Player Watch Riley Thilthorpe - Signed to End of 2028

[StickerMan]

Peak Tippett gets pretty underrated around here due to what went down around his exit from the club. On his day he was near on unstoppable in the air. RT has him well covered though once the ball hits the deck.

KT was elite in the air no doubt, but was essentially a dumb footballer.

Would often get caught with the ball, run to wrong spots, get in the way of team mates etc.

Apart from his marking, he wasn't highly skilled either.

RT is highly skilled, balanced left or right, can mark, can run.... Kids a freak. Fingers crossed he stays injury free.

 

[ABAB]

Peak Tippett gets pretty underrated around here due to what went down around his exit from the club. On his day he was near on unstoppable in the air. RT has him well covered though once the ball hits the deck.

True but in his break out season before he left Sydney for a lot of money, Walker got the best opposition defender and made Tippett look very good. Tippett should give Walker 50% ($500K) of his salary he got from Sydney, especially he didn't had to walk hard for those money did he.

 

[Mong]

The thing I'm already loving about Thilthorpe is that he has so many ways to get involved in the game.

I’ve noticed a few times in marking contests he hasn’t been able to take the grab he has cleverly tapped or swatted the ball to keep it alive. We’re witnessing a truly special player.

If he was at another club I think we’d be coveting him more than any other SA draftee in a very long time. Just perhaps, through luck more than design, we did bottom out at the exact right time.

 

[John Who]

Huh. There is almost zero resemblance between the way RT plays and Tippett.

In my 40+ years I’ve never seen a footballer like RT who can basically crumb the ball off his toes as well as a midfielder yet can compete in the air against May and Gawn and bring the ball to ground.

It’s like he is a talented kid that is 10cms too tall to be a mid.

Not sure if you still think this after a 2 minute highlight reel of Tippett when playing with us:

There were a few crumbing goals and 2 notable left kick goals showing skill and agility at 0:57 and 1:55.
Anyway, we're basically in agreement of how you're describing RT's attributes.

 

[Rory Walkerfield]

Not sure if you still think this after a 2 minute highlight reel of Tippett when playing with us:

There were a few crumbing goals and 2 notable left kick goals showing skill and agility at 0:57 and 1:55.
Anyway, we're basically in agreement of how you're describing RT's attributes.

Gee. We really did get the best of Tippett. Suck shit Sydney.

 

[ABAB]

Not sure if you still think this after a 2 minute highlight reel of Tippett when playing with us:

There were a few crumbing goals and 2 notable left kick goals showing skill and agility at 0:57 and 1:55.
Anyway, we're basically in agreement of how you're describing RT's attributes.

Where is the elite handball and clearance to the midfielder, this is what will set Thilthorpe apart because he can virtually be an elite forward or ruckman when resting in either position. Tippett was a decent ruckman and you can see why Sydney took the chance with him and offered him $1M per year as he was developing into an elite player of the competition when he left.

 

[Red mist]

We need to not bulk him up too much. We did it with Tex for most of his career and it severely hampered him.

Totally agree to not shift his body weight

 

[Red mist]

Careful... the ∀FL will give him to GC if you keep this up

Bollocks x

 

[Red mist]

That he only had something like 10 touches hardly tells the story. Every one had impact

When two major are average then it’s all good

 

[Sanders]

I think you’re undermining Tippett’s potential somewhat. I remember him lighting it up in his first year and he was marking it like a beast, and kicking several bags of multiple goals in his first year. I’m not sure what happened over in Sydney but I seem to recall he had some injuries which caused a relative premature retirement. No doubt though RT is the better potential forward if given more games and experience.

you’re overstating Tippett quite considerably. He was still only ever a see ball get ball forward.

never had a rounded game

 

[Golumless]

Not sure if you still think this after a 2 minute highlight reel of Tippett when playing with us:

There were a few crumbing goals and 2 notable left kick goals showing skill and agility at 0:57 and 1:55.
Anyway, we're basically in agreement of how you're describing RT's attributes.

If you look hard enough, you can find clips of Josh Jenkins taking contested marks too.

 

[Rory Walkerfield]

I wet myself in the last quarter when he and Oliver each had hands in a lose ball on the far wing. Thilthorpe wrestles it off Oliver and hand passes it to a team mate.

Drool.

 

[spexau]

I wet myself in the last quarter when he and Oliver each had hands in a lose ball on the far wing. Thilthorpe wrestles it off Oliver and hand passes it to a team mate.

Drool.

He yoinked it

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[Drugs Are Bad Mackay?]

He yoinked it

I hope he actually said "yoink" as he did it too

 

[the universal]

Absolutely insane that he is as good in the centre as he is up forward. 11 goals from 5 games in his first season is nothing to be sneezed at either.

 

[spenze]

I’m not sure if it’s been mentioned before, but I’m getting strong “Tippett vibes” with this RT fella.

A player who is a potential gun forward and can do part-time ruck. Strong, sticky hands and likes to grab a ball at the highest point, difficult for a shorter defender to defend. The plus is that RT is home grown talent, he’s more natural kicking on both sides, and has more accuracy in goals. Absolutely star already with only a handful of games!

How do I put this...it is like saying "I'm getting a strong Garry Lyon Vibe from this youngster called Carey". RT still has a journey to go but watching his attack on the ball, the casual kick off the wrong foot that the player doesn't break stride for, RT is a dead set freak. Tippett was a very good player, amybe didn't get the best out of himself but a very good tall forward. I have watched footy for near on 50 years, I haven't seen a 201 cm player with his skillset...ever.

Have my fingers crossed on him JW but this kid is a chance to break the Midfielders curse on Charlie, that is how much talent he has

 

[LoBu]

Is Thilthorpe tracking better than any big man in the comp after 5 games? In AFL history? Probably, including Wayne Carey.
Better than Max and Ben King? Yep and Yep. Tom Lynch, Tippet, of course.

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[Sanders]

Thing is, I see an all time great in him already. Or at least that level of talent

normally you’d see other boards mock us for the level of hyperbole contained in this thread. “Can you believe what they’re saying… talk about carried away… idiots, going on like that…” etc

you know why they’re not saying that? They can see it too

they can all see it too.

 

[Faaarrk]

Absolutely insane that he is as good in the centre as he is up forward. 11 goals from 5 games in his first season is nothing to be sneezed at either.

Also the way he's getting them.
This kid HAS a good footy brain.

 

[SydCrow]

Five games in and he's already a key player for us. I also can't believe the build on this 18 year old. He looks 28.

 

[glengowan]

Loved his aggression in the ruck. Everything he’s doing he’s doing well. He’ll either be taller, faster, smarter, more skilful or more determined than his opposing player. He’ll be very hard to stop.

I’m loving this little window we’re getting of seeing Thilthorpe burst on the scene, Fogarty coming of age and Tex winding back the clock and instilling that leadership in to the numbers 7 and 32, who we can build a team around moving forward.

 

[Crow till I die]

How do I put this...it is like saying "I'm getting a strong Garry Lyon Vibe from this youngster called Carey". RT still has a journey to go but watching his attack on the ball, the casual kick off the wrong foot that the player doesn't break stride for, RT is a dead set freak. Tippett was a very good player, amybe didn't get the best out of himself but a very good tall forward. I have watched footy for near on 50 years, I haven't seen a 201 cm player with his skillset...ever.

Have my fingers crossed on him JW but this kid is a chance to break the Midfielders curse on Charlie, that is how much talent he has

Just on that in bold..maybe paul salmon? He was super talented

 

[Sanders]

Just on that in bold..maybe paul salmon? He was super talented

salmon was closer in style to a richer Tippett. Not as versatile or with the ground game of TT.

one of the things that really excites about TT is the mongrel. He’s not a nice, shrinking violet out there. He wants to impact the contest

 

[spexau]

salmon was closer in style to a richer Tippett. Not as versatile or with the ground game of TT.

one of the things that really excites about TT is the mongrel. He’s not a nice, shrinking violet out there. He wants to impact the contest

That's the ice hockey player in him

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[Crow till I die]

salmon was closer in style to a richer Tippett. Not as versatile or with the ground game of TT.

one of the things that really excites about TT is the mongrel. He’s not a nice, shrinking violet out there. He wants to impact the contest

Absolutely agree. I wonder if Brett Cummings agrees too