Mighty Martin
By Adrian Ceddia 7:43 AM Thu 29 Dec, 2011
Dustin Martin backed up his debut season with an equally eye-catching 2011 performance.
The following article was featured in the 2011 Fighting Tiger Yearbook.
Immediately after making his acceptance speech at the Jack Dyer Medal presentation evening, for finishing third in Richmond’s Best and Fairest, Dustin Martin vowed to “get extremely fit, train hard and attack the pre-season.”
Sure enough, just a short time later, the 20-year-old was back at Punt Road, putting in the extra hard yards before the official start of pre-season training.
With only two seasons under his belt at the game’s highest level, the rising Tiger star is leaving nothing to chance.
Ask Martin about his performance in 2011 and two things are clear - he’s all about the team, and there’s always an area to improve, to make him an even more complete player.
“I’m happy with how the season went, but more about the on-field success we had this year, and what we’re expecting from next year,” he said.
Looking at the raw numbers is not enough to effectively gauge the influence Martin is capable of asserting during a match.
He averaged 22 touches per game in the 2011 season, and kicked 33 goals, but he has also developed something precious few players in the competition possess -genuine on-field presence.
Martin was devastating in a purple patch of form for the Tigers during the first half of the season, which even led to some esteemed members of the media comparing him to the legendary Leigh Matthews.
But, as with many players in their AFL infancy, there were also flat patches . . .
“I think I had a pretty good year, except for probably a month or so late in the season,” Martin said.
“I probably wasn’t doing a few things I should have been, so I had a really good chat to the coaches, figured out what I needed to be doing, and managed to have a good last month.
“Dimma’s message to me, and all the midfielders this year, was to hunt the ball and the man, and to focus on the defensive aspects, and I think I got a lot better at that towards the end of the year.”
As exciting as the future may seem, it’s still a learning experience for Martin.
“Everyone was telling me I was going to get the second-year blues. It’s amazing how much I’ve leant in the last two years, and I know I’m going to be better off for it,” he said.
“Fitness was a big one. I knew I had to do a lot of work, to be able to run out games better. There were little things I wanted to do, like go forward, kick a few goals, and have an impact.
“But, above all, I just wanted to play my role for the side. I don’t care about doing anything fancy, I just want to be a contributor.”
http://www.richmondfc.com.au/tabid/6301/default.aspx?newsid=127590
