Taggers. The cheats of Australian football. The mediocre scarcely-known opponent sanctioned by the AFL to destroy the thing we say we love most about our great game.
Every year before the National Draft the football media identifies another talented youngster to profile, to promote, to laud to potential stardom. But his promise will probably never be fulfilled; we will likely never see him at his best. He will start his career with a target on his back (or his knee).
Over a long career he may win every award and accolade in the game appropriate to his skill-set, but he will probably never win the most coveted of them all. The very best seldom win the Brownlow Medal.
He may be nominated as a Rising Star; he may win the Anzac Day medal; the Norm Smith medal; his home club’s best and fairest on multiple occasions. He may be nominated for repeated All Australian blazers and be chosen by the coaches as the best. But unless he can win the Brownlow, the greatest of them all in his earliest years, before he is targeted for destruction by taggers, he will only ever be ‘the bridesmaid’ never ‘the bride’.
This is because most Brownlow medals go to the very best of the second tier players; the excellent players who win consistent match votes because they get to play their personal best at every outing without the AFL-sanctioned millstone of permitted bullying – scragging, pinching, pushing, shoving, punching, holding – week after week, that turns a young superstar into a falling-star who gets tagged into oblivion before he ever shows us what he can really do. Surely this is the greatest contradiction in a game riddled with them.
We all see it; so do the umpires who seem to turn a blind eye in every game to permit a string of infringements they would not permit amongst other players.
Why? Why is this permitted? Never called out? Season after season? Is this what we really want to see done to the best exponents of our game?
Although a life-long supporter of my beloved Pies I have often wondered why so many of our greatest players, whose gob-smacking lists of achievements in great careers such as Scott Pendlebury, have not received the ultimate reward.
The other day I heard Pendles telling how he has told Nick Daicos he needs to expect 15 – 20 years of this bullying now that it has become regular. It caused me to wonder if brother Josh, himself an excellent player, permitted to play his best every week, is the more likely brother in the Daicos family to become a Brownlow winner. Or are they both too good to win it?
I hope other genuine lovers of our great game will start to call out this iniquitous practice which seems to continue unquestioned just ‘because it has always been’ and because ‘we all love to see a bit of physicality!’
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About Sue Currie
A devoted Magpie since my father took me to my first game at Victoria Park when I was five years old. That was nearly 70 years ago. Even when I was a nurse on a remote Aboriginal desert community I managed to see most Pies' games on Imparja TV. When I went to work up Cape York and found that the only way to find out what was happening to my Pies was to sit in my FWD and listen to HF radio I quit my job and came back to where they play civilised footy, ie., Aussie Rules.
Sue I admit I’m completely re the other direction give me back the days when players stood each other the good old fashioned duel of the centreman etc now days on ballers in general get it easy shake hands and don’t see each other till the siren goes.I loved – Nick v Marcus and it was a huge step forward in Nicks career he previously has put being tagged in the two hard basket on a couple of occasions.On Saturday night the pies were organised how to help -Nick and he dominated because of his work rate.I admit I don’t get your-Brownlow tangent whatsoever in general it’s a midfielders medal interestingly -Cameron got the coach’s votes
I will be surprised if N Daicos doesn’t get the 3 votes re Brownlow
Sue, I’m with you. And Malcolm, I reckon that you have coloured lenses for the ‘old’ days.
An ‘accidental’ elbow to the ribs, a knee to the hamstring, a n accidental blow to the back of the head while ’going’ for the ball.
The sight of a bandaged player being deliberately targeted and repeatedly hit around the injury without penalty is a moral comment by the managing body – the AFL – on where their priorities lay.
Yes, many many fans have the same opinion as you Sue -THIS GAME IS NOT RUGBY.
Unless the powers that be find a skerrick of fairness and fair play, the AFL will destroy the goose that lays the golden egg.
Frank can debate the ODD free kick should be payed but there is a massive over reaction – it was a great duel a fantastic step forward for Nick and it was enjoyable to watch – again why is -Dunkley from Brisbane lauded with in footy because he actually works his backside off defensively give me that every time than 1 way runners.Why are the pies awesome to watch live it’s because of there structure and defensive mecananisms it’s like a game of chess
Frank also no idea where you are coming from re bandaged player bit that hasn’t been allowed for years
Not sure I agree with the premise – that taggers are cheats. Or that taggers are sanctioned bullies. This is way too simplistic. A tagger is just another opponent and if he transgresses the rules he gets penalised. I don’t particularly like the pinching and the punching and the niggling, but some taggers are very skilled.
I watched Cameron Ling tag Dane Swan in the 2011 grand final. It was a work of art and was a big reason why Geelong won. He went hard at Swanny around the stoppages but after that just ensured he was goal side of Swanny every time Swanny got the ball. It forced him to change his game. And his impact dropped. I watched Oisin Mullin do a great job on N Daicos a few weeks back. Both are brilliant athletes. It was enthralling.
Daicos doesn’t deserve an easy ride because he’s a good footballer. Or because he’s a good bloke.
The contest of the tagger versus the tagged is often great to watch. Lets remember that this is a combative sport. Eighteen on eighteen. No one (should) get a free ride. The full forward certainly doesn’t. The full back generally wears him like a blanket. Or the centre-half forward who can belted behind the ear about 8 times a week. So why should a mid-fielder get it easy? Learning to beat the tag is a skill of the game. Daicos is getting better at it. And often, if N Daicos is tagged the other one gets off the chain. The team wins.
No, I just can’t see why a talented footballer should be given the open spaces because he might win the Brownlow. Brownlow Schmounlow.
Let the contest begin. Its a tough caper. ..
I’m with you Dips.
RDL
It’s not cheating. It’s part of the game. Very happy Windhager tagged Nick Daicos. The struggling clubs need to stop the champion players from the successful clubs. These clubs need to compete. Unfortunately, these struggling clubs can’t get top father and son picks and have never been destination clubs for champion players to come to.
I remember Robert Harvey was continually tagged and bumped into during his heyday and in finals, including a Grand Finals. His coaches never complained and nothing was ever done about it. Tagging has been part of the game for a long time now and Cameron Ling was the best tagged I have seen.
Long live the taggers!
Sue, I wouldn’t be complaining about this subject. Collingwood, with their very, very loud fan base, often get the most free kicks in a match, compared to the opposition, who are often less vocal.
St Kilda could have complained about cheating at Victoria Park in 1993, when many Collingwood fans very, very loudly racially vilified Nicky Winmar and Gilbert McAdam. Yet St Kilda still ended up winning that match, with both of those players playing well.
Collingwood have also had enough Brownlow Medallists (11) over the years. They have won the equal most premierships (16) and played in the most VFL/AFLGrand Finals (45) and won a measly 2 wooden spoons. They have had more than a great go.
It’s the St Kilda supporters who are entitled to complain the most from 1 measly flag (by 1 point against Collingwood in 1966) in 128 years of the VFL/AFL, small membership, an astronomical 27 wooden spoons, no father and son picks of note and absolutely robbed of the great Mornington Peninsula zone at the start of 1967, the year after their flag, because clubs complained that St Kilda would end up being too good. This zone was given to Hawthorn in 1967, and unfortunately, the rest is history.
If that’s not enough, during the 1980s the club was absolutely broke and many players and the coach were being paid 30 cents in the dollar.
The list goes on and on, for a club like St Kilda to complain about than there are with tagging tactics against Collingwood.