Lion learns finer points from rivals
AFL: Brisbane Lions defender Harris Andrews has attributed his rich vein of form to the lessons learned from carefully scrutinising the game’s elite.
Andrews has been among Brisbane’s best in a largely frustrating season for the Lions, thrusting himself firmly into the conversation for All Australian selection.
Jonathan Brown (twice), Tom Rockliff and Dayne Zorko are the only Lions to have achieved the feat since 2004.
Andrews continued his stellar season with a best-onground performance for the Lions in their 22-point loss to Essendon on Sunday, producing the highest-rating game (30.5 points) by a key defender since the AFL player ratings were established in 2010.
Andrews admitted yesterday that he had been closely studying elite defenders such as Richmond’s Alex Rance and West Coast’s Jeremey McGovern in a bid to improve his game.
“I spend a lot of time watching their footage, trying to pick up little things from their games. They have been performing at such a high level for the last few years, you’d be silly not to watch,” he said.
Andrews has remarkably similar statistics this season to four-time All Australian Rance. Both have taken 78 marks and average 17 disposals per game, but Andrews says the thought of All Australian selection has not entered his mind.
“I’m not really thinking about that stuff, it takes care of itself. You have guys like Alex Rance and Jeremy McGovern absolutely killing it at the top level,” he said.
“I guess to be thought of in that company is pretty exciting, but at the same time I am just looking to get results and improve day to day.”