WAS IAN Nankervis a better defender than Corey Enright?
Not likely, as Nankervis went back midway through his career after starting as a forward pocket/rover.
In the nine seasons until the end of 1975, he'd kicked 192 goals and won a best and fairest.
In the next eight years he won two best and fairests playing in the back pocket, captained the team and virtually invented the switching of play in defence.
But he is at the edge of the conversation about the best medium-sized defenders of all time, a category Geelong coach Chris Scott was happy to put Enright in.
The question was put to champion Hawthorn defender Gary Ayres – who won two Norm Smith medals, five premierships and three All Australians in 269 games – about whether Enright was the best defender to have played 300 games.
Some names were thrown at the famous Hawks' No.7 and he showed he was still a good driver in heavy traffic by using his evasive skill to answer an impossible question sensibly.
The first name raised was Carlton champion Bruce Doull who played in four premierships, won four best and fairests, a Norm Smith Medal and was named in the AFL team of the century for his 356-game career.
Doull stood at 185cm and 85kg, a few centimetres smaller and kilograms lighter than Enright, noting that Enright plays in a different era, in which players are taller and heavier.
Ayres played at the end of Doull's career but he knew what teammates thought of The Flying Doormat.
"He was extremely difficult to play on, hard to match up with and his defensive spoils were brilliant," Ayres told AFL.com.au.
There was no definitive judgment but anyone who saw Doull in the 1981 Grand Final (as I did) knows he was, like Enright, still flying well into his 30s.
His balance was extraordinary and was virtually impossible to beat one-on-one.
He was a quiet achiever too.
Glenn Archer was smaller and heavier than Enright but played on talls and smalls with a ferocity rarely seen before.
A couple of flags, three All Australians and a Norm Smith Medal enough to have him named Shinboner of the Century in 2005. Not a bad record but without Enright's consistency.
Flexibility and courage was what impressed Ayres most about Archer.
Gavin Wanganeen might have been more along the lines of Enright because of his attacking nature, according to Ayres. Wanganeen won a Brownlow Medal, two premierships (one as a back-pocket player) and was five times an All Australian in the back pocket.
Now we're starting to realise how difficult the call is, even when the category is restricted to those who played 300 games or more – ruling out such cool customers as West Coast defender Guy McKenna and Enright's former teammate Darren Milburn.
Throw in Andrew McLeod's work off half-back and you have someone that not only the football world admires but is one of Enright's favourites too.
Like Enright across half-back, opponents worried about McLeod, but was he a defender or a midfielder? He was sublime in both areas but didn't play the bulk of his career in defence so has to be excluded.
Other 300-game defenders excluded for comparison are key-position players Dustin Fletcher, Mick Martyn, Stephen Silvagni, Chris Langford and Kelvin Moore, as well as 'could play anywhere including defence' types Ted Whitten, David Neitz and Alastair Lynch.
Enright has the Western Bulldogs' Rohan Smith, Essendon's Garry Foulds, the Lions' Marcus Ashcroft, Adelaide's Tyson Edwards and Fitzroy and North Melbourne players John Blakey and John Rantall covered.
Adelaide's Ben Hart challenges. He was superb, winning two best and fairests, earning four All-Australians and playing in two flags.
Another quiet type, he probably missed plaudits because he played for Adelaide. It's hard to argue that Enright was much better than Hart.
Francis Bourke was a wingman who played across half-back. None were tougher than he was and it's tough to compare eras. Five premierships and selection in the AFL Team of the Century speaks of his quality.
Melbourne coach Paul Roos was a tall defender who could play on anyone (or no one, as Enright seems to do sometimes).
Roos has Ayres' tick of approval but he still won't commit.
"[He had a] wonderful ability to get ahead of the play," Ayres said.
He points out that the game has changed so ruckmen are rarely hanging around half-back to help defenders take risks.
Roos won five best and fairests and a swag of All Australian selections.
So is Enright the best medium sized defender of all time? That is an impossible question to answer definitively.
One of the best?
No doubt, according to Ayres.
"What [Enright] does do really well is something that is hard to teach young players. He reads the play really well, put himself in the position to take intercept marks to then rebound and launch attacks for Geelong," Ayres said.
"He has also got a wonderful, wonderful asset, which is great vision and then the composure to use the ball. The good decision makers you have in the backline when you are under a lot of pressure are invaluable."
They're good, these defenders. Not prone to wild statements. Enright is a worthy addition to that esteemed club.
300 games-plus defenders*
Dustin Fletcher - 400
John Blakey - 359
Bruce Doull - 356
Paul Roos - 356
Andrew McLeod - 340
John Rantall - 336
Ian Nankervis - 325
Tyson Edwards - 321
Ted Whitten snr - 321
Marcus Ashcroft - 318
Stephen Silvagni - 312
Glenn Archer - 312
Ben Hart - 311
Alastair Lynch - 306
David Neitz - 306
Chris Langford - 303
Francis Bourke - 300
Barry Breen - 300
Garry Foulds - 300
Kelvin Moore - 300
Mick Martyn - 300
Gavin Wanganeen - 300
Rohan Smith - 300
* Played in defence for at least part of their career
