Toby Wooller has more strings to his bow than he showed in a 38 disposal-12 mark debut for the Bombers’ Goulburn Valley league season opener against Rochester at Moon Oval on Saturday.
He is also a goalkicker and will be relied on to hit the scoreboard during the season as the Bombers look to include the mid-field among its avenues to goal.
Kyabram dominated the second half of the match and Wooller set a high standard for 2023 with a pair of 12-disposal quarters and a game-high 10 groundball gets.
But Wooller is also a goalkicker, despite not hitting the scoreboard on Saturday.
Goalkicking was a feature of the former Oakleigh Chargers captain’s game in his two seasons in the elite underage competition.
He kicked 43 goals in 16 games during his top-age season with the Chargers and kicked 27 goals from 19 games in his last season with Brisbane Lions’ NEAFL team.
Last season he kicked 10 goals from eight games with Carlton in the VFL.
Wooller’s 108 GVL Data Points paled against the return of ruckman Zac Norris, who not only had the most clearances of the match (with 11), but also had the most contested possessions (20).
In the second half alone he had seven clearances and combined with Kaine Herbert (six clerances) to account for almost half of Kyabram’s win from ball-ups and throw ins.
Herbert, the Bombers’ leading ball winner last season, had 35 possessions and was running on top of the ground when most players were finding the going tough.
He had 14 disposals in the last quarter and ended the game with almost double the amount of score involvements (nine) than any other player on the ground.
He, Wooller and another recruit, Reuben Rode, accounted for 22 of the Bombers 55 inside-50 entries.
Fourteen of Rode’s 23 touches came in the second half and he provided an important link through the mid-field, picking up 10 marks as the Bombers controlled the ball before sending it inside forward 50.
Kyabram dominated the rucks, winning hit outs 36-13 and won the clearances 45-16 (15-3 centre clearances). The Bombers also won the tackle count by 20 (58-38) with the usual suspects, Josh Dillon and Herbert, topping that count with seven.