Following a hard-fought 19-point loss to Hawthorn in Launceston, McCartney marvelled at Griffen’s ability and desire – as did everyone who witnessed the 26-year-old’s 37-possession, two goal performance.
“He’s quite clearly our most dynamic player, he’s nearly our most courageous player, he’s nearly our toughest player and he’s certainly our most consistent player,” McCartney said.
“He wants to play in a winning team, too.
“He’s at an interesting stage in his career. His first four or five years he was able to play in a lot of wins because he was the young fella and the older boys did most of the work. The role is reversed and he’s thriving on it.
“He’s just emerging into a fantastic leader as well. He’s emerged. ‘Emerging’ is probably selling it short. He’s just leading brilliantly as well.”
Aside from Griffen’s stand out performance, McCartney was also satisfied with his side’s desire in and around the contest, particularly their ability to stop Hawthorn’s run and carry – and to compete fiercely at all times.
“We can put pressure on the opposition when the game stops and get the ball going our way,” he said.
“The next step in the evolution of our team and the people who are just learning the game, when there’s a five minute patch (and) you’ve got to defend your backside off… we’ll do that. It means you mightn’t score for a while, but they don’t score.
“I’m enjoying seeing and working with a team that doesn’t lie down and wants to keep fighting.”
In a sour note for the Dogs, running defender Brett Goodes left the field late in the piece with a suspected broken forearm, however, the full extent of his injury will not be known until further scans have been conducted.
