John Worsfold has praised Brendon Goddard for the way the Essendon Captain has stepped up to the leadership mantle so far this season.
Goddard was named Bombers skipper just weeks after 12 of his most experienced and best credentialed teammates were sidelined for the season.
But his leadership of a diverse playing group has been one of the features throughout the early stages of the year.
“I think he’s really adapted well to it and stepped up to it and was prepared to take on some of the challenges that leadership in this situation was going to throw at him,” Worsfold said.
“He’s very clear in what he thinks about the game and where we’re at and he’s living his own personal values which tie into what we’re all about.
“I don’t think it has been hard for him but he has been conscious of doing a good job.”
Worsfold is managing a playing list that includes around 20 players that were either drafted to the Club in late November, or signed early in the new year.
Melbourne has this weekend opted to rest number four draft pick Clayton Oliver, while Geelong has ‘managed’ Corey Enright and Lachie Henderson over the last fortnight.
Worsfold said he’s keeping an eye on how his first year players, like Darcy Parish who has played every game so far, and veterans are coping with the physical requirements of an AFL season.
“We’re monitoring his (Parish) workloads, for sure,” he said.
“For us, we’ve got quite a lot of players in a similar boat – whether it be a James Kelly and monitoring what he’s stepped up to.
“That’s on our radar in terms of managing those guys throughout the whole year.”
Worsfold said Jayden Laverde underwent surgery on his injured shoulder during the week and will be sidelined for the next six to eight weeks.
The Bombers meet Collingwood on Monday in the annual Anzac Day clash.
The Magpies enter the match looking to rebound after two straight defeats.
Worsfold said the Bombers are preparing for the Magpies best.
"Our focus is on our preparation," he said.
"I absolutely believe that you want to play every team at their absolute best otherwise you never really know where you're at.
"Regardless of what the external talk is, we know Collingwood are a talented team who are going to make it very tough for us on Monday."
