Leigh Montagna - An Essendon Inspiration
Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 1:19 pm
So according to Champion Data, if the Brownlow count was held today, Leigh Montagna would win the gong - just pipping Gary's son. I really think this is worth looking at closely as it will hopefully make some of the doomsayers in this forum wake up and smell the coffee.
Montagna is in his 8th season now and has played a little over 115 games of senior footy. He is 25 yrs old
since his debut in 2002, he has averaged the following possessions per season
2002 - played only 1 game
2003 - 12 games - 10.4 possessions
2004 - 9 games - 11.2 possessions
2005 - 8 games - 15.1 possessions
2006 - 22 games - 19.1 possessions
2007 - 21 games - 23.9 possessions
2008 - 25 games - 22.6 possessions
2009 - 18 games - 28.3 possessions
This is a guy who in his first few seasons was better known for what he was up to off the field than on the field. At one point in time it looked very much like he was not going to make it at AFL level.
Now unlike a lot of you on this forum, I have actually been around a fair while now and I have seen 3 or 4 generations of Bomber teams come and go. I started watching the Dons a a young boy in the lat 60's. I can assure you that before the days of the drafts, you never had the level of expectation about the young fellahs in the squad. They didnt come into the club with the pressure of being a Top Ten Draft PIck or a player who was selected only because a former club favourite was traded for a number 41 draft selection.
Nope, you never heard about the young kids unless you turned up early to watch the dew kickers before the big game out at Windy Hill
The point I am trying to make is that it takes time to grow into an elite AFL footballer. The problem is that we all seem to want overnight superstars.
If the selection committee had been listening to this forum, probably one of our best and most consistent performers of this season, Ricky Dyson, would be playing at Fremantle. Just out of interest, lets take a look at Dyson's progression
2004 - 11 games - 7.5 possessions
2005 - 10 games - 13.5 possessions
2006 - 17 games - 13.2 possessions
2007 - 11 games - 12.6 possessions
2008 - 15 games - 17.8 possessions
2009 - 18 games - 19.1 possessions
Well, well, well - have a look at that, the longer he plays, the more game time he gets, the better player he becomes. Sure, there may be a class difference between Dyson and other players and sheer volume of possessions does not a great footballer make. But I think you get my point.
So please guys, lets give the Myers, Houlis, Jettas and others a chance. Forget what number in the draft they were selected, stop beating yourself up simply becaus Myers, a Top Ten draft pick is taking longer to develop than say Lonergan who was selected somewhere towards the end of the draft.
Our guys, with the right coaching will come good. If they are committed to success, then success will come. I am super confident that the team that pulled Carlton and Hawthorn to pieces earlier in the season was not a flash in the pan. And yet, we havent seen anything like the best out of most of this young squad.
Trust a guy that has seen it all before, we are well placed to make a very real charge on the Upper Echelon of the AFL and enjoy the success that as a club, we have so proudly achieved over the decades
Montagna is in his 8th season now and has played a little over 115 games of senior footy. He is 25 yrs old
since his debut in 2002, he has averaged the following possessions per season
2002 - played only 1 game
2003 - 12 games - 10.4 possessions
2004 - 9 games - 11.2 possessions
2005 - 8 games - 15.1 possessions
2006 - 22 games - 19.1 possessions
2007 - 21 games - 23.9 possessions
2008 - 25 games - 22.6 possessions
2009 - 18 games - 28.3 possessions
This is a guy who in his first few seasons was better known for what he was up to off the field than on the field. At one point in time it looked very much like he was not going to make it at AFL level.
Now unlike a lot of you on this forum, I have actually been around a fair while now and I have seen 3 or 4 generations of Bomber teams come and go. I started watching the Dons a a young boy in the lat 60's. I can assure you that before the days of the drafts, you never had the level of expectation about the young fellahs in the squad. They didnt come into the club with the pressure of being a Top Ten Draft PIck or a player who was selected only because a former club favourite was traded for a number 41 draft selection.
Nope, you never heard about the young kids unless you turned up early to watch the dew kickers before the big game out at Windy Hill
The point I am trying to make is that it takes time to grow into an elite AFL footballer. The problem is that we all seem to want overnight superstars.
If the selection committee had been listening to this forum, probably one of our best and most consistent performers of this season, Ricky Dyson, would be playing at Fremantle. Just out of interest, lets take a look at Dyson's progression
2004 - 11 games - 7.5 possessions
2005 - 10 games - 13.5 possessions
2006 - 17 games - 13.2 possessions
2007 - 11 games - 12.6 possessions
2008 - 15 games - 17.8 possessions
2009 - 18 games - 19.1 possessions
Well, well, well - have a look at that, the longer he plays, the more game time he gets, the better player he becomes. Sure, there may be a class difference between Dyson and other players and sheer volume of possessions does not a great footballer make. But I think you get my point.
So please guys, lets give the Myers, Houlis, Jettas and others a chance. Forget what number in the draft they were selected, stop beating yourself up simply becaus Myers, a Top Ten draft pick is taking longer to develop than say Lonergan who was selected somewhere towards the end of the draft.
Our guys, with the right coaching will come good. If they are committed to success, then success will come. I am super confident that the team that pulled Carlton and Hawthorn to pieces earlier in the season was not a flash in the pan. And yet, we havent seen anything like the best out of most of this young squad.
Trust a guy that has seen it all before, we are well placed to make a very real charge on the Upper Echelon of the AFL and enjoy the success that as a club, we have so proudly achieved over the decades