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Jarryn Geary would be the last person to suggest he is among the three most talented players on St Kilda’s list.
But the Saints skipper’s attributes in other areas earned him third placing in the club’s best-and-fairest count last season — his first as captain.
Certainly the weight of captaincy sat well on his shoulders — so well in fact that it was only a shade behind his best year as a player, when he came second in the best-and-fairest count the previous campaign.
Geary thrived under the extra responsibility, but that has not always been the case for captains down through the years.
It seems that modern-day clubs are choosing skippers whose individual games will not be affected, and might even be enhanced, by the demands of leadership.
There are still instances, however, when the leadership has a negative effect on productivity.
There were extenuating circumstances for David Mundy’s year in charge at Fremantle in 2016, but the talented midfielder won’t look back with pleasure at his term as on-field leader.
A pre-season restricted by injury saw him underdone for the opening two rounds and then he strained a calf, which put him out for three matches.
The unsatisfactory build-up led to him being used in the less demanding role of half back for a time, but he never looked to be near his best.
Disposal stats aren’t the be-all-and-end-all of a player’s contribution, but they are still a worthwhile indicator.
Mundy averaged 23 a game in 2016 compared to his 26 the previous year, and while he came ninth in Freo’s best-and-fairest his year was universally considered to have been below-par.
He had ankle surgery to complete an unhappy 12 months, and in 2017 Nathan Fyfe took over as captain.
Whether a completely fit Mundy would have returned to full playing efficiency in a second year of captaincy, we will never know.
The most ill-starred captaincy decision of modern times was Melbourne’s choice of youngsters Jack Trengove and Jack Grimes.
When they ran out for their first game as co-captains in Round 1 2012 Grimes was 22 years old and Trengove just 20.
Things looked bright enough initially with Trengove shining in his first game, apparently relishing the leadership responsibilities.
Grimes, too, was effective, but the day heralded a fork in the road for both players.
Whenever they put in a less-than-satisfactory game there were questions about them being overburdened by the captaincy.
Trengove was dropped just two games into 2014 and waylaid by a foot injury for the next two seasons. The captaincy mantle was quietly lifted from his shoulders at the end of 2013.
Grimes continued as a co-captain in 2014 with Nathan Jones, but his form waned and in 2016 he spent all but two games at VFL level.
The Inside Football ratings report for his last AFL game against St Kilda captured how far his confidence had plummeted: “Indecisive with the ball, hesitant at the contest and looked to be running on a treadmill. Two out of 10.”
At just 27 Grimes’s AFL career was over. As much as anything else it was an indictment on those who had taken the punt on two overly young captains in the first place.
By contrast the seemingly obvious selection of Nathan Jones provided an extra turbo charge in 2014 to an already productive career.
In his first year as co-skipper with Grimes he averaged a career-best 27 touches a game and he took out his third successive best-and-fairest.
The ensuing seasons have seen his disposal average reach a new level of 28 in 2016 and a shade below that with 27 last season.
The 2017 season was significant for the captaincy fraternity in the cases of Marc Murphy and Trent Cotchin, both of whom had faced the doubting stare of the football community in the early days of their roles.
With a touch under 30 possessions a game in 2017, Murphy won the best-and-fairest for the second time, adding to his pre-captaincy win in 2011.
He was 25-years-old when he ascended to the captaincy for the 2013 season and had the runs on the board as a player, but there were doubters at first.
Inside the four walls at Princes Park the opinion is that he has grown into the role and certainly his output as a player continued to be strong.
Runner-up in the best-and-fairests in 2014 and 2015, his 2016 campaign was shortened by an ankle injury.
For Cotchin the captaincy road has had its bumps since he first captained the Tigers in the opening round of 2013, but it needs to be remembered that he was still a few days short of his 23rd birthday when he took it on.
He did win the best-and-fairest in that first year (and a subsequent retrospective Brownlow Medal) and then also took out the club gong in 2014 and ran third in 2016.
The main knock on him centred on some quiet finals performances, all of which was shoved aside by his fine contribution to the historic flag win of 2017.
Cotchin’s story proves the importance of clubs maintaining their faith in young captains.
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