The athletic 21-year-old had hit a wall defensively in recent weeks against the GWS Giants and Fremantle, forcing senior coach Guy McKenna to pinch him across half-forward in a bid to get the Gold Coaster more involved in the contest.
But Thompson bounced back in strong fashion against Melbourne on the weekend - finishing with 18 disposals and 11 marks for the afternoon as the defensive stopper kept Chris Dawes scoreless and ensured the premiership forward had little influence in attack for the Demons.
“We settled him down back this week, and he responded really well,” Solomon said.
“He had a big job on Chris Dawes, who is a very experienced player and I felt like Rory beat him on the day.”
While a humbled Thompson refused to give himself much credit for his underrated performance against the Demon’s most lethal offensive weapon, he did say the chance to go head-to-head against the former Magpie was a great learning experience for the centre half-back.
“It definitely was (a great learning experience), it was Dawes first game so he was a bit underdone but I can still take confidence away from that,” said Thompson.
With injuries to key defenders Nathan Bock (indefinite), Matthew Warnock (broken arm) and Joel Wilkinson (ankle), Thompson has had to fast-track his development at a much rapider rate than most defenders at his age.
But Solomon is convinced the burden of responsibility on Thompson’s shoulders to perform each week against the SUNS toughest defensive assignment is no match for the young defender’s outstanding work ethic and perseverance to reach his full potential.
“With Nathan Bock and Matthew Warnock both out with injuries, it’s provided an opportunity for Rory to take on the opposition’s best forwards,” Solomon said.
“He sees it as a great learning experience and it is a good opportunity to see where he is at and what he needs to work on.”
With the 200cm giant having already stood tall alongside Lance Franklin, Sam Ried, Nick Reiwoldt and Jonathon Brown so far this year, Thompson said he constantly studied his opponents each match to learn all their handy tricks.
“You always learn playing on those great forwards, and I’ve played on a few now, and every game you just want to take away a few things from them,” Thompson said.
With swingman Sam Day having also taken his game to new heights since shifting down back, Solomon says the athletic talls both have the potential to graduate into the competition’s elite class of defenders – if they work hard enough.
“They still have a lot to learn, and while we don’t want to put too much pressure on those guys, they do have an apetitite to learn and crave knowledge and so that is going to put them in good stead,” Solomon said.
“Do we want then to establish themselves as key defenders for us for the next ten years? – Absolutely.
“That’s what they’re driving for but it doesn’t happen overnight, there’s a lot of work to be done but they’re heading in the right direction.”
