The inclusion of ruckman Will Minson into the Western Bulldogs should bring greater proactivity around the stoppages in Saturday’s Elimination Final against the Crows, according to assistant coach Steven King.
Minson returns for his first match since round 15, and King believes the ruckman will provide a combative presence to go head-to-head against Adelaide big man Sam Jacobs.
“Sam Jacobs is one of the premier ruckman for the last couple of years now.
“He’s got great craft, their midfield runs pretty deep, they rely heavily on their mids to get great drive out of the middle.
“For us, we’ve done a great job all year with our mids of being able to combat them, but having Will in there as well is going to help us be a bit more proactive around the footy… so hopefully it will make our mids grow a bit.”
Minson joins Bob Murphy, Matthew Boyd, Dale Morris, Jarrad Grant, Easton Wood and Shane Biggs as the only Bulldogs running out on Saturday night with finals experience.
King said the big man’s 188 games of AFL experience was only one factor in bringing the 2013 All Australian ruckman into the side.
“Will’s been training strongly, his form’s been really solid and he’s been there before.
“We think he’s a really good match up for Sam Jacobs and we just know he’s going to give us a contest.
“Will’s got finals experience, he’s been playing really good footy in the VFL.
“With Roughie’s (Jordan Roughead) unfortunate injury last week, Will’s put his hand up and he’s ready to go so we’ve got complete confidence in Will in this type of game, he’s going to be really important for us.”
Not only is King confident in Minson’s abilities, but he said the whole team are well-placed for the challenge of finals football.
Although full of youth, King says the Bulldogs have been guided well by their experienced teammates.
“All year they’ve been super impressive about the way they attacked the year, attacked multiple roles and different challenges Bevo’s thrown at them, they’ve just stepped up.
“They’re a really good bunch of young men our players, they’re probably lucky they’ve got the guidance of some older senior players that have been there before and their influence on the group this year.”
