Port Adelaide champion Kane Cornes is keeping a “watch on” on two AFL captains.
Cornes says Essendon skipper Dyson Heppell is not having a big enough influence on games, using his side’s Anzac Day loss to Collingwood as an example.
Since moving to defence, Heppell’s output has declined. The experienced Bomber collected 19 disposals on Anzac Day, managing just two possessions in the final quarter.
The opposing captain on the day, Collingwood’s Scott Pendlebury, finished with 25 disposals at 100 per cent efficiency - proving instrumental in the end result late in the match.
“What do you expect from your captain, I’ve got a couple of captains on watch,” Cornes said on SEN Breakfast.
“Essendon are down by a point at three-quarter time in a massive game and you look back at some of the great Essendon captain’s of yesteryear and what James Hird would’ve done.
“This is unfair because he’s one of the best to have ever done it, but what would James Hird of done in the last quarter of that Anzac Day game when his team is down by a point – I reckon he would’ve found a way to influence.
“Pendlebury went on ball and found a way to influence the game, Dyson Heppel is either physically incapable of doing that or they’re playing him in a position that he’s not suited to doing that.
“He probably had four kicked on him from a 10-gamer, maybe with the injuries that he’s had and the age and with what they’re asking him to do, maybe he’s physically he’s giving absolutely everything he’s got but physically he’s incapable of influencing games.
“I expect my captain to influence in some way and I’m not seeing that from Dyson at the moment.”
Richmond co-captain Toby Nankervis has given away the most free kicks in the competition so far, prompting Cornes to question the ruckman’s discipline.
“Nankervis is another one that I’m watching as well, most free kicks in the competition against – I want influence from my captain – I don’t want the oxygen sucked out of the game by a captain giving away a sloppy free kick,” Cornes added.
“It’s just a one to understand how important that role is.”
Nankervis has given away 17 free kicks from six games this year, an average of 2.8 per game.