Aaron Naughton has even more responsibility in the Western Bulldogs forward line this year with Jamarra Ugle-Hagan absent and Rory Lobb already transitioned to defence. He has been criticised in the media for being a one-trick player, but that trick is jumping over packs and clunking big marks to score goals, which is a neat trick if you can pull it off. He will rely on others to set him up to perform that trick, and if the Bulldogs are to return to finals and maybe win one, they will be relying on their full forward to kick big bags. The rise of Sam Darcy should only help him.
Aaron Naughton has even more responsibility in the Western Bulldogs forward line this year with Jamarra Ugle-Hagan absent and Rory Lobb already transitioned to defence. He has been criticised in the media for being a one-trick player, but that trick is jumping over packs and clunking big marks to score goals, which is a neat trick if you can pull it off. He will rely on others to set him up to perform that trick, and if the Bulldogs are to return to finals and maybe win one, they will be relying on their full forward to kick big bags. The rise of Sam Darcy should only help him.
Aaron Naughton has spent some time in the injury room this season and has taken a back seat to Jamarra Ugle-Hagan as the most important part of the Western Bulldogs' forward structure. He has also come under fire for being one-dimensional, as defenders who can figure out how to stop his run and jump for contested grabs can pretty much lock him out of contributing. However, there are some grounds at which Naughton's one-wood is of primary importance... and windy, cold Ballarat is prime among those. His output will be crucial to today's result.
Asymptotic rise from Naughton
The swing from defence to attack for Aaron Naughton in 2019 was a coaching masterstroke, with the elite marker establishing himself as one of the game's most promising young talents. He lead the club for contested marks and led the Tigers' Tom J. Lynch in that stat. The only hiccup in his otherwise-stellar campaign was the knee injury he sustained in September which required surgery. Naughton resumed full training in January. We'll need to wait for the preseason to see how the injection of Josh Bruce affects his game. Based on past campaigns Bruce will sit deep and Naughton will play higher, which could very well mean an increase in output if he can get involved in more link-up play across half forward. A watchlist candidate who could explode.
From A to nought
A former top ten pick, Aaron Naughton wasted little time to announce himself to the football public. Debuting against the Giants in round 1, the key defender played the first eight fixtures before an untimely ankle injury led to a month on the sidelines. The youngster returned post-bye and continued to flourish, averaging six intercept touches and two intercept marks per game, after an unsuccessful switch forward for three weeks. Entrusted with roles on the best opposition key forwards, the Bulldog will continue to be relied upon for the upcoming campaign. The departure of Marcus Adams furthers the reliance on Naughton and his performance will be significant to the club’s competitiveness. Playing as a key defender or as an ill-suited target in attack, he will hold little value to the fantasy world.
Naughton is not a zero
The Bulldogs took the best key defender in the draft in Aaron Naughton, who showed he can compete with adult bodies by moving from Colts to the WAFL seniors in the second half of 2017 after a solid Championships for WA. He is noted for strong hands when grabbing intercept marks. Naughton looks like he will be an excellent player for the Bulldogs. There will be some hype about him from salary cap competitions hoping he will be the next Jake Lever. However, Lever himself took three years to break out and still isn't a consistent fantasy performer, so look elsewhere in draft leagues for 2018.
