THE FLEXIBILITY Jared Rivers affords Geelong's team cannot be underestimated.

Not only will the Cats rely on Rivers to lock down tall and small opponents this season, he may need to do so without the comfort of star backman Harry Taylor dropping off and taking intercept marks.

That's because Taylor, the All Australian centre half-back from 2013, might find himself stationed up forward at certain points in games this season.

And Rivers says he is ready to assume the extra responsibility, if it's thrown his way.

"Harry pretty much dictates where he wants to play," Rivers told AFL.com.au after the NAB Challenge game against his former club Melbourne last week.

"If we need Harry to go forward then I'm looking forward to stepping up."

The Cats trialled Taylor as a forward for much of the second half in their game against the Demons.

The versatile tall kicked two goals and took six marks against the Demons.

He wasn't supremely dominant, by any stretch. But Rivers' ability to do the job on Melbourne key forward Jesse Hogan, allowed Taylor to become involved and capitalise on Geelong's scoring run – when it booted four goals in six minutes in the third quarter.

The season-ending knee injury to Nathan Vardy heightens the chances of Taylor spending more time in attack, according to Geelong backline coach Dale Amos.

"Harry's a great weapon for us up forward, because he's such a good contested mark," Amos told AFL.com.au.

"The ability to have him play as a forward and the ability for someone like Jared to fill the void and play as another key defender certainly helps us have that luxury."

Taylor himself says he doesn’t expect the Cats to rush him into the forward line any more than previous years.

After arriving at Geelong in a trade with the Demons at the start of last season, Rivers managed 10 games in his first year at the Cattery.

He played in the blockbuster round one clash against Hawthorn in 2013, before injuring the posterior ligament in his knee late in the game.

He was further sidelined when he suffered cartilage damage in the same knee a couple of months later.

Amos said Rivers is "further advanced" than he was at this stage last year and is sure Geelong will depend on him playing as the third tall defender.

The 29-year-old has been an exemplary performer during the pre-season and he says another year in the Geelong system has him primed for a much-improved 2014.

"Hopefully this year I can play a lot of games in a row and get some confidence, and I feel like I'm doing that now," Rivers said.

"When you play a certain amount of games with the same backline group, it definitely builds your confidence. Coming to a new club, like Geelong, I think I really needed that."