After spending his first two seasons in attack, a shift to the backline saw Patrick Ambrose produce some strong performances in 2016.
Defensive Line Coach Mark Harvey initiated the move, enthused by Ambrose’s aerobic capacity, discipline and toughness.
Ambrose played junior football with Ashburton and Xavier College before linking with Coburg in the VFL.
He then reunited with his schoolmates at Old Xaverians in the Victorian Amateur Football Association.
After playing with Essendon in the VFL Ambrose was picked up in the 2013 Rookie Draft.
Then Coach Mark Thompson took an instant liking to Ambrose who made his debut in round one and kicked three goals against Hawthorn in his second match.
He finished his first season with 13 goals and kicked six last year.
Ambrose has now played 50 games and looked at home as a defender in 2016.
“When I arrived at the Club, Patty was renowned as a tough, hard running forward. However his natural athleticism, inner hunger to compete and selfless nature has seen him slot in seamlessly into our backline,” Essendon Coach John Worsfold said.
“Patty’s a powerful and competitive beast, he’s got a huge engine which has seen him opposing some of the competitions most dangerous forwards, including Jack Riewoldt, Matthew Pavlich and Jeremy Cameron.
“Patty is a heart and soul player who works hard to get everything out of himself. We’re really excited about where we are heading as a Club and to have Patty part of this journey next year is fantastic.”
Ambrose kept Riewoldt goalless when he lined up on the Tigers spearhead in round 17.
The 25 year old finished just outside the top ten in the best and fairest but came home strongly with the coaches recognising his strong last month of the season.
Ambrose’s key match-ups
Matthew Pavlich (Fremantle) round 11 – 1 goal (after Ambrose was moved onto him)
Jeremy Cameron (GWS) round 13 – 2 goals
Nick Riewoldt (St Kilda) round 16 – 1 goal
Jack Riewoldt (Richmond) round 17 – 0 goals
Tom Lynch (Adelaide) round 19 – 0 goals
Tom Lynch (Gold Coast) round 21 – 2 goals
