Tiger star youngster Nathan Foley says bring on taggers
Sam Edmund | March 15, 2008
NATHAN Foley knows they're coming for him.
The Richmond midfielder went from rookie to A-grade ball-winner last year, leading the Tigers in tackles, handballs and hard-ball gets.
Second place in the best-and-fairest quickly followed and the 22-year-old has now added the vice-captaincy to his rapidly growing resume.
But Foley knows he will pay the price of on-field fame –– being confronted every week with a tagger hell-bent on stopping him getting the ball.
Which is why he has become the resident couch potato at Tigerland, studying hours of footage of the game's elite midfielders to see how they cope with the attention expected to come his way.
"I think watching videos of other players helps, just trying to pick up little tips and tricks here and there and working them into your own habits," Foley said.
"Obviously guys like Gary Ablett, (Chris) Judd, (Daniel) Kerr, the guys who cop it week-in week-out, and still perform.
"There's been a fair bit of time spent watching footy videos. You sort of watch those blokes and see what they do."
Foley turned heads last year by running hard and running straight, but his ability to excel with a shadow will determine whether he graduates to star status.
"It's always difficult getting tagged," Foley said. "A lot of players have to deal with it and I suppose you just work on your fitness and your strength.
"You do your best work on the track and in the gym and the rest looks after itself."
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/sport/afl/story/0,26576,23376577-19742,00.html
