Lewis Jetta's long bombs

[DeadlyAkkuret]

Can someone tell me how he does it? Is it pure timing/technique? He's got legs like twigs compared to most AFL players yet he seems to nail them from beyond 50 more often than not. That goal against the Bombers was at least 60.

Can anyone remember another player with such skinny legs kicking so many long range goals?

 

[SM]

I wish I knew.

 

[baja]

Its all in the timing and his balance, it really is sublime. Also worth noting that at 6ft tall and listed as 75kgs(Id guess a couple more even) of pure sinew muscle he isn't exactly a light weight anymore, AFL footballers are just all bloody huge these days. But yeah he has been doing it since he was a teenager.. Have a look at a few of his 'long bombs' in his highlight reel before we drafted him, I think it was in a state carnival.. 60m drop punt off two steps, very impressive.

 

[S120]

Yeh I can remember Roos talking about watching him as a 19yo and saying that it was just a matter of time before Jetta was kicking bags in the AFL. He said he was one of the better kicks he had seen at that age before IIRC.

He does make remarkably good contact with the ball. His timing is just wonderful.

 

[baja]

Can anyone remember another player with such skinny legs kicking so many long range goals?

Nicky Winmar off the top of my head.. Going back a bit, Mark Browning but not goals, coming off halfback at lakeside on his trusty left foot usually receiving the handball from David Ackerly.

 

[SM]

Its all in the timing and his balance, it really is sublime. Also worth noting that at 6ft tall and listed as 75kgs(Id guess a couple more even) of pure sinew muscle he isn't exactly a light weight anymore, AFL footballers are just all bloody huge these days. But yeah he has been doing it since he was a teenager.. Have a look at a few of his 'long bombs' in his highlight reel before we drafted him, I think it was in a state carnival.. 60m drop punt off two steps, very impressive.

Jesus, that's pretty much my exact dimensions. Although replace 75 with 70, and sinew with fat.

 

[swansfan51]

It has a lot to do with leg speed - many of the fastest players are also long kicks. Trent McKenzie wasn't the biggest young guy last year but he is seriously quick as well. Stephen Hill is a beautiful long kick. It has as much to do with acceleration as strength (Shannon Hurn is an example of someone who has more power)

 

[Gongswan]

That's why Jetts has the flash boots, they're equipped with a laser guidance system from the US army, which also explains the less than 100% accuracy (no I'm not having a go at Jetta)

 

[bungee]

Wayne Schwass & Stuey Maxfield spring to mind as players who could bomb long and accurate from outside 50. Kelly's wasn't bad either. Maxfield running flat out would steady and give the ball a nice sharp jab that belied the power and accuracy of the kick. At that speed the kicking action seems slight as it seems to tap into the speed of the player's run. So sweet to watch. We haven't had those kind of players for a while so its nice to see jetta and sometimes everitt striking them at pace from outside 50.

 

[S120]

Yeh Maxfield was the prototype for being able to steady oneself when running flat out (of the players I've seen). Perfect timing and immense power.

 

[Bobbykirkkelly]

Wayne Schwass & Stuey Maxfield spring to mind as players who could bomb long and accurate from outside 50. Kelly's wasn't bad either. Maxfield running flat out would steady and give the ball a nice sharp jab that belied the power and accuracy of the kick. At that speed the kicking action seems slight as it seems to tap into the speed of the player's run. So sweet to watch. We haven't had those kind of players for a while so its nice to see jetta and sometimes everitt striking them at pace from outside 50.

Several player I remember who had long kicks that seemed effortless from Swans past are Mark Browning, played HBF and could bomb it 50-60m regularly. Also Mark Bayes & David Murphy were beautiful long kicks but I think the longest kick in my memory was John Pitura who seemed to kick it 60-70m on a regular basis. he was swapped to Richmond where he played only a few games but we got Francis Jackson, Graham Teasdale & Brian 'Whale" Roberts all of whom were great players for us with Teasdale winning a brownlow and I think Roberts may have been a runner up one year.

 

[baja]

Several player I remember who had long kicks that seemed effortless from Swans past are Mark Browning, played HBF and could bomb it 50-60m regularly. Also Mark Bayes & David Murphy were beautiful long kicks but I think the longest kick in my memory was John Pitura who seemed to kick it 60-70m on a regular basis. he was swapped to Richmond where he played only a few games but we got Francis Jackson, Graham Teasdale & Brian 'Whale" Roberts all of whom were great players for us with Teasdale winning a brownlow and I think Roberts may have been a runner up one year.

Yep some great pick ups from the Tiges.. Jackson was solid down back, Roberts ended up with the pub across the road that hung the famous sign, "Have An Ale With The Whale" think he was about 5th in the counting, "and "TEASER" was the catch cry for every school kid when going for a speccy. Again Im loving these old stories, should be more of them.

 

[SydneyGoose]

If you actually want to know how he can do it, it's a matter of the relationship between Impulse and Momentum (I think, I'm only an Engineer). Impulse is a matter of sustaining a force for a specific amount of time, while momentum is about a mass traveling at a specific velocity.
Jetta's legs might not be muscular, but they are long and they move very fast. Once you add his fast legs to his already high velocity you end up with a huge amount of momentum being imparted on to the ball. You'll notice that when a kicker takes a set shot they very rarely move much faster than a trot and when they kick it they're putting more effort into controlling the ball than actually kicking it. When Jetta bombs it toward goal from the centre square he's moving at high speed and his legs are churning away to keep him at that speed so when his leg moves forward to connect with the ball it's moving at the same speed as his body is moving. To fully explain it I would need to draw up some diagrams, but the key element isn't so much how he does it, it's more about how he controls it. he may have started his career at 1.19 for a reason .

 

[Big Blood]

It's just timing. He's not that tall, 181cm or 5'9", but strikes the ball beautifully. Even his field kicking is a pleasure to watch.

It's up on the club website for GOTY. You can hear Lethal say 'Look at that!' as soon as he kicks it.
http://www.sydneyswans.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/7106/newsid/139554/default.aspx