Plenty to like about Goldy
AFL ruckman Todd Goldstein may have wrapped up his fifth year in the league with a monstering at the hands of West Coast’s dynamic ruck duo Nic Naitanui and Dean Cox in an elimination final, but at the end of a rollercoaster season there is plenty to like about the AFL’s only Jewish footballer and his rising Kangaroos.
AFL ruckman Todd Goldstein may have wrapped up his fifth year in the league with a monstering at the hands of West Coast’s dynamic ruck duo Nic Naitanui and Dean Cox in an elimination final, but at the end of a rollercoaster season there is plenty to like about the AFL’s only Jewish footballer and his rising Kangaroos.
“We did improve in a lot of areas,” Goldstein told The AJN.
“You’ve got to be happy with the way the second half of the season ended up panning out. The group as a whole took some steps forward … [and] it was pleasing to get the opportunity in finals.”
The season finished on a sour note when the Kangaroos lost to West Coast by 96 points, but Goldstein believes the club learnt valuable lessons that it can take into next year.
“Unfortunately things didn’t quite pan out the way we expected,” Goldstein said.
“But I think we can still take a bit out of it, and now at least we’ve all had a feel and a taste for finals footy and know what we’ve got to do to get back there.”
After a 2011 campaign that many thought should have earned Goldstein an All-Australian nod, 2012 was a less consistent affair, but the 24-year-old takes confidence from some flashes of brilliant form this year.
“I was reasonably happy,” Goldstein said.
“But it was just that consistency, which I was able to find quite well last year, just deserted me a little bit throughout [this] year.
“I’ve got a lot of areas to improve on and get better in, so it gives me a good focus and a real goal for next year to get that consistency back.”
With fellow ruckman Hamish McIntosh suffering a serious knee injury, Goldstein was forced to shoulder the load for much of the season, and it certainly took its toll.
“I think it definitely told the tale at the end [of the season] where I probably wasn’t as fit as I would have liked,” Goldstein admitted.
“I’d love to have [Hamish] in the side, we get on really well and we do a lot of work together.”
But Goldstein will now utilise the off-season to re-energise and prepare for 2013 the best he can, as well as spend some quality time with his family.
“It’s now just about spending time with the family,” Goldstein said.
“I hardly saw them the last couple of weeks … so I’ll spend a lot of time with my girls and give my partner a bit of a break, and catch up with friends, which I haven’t been able to do for six months. So I think it will be a nice relaxing time.”
ASHLEY SHENKER
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