Small forward top 10

[Shane Heard]

KB is one of the all time greats. An immortal. Above legend status as a light framed small forward.

A freak of nature.

 

[My Tilly]

Milne seems to have been forgotten. 575 goals (albeit all under the roof) but was often talked about as the greatest small forward ever during the latter stages of his career.
Couldn't mark, or barely a threat in the finals but still worthy of top 10.

I'm taking Daicos ahead of Bartlett at no.1.
Go watch old Richmond games. Bartlett never had a direct opponent. Ran around doing as he liked.
Daicos was the oppositions sole target every weekend.

 

[Tackle Bag]

If Leigh Mathews and Kevin Bartlett qualify as small forwards then they are clearly number 1 & 2.

Leigh Mathews is in the discussion for best player ever and Bartlett would be top 10 all time.

I can’t think of another small forward that’s at that level.

 

[Boomer93]

If you were a coach and had a grand final tomorrow and could only select one player out of Rioli and Milne you would have to pick Rioli.

However if you could draft one of the two you are picking Milne.

Milne being consistently brilliant for such a long extended period in some very poor sides wins out over a slightly more talented player with injury problems and an early retirement.

Its the old peak v longevity debate.

 

[Shane Heard]

Milne seems to have been forgotten. 575 goals (albeit all under the roof) but was often talked about as the greatest small forward ever during the latter stages of his career.
Couldn't mark, or barely a threat in the finals but still worthy of top 10.

I'm taking Daicos ahead of Bartlett at no.1.
Go watch old Richmond games. Bartlett never had a direct opponent. Ran around doing as he liked.
Daicos was the oppositions sole target every weekend.

That’s bullshit.

Bartlett never had a direct opponent?

You have obviously no idea about the skill, pace and power of KB.

The amount of goals he kicked on the run from the boundary is staggering…and usually running away from his opponent using sheer aggression and pace.


Watch the endless highlights reel when he was on “ The Front Bar”


No one has done what he did.

He’s a freak.

Peter Daicos was brilliant. A wizard.

KB was better.

 

[Shane Heard]

If you were a coach and had a grand final tomorrow and could only select one player out of Rioli and Milne you would have to pick Rioli.

However if you could draft one of the two you are picking Milne.

Milne being consistently brilliant for such a long extended period in some very poor sides wins out over a slightly more talented player with injury problems and an early retirement.

Its the old peak v longevity debate.

Good ordinary forward pocket player was Milne.

Nothing to write home about.

 

[Boomer93]

Good ordinary forward pocket player was Milne.

Nothing to write home about.

Surely trolling lol

 

[Shane Heard]

Surely trolling lol

Nope.

Milne was a top talent.

But not in the KB / Matthews orbit of talent.

 

[Robroy22]

That’s bullshit.

Bartlett never had a direct opponent?

You have obviously no idea about the skill, pace and power of KB.

The amount of goals he kicked on the run from the boundary is staggering…and usually running away from his opponent using sheer aggression and pace.


Watch the endless highlights reel when he was on “ The Front Bar”


No one has done what he did.

He’s a freak.

Peter Daicos was brilliant. A wizard.

KB was better.

Lol@ KB being better than Daicos.....that's unplausible!
KB had longevity on his side (like Tuck) and he could run....away from things but to compare him to the magician that was Peter Daicos is to compare Paul Hogan to Michelangelo. Baldock is more appropriate for Daicos and the Doc would have eaten KB as a footballer as well.

KB belongs on the Front Bar with the rest of the actor/comedians.

 

[Toump Ass]

Charles Spargo

 

[Robroy22]

Charles Spargo

Jarrod Blair

 

[JackOutback]

Pretty good attempt at a list. As mentioned above, if Mathews and Bartlett are both considered small forwards, that's probably your 1 and 2. Daicos was prolific and looked good doing it. Funnily enough, the one I'd drop down a fair bit is Cyril; despite being an absolute star, he's 200 or more goals behind players like Milne, Farmer and LeCras.

 

[Angak]

Daicos is better than Rioli, Johnson, Betts and Milne. He kicked 97 in a season ( the most ever by a non key position forward). He also had seasons of 76, 75, 58 and 52.

97 goals is the equivalent of 60 goals in the modern game.

 

[South of the Yarra]

97 goals is the equivalent of 60 goals in the modern game.

Not when you were spending the first game and a half across half back, missed with injury and played plenty of minutes in the guts. Had he played a full season up forward he would have kicked 130 plus.

 

[Nuggets73]

Daicos went at 2.2 goals a game having played over half his career in the guts.

That 1990 season was an absolute masterclass … up there with Albett Snr’s 1993 season

 

[Shane Heard]

Lol@ KB being better than Daicos.....that's unplausible!
KB had longevity on his side (like Tuck) and he could run....away from things but to compare him to the magician that was Peter Daicos is to compare Paul Hogan to Michelangelo. Baldock is more appropriate for Daicos and the Doc would have eaten KB as a footballer as well.

KB belongs on the Front Bar with the rest of the actor/comedians.

Ok so I’m old enough to tell you I saw both KB and Daicos play ( more Daicos ..older KB)

And Daicos was a genius no doubt. An incredibly gifted player.

But you say KB ran away from his opponents.

The man had 1659 shots at goal ( 778 goals - 781 points) and 8293 kicks in his career

I guarantee 700 of those goals were him winning the football ..gathering at pace…and putting it through from all angles

He’s a ball winning master freak.

Dangerous. Deadly. Match winner.

 

[Robroy22]

Ok so I’m old enough to tell you I saw both KB and Daicos play ( more Daicos ..older KB)

And Daicos was a genius no doubt. An incredibly gifted player.

But you say KB ran away from his opponents.

The man had 1659 shots at goal ( 778 goals - 781 points) and 8293 kicks in his career

I guarantee 700 of those goals were him winning the football ..gathering at pace…and putting it through from all angles

He’s a ball winning master freak.

Dangerous. Deadly. Match winner.

And I'm old enough to say I saw KB from the beginnings.....and Bob Rose, The Weed and Thorald Merrett but that's another story.
If KB "winning the football" translates to him running past for the handball...then he was a master. He didn't get his nickname for nothing! GAJ had nothing on old "Hungry" when it came to getting a cheap kick.

He also played in many, many dominant sides across his career. The Tiges of Tommy Hafey's era were a dominant force who won 80% of their games (including finals). Subsequently KB was able to play pretty much "bruise free" footy for most of his career. His job was to run and he did it a lot. As a small forward he had the likes of Guinane, Hart, Balme, McLean, Roach and Cloke (snr) to feed off. Just a sidebar....Johnny Northey playing as a HF flanker alongside KB went at nearly 2 goals a game as well....Heck Billy Brown who played second fiddle to KB for years averaged a goal a game during those years! The Tiges were just a super attacking high scoring juggernaut for MOST of KB's career.

Daicos on the other hand had to play in teams that went at 50:50 for two thirds of his career. In fact in one year he kicked 60 odd goals in a team that won four games for the season! He only went forward once he'd come back from pretty serious injuries that curtailed his running capabilities and limited his effectiveness in the guts. That he was able to carve a second career as a small forward and become the dominant player in that position also reflected just how good Daicos was.

Like I said, KB was a great little runner, Daicos was the real deal.

 

[windyhill]

Daicos small ?

 

[Shane Heard]

And I'm old enough to say I saw KB from the beginnings.....and Bob Rose, The Weed and Thorald Merrett but that's another story.
If KB "winning the football" translates to him running past for the handball...then he was a master. He didn't get his nickname for nothing! GAJ had nothing on old "Hungry" when it came to getting a cheap kick.

He also played in many, many dominant sides across his career. The Tiges of Tommy Hafey's era were a dominant force who won 80% of their games (including finals). Subsequently KB was able to play pretty much "bruise free" footy for most of his career. His job was to run and he did it a lot. As a small forward he had the likes of Guinane, Hart, Balme, McLean, Roach and Cloke (snr) to feed off. Just a sidebar....Johnny Northey playing as a HF flanker alongside KB went at nearly 2 goals a game as well....Heck Billy Brown who played second fiddle to KB for years averaged a goal a game during those years! The Tiges were just a super attacking high scoring juggernaut for MOST of KB's career.

Daicos on the other hand had to play in teams that went at 50:50 for two thirds of his career. In fact in one year he kicked 60 odd goals in a team that won four games for the season! He only went forward once he'd come back from pretty serious injuries that curtailed his running capabilities and limited his effectiveness in the guts. That he was able to carve a second career as a small forward and become the dominant player in that position also reflected just how good Daicos was.

Like I said, KB was a great little runner, Daicos was the real deal.

Yeah good post mate. Im
70’ born so I saw KB 78-79-80’ as an old man and every time the little prick would absolutely destroy Essendon defenders every single time we played them at the G.


I’ll give you Daicos better than KB

I was at a Carlton v pies game at VFL park 88 or 89’

Daicos kicked that torp ( right in front of me!) from an angle 55 out in the rain.


Plus he kick numerous other gems that day that left me thinking “ he’s better than Timmy”

I never went to Vic Park as a kid because the old man refused to go there …such was his hatred and disgust of the Collingwood nutters at a home game. So I missed seeing all those glorious goals he kicked at Pie HQ live.

I do remember my primary school days (outer east Melbourne..Ringwood way) and Daicos was the king to everyone as we played footy matches every single lunchtime ..until it got too hot in November. If someone jigged a miraculous goal from the pocket it was ..” that’s a Daicos kick.


Daicos’ goal kicking highlights are so endlessly sublime and incredibly impressive for an Australian rules footballer.

He could dodge and weave around multiple opponents and squeeze through the tightest of kicks straight through the sticks…from insane angles. Most of the time it was a wet ball and slopping, soggy conditions..with wool
Jumper on.

No modern player has done what Daicos did.

Betts close. But he had a ton of dry tracks to run on.

Close to goal ..inside 50 ..Daicos was a Lord and King.

 

[Shane Heard]

Daicos small ?

You’re right Johnny. Listed as 184..6ft

I thought he was 5’9 max

 

[parsons nose]

Pretty good attempt at a list. As mentioned above, if Mathews and Bartlett are both considered small forwards, that's probably your 1 and 2. Daicos was prolific and looked good doing it. Funnily enough, the one I'd drop down a fair bit is Cyril; despite being an absolute star, he's 200 or more goals behind players like Milne, Farmer and LeCras.

I watched a lot of Matthews, as a rover and a forward. Even though he was a Collingwood six footer, I wouldn’t classify him as a small forward. He was the full forward.

 

[Shane Heard]

I watched a lot of Matthews, as a rover and a forward. Even though he was a Collingwood six footer, I wouldn’t classify him as a small forward. He was the full forward.

He was on another level of brutality and strength to have the ability to shrug off opposition who wanted to pound him into the next galaxy.

With heavy, tree trunk legs and a short step running style, even when he was late 20s/early 30s ..he just had that sublime footy brain to use and evade assassins with ease.

And of course if anyone opponent was giving him the shits he would just punch them in the side of the head and send them to the bench.

His autobiography is a piece of work.

He calmly explains that he had no choice but to be a killer. His will to win and play well every game was immense.

He adored the combative environment of 60s/70s Australian rules footy. No fear.

 

[parsons nose]

He was on another level of brutality and strength to have the ability to shrug off opposition who wanted to pound him into the next galaxy.

With heavy, tree trunk legs and a short step running style, even when he was late 20s/early 30s ..he just had that sublime footy brain to use and evade assassins with ease.

And of course if anyone opponent was giving him the shits he would just punch them in the side of the head and send them to the bench.

His autobiography is a piece of work.

He calmly explains that he had no choice but to be a killer. His will to win and play well every game was immense.

He adored the combative environment of 60s/70s Australian rules footy. No fear.

Yep. Grew up barracking for North favourite player was Alan Aylett. He Had absolutely no doubts about his place in the game from early on. Skilful and brutal in equal measure.

 

[Shane Heard]

Yep. Grew up barracking for North favourite player was Alan Aylett. He Had absolutely no doubts about his place in the game from early on. Skilful and brutal in equal measure.

One of the great moments in GF history to me is Matthew’s goal in the 1984’ battle.
Thirty seconds from the bounce he sidesteps opponents and slams through the first major.

For years I thought he said to Duckworth something like .. “ keep the * away from me or I’ll belt you”…a warning

Many years later in his book he reveals he raised that one finger and screamed at Billy “ THATs ONE!!!”

He was hell bent on a good day out on the park.

But unfortunately it ended in tears for the champion.

 

[Shane Heard]

Jarrod Blair

Gary “ greatest hanger of all time for a midget “ Moorcroft.