Terry Wallace’s quantum leap player and why it has the Dogs in such good shape

Terry Wallace has been taken by what Sam Darcy has produced for the Western Bulldogs in 2024.

The 21-year-old has become an integral part of Luke Beveridge’s side this year, playing 16 games and kicking 26 goals in his third season at the elite level.

Wallace, who coached Sam’s father Luke at the Dogs, has rated the immensely talented 208cm prospect as the player who has taken a quantum leap this season.

“I think Sam Darcy,” Wallace said on SEN Mornings when asked for his quantum leap nomination.

“You give him two years in this competition and I think he will be one of the more serious players.”

‘Plough’ is loving the combination that Darcy and fellow young gun Jamarra Ugle-Hagan (37 goals) have been able to create so early in their respective careers.

He highlighted the importance of successful clubs having quality key forwards at their disposal just as his other former club Hawthorn did during premiership eras.

“This is why I think the Bulldogs are in such good shape because you’ve got those two guys as key forwards and you think about Lance Franklin and Jarryd Roughead and the like,” he continued.

“Those two boys, Ugle-Hagan and Darcy, are going to play together for 10 years. I was fortunate enough to play with (Jason) Dunstall and (Dermott) Brereton, and it makes it very nice for a midfielder when you know what’s in front of you.

“If I’m going with my absolute knock-out-of-the-park (quantum leap player), it’s Sam Darcy.”

As for the Doggies as a whole, Wallace has been delighted with the improvement shown right throughout the team since they lost five of their first eight games.

He praised the turnaround in form of the forward line while tipping his hat to both the defence and midfield courtesy of the introduction of new personnel.

“As the season has gone on and they’ve been able to balance everything up, boy oh boy, it’s looking as strong as you’ve ever seen,” he said further.

“There’s not really any part of it that hasn’t improved. You look at the forward line with Darcy and Ugle-Hagan, who have come on really quickly in the back half of the year.

“Rhylee West being able to add, with Cody Weightman, a bit more spark and flair.

“Bringing Liam Jones back to the club has been brilliant for them because they did struggle with defenders and now they’ve got Rory Lobb playing well, that’s really strong.

“The fact they didn’t have that right for a time allowed Buku Khamis to play quite a substantial role. Now all of a sudden he’s going from playing on the top-line key forwards to playing on the third tall. To me, that’s really been a bonus for them as well.

“In the midfield, Ed Richards has gone in there, Adam Treloar is playing his best footy. So they’ve pretty much got the whole ground covered.”

The Western Bulldogs will return to their roots for this Friday night’s clash with Melbourne, reverting to the Footscray name while wearing a 1954-inspired jumper.

They sit eighth on the ladder having won five of their last six.