Lambert Needs To Be On The LIST
Lambert Needs To be on The LIST With the Tigers recent draft history bringing in a raft of top class first selections, and our depth being somewhat improved, we have gone past the days of needing to play our 1st draft selection in round 1 of the following year, our present depth means that we can pretty well cover all positions. This gives us the opportunity to allow our draftees and rookies to develop both physically, mentally and have a better understanding of the teams dynamics/game plan before they are rewarded with a spot in the best 22. With the Tigers selecting 5 draftees and 4 rookies at the end of 2014 , 8 of the 9 are 18-19 year olds, the other is a totally different story. When astute judges of emerging talent are flabbergasted as Dennis Pagan has been that it took till 2014 for an AFL team to give a start to Kane Lambert, is there something others saw that we missed or we saw what they missed?.
Kane Lambert was coached by Dennis Pagan in 2009 at the Northern Nights, he was impressed then with the attributes that Kane possessed, excellent contested-ball work, a great temperament, a fierce determination to succeed and best of all great endurance. Dennis felt that Kane had the qualities of an "all round midfield package" that would allow him to have an impact on games at the top level, so when Kane was overlooked by all clubs in the 2013 AFL Drafts he was surprised. Even though Kane had won the Fothergill-Round Medal (the best young talent in the VFL award), and finished runner-up in the VFL competition’s Best and Fairest award, the J.J. Liston Trophy in 2013 he still remained unlisted, Dennis was somewhat shocked, “He didn't get rookie-listed, I reckon there’s something really wrong with the system.” History will show that the Tigers selected Kane Lambert with pick 46 of the 2014 rookie draft, last active pick for us, only followed by the selection of Ivan's behemoth of a cousin Ivan Soldo and the re-listing of Matt Arnott, but did we leave the best till last ?? After moving clubs ( Northern Blues to Williamstown) at the end of the 2012 season believing that a fresh start, and a chance to play at a stand alone club would help to improve his chances of making it to an AFL list. Williamstown’s football manager Chris Dixon admitted that the Seagulls realised when they secured Lambert’s valuable services from the Northern Blues, they would probably have only a short-term relationship with him. “When we recruited Kane 12 months ago, we basically told him that we expected him to be at Williamstown for one year, and now that’s a reality. “It was a project for us to help him get a chance at AFL level, and we’ve got there, We’re absolutely over the moon for him,” Dixon said. The Northern Blues president, Stephen Papal said, “Kane cut his teeth through the Northern Knights program, before graduating to the Northern Blues, where he was such a consistent performer". "He’s a hard worker and he ticks all the boxes in terms of professionalism. We reckon they (Richmond Tigers) have done very well with this young man. it is so great to see Kane’s hard work pay off and we wish him the very best of success with the Richmond Tigers". So Why Should Kane Be On The List There is one obvious reason. It is what Kane brings, the quality that the other 2015 draftees and rookies are yet to possess. Experience, At 23 Kane has been playing in the VFL system for a number of years , he is accustomed to mixing it with AFL listed players, he played with Williamstown last year and had a pivotal role in the Seagulls winning the Foxtel Cup Premiership and reaching the VFL preliminary final. Although Kane had a reasonably slow start to the 2014 season due to injury, he displayed his ability to come back and hit top form towards the back end of the season. The display he put on in the 2014 VFL semi-final against Werribee was described by his coach at the time Andy Collins said “It was one of the best individual games I’ve seen at a state league level". In an astonishing last quarter display in the semi-final with Williamstown trailing by 32 points at three-quarter time, and its 2014 campaign hanging by the barest of threads, Lambert took it upon himself to turn the situation around in his midfield role.
He was the catalyst behind Williamstown’s brilliant blitz of nine unanswered goals in that final term, with three of them coming off his own boot. Almost single-handedly, he lifted the Seagulls to a 26-point win, which clinched a preliminary final berth for them. Lambert’s match statistics that day highlight his incredible influence – 32 disposals, 17 clearances, 15 inside-50s and four goals. “We understand that he’s a special talent.”
So will we see Kane elevated before the start of the season ?
Damien Hardwick thinks there is going to be some very robust discussions around the selection table regarding "who gets the nod".
