Retired #18: Michael Hurley šŸ» - Staying on in a coaching and player welfare role! - 3/10

18 - Hurley.jpg

Contract Status: Retired
Last Game Played: Currently in the side
Injury Status: Comes back from injury to play his final game for the club this weekend - 18/8
2022
He's back! Playing a half in the VFL this weekend - 15/7
Joins main training in the next couple of weeks! - 15/6

Had a calf setback, now running again - 28/4

Wants to play a half in the VFL in the next couple of weeks - 30/3

Joined main training? - 3/3
Ahead of schedule, doing some big running loads - 16/2
Progressing well, R1 'too soon' to return, no time frame - 11/1
On track for playing return around Round 6 - 12/3

2021
Ahead of schedule, running soon - 15/12
Hip replacement surgery - 10/10
Placed on the inactive list, will not play in 2021 - 31/5
Hopes to play the last 6 weeks of the season if not sooner - 26/4
At the club daily doing 1-2 hours of exercise for recovery - 23/3
On the mend - 19/3
Apparently using the hot/cold pools at the club, progress? - 5/3
Limping on crutches with an IV at the preseason game - 25/2
Discharged, recuperating at home... again. No time frame on return - 17/2
Apparently back in hospital - 15/2
Discharged from hospital, recuperating at home. No timeframe - 9/2
In hospital with an infected leg - 4/2

My Boy Draft 2022: Claim here
 
Last edited:

Merv

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Re: Michael Hurley

Hurley becomes a Bomber
spacer.gif
Saturday, 29 November 2008

Essendon has topped up its key position stocks by selecting Michael Hurley with its first selection at the 2008 NAB AFL Draft. A two-time All Australian under 18 representative, Hurley has played his under-18 football with the Northern Knights. At 192cm and 90kg has the size to develop into a key position defender.
Hurley is an excellent kick on both feet and very good in contested situations. In time he is expected to develop into the ideal replacement for Dustin Fletcher who has said he expects 2009 will be his final season.
"Michael fits perfectly with our succession planning. He has been All Australian at junior level the past two years. We think he could play senior football next season. He has played back, and that is primarily why we selected him, but we also think he could play forward," senior recruiting coordinator Merv Keane said.
"He is a quiet, unassuming young man but when he crosses the white line it is serious business. He would rank as an elite kick on both sides. He is a big boy but there is still development in his body."
hurley-l.jpg

http://www.essendonfc.com.au/news/news.asp?t=o&nid=6190
 

Merv

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Re: Michael Hurley

Young defender Michael Hurley is raring to go

Amelia Harris | November 29, 2008 12:00am

  • TALENT is one thing every youngster in today's AFL draft has in abundance, but Michael Hurley has one other special quality.
"He's a big-occasion player," Northern Knights region manager Peter Kennedy said.
"The bigger the occasion, the better he performs."
That elusive commodity, plus excellent kicking skills and an ability to read the play, have 18-year-old Hurley pencilled in as a top-10 pick today.
The fact he is the highest-rated key defender in recent drafts doesn't hurt, either.
He appears a perfect fit for Essendon (pick five) or Carlton (six), and has already shown he has the desire to succeed.
Hurley injured his left ankle in Round 17 of the TAC Cup. He missed Round 18 and was expected to miss the next week, the final round of the home-and-away season.
Kennedy told the teenager: "You've got nothing to gain playing. You can take the week off."
But missing the match was not an option for Hurley, who lives in Rosanna and recently finished Year 12 at Viewbank College.


"I wanted to play the last round with my mates," he said this week. "It (the ankle) probably wasn't 100 per cent, but you spend two years with these guys . . . you kind of want to finish off with them."
Only three weeks before the ankle injury Hurley copped a whack to the head against the Calder Cannons.
He left the ground and was taken to hospital. The next Tuesday he was back at training.
"We had to hold him back," Kennedy said. "A lot of young boys these days wrap themselves up in cotton wool. He just wants to play."
Hurley, one of Vic Metro's three co-captains, was named the team's most valuable player during the national championships and is a dual All-Australian at under-18 level.
He finished second in the Knights' best-and-fairest, even though he played only 11 games because of state commitments.
Despite the wraps on him, the 192.5cm teen isn't feeling any pressure. Nor does the St Kilda fan have any idea where he might be going.

"They've seen me play footy," Hurley said.
"I've done as much as I can. I don't really worry too much."
But Hurley has no shortage of people to ask for advice.
He played with Matthew Kreuzer, Trent Cotchin, Patrick Veszpremi and Brett Meredith at the Knights last year. He speaks regularly to Sydney pair Veszpremi and Meredith.
"They give you insights to the training and the lifestyle of footy players," he said.
For someone who isn't in the AFL system, Hurley knows the reality.
"It seems to be a pretty hard world out there, footy," he said.
"Not many people last that long. I think that just adds to the motivation."
Hurley's goal is simply to "get the best out of myself".
"I don't know what that is or how far I can go with my footy," he said. "We'll just have to wait and see."

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/sport/afl/story/0,26576,24722141-19742,00.html
 

Charliebrow 16

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Oct 3, 2006
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Re: Michael Hurley

Welcome to the Essendon Football Club Michael.
Has the great ability to read the play which should make up for his "average" 20m sprint test.
 

BomberAcewish

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Nov 29, 2008
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Re: Michael Hurley

Well Hurley is a very good pick up imo.
Now that the succession draft plan looks to be over for the talls i think they will go for the MIds next year. All the Rich fans theres always next year =P
Just be patient with our young mids atm.
 

Here_we_come

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Nov 12, 2007
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Re: Michael Hurley

I will admit i was disappointed we passed on Rich, but I'm now more than happy Hurley is a bomber.

My knowledge is quite limited, but just from that video footage it looks to me like he has four excellent qualities:

1. Outstanding reader of the play
2. Great Skills
3. Great decision making
4. Great defensive abilities

Good luck to him, I hope he makes it!
 

bomba4eva

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Re: Michael Hurley

Shaping as a formidable spine. The draft ran deep for mids, we got a good one with our second pick, You'd probably say Hurley looks a good decision at this stage.
I LOL'd. And what exactly is the evidence behind that premature comment?

Once he shows that he is a more then capable player at AFL level will comments like the one above be valid.

Anyway I have high hopes for Hurley and hope that he and Pears form a tight bond in defence for the next decade with Ryder coming back to help when needed. Recruiting Hurley may help us unlock all the talents of Ryder. THAT is what I am most excited about.
 
Oct 22, 2008
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Re: Michael Hurley

I LOL'd. And what exactly is the evidence behind that premature comment?

Once he shows that he is a more then capable player at AFL level will comments like the one above be valid.

Anyway I have high hopes for Hurley and hope that he and Pears form a tight bond in defence for the next decade with Ryder coming back to help when needed. Recruiting Hurley may help us unlock all the talents of Ryder. THAT is what I am most excited about.

I think you just answered your own question, in part. You'll notice i said "at this stage".

The main point i was driving at, was based on the opinion that at the draft Essendon at the least needed a quality midfielder and a quality defender. In drafting Hurley and Zaharakis i believe we can be optimistic we have achieved that, possibly more so than a Rich/Post combination, or something of the like.
 

bomba4eva

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Re: Michael Hurley

Because he's a tall which was our biggest need.
Some would argue that our midfield was our biggest need.
I think you just answered your own question, in part. You'll notice i said "at this stage".

The main point i was driving at, was based on the opinion that at the draft Essendon at the least needed a quality midfielder and a quality defender. In drafting Hurley and Zaharakis i believe we can be optimistic we have achieved that, possibly more so than a Rich/Post combination, or something of the like.
There are various combinations that we could have gone with especially if we had gone for a midfielder first. There has been nothing out of the ordinary to suggest yet that it was a good decision to take Hurley. Going by your logic we can say that at this stage it was a good decision to draft Still as we only have two young key forwards. Anyway it is all becoming rather pedantic and we can only hope that our investment pays off.
 

bomba4eva

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Re: Michael Hurley

Some that don't know our list very well. ;)
Perhaps they thought it more prudent to take a top midfielder as it could be our last high pick for numerous years. And I believe we would have taken a KPB at 23 if we'd gone a mid at 5 so your argument doesn't hold up that these people 'don't know our list very well' as we all knew we'd take a Key defender in our first 2 picks;)
 

loopy_cam

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Re: Michael Hurley

Perhaps they thought it more prudent to take a top midfielder as it could be our last high pick for numerous years. And I believe we would have taken a KPB at 23 if we'd gone a mid at 5 so your argument doesn't hold up that these people 'don't know our list very well' as we all knew we'd take a Key defender in our first 2 picks;)

I didn't say that we should've taken a key defender at five.

All I said was that our midfield is underrated and is, or atleast was, clearly better off than our defence.

;)
 

bomba4eva

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Re: Michael Hurley

I didn't say that we should've taken a key defender at five.

All I said was that our midfield is underrated and is, or atleast was, clearly better off than our defence.

;)
And who's to say that our developing defence is underrated and that Pears and Hooker will become more then capable players;)
 
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