Herald-Sun is tipping Polec to Richmond as "the hot tip"...
Jared Polec the complete package * Andrew Capel
* From: The Advertiser
* November 15, 2010 1:15PMHE MODELS his game on electrifying Fremantle gamebreaker Stephen Hill and has the legendary work ethic of Port Adelaide All-Australian Kane Cornes.
Blend the two together and it's no wonder Woodville-West Torrens coach Michael Godden describes AFL-bound teenager Jared Polec as being "as good a junior as I've seen come through the system''.
"He's just one of those kids who seems to have it all,'' Godden said.
"Jared's got magnificent skills, pace, he knows how to find the ball and he's got the courage and work ethic to go with it. Obviously he's only young but you'd have to say he seems to be the complete package.''
Godden's phone has run hot with AFL clubs lining up to get his take on the just-turned 18-year-old, who is a member of Henley High School's famed football program.
But only a handful of clubs will get a crack at the long-striding, long-kicking left-footer, who should be the second Croweater taken at the draft (behind Sturt big man Sam Day) and a top-six selection.
With West Coast (pick four) apparently set on Victorian Andrew Gaff, Brisbane and Richmond are next in line,
with the Tigers the hot pre-draft pick to read out Polec's name.
While Godden sees similarities between Polec and his hero Hill - "they move very similarly and possess the same coolness and freakiness to get out of tight situtations" - he said it was Polec's work rate which virtually guaranteed he would make it on the big stage.
"He's got all the skill in the world, the wow-factor that turns games, but the thing about Jared that really stands out to me is that he just works so hard,'' Godden said. "He's not a kid who relies on his natural ability.''
Polec's tremendous work ethic was on full display in the SANFL finals when he did not come off for a rest in any of the club's three games.
In the end it caught up with him. Carrying a slight thigh strain and tagged by Norwood ace Paul Puopolo, Polec tired badly in the second half of the heartbreaking, last-minute preliminary final loss to the Redlegs after being best-afield in the first half with 17 telling possessions.
"He just ran himself into the ground,'' Godden said.
"He gave everything he had but in the end he ran out of legs, which is not uncommon for a young player. We had a lot of injuries in the finals so he was asked to do a lot of work and he took that on board and coped really well.''
Godden said Polec was often the first to attend Eagles training and the last to leave, always finding an area of his game to work on.
"I'd walk out of my office at 5pm to get ready for a 6pm training session and Jared was always out on the oval fully stripped ready for training and kicking for goal. He just seems to always have a football in his hands.''
Polec, a flying machine at 189cm and 83kg, said he inherited his strong work ethic from his parents, who are of Polish descent.
"Dad works virtually 24-7 in a butcher shop and mum's always been a hard worker,'' he said.
Polec, who as a 15 and 16-year-old was playing at full forward and full back, now likes nothing more than tucking the ball under his arm and breaking the lines with his blistering pace.
"I love watching Stephen Hill do that so I try to emulate him,'' he said, adding five years of little athletics training had taught him how to run.
A new rivalry is about to begin.
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/jared-polec-the-complete-package/story-e6frf9jf-1225953797620?from=public_rss
