Greater Western Sydney tall Jonathon Patton reckons there’ll be few AFL teams that can match the height of the Giants’ imposing multi-pronged forward line this season.
And it’s an edge, he believes, capable of ending his side’s run of consecutive wooden spoons.
Coach Leon Cameron on Wednesday confirmed Patton (194cm) will line up alongside fellow big men – All Australian full-forward Jeremy Cameron (197cm) and No.1 draft pick Tom Boyd (201cm) – in a promising set-up for the club in 2014.
Spearhead Cameron was responsible for more than a quarter of the Giants’ lowly 221 goals last season, making him the third-highest goalkicker of 2013.
But with Patton returning from a knee reconstruction and the addition of Boyd’s skill and frame, scoring goals might now come a lot easier for Leon Cameron’s men.
“I think it’s going to work well,” Patton told AAP at the renaming of his home ground to Spotless Stadium.
“I think it’s going to bring some confidence to the rest of the boys.
“I don’t know if there’s going to be too many teams that will have the height to match up on three guys.
“We’ll see how it goes, but I have a good feeling about it.
“If it works, then good luck to our opposition.”
Patton, who has only just rejoined his teammates for match simulation training, said the trio had spent some time “building synergy” and getting to know each other’s strengths and weaknesses before their first pre-season hit out at next Wednesday’s intra-club match.
“I think once we get that – maybe a year, two years, or how ever long it takes – we could be pretty dangerous,” he added.
Jeremy Cameron agreed it would take time to get comfortable with the line-up but was confident they won’t be a liability up front.
“Leon’s been really big on our defensive side, not just attack,” he told AAP.
“So we’re looking forward – especially myself – to getting a lot more tackles and holding the ball in our forward line, because everyone knows the more time it spends in the forward 50 the more chance you have to win games.”