Zaine Cordy’s Bulldogs roots run deep, through his father, brother and two uncles, who all played for the Club.

Cordy won a Premiership as a forward with just 11 games to his name, and with the retirements of Bob Murphy and Matthew Boyd at the end of 2017, the 21-year-old took on a senior role in the Dogs’ defensive line.

“As a team we were probably under pressure and I thought that Zaine, as a young key defender, was one player in particular who stood up and played the game the right way with his physical presence, his courage and his intercept ability,” assistant coach Steven King told westernbulldogs.com.au.

“Zaine made massive in-roads, especially early when the Club was under a bit of pressure (through injuries), by having really solid form and playing some great footy.”

Cordy has also grown in a physical sense - he has added about eight kilos since arriving at the Club in the 2014 National Draft - giving him greater confidence against the competition’s bigger forwards.

“Zaine’s a real competitor. Throughout the year he obviously had to play on some opponents who are bigger than him.  At times we threw him forward as well, and he just competes,” King said. 

“Whatever task we’ve got for Zaine, he’s happy to apply himself.  The way he attacks his footy, he’s always up for a contest, and plays in an aggressive manner.  It certainly gives his teammates a lot of confidence and they really grow from that as well.”

Although Cordy won a premiership as a forward, King believes his best position is still down back.

“Hopefully we can keep him down back for the majority of the season.  He’s so important for us there,” he said.

“If he can hold down that key position post for us, it gives us a lot of flexibility because he does use the ball so well.  It gives us a lot of offense as well.”