Well Done Christian Petracca

[Lucifers Hero 40,518]

Thought his achievements this year are worthy of special acknowledgement:

• Keith "Bluey" Truscott winner
• AA team on first nomination
• 2nd in the AFLCA coaches award which was won by Neale
• 3rd in the MVP awards, second to Neale and Boak

Reflecting on those in total: he is voted the best by club coaches, AA by 'independent' AFL figures, top 2 by all coaches that saw him play and 3rd by his peers; some 800+ players.

He has been building to this for several years and as he said has areas to improve and won't that be awesome!

He graciously credited teammates, coaches and fitness staff at the Bluey.  He has carried himself with maturity and humility.

For the first time in eons we not only have a club champion we have an AFL champion, an elite player.  Regardless of how mfc fortunes go in future he will be a joy to watch and people will go to games just to see his class.

Rapt for him.

Edited September 24, 2020 by Lucifer's Hero

[Wiseblood 24,637]

16 minutes ago, Lucifer's Hero said:

Thought his achievements this year are worthy of special acknowledgement:

• Keith "Bluey" Truscott winner
• AA team on first nomination
• 2nd in the AFLCA coaches award which was won by Neale
• 3rd in the MVP awards, second to Neale and Boak

Reflecting on those in total: he is voted the best by club coaches, AA by 'independent' AFL figures, top 2 by all coaches that saw him play and 3rd by his peers; some 800+ players.

He has been building to this for several years and as he said has areas to improve and won't that be awesome!

He graciously credited teammates, coaches and fitness staff at the Bluey.  He has carried himself with maturity and humility.

For the first time in eons we not only have a club champion we have an AFL champion, an elite player.  Regardless of how mfc fortunes go in future he will be a joy to watch and people will go to games just to see his class.

Rapt for him.

This sentence was the big one for me.

Clearly the penny dropped for Trac, and he has worked very hard to get himself into the position he is in.  However, I also think it is important to note the impact those coaches and fitness staff have had on his development, and it is terrific to hear him credit them in his speech.  No doubt Darren Burgess has been a big positive for him this season.

The awards above are well deserved and I can only see him adding to those in the coming seasons!

[McQueen 17,867]

Would it be too soon to foresee him as a future club captain.

Objectively, he's certainly heading in the right direction with regards to on and off field leadership traits.

[Smokey 4,389]

2 hours ago, McQueen said:

Would it be too soon to foresee him as a future club captain.

I'd pump the brakes on that line of thought. A good season with the Bluey and a AA spot does not automatically mean he will be an effective captain. I haven't noted Trac showing any signs he'd be a good captain personally, but happy to be corrected by those who watch more closey than I do. 

I love the bloke, but maybe someone who grabs team mates fingers and puts them up his own clacker is possibly lacking the maturity required of a captain. 

[DubDee 26,306]

What a gun. I haven't seen such a dominant season by a Demon in a long time.  especially the way he impacted games. We finally have a Dangerfield/Dusty type.  this is a major and necessary cog in a premiership tilt imo.

If we had finsihed top 4, I reckon Trac would be taking home the Brownlow and most other awards.

A credit also to the coach and guys behind the scenes. not often MFC develop players as well as this

[Accepting Mediocrity 1,418]

First time in my life we've had a dee genuinely in the conversation as the best player in the league (albeit only one season so far).

He has a level of confidence in his ability that only the very best players possess. When he launches a bomb from 55, you know it's going through for a goal before the ball leaves his foot. He knows it too, and so does his opponent. It's beautiful. You just know that he's going to tear apart a few finals before the end of his career. Christ I hope it's in the red and blue.

 

[Sydee 4,633]

Fantastic to see CP5 move closer to his full potential - sky is the limit 
Hope he can consolidate and keep improving next year and get the rewards he will deserve   

[gs77 4,517]

8 hours ago, Lucifer's Hero said:

Thought his achievements this year are worthy of special acknowledgement:

• Keith "Bluey" Truscott winner
• AA team on first nomination
• 2nd in the AFLCA coaches award which was won by Neale
• 3rd in the MVP awards, second to Neale and Boak

Reflecting on those in total: he is voted the best by club coaches, AA by 'independent' AFL figures, top 2 by all coaches that saw him play and 3rd by his peers; some 800+ players.

He has been building to this for several years and as he said has areas to improve and won't that be awesome!

He graciously credited teammates, coaches and fitness staff at the Bluey.  He has carried himself with maturity and humility.

For the first time in eons we not only have a club champion we have an AFL champion, an elite player.  Regardless of how mfc fortunes go in future he will be a joy to watch and people will go to games just to see his class.

Rapt for him.

Great summary!  Neale has 3 years on him - Trac has time on his side to be absolutely anything.  A very exciting few years ahead for Trac, and I hope a few more of his team-mates take a leaf out of his book and dare to put in the work to achieve their own slice of greatness.

[640MD 3,491]

I suppose a Brownlow win is out if the question, and it would make the MFC year finish on a nice note.

that and a great pickup in the draft.

[DeeGee 177]

I watched him at training in January, and he looked so ripped then he almost looked out of proportion. It was clear to me he was up for a big season.

i think the main thing was he knew he could take on anyone and beat them. Massive confidence to be able to do that.

[tiers 2,875]

Tracca often fills the role of "pappa bear" in the forward line. He is the one that pats his team mates on the head when they come to him after doing something special. That, to me,  is a  sign of captain material. Let's see how it develops.

The last one to regularly fill that role was David Schwarz but he couldn't displace Neita for the captain's job. Watts also filled that role on occasions and it will always remain an unknown just how effective he might have been as a captain for his maturity and footy nous.

Before you all pile in I remind you that not all effective captains are always the best player. They just need to be the best leader on the field.

 

 

 

[Pates 9,673]

The great things about Christian, aside from all the accolades mentioned (and 100% congratulations to him for all of it) is that he seems to have an energy about him that brings others into the game. His teammates really get around him when he kicks a goal, when someone else kicks a goal he’s a lot of the time the first to really pump them up. 

It’s immeasurable important to have people like that in your team because they not only pump others up but it actually makes playing with him a joy. He seems to just love playing footy and it shines out of him onto others. 

It been great watching him get close to fulfilling his potential, he’s got other gears to go to though. I hope he brings others along during his progress, he’s a great example of what happens when talent mixes with application and hard work. 

[DemonWheels 1,116]

Massive, massive achievements from Trac this year and I think this could (and should) have a monumental shift in the playing group from the guys that are younger than him that have seen what he’s done. This is HOPEFULLY the shift in culture we wish to see.

He could have easily just kept plodding along (‘plodding’ is a bit harsh) and rocked up each season to play footy at a decent level. He hasn’t, he has changed the story/narrative - listen to any commentary throughout any game before this season - its all there - It’s all about ‘potential’ star. Hadn’t been done yet. And he hadn’t made it. Well now he has, but it took a massive shift personally.

All younger players are told from the coaches and ‘older’ blokes (to them, 35+) within a club about ‘taking your opportunity’ but this is such a great example of an actual living example of a young player that has taken drastic measures, outside of his clubs mandated responsibilities/measures, to push beyond and realize his full potential (which I think we all agree, as he has stated – has not yet been reached/achieved).

Sky is the limit as far as I’m concerned.

(I’ve been a bit sour since our season has finished when we really should be at the very least playing finals with our list, but it’s important to celebrate a massive freakin achievement)

Huge Congratulations Christian.

[layzie 34,337]

Absolutely stoked for Trac and yes the sky is the limit. He's developed the right habits and hopefully will be raring to go again even better next year.

[BDA 23,017]

A superb effort this year. He has shown a level of professionalism I did not think he possessed. We shouldn’t underestimate the effort and hard work required to get into the physical condition he achieved. He has improved every aspect of his game. We could not have asked for more in terms of professionalism, dedication and commitment.

Christian has led by example this year. I hope the club match his level of ambition and make the changes needed this off-season to ensure the potential of our list is fully realised.  

[Bring-Back-Powell 15,253]

Started the year like an absolute rocket at Casey Fields with a 38 possession 3 goal game and never looked back.

As someone else mentioned, you just know he’ll nail that 55 metre set shot for goal.

Can’t wait to see him live at the G next year!

[Wrecker45 3,378]

I haven't seen anyone on Demonland call him fat for a while.

[Lucifers Hero 40,518]

Another accolade:  He is in the midfield for the AFL Team Of The Year.