Tom Liberatore back in AFL frame after season-best second half against Essendon in VFL
TOM Liberatore has roared into AFL selection contention for the Western Bulldogs after finally turning around his form slump in the VFL.
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TOM Liberatore has roared into selection contention for the Western Bulldogs after finally turning around his form slump in the VFL.
The Dogs premiership star snapped out of his funk with his best half of the season in Friday’s VFL win over Essendon.
In the second half he amassed 13 possessions, five clearances and seven tackles in a 104-ranking point half that Champion Data rated the fourth-best half of any player in this VFL season.
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He finished with only 21 possessions but it was good enough for 132 ranking points as he helped haul Footscray over the line.
As coach Luke Beveridge attempts to “reignite the flame” against Melbourne, he now must decide whether Liberatore has been consistent enough to be recalled.
Beveridge has drawn heat for his decision to stick with beanpole ruckman Tim English over the premiership star.
It saw Garry Lyon say the decision to pick Liberatore last week was a “no-brainer”, but Beveridge stuck to his guns.
The club has also been urged to stop basking in last year’s premiership by former coach Terry Wallace, who says the club is suffering a premiership hangover.
Captain Bob Murphy said Liberatore was moving closer to selection.
“He was a lot better last week so his name would be pretty closer to selection this week,’’ he said.
“He is such a competitor. Is his game complete at the moment. It probably hasn't been.”
Liberatore had been urged to go back and work on his two-way running and defensive spread but had previously battled to hit top stride.
Tagged in his first two VFL games, he returned with modest totals of 19 possessions (85 ranking points) and 21 ranking points (80 ranking points)
It saw Beveridge jousting with a journalist before Friday’s clash about whether Liberatore was ready to return.
“Do you know much about how he has been playing?” he said of the Sydney-based journalist.
Tom Boyd is ready to return from a back spasm that kept him out last week and Dale Morris (syndesmosis) needs to get through training to be passed fit.
Lukas Webb also has consistent VFL form that will soon see him rewarded.
Travis Cloke will also feel the selection heat after a modest game against Sydney and with Boyd ready to return.
Wallace said on SEN Radio this week the club needed to stop basking in last year’s glories.
“I’m not convinced all the people at the Whitten Oval are focusing on what they should be focusing on,” he said.
“It’s fine for fans to be looking back at the video of last year but it is not fine for those who work within the football club ranks. And I’m talking from the president all the way through to the senior coaching group to the players because I think this group is living in the past.
“And I get how big of a deal it was for them, but this is a professional industry that we are in.”
“When you’ve got people at the football club saying ‘this was my moment in the sun’ … well, get out of the sun,” Wallace said.
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