Liam Picken
Guernsey number: 42
2013 games: 20
Career games: 107
2013 goals: 1
Career goals: 30
 

Season in short:

The tough-nut midfield stopper put in some fine performances in the early part of the season. At his typical tenacious best, Picken frustrated opposition midfielders while gathering plenty of contested ball from aerial and ground contests. In addition to containing the likes of Cyril Rioli, Jeff Garlett and Tom Mitchell, Picken averaged 22 disposals of his own. His 27 touches, five inside-50s and a goal against Carlton in round 20 provided a memorable highlight.

Stat that mattered:

At the end of round 21 only two shut down players had kept their direct opponent (of 30 minutes +) to under 16 touches on average per 100 minutes – Picken and North Melbourne’s Taylor Hine. The Bulldogs hard nut’s feat was even more impressive as he accumulated over 15 possessions himself over the same time period. From 18 games he had 12 run with assignments, claiming the scalps of some of the competition’s most damaging players.

What they said:

““I actually trained a lot with Picko (Liam Picken) – tried to mimic the way he trains, how professional he is. That is one of the things I identified at the start of the pre-season, that I want to train harder and more consistently and so I just latched onto him.”

- Christian Howard ahead of round two

Pre-season focus:

The 27-year-old has a reputation for being at the forefront of the Club in setting training standards – exhibiting the same dedication out on the track and in the gym as he does on game day.  There is little doubt he will alter that approach this preseason. 

In the news: