Insider: Jay Schulz’s journey from timid Tiger to Power prince

COLEMAN Medal leader Jay Schulz holds no grudges towards Richmond. He says the Tigers had every right to get rid of him five years ago.

COLEMAN Medal leader Jay Schulz holds no grudges towards Richmond.

He says the Tigers had every right to get rid of him five years ago.

“Because I wasn’t playing very good footy at all,’’ Schulz said of his Punt Rd departure.

“A lot of people have said Richmond did the wrong thing by trading me but my footy wasn’t going the way I wanted it to go and I wasn’t consistent, so they had every right to move me on.’’

The decision has proved to be one of the biggest trade blunders of all time.

The Tigers shipped Woodville-West Torrens product Schulz, then 24, to a struggling Port Adelaide for Mitch Farmer and pick 71 at the 2009 national draft.

Richmond used that selection on Central District’s Ben Nason.

Farmer, who played three games for the Power, played 28 matches for the Tigers before being delisted.

Nason played 23 before being cut. He is now back with the Bulldogs in the SANFL.

While their AFL careers are over, key forward Schulz has made the remarkable transformation from timid Tiger to Power Prince.

After booting just 58 goals in 71 games with Richmond at an average of 0.8, he has kicked 198 majors at Port in 84 matches at an average of 2.4.

Since Schulz, now 29, joined the Power, only seven players have kicked more goals — key forward guns Lance Franklin (310), Jack Riewoldt (300), Travis Cloke (262), Jarryd Roughead (218), Josh Kennedy (211) and Matthew Pavlich and Nick Riewoldt (205).

They have all played more games.

Schulz last week against the Western Bulldogs tied club legend Warren Tredrea for the most goals in a game by a Power player, with eight.

The high-leaping, straight-kicking Schulz — who has defied a series of serious injuries to keep playing — has booted seven bags of five or more goals for Port.

At Richmond, he did it just once.

Schulz already ranks fifth in goals kicked in the 18-year history of the Power.

Only Tredrea (549 goals), Stuart Dew (245), Brett Ebert (240) and Peter Burgoyne (193) are ahead of him.

His accuracy has been a strength. Schulz has the second-best strike rate in the league since he joined Port, with 70.7 per cent of his scoring shots being goals.

Only Richmond’s Aaron Edwards (75.6 per cent) has been more accurate among players to have had 100 or more scoring shots since 2010.

This year Schulz has booted a superb 43.10 at 81 per cent accuracy.

He is on track to smash his previous career-high goals tally of 49 last year.

“I’ve been lucky enough to be on the end of a few (kicks) this year and as a forward it’s my job to kick goals,’’ said Schulz, downplaying his stand-out performances and toeing the team theme coach Ken Hinkley has instilled at Alberton.

“It’s been nice to kick so many but I wouldn’t be able to do it without the other boys doing their jobs so well.’’

As for his dramatic evolution after leaving Tigerland, Schulz said he just “grew up a lot as a player’’.

“I probably went along for the ride a little bit too much when I was younger and got taught a lot of lessons the hard way,’’ he said.

“But it’s made me into the player I am today and I’m very proud of the way I’ve played my footy in the second half of my career. I’ve got minimum standards I set for myself and I get filthy if I don’t reach them.’’

The proof is in the pudding.