In a season full of unpredictability, Jake Stringer has proven to be a player who has typified the Western Bulldogs’ approach.

Coming into 2015, the Bulldogs were regarded as a promising young side, perhaps a little way off challenging for a finals spot. Now with two rounds remaining, they’re every chance to finish inside the top four.

Behind a forward setup which can hurt oppositions in multiple ways, the Bulldogs have become one of the highest scoring sides in the competition. Stringer has been at the forefront, leading his side with 49 goals.

At 192 centimetres, the 21-year-old can play taller than his height. He has a comparable contested mark rate to the true talls in Tom Boyd and Jack Redpath, while also being a threat on the lead.

Stringer kicked five goals against West Coast in Round 21, taking his tally to 17 in the last four matches. His first for the afternoon was after an excellent contested pack mark.

 
In theory you could look at this passage of play and decide a ‘traditional’ key-position defender is the way to approach the matchup; a player who can spoil well and one who’s more than capable in the aerial contest.

However it’s not as simple as this, because Stringer’s movement is exceptional and he can run defenders off their feet. Not too many goal kickers at his height across the league are as agile, as you can see from the below clip.

Stringer manages to ‘freeze’ Eagles’ defender Jamie Bennell before palming the Sherrin down onto his foot and finding his target running into the forward 50. Remember the Bulldog is 13 centimetres taller and 15 kilograms heavier than Bennell, but still moves like this.

 
The two contrasting highlights illustrate the trouble finding a suitable matchup for Stringer. Consider the Bulldogs also play a genuine, out-and-out tall in the forward 50 at all times – in recent times either Tom Campbell or Redpath, depending on who is in the ruck – and it muddies the waters further.

For North the taller defenders to choose from will likely be Scott Thompson, Robbie Tarrant, Michael Firrito and Lachlan Hansen.

So far in 2015, Tarrant has tended to play on the ‘biggest’ key forward – matching up on the likes of Tom Hawkins (twice), Travis Cloke and Chris Dawes. If the trend continues, he’ll likely head to the resting ruckman or even Boyd if the youngster returns to the line-up.

Hansen’s most effective position over the course of his time down back has been as the floating third tall, which makes him unlikely to face Stringer. It leaves Thompson and Firrito as the two remaining options.

Both Roos can play tall and small – Thompson has opposed Eddie Betts on multiple occasions, while Firrito has faced just about every defensive matchup imaginable in his 13-year AFL career.

Having multiple choices available to the coaching staff allows it flexibility to mix and match depending on the situation of the game and performance of the Bulldogs’ forward line as a whole. Because as the surprise packets of 2015 have demonstrated, they can kick a winning score from any number of options.