Richmond assistant coach Justin Leppitsch provides Richmond Media with an insight into David Astbury's AFL journey and form this year.

First impressions in 2010

“(He was) a big-bodied kid, very raw. He did have the natural talent, probably didn’t have the leg speed but had the big body and natural talent… He was a swingman in the U18s but I think long-term we always had our sights on him being a defender.”

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His 2019 season so far

“(He’s been) really good. Dave’s the sort of guy that with every game, gets better and better. His best month is usually as the season goes on, and it has been this last month (July). He’s been terrific in the contest, he’s a really reliable spoiler and intercept marker. He’s a really important cog in our backline.”

His strengths

“The strength of his game is getting under the long, high ball. Our pressure up field is important for not just David, but all our defenders. His game elevates the more pressure is on the ball and the higher the ball comes in. He’s a terrific reader of the play so it’s a real strength of his game.”

Stepping up in Alex Rance’s absence

“We see the ball come in and often on the camera we see a small amount, but behind the ball, you need to set up to give yourself the best chance in those contests, Dave does that better than anyone. Him and Dylan (Grimes) set the ground up so we’re well-managed and we can give ourselves the best chance to either mark the ball or spoil it… Obviously missing Rance this year, who’s one of our best communicators, those two have really picked up the slack in that area to help out some of our younger guys. At times, we’ve had a young group down there and they've done a good job to guide them.”

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His leadership

“(He works with) not just our defenders but the whole Club. He’s one of our key players when it comes to our cultural stuff, so he’s a big driver in that part of our Club too.”