for the Giants before moving to St Kilda last year and he got one against his ex-teammates with an early contender for mark of the year when he leapt above a pack in the third quarter to try to spark a Saints comeback.
"It was pretty fun, I was lucky enough to get a good sit. I get told to launch at the ball so I was just trying to bring it to ground and I was lucky enough that it stuck," Bruce said.
"It was spur of the moment ... I just got lucky. We were really disappointed, I thought we could have given them a good shake, but it was good to see we showed a bit of spirit."
