Waikerie forward Daniel Nobes kicks 130 goals to be crowned SA country football’s super-boot
DANIEL Nobes rarely trains with his club and says his pre-match ritual involves limiting his Friday night beers. But these hurdles have not prevented the Waikerie super-boot from kicking the most goals in SA country football.
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DANIEL Nobes rarely trains with his club and says his pre-match ritual involves limiting his Friday night beers.
But these hurdles have not prevented the Waikerie super-boot from kicking the most goals in SA country football.
Nobes booted a career-best 130 majors for the Magpies during their unbeaten run to the Riverland Football League premiership last season.
The sharpshooting forward was shocked by the breakout campaign in his first year at the club.
“At the start of the year I never thought I could kick that many, so it was a surprisingly good season,” Nobes, 23, said.
“Some days I would kick the first two (goals) and think ‘right, I’m really on today’.
“But in other games, I’d get my first goal in the second quarter and I’d go, ‘what’s going on today?’
“I don’t even have a goalkicking routine, I just line up for goal, take my time and hope it goes through the big sticks.”
Nobes, of Woodcroft, followed his mate, Matt Spencely, to Waikerie after playing his entire senior career in the Southern Football League.
He was one of four Magpies players living in Adelaide who made the 360km round trip to the Riverland town for home matches last year. Between games, the metropolitan-based quartet conducted their own training sessions, working on endurance, sprints and, not surprisingly, goalkicking.
Nobes, who notched majors in all 18 minor round and finals games, said better pre-match preparation had helped him flourish at the club which produced Crows champion Mark Ricciuto.
“I try not to get on the p*** the night before (matches), that’s probably the main thing,” the Morphett Vale junior said.
“Probably 30 per cent (of goals) are my effort, but I’d have to say the rest of it is down to my team-mates because I can’t kick goals without my team-mates around me.
“I knew that Waikerie was pretty strong, but didn’t realise how good a team we had and that everyone was so young.”
Big hauls in front of the sticks are nothing new for Nobes, who bagged 109 goals for Christies Beach in 2016.
The Adelaide City Council apprentice horticulturist kicked a career-best 15 majors against Berri last season and reached double figures on another two occasions.
Nobes, who stands 203cm and wears size 17 boots, said his seven-goal effort in the Magpies’ 22-point grand final triumph over Loxton North was his highlight.
“I’d never played in a grand final, so the week leading into it I just couldn’t stop thinking about it,” said Nobes, who helped secure the club’s first back-to-back flags since 1993-94.
“I was so focused I didn’t even talk to my teammates that day because I wanted to perform in the big dance.
“I was pretty proud of myself and it was good fun afterwards, because the boys up there can definitely party.
“Hopefully we can make it three in a row for the club this season. I can’t see any reason why we can’t go undefeated again.”