Dogs warned for captaincy calls

BROWNLOW Medallist Adam Cooney has urged the Western Bulldogs not to burden star midfielder Marcus Bontempelli with the captaincy too soon, saying Easton Wood should be Bob Murphy’s successor.

As the Bulldogs use the offseason investigating what went wrong in their premiership defence, they will also need to settle on a new captain heading into the 2018 season.

Wood, who led the club superbly in Murphy’s absence in 2016 and held the premiership cup aloft, is favoured to win the role, though Bontempelli will have his admirers and is considered a captain-in-waiting.

Cooney said the Bulldogs are well placed in terms of leadership options, but stressed that Bontempelli should be allowed to “enjoy his footy” for a few more years without the added burden of the captaincy.

“Let him win his Brownlow first, let him win another flag first,” Cooney said of Bontempelli.

“There is a lot of off-field stuff you need to do (as captain) ... and he doesn’t need to do that (yet).”

Cooney said the best scenario would be have a few bridging seasons with Wood.