Passion for potential

by PAUL DAFFEY

IF you stand in any Victorian pub long enough, chances are you'll hear a conversation in which the merits of AFL footballers are debated. Slim McJim is slower than my grandmother, Peter Rabbit can't mark, The Great McCarthy is a gimp - that sort of thing.

But just as player ratings accompany beer as leading social lubricants in this part of the world, there are some people who analyse footy for a living. Every AFL club has several scouts who comb the country in search of young talent.

Then there is Colin Wisbey. Before last season, the software designer from Doncaster took a deep breath and committed to seeing 70 TAC Cup games for the season.

He wasn't working for a club; he simply wanted to take his hobby of spotting potential AFL talent as far as possible. "It's an intellectual exercise," he said.

After the season, he rated each potential draft selection and published his findings on the Collingwood web site Extreme Black N White. His comments and predictions proved astute.

The 53-year-old repeated his performance this year, seeing another 70 TAC Cup games, including the national championships in Melbourne, before placing his findings on Extreme Black and White. The difference is that a dozen AFL rival web sites asked whether they could also run the Wiz Biz, as the typically subtle Magpie site describes Wisbey's work.

The former suburban footballer agreed to the requests without hesitation. He's a Collingwood fan, describing the club's performance in reaching the grand final as terrific considering it has the seventh or eight-best list, but his hobby knows no club allegiance.

His point was emphasised early this week when he sent his dossier to each AFL club. He was offering his findings for the greater good rather than canvassing for work, although three clubs did contact him about talks for a scouting role next year.

"I'm not quite sure what track I'm heading down, but I'm enjoying the journey," he said.

Wisbey's journeys on weekends typically take him to three or four TAC Cup games. On Saturdays, he might watch an under-18 double header at McHale Stadium or he'll watch, say, an under-18 game at Coburg at lunchtime before heading into the MCG to catch the Magpies after quarter-time.

On Sundays, he might watch a match at Dandenong at 11am then race over to Oakleigh for the 2pm start. "You're not watching the footy, per se. You're watching the potential," he said.

Wisbey yesterday described his passion for observing and analysing future league footballers for three hours while sitting in his director's chair on a wing at the Box Hill footy ground, the site of several TAC Cup ventures. A cricket match between the home club and Moorabbin occasionally brought to mind his own career as a suburban opening bowler, a career that an Achilles injury ended only three years ago.

The director's chair offers his vantage on winter weekends. He sets up well away from fellow spectators, for fear his comments into his small tape machine might distract those around him, before getting out his Thermos and list that details points of interest about every player.

With binoculars at the ready, he comments into the tape machine as play progresses. At the end of each quarter, he goes to a huddle in the belief that he might deduce a telling characteristic. Often, for example, a player's response to criticism offers much comment.

Comments in the crowd also attract his attention. Parents and friends can offer great insight, such as the extent of injury, or the extent of partying during the week. "I listen to anybody," Wisbey said. "You keep your ears open."

If a matter needs to be clarified, he sometimes approaches spectators. A brief word to a trainer at quarter-time can also clear up confusion.

After every game, he notes his findings in his computer. Statistics are entered into the software program he designed, with additional information sought from videos of under-18 matches or games in Adelaide and Perth.

Occasionally, a phone call to under-18 regional managers, such as Mick Turner at the Geelong Falcons, satisfies a gap in his curiosity. "Snippet by snippet by snippet you build a picture," he said.

His comments on the Collingwood web site are hard but fair, and often include a dash of flair. His appraisal on Brendon Goddard, who Wisbey believes was far and away the standout choice in this year's draft, includes the observation that the Gippsland Power midfielder would be the ideal partner in the trenches.

"He has a nice combination of self-confidence, courage and never-say-die," he writes. "And he's too smart to ever get shot."

Wisbey's golden rules include never writing something he wouldn't tell a player to his face, but neither does he shirk the truth. He hopes this honesty sits well with his desire to act in a mentoring role.

In the end, however, he knows his studies and conclusions can be off the mark. It's all part of the challenge of studying footballers during their flighty years.

"It's part art, part science," Wisbey said. "You'll get some right and some wrong."

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