Release the Medhurst tag

by BEN STANWIX

THE art of whinging about particular players has, for some enthusiasts, evolved into the commentary equivalent of tagging. And it's no less a blight on the game.

medhurst pack

Paul Medhurst (sharking at bottom left) has copped some unfair criticism for his team's disappointing season. Photo by Les Everett.

Miserable wretches with no eye for the ball queue every week to scrag, pinch, bite and sledge certain players, often from the bunkered-down safety of a state daily newspaper monopoly.

At Fremantle, Paul Medhurst is the player who comes in for more attention than anyone else from these taggers. Following a second disappointing season for the whole team, the attention on Medhurst became even more absurd with calls for him to move interstate for the good of his own career.

Interstate, according to some commentators, Medhurst's game would flourish because, of all things, he'd be free of contstant media criticism.

Here are some things Paul Medhurst has achieved for Fremantle. In 2002, at 20 years-of-age and in his first season, he burst onto the scene and played 20 games for a return of 36 goals. Some may remember the previous year Fremantle finished with the wooden spoon and just two wins. In 2002, the team finished 13th with nine wins. Fremantle picked Medhurst with pick number 56 in the 2001 national draft. That makes him, to use the vernacular, a roughie. By contrast, the Eagles' Ashley Sampi was taken in the same year with pick number six. He is not a roughie, and nor does he receive a fraction of the media tagging his purple counterpart puts up with. However, in the four seasons Sampi has played with the Eagles - all of them while being kicked to by his team's uber-midfield - Sampi has never managed more than 34 goals. In 2003, Medhurst kicked 50 to lead his team's goal-kicking and play a major role in securing Fremantle's first finals appearance. He's kept himself extraordinarily fit, not missing a game since round nine 2002. He's worked at expanding his game, turning himself from a leading forward into a crumbing goal-sneak. He spots up team mates and looks to pass. He chases and pushes up the ground to get involved when the ball's not coming his way, and he keeps running and presenting even though his midfield team mates are looking for the large bloke wearing number 29.

Lately, Medhurst's taken to breaking multiple tackles hemmed in on the boundary line. It's great stuff and deserves to be praised.

But this strange 178cm creature with magic hands and double-take hair was typecast very early by media taggers. He was a showpony, he was soft, selfish, sooky, playing for frees and never thinking of the team.

And the following two years just confirmed this view - when in 2004 he again topped the goal-kicking with 41, and in 2005 sharked 27 in a new Pavlich-based forward set-up. The slacker.

Teams, highly fancied or otherwise, don't fall short of a finals appearance because a small forward failed to set the world on fire. Nor do they get belted at home by the wooden spooner, surrender sizeable three quarter time leads to premiership favourites, or choke in their do-or-die round 22 rumble because a small forward failed to set the world on fire.

Paul Medhurst is a unique, wonderful player and thankfully Chris Connolly knows it.

For those who don't, who still want to send him packing over east to save the poor lad from constant bagging, here's a nifty, inexpensive alternative - lay off.

From the Fremantle Rooster.

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