Aker39
15 Jun 2007, 10:35
Johnson teaches Higgins new tricks (http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21907537-2722,00.html)
Article from today's Australian
THE outstanding career of Bulldogs' champion Brad Johnson has flourished in part as a result of his footy smarts.
So when last year's All Australian captain mentions in passing that he sees a little of himself in another player, it grabs your attention.
That player, team-mate Shaun Higgins, has already shown signs in just 16 games of being a prize pup among a litter of quality young Bulldogs.
Higgins, 19, also has great smarts, kicking 17.5 this season to trail only Johnson, with 31 goals, and dashing midfielder Adam Cooney, with 19, on the Dogs' goalkicking list.
It comes as no surprise to Johnson, who recently told The Australian that Higgins, whose career was almost derailed as a teenager by a mystery knee ailment, had the potential to become an outstanding player.
"Shaun is a fantastic talent who has really worked hard to establish himself and make himself a better player," Johnson said.
"Without doubt he will keep improving, because he has got a great head on his shoulders, and he is always looking for advice and support, and he is starting to show the benefits of that.
"He is quick off the mark and has that ability to get a couple of metres on his opponent."
The praise was news for Higgins, who steps out in Darwin tomorrow night against the Dockers in a pivotal match for both clubs, although he credits Johnson for helping steer his rapid development.
"He does not really say that to me, but it is just good having him for advice and being able to learn from someone like that," Higgins said.
"The way he plays, the way he trains, the way he adapts to things is outstanding."
That Higgins is playing at all is a credit to the expertise of former Geelong Football Club doctor Jeanne McGivern and current AFL medical officer Hugh Seward.
The forward's junior development when in the TAC Cup with the Geelong Falcons was severely hindered between the ages of 15 and 17 by a mystery ailment that caused his left knee to swell with blood, stopping him from training or playing for weeks at a time.
The Bulldog was born with abnormal blood vessels that ruptured when put under pressure.
"I wasn't playing much footy at that time because we could not find out what it was," Higgins said.
"It was just a condition caused by abnormal blood vessels in my knee and was something they had never seen before.
"I suppose there might be some people out there that have it, but they are not running as much as I was, or putting pressure on it."
Falcons' regional manager Michael Turner, a former star winger for the Cats, said the ailment saw Higgins sidelined at a time when most junior footballers were playing for their professional futures.
"His sixteenth year was an important year, because that's when they get selected to play for Victoria, the TAC Cup is there and there is the Australian tour of Ireland. But unfortunately that year he just did not get the opportunity," Turner said.
But Turner, a friend of the Bulldog's father, Mick Higgins, who played in three reserves premierships for Geelong in the early 1980s, was convinced Higgins would make it. And the goalsneak's career advanced when McGivern was able to identify, then rectify, the problem
Article from today's Australian
THE outstanding career of Bulldogs' champion Brad Johnson has flourished in part as a result of his footy smarts.
So when last year's All Australian captain mentions in passing that he sees a little of himself in another player, it grabs your attention.
That player, team-mate Shaun Higgins, has already shown signs in just 16 games of being a prize pup among a litter of quality young Bulldogs.
Higgins, 19, also has great smarts, kicking 17.5 this season to trail only Johnson, with 31 goals, and dashing midfielder Adam Cooney, with 19, on the Dogs' goalkicking list.
It comes as no surprise to Johnson, who recently told The Australian that Higgins, whose career was almost derailed as a teenager by a mystery knee ailment, had the potential to become an outstanding player.
"Shaun is a fantastic talent who has really worked hard to establish himself and make himself a better player," Johnson said.
"Without doubt he will keep improving, because he has got a great head on his shoulders, and he is always looking for advice and support, and he is starting to show the benefits of that.
"He is quick off the mark and has that ability to get a couple of metres on his opponent."
The praise was news for Higgins, who steps out in Darwin tomorrow night against the Dockers in a pivotal match for both clubs, although he credits Johnson for helping steer his rapid development.
"He does not really say that to me, but it is just good having him for advice and being able to learn from someone like that," Higgins said.
"The way he plays, the way he trains, the way he adapts to things is outstanding."
That Higgins is playing at all is a credit to the expertise of former Geelong Football Club doctor Jeanne McGivern and current AFL medical officer Hugh Seward.
The forward's junior development when in the TAC Cup with the Geelong Falcons was severely hindered between the ages of 15 and 17 by a mystery ailment that caused his left knee to swell with blood, stopping him from training or playing for weeks at a time.
The Bulldog was born with abnormal blood vessels that ruptured when put under pressure.
"I wasn't playing much footy at that time because we could not find out what it was," Higgins said.
"It was just a condition caused by abnormal blood vessels in my knee and was something they had never seen before.
"I suppose there might be some people out there that have it, but they are not running as much as I was, or putting pressure on it."
Falcons' regional manager Michael Turner, a former star winger for the Cats, said the ailment saw Higgins sidelined at a time when most junior footballers were playing for their professional futures.
"His sixteenth year was an important year, because that's when they get selected to play for Victoria, the TAC Cup is there and there is the Australian tour of Ireland. But unfortunately that year he just did not get the opportunity," Turner said.
But Turner, a friend of the Bulldog's father, Mick Higgins, who played in three reserves premierships for Geelong in the early 1980s, was convinced Higgins would make it. And the goalsneak's career advanced when McGivern was able to identify, then rectify, the problem