POWER-FORWARD Sam Day believes a stint in defence will help his AFL development after a superb performance down back for the Gold Coast SUNS in their 44-point win over the GWS Giants on the weekend.

The 20-year-old has had a tough start to his AFL career, despite his impressive ability to take contested marks and provide strong leads inside the forward-half.

But with the injured Matthew Warnock expecting to miss the next eight weeks with broken arm, senior coach Guy McKenna opted to utilise Day’s imposing 196cm and 101kg stature in the team’s back-six, with the switch turning out to be a stroke of genius on McKenna’s behalf as the big-man produced his best match of the season.

“It was certainly one of the better games that I’ve had, in terms of the touches and impact I was able to make with the ball,” said Day.

After finishing with 12 disposals (7 kicks and 5 handballs), 6 marks and a game-high 8 one-percenters, Day’s persistent work ethic was on full-display as the South Australian junior enjoyed bearing the fruits of his hard labour.

“I felt like I was able to impact the game a lot more down back, in terms of being able to spoil and rebound the ball out of our defensive area,” Day said.

“There is that added pressure in the back of your mind when your playing up-forward that if you’re not getting your hands on the footy, your letting the team down.

“So it was certainly rewarding to get the four points and also a strong hit-out individually.”

But while the former No. 3 draft pick (2010) can see the benefits of adding a more defensive prowess to his game, Day admits he’s hoping to still be a leading target for his teammates in the goal square.

“I probably still prefer playing up forward, but I do enjoy the challenge of playing in the back-six such as the contested marking,” said Day.

“Dean Solomon (defensive coach) believes the move will help me gain a bit more confidence in my ability and reckons it might be the turning point of my career.”

Despite the playing list boasting a healthy stock of key position players including Charlie Dixon, Zac Smith, Tom Lynch, Rory Thompson and Daniel Gorringe, McKenna told goldcoastfc.com.au he still believes Day.

“While Sammy certainly helps fill a hole down back for us, I still envision him kicking a high volume of goals for us as a forward,” said McKenna.

For Day, the opportunity to bash and crash against some of the game’s best forwards will be a great learning experience for the talented swingman.

“Hopefully I can learn use the switch as a great learning experience and see what some of the best forwards in the competition do to create space and opportunities inside-50, so that when I do back to playing forward I’ll be more equipped to impact the ball in attack.”