Kicking was better in the old days: Tony Shaw

[one-eyed]

That's Tony Shaw's claim on 3aw tonight. He reckons fitness, tackling, handball skills etc has improved dramatically but the pure football skill of kicking a beautiful drop punt isn't as good by modern players as it use to be.

He also said when you think of the gap between Geelong, Hawthorn, Bulldogs and then Richmond, Carlton, Essendon last year it's their foot skills. He agreed with Russell that sides with poor footskills who try the cluster zone will get smashed this year.

[Hellenic Tiger]

Yes Tony would know. 

He was an excellent exponent of the drop punt from his raking left foot.
I mean the ball would just go on and on and on and travel a stupefying 30 metres floating in the true sense of the word. 

[Smokey]

And I remember when the older, retired players were lamenting the drop in skill (that led to the eventual disappearance) of the drop kick.  Football will always be evolving due to the nature of the game but the basics of courage, fitness, ability and attitude will be paramount regardless of the current skillset required.

The thing that is stuffing the modern game is not the change in skills, it's the constant change in bloody rules.

[WA Tiger]

stuff him, close the thread, why give the prick the satisfaction of even talking about him.

[mightytiges]

Well we now know how to get WAT fired up lol .

Apart from goalkicking which hasn't improved, to compare kicking long to position and one-on-one contests to the modern day pinpointing passes within zones, floods and players running all over the place is ludicrous. Sure there were a select few who were very good kicks in the old days but the average VFL player was one-sided and would just plonk the ball on the foot any old how and kick it as hard as he could forward in the general direction of your teammate upfield.

This just proves further what an idiot Shaw is.

[yellowandback]

I'm quite sure that Ben Stiller studied Tony Shaw when developing his character "Simple  Jack" in the movie Tropic Thunder. 

[Smokey]

I'm quite sure that Ben Stiller studied Tony Shaw when developing his character "Simple  Jack" in the movie Tropic Thunder. 

    

[Mr Magic]

He was an excellent exponent of the drop punt from his raking left foot.
I mean the ball would just go on and on and on and travel a stupefying 30 metres floating in the true sense of the word. 

It's funny cause it's true.

[Infamy]

Pretty hard to compare when modern day football has much fitter and faster players who can get to more contests every game. Much easier to look like you have good skills when you are kicking into more space.

[mightytiges]

Pretty hard to compare when modern day football has much fitter and faster players who can get to more contests every game. Much easier to look like you have good skills when you are kicking into more space.

Spot on Infamy.

I could see those champions like KB, Royce, Rioli, Keane, Raines, Bourke at Richmond for instance who all had very good kicking techniques still being star players now if they had the training, fitness and recovery regimes etc of modern times but the average VFL footballer of 30 years ago would struggle big time with the more precise footskills required these days to hit narrow targets.

[yellowandback]

I'm quite sure that Ben Stiller studied Tony Shaw when developing his character "Simple  Jack" in the movie Tropic Thunder. 

    

Smokey, you mamamamamamamamake me happy