Robbie Gray is a lock for the All-Australian side, one of the favourites for Port Adelaide’s best and fairest award and is a decent chance of winning the Brownlow medal.
Oh, and he just claimed the ultra-prestigious AFL Coaches Association award as the best player of the 2014 season. With 102 votes he is seven ahead of the suspended Nat Fyfe and cannot be caught by third-placed Josh Kennedy from Sydney.
Yet just five months ago he was a somewhat inconsistent forward with next to no profile outside of South Australia.
At 26 years old, with seven seasons of AFL behind him, it seemed that his AFL career was unlikely ever to rise above the ordinary. His ability was undoubted but he had a tendency to meander in and out of games which, admittedly, is not an unusual trait for a forward.
Consistency was not a strong point for Gray. This season, however, he has been Port’s most reliable footballer, as evidenced by the fact he’s polled votes in 17 of his 21 games in the AFLCA award.
He has spent much more time in the midfield where his eyecatching pace and precise foot skills have made him an attacking weapon for Port.
Gray has averaged 25 touches and six clearances a match, kicked 32 goals and leads the league in goal assists. While he has become a prolific ball winner, he is not the type of player who needs to earn 30 to 35 touches to have a major influence on a match.
His possessions frequently hurt the opposition. Right now, he is among the best 10 to 15 players in the AFL. It is a remarkable rise from a footballer who, prior to this season, was nothing more than a solid player.
Last year, as Port began their surge from the gutter of the AFL, Gray managed just 17 touches a match and slotted only 15 goals in his 20 games. This return was fairly consistent with what he had produced in his AFL career to that point – just enough to keep himself in the side.
Gray told the media this week that it was a knee reconstruction he had in 2012 which had been the catalyst for his emergence as an elite player.
“I suppose having that time off I probably learnt a fair bit about myself and I probably changed a few things, the way I went about things, about footy,” he said.
“I certainly prepare better now than I used now to and that is probably helping. I’m probably just more diligent with my work during the week, in the gym, out on the track and little things like diet.
“Just the real little things that you have got to take care of, recovery and things like that, to get your body right to play AFL footy.”
It is unfortunate that it took this long for Gray to put maximum effort into his footballing endeavours. His story will hopefully provide motivation to the many other highly-gifted yet underachieving players in the AFL.
Don’t be surprised to see him finish top five in the Brownlow. What a turnaround that would be.
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