FIRST GLIMPSES

Posted March 22, 200916 yr

by Whispering Jack

There is no secret as to why I (along with many others) made the journey out to Casey Fields yesterday.

It was very simple - Liam Jurrah was playing his first game since his selection by Melbourne in December's Pre Season Draft and while many articles have been written about this young indigenous phenomenon from the country's red centre, there's no substitute for seeing a player do his thing out there on the field.

Admittedly, Jurrah's pre-season was patchy. There were reports of freakish pieces of play at training but we hadn't yet had the opportunity of seeing him in action. He was selected in the squad for the Aboriginal All Stars game against Adelaide in Darwin in early February but withdrew due to "lack of conditioning".

After that there were reports that the project player wasn't quite ready and needed time and work to make the transition from bush footy to the elite level and Melbourne coach Dean Bailey made it clear that this progression will be gradual.

"We don't want to rush his development. He's a very good ball handler, he's got really good agility, and he actually tackles particularly well. He's got a vertical jump which is exciting, and the defensive part of his game is very good."

Bailey's conclusion was that it was necessary to keep working Jurrah in the gym to "get his body ready to play with some confidence around the ground."

The knowledge that the coach believed that the player wasn't ready yet didn't deter me. I still wanted to see him in the flesh; to determine whether all the hype about the Centralian sensation was true. Even if we had to wait a while to see him at AFL level, it might give an insight into whether the Demons have on their hands one of the answers to their prayers for a goal kicking forward?

The reality was never going to match the expectation. For starters, it was clear from the moment he ran out onto the ground with his Casey Scorpions team mates, that the impressive but spindly Jurrah was not as tall as some of the early reports on him suggested. He's not 193cm tall and not even 190cm as is stated in the melbournefc magazine - more like about 187cm at most.

Jurrah showed some glimpses of brilliance, kicked an early goal and flashed in and out of the play but he barely played out a half before showing signs of tiredness. His last shot at goal (admittedly in windy conditions) hit the behind post.

Perhaps it was due to limited time on the track but he doesn't seem to have a strong engine. Coming from our hot centre you would imagine that he'd be used to the dry heat that prevailed yesterday at Casey Fields and yet he looked tired after a couple of long chases.

Yes, it is going to take time ...

Then it struck me how alike his mission to become an AFL footballer must be to that of his club's current Chairman when he embarked on his remarkable sporting career almost a quarter of a century ago.

Jim Stynes left his family and friends in Dublin and arrived here in November 1984 hopeful of kicking off a football career in unfamiliar surroundings a long way from home. He struggled early and his under 19 coach Ray Jordon sent him to Prahran in the VFA competition (now VFL) but returned to Melbourne after one season to become a club legend, a Brownlow Medallist and now the club's off field leader. Jim's valuable work with the Reach Foundation has also earned him acclimation from the wider general community.

So Liam Jurrah's career is set to begin like Jimmy's not in the big time but in the VFL. His aim is to eventually succeed at the elite level and to become a role model for the youth back home in Yuendumu where he is being groomed as a future tribal elder.

And though his football club leader's big footsteps will be eminently suitable ones to follow as his career unfolds, we're hoping if he happens to make it to a preliminary final in a few year's time, that he watches his step!

LINK: ALL STAR DREAMING