“He doesn’t realise right now what he’s capable of.”
Essendon coach Brad Scott may have higher expectations for Sam Durham than the youngster does himself.
Speaking after his side’s five-goal rout of West Coast on Sunday, the Bomber coach cited his 22-year-old big-bodied midfielder as an example of how unpredictable the game can be when players and teams emerge out of nowhere.
“If I sat here saying, two years ago, that Sum Durham would be doing what he’s doing now, no one would have believed me, even though we could see the upward trajectory he was on,” Scott joked after the game.
“He’s one example of how quickly things can change.”
Durham, who stands 185cm tall, has the height and presence of a Bontempelli-lite model, with cleanliness in high traffic and an advantage over most opponents.
His versatility is making it difficult to pinpoint a specific position for him, as he’s the type of player who can make an impact wherever he is on the field, and you’d want him to be involved in the action wherever the ball is.
“Even our players have said he’s scratching the surface a little bit with what he’s capable of.”
“He doesn’t realise right now what he’s capable of.”
Nate Caddy, another intriguing young gun, produced the breakout performance of his two-match career, booting his first two career goals, including the goal of the day for his debut with a boundary-line snap from a standing star on the non-preferred.
“These guys have incredible talent these days,” Scott said.
“Didn’t see too many players outside of Jason Akermanis do that when I played”
The Bomber fraternity can’t wait to see this youngster in full swing, given that he’s already causing trouble in a role that isn’t suitable for players his age and senior experience.
“He did what we expected. “He has elite AFL attributes,” the Bombers’ coach added. “Outside of maybe the ruck, it’s very hard for a first-year player to come in and play as a key forward.”
“Usually you’re playing on key defenders who have been in the system for 10 years and are bigger, more experienced.”
“But Cadds (Caddy) has got attributes that he can work around that.”
The foundation is an important aspect of his game, so Brad Scott feels compelled to reveal the unorthodox idea he may have in store for him.
“We watched him as a junior and thought there’s potential for him to play in the midfield at some point.”
“That is how good we believe he is at ground level and how athletic he is. However, he is also a formidable aerial menace.
“Hopefully we have some selection dilemmas.”
Now nine and five points ahead of the top four, the Bombers face a three-week litmus test as Geelong, Collingwood, and Melbourne all come calling with their own top-tier credentials.
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