The stats
AFL games: 16
Disposals per game: 10.8
Marks: 4.4
Kicks: 7.8
Tackles: 2.4
Total goals: 19
Review
Tim O’Brien played 16 senior games in 2017.
Having now played 34 career games, O’Brien took a step forward this season as his confidence grew before fans’ eyes on the big stage.
His best game of the year came in the Round 7 victory over Melbourne, where the 23-year old had 13 disposals, 10 marks (five of which were contested), three tackles and two goals to help inspire the Hawks to a gutsy three-point victory.
His average of 1.4 contested marks per game saw him take the third most contested grabs of any Hawk this season.
Towards the final fortnight of the year, O’Brien was thrust into the backline and showed his versatility by competently holding down a key defensive spot.
A word from: Adem Yze
“I was really pleased to see T.O. get so much footy into him this year.
“When he comes into the team, we obviously know he is a beautiful mark of the footy, and he gives us that option inside forward 50. He showed some really strong signs that he can be a player for us in the years to come.
“He is obviously still growing into his body and we’ll need him to put on more size so that he can compete against the big boys. But he took some giant steps this year and, even later in the year, with him being able to go down back and pinch-hit down there if needed, he didn’t look out of place down there either.
“So, I thought it was a really good development year for him and it was a really strong output from a young key position player, who we really need to grow. So, hopefully he can build on that, get some confidence out of the season and really push to become a really vital part of our forward line for the next few years.”
