- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
West Coast Eagles workhorse Matt Priddis cannot possibly be overlooked again for All-Australian selection this season.
The 29-year-old midfielder has been one of the most effective and hardest working on-ballers in the competition for many years now.
Yet he has never been rewarded with an All-Australian guernsey. What is truly remarkable is that he has only once even featured in the 40-man All-Australian squad, back in 2011.
Last season, Priddis was phenomenal for West Coast, averaging 27 touches, seven clearances and six tackles en route to winning the club’s best-and-fairest award.
Despite being his side’s best player, albeit in a disappointing campaign for the Eagles, he was bizarrely not considered worthy of the 40-man AA squad.
This is the Priddis story – nothing has come easy to him in his football career. A prolific ball winner at under-age levels and then in the WAFL, he was overlooked three times at the national draft.
He was belatedly rookie listed by West Coast but could manage only two games in the 2006 premiership season, during which he won the Sandover Medal as the best player in the WAFL.
Since debuting that year as a 21-year-old, Priddis has been as reliable as any midfielder in the land. Across his 171 games, he has averaged 26 possessions, six clearances and six tackles a game. That is an extraordinary return over such a long sequence of matches.
Accordingly, he is a hugely-respected figure at West Coast, where he is revered for his inspiring work ethic, courage and selflessness.
Few footballers in the competition have the same level of impact as Priddis when not in possession.
He chases, harasses, tackles and shepherds with ferocity. He smothers with desperation. He throws his body into the contest continually, clearing space for his teammates and ensuring opponents leave the ground sore and bruised.
While his colleagues and coaches cherish these endeavours, they often go unnoticed by football followers and pundits. Priddis is pigeonholed by many in the football community as a stats-gatherer who rarely has a decisive influence on games.
His foot skills aren’t up to scratch, they say. He doesn’t break the lines, they argue. He rarely kicks goals, they note. Yes, Priddis is not an elite kick. Yes, he does not often bounce his way up the wing. Yes, he is not a prolific goal kicker.
But he makes up for all of that, and then some, with his grunt work. Priddis may not often dominate games in the manner of worshipped midfielders like Gary Ablett, Scott Pendlebury or Patrick Dangerfield.
Every week, though, his teammates know they can count on him to make life easier for them. Meanwhile, he’s gathering 25 to 30 touches, lording it at the clearances and putting heavy defensive pressure on any opponent within reach.
No player has had more possessions this season than Priddis’ 580 at an average of 29 per match. He is also second for clearances (at seven a game), third for tackles (seven per outing) and third for contested possessions (15 a match).
He has been a major factor in West Coast’s resurgence which has put them in contention for a finals berth. Finally, he is getting some recognition in recent weeks with calls for him to be an All-Australian.
Ironically, it took a 42-possession effort against the competition’s highest profile side, Collingwood, for some eastern state pundits to belatedly take notice.
It wouldn’t bother Priddis. He is one of the lowest-maintenance stars in the AFL. But it’s time he stops flying under the radar and is given the credit he deserves.