Fixing our ****ing awful goal kicking

[The Adelaide Connection]

That goal he kicked on Saturday in the rain was a ripper and sealed the game. I agree he should be employed as a goal kicking coach.

Absolutely.
Heavy ball, 50 out on a 45 degree angle.
Rain falling and wind blowing every which way.
Puts it straight through the middle.

It wont get nominated for goal of the week, but their aren't many that could kick that.

[Mofra]

Does anyone else feel like the second Tory retires that another club will employ him as their goal kicking coach? The bloke has an incredible record.

I hope we have at least trialled getting him to mentor other players.
I'm just wondering if there is much of a difference between 'doing' and 'coaching'.

My theory on Tory's accuracy - he spent years outside the AFL system (including a huge season at Noble Park). He would have been kicking for goal on all types of grounds in all conditions and without sports scientists dragging players off the field the second they reach a certain loading, I suspect he took more shots on goal at training than guys in the elite system are allowed to.

Some guys are naturally good kicks (Gilbee) but accuracy is as much about repetition than anything. He would have had the opportunity to simply practice a lot more.

[Webby]

I have a theory on goal kicking whereby the weighting of the kick should be taken into account. Field kicking is as much about weighting a kick as it is direction.

When kicking for goal out in the elements, a shot at goal will consider weighting. By this I mean that, if a player is shooting from a 45 degree angle with a breeze blowing towards goal, they can weight the kick so that it reaches its zenith above the goal square, thus allowing the breeze to drop it over the goal umpire’s head.

With field kicking, even if the ball is kicked slightly off target, it tends to correct itself slightly with the lace direction. Players can get a feel for this. (A good, exaggerated example of this is the Buddy/Suckling effect of their kicks tending slightly rightwards until reaching their zenith, then drifting back leftwards again as they move between the zenith and the landing spot.

Players all have an ever so slight shape to their kicks. The ball rarely travels dead straight through the air. This seems more exaggerated with left footers (ie. Franklin, Suckling, Bont, Cloke etc.) These players become accustomed to knowing where their kicks shape and land. A bit like a golfer. This is because they field kick so much more often than they shoot for goal.

It’s also why so many of the aforementioned seem to be a better shot from distance than they are from up close. It’s because their brain is more attuned to where the ball will land than where it will be at a certain point in the air along the journey.

And this is where I believe Dickson’s got it worked out. If you watch him take a shot from ANY distance, he only tries to drop the ball 3-6m behind the goal umpire’s head. (And this is what the players mentioned above can effectively ONLY do when they are shooting from 50m plus.

It’s a process of popping the ball over the goal umpire’s head - not pounding it 20m back.
If the penny drops on that, a lot of players will benefit. I saw Macrae do it on Saturday from open play. Hopefully it twigs something!

[westdog54]

I'm just wondering if there is much of a difference between 'doing' and 'coaching'.

My theory on Tory's accuracy - he spent years outside the AFL system (including a huge season at Noble Park). He would have been kicking for goal on all types of grounds in all conditions and without sports scientists dragging players off the field the second they reach a certain loading, I suspect he took more shots on goal at training than guys in the elite system are allowed to.

Some guys are naturally good kicks (Gilbee) but accuracy is as much about repetition than anything. He would have had the opportunity to simply practice a lot more.
Having never coached at any level I can't answer that question.

I can say there is absolutely a difference between doing and teaching.

The old adage that 'those that can, do, that that can't, teach' is bunk. Those that can teach, teach.

In saying that, if we're not exploring utilising Tory as a mentor at the very least, we're wasting an opportunity.

[Twodogs]

Yep, teaching is a skill in itself. I've got an education degree so I'm not going to deny it!