Player Watch Nick Daicos

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Demonalke said:
Media is against us and our superstar, not surprising. Naicos seems to care more about the jumper and his teammates than individual accolades or honours. Not saying he doesn't deserve it but I won't lose sleep if they make the wrong decision.
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Another thing that makes him a Special Talent
 
dardy33 said:
Noble is the one player who doesn't hesitate to give the hand ball when nick runs past. Then it's like they sprint off at full pace together sharing the handball and creating space for each drawing a player and releasing the other player to take of and move the ball quick catching the defence out. (Big bonus when NickyD is the one who pin points the leading forward)
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I re-watch most our wins and noticed this a lot. They link up well, both can read the play fantastic and both are pretty clean handed at top speed.
 

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Do_Beta_Rapport said:
Needs to stay in the 35, iconic.

The tribute to Presti has been great but time to move on. We’ve had Stevo, Rantall, Fasolo and a few that have had a go at it and not gone on.

Jamie really the only one that’s done it justice.

Time to bring it home.
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Fas fell off but he did the number justice in the time he spent with probably even moreso than Jamie.
 
Do_Beta_Rapport said:
Needs to stay in the 35, iconic.
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The campaign has begun…

Nick Daicos was seven when Collingwood honoured one of the club’s most selfless individual acts by allocating the revered No.35 to the first player drafted each November.
His brother Josh was 12.
That late 2010 decision was not made to pay homage to their father, Peter Daicos, one of the Magpies’ favourite sons, though he made the No.35 a part of black and white legend.
Instead, it was a tribute to Simon Prestigiacomo, who withdrew from the 2010 Grand Final on the game’s eve after telling coach Mick Malthouse of a previously undisclosed injury.
It was a selfless sacrifice from a team-first defender who refused to let his teammates down. It may have cost Presti a premiership medal, but it won him eternal respect.
Malthouse explained it by saying “that (first draftee) player will hold that jumper for 12 months and understand the history of it, and the responsibility of teamsmanship and professionalism displayed by Simon.”
The number has since launched the careers of Magpie stars including Jamie Elliott, Brodie Grundy, Jordan De Goey and last year Ollie Henry.
Josh Daicos was offered his dad’s number when taken as a father-son at pick 57, even though Sam McLarty was the club’s first chosen player that year.
Josh chose to make his own mark in No.26 before switching to No.7
But Nick always seemed comfortable in coveting the No.35 jumper his dad had worn in 250 games, from 1979 to 1993.
When Nick was taken as pick four last November – it would have been higher had he not already committed to Collingwood – he relished the prospect as much as the faithful did.
In his 15 AFL games so far, he has shown himself to be an exceptional talent and is now an unbackable Rising Star favourite.

Mick McGuane says he is already a star, like his old man was.
When interviewed last year, Nick said: “I’m really happy and honoured with the tradition at the club. I haven’t thought that far forward (about keeping No.35), hopefully I can keep it if the opportunity arises.”
Traditions, even relatively modern ones, provide lessons and honour those who came before us. But there are exceptions … and this is one of them.
Don’t forget for many years Collingwood captains used to wear No.1 until that changed.
Richmond tried to start a modern tradition earlier this century when Wayne Campbell and Kane Johnson switched to Jack Dyer’s No.17 when they were captain.
But when Trent Cotchin assumed the leadership in 2013, he refused to give up his No.9.
Presti’s act won’t ever be forgotten, but if Nick Daicos wants to keep No.35, he must be given that opportunity.



It is hard to think that any Collingwood fan – even Presti himself – would want Nick wearing anything other than No.35 in 2023 and beyond.
You can already see a growing army of kids - and a few mums and dads - wearing No.35 with pride and a sense of nostalgia, just as was the case when Peter wore it.
The fans want it; the players will understand it; the Pies’ 2022 first-round pick won’t care what number he gets; and the No.35 link to Collingwood will continue to grow.
When Nick’s career is over, the number can go back to an annual handover to the first draft pick each year … at least until the next generation of the Daicos family gets a chance

 
We have had a number of years where number 35 hasn’t even played a single game in a season, or has played just a small handful.

It’s a stupid tradition in many respects but not the least being that this famous number has been banished to the VFL over the years for more games than it’s been seen in the AFL.
 
From Mick McGuane…

I was lucky enough to play alongside my childhood hero at Collingwood.

My locker ended up being next to the Peter Daicos who wore No. 35 on his back, so I got to know his nuances and studied his games very closely across seven seasons we spent together with the Magpies.
I remember bumping into Peter and his two young sons — who grew up Carlton supporters — in the car park at Princes Park about eight years ago.
Josh would have been about 15 years old and Nick would have been around 11, and, as I had a chat to Peter, I watched his two boys have a kick.
They had technique and control and, even at a young age, you could tell they had the potential to be something special with the way they handled a football.

In watching Nick in his first year of AFL football this season, my mind can’t help but draw comparisons to Peter, with his sublime skill level, attention to detail, the way he uses the ball and the decisions that he makes.
Collingwood has itself another beauty — who would not look out of place in the All-Australian side this year if he keeps up his current form.

Here are 12 reasons why Nick Daicos is already a genuine star of the competition.

1. His Footy IQ is off the charts​

If you haven’t seen Nick’s kick to Josh which set up a goal in the last quarter against Gold Coast last week, go and watch it.
If you have seen it, go and watch it again.
Nick was switched to the forward line at that point of the game and rolled up as an extra player at the stoppage on the wing.
He gathered the loose ball after it spilt free from the ruck contest in a one-touch motion and had the nous and the knowledge to understand what his team was doing with its off-side wingman – which in this case was Josh.
Nick didn’t turn towards goal and bomb the ball long like many first-year players would, but instead looked laterally across the ground.
In one step, he assessed the situation and weighted the ball perfectly to his brother on the other side of the ground.
Josh didn’t break stride in his run and kicked what was an important goal for the Pies.
You could see Collingwood captain Scott Pendlebury pointing to Josh as Nick gathered the ball, but Nick was already one step ahead and had decided that for himself without instruction.
He knew what was next before it happened and that is how smart players become great players.
It was like the baton change had taken place before our eyes.

2. His ball handling​

I’ve always had a philosophy that there are three cornerstones of being a good footballer – you have to win your own footy, you have to handle the footy well when you do win it and then you’ve got to use the footy well when you dispose of it.
Greg Williams was a great ball winner who handled the footy as well as anyone and then used it with class.
Williams wasn’t overly quick, but the game was played at his speed because he rarely fumbled and then had time to dictate what he did with the ball.
There is a little bit of Williams in Daicos, who has similarly elite ball handling skills.
He rarely fumbles, doesn’t get flustered in traffic or when put under pressure and has great composure when he makes a decision on how he is going to use the ball.

3. His ball use by hand and foot​

Much like his father, Nick rarely wastes a disposal by hand or foot.
He sees options that others don’t and then executes the skill to give it to a player in a better position.
He is going at a disposal efficiency of 75.5 per cent this year, including a kicking efficiency of 71.2 per cent which rates him above average in his position.

4. He stacks up among his peers​

We’ve seen some great players come straight out of underage football and have an impact over the past decade, but the numbers suggest Nick Daicos is the best we’ve seen.
From his 15 games for the Magpies this year, Daicos has averaged 26.1 disposals – the highest disposal average by a teenager that Champion Data has recorded.
Toby Greene averaged 25.6 disposals before he turned 20, while Clayton Oliver averaged 25.1 disposals, Sam Walsh averaged 23.7 disposals and Jack Macrae averaged 23.4 disposals.
They are all different players, but Daicos has superseded their ability to find the footy so far.
As the legendary Richmond great Jack Dyer would say, “He goes where the footy is, not where it ain’t.”

5. He is an exceptional reader of the play​

The reason why Daicos is having such an impact for Collingwood this year is his ability to read the play, especially behind the ball.
He has got a midfielder’s mindset as a defender and that’s why he ranks 13th in the competition for intercept possessions between the arcs this year.
Daicos has conviction with his decisions and is happy to back himself to impact the next play, particularly when the opposition are coming forward with the ball.
He’s got the courage to leave his post or his opponent, which is totally aligned to Collingwood’s overall defensive philosophy. They come forward to defend as a team and Daicos does it so naturally he inevitably wins the ball back.
And if his opponent wants to run to an irrelevant area, he will let them go and back his own judgment to position himself where the ball is going to end up.

6. He can make the game stand still​

We often talk about Scott Pendlebury’s ability to slow down time in the contest.
David Rhys-Jones is another player from yesteryear that had similar abilities.
It is a relatively rare quality — but Daicos has it.
He can find space in a phone box, but he can also use that space to his advantage to get out and make an effective disposal on the back of already knowing what is around him.

7. He has leadership qualities​

I get the sense that Daicos is going to become a real instructional and organised leader on the field, given what he is showing already.
He is not directing teammates to benefit himself, but instead to make sure the side is well set up structurally around stoppage and he puts himself and others in the right positions to cover exits defensively.
The fact that he is already doing a lot of good finger-pointing as a 19-year-old is a credit to him and his leaning capacity to carry out the instructions of the coaches and put in place what’s needed then and there.
I love players who see trends within a game and react accordingly by ensuring teammates play their roles at any point of a game.
On-field leadership is paramount and Daicos is already exhibiting that feature.

8. He brings class to the Magpies​

Aside from Pendlebury and Steele Sidebottom, I’ve felt in recent years that Collingwood has lacked a little polish.
There are plenty of good grunt players like Taylor Adams, Brayden Maynard and Jordan De Goey.
However, Daicos compliments those players and adds the polish to distribute the ball to advantage of the team. Collingwood’s ball movement is as good as it currently is because Daicos is a huge driver of it.
His run and dare with the footy is as good as I’ve seen from a youngster in his first year.
He just oozes class.
Time will come that opposition coaches with start to use a defensive forward against him to dilute his influence.

9. He wants the footy​

Watch Daicos closely and you will see him regularly put up his right hand out on the field when demanding the footy.
It’s like it’s a deliberate ploy to give him some extra height so he becomes more noticeable to teammates that have the footy.
He wants the ball in his hands and I love that in players.
That doesn’t mean he’s calling for it every time to just get a possession, but it says he is a player who wants to take responsibility and ownership of the game and has enormous self-belief in what he can do with it once he gets it.

10. He has exceptional balance​

How many times have you seen Daicos go to ground this year?
He keeps his feet. He just doesn’t go to ground. His ability to veer right or left to buy extra time comes from the confidence of his balance.
His balance and agility gives him an extra half-second to evade an opponent and make the right decision on how he uses the ball.

11. He’s in the All-Australian discussion​

Over the past four weeks, Daicos has averaged 32.8 disposals, 505 metres gained, 7.5 intercept possessions and 1.5 intercept marks.
If he keeps that form up over the final seven weeks, why shouldn’t he be in the mix to at least make the All-Australian squad of 40 this year?
Some people will ask whether a first-year player deserves such an honour.
Why not?
Former Adelaide defender Ben Hart burst onto the AFL scene in 1992 after playing senior football in the SANFL as a 16-year-old and won All-Australian honours in each of his first two seasons.

12. He can get even better​

There is no doubt that Daicos is a future midfield star in waiting.
He’s got quick feet around stoppages, good anticipation and doesn’t fumble. He is very creative.
When his body naturally develops a little more, he will be able to win more crucial contests, handle more opposition attention and have the strength to manoeuvre opponents to win a ground ball or a marking contest.

The sky is the limit.

 
Anzacday said:
When Nick’s career is over, the number can go back to an annual handover to the first draft pick each year … at least until the next generation of the Daicos family gets a chance
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Nah this shouldn't happen.
 

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I can make an Argument he is our Best Player at the Moment.

Something good Happens most times Nick Touches the Ball
 
RedmanWasHere said:
Nah this shouldn't happen.
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Should go to Nick and then just be another number in circulation like Nathan Buckley's and Dane Swans.

All due respect to Presti but Peter Daicos is one of the games great champions, he changed the way the game was played by small forwards and perfected the art of dribble kicks and bending the ball.

The whole honor 35 for presti sitting out due to injury never sat well with me given teh history of that jumper. On top of that many over the decades have done similar from all clubs in fact only 12 months later Beams pulled out in 2011 GF.
 
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Chrispiesssss said:
What a fknnnn goal. Ablett like.
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It was clutch in every sense of the word, and you knew before he even kicked it that he was going to slot it. Such a cool head under pressure, I’m going to really enjoy watching him for the next decade or so.
 
TradeDraft said:
I can make an Argument he is our Best Player at the Moment.

Something good Happens most times Nick Touches the Ball
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Look I love Nick as much as the rest of us but until he builds his contested game this is plainly not true.

He has amazing skill, reads the play extremely well, runs all day and great footy IQ, leadership and composure.

But like all junior players also has weakness that need to be developed to round him out as a player that we hope he can become for us like Buckley or Martin or Petracca or Ablett jnr (person imo is most similar too in style and eventual build/traits/playstyle ).
Sometimes zones off the contested ball instead of putting his head over it, long term I don't think this will remain as he builds size and strength. Also isn't great overhead in the contest.
Much like Buckley in a few years these parts of the game will round him out as a player and become that player to build around.
 
stormskye said:
North board is so salty. “I’m glad we have JHF over daicos” was one comment after todays game… bizarre…. So are we, one played afl and will be a rising star, the other played vfl and will Be off to adel 😃
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What an eye for talent North fans have.
 

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Player Watch Nick Daicos

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