Gold Coast SUNS star Harley Bennell has emerged from rarely chartered adversity to be more attentive to the small things that are part and parcel of being an AFL footballer says Rodney Eade.
 
The 22-year-old returned nearly a fortnight ago on the wide expanses of Adelaide Oval, and with the football world watching, he collected 38 possessions to remind everyone of his tremendous talent.
 
Despite collecting more than his fair share of leather, Eade and the football department weren’t satisfied with the defensive side to his game. The areas that make the team better. With this in mind, Bennell was handed the task of playing on incumbent All Australian, Andrew Gaff, last Saturday night against West Coast Eagles at Metricon Stadium.
 
Bennell collected 28 disposals, seven tackles and seven inside 50s to go with 616 metres of gained territory. He went head-to-head with the West Coast star and nullified his dominance on the outside in an effort that drew praise from his coach.
 
“We’ve seen a change in his attitude. He’s always trained well, but the one per cent things – dot the i’s cross the t’s. The little things that go towards professionalism, he’s really starting to embrace those,” Eade told SUNS TV on Thursday afternoon.
 
“When he played in Adelaide he had 38 (possessions), it was a good game, but there was parts of his game that we weren’t real pleased with.
 
“Last week we gave him an opportunity to play on an All Australian player – Andrew Gaff is going to make an All Australian this year – he’s had a great year, a stellar year. And for Harley to be able to play a discipline role, he also had seven tackles.”
 
Admittedly, two weeks is a small sample size, barely suffice to pencil in long term. But the signs are bright. With so much class and experience out of the midfield, Bennell’s last two weeks have been even more impressive than they would have been with a full complement in the engine room.
 
Five weeks remain in Gold Coast’s season – a season that has been a disappointment – but there is still plenty to play for. In Bennell’s case, equipping him with a more expansive football IQ is the focus according to Eade.
 
“So, just parts of his game that we want to teach and educate for him to become a better player, a more rounded player,” Eade said.
 
“He seems to be embracing the education part of the way you need to play. He’ll play different roles over the next few weeks but certainly we were pleased with his performance last week.”