Western Bulldogs coach Brendan McCartney believes the soft playing surface at Simonds Stadium has contributed to Brownlow Medallist Adam Cooney finding form against Geelong on Saturday.
Cooney picked up 28 touches and a goal, the best return he has managed in a season in which he has been restricted to 13 matches by his chronic knee injury which is expected to dog him throughout his career.
McCartney said it was good that Cooney was able to come back and produce some good football late in the season, after missing a patch of six matches before returning as the substitute last weekend against Sydney.
“The ground’s good for him,” McCartney said of the Geelong arena.
“It’s a great ground to play on, it’s got the right give in it, whereas some grounds can be a little bit hard and taxing on knee joints.”
The Bulldogs play the majority of their matches at the firmer Etihad Stadium.
But McCartney steered clear of directly criticising that venue when asked if he felt playing there so often made it harder for Cooney to manage his knee troubles.
“I just think that today it was a lush deck,” the Bulldogs coach said.
“It’s only a personal belief, but I think having AFL grounds in a dead state where there’s give, people shouldn’t feel their legs too much when they’re playing.”