'Drove me insane': The toughest key defenders Dixon faced

Charlie Dixon has named the toughest key defenders he faced across his AFL career

Booting 357 goals across 221 games for Gold Coast and Port Adelaide between 2011 and 2024, Dixon matched up on some of the game's best key backs of the modern era, averaging over a goal per game across an excellent career at the top level.

But which of his direct opponents caused Dixon the most trouble?

"Towards the end it was definitely Alex Pearce and Harris Andrews, obviously," Dixon said on SEN SA's The Run Home.

"Alex Rance, I felt like I was sort of at my peak and I was playing good footy. He was always really hard, and I always loved playing on the best, and wanted to play on the best. If you had a good game on someone like Alex Rance, it means you had a really good game.

"The big guys like Harris Andrews - the same as Alex Pearce - who can move really well and wants the footy (were always the most difficult match-ups).

"I'm all about the key defender who wants the footy as well. Not the bloke who sits in your back pocket and doesn't want the footy, just runs around.

"(Daniel) Talia was probably more on the side where he'd sit in your back pocket and would not let you get anywhere near it. That's always hard."

Dixon also listed off his top 10 current defenders as of Round 6, 2026.

10. Josh Battle (Hawthorn)

9. Cal Wilkie (St Kilda)

8. Mark Keane (Adelaide)

7. Tom Barrass (Hawthorn)

"He is a pretty handy defender!"

6. Jacob Weitering (Carlton)

"That's why he is where he is at the moment. He should normally be higher.

"A couple of times I felt like he ducked me and I had Liam Jones come to me. He hadn't lost a one-on-one in the COVID year... I think he didn't want me! I took real offence to that!

"That was the game where I could barely hit my foot and Robbie Gray kicked the goal after the siren to win that one."

5. Sam Collins (Gold Coast)

"I think he has been tough, he's quite an aggressive defender as well."

4. Aliir Aliir (Port Adelaide)

"I did (have to man him) a lot at training, and then at Sydney as well. He is athletic, he can move - he was tough."

3. Sam Taylor (GWS Giants)

"The way he plays, it seems like he fights tooth and nail not to get beat. You just love to see that sort of stuff - not when he's playing on you!"

2. Harris Andrews (Brisbane)

1. Alex Pearce (Fremantle)

"He has gone forward and kicked goals and won games - for a key back to be versatile like that is quite rare.

"I felt like he would play in front of me, and anyone who played in front of me, I would have a really good time, but he came back with such strength and force that he would always just get a fingertip in. It would drive me insane!

"He's bigger than me, and his arms seem like they're longer. They hang past his knees! The ball would hit the ground, and I used to think I was actually quite good below my knees, so that's hwere I had another advantage.

"The ball would hit the ground and he'd pick it up and he'd be gone. I'd be standing there like, 'ugh, here comes the runner! I know mate, I know'."