Geelong great Cameron Ling says Cats must favour youth over Jack Steven and Josh Jenkins
Geelong has welcomed Jack Steven and Josh Jenkins through the door this off-season at virtually no cost. But premiership captain Cameron Ling says there might yet be one if the Cats err with selection.
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Retired Geelong premiership captain Cameron Ling says the Cats must favour youth over mature-aged recruits Josh Jenkins and Jack Steven should it ever become a “lineball” decision at selection.
Jenkins and Steven will press for senior berths next season after joining Geelong from Adelaide and St Kilda respectively.
But Ling has called on the Cats to be mindful of the development of emerging forward Esava Ratugolea and midfielders including Brandon Parfitt, Quinton Narkle and Charlie Constanble.
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“He (Jenkins) doesn’t just come straight in and play,” Ling said.
“If he forces his way in and gets back to that form of a couple of years ago … you cannot argue with his form absolutely, and he adds an element to the Cats that perhaps elevates them to where they got to get to.
“If it ever becomes line ball … it’s got to go to Sav.”
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With Tom Hawkins the bedrock in attack, Jenkins must topple incumbent Ratugolea as the second key position to bring the ball to ground for the four small and medium-sized forwards.
“It’s got to be that,” Ling told Geelong’s To The Final Bell podcast.
“Which leaves Jenkins with the challenge of either playing as a ruckman or fighting his way in and becoming a better option than Sav or Hawk, which certainly isn’t the case right now.”
Originally published as Geelong great Cameron Ling says Cats must favour youth over Jack Steven and Josh Jenkins