Herald Sun chief football writer Mark Robinson has anointed an unheralded Bulldog as pound-for-pound the best player in the competition.
In explaining his ranking of Bulldog terrier Luke Dahlhaus as the 26th best player in the competition for the upcoming season, Robinson referred to former coach Terry Wallace’s assessment of ex-Bulldog Brad Johnson as ‘pound for pound’ the best player that he’s seen.
“Pound for pound, I think that Luke Dahlhaus might be the best player in the comp,” Robinson told SEN Afternoons.
“For a guy who’s 63 kilograms wringing wet – he’s like (Carlton’s) Kade Simpson – he goes into cupboards with three others and gets the ball and gets it out. He’s tough.
“He’s so smart with his little knock-ons, his little handballs.
“I said to Bob (Murphy) I can’t think of a player who works so smartly in a shoebox than what Luke Dahlhaus does.
“He dives in, gets the ball, knocks it out, gets thrown around like a ragdoll, (but) he gets up, shakes his head and moves on.
“He’s a little bit of a grunter – he’s not possessed with a beautiful kick, he’s not a great mark. All he does is just fight and go and go and go and go.
“He was quintessentially the Bulldogs and how they won it last year – just really tough.”
The 24-year-old has enjoyed back-to-back strong seasons in 2015 and 2016, averaging in excess of 25 disposals, five tackles, three inside-50s and three clearances per game.