“What a joke that criticism is”: Healy calls out Daicos critics after another starring performance
Nick Daicos is arguably the form player from the opening five rounds of season 2023, and Gerard Healy can’t understand any criticism of the 20-year-old.
Daicos hasn’t gone below 32 touches to start the season and with his incredible foot skills, has had a huge influence on Collingwood’s strong start to the year.
Last year’s Rising Star winner has seemingly got a bulletproof game, yet some niches of social media have come after Daicos for a perceived lack of contested element in his game.
But the stats suggest Collingwood’s newest superstar is as tough over the footy as any defender in the game and Healy called out the “brain-dead” critics for the bizarre take.
“I’ll give you a low light. They were hard to find on the weekend, but the critics of Nick Daicos are simply showing their total lack of understanding of the game, a brain-dead approach looking for a negative when none exists,” Healy began on SEN’s Sportsday.
“This kid is a generational talent who is a joy to watch. If you’re one of his critics, I’d stay in the shadows because I’m told that’s where you live, in the shadows of social media.
“And you say he that he doesn’t win contested footy. Well, what a joke that criticism is. Currently, he’s averaging nine contested balls per game.
“To put that into context, that’s the highest number of contested ball of any defender in the game, and this kid is in his second year.
“Last week against Brisbane, when he pushed into the middle he had 12 ground ball gets, loose ball gets, they’re contested ball and his impact on the scoreboard was superb.
“For those of you critical of Nick Daicos, you need to find another target, because you’re right off on this one.”
Against St Kilda on the weekend, Daicos enjoyed his biggest game out for the season, gathering 42 touches, eight inside 50s alongside eight rebound 50s. It was a performance that earned him 10 coaches votes and has him a comfortable leader of the AFLPA Player of the Year award.
Playing with the freedom given to him by Craig McRae, Daicos’ role primarily allows him to use his superior foot skills to great effect off the Magpies’ half-back line.
But as Healy notes, Daicos’ average of 8.8 contested possessions a game ranks him elite in the competition.
Daicos is yet to cop a hard tag for four quarters in 2023, decisions from rival coaches which have even surprised McRae.
“If I’m the opposition I would tag Nick. Yeah, I would. He is a weapon,” McRae admitted on Sunday.
“You’ve got to take something away from the opposition. I would be looking to tag him.”
He's also the current Brownlow Medal favourite.