evo
Let's hit the f*ken road!
Tigers turn discard into tough midfielder
09 March 2005 Herald Sun
Mark Stevens
SHANE Tuck is poised to complete a stunning rise by muscling his way into Richmond's starting midfield for Round 1.
It is understood the son of Hawthorn legend Michael Tuck has already been inked in as the man to add bite to the Tigers' centre square set-up.
If the Tigers were voting on a pre-season best-and-fairest, the 23-year-old would be a clear leader.
Tuck, who managed only three games under Danny Frawley last year, was discarded by the Hawks after two injury-riddled years on the rookie list.
Richmond coach Terry Wallace conceded yesterday Tuck wasn't too far away from being cut again at the end of last year.
Now the buzz at Punt Rd is the club could have something special on its hands.
"He's playing really good footy. He's certainly been in our best few players over the past few weeks – certainly in the Essendon game and the Fremantle game," Wallace said.
"He'll get the opportunity to play on-ball in his own right again at the weekend.
"The reality is, the first game is only a couple of weeks away so he looks more than likely to step in for Round 1."
Wallace is hoping the addition of Tuck and Mark Coughlan will add steel to his line-up.
At 188cm and 89kg, Tuck is a jumbo-sized midfielder. He has his famous father's height, but a completely different frame.
"We need to make sure we can strengthen up. In Coughlan and Tuck we've got someone who can do that," Wallace said.
"He (Tuck) goes in, wins his own footy and kicks it 55-60m when he gets hold of it.
"He's big and strong enough that he can win the ball inside the pack and be physically strong enough to get boot to ball in some tough situations."
Tuck was taken at No. 73 in the 2003 draft. General opinion is he went so low because of wonky kicking and poor decision-making.
But Wallace has seen little evidence of those problems over summer.
"We're very, very happy to have him," Wallace said.
"He probably would have been one of the last ones on our list come the end of last year, but I just thought there was something there."
Wallace, who played alongside Michael Tuck and changed alongside him in the locker-room, said family history had a bearing on his call.
"Tucky played a lot of reserves footy before he made it. That was in the back of my mind. If you know the history of the family, you take that into account," he said. "All we've done is given him his opportunity and he's grabbed it."
http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/footy/common/story_page/0,8033,12488348%255E20322,00.html
09 March 2005 Herald Sun
Mark Stevens
SHANE Tuck is poised to complete a stunning rise by muscling his way into Richmond's starting midfield for Round 1.
It is understood the son of Hawthorn legend Michael Tuck has already been inked in as the man to add bite to the Tigers' centre square set-up.
If the Tigers were voting on a pre-season best-and-fairest, the 23-year-old would be a clear leader.
Tuck, who managed only three games under Danny Frawley last year, was discarded by the Hawks after two injury-riddled years on the rookie list.
Richmond coach Terry Wallace conceded yesterday Tuck wasn't too far away from being cut again at the end of last year.
Now the buzz at Punt Rd is the club could have something special on its hands.
"He's playing really good footy. He's certainly been in our best few players over the past few weeks – certainly in the Essendon game and the Fremantle game," Wallace said.
"He'll get the opportunity to play on-ball in his own right again at the weekend.
"The reality is, the first game is only a couple of weeks away so he looks more than likely to step in for Round 1."
Wallace is hoping the addition of Tuck and Mark Coughlan will add steel to his line-up.
At 188cm and 89kg, Tuck is a jumbo-sized midfielder. He has his famous father's height, but a completely different frame.
"We need to make sure we can strengthen up. In Coughlan and Tuck we've got someone who can do that," Wallace said.
"He (Tuck) goes in, wins his own footy and kicks it 55-60m when he gets hold of it.
"He's big and strong enough that he can win the ball inside the pack and be physically strong enough to get boot to ball in some tough situations."
Tuck was taken at No. 73 in the 2003 draft. General opinion is he went so low because of wonky kicking and poor decision-making.
But Wallace has seen little evidence of those problems over summer.
"We're very, very happy to have him," Wallace said.
"He probably would have been one of the last ones on our list come the end of last year, but I just thought there was something there."
Wallace, who played alongside Michael Tuck and changed alongside him in the locker-room, said family history had a bearing on his call.
"Tucky played a lot of reserves footy before he made it. That was in the back of my mind. If you know the history of the family, you take that into account," he said. "All we've done is given him his opportunity and he's grabbed it."
http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/footy/common/story_page/0,8033,12488348%255E20322,00.html
