Foley fired up over return of vital Cogs
10:19 AM Sun 10 February, 2008
richmondfc.com.au
By Catherine Murphy
RICHMOND star Nathan Foley says the key to the Tigers' 2008 prospects lie in a rejuvenated midfield buoyed by the return of Mark Coughlan.
The 25-year-old Coughlan missed the entirety of the 2007 Toyota AFL premiership after the reoccurrence of an ACL knee injury, but the feisty Foley is excited about the return of his colleague for the coming year.
"It’s great to have Cogs [Coughlan] back, he’s training really well," Foley said.
"It’s really going to help our depth and obviously Cogs is such a good player.
"It’s almost forgotten that he was a Jack Dyer Medallist [2003] and an absolute gun midfielder so it will be great to have his experience back around the ball.
"The more depth you have in the midfield, the harder it is for the opposition to match up everyone…I think depth is the key for a good midfield."
Although 2007 was a bleak year for the Tigers, Foley’s form emerged as one of the major positives for the faithful at Punt Road.
His mammoth year was rewarded with elevation to the leadership group and the club’s co-captaincy, which he shares with Chris Newman.
However Foley is modest when discussing his 2007 form and what might lie ahead for him between now and September.
"It was just a progression of the training I’ve done over the last few years. It’s good to get a nice consistent season in and work closely with the coaches and it turned out alright," he said.
"You try not to think of it [expectation]. Once you’re out playing footy, you’re out playing footy. There probably is a little more expectation on me but that’s not a bad thing to have, it’s all part of the game."
In predicting what the Tigers could achieve in 2008, the new-vice captain is certainly adhering to the ‘less talk more action’ policy which appears to have become a theme at the club over the pre-season.
"We’re not making any rash statements about where we’re going to finish and that sort of stuff," he said.
"With the year we had last year, we’re not in a position to talk. We just want to let our actions do the talking. As a group, we know where we’re going."
http://www.afl.com.au/Season2007/News/NewsArticle/tabid/208/Default.aspx?newsId=55122
