Dukes of depth - Saturday 1 April 2000
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Over the first six hours of football for premiership points, those Magpies
have found the big sticks like heat seeking missiles. The most pleasing
aspect for coach Malthouse is the way the forwards and midfielders are
sharing the goals.
A group effort at scoring majors was custom made for Chad Liddell. He could make things happen himself and make things happen for team-mates. With their first pick at 30 in the 1994 draft, Collingwood secured the lively forward from Southern Under 18. They gave him the number 33 released by Kym Russell, the shadow brother of Scott. Before Russell the jumper had been worn proudly by David Cloke. Liddell looked as though he had a touch of the Maradonas. He was a solid player built low to the ground. He indicated he wasn't easily going to be bumped off the ball. If he had the hands of God then there was something to be excited about. The Chad man received the fast track treatment. He played his first senior game in 1995. He got involved and showed he was a strong mark for his size. However his pace and endurance needed some polish to turn him into a demolition derby player, a fella who could do big damage to opposition defences. During the 1995 Round 11 Friday night game against St Kilda, Liddell kicked two goals and gave three away. His second sausage roll was a work of art, running parallel to goal towards the boundary line and snapping the Sherrin over his right shoulder a la Richard Osborne. The Magpies booted an elephant score 25.11 to St Kilda 13.9. Liddell revealed that reputations meant little. At the 10 minute mark of the second quarter in the Round 14 Friday night game against the Roos, he put an inspiring tackle on Wayne Carey that resulted in a turnover the Pies were unable to capitalise on . The Kangas won a bruising and physical encounter by 52 points. Chad Liddell had some problems in 1996. A few injuries and a drop in confidence and opportunity saw him playing Reserves footy. Yet he had a blinder in the Ones against Brisbane the last round of the year. His desperation and tackling also his keeping the ball in his area helped set up Collingwood goals. This promised a lot for the following season. But he struggled because of the focus on super quick footballers. In 1997 coach Tony Shaw forever thinking laterally tried CL on the half back line where he could use to best effect his evasive skills rather than pace. Still Liddell struggled to cement a place in the senior side. He worked on his consistency at Two level through the 1998 season. As a result of a chain of eye catching performances he got selected for the last game of 1998 versus the Swans at the SCG. Chaddy was at his best. 15 minutes ino the first stanza, he put on a goal saving tackle. 5 minutes later he bobbed up with a strong mark under pressure and booted a set shot goal. The afternoon was remembered as the end of an era. Magpie players chaired off Richard Osborne and Graham Wright. By contrast Paul Roos and Mark Bayes did a lap of honour in a convertible. There was no chairing or celebratory circuit for Chad Liddell. It was to be his last game of football wearing the black and white vertical stripes. 25 games in four seasons despite two top performances in the last home and away of '96 and '98. A harsh reality of football was his delisting because a school of thought considered him a bit slow and lacking endurance. The Lid man crossed to VFL club Frankston. There he showed class and style through a season instead of starring in the final round of the year. |
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