Defender Joel Tippett says he has gained more confidence in his own ability after matching up on Hawthorn's Jarryd Roughead last Sunday.
The 26-year-old played the majority of North’s second NAB Challenge hit-out on the power forward, restricting him to just one behind for the match.
Tippett said he relished the chance to test himself against one of the league’s best in the lead-up to the home and away season.
“He’s a fantastic player so it was good to get the experience to play on him,” Tippett told NMFC.com.au on Tuesday.
“Although I’ve still got a whole lot of things to work on, I did get confidence out of that game and to line up on a player of that calibre was a great experience.”
Despite amassing eight touches for the match (four kicks, four handballs), the 196cm backman held his own in the Roos’ defensive 50, providing an avenue out of defence.
Defensive coach Josh Drummond was pleased with Tippett’s progression.
“Positioning-wise he always tried to get himself in the best defensive position and he looked a lot more comfortable out there having that game (against Adelaide) under his belt,” Drummond said.
“Roughead’s a unique one; he’s really tough to play on because he’s so good at ground level as well, so it was a good test for ‘Tippo’.”
After making his debut for the Roos in round six last year, Tippett managed four consecutive games before his season was cut short by a torn right pectoral muscle in round 10.
Despite the extended stint on the sidelines, he has shown some encouraging signs in the past two NAB Challenge matches and said he is beginning to feel at home in the Roos’ back six.
“I felt a lot better out there on the weekend compared to our first hit-out,” he said.
“It was good to blow the cobwebs out in the first NAB Challenge match and then the second one, I had a few focus areas and I thought I improved on my game so I was happy with how I went.”
With experienced duo Scott Thompson and Michael Firrito playing their first competitive games for the year last week, Tippett said he had learned a great amount from the pair and is in good company down back.
“Just on the weekend, with their experience out there, they’re great communicators; they set us up really well so it definitely made it a lot easier having those two guys out there,” he said.
Senior coach Brad Scott has also spoken highly of Tippett’s potential, labelling him “the best defender outside the AFL” when North recruited the former Gold Coast Suns and Brisbane Lions-listed player in 2013.
“His performance over the last 12-18 months hasn’t given us a need to change that opinion,” Scott told reporters last week.
“We are going to give him an opportunity at AFL level.”
