Dylan Roberton spent his time on the sidelines after a heart scare helping St Kilda’s coaches

St Kilda believes Dylan Roberton’s time spent coaching last year while battling a career-threatening heart issue will add to his value as a defender this year.

St Kilda believes Dylan Roberton’s time spent coaching last year while battling a career-threatening heart issue will add to his value as a defender this year.

Roberton, who collapsed suddenly during a game against Geelong last year, took part in his first match simulation last week.

St Kilda defensive coach Henry Playfair said Roberton had been medically cleared to play and was back to full fitness.

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He will be a virtual recruit alongside Dan Hannebery, who is already strengthening his case for a senior leadership position this year.

Already a defensive general, Roberton wants to eventually move into coaching and spent time alongside Alan Richardson on match day’s last year building on his expertise in that field.

“He is critical to us with his leadership and direction,” Playfair said.

Dylan Roberton is taken from the field after collapsing.

“He is such a smart footballer and he steers the direction of the players around him. He puts guys in a good spot, he is a bit like a coach on the field.

“He spent a fair bit of time with us last year and was in the coaches box and now he gets to implement that as a player. We have a young squad, and with less use of runners, players have to organise more. He will be a massive part of that.

“He took until Christmas to get run back into his legs and he participated in a scratch match last week.”

The Saints are keen to continue developing leadership after the loss of Nick Riewoldt and Leigh Montagna, with former Swan Hannebery already stepping up.

Set to return to full training next week after a pre-Christmas hamstring scare, Playfair did not rule him out of a senior leadership position.

Jarryn Geary was the club’s captain in 2018 but at the very least Hannebery will provide strong support for the defender.

“He has been massive for the group. He is a very vocal guy and is just a seasoned pro who knows what it takes with the standards he sets at training and his willingness to drive the group,” Playfair said.

“(The leadership voting) will play out in the next month and he is an obvious one but there are no guarantees in that space.

Dan Hannebery has a laugh at St Kilda training. Picture: Ian Currie

“How the boys see him and whether they think he is one of the guys to lead us forward will be an interesting process.“

The Saints continue to tinker with kick-in strategies as well as their defensive make-up.

Nick Coffield is looking at more time in the midfield, while youngster Josh Battle could be used forward and back in a James Sicily-like swingman role.

“He has a lot of attributes that suit as a key defender,” Playfair said.

“He has a massive tank, he’s a nice kick, he is competitive and he’s slowly getting a handle on the positioning side of the game.

“We have likened him a bit to a Sicily from the Hawks or Sam Reid at Sydney or even Gunston from the Hawks where we are open to whether he plays both ends or can establish himself as a defender.”