STRENGTHS: Endurance, speed, tackling, overhead marking
IMPROVEMENTS: Agility, accumulation

SUMMARY: Ryan Hebron is one of the NEAFL's brightest stars, with the Sydney University defender slotting into the league's 2018 Team of the Year. Playing predominantly as a lock-down defender, Hebron has also showed a great aptitude for rebounding and intercept marking, making him a near-complete defensive prospect. Hebron has worked hard through his University on building his athletic base, getting the most out of his potential in terms of strength and power. It looks to be paying dividends too, with Hebron's contested marking and speed in particular catching the eye this season. He also has the desire to tackle and do the hard work, often picking up the scraps and booming kicks forward from defensive 50. For all his upside, Hebron can continue to improve on areas like his agility and accumulation, which aren't necessarily bad at this stage, but are not elite. His agility test time of 8.8 seconds was surprising given his 20m sprint time of 3 seconds, and his average of 20 disposals per NEAFL game is good without being exceptional. Overall, Hebron provides excitement across the backline and fits the mould of the trending intercept defenders who can turn as deadly rebounders.