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Pie floater Fraser thrust forward
25 March 2007 Sunday Herald Sun
Jon Ralph
JOSH Fraser has always been a little bit out of vogue. When he was a precocious 18-year-old talent, impatient fans wanted him to be a centre-square goliath like Jeff White or Luke Darcy.
Sandilands the future of rucking
Ready to step up: Collingwood's Josh Fraser is set for a forward role this year. Picture: Rob Leeson
As one of the rare Collingwood players who excelled in both the club's Grand Final losses this century, they still wished he was Clark Keating.
If coach Mick Malthouse pushed him forward, the supporters wondered why he wasn't Matthew Richardson or Brendan Fevola.
Last year Fraser wasn't any of those players and yet the Magpie fans still loved him.
Finally they came to realise that a 202cm running ruckman who can play the link man, centre-square provider, extra midfielder or potent attacking weapon might not be a bad thing after all.
It was arguably Fraser's best season: equal fourth in the best-and-fairest, an average of 17 touches and 15 hit-outs, and 16 goals pushing forward.
Where being pigeon-holed as a "different" type of ruckman once cut Fraser to the bone, the 25-year-old has come to realise that trying to be all things to all people will slowly drive you mad.
"I think, to be honest, it goes back to my early years when I wasn't overly strong enough to compete against the bigger guys," Fraser says on the eve of the 2007 season.
"I have carried the stigma right through. But to be honest I am not worried about it any more. Not everyone will like the way you play footy, but I am doing the best for my side.
"It was definitely a relief to be able to play a full season after having some interruptions the year before and personally my game took huge steps forward."
Fraser knows maintaining that level won't be enough this year.
Now comes the challenge of being a star in a team that has only two young ruck understudies, a forward line without Chris Tarrant and Sean Rusling and, at least for the early rounds, a hamstrung Nathan Buckley.
But where Fraser might once have screamed black and blue that he was a ruckman and nothing else, he has accepted that he will play where the team needs him.
While Malthouse might want it to be 70 per cent forward – Fraser would prefer 40 per cent – the former No.1 draft pick says he is happy to accept the challenge.
"I am looking forward to adding a new dimension to my game, which is spending a bit more time up forward," he says.
"I probably haven't been able to develop my game in that area because I have been spending more time in the ruck, but it will just give us another dimension as a side, particularly with Anthony (Rocca) playing well and Travis (Cloke), who has had a really impressive pre-season. We think he is going to have a really solid year, so all of a sudden we start to get some taller options."
Fraser is too laid-back to rail at the critics, but he does roll his eyes at the prophets of doom predicting a plunge down the ladder for the Pies.
"It's funny. A lot of people criticised the year Taz had last season and said he didn't have a great year, and now that he's gone we are somehow going to fall out of the eight because he's not there," Fraser says.
"Whenever we play big finals or win big games, people say we have over-achieved."
Just when Fraser finally clicked last year is a subject of some conjecture.
The club's Round 7 clash with the Eagles was declared a turning point, but Fraser is not so sure.
In that game Malthouse spurned a back-up ruckman, Fraser responded with 28 possessions and two goals, and his coach declared himself vindicated.
"The responsibility for Fraser today was exactly what we wanted. He needed to get out of his slumber," Malthouse said post-match.
Fraser is still uncertain just how critical that Subiaco night against Dean Cox and Mark Seaby was to his season.
"I was a little bit bewildered by some of the comments that it had been a turning point," he says.
"The West Coast game stands out as one of my better games for the year, but I certainly didn't think I was in a form slump or anything like that.
"It took me a little by surprise, but I think I am probably a player that gets judged pretty harshly – and I have pretty high expectations of myself – so I just took that in my stride and tried to use the West Coast game as a launching pad."
Fraser can't quite escape the Eagles. Last week he was linked to Chad Fletcher's Las Vegas flatlining episode amid talk the Pies had investigated their players' involvement.
The story is this: he, Nick Maxwell and Buckley ran into the Eagles players while in Vegas, shared a beer and a yarn, then moved on well before Fletcher's follies.
Later, when Fletcher's problems came to light, Collingwood officials simply asked whether they were involved in any way. They weren't.
Fraser's manager Dan Richardson, of ESP, says fans will be rewarded for their patience if they keep their faith in him.
"Any No.1 draft pick will carry some weight of expectation, which is understandable," Richardson says.
"I think what happened is his first season was pretty good and the expectations were even higher after that, and then he had a few injuries which made life pretty tough, but it was just great to see him have a really solid year."
Minor knee surgery early in the year had some fans concerned, but Fraser says he will be fine despite the lack of match conditioning.
"I just had some cartilage cleaned up in the knee in early January. I was off it for three weeks, but looking back it's been a good thing," he says.
"It just freshened my legs up and hopefully I can hit the ground running for Round 1. I may be a touch underdone, but I will be fine."
When he does return there could be some kind of tug of war for his services.
While he will undoubtedly be needed forward, midfield assistant coach Adrian Fletcher says many underrate what he can do around the ground.
"He can win the ball in the contest, but then almost play like a ruck rover when it falls to ground," he says.
"His ability to follow up and get the ball out of contested areas means it's like playing with an extra midfielder."
Some question the quality of Fraser's hit-outs, but he has other strengths.
Last year he was ranked No.1 among AFL ruckman in disposals, contested possessions and inside 50s, and led the Magpies in marks, hardball gets and frees for
25 March 2007 Sunday Herald Sun
Jon Ralph
JOSH Fraser has always been a little bit out of vogue. When he was a precocious 18-year-old talent, impatient fans wanted him to be a centre-square goliath like Jeff White or Luke Darcy.
As one of the rare Collingwood players who excelled in both the club's Grand Final losses this century, they still wished he was Clark Keating.
If coach Mick Malthouse pushed him forward, the supporters wondered why he wasn't Matthew Richardson or Brendan Fevola.
Last year Fraser wasn't any of those players and yet the Magpie fans still loved him.
Finally they came to realise that a 202cm running ruckman who can play the link man, centre-square provider, extra midfielder or potent attacking weapon might not be a bad thing after all.
It was arguably Fraser's best season: equal fourth in the best-and-fairest, an average of 17 touches and 15 hit-outs, and 16 goals pushing forward.
Where being pigeon-holed as a "different" type of ruckman once cut Fraser to the bone, the 25-year-old has come to realise that trying to be all things to all people will slowly drive you mad.
"I think, to be honest, it goes back to my early years when I wasn't overly strong enough to compete against the bigger guys," Fraser says on the eve of the 2007 season.
"I have carried the stigma right through. But to be honest I am not worried about it any more. Not everyone will like the way you play footy, but I am doing the best for my side.
"It was definitely a relief to be able to play a full season after having some interruptions the year before and personally my game took huge steps forward."
Fraser knows maintaining that level won't be enough this year.
Now comes the challenge of being a star in a team that has only two young ruck understudies, a forward line without Chris Tarrant and Sean Rusling and, at least for the early rounds, a hamstrung Nathan Buckley.
But where Fraser might once have screamed black and blue that he was a ruckman and nothing else, he has accepted that he will play where the team needs him.
While Malthouse might want it to be 70 per cent forward – Fraser would prefer 40 per cent – the former No.1 draft pick says he is happy to accept the challenge.
"I am looking forward to adding a new dimension to my game, which is spending a bit more time up forward," he says.
"I probably haven't been able to develop my game in that area because I have been spending more time in the ruck, but it will just give us another dimension as a side, particularly with Anthony (Rocca) playing well and Travis (Cloke), who has had a really impressive pre-season. We think he is going to have a really solid year, so all of a sudden we start to get some taller options."
Fraser is too laid-back to rail at the critics, but he does roll his eyes at the prophets of doom predicting a plunge down the ladder for the Pies.
"It's funny. A lot of people criticised the year Taz had last season and said he didn't have a great year, and now that he's gone we are somehow going to fall out of the eight because he's not there," Fraser says.
"Whenever we play big finals or win big games, people say we have over-achieved."
Just when Fraser finally clicked last year is a subject of some conjecture.
The club's Round 7 clash with the Eagles was declared a turning point, but Fraser is not so sure.
In that game Malthouse spurned a back-up ruckman, Fraser responded with 28 possessions and two goals, and his coach declared himself vindicated.
"The responsibility for Fraser today was exactly what we wanted. He needed to get out of his slumber," Malthouse said post-match.
Fraser is still uncertain just how critical that Subiaco night against Dean Cox and Mark Seaby was to his season.
"I was a little bit bewildered by some of the comments that it had been a turning point," he says.
"The West Coast game stands out as one of my better games for the year, but I certainly didn't think I was in a form slump or anything like that.
"It took me a little by surprise, but I think I am probably a player that gets judged pretty harshly – and I have pretty high expectations of myself – so I just took that in my stride and tried to use the West Coast game as a launching pad."
Fraser can't quite escape the Eagles. Last week he was linked to Chad Fletcher's Las Vegas flatlining episode amid talk the Pies had investigated their players' involvement.
The story is this: he, Nick Maxwell and Buckley ran into the Eagles players while in Vegas, shared a beer and a yarn, then moved on well before Fletcher's follies.
Later, when Fletcher's problems came to light, Collingwood officials simply asked whether they were involved in any way. They weren't.
Fraser's manager Dan Richardson, of ESP, says fans will be rewarded for their patience if they keep their faith in him.
"Any No.1 draft pick will carry some weight of expectation, which is understandable," Richardson says.
"I think what happened is his first season was pretty good and the expectations were even higher after that, and then he had a few injuries which made life pretty tough, but it was just great to see him have a really solid year."
Minor knee surgery early in the year had some fans concerned, but Fraser says he will be fine despite the lack of match conditioning.
"I just had some cartilage cleaned up in the knee in early January. I was off it for three weeks, but looking back it's been a good thing," he says.
"It just freshened my legs up and hopefully I can hit the ground running for Round 1. I may be a touch underdone, but I will be fine."
When he does return there could be some kind of tug of war for his services.
While he will undoubtedly be needed forward, midfield assistant coach Adrian Fletcher says many underrate what he can do around the ground.
"He can win the ball in the contest, but then almost play like a ruck rover when it falls to ground," he says.
"His ability to follow up and get the ball out of contested areas means it's like playing with an extra midfielder."
Some question the quality of Fraser's hit-outs, but he has other strengths.
Last year he was ranked No.1 among AFL ruckman in disposals, contested possessions and inside 50s, and led the Magpies in marks, hardball gets and frees for
