NORTH Melbourne has sent key forward prospect Robbie Tarrant to defence in the hope of fast-tracking his AFL opportunities.

Three shoulder reconstructions have kept Tarrant, 20, from playing a senior game since his selection in the first round of the 2007 NAB AFL Draft (No.15 overall). 

Tarrant has only trained under backline coach Shane Watson since mid-December but took his development to the next level when playing on Drew Petrie in Wednesday night’s intra-club scratch match in Ballarat.

Senior assistant coach Darren Crocker said competition for spots meant it was important to give Tarrant the flexibility to play at either end of the ground.

“We just wanted to give another string to Robbie’s bow,” Crocker said. “He’s played as a forward predominantly throughout his juniors.

“Having missed a fair bit of footy, we just felt that giving him a run across half-back may open up the door for him.

“At the moment you’ve got Drew Petrie, David Hale, Corey Jones, Aaron Edwards and Ben Warren all vying for forward positions.

“That’s not to say he won’t play forward at some stages, but there may be some doors open up for him up the other end a little bit quicker than perhaps up forward.”

Wednesday night was Tarrant’s first competitive hit-out since a VFL reserves game for Werribee in June, when he fell awkwardly on his left shoulder and again required surgery.

He said he hadn’t had any problems with his shoulders during the pre-season but had still carried the simple goal of getting through the scratch match unscathed.

Tarrant will also play in next Friday’s scratch match before discussing his NAB Cup prospects with the coaches.

“I feel pretty comfortable out there,” Tarrant said. “I’ve still got to get used to the pace and stuff like that.

“It will pick up a fair bit next Friday so I’ll just keep going with it and see how I go.

“It was just a good experience down back today, to get to play on someone like Drew Petrie and to learn a little bit more about how the game’s played from his perspective.

“If I can learn this back caper quick enough, I might have an opportunity down forward or down back. Whatever gets me into the senior side, I’m happy.”

North showed its continued faith in Tarrant by signing him to a two-year deal in August.

Robbie Tarrant is a $94,500 forward in this year’s Toyota AFL Dream Team.