Essendon legend Matthew Lloyd has explained why St Kilda knocked back a training session between him and emerging star forward Max King.
King, the fourth selection in the 2018 draft, has struggled with accuracy in front of goal this season, kicking 13.21 from seven games.
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After St Kilda's Round 9 loss to Geelong, where King kicked 1.5, the 20-year-old reached out to Lloyd, the Bombers great confirmed onย Sportsday.ย
โMax (King) got in touch with me after kicking 1.5 against Geelong (and reached out for help),โ Lloyd said.
Forward
Disposals
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โI said to Max that the last thing I would want him to do is a hamstring (at a private training session) so I (asked him) to go and get it ticked off by the footy club.
โWhen he went and spoke to them, they said theyโd prefer to keep it internal.
โI have no issues at all and thatโs the decision St Kilda has made.โ
"Max messaged me within 20 minutes of the game where he kicked 1.5..."@matthewlloyd18 says he was approached by out-of-form Saint Max King to help him with his goal-kicking, but St Kilda said no.#9FootyClassified | Watch @channel9 pic.twitter.com/O9gwkHYrd5
— Footy on Nine (@FootyonNine) May 31, 2021
Lloyd also said that he offered the 20-year-old some advice on his game.
โIโve said to him that there isnโt one forward or player in the game that hasnโt been through what youโre going through,โ he said.
โMax isnโt getting the ball heโd like either, so I just said to him to keep throwing ourselves at marks and going for your next shot.
โHeโs a pretty confident guy in that regard. Heโs not playing with a lot of confidence (at the moment) but he has that mindset that he wants to keep going at the moment.
โIf he misses, then so be it.โ
Throughout his time at the Saints, King has been working on his goalkicking with former Hawks forward and current assistant coach Jarryd Roughead and the head of football program David Rath.
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Speaking to theย Herald Sunย on Monday after the club vetoed the session, Saints football boss Simon Lethlean said that club wanted King to "keep it to the one source".
"I think Max was in discussions with people here and wanted to try and keep it as simple as possible" Lethlean said.
"Not be doing stuff with Rathy and Rough and then doing stuff with Lloydy here and there ... just try to keep it to the one source"
King is expected to line up in St Kilda's Round 12 clash against the Swans before a Round 13 bye, though Lloyd is confident the young forward will find his best form soon.
Max King is 20, with the pressure of carrying an entire forward line behind him. Key forwards are very rarely elite at 20, even in a good side
— Gordon (@beetgordon_) May 29, 2021
โIโve said to other players, not just Max: โIโve had six bad ones in a row and you lay a great tackle and then you do a smother and then suddenly a ball starts bouncing your way when it didnโt bounce your way (previously)โ. Itโs amazing,โ Lloyd said.
โYou get told early in your career โthings are between the earsโ and you donโt believe them. But itโs amazing how much is between the ears"
