COLIN Sylvia is adamant his best football is still to come.
And, based on his second half of the 2012 season - and his season high 34 disposals against the Adelaide Crows at the MCG last round - it’s a fair enough judgment.
“I’m a big believer, and I’m confident that my best football is still definitely ahead of me,” he told melbournefc.com.au.
“I still think I have a lot to prove, and I’d love to show all the critics out there … it’s about being consistent and I think I’ve showed some good glimpses of that in the second half of the season.
“I need to do it at a higher level and perform consistently, and that’s the challenge for me personally.”
Sylvia, who has spent a greater time in the midfield during the second half of the season, believes that it’s in this area that he can fulfill his considerable talent.
“I definitely think my best football is through the midfield, and it always has been,” he said.
“I know I’ve spent some time up forward and kicked a few goals here and there, but I think midfield is my strength and where I can offer my best attributes to the team.
“But I enjoy spending a little bit of time up forward as well.”
Sylvia has been one of Melbourne’s genuine positives since the mid-season bye, after enduring a tough start to the season.
The 26 year-old entered 2012 having to serve a one-match suspension, imposed by the club, following an off-field incident last October, when he was due to represent Australia in the International Rules series. He was subsequently left out of the squad.
Then, on the cusp of the premiership season, Sylvia suffered two spinal fractures during Melbourne’s final NAB Cup match against Port Adelaide at AAMI Stadium in mid-March.
His absence on the sidelines didn’t see him return until round five, when he started as a substitute against St Kilda. Sylvia played four matches in a row, before being left out for Melbourne’s round nine clash against Carlton.
But since Melbourne’s second half of the season started against Greater Western Sydney in round 13, Sylvia has been one of the red and blue’s most consistent.
“It was a very disappointing start to the year for me when I broke my back, and then it took me a while to get going until the mid-season break,” he said.
“My footy has been pretty consistent, defensively and offensively, but defensively has been an area I’ve needed to work on during my career … it’s been an area I’ve always been scrutinised in, so I’ve really focused on it in the second half of the year.
“I’ve really wanted to finish off the season in a consistent manner … it’s probably been the most consistent I’ve been, and probably more than 2010. But in 2010, I had more breakout games in that second half of the season.”
Against the Adelaide Crows at the MCG last Sunday, Sylvia produced his best match for 2012, notching up a season high 34 disposals.
“During the week, I spoke with Brian Royal, the midfield coach, about the key areas I wanted to work on in my game,” he said.
“I joined in a lot more when we had the footy, and that was a key focus. Every time we had the football, I tried to get involved as much as I could.
“I tried to keep it pretty simple out there, and it was good to get a few kicks, but the question is now - can I back it up again for the last game of the year?”
With one match remaining for the season, Sylvia is ready for the almighty challenge of tackling Fremantle at Patersons Stadium on Saturday.
“I reckon it’s a good opportunity for the group to travel and to practice our routine on the road,” he said.
“It’s another opportunity for us getting prepared for next season. Who knows, we could be playing a final on the road?
“It’s a good opportunity for the young group to travel and get away and put in a really competitive performance and finish the season on a positive note.”
Post-season, Sylvia is heading overseas before embarking on his 10th AFL season.
“I’ll hang around until the best and fairest [on September 13], but to be honest, I’m keen to keep rolling the legs over for the first couple of weeks,” he said.
“I’ll enjoy a couple of weeks off and then I’m heading over to Mexico for a few days with my girlfriend, and her sister and boyfriend as well. We’re also heading to LA (Los Angeles).
“I’m looking forward to the mental break, but it’s so important that you maintain your fitness and come back in really good nick for this pre-season.”
Overall, when reflecting on 2012, Sylvia said it was a trying season. But he remains determined to add to his two finals appearances, both played in 2006 - hopefully as early as next year.
“We’ve had six years of footy which haven’t been very successful. This is my ninth year and it is tough, because it’s another year gone for me without some success,” he said.
“So it starts this pre-season with everyone coming back in good nick and ready to go for a big year next year. We’re definitely not going to be happy with mediocrity and winning just four or five games.
“But the club’s in really good hands, and we’ve turned around a lot of things internally - it is our time to start turning things around now and really start being contenders for finals.”
And, based on his second half of the 2012 season - and his season high 34 disposals against the Adelaide Crows at the MCG last round - it’s a fair enough judgment.
“I’m a big believer, and I’m confident that my best football is still definitely ahead of me,” he told melbournefc.com.au.
“I still think I have a lot to prove, and I’d love to show all the critics out there … it’s about being consistent and I think I’ve showed some good glimpses of that in the second half of the season.
“I need to do it at a higher level and perform consistently, and that’s the challenge for me personally.”
Sylvia, who has spent a greater time in the midfield during the second half of the season, believes that it’s in this area that he can fulfill his considerable talent.
“I definitely think my best football is through the midfield, and it always has been,” he said.
“I know I’ve spent some time up forward and kicked a few goals here and there, but I think midfield is my strength and where I can offer my best attributes to the team.
“But I enjoy spending a little bit of time up forward as well.”
Sylvia has been one of Melbourne’s genuine positives since the mid-season bye, after enduring a tough start to the season.
The 26 year-old entered 2012 having to serve a one-match suspension, imposed by the club, following an off-field incident last October, when he was due to represent Australia in the International Rules series. He was subsequently left out of the squad.
Then, on the cusp of the premiership season, Sylvia suffered two spinal fractures during Melbourne’s final NAB Cup match against Port Adelaide at AAMI Stadium in mid-March.
His absence on the sidelines didn’t see him return until round five, when he started as a substitute against St Kilda. Sylvia played four matches in a row, before being left out for Melbourne’s round nine clash against Carlton.
But since Melbourne’s second half of the season started against Greater Western Sydney in round 13, Sylvia has been one of the red and blue’s most consistent.
“It was a very disappointing start to the year for me when I broke my back, and then it took me a while to get going until the mid-season break,” he said.
“My footy has been pretty consistent, defensively and offensively, but defensively has been an area I’ve needed to work on during my career … it’s been an area I’ve always been scrutinised in, so I’ve really focused on it in the second half of the year.
“I’ve really wanted to finish off the season in a consistent manner … it’s probably been the most consistent I’ve been, and probably more than 2010. But in 2010, I had more breakout games in that second half of the season.”
Against the Adelaide Crows at the MCG last Sunday, Sylvia produced his best match for 2012, notching up a season high 34 disposals.
“During the week, I spoke with Brian Royal, the midfield coach, about the key areas I wanted to work on in my game,” he said.
“I joined in a lot more when we had the footy, and that was a key focus. Every time we had the football, I tried to get involved as much as I could.
“I tried to keep it pretty simple out there, and it was good to get a few kicks, but the question is now - can I back it up again for the last game of the year?”
With one match remaining for the season, Sylvia is ready for the almighty challenge of tackling Fremantle at Patersons Stadium on Saturday.
“I reckon it’s a good opportunity for the group to travel and to practice our routine on the road,” he said.
“It’s another opportunity for us getting prepared for next season. Who knows, we could be playing a final on the road?
“It’s a good opportunity for the young group to travel and get away and put in a really competitive performance and finish the season on a positive note.”
Post-season, Sylvia is heading overseas before embarking on his 10th AFL season.
“I’ll hang around until the best and fairest [on September 13], but to be honest, I’m keen to keep rolling the legs over for the first couple of weeks,” he said.
“I’ll enjoy a couple of weeks off and then I’m heading over to Mexico for a few days with my girlfriend, and her sister and boyfriend as well. We’re also heading to LA (Los Angeles).
“I’m looking forward to the mental break, but it’s so important that you maintain your fitness and come back in really good nick for this pre-season.”
Overall, when reflecting on 2012, Sylvia said it was a trying season. But he remains determined to add to his two finals appearances, both played in 2006 - hopefully as early as next year.
“We’ve had six years of footy which haven’t been very successful. This is my ninth year and it is tough, because it’s another year gone for me without some success,” he said.
“So it starts this pre-season with everyone coming back in good nick and ready to go for a big year next year. We’re definitely not going to be happy with mediocrity and winning just four or five games.
“But the club’s in really good hands, and we’ve turned around a lot of things internally - it is our time to start turning things around now and really start being contenders for finals.”
