His other grandfather Jeff Bray wasn't too shabby either!Originally Posted by Blood Fever
His other grandfather Jeff Bray wasn't too shabby either!
Love the smear.
Max Papley should be a legend of the club. He was a magnificent footballer but sadly his career was cut short by a shortsighted and inflexible coach. As a result only us old codgers have heard of him. Bobby Skilton said he was the best player he ever played with. Tom has a lot of Max about him. He's not as gifted but he has speed, aggression, strength and the ability to beat much bigger opponents one on one. He will only get better.
He left to captain/coach Williamstown in VFA for more money I believe.You could leave without a clearance at the time. Not sure about clash with coach who was Alan Miller, former coach of the Under 19s. You may know more, I was only young at the time but my dad was a mate of Miller.
He found out later in life that he had a faulty heart valve, which explained his inconsistency. Told my brother that inexplicably he struggled at training at times. I think only played about 66 games. Max was a very gifted footballer with silky skills and tons of courage. A beautiful drop kick, Skilton reckoned Max was a better player than himself.
All of the above plus his ability to spend time on the ball like the best small forwards (think Cyril, Betts, Bruest, etc) gives us an extra speed and slickness round the ball. It's been an important part of our resurgence from the plodding effort in early rounds
Papley always gives 110% when on the ground or near a contest. That is what I really like about him.
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Papley immediately vaulted into my son and my favourites list, early last year (say top 6 favourites at the club). It's his attitude, energy, enthusiasm, effort that I love and his electric desperation to do what needs to be done.
Nothing like his grandfather who was a classical / silky skilled centreman of that era. Tom is completely different and has pleasantly surprised me with his progress
Miller would not allow him to play cricket in the off-season. A couple of years later, a certain Peter Bedford did just that, at Sheffield Shield level, and still managed to win a Brownlow. Alan Miller also managed to piss off Austin Robertson so badly that he returned to WA after just one stellar season. I believe Alan was a really nice guy, but he was a disaster as senior coach.
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Not completely different. The same stocky build, the same balance, the same intense competitiveness.
Great posts Bloods05 and Blood Fever. Super to hear from supporters with long memories - and good insight!
Amon who?
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