Fawdoffshed wrote:Many seasons ago I was walking near to Central Park and saw a lone person kicking dozens of balls, all lined up, in the pouring rain, forever replacing them and kicking again and again and again.
The name of that lone person?
Mr. Frano Botica.
Therefore, I agree with DaveO that practice, practice, practice is basically at the heart of a kicker who wants to be simply the best.
As Botica was. Richards, too, was quite sublime considering the nightmare start he had to his goal-kicking career.
Remember playing cricket one afternoon on Robin Park just after we'd signed Botica. He spent hours on the next field kicking goal after goal on his tod.
Kicking goals is a bit like a golf swing. The average player has a good day and all seems well (George Williams v Wire in the Cup this year) but then can't replicate it consistently. A specialist coach can however study the action/swing and help, that's why all the top golf pros use them at certain times. However if you don't have the ability in the first place you'll never be a top player.
A kicking coach can only fine tune an excellent kicker... We don't have any excellent kickers but below average kickers. You will find no improvement in our ratio next season unless we start putting the ball under the sticks. Mark my words
Fawdoffshed wrote:Agreed. Practising hour after hour with no-one telling you what is wrong is useless.
Unless you are a natural
Even naturals have to develop their skill.
At academy level, Andy Farrell wasn't the team kicker, yet for the first team, he looked a natural.
It was a tongue in cheek comment. After saying that the best kicker I ever saw played in the same team as me at amateur level and he got zilch coaching.
Winning is down to 99% perspiration and 1% inspiration - Shaun Edwards
Funny how there are many posts that are critical of the place-kicking at the club; they then do something that on the face of it appears to be addressing the issue and even this is wrong. I don't recall too many posters suggesting that signing a kicking coach was a bad idea yet as soon as one is appointed it is seen by some as a negative or not worth it.
I hope it will be worth it. I think it should be worth it. But we'll have to wait and see. I can't imagine, though, that in other sports (RU, obviously) kicking coaches aren't widespread.
Seinfeld79 wrote:Funny how there are many posts that are critical of the place-kicking at the club; they then do something that on the face of it appears to be addressing the issue and even this is wrong. I don't recall too many posters suggesting that signing a kicking coach was a bad idea yet as soon as one is appointed it is seen by some as a negative or not worth it.
Seinfeld79 wrote:Funny how there are many posts that are critical of the place-kicking at the club; they then do something that on the face of it appears to be addressing the issue and even this is wrong. I don't recall too many posters suggesting that signing a kicking coach was a bad idea yet as soon as one is appointed it is seen by some as a negative or not worth it.
+1
+1 more!
'If you start listening to the fans it won't be long before you're sitting with them.' - Wayne Bennett
