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At least one bookmaker is betting Israel Folau won’t boot more than 10 goals in his first AFL season but Greater Western Sydney coach Kevin Sheedy has more faith in the rugby league convert.
The veteran coach reiterated on Friday that Folau is a certain starter for the round one derby against the Sydney Swans at ANZ Stadium and feels the 22-year-old will succeed despite the doubters.
“He’s a player that every time you left a challenge, he’d lift and have a go at it,” Sheedy told reporters at a press conference marking 50 days until the March 24 clash between the Giants and Swans.
“I think Israel’s become a better player through the training; kicked over 30 goals last year and probably would have kicked 40 if we hadn’t have played him down the back half for four or five games.
“I think that he’ll play all the NAB Cup games. He needs every game to get into playing against AFL-standard players.
“You just don’t know. If he kicks two goals a game, plays every game – that’s 40-odd – that’s a good effort in his first year.”
While Folau eagerly awaits the first big challenge of his AFL career, a man who has been there and done it all, Swans legend Adam Goodes, said expectations shouldn’t be too high.
Despite Folau having represented Australia in rugby league, played grand finals and State of Origin matches, he’s still just an AFL rookie according to the dual Brownlow medallist.
“I think the way I see Izzy, he’s just like any first-year player coming into our footy group,” Goodes said.
“If he was on my team I’d hate to put any expectations on him other than to go out and play well.
“If he takes a couple of marks and, like Sheeds says, gets a couple of goals a game then that’s him playing his role.
“That’s all Izzy can expect – to go out there in his first game and play as well for his team-mates and be a bit of a target in that forward line.”
Goodes’ coach John Longmire jokingly suggested the veteran Swan could find himself marking Folau in the historic derby clash.
But whoever he finds himself up against, Folau expects the game to be just as big as anything he experienced in his rugby league career.
“It’s just as important, the build-up to this game,” Folau said.
“On a personal level it’s pretty big for myself.
“It’s going to be a long year for myself … but I’m looking forward to taking on the challenge.”
The first step in establishing a rivalry between the two clubs was taken on Friday with the announcement of a medal named in honour of Swans’ great Brett Kirk for the best-on-ground in the fixture.
Goodes said he was eagerly anticipating playing in the first intra-city derby of his long career.
“I’ve never had it before so I’m definitely excited,” he said.
“You see the teams in Adelaide and Perth … even the Suns against Brisbane last year … I just thought it was fantastic.”
© AAP 2012Recommend this story.
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The Crowd Says (11) | Page 1 of Comments
Have Your Say
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- AFL, GWS Giants, Israel Folau, Kevin Sheedy
February 4th 2012 @ 8:09am
Ian Whitchurch said | February 4th 2012 @ 8:09am | Report comment
Watch this tape around 50 seconds to one minute – it’s GWS versus Brisbane Reserves.
He’s close marked, reads the play, leads into space, collects the palmed out ball and kicks across his body for a goal.
That wasnt the lead-and-mark we all suspected he could do, that was ground level roving.
Sheeds is right to play him at full forward from week one.
February 4th 2012 @ 9:33am
The Cattery said | February 4th 2012 @ 9:33am | Report comment
Ian
that’s ok, but there’s a big jump from the defensive work of the Brissie reserves, as we see it in this vision, and the AFL proper.
February 4th 2012 @ 1:24pm
Jack Russell said | February 4th 2012 @ 1:24pm | Report comment
His main problem at full forward is going to be quality and quantity of supply. No position on the ground relies more on the rest of the team, and if the ball is rarely going down there, and when it does it’s scrappy then he’s going to find it tough. Especially given that he’s probably going to attract the opposition’s best full back. Patton missing for the first part of the season won’t help either.
February 4th 2012 @ 3:45pm
Lachlan said | February 4th 2012 @ 3:45pm | Report comment
There’s no doubt whatsoever that it’s an enormous step up from NEAFL to AFL. The players are bigger and better and more skillful, the game plans are perfected. Folau is going to struggle to win the ball, it’s not going to just come to him, he’ll have to work extremely hard to win it. The delivery will be less and less effective. I think 40 goals maybe in 2013 or 2014, if he kicks 20 goals, for a team that will struggle to get a few wins in 2012, would be fantastic.
February 4th 2012 @ 5:24pm
The_Wookie said | February 4th 2012 @ 5:24pm | Report comment
If he has the height and leap (which he does), then all he has to do is be able to mark and kick at full forward. And he can do both. If he can only get supply. He can always wander up to half forward if needed – hes quite a long kick. This isnt Karmicheal Hunt, hes bigger and shown much more in the seconds than Hunt did. Time will tell, but I think he’s going to be ok.
February 4th 2012 @ 6:07pm
The Cattery said | February 4th 2012 @ 6:07pm | Report comment
agreed Lachlan – Adam Goodes is spot on the money – he’s the equivalent of a first year rookie, just a bit bigger and stronger, no point building up expectations – first full season will be a massive learning curve.
February 6th 2012 @ 4:42pm
Jaceman said | February 6th 2012 @ 4:42pm | Report comment
He might clean up 40 blokes in the oppositions backline…
February 6th 2012 @ 4:54pm
The Cattery said | February 6th 2012 @ 4:54pm | Report comment
Amazingly, only 12 days to go before GWS host the dogs and pies at Blacktown – luckily for GWS, only need to play half-games that first outing.
February 6th 2012 @ 10:25pm
Republican said | February 6th 2012 @ 10:25pm | Report comment
Izzy will be marked by class full backs amongst others.
I really can’t see him making much impression at all except against GC – perhaps.
February 10th 2012 @ 12:07am
Neil said | February 10th 2012 @ 12:07am | Report comment
Thanks for the Video Ian,
He’s got air, beef, and can kick. That’s all you need for full forward. I reckon his first game against the swans will prove his worth right away.
How many goals do you guys think he can kick on his first game? http://bit.ly/Awqufz #betme
February 10th 2012 @ 12:34am
The Cattery said | February 10th 2012 @ 12:34am | Report comment
I think back to Hunt’s first game last season – got 2 or 3 touches of the footy – and he was in the backline in a team beaten by 20 goals.
If the giants are at the end of a 20 goal thrashing themselves, the ball ain’t really going to be up at Izzy’s end to much – it’s not out of the question that he too will be lucky to touch the footy 2 or 3 times in his first outing.
The one thing that would stop me from making that prediction with confidence would be the fact that the Swans are slow starters – they actually lost their first NAB cup game to the Suns last year.
Also, while the suns were gun shy last season, it’s not out of the question that a young brand new team comes out running on air in its first outing – a bit like that first half that the Suns played against Geelong last year where they seemed to have the footy on a string – from memory that was their first ever game at Metricon.