Brent Daniels lacks height but is a huge star for GWS Giants ahead of Adelaide Crows clash
Pocket rocket Brent Daniels is a shining example of why anyone who’s told ‘you’re too small to make it’ should ignore such nonsense.
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Pocket rocket Brent Daniels is a shining example of why anyone who’s told ‘you’re too small to make it’ should ignore such nonsense.
At 170cm (touching 5ft 7ins in old money) the Giants small forward is a whisker short of being the AFL’s smallest star. He is edged out by Caleb Daniel of the Western Bulldogs (168cm) and if any opponents reading this think height jokes will unsettle him, the statistics show you’re wasting your time.
The 20-year-old has played every game so far in 2019 and clocked up season’s-best figures in last weekend’s thrashing of Gold Coast Suns — earning praise from head coach Leon Cameron in the process.
Daniels is ranked third in total goal assists and fifth in goal assists per game in the competition.
So while the towering units of Jeremy Cameron, Jeremy Finlayson and Harry Himmelberg have been menacing defences, the club’s attacking excellence is also due in no small part to 170cm Daniels.
As he prepares to line up against Adelaide Crows this weekend, Daniels is now focused on sharpening his already impressive skills further.
“I’ve been pretty happy to play all the games so far,” he told The Saturday Telegraph. “My goal in pre-season was to play as many games as possible. I’ve been really clean and composed when I’ve had the ball. To go to the next level for me is kicking a few more goals, being a bit more composed around the goal.”
Daniels clearly has a sense of humour when it comes to the question of height. A glance at his ‘pocket profile’ piece on the Giants official website reveals ‘stilts’ to be the best gift he’s ever received and the one thing that scares him is ‘tall people.’
“It’s pretty common around the club, a few jokes about my height but I tend to take the piss out of myself a bit now so it’s all good,” he said.
“My old man in particular told me that height doesn’t matter, the only thing that matters is your best effort. That’s what I’ve brought with me my whole career. So, early days was a little bit ‘you’re probably too small’; but I thought ‘stuff it’ I’ll just bring my best effort and see where it gets me. That’s how I looked at it. I looked at it less of a disadvantage, more of an advantage as there’s not many small blokes in the competition and I’ve got less blokes to compete with.
“Plus in AFL footy the ball’s probably on the deck more than in the air and I think the deck is a bit of a strength of mine.
“I hope there are kids out there who’ll think ‘he’s small, I’m small and if he can do it, I can do it’”.
On Saturday night he will bid help the Giants extend their winning run to four in a row.
“We know it’s going to be a massive challenge at Adelaide Oval,” he said. “We’re always looking for ways to improve and we’re never satisfied. That’s how we look at it.”
Originally published as Brent Daniels lacks height but is a huge star for GWS Giants ahead of Adelaide Crows clash
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