Nick Daicos has received criticism for instances of demanding the footy in poor positions amid a wider and more pertinent concern around the Pies’ “unhealthy” overreliance on their superstar.
Fox Footy’s On the Couch revealed vision of Daicos last Saturday night — running towards the boundary line with his direct opponent in close proximity — demanding the ball from his brother, then openly venting his frustration after not receiving the handball.
The piece of play was from Collingwood’s 27-point loss to Brisbane, in which Daicos — the leading contender for this year’s Brownlow Medal — had a team-high 29 disposals and game-high nine score involvements.
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But four-time Hawthorn premiership star Jordan Lewis on Monday night suggested it was a poor “habit” creeping into the superstar’s game.
“You’re starting to see this maybe creep into his (Daicos’) game a little bit, where you’re calling for the ball in areas where you might not be as dangerous,” he began On the Couch.
“I think anyone who realises when Josh Daicos gets the ball, he can be OK, but it’s probably (Nick’s) after attitude — ‘why didn’t you give it to me?’
“So, when you see that in a player … I could’ve shown 10 (examples). It’s a habit. (There’s) a balance between wanting the ball and wanting the ball in the wrong spots.”
Over the past six rounds, Daicos has been involved in a whopping 43 per cent of Collingwood’s scores, which ranks number one in the competition.
But in his overarching contention, Lewis posed the idea that there’s an overreliance on the Brownlow Medal candidate at Collingwood.
“There’s got to be a balance in it,” he continued. “So, 43 per cent of (scores), the ball goes through Nick — that’s obviously a big tick.
“But you can’t be calling for the ball, and you can’t be expected to give the ball to a player, no matter how dangerous they are, when they’re not in a dangerous position.”
Asked by triple Richmond premiership star Jack Riewoldt — who called the 43 per cent involvement figure “unhealthy” — if he thought it was a bad habit that has developed because of him being tagged, Lewis said: “No, I don’t think so.
“I think he’s been really good in terms of mixing up his positions. He’s the Brownlow Medal favourite for a reason … he may need some help in that area.
“I think, if you look at their list — and we brought up Dan Houston last week to (ask) where is he best suited, and he hasn’t found his absolute niche on the half-backline — is he one of the players, in terms of centre-forward distributors, that you might try and expose to that midfield group?”
Last Saturday night against the Lions, Houston managed just 11 disposals for 217 metres gained and four clangers, with his standing in Craig McRae’s side questioned.
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