In a top-line rugby union game, torpedos are the norm and kicked with precision. Not so in AFL – unless, of course, your name happens to be Ben Graham, arguably the greatest exponent of the AFL torpedo goal.
Keep an eye out for the joy on the faces in the crowd in the following video.
I say Ben Graham is arguably the best with a degree of caution. There was a man from North Melbourne, one Malcolm Blight, whose monster torpedo sunk Carlton after the siren in July 1975.
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So why don’t we see torpedos more often in AFL games? As Wayne Carey notes in a torpedo skills video, “It is not necessarily the one that coaches love the most; it is a touch erratic”.
Coming from a rugby state, where torps are the norm, I suspect that from a young age torpedos are frowned upon on the AFL side of the Barrassi line.
It is no wonder, then, the problem is compounded. By the time boys become men they just haven’t practised the torp anywhere near enough for it to be a reliable weapon.
Perhaps this could be a feature of the preseason competition. Nail a torpedo from the centre square and it counts as two goals, or 12 points. The umpire raises both hands into the air, Shawshank Redemption-style, to award the double goal.
If you nail a torpedo goal from outside the 50-metre line, you get a bonus point (a goal plus a behind). The umpire smiles then raises and shakes one fist in triumph to award the bonus point goal.
I’ll leave you with some words from Ben Graham’s from a torpedo skill video: “When you get onto one, there are few better feelings in Australian football”. The fans love it. The players love it. Enjoy the monster barrels.
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