Player Watch #26 Luke Parker

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Luke Parker
Luke Parker has plenty of football ahead and has already compiled a resume packed with impressive achievements. Since landing at the Sydney Swans via the 2010 AFL Draft, he has won a 2012 premiership medal, earned All Australian selection and won two Bob Skilton medals. In 2015, he was added to the club’s leadership group at the age of just 22, and has led the team as a co-captain alongside Josh Kennedy and Dane Rampe since 2019. While Parker is among the league’s elite midfielders, his strong marking and expert game awareness make him a genuine threat when rotating through the forward line.

Luke Parker
DOB: 25 October 1992
DEBUT: 2011
DRAFT: #40, 2010 National Draft
RECRUITED FROM: Langwarrin (Vic)/Dandenong U18

www.sydneyswans.com.au

Luke Parker | AFL

Follow Luke Parker's progress through AFL
www.sydneyswans.com.au www.sydneyswans.com.au
 
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BloodySwan said:
Dumb decision from Parker. Pretty much rubbed himself out for the season. Currently hard to get back into the seniors, even harder when you'll be out for about a month
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Come on... he's not going to miss the rest of the season! :D It'll definitely be a couple of weeks as much as I disagree with the current trend of suspensions; it's a contact sport afterall.
 
BloodySwan said:
Dumb decision from Parker. Pretty much rubbed himself out for the season. Currently hard to get back into the seniors, even harder when you'll be out for about a month
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I still dont get what part of Parker body did the damage he didnt leap or leave the ground.

To put yourself in that position as someone so experienced as him is incredibly disappointing hope for a quick recovery facial injuries are horrific.
 
If Parker's suspended that's a blow for sure, but based on last night's midfield showing, he wouldn't have gotten a game anytime soon.

Our midfield's built on a combination of skill and dynamism that Parker just doesn't have (not a criticism, he'd probably be the first to say he's not the fastest or cleanest.) Heeney, Rowbottom, Warner and Gulden* can all get out the front of stoppages, evade tackles, get a bit of separation on their opponents. They're buying themselves more time and space to win cleaner, more effective clearances - feeding it out by hand, or, if they have to bomb it, they're clearing the 50m arc with ease for a deeper entry because of that separation.

Parker's style has always been get-it-forward-at-all-costs, mainly because it had to be. His weapons of strength and competitiveness and sheer will, rather than speed, agility or class, were weapons of necessity, not choice.

So while I don't subscribe to the talk that this means he has to be ROK'd (I still think he'd be fine as a half forward and having Luke Parker as midfield depth is still a luxury), I do believe our midfield has outgrown Parker.

*Adams continues to be drip-fed inside time atm, and while he's not like the quartet mentioned above, he has enough power in his movement that if you chucked him into our 2012-16 midfield, he'd be our most dynamic mid in there.
 
Heeney2Franklin said:
I still dont get what part of Parker body did the damage he didnt leap or leave the ground.

To put yourself in that position as someone so experienced as him is incredibly disappointing hope for a quick recovery facial injuries are horrific.
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Looks like Parker caught him off guard with a shoulder to shoulder bump causing his face to whip down onto the top of Parkers head.
 

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Parker is clearly frustrated with his lot which is understandable but I think it’s pretty crude for him to be taking his frustration out on some bloke who is probably a part time VFL player. I know Parker can’t be aware of that guy’s particular circumstances but he’s almost certainly not a millionaire who gets paid whilst injured. Pretty poor frankly to put himself in that situation imo for a few reasons.
 
S120 said:
Parker is clearly frustrated with his lot which is understandable but I think it’s pretty crude for him to be taking his frustration out on some bloke who is probably a part time VFL player. I know Parker can’t be aware of that guy’s particular circumstances but he’s almost certainly not a millionaire who gets paid whilst injured. Pretty poor frankly to put himself in that situation imo for a few reasons.
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You're making a few assumptions here...
 
S120 said:
Parker is clearly frustrated with his lot which is understandable but I think it’s pretty crude for him to be taking his frustration out on some bloke who is probably a part time VFL player. I know Parker can’t be aware of that guy’s particular circumstances but he’s almost certainly not a millionaire who gets paid whilst injured. Pretty poor frankly to put himself in that situation imo for a few reasons.
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I didn't see it that way to be honest just thought a bit of aggression at a contest , not an I am an angry old man I will belt someone
 
S120 said:
True, but I don’t think they’re unreasonable assumptions.
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From what I could see on the footage, Parker did nothing different to what he has done multiple times in the seniors, unfortunately it just ended badly. He didn't appear to jump at him, didn't look like he left the ground, more a block than an actual bump.
Yes he'll cop a deserved suspension, but I don't believe it was done with any malicious intent or that he lashed out in anger.
 
Jewelsbon said:
From what I could see on the footage, Parker did nothing different to what he has done multiple times in the seniors, unfortunately it just ended badly. He didn't appear to jump at him, didn't look like he left the ground, more a block than an actual bump.
Yes he'll cop a deserved suspension, but I don't believe it was done with any malicious intent or that he lashed out in anger.
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My argument is more that there was absolutely no reason for him to bother with that type of action in the VFL (whether he hit him in the head or not) amongst a bunch of part timers and one day hopeful players and my suspicion is that his decision to do so was at least partially influenced by his frustration at not being in seniors. The ball was long gone and from what I can see he deliberately goes off his line to go at that Frankston player.

I can’t know his intentions but there seemed to me to be an unreasonable level of indifference or lack of care for the opponent’s wellbeing which to me, on a personal level and not a judicial level, should be heightened given he’s on an enormous salary and his opponents are playing for peanuts. You break a guy’s jaw and who knows what that does for him and his family. I genuinely think that’s something to take into account for how professionals should behave at lower levels when it comes to actions taken that will be so far off the play that they can’t possibly be deemed worth their time or necessary.
 
In the "day", we may have applauded him for his selfless effort to shepherd (which this clearly is) but it's fairly clear that the tribunal makes no distinction between reasons for bumping, only about the outcome. If he only gets 2 weeks it will be a major result. I fear 4+ could be on the cards.
 
To my eye it looked very deliberate and as clear a thug act as you'll see. He takes his eyes off the ball, lines a bloke up, and makes high contact that leaves a guy needing facial surgery.

The flipside is the lingering doubt that Luke Parker just wouldn't do that. If Parker was frustrated, and we've seen him play frustrated footy before, then I feel it would show in something like a couple of overzealous tackles he'd be pinned high for, or maybe even suspended for. Taking someone out off the ball is less a frustrated action and more just... dumb and immature. An experienced leader who knows his circumstances as just about the next-man-in (keeping in mind he didn't know at the time that we were taking care of Carlton rather comfortably), is surely going to be better than dumb and immature.

So I'm prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt as to his intent, but geez it looks horrible and he will deserve whatever he cops unfortunately.
 
Maybe Parker is such a team player that he deliberately sabotaged himself to remove any speculation at the selection table for the next few weeks!

Jokes aside it was a thug act and something we absolutely eviscerated Peter Ladhams for not long ago. Granted, Parker has a million more credits in the bank but just thought it was worth noting for the sake of fairness.
 
Does it overly matter what he intended or thought? not sure his motivation will matter.

On a semi related note he has turned up and busted a nut in each VFL game, can't ask for more than that. Bits I have watched he is out there guiding the guys , getting amongst it, it matters . Great leadership
 
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