Best small forward of all time?

[footyfan1978]

Incredible.
The best small forward ever not even in the poll.
Too stupid to be serious.
Won't bother voting as too silly to take serious,
Just leave my thoughts on best small forwards here.

I hated Kevin Bartlett with a passion when I was a little kid but he is by far the best small forward I seen.
He was obviously a rover when he was younger but all the seasons I seen him he was a champion match winning forward in his twilight and later years.

Leigh Matthews was there too but from what I can tell he spent more of his career as a rover but the last four or five I saw, were as a small forward he was a dynamo like Bartlett. Better mark than KB but KB the best goal sneak ever!

Daicos probably the next best but not quite in their league.

The best of recent decades are Milne, Eddie Betts and now Cyril Rioli.
Rioli will probably pass Daicos as the third best by end of his career.

 

[footyfan1978]

Daicos by a fair margin. Having said that not sure he was that small

He was seen more as a rangy half forward flanker in his early years. Played a bit of midfield but more forward than midfielder. He was not quite as effective as a pure mid as he was a forward. Still remember seeing his 13 goals v Brisbane Bears when he played very close to goals. Kicked them from everywhere. Could make the ball talk like few players seen. Eddie has those bag of tricks too.

 

[The Blue Baggers]

Matthews 332 games, 915 goals
Bartlett 403 games, 778 goals
Matthews numbers are unbelievable if he is considered a midfielder.

KB played the majority of his career as a rover , the last 4-5 were as a permanent forward

Matthews is a strange one in that he was small but played tall !!

Daicos was more a HF , he should be compared with Johnston , Buckenara , Bright , McMahon Bosustow

I'd chose KB in the FP !!

 

[Trav 20]

I rail against Daicos even being in this poll.

One of the best centremen I've ever seen.

I'll always remember Daicos first as a mid and secondly as a sublime half-forward. None of this "small forward" rubbish.

 

[windyhill]

Has anybody mentioned Cyril yet?

Bruce is still in Rio.

 

[JD Tomahawk]

Farmer was amazing to watch. He got a little beefy after leaving Melbourne but was still not bad

 

[Sprout]

Farmer was amazing to watch. He got a little beefy after leaving Melbourne but was still not bad

Favourite player. When he was on he was unstoppable.

 

[Schraderbrau]

I rail against Daicos even being in this poll.

One of the best centremen I've ever seen.

I'll always remember Daicos first as a mid and secondly as a sublime half-forward. None of this "small forward" rubbish.

i really hope that the reason why people aren't voting for him is because they don't see him as a small forward, because as a player he was a class above everyone in this poll.

 

[Schraderbrau]

Here's his highlights clip - right foot goals, left foot goals, bananas,snaps, torpedoes from outside 50, soccer goals. Anyone who watches that and says with a straight face that Milne (or Bewick lol) is better is mad imo.

 

[windyhill]

Saw plenty of Daics, no one would doubt how good he was, no way could he be considered small.

 

[pazza]

Lethal in one pocket and KB in the other.

Good luck to the back pockets.

 

[robertg22]

If all games were in the regular season against a crap side under the roof at Etihad then Milne.

But they're not, so Daicos. And yes he played a lot up the ground in the middle of his career and he was a bit taller than some of these guys but he was genuinely a small forward/crumber. In 1990/91/92 in the forward pocket he kicked 224 goals in 63 games from a forward pocket. Averaged 2.2 goals per game across his career (Milne 2.09, and just 1.68 away from Etihad) despite spending half of his career up the ground. In a different league.

Bartlett and Matthews slightly before my time.

 

[windyhill]

184cms is six foot, that 'ain't small.

 

[Marc_Remillard]

In 2000 Farmer was at his absolute best, the highlight was kicking 9 in just over a half against the pies after they did a good job in stopping him in the early part of the game. At his best he was amazing, think Cyril like but with more flair. He had the complete game, he was unstoppable in the air as well as on the ground. To this day he's still my favourite Melbourne player (not including Flower of course).

But, the problem with Farmer is that his career (and private life) took a nose dive when he joined Freo. Age wise he should have been at his peak in the West but he only kicked more than 40 goals in a season once for them, and then there were all the issues in his private life, very sad.

I remember once hearing him say when he was at Melbourne that Gary Lyon used to keep him in check, not sure what took place in the west but he wasn't the same player when he changed clubs.

Farmer probably had the best individual season but not the best career

 

[iameviljez]

Funny how a few years ago Betts was viewed as a tool with shorts that were too big, no he is being referred to as one of the all time greats..

A bit of an overstatement on both fronts - never seen as a tool (though his workrate wasn't up to standard), and now he's an AA certainty, but not being seen as an all-time great.

Beside anything else, though, he's now kicking over 60 sausages per year, which he wasn't doing at Carlton. He's also doing it in a forward line where he's competing against Walker, Jenkins, Lynch and Cameron for the footy.

 

[iameviljez]

Farmer probably had the best individual season but not the best career

Nearly 100 goals to Daicos in a season says otherwise

 

[iameviljez]

Lethal in one pocket and KB in the other.

Good luck to the back pockets.

Matthews might just about be the only bloke able to make KB give a handball

 

[Melksham2Siposs]

Young Milney came out of nowhere. Could finally enjoy watching a game.

 

[Marc_Remillard]

Nearly 100 goals to Daicos in a season says otherwise

Sweet, I missed that. I'd give it to him anyway from a consistency point of view. What year did he do that?

 

[robertg22]

Sweet, I missed that. I'd give it to him anyway from a consistency point of view. What year did he do that?

1990 - 25 games, 97.46
1991 - 19 games, 75.28

172 goals in two years small forward for two years is pretty ridiculous.

 

[pazza]

Matthews might just about be the only bloke able to make KB give a handball

Or one of the best shepherds ever!

 

[iluvparis]

Young Milney came out of nowhere.

That's what she said.





Sorry - too easy

 

[iameviljez]

That's what she said.





Sorry - too easy

Have to admit, that made me squirm a little. Not ha ha squirm either.

 

[Austin_McCrabbs]

Cameron Hitchcock

 

[Marc_Remillard]

1990 - 25 games, 97.46
1991 - 19 games, 75.28

172 goals in two years small forward for two years is pretty ridiculous.

It's absolutely awesome