Rory Atkins admits he didn’t see his Goal of the Year contender go through the big sticks at Adelaide Oval on Saturday night.
Atkins was on the receiving end of a handball from fellow young Crow Riley Knight during the second quarter of the game against the Brisbane Lions.
Tucked up against the boundary line in the south-eastern pocket, the wingman quickly dropped the ball onto his reliable left foot and coolly slotted a brilliant goal. Atkins played down the remarkable kick, which has received a weekly nomination for Goal of the Year.
“I just turned around and threw it on my boot,” Atkins said after the game.
“I lost it in the lights, but then I heard the crowd go up so I figured it had gone through.”
It was the first of two great goals from Atkins in Adelaide’s 87-point win. The skilful 21-year-old’s second was a long-range goal in the third quarter after playing on from a mark on the 50m line.
“I just got the ball out the back. It was alright,” he said of his second goal.
Atkins has impressed in five AFL games this season.
The third-year Crow, who started as the substitute in his first two matches, has averaged 20 possessions and a goal in his last three outings.
“The more I play at the level, the more comfortable I feel out there,” he said.
“We’re in some good form at the moment. We just need to keep on our winning track and, hopefully, that sees us playing in September.”
Atkins is auctioning off the boots he wore against the Lions for a good cause.
He’s hoping to raise money for a young girl, Madi Beard, and her family. Madi, 13, suffers from Neurofibromatosis Type 1 and also Scoliosis.
The Beards travel from Mildura to Adelaide for Madi’s treatment. When in Adelaide, the family stays at Ronald McDonald House which is where they met Atkins, who regularly spends time with seriously ill children involved with the charity.
The promising wingman has donated the pair of boots he kicked two brilliant goals in during the Adelaide’s big win over the Brisbane Lions on Saturday night. The boots are complete with the yellow laces the players wore in support of the Cancer Council’s ‘Paint the Town Yellow’ cause. All proceeds of the auction will support the Beard family.
