Bird finding his wings

[Melbourne_Blood]

Apologies for the corny title but it had to be done. Since I no longer have an excuse I thought I should start this thread. Admittedly I've not been a big Bird fan but he has been fantastic this year. His ability, movement and skill is excellent. More than compensates for his lack of pace. Also right up there for tackles in the league, if not leading! Parker and Kennedy are getting a lot of the praise but Birdy deserves a rap. Well done kid, sorry I ever doubted you! ( Jack, while not having as impressive numbers as some of the others has also been excellent for us, I feel he's building quite nicely this season. He's going to pull up some Monster performances this year I feel)

[RogueSwan]

+1.
I do recall when he first popped a couple of years ago as a trainee (I don't know exactly the right term, he was a part of the Swans but still at home, finishing school and doing specialised training) he was lauded as possibly being a great footballer.
Looks like it is finally happening (and he is only just 23).

[Peace]

My friends and I call him "Pizza Face" which may be cruel but we have always loved him and jump out of our chairs when he does something great, just get a few strange looks at the game though haha.

[Triple B]

My friends and I call him "Pizza Face" which may be cruel but we have always loved him and jump out of our chairs when he does something great, just get a few strange looks at the game though haha.

MAY be cruel??

How old are you and your friends, 13?

[Peace]

Does it matter?

There is no questioning the love we have for pizza face (which btw, his acne issue seems to be cleared up now! hellooo ladies!)

[royboy42]

I managed to back him in his first season for the Rising Star award...at least I saw the talent coming, just took longer than I thought.

[swans_premiers]

Didnt roosy say he was the best player hed seen at 18 or 19 years of age?

[bandwagon]

Love his work. Beat Mitchell on the inside and Pearce on the outside. Much more versatile than I suspected. A shoo in for most improved?

[wolftone57]

I think his development was hampered by injury. He has been outstanding this year and very good to watch live because you see all the action. In other words you see what he provides off the ball and how he positions himself. He is actually very strong for a mid size mid and a very good mark. Another clever player we added early and the list of clever players just seems to grow every day at the Swans!

[mcs]

I think his development was hampered by injury. He has been outstanding this year and very good to watch live because you see all the action. In other words you see what he provides off the ball and how he positions himself. He is actually very strong for a mid size mid and a very good mark. Another clever player we added early and the list of clever players just seems to grow every day at the Swans!

Absolutely agree about the injuries hampering him. He is a very clever player, and just like he always used to in the reserves, he now seems to have found that extra split second in his decision making that means he generally uses the ball well.

Our midfield group is rapidly becoming very good - not because they are all superstars, but they are all fine players and we have depth developing there as well - which hopefully will allow us to rip teams apart more often starting in the midfield like we did Hawthorn in the second half last week. Very promising signs indeed!

[GongSwan]

I think his development was hampered by injury. He has been outstanding this year and very good to watch live because you see all the action. In other words you see what he provides off the ball and how he positions himself. He is actually very strong for a mid size mid and a very good mark. Another clever player we added early and the list of clever players just seems to grow every day at the Swans!

I watched a few games from 2009 yesterday, his talent was evident then, now injury free and a few games under the belt, starting to really come into his own. Looking forward to how good he will be in another 3 or 4 years

[gossipcom]

If he keeps the pace going and *touch wood* stays injury-free then he'll be a shoe-in for Most Improved. Love watching Birdy play this year.