A 'complete' footballer

The idea of a 'complete footballer' is one I'm a bit obsessed with and something I look out for in players nowadays as it's rarer in a more physically-oriented, less one-on-one era of footy.

In my opinion for someone to be 'complete' there's four key skills they must have with a fifth optional criteria.

• must be a great field kick
• must be good with their hands and with the ball on the deck
• must be a strong overhead mark, not necessarily tall or a great leaper but just robust in a marking contest
• must be able to find the goals, not necessarily kick a lot of them but kick them when given the opportunity, whether it be a midfielder or half back pushing forward or a defender getting swung forward from time to time
• (optional but preferred) isn't a particularly athletic player, or doesn't have a standout physical attribute that contributes heavily to their game

I think excelling at these fundamentals makes you a 'complete player' and I don't think there's many footballers in the comp who can boast all four.

In my opinion the three most prominent examples of this archetype are the Bont, Toby Greene and Dan Houston, the latter two getting bonus points for not being particular outstanding physically. I think the fact the Bont has this all-round skillset and he's 6 foot 4 and extremely powerful makes him the best player in the comp but I think in terms of complete football ability Toby Greene has him beat.

Dusty and GAJ are obvious examples of recently retired players who were 'complete', and in terms of up and coming players who could soon fit the mantle I think of Mitch Owens and Miles Bergman. Interested to see who else is considered a 'complete' footballer.