St Kilda determined not to throw Max King to wolves in key forward role
St Kilda might have lost Josh Bruce during the trade period, but it has no intention of rushing his likely replacement Max King. Forwards coach Brendon Lade outlines how the Saints will get the best out of their rising star.
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St Kilda is adamant it can immediately find a way to replace Josh Bruce’s goal power after the bold decision to trade him to the Western Bulldogs.
And while forward coach Brendon Lade has raved about Max King’s speed and power he says the Saints must find a role which maximises his raw talents.
Bruce was the collateral damage in the club’s trade period, the Saints happy for him to explore his options given it gave them cap space and an early pick to use at the trade table.
In 2019 he kicked 36 goals and took 43 contested marks, a reliable and unselfish target who continually brought the ball to ground if he didn’t mark the Sherrin.
Lade said St Kilda believed it had the arsenal to compete, with Paddy Ryder a new addition and ruckman Rowan Marshall more than capable of playing forward.
What the club won’t do is sacrifice 2018’s No. 4 draft pick King in a role that sees him battered by rival defenders, keen to get the athletically gifted star on the move.
“It’s going to be a tough one, losing all those goals and what (Bruce) can do for us, but we have brought Ryder in to help with that and while Dougal Howard will play defence he will spend some time in attack too,” Lade said.
“If we can get good contribution from Marshall and Ryder and bring the ball to ground, it should cover Brucey.
“Max King is training really well and hopefully he can add to the mix. The game is all about playing to your strengths so he is not going to be doing too much wrestling.
“It’s all about movement and him getting a run and jump at it. We need to get him in a position where he can do that. It he gets a run and jump at it with his arms at full stretch, there are not many guys who will get near him.”
King’s brother Ben finished his first year at Gold Coast with 11 goals in his last five games, with Max King a higher draft pick who could have gone No. 1 if not for an ACL tear.
Lade labelled his athleticism and speed “as good as any 200-plus centimetre guy I have seen”.
“The challenge is to get his body right and his legs strong and a good pre-season base behind him. He doesn’t get fazed by too much, he is a pretty relaxed and casual guy.
“For us there is not a lot of expectation on him, he just needs to slowly build for us.”
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Josh Battle and Howard both add to St Kilda’s flexibility as swingmen, while Marshall and Ryder are comfortable in the ruck or forward.
“Ryder and Marshall will be match-up based. If we think Paddy has a better match-up we can leave him in the ruck or vice versa,” Lade said.
“Marshall’s first two years at St Kilda were as a forward but with Bruce and (Paddy) McCartin and Tim Membrey he didn’t get many looks, so for him and all the talls it’s not getting outmarked, getting their shots at goal and giving a good contest in the air. He will do that. He runs really well and he’s really combative.”