Ridiculous how much we miss this guy when he’s out.
Absolute warrior and one of the very few that works even harder defensively than he does offensively.
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he’s been quite resistant so far but i’m still confident that given another season or two we can turn him into a proper essendon footballer.
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Our second most important player behind Merrett. Love the way he runs defensively and doesn’t get sucked into the contest.
Should be in the leadership group next year.
Is the prototype for lead by example.
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My son had a 1:1 training session with him on Sunday and he was fantastic. We took so much away from it.
Hoping he can play 20 games next year as we’ll be in a much better place if he can.
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Your son is that good?
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As parents we’re all going to be biased.
He has exceptional hand eye coordination, has no problem finding the ball or goals. One of those kids who’s a gun at every sport he picks up.
Xavier said that his kicking is significantly above average for his age (only 12), he also has a tidy get out kick on his opposite. Said there’s nothing he’d change on his preferred foot as it’s cleaner than players in his team.
Has to work hard hard on opposite hand handpassing, do a million ground balls with intensity, mark when having the ball drilled at him at pace, and run his arse off and eat well for the next 6 years.
There’s no silver bullet and so much water to go under the bridge but he’s been one track minded in becoming an AFL player since birth.
Skill and fitness won’t stop him being in the realms of recruiters, his height (currently short taking after his mum but Xavier sai he was the same hieight at same age) and his impulse control issues with ADHD will be his biggest hurdles.
Really struggles at school because of it. Has a lot of the Heath Shaws about him, without the famous footy name.
No way he’s spelling Gatorade backwards.
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In case you’ve not heard of them, SEDA are a great option for some kids. They have an AFL program.
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12 year old kicks better than half the essendon list confirmed lol
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This blokes season was super underrated, he played that wing role so well this year and provided something there we haven’t had in a very long time.
His work rate to go pocket to pocket and lay a crunching game saving tackle or mark inside fifty and slot the goal was massive.
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Was my favourite player last year.
And I bloody loved Roberts and Caddy, but X was far and away my guy
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Was our most underrated player in 2024. When playing he provided so much. Our system broke down when he was missing.
Praying for a full 2025 season.
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He was great when playing, injuries are a little concerning.
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