The forward-midfielder turned defender might be a class act on the field, which is apparent from his list of accolades, but he is more than just a teenage football prodigy.
Whether it be using his lifesaving skills at Aquamoves, carving up snow on the alpine slopes or slicing through the air with flips on a wakeboard, Clohesy has a few tricks and surprises up his sleeve.
But his abilities on water and powder will need to shift to the back seat for 2022.
“I love spending time wakeboarding and snowboarding,” Clohesy, 17, said.
“But recruiters (have) told me that I’m going to have to lay off wakeboarding for a bit.”
That’s because Clohesy has been selected in the initial Victorian Country Under-18 squad alongside a number of Goulburn Valley youths.
Announced earlier this month, Tatura product Brayden George, Echuca’s Noah Long and Tongala’s Harley Reid will link up with Clohesy in the white guernsey.
Benalla duo Keeley Skepper and Madison Gray featured in the girls’ under-18 contingent.
Victorian squad members will gather in January for a three-day training camp, receiving elite guidance on “preparation and recovery, GPS and training loads and football/life balance” as well as interviewing with AFL club recruiters.
Clohesy said he enjoyed being able to spend time with his fellow GV products.
“Me and BG (Brayden) used to play in interleague together, same as Noah as well, which is pretty cool,” he said.
“Me, Brayden and Harley are the three that you can’t really separate at the camps. We’re all pretty close mates, which makes it fun.”
Clohesy is no stranger to donning the Big V.
The Murray Bushranger featured multiple times during the year at the under-17 championships and featured in the list of better players.
His exploits on the national stage came after he turned heads at NAB League level and in the Goulburn Valley League.
Clohesy, who is known for his tackling prowess and intensity around the stoppages, suited up three times as a bottom-age talent for Murray Bushrangers, before he went on and donned the red and white colours for the first time at senior level.
“Yeah, it was awesome. It was heaps different against bigger bodies, and playing with my brother (Zac) was pretty cool,” Clohesy said as he reflected on his two senior matches.
“I remember Hawkey (Swans coach Paul Hawke) saying ‘the smallest player on the field is showing you all how to tackle’ which was nice to get that confidence.
“But just knowing my actual position now, I used to just float around forward and through the midfield but now I’m on the back flank which is my starting position.”
A best-on appearance for the Bushrangers against Greater Western Victoria Rebels was the turning point for Clohesy’s shift to the back six.
“I predominantly played forward growing up, and in schoolboys I was more of a high forward. As soon as I got into Bushies’ 19s though, they threw me down back,” Clohesy said.
And it’s in that position that Clohesy will look to further his game when football demands heat back up next year.
“It’s been good to finally get back into it (following the break) but everyone has been in the same boat,” he said.
“We meet up again in late January, we do a couple of interviews with AFL clubs and a few training runs, so it’s all getting serious now.”
With his gaze casting beyond the next six months — and to November 2022 in particular — Clohesy has one goal in his sights.
“The end goal is to ultimately get drafted but I just want to have fun with footy and hopefully get a full season in.”
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