STATS IMPOSSIBLE TO FATHOM BUT JAKE’S STILL A RISING STAR
THE text messages flowed through from shocked mates of Jake Riccardi over the weekend.
In his second AFL game, the Greater Western Sydney forward had logged 12 disposals, taken nine marks and kicked four goals in a sterling performance against Fremantle.
The coaches awarded Riccardi six votes, leaving him as the third-best player on the ground behind teammates Lachie Whitfield (10 votes) and Jeremy Cameron (eight).
Yet Champion Data’s AFL Player Ratings had the 20-year-old as the 44th and last-ranked player in what the statisticians have labelled an “anomaly”. It was a source of amusement not only for Riccardi’s mates but also the Giants.
Football operations boss Jason McCartney mentioned the seemingly unusual statistic as he announced to the GWS players on Monday that Riccardi had been awarded the Round 14 NAB AFL Rising Star nomination.
“He made mention that in the AFL Player Ratings I was the lastranked on the ground but said it doesn’t matter because I got the Rising Star,” Riccardi said.
“One of my mates sent it to me. I don’t really know how it (AFL Player Ratings) works, but it was pretty funny. I was having a bit of a laugh about it with a few mates.”
SuperCoach ranking points had Riccardi as the 10th-rated player on the ground with 94 but the AFL Player Ratings take in a greater range of statistics that harshly penalise things like dropped marks and backwards kicks and do not as greatly reward easy goals that players are “expected” to kick.
But for Riccardi, there are other statistics that matter more. He is now averaging three goals a game in the AFL — albeit from a small sample size — since being selected by the Giants with pick 51 in last year’s draft. Twice overlooked in the 2017 and 2018 drafts,
Riccardi had been studying economics and finance at RMIT University and working part-time at his father’s sports store.
But the AFL dream remained and became a reality after a 39-goal season with Werribee in the VFL, when he played under Port Adelaide premiership coach Mark Williams and former Richmond forward Nick Daffy.
“Those two sped me up a fair bit,” Riccardi said. “They are both very good coaches and they helped me get to the standard I needed to be to play VFL. After having a good year there I was ready and thought, ‘My time’s now’.”
About eight other clubs showed interest in Riccardi last year, but working alongside Jeremy Cameron in the Giants’ forward line has proven the perfect fit.