From experienced heads to new pups, Bulldogs assistant coach Daniel Pratt has spoken proudly about the character of his defensive line.

“A good bunch of blokes.” 

With a year under his belt at Mission Whitten Oval, Bulldogs assistant coach Daniel Pratt doesn’t need much encouragement to offer simple but sincere praise of the players he’s working with.

Despite some external doubts, the Dogs’ backline became a solid unit in which players thrived in 2024, rewarding those willing to put in the hard yards and extra work to develop their game. 

Pratt was quick to acknowledge foundations built by former coach Rohan Smith as well as the impact of more experienced heads like Bailey Dale, Liam Jones, Taylor Durea and Jason Johannisen.

At the other end of the spectrum are the young Dogs looking to make a name for themselves.

Fans would have enjoyed seeing the development of the likes of James O’Donnell, Nick Coffield, Buku Khamis and Joel Freijah to name just a handful of the emerging backline talent.

Extremely fresh in his football journey, there is another player who will be looking for his first opportunity in 2025: draftee Lachie Jaques.

Taken with pick 29 in the 2024 Telstra AFL Draft, the rebounding defender has impressed Pratt in his first few months at the Kennel.

“He’s a really good kid. He wants to learn,” Pratt said. 

“He’s really diligent with his work as well. He’s working closely with Alex Johnson and he wants to get better every day.

“The example that some of the older guys set, like Jonesy for example, really feeds down to those younger guys.” 

Lachy Bramble is another player who has taken notable strides forward in his football journey. 

The former Hawk’s footy IQ was on display across his first year in the red, white and blue as he cemented himself as a key part of the Club’s hard-working backline. 

Putting in the hard work across his first year at Mission Whitten Oval, the 26-year-old’s efforts were formally acknowledged with the ‘Most Improved Player’ award at the 2024 Charles Sutton Medal. 

“For him, to do what he did from pretty much the pre-season camp through to Round 1 was a phenomenal effort and performance from him,” said Pratt of Bramble.

“Firstly, to get into the team and then to build his game up was really good.

“He’s really likeable, he works hard, he listens, he chats through what he wants to work on and understands his game really well.“ 

As the pre-season continues to build, the defenders are once again picking up the rhythm they had established under Pratt in his first year as assistant coach at the Club. 

At a personal level, it was a significant year for the incoming coach, whose efforts were recognised by his peers across the league in being named the AFL Coaches’ Association ‘Assistant Coach of the Year’.

Pratt was humble in his acknowledgment of the award and, while thrilled to receive it, was quick to share credit and maintains his focus has always been on playing his role in developing the Club’s players.

“There are so many good coaches in the competition,” he said. “We all have the same ambition and that’s to make players better. 

“To get recognised as an individual amongst so many different people, it’s great. But I do think about all of the other people who do all the hard work as well around here in particular. 

“We’ve all got the same goal in mind which is to help these young blokes.”