After stints on a wing, in the midfield and as a tagger, versatile Crow Brent Reilly appears to have found a home in his preferred position at half-back.
An attacking onballer for most of his career, Reilly transformed himself into a negating player in the lead-up to the 2010 season in a bid to guarantee his place in Adelaide’s best 22.
The 28-year-old started as a tagger again last season, but was shifted to defence when caretaker coach Mark Bickley took the reins following Neil Craig’s resignation in July.
Reilly has remained at half-back under new coach Brenton Sanderson, impressing in limited game time in round one of the NAB Cup and collecting an equal game-high 25 possessions in Adelaide’s comfortable win over Collingwood last weekend.
“Every time I play across half-back, I really enjoy it,” Reilly told afc.com.au.
“I played there when ‘Craigy’ first took over (at the end of 2004).
“Our midfield at the moment is very good.
“I’ve had my time in there, but I think I play my best footy down back.
“As long as I defend first, I can then try to get the ball, use it well and set some play up for the guys further up the ground.
“I’m looking forward to this year … I think I can be a help for the team this year in that spot.”
Sanderson said he’d been impressed by Reilly’s ability to read the play and act as a guide to his younger teammates.
“’Radar’ (Reilly) has picked up the adjustments to the way we defend really quickly and he’s been driving that through the rest of the playing group,” Sanderson said.
“In the vision we show the players of training, almost all the defensive edits feature Radar.
“He’s almost an on-field coach in our new defensive system.
“He’s one of those guys that just gets it.
“We say that a bit about a few of the guys, but he understands where he has to be and where his teammates have to be.
“I know he made a couple of errors last week, but he generally has excellent foot skills.
“He’s a great decision maker and can play tall and small, so we consider him the perfect player for us to play that high half-back role.”
In spite of his positive start to 2012, Reilly knows he’ll have to maintain his good form to keep his spot, with young players, including Matt Jaensch - a substitute for the NAB Cup Grand Final against West Coast this week -, Brodie Martin and draftees Mitch Grigg and Luke Brown all queuing up for a place in the Club’s back six.
“It’s pretty tight for spots, but it’s healthy for the Club,” Reilly said.
“We didn’t have that internal competition in the previous two years and, maybe, there were guys who took it (selection) for granted.
“This year, if you look at training it’s very competitive and you have to train and play well to get in the team.”
A veteran of 11 years and 156 games, Reilly is one of the most experienced players at West Lakes.
Although not a member of Adelaide’s official leadership group, Reilly said he’d taken on the added responsibility of mentoring the Club’s younger players.
“When you’ve played as many games of footy as I have now, you have to be a leader around the footy club and nurture the younger boys,” he said.
“It’s a role that I took a while to develop in, but I feel like I’m at a stage now where I’m comfortable to say what I want.
“When ‘Danger’ (Patrick Dangerfield) first came over I helped him out a bit.
“I really enjoy the way he’s developed and the way he’s playing this year is unbelievable, so I don’t think he needs the help anymore.
“Even seeing the way guys like Rory Sloane and ‘VB’ (Nathan van Berlo) have developed.
“They are both a few years younger than me, so I’ve watched them grow and it’s great to see them going as well as they are.
“I love Brad Crouch - he’s a great kid - and Sam Kerridge is going to be a great player too, but you can’t pick one or two players.
“As senior players, it’s our job to look after them all and that’s why it’s important we share the load.”
Click here to purchase tickets to the 2012 NAB Cup Grand Final at AAMI Stadium on Saturday night
