PROMISING young midfielder Dom Barry has signalled his intentions to cement his position in the senior side, putting pen to paper on a new two-year contract.

Just two weeks after making his AFL debut against the Western Bulldogs, Barry said it was an exciting time to commit his immediate future to the club.

“It is [very exciting] for sure - I’ve obviously been at the club for a couple of years now and made my debut a few weeks ago,” Barry told Dee TV.

“I’m just trying to improve every week and it was great to get the debut… and obviously great to sign this week.”

While only midway through his second year at the Dees, Barry said there are plenty of signs the club is on the right track heading into the future.

“We’re heading in the right direction, I think we’re going up - we’ve been at the bottom for too long now,” Barry said.

“Obviously with Roosy coming in at the end of last year and a lot of players improving, I think we’re on the way up.”

With his first season at the club very much a development year, Barry has come on in leaps and bounds in 2014, securing his first senior game off the back of strong VFL form.

Having made two appearances as the substitute so far, the 20-year-old said his main focus is getting more senior games under his belt before the end of the season.

 “I’m obviously still developing as a player – AFL footy’s a hard caper to break into,” Barry said.

“So I’ve just got to do the right things week in, week out and try and earn my spot in the team.”

Drafted to the club as part of the deal to secure Jesse Hogan in 2012, Barry said he was excited at the prospect of playing alongside the key forward in years to come.

“Obviously you’ve got to keep those kinds of players around, like Hoges hasn’t played yet but he’s got big wraps on him,” Barry said.

“I played a lot with him last year in the VFL and I can’t wait to see him in the senior side and obviously Tommy (McDonald) has improved out of sight as a defender.

“It’s just good to see these players stay on.”