AFL great urges Dogs to switch Naughton back as current mix ?can?t win finals?

[bornadog]

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The Western Bulldogs are ?wasting? Aaron Naughton?s talent in the forward line, according to dual premiership Kangaroo David King, who implored Luke Beveridge to switch the star key position player into defence.

The Dogs were convincingly defeated in a 45-point loss to Melbourne to open their season, with Aaron Naughton booting only one goal from six disposals and one mark.

Originally drafted as a defender, Naughton has flourished as a forward, kicking 44, 51 and 47 goals respectively over the last three seasons.

However speaking on Fox Footy?s The First Crack, King believes the Dogs more urgently need Naughton down back, particularly given Sam Darcy can come into the senior side to fill the key forward void.

?I don?t know if I know a greater waste of talent in the forward half ? that?s a marquee player in our competition ? that should be playing centre half back,? King said on the program.

?I?ve said this for two or three years, I think he?s All-Australian caliber. They lack an intercept marker down back. Liam Jones is a fantastic intercept player, but he had to go to (Bayley) Fritsch, so he?s the next layer back.

?They need a Naughton down there. They?ve got Darcy in the twos, he can play that (forward) role, so why not utilise all the magnets and weaponry you?ve got and spread them evenly across the field.?

King highlighted how the Dogs against Melbourne only kicked to Naughton twice instead 50, saying ?he had to outmark five guys.?

Also pointing to Beveridge?s side?s inability to get intercepts in the defensive half ? and use it to counter punch ? King thinks the Dogs ?have to look at? moving Naughton back for the betterment of the team.

?Again only 59 intercepts (against Melbourne) ? and they were bottom four in the competition last year,? King said of the Dogs.

?If you can?t win the ball back in the game in 2024, you can?t win. You can?t win big finals and you won?t be there in September in any meaningful way.

?So they?ve got a decision to make ? do they stay stubborn with this all charge forward mentality they?ve got at the moment? Or do they accept what everyone else can see??

Dual All-Australian Leigh Montagana concurred, arguing the emergence of Jamarra Ugle-Hagan, who kicked 2.3 against the Demons, as the focal up forward gives Beveridge more flexibility to tinker with his mix.

?To support that argument, Jamarra is now their No. 1 man (up forward). He is growing and we spoke about it last year ? he was on the verge,? Montagna said on The First Crack.

?I thought he was very, very good (against Melbourne). I think they can build around Jamarra and make him the No. 1 man.?

[bornadog]

Over the past few years, King has said plays forward, then changes his mind and says move backline.

[JanLorMill]

Over the past few years, King has said plays forward, then changes his mind and says move backline.

Thats not right. He has been advocating for a while now.
Our defence was terrible yesterday, Coffield or Khamis was never going to cover Brown(who was isn't very good anyway). Jones was great in the first half but he is 33. I understand JOD was suppose to play and now injured but we need someone there next week.
Too much weight was given to the 2 practice matches against the same poor side.

[Danjul]

To my mind Naughton finished 2023 poorly. He was unable to contribute much when we needed him in the last dozen games. In the games against Hawthorn and west coast he got a total of 1 goal. The club desperately needed a champion to stand up and help soothe open wounds. Not Naughton. Only Geelong did anything to give us some relief by fielding a reserves team.

But I don?t blame Naughton. I blame the game plan (too focused on minding grass), the selections (out of form players) and the inflexibility of those driving things.

Naughton only scares quality opponents when he has space and too often the two competing sides combine to deprive him of that.

If he is not generating a million dollars worth of goals put him where he might deprive the opposition of them.

May couldn?t have run with Naughton on Sunday. We made sure he didn?t have to.

If we had swapped Naughton and Khamis the result might have been significantly better, at least not seen as a continuation of last season.

[Sedat]

You could mount an argument for him to go back and be right, and you could also mount an argument for him to stay forward and also be right.

Talking about individuals doesn't really interest me - I'm personally more interested in how the entire team is defending the entire ground when we don't have the ball, and what structures/tactics we have in place to win it back from the opposition? Do we have elite kickers to be able to work around the press, like Sydney have done the last 2 weeks against top 4 opposition?

Having a strong clearance/stoppage game is not enough - even Carlton have acknowledged this. Next month of footy will be very interesting.

[mjp]

Talking about individuals doesn't really interest me...

...I'm sort of with you. But the people do influence the plan and the plan influences the people.

Hit up option covered? Well - going short to a 1-v-1 is dumb...don't do that - kick it in.
Big pack in the goal-square (or wherever the 'long' option is)...kicking it to a group of players is also dumb. Show some composure and find a hit-up.

I'm a lot more relaxed about everything today.

[azabob]

...
I'm a lot more relaxed about everything today.

How come?

Are you relaxed because you are confident moving forward we are going to improve?

Or you have accepted we are what we are and the season will be an up and down one?

[jeemak]

How come?

Are you relaxed because you are confident moving forward we are going to improve?

Or you have accepted we are what we are and the season will be an up and down one?

He's probably not into panicking over stuff he can't control.

[jeemak]

What if Naughton signed on the dotted line on the proviso the club would play him forward?

[DOG GOD]

What if Naughton signed on the dotted line on the proviso the club would play him forward?

And that wouldn’t surprise me at all.
For me Naughton is a rockstar fwd who is a flat track bully against shit opposition, and hardly gets a touch against the BEST defenders. Sometimes I think he worries more about his head band than his game.

[Grantysghost]

What if Naughton signed on the dotted line on the proviso the club would play him forward?

Then we are dickheads.

[JanLorMill]

What if Naughton signed on the dotted line on the proviso the club would play him forward?

How or why can any club guarantee that or why should a player expect that? More of the tail wagging the dog?

[Mofra]

What if Naughton signed on the dotted line on the proviso the club would play him forward?

Then I seriously doubt we would have allowed him to be our Vice Captain.

I think he should be a swingman. May was killing him, so move him up the ground a bit. Get the ball in his hands a couple of times. It's what small and medium sized forwards do if they've had a quiet half. A few minutes at the end of a quarter if he's had a quiet one is hardly throwing all of our plans out given we played Buks at CHB, who is shorter than Bont.

[EasternWest]

What if Naughton signed on the dotted line on the proviso the club would play him forward?

I would told him to walk. Tail doesn't wag the dog.

[Countrydog5]

I truly understand those who want to keep him as a forward due to his success there in the last few years, but a part of me dreams of him playing CHB.

I can imagine Bevo telling him to back himself to mark every time, and him using his aerial marking ability, strength and agility to be involved at ground level also. He's fantastic at ground level pressure. I honestly see him as a Darcy Moore type who would rarely get beaten in a marking contest.

Unfortunately I think the ship has sailed though. Bevo has been too stubborn to at least consider it when required the last few years, and now Naughton truly believes he's a rockstar key forward only. I could see us asking him to move back really rubbing him the wrong way, and that's a decision we'll now have to live with for years to come.