THERE was a play in Opening Round where Aaron Naughton barely got a stat to his name, but earned the plaudits of Luke Beveridge and the Western Bulldogs' coaching staff for days afterwards.

In the opening seconds of the final term, with the Dogs still trailing the reigning premier Brisbane by 13 points, a long ball was hoisted into the forward-50. It was collected by Ryan Lester, before he was tackled by Naughton. It was handballed to Harris Andrews, before he was closed down by Naughton. It was fed out again to Keidean Coleman, before he too was ripped down by Naughton.

The triple-effort resulted in the ball spilling out to Tim English, who snapped a goal to continue the Dogs' surge towards victory. But it was the inspired hassling and harrying of Naughton that typified the key forward's return to career-best form and reflected why his partnership with Sam Darcy is worth so much more than just goals.

Naughton struggled through the first half of last year, having battled against a pre-season where he dealt with both glandular fever and a niggling calf strain that never allowed him to reach full tilt. But, having regained form and fitness, his output since round 14 last season has him angling for the title of the game's best key forward.

Since round 14 last year, all the way through to last week's round one victory over Greater Western Sydney, Darcy and Naughton remarkably sit as the two highest ranked key forwards in the League. Given most sides are desperate for one top-tier player at that position, the fact the Dogs possess the two best in the competition leaves their premiership push in a fantastic spot.

Riley Thilthorpe, Adelaide's key forward gun and the player who will be on the opposite side of Naughton and Darcy in this Friday night's blockbuster at the Adelaide Oval, is close behind as the third highest-ranked key forward and will battle the two Bulldogs for the mantle as the League's premier goalkicker all season.

But Naughton's numbers are simply scintillating. Just based on pure goal output alone, his last 11 games have featured hauls of: three, five, five, two, seven, five, five, three, two, two, six. In kicking multiple goals in each of them, it became the longest streak of two or more goals in a game recorded by a Bulldog in Champion Data history.

The vice-captain's performance against the Giants on the weekend also saw Naughton become just the ninth player on record to have 15+ disposals, five-plus contested marks, three-plus score assists and six-plus goals in a single game.

Beveridge and the Bulldogs' ability to get two hulking key forwards firing in the same forward line has also been a feature of Naughton's improvement, with his work in tandem with Darcy just as impressive as his individual outlay.

Since round 14 last year, the pair each rank top six in the League for goals. They also both rank top five for scoreboard impact, Champion Data's assessment of points earned through both scores and score assists. They both rank top 12 for marks inside 50, while they also each rank top 20 for score involvements.

Bulldogs officials believe they've flourished as a two-man pairing, with their understanding growing with more responsibility in the wake of Jamarra Ugle-Hagan's departure, Rory Lobb's switch into the backline, and Cody Weightman's long-term injury issues.

They lead to different spaces, attack different balls, while their athleticism means they're each as capable as the other in getting higher up the ground or sitting deeper in the forward line. Naughton's pressure ability – highlighted by the aforementioned individual moment of brilliance against Brisbane – means he's not recognised at the Dogs as a traditional key forward. Neither is Darcy.

Naughton has also worked hard on his goalkicking recently. In partnership with club great Brad Johnson, who returns to the Whitten Oval occasionally as a specialist goalkicking consultant, Naughton has tweaked his routine. Changes to his ball drop, as well as taking a more direct line to goal, have seen him nail 49.14 (at an accuracy rate of 77.8 percent) from his last 13 matches, compared to 16.14 (at a rate of 53.3 percent) from the 12 games that preceded it.

While Darcy deservedly holds the mantle as one of the most talked-about players in the League – some even have the 22-year-old as the best player in the game – Naughton's output shouldn't be overshadowed as a result. It certainly isn't internally at the Whitten Oval, as his pressure moment against Brisbane showed.