A dodgy shoulder isn’t the only thing suspect about Port Adelaide forward Todd Marshall, according to some AFL pundits.

Some commentators have been openly questioning Marshall’s spot in Port’s side for Friday night’s preliminary final against Richmond.

Marshall, a 198cm-tall forward, has kicked only two goals and taken 10 marks in his past five games.

He hurt his right shoulder when landing awkwardly in Port’s qualifying final against Geelong when he gathered just three disposals.

And in 13 games this season, he’s kicked 11 goals while recording more than 10 disposals only twice.

But Power coach Ken Hinkley says criticism of Marshall and his lean statistics is misguided, guaranteeing the 22-year-old will play against Richmond.

“Output from numbers only is one thing,” Hinkley told reporters on Thursday.

“You have got to value the whole thing and for us we value what Todd brings amazingly for our team.”

Marshall, a tall foil for spearhead Charlie Dixon, performs a selfless team role which went beyond mere stats, Hinkley said.

“There’s so many times where you just need to be in the right spot that helps other people – and that is what you don’t see and the stats don’t purely tell you,” he said.

“They don’t tell you exactly what is going on in the game style that we’re trying to achieve.

“Todd is an incredibly important part of that game style … Todd is a really fast thinking footballer and I think that goes unnoticed sometimes.”