Murray MiddletonTime For Koschitzke To Repay Saints
May 12th 2008 02:06
The best five games of Justin Koschitzke's career came in 2005 during contract negotiations with his club. Following the five matches St. Kilda had little choice but to offer a lucrative contract. Carlton was one of a number of high profile clubs keen to secure the services of the promising Saint. Three years later Koschitzke has gone backwards. He is a player who seems to divide the football public. Some experts have cited his terrible run with injuries as an excuse for his poor form. Others have noted that Koschitzke's run of good form coincided with his stint as stand-in captain. It has even been suggested that Koschitzke plays his best football in the absence of Nick Reiwoldt.
Kosi's time is now. Nick Reiwoldt is out for a minimum of four weeks following a serious knee injury in the Saints' slender win against Richmond. There is a huge hole to fill - not only in ability, but also leadership. St. Kilda has won four out of seven matches and sits fifth on the ladder. They are, however, in terrible form. They have played five poor matches in a row. Early season predictions that St. Kilda would be in premiership contention were clearly misguided. Hawthorn, Geelong, Adelaide and the Bulldogs are streets ahead of St. Kilda. At this point their aim should be to make the eight. As far-fetched as it sounds, their hopes rest with one man.
Koschitzke is a player who has struggled to find a position where he excels. In his first season he played at centre half back and won the rising star award. However in the next few seasons his body changed shape. He lost a lot of mobility and was no longer capable of holding down a key defensive post. This was compounded by his poor run of injuries which led to a lack of endurance. Koschitzke's previus coach - Grant Thomas - made it clear that he wanted to be a ruckman. There is only one problem with this: Koschitzke cannot ruck. He is capable around the ground - plugging holes in defence, taking contested marks, drifting forward - but has no idea of how to compete in a ruck contest. Koschitzke cannot palm the ball to his players advantage, he often mis-times his leap and is frequently out-positioned at boundary throw-ins.
The position which best suits Koschitzke is up forward. The problem is that he doesn't want to play there. He is a player who thrives on the contest. Up forward he is not involved in the game enough. His best asset is his pack marking. There is no mark that he cannot take. However his game relies on confidence. When he is in form there are very few defenders capable of stopping him. Last season against West Coast he destroyed both Darren Glass and Adam Hunter - two of the premier defenders in the competition. When he has lost his confidence, he can go unsighted. In round two against Carlton this season he had only one kick. The Saints need more from him.
Koschitzke's lack of awareness has been much publicised. He has never quite recovered from the fractured skull that he received in a heavy collision with Daniel Giansiricusa in 2006. When he made his comeback in Casey reserves later in the season he ran into the back of an umpire - breaking his nose, losing a tooth, knocking himself out and gaining a one match suspension. His peripheral vision has not been the same since. He often flies for a mark completely unaware of how many players are around him. One of the reasons that Kosi is so injury prone is that he often commits brave, yet suicidal acts on the football field. His broken arm against Hawthorn in 2004 was a perfect example of unecessary courage.
The equation is simple: St. Kilda must beat Collingwood this Friday night to keep its season alive. It will not be easy. They will be missing Reiwoldt, MaGuire, X.Clarke, Hudghton, King and possibly Steven Baker. However it is also an opportunity for the club and its seemingly sedated coach to come to life and show the football world what they are made of. Koschitke will have to be a jack of all trades. He will support Michael Gardiner in the ruck and be expected to kick goals up forward. It is the type of challenge he has been waiting for. If he fails to deliver, the Saints will lose. It is time for Koschitke to justify his bank balance.
Kosi's time is now. Nick Reiwoldt is out for a minimum of four weeks following a serious knee injury in the Saints' slender win against Richmond. There is a huge hole to fill - not only in ability, but also leadership. St. Kilda has won four out of seven matches and sits fifth on the ladder. They are, however, in terrible form. They have played five poor matches in a row. Early season predictions that St. Kilda would be in premiership contention were clearly misguided. Hawthorn, Geelong, Adelaide and the Bulldogs are streets ahead of St. Kilda. At this point their aim should be to make the eight. As far-fetched as it sounds, their hopes rest with one man.
Koschitzke is a player who has struggled to find a position where he excels. In his first season he played at centre half back and won the rising star award. However in the next few seasons his body changed shape. He lost a lot of mobility and was no longer capable of holding down a key defensive post. This was compounded by his poor run of injuries which led to a lack of endurance. Koschitzke's previus coach - Grant Thomas - made it clear that he wanted to be a ruckman. There is only one problem with this: Koschitzke cannot ruck. He is capable around the ground - plugging holes in defence, taking contested marks, drifting forward - but has no idea of how to compete in a ruck contest. Koschitzke cannot palm the ball to his players advantage, he often mis-times his leap and is frequently out-positioned at boundary throw-ins.
The position which best suits Koschitzke is up forward. The problem is that he doesn't want to play there. He is a player who thrives on the contest. Up forward he is not involved in the game enough. His best asset is his pack marking. There is no mark that he cannot take. However his game relies on confidence. When he is in form there are very few defenders capable of stopping him. Last season against West Coast he destroyed both Darren Glass and Adam Hunter - two of the premier defenders in the competition. When he has lost his confidence, he can go unsighted. In round two against Carlton this season he had only one kick. The Saints need more from him.
Koschitzke's lack of awareness has been much publicised. He has never quite recovered from the fractured skull that he received in a heavy collision with Daniel Giansiricusa in 2006. When he made his comeback in Casey reserves later in the season he ran into the back of an umpire - breaking his nose, losing a tooth, knocking himself out and gaining a one match suspension. His peripheral vision has not been the same since. He often flies for a mark completely unaware of how many players are around him. One of the reasons that Kosi is so injury prone is that he often commits brave, yet suicidal acts on the football field. His broken arm against Hawthorn in 2004 was a perfect example of unecessary courage.
The equation is simple: St. Kilda must beat Collingwood this Friday night to keep its season alive. It will not be easy. They will be missing Reiwoldt, MaGuire, X.Clarke, Hudghton, King and possibly Steven Baker. However it is also an opportunity for the club and its seemingly sedated coach to come to life and show the football world what they are made of. Koschitke will have to be a jack of all trades. He will support Michael Gardiner in the ruck and be expected to kick goals up forward. It is the type of challenge he has been waiting for. If he fails to deliver, the Saints will lose. It is time for Koschitke to justify his bank balance.
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