Foley leaving his mark
9:34:49 PM Wed 17 May, 2006
Mark Rasmussen
Exclusive to afl.com.au
Although it was a disappointing week for Richmond on the field, after a 118-point loss to Sydney, for tenacious in-and-under player Nathan Foley, who was elevated off the rookie list this year, it was somewhat of a big week.
With eight clearances for the round, (the second highest), a career high 18 disposals and kicks (13), plus six contested possessions, Foley now finds himself among some esteemed company. He is now ranked 15th in contested possessions.
For the 20-year-old from Colac, it has been a promising start to his career.
"I'm starting to work really well with Troy Simmonds and Greg Stafford's rucking really well. I've been trying to nut out a few centre clearances and boundary throw-ins. It certainly adds a bit to my game and I'm trying to make it an asset in my style of play," Foley said in an exclusive interview.
Most players aren't too stat conscious but for Foley, it's a great way to gauge how he is going.
"It's generally a good indicator of how you are going. You look at the opposition's stats just as much as your own. If you look at an opposition player, you'll see how many centre clearances they have and how many boundary throw-ins they get. If they're winning it from there, then you've got to pay attention to them.
"They're a good indication of where you're at and where your opposition is at," he said.
Foley reckons his first instinct as a player is to handball, although Tiger coach Terry Wallace wants to change that and has signaled his intention to develop the Tigers into more of a long-kicking side.
"Terry is starting to say kicking is where he wants his midfielders at, having a high number of kicks. That's something I've been working at."
Although the Tigers got smashed all around the park on Saturday, Foley said there were still some things they could take out of the game.
"We looked at the tape after that Sydney loss and although we are a relatively young team, we looked at what we could take from the game.
"It's a good learning curve for myself and the other young players in the team. We also looked at Sydney, last year's premiership side and you understand where you've got to get to, to be part of it.
"While it was a fair flogging, we still got some stuff out of the game, which was good," Foley said.
"It was a disappointing loss and we're looking to bounce back this week against the Crows, who are no doubt one of the best teams going around."
It took Foley a lot of hard work and more than a year to finally make the senior list, and after being told the news, he couldn't have been happier.
"It was great to get put up on the senior list and to start the pre-season and be in contention to play the first round. It really made me work harder. I spent a year and half on the rookie list before playing some games last year, so it's been good to be given this opportunity. I'm really happy," he said.
Despite the fact Foley is only beginning his career and learning the trade, there are several players he looks up to and hopes to emulate. Not surprisingly, Chris Judd tops the list.
"Obviously it's Chris Judd. You can't go past him at the moment. He's the complete package. But there's a lot of running midfielders out there who kick goals but Judd is the best going around."
With continual improvement and extra responsibility being thrown his way every round, Nathan Foley may well be what many of today's youngsters will aspire to. Expect to see more of this 'in-and-under' player gather more of the football in the years to come.
http://richmondfc.com.au/default.asp?pg=news&spg=display&articleid=266444
