This is just plain revisionist history. For the first half of last year Payne was being discussed as a potential AA squad defender, he was playing that good. Then he picked up the ankle injury that progressively got worse through the season. Gardiner in the meantime was out injured, and wasn't available until late in the season, when he came back and played a couple of reserves games, before coming in for Payne, who succumbed to his ankle injury.
The only other tall defender we had last year, was the Irish bloke we signed as a SSP rookie. He wasn't very good in the limited outings he played early in the season, before Lester came back from his preseason injury.
There was no finally to Fagan dropping Payne this year, because we've only played one game, and Payne ended last season out of the team due to his injury.
Lester is not fast and can't jump high. He's a limited athlete. What he has is great footy IQ and reading the game to get in to the right position at the right time. He's not spoiling either of the King brothers, or any other number 1 key forward, because he doesn't play on them. Usually he's playing the least dangerous of the oppositions key tall or medium tall forward.
Not saying much to be quicker than a physically cooked Hodge or Birchall when they were older than what Lester is now.
