He's only played 42 AFL games, but Aaron Naughton has become a household name among footy fans in the just two seasons, not to mention a cause of headaches for opposition coaches.
Taken at pick nine by the Bulldogs in the 2017 draft, Naughton slotted seamlessly into the Dogs' defence in his first season at the Kennel, dragging in 77 marks in his 18 games and displaying a maturity that belied his 18 years.
In the 2019 pre-season, coach Luke Beveridge gave Naughton a run in attack, and it paid immediate scoreboard dividends for the Bulldogs.
When the premiership season proper began, Naughton further validated the move forward by taking six marks and kicking three goals in the Dogs' opening-round win over Sydney at the newly renamed Marvel Stadium.
Naughton was solid if not spectacular over the next few weeks, but on this day last year, he played a game that sent waves throughout the AFL community. And he did so against the powerhouse club of the league.
The Bulldogs went into their Round 7 match against Richmond on the back of four consecutive losses, while the Tigers had crushed 2018 Preliminary Finalists Melbourne a week earlier to establish a 4-2 record.
With those divergent form lines, few gave the Dogs a chance against the Yellow and Black.
There was little in the first term of the match that gave cause for pundits to change their minds, Richmond kicking three goals to two to establish a narrow quarter-time lead.
But in the second quarter, the Bulldogs — and Aaron Naughton in particular — turned those preconceived notions upside down.
As the Dogs started to gain control in the midfield, Naughton become a focal point in front of goal, marking everything in sight. He took no fewer than three contested marks for the quarter, including one of the marks of the year, and matched that with three goals, establishing a presence not felt in the Bulldogs forward line for some time.
The Bulldogs took a 13-point advantage into the long break, by no means a match-winning lead, but Naughton's second-quarter dominance had clearly lifted and inspired the rest of his teammates, and the Dogs went to another level in the third quarter, booting six goals to three.
Naughton continued to take marks, not just in the forward line, but also well up the ground, demonstrating a strong work ethic and a powerful football engine.
Heading into the final quarter with a 31-point lead, the Bulldogs and Naughton went on with the job, extending the margin to 47 points at the final siren, by which stage the man fans were now calling the ‘AstroNaught’ had taken nine contesting marks, just one short of Wayne Carey's all-time mark of 10, and equal with such names as Matthew Richardson and Barry Hall — illustrious company indeed!
Naughton's scintillating display — in just his 25th AFL match — caught the umpires' eyes, too. They awarded him three Brownlow votes, with Marcus Bontempelli's three-goal, 27-possession game earning him two. Ball magnet Jack Macrae, who along with Caleb Daniel picked up 36 touches, collected the umpires' third vote.
The big win not only helped reset the Bulldogs' season, it gave notice to the footy world of Aaron Naughton, a potential star in the making.
Naughton's game drew praise from Tiger coach Damian Hardwick, who acknowledged his dominant performance with the comment, "Jesus Christ would have struggled on him."
Bulldog fans are itching to see their heroes return to the field when footy returns. They are keen to see the wizardry of Bontempelli, the dash of Jason Johannisen and cleverness of Caleb Daniel.
But perhaps most of all, they cannot wait to see the 'AstroNaught' take flight once more.
