FORMER No.1 draft pick Tom Boyd needs to change his playing style if he’s to win a spot in the Western Bulldogs' senior line-up, senior assistant Brett Montgomery says.
Boyd played 14 senior games this year after crossing from GWS on a multi-million dollar deal, but played the final seven matches in the VFL.
The Dogs opted for rookie Jack Redpath in attack at season’s end and on Monday, Montgomery said the club needed a bigger impact from the highly-paid former Giant if he’s to earn his position back.
"He needs to find his athletic side," Montgomery told Crocmedia.
"He came to us as a power forward, as a kid that didn’t move a lot. He was able to dominate one player, who was able to see a good share of entries come his way and not have to move up the ground too far.
"That’s just not how AFL’s played. He’ll need to adapt and he’s well aware of that."
With the removal of the substitute and reduction of the interchange cap next year, Montgomery said the 20-year-old would need to find more strings to his bow.
"Tom’s going to have to grow his time in the ruck, which can only assist him getting into the game," Montgomery said.
"The game’s come a long way just in the last 18-24 months and (from) what we really expect out of our key forwards.
"They need to play time in the ruck - there’s only one or two clubs that buck that trend."
Meanwhile, Montgomery said the Dogs were confident in securing former Brisbane Lions captain Jed Adcock, who has been training with the club.
The Bulldogs believe other clubs have dropped interest, paving the way for the 30-year-old to become a Dog via the rookie draft.
"We made it really clear to him and his management he’s a player we’d like to have. It has to get over the line and we’re pretty confident it will," Montgomery said.
"We’re committed to him. He’s viable to play all three areas of the ground. Our understanding is there’s not a lot of (other) suitors.
"We seem to think with the list we’ve got and the build we think we’re on, someone of that vintage can really help us out. Whether it’s giving us 10, 12 or 14 games or helping us around the sheds."
The club’s senior players returned to training on Monday, including Hawthorn premiership recruit Matt Suckling.
