R8 NAB Rising Star
May 20th 2008 08:29
Adelaide Crow Kurt Tippett has won this week's NAB Rising Star Nomination after the youngster's impressive performance on the weekend against Melbourne.
The 21-year-old booted four goals in a dominant display up front, taking his goal tally to 13 this season, and is starting to feel comfortable playing football.
"Every week that you play, you feel more confident and you build a relationship with your teammates and a bit of an understanding," Tippett told afl.com.au.
"That goes a long way in making you feel comfortable, and helps your performance as well."
Tippett was originally a basketballer and didn't play his first game of AFL football until he was 17. He knew that sport was going to be his chosen field, but which one he was unsure about.
"Growing up, I loved the thought of playing professional sport, and I got to 17 and I'd played a lot of basketball and couldn't really see a career path in it," he said.
"I couldn't see the steps to take to play professional basketball, and I was having a lot of fun playing football with my friends.
"There was a clear pathway there and you always knew what you had to do to make it happen."
He joins a growing list of talented footballers, including Bachar Houli (Essendon), Josh Hill (Western Bulldogs), Rhys Palmer (Fremantle), Kieren Jack (Sydney), Ben McKinley (West Coast), Cyril Rioli (Hawthorn) and Austin Wonaeamirri (Melbourne) as contenders for this year's prize.
The 21-year-old booted four goals in a dominant display up front, taking his goal tally to 13 this season, and is starting to feel comfortable playing football.
"Every week that you play, you feel more confident and you build a relationship with your teammates and a bit of an understanding," Tippett told afl.com.au.
"That goes a long way in making you feel comfortable, and helps your performance as well."
Tippett was originally a basketballer and didn't play his first game of AFL football until he was 17. He knew that sport was going to be his chosen field, but which one he was unsure about.
"Growing up, I loved the thought of playing professional sport, and I got to 17 and I'd played a lot of basketball and couldn't really see a career path in it," he said.
"I couldn't see the steps to take to play professional basketball, and I was having a lot of fun playing football with my friends.
"There was a clear pathway there and you always knew what you had to do to make it happen."
He joins a growing list of talented footballers, including Bachar Houli (Essendon), Josh Hill (Western Bulldogs), Rhys Palmer (Fremantle), Kieren Jack (Sydney), Ben McKinley (West Coast), Cyril Rioli (Hawthorn) and Austin Wonaeamirri (Melbourne) as contenders for this year's prize.
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