Toovey the next Swan

[Kirby]

Up until a couple of years ago Swanny didn't have that special something. Swanny is one of the rare players that has just developed his own style of stardom despite not having many of the real assets you'd expect in a star player. I am guessing that is why the OP went with Toovey the next Swan because early days Swan was very vanilla, it would have taken a very brave man to predict this kind of rise. Swanny's stardom is built very much around his own hard work. He always had good pace and football smarts but he has developed a fitness base, work rate and strength to make him the machine he is now, a lot of his best traits are ones he worked on after being drafted, which is pretty rare in top line players.

I'm referring to his freakish ability to read the play and get to where the ball is. He's always had that skill and it is a very important one. He also always has had good pace. They are two very handy weapons.

I agree that the rest of his game has come together through sheer hard work, particularly in regard to his strength and endurance.

 

[shawthing09]

I'm referring to his freakish ability to read the play and get to where the ball is. He's always had that skill and it is a very important one. He also always has had good pace. They are two very handy weapons.

I agree that the rest of his game has come together through sheer hard work, particularly in regard to his strength and endurance.

I must say I never noticed that high level of football IQ in his early years, that said I was pretty young at the time, obviously the increased endurance makes it much more visible. You can't deny he is getting into the right spots when he is getting it 30 times a week.

Toovs has some underrated toe I'd say.

 

[Lenz]

Sheesh!!! I never said or implied that Tooves would be a great midfielder like Swan, or great in all the areas Swan is or whatever, only that he has improved enormously (like Swan) and may yet go much further (also like Swan), which, given his attitude (and perhaps also his relationship with Malthouse, which I didn't mention) I reckon he almost certainly will. I can see him becoming quite dominant down back in time (like Swan is in the middle). Sheesh!!!

 

[Pie eyed]

Last year the question was posed "Is Swan the next Ablett" when in fact it turns out Swan was the next Swan.
Ablett, however turns out to be the next Judd.

Toovey is the next Toovey.

 

[Kirby]

I must say I never noticed that high level of football IQ in his early years, that said I was pretty young at the time, obviously the increased endurance makes it much more visible. You can't deny he is getting into the right spots when he is getting it 30 times a week.

Toovs has some underrated toe I'd say.

His early games were off the HBF and he managed to rack up some fair numbers at times. He showed that knack for getting where the ball is and read the play better than his opponent. You could see that football brain ticking away. My brother and me just started calling him "the footballer" because he looked so unfashionable yet knew how to get the pill and showed plenty of smarts.

No doubt about Toovs mate, he has quite a turn of foot.

 

[vjknight]

His early games were off the HBF and he managed to rack up some fair numbers at times. He showed that knack for getting where the ball is and read the play better than his opponent. You could see that football brain ticking away. My brother and me just started calling him "the footballer" because he looked so unfashionable yet knew how to get the pill and showed plenty of smarts.

No doubt about Toovs mate, he has quite a turn of foot.

from this comment is it fair to draw a comparison to nick maxwell, if comparisons are the issue ?

what i said earlier about 'no weak links', if i was to be overly critical, id suggest the only 2 from our flag 22 who could be moved off to the VFL are goldsack (last man in) and macaffer (such is the medium forwards tenure).
not suggesting for a moment they should or will miss, but team sports mean changes. but if they are our 'worst' 2, we are in such wonderful shape.

 

[shawthing09]

from this comment is it fair to draw a comparison to nick maxwell, if comparisons are the issue ?

what i said earlier about 'no weak links', if i was to be overly critical, id suggest the only 2 from our flag 22 who could be moved off to the VFL are goldsack (last man in) and macaffer (such is the medium forwards tenure).
not suggesting for a moment they should or will miss, but team sports mean changes. but if they are our 'worst' 2, we are in such wonderful shape.

I mentioned this elsewhere in the Krakour thread but I think LeCafe is being heavily under rated for his second half of the year on these boards. I think he was far more important structually then he is being given credit for.

I would have had him probably best on ground till half time in GF2 and he played some really important roles for us right through the second half of the season. I know stats aren't everything but I remember it was mentioned prior to the finals that LeCafe had the second highest overall champion data points for Collingwood in the weeks leading into the finals.

Whilst he is a medium foward his contested marking meant that he often played somewhere inbetween a KPF without losing any of that small foward pressure. There are a number of games towards the end of the year that he was a real focal target. I think he was our best foward in the second half of the year and our fowardline looked completely transformed with him in the side.

 

[HFF]

Totally agree ST re: LeCaff.

He basically took over Medhurst's role and made it his own. He is being under-sold here and definitely best 22.

He is actually similar to Medhurst in many ways, just less crafty.

As you say, his overhead ability is up there with the best for a medium forward and he has not lost any of the abilities i.e. tackling/pressure of smalls either.

His form in the big games vs St Kilda (round 16), Geel (round 19), Geel (Prelim) and St Kilda (GF2) was exceptional.

 

[shawthing09]

Totally agree ST re: LeCaff.

He basically took over Medhurst's role and made it his own. He is being under-sold here and definitely best 22.

He is actually similar to Medhurst in many ways, just less crafty.

As you say, his overhead ability is up there with the best for a medium forward and he has not lost any of the abilities i.e. tackling/pressure of smalls either.

His form in the big games vs St Kilda (round 16), Geel (round 19), Geel (Prelim) and St Kilda (GF2) was exceptional.

Whilst he is less crafty then Medhurst he is much more flexible and hence structually sound. Medhurst thrived as a small lead up FF and as a result tended to struggle to stay involved in games when a lot of ball was being directed to our tall KPFs and with the lack of space that having 2 KPF's left him with.

In no way am I suggesting Maccaffer is better then Medhurst but he offers something that we really needed and hence makes us a much better side. If he can maintain the form he showed in the second half of the year should be one of the first selected every week. As I said I think he was our best foward in that time above both of Trav and Dawes.

 

[Scodog10]

Got a feeling about the kid after watching the drawn final yet again. He played one helluva game, damn near our best, only turned it over once from memory, but was courageous, flexible, intelligent, calm, going all the time and into everything.

I have learned to embrace Tooves as much as the next Collingwood supporter because it seems to me that he is a permanent fixture of the team for now and well into the future.

The man definitely has improvement left in him because he was starting from such a low base, but the above statement IMO is well and truly off the mark in terms of his impact on the drawn Grand Final. As a safe estimate he would have turned over around every second possession he is a massive liability at this stage of his career when the pressure is at its peak.

There is actually a passage of play in the second quarter of one of the GF's where he has 3 turnovers in about 30 seconds, which begins by him running directly into about 3 saints players....

He's definitely grown on me, and in terms of work ethic and desire he's right up there with Swanny, but that's about it.

 

[Ed D]

The bolded is rubbish, Toovs is a fantastic one on one player, great in contests and would be ahead of Swan at the same stage in Swans career.

Not sure where playing one on one and being great in contests relates to playing in packs and dishing the ball out to team mates in the clear. No doubt Toovey is turning out to be a great one on one player, I'm just saying he wouldn't have much hope of playing the role Swan does.

Anyway, I also misread the OP, but in saying that I don't think Toovey can get to the levels as a player that Swan is at now (one of the best in the comp). I'd be very happy if he did, but I think he currently even plays the wrong role for it.

 

[vjknight]

I mentioned this elsewhere in the Krakour thread but I think LeCafe is being heavily under rated for his second half of the year on these boards. I think he was far more important structually then he is being given credit for.

agree - allow me to elaborate.

if a change was mooted, players SUCH AS goldsack & macaffer are in the sights because.....

you dont mess with a successful defence.
all the onballers are vital.
the KPF are important to structure, even when not overly contributing.
hence the small/medium forwards are often 'expendable', unless they can prove their worth BEYOND just goal sharks.

 

[mattys123]

MaCaffer, injury and fitness permitting, will play 25 games next season, and there are two words that sum up why; MICK MALTHOUSE.

Le Caffe is a "Malthouse Type" of player, a rookie who no one gave a chance to, a player who is as tough as they come, yet can play in a number of positions in any given match.

We have found our "Medhurst" replacement, and it was no coincidence that the game that Caff came "of age", was also the game that the side proved to the football world that we were the "real deal", the round 19 game vs the Cats.

I'm just praying that the OP injury rumours are false, and that he can have a full pre season and an injury interrupted 2011, because he still has improvement in him, and could become one of the real individual success stories of our list.

Toovey and MaCaffer are in the same category for me, almost "untapped" potential, yet they are the players who no one gives credit to for their parts in the flag, and the players who just go about doing their "business" week in, week out without much fuss, and no wonder Mick and the whole club love the 2 blokes to death.

 

[Number 10]

MaCaffer, injury and fitness permitting, will play 25 games next season, and there are two words that sum up why; MICK MALTHOUSE.

Le Caffe is a "Malthouse Type" of player, a rookie who no one gave a chance to, a player who is as tough as they come, yet can play in a number of positions in any given match.

We have found our "Medhurst" replacement, and it was no coincidence that the game that Caff came "of age", was also the game that the side proved to the football world that we were the "real deal", the round 19 game vs the Cats.

I'm just praying that the OP injury rumours are false, and that he can have a full pre season and an injury interrupted 2011, because he still has improvement in him, and could become one of the real individual success stories of our list.

Toovey and MaCaffer are in the same category for me, almost "untapped" potential, yet they are the players who no one gives credit to for their parts in the flag, and the players who just go about doing their "business" week in, week out without much fuss, and no wonder Mick and the whole club love the 2 blokes to death.

Thats a bit harsh mate haha