Strategy Bring back the drop kick

[TheGreatGrundy]

Only if Barry Price comes out of retirement

On seeing the thread title, I went looking for film of him but could find none. His drop kicks and stab passes were exciting to watch. He was an object of rare beauty on the field, particularly when he connected with McKenna. 'McKenna claimed that Price's kicks were so hard, even from as far as 60 metres away, that after marking them, he would have red marks on his chest for days' - from Price's wikipedia.

I watched the highlights of the 73 Prelim. Jeff Clifton and Doug Gott consistently drop kicked the ball out of defense and with great effect. Clifton in particular seemed to be able to consistently kick the ball long off just one step. I agree that the potential for a drop kick to break zone lines is huge...BUT when they don't come off they're worse than terrible. It's worth considering though - it's like a drag flick in hockey - if you can find someone who can consistently perform the skill under pressure you have a potential match winner

Clifton was a beautiful kick but an ordinary player.

 

[Gone Critical]

I seriously would like to see it back. It was an accurate kick that went 15 m further than a torp for a top practitioner. Get a hold of the 1967 grand final replay and watch the two full backs - Swift and West (who were good but not great drop kicks) regularly reach the centre circle with their kick ins. The record length was Paul Vinar with 108 yards (about 100 m) as I recall.
Consider what kicks of this magnitude would do to zoning.
With the added skill of today's players with their full time practice, they should be able to find quite a few who could reliably execute this admittedly more difficult kicking skill. The game would be better for it, and the team that dared to give it a try could well get a tactical advantage until the others caught up.
Just having the reliable ones licensed to do it would upset many of the defensive patterns that are so hard to break down, as an extra 15m of field had to be covered. We might even see players hold their forward positions a bit in anticipation of a very long kick.

Have to disagree as someone who grew up in footy when both these kicks were common. Torp was always the kick you went with when you wanted to maximise length. Drop kick and drop punt have little difference in distance but drop punt is more reliable, more accurate , easier to perform and takes that moment less to perform which is even more important in modern footy. The extra time taken to perform a drop kick gives an extra moment for opposition players to read the kick and cover it. That moment is important.

The drop kick is a relic that wont come back.

 

[Countrypie]

On seeing the thread title, I went looking for film of him but could find none. His drop kicks and stab passes were exciting to watch. He was an object of rare beauty on the field, particularly when he connected with McKenna. 'McKenna claimed that Price's kicks were so hard, even from as far as 60 metres away, that after marking them, he would have red marks on his chest for days' - from Price's wikipedia.
Clifton was a beautiful kick but an ordinary player.

One actually wonders whether McKenna would have ever kicked 100 goals without Barry Price. His career peaks mirrored Price's time in the pivot if I'm not mistaken

 

[Robroy22]

I agree that Bubba Price was a beautiful exponent of the drop kick. I remember many Collingwood / Richmond games in the 60's and 70's where Pricey, Douggy Gott, Clifton, Colin Tully, Twiggy Dunne, Billy Barrott, and Freddy Swift all kicked drop kicks.
As for today? Why not? People who claim they take too long to do....players running freely could use drop kicks, fullbacks kicking in could, goalkickers from 50-60+ out could also. Good kicks can do them anytime!
Certainly they'd beat those floaty drop punts that 30% of players use now (ones who can't kick!)

 

[Robroy22]

One actually wonders whether McKenna would have ever kicked 100 goals without Barry Price. His career peaks mirrored Price's time in the pivot if I'm not mistaken

Pricey probably "gave McKenna" 60% of his goals. His passing was spectacularly good. Of course McKenna still had to kick straight as well....but back then a Full Forward who couldn't kick straight never played!

 

[Gone Critical]

I agree that Bubba Price was a beautiful exponent of the drop kick. I remember many Collingwood / Richmond games in the 60's and 70's where Pricey, Douggy Gott, Clifton, Colin Tully, Twiggy Dunne, Billy Barrott, and Freddy Swift all kicked drop kicks.
As for today? Why not? People who claim they take too long to do....players running freely could use drop kicks, fullbacks kicking in could, goalkickers from 50-60+ out could also. Good kicks can do them anytime!
Certainly they'd beat those floaty drop punts that 30% of players use now (ones who can't kick!)

You are letting time mist your mind Rob. Kicking today is miles ahead of what we saw in the 60s and 70s. Colin Tully was a beautiful kick as an aside.

Still best drop kick I ever saw at Vic Park was by big Jerka Jenkin. Got his revenge on Jezza that day. Do you recall that one. Also gives you an idea why the drop kick has gone with the dinosaurs.

 

[TheGreatGrundy]

You are letting time mist your mind Rob. Kicking today is miles ahead of what we saw in the 60s and 70s. Colin Tully was a beautiful kick as an aside.

Still best drop kick I ever saw at Vic Park was by big Jerka Jenkin. Got his revenge on Jezza that day. Do you recall that one. Also gives you an idea why the drop kick has gone with the dinosaurs.

Jenkins is one player who was just as likely to miss-kick a drop kick as hit it sweetly. He probably should not have been allowed to use the kick given his inconsistency.

 

[Gone Critical]

Jenkins is one player who was just as likely to miss-kick a drop kick as hit it sweetly. He probably should not have been allowed to use the kick given his inconsistency.

Jezza may have used Jerka as his ride in 1970 but about 71 or 72 at Vic Park Jezza executed a near perfect star jump when on the mark as Jenkins kicked. The drop kick completely miscued and went like a laser into Jezza's nads. Dropped him like a stone

Very poetic.

 

[Gone Critical]

Jenkins is one player who was just as likely to miss-kick a drop kick as hit it sweetly. He probably should not have been allowed to use the kick given his inconsistency.

I just put this in because your posting total is so close to mine. Your breathing down my neck, getting uncomfortable so I thought I would do something meaningless to get clear air.

 

[TheGreatGrundy]

I just put this in because your posting total is so close to mine. Your breathing down my neck, getting uncomfortable so I thought I would do something meaningless to get clear air.

I was thinking of playing the word association game to quickly raise my post total.

EDIT: We are very close. I actually have a couple of thousand posts from my Manic Magpie interlude which are not included in my total. Wish I could bring them on board.

 

[DWil6]

my Manic Magpie interlude

I recall that song. The Bangles right?

 

[jmac70]

The game is too fast now to execute drop kicks. Still think torpedos have a place though, would like to see The Sack launch a few from full back.

 

[Robroy22]

You are letting time mist your mind Rob. Kicking today is miles ahead of what we saw in the 60s and 70s. Colin Tully was a beautiful kick as an aside.

Still best drop kick I ever saw at Vic Park was by big Jerka Jenkin. Got his revenge on Jezza that day. Do you recall that one. Also gives you an idea why the drop kick has gone with the dinosaurs.

Jerka's drop/torp wormburner that hit Jezza in the groin? Yeah I remember!
Thommo was a nice drop kick too.
Remember Tully kicking to the wings from full back? Such a huge kick for such a small bloke.

 

[TheGreatGrundy]

Jerka's drop/torp wormburner that hit Jezza in the groin? Yeah I remember!
Thommo was a nice drop kick too.
Remember Tully kicking to the wings from full back? Such a huge kick for such a small bloke.

Yeah Thommo was a great drop kicker. So as you said earlier was Richmond's Billy Barrot. Alas it's an era that can never return but I used to love the drop kick and stab pass. Poetry in motion.

 

[cleomenes]

There would be a place for the drop in the modern game with set shots of various kinds, but restricted to those guys that could actually reliably execute it. A top drop kick was a good 10m better than a top torp kick in the days when both were common. The drop kick on the run was a deadly weopon for the players who could do it, but the problem was always that too many unreliable practitioners (like Jenkin mentioned here) tried to use it. For those players, a drop punt would have been so much better. A Buckley or a Didak would have been totally different propositions.

 

[Markfs]

i used to drop kick most of the time .... we used to have kick to kick on the road out the front....... i used to need a new ball every few months....

i have a feeling that the grass in the new stadiums is similarly too abrasive.... we'd need a new ball every quarter..... jacks up the admission prices..... families cant afford to go anymore....destroys the game...

 

[Mukesh]

The game is too fast now to execute drop kicks. Still think torpedos have a place though, would like to see The Sack launch a few from full back.

I wonder if the modern practice of using multiple balls per game has something to do with it, you basically play the entire game with a new ball. It also seems in the 'good old days' the balls were a bit larger and rounder and hence bounced more predictably. Or maybe that's an optical illusion and players are getting bigger.... Anyway I can't see the droppie making a come back anytime soon..

 

[Robroy22]

I also reckon you'd need to look at the "slippers" they run around in now too. Droppies always needed a taught instep and a solid leg. The boots back then were a lot more stable than todays runners.

 

[Obese Arachnid]

Have to disagree as someone who grew up in footy when both these kicks were common. Torp was always the kick you went with when you wanted to maximise length. Drop kick and drop punt have little difference in distance but drop punt is more reliable, more accurate , easier to perform and takes that moment less to perform which is even more important in modern footy. The extra time taken to perform a drop kick gives an extra moment for opposition players to read the kick and cover it. That moment is important.

The drop kick is a relic that wont come back.

Agree with everything except the torp had a longer range than the drop kick.

I know I certainly could kick much further with a drop kick than a torp & I think many would agree.
The problem of course is execution a miscued drop kick is horrendous, worse than a miscued torp just about.

Bring back the place kick, see if someone can beat the Saints Dave McNamara!

 

[surfer1]

On seeing the thread title, I went looking for film of him but could find none. His drop kicks and stab passes were exciting to watch. He was an object of rare beauty on the field, particularly when he connected with McKenna. 'McKenna claimed that Price's kicks were so hard, even from as far as 60 metres away, that after marking them, he would have red marks on his chest for days' - from Price's wikipedia.
Clifton was a beautiful kick but an ordinary player.

I was lucky enough to grow up with him and have kick to kick in back lane as a teenager

 

[surfer1]

The game is too fast now to execute drop kicks. Still think torpedos have a place though, would like to see The Sack launch a few from full back.

Sadly yes a lace out drop kick was a thing of beauty

 

[Vicky Park]

I know a few drop kicks.

 

[Obese Arachnid]

I know a few drop kicks.

Reporting for duty!

 

[TheGreatGrundy]

I was lucky enough to grow up with him and have kick to kick in back lane as a teenager

I bet everyone of his kicks landed on your chest whereas every second kick of yours had to be fished out of someone's back yard. Or am I doing you an injustice? (I envy you!)

 

[surfer1]

I bet everyone of his kicks landed on your chest whereas every second kick of yours had to be fished out of someone's back yard. Or am I doing you an injustice? (I envy you!)

Yep or hit the electrical lines☺☺