HARRY Petty was drafted to Melbourne as a key defender in 2017, but in his seventh game for the club on Sunday, he found himself lining up in the forward half of the ground.

With Tom McDonald and Sam Weideman ruled out of the Dees’ clash with the Western Bulldogs due to injury, the 19-year-old got his chance inside 50, and made the most of it with three goals.

“Goody (Simon Goodwin) rang me on Thursday night and told me I’d be playing forward,” Petty told Melbourne Media.

“I was pretty excited actually – I haven’t played forward since my last year of school footy, so I was looking forward to it.”

Petty grew up playing as a forward for his school team back in South Australia but has been a permanent member of the defensive group since joining the red and blue.

“I’ve never trained as a forward since coming to the club, I’ve always been a defender, so it was a bit new,” he said.

“I got my head around all the set ups on Thursday night, so I came here today feeling pretty good today.”

Petty was also able to tap into a reliable source for information in the lead up to the game at Marvel Stadium, which helped him in his first effort in attack.

“I live with Sam Weideman and obviously he plays forward, so I had a good chat with him last night which was good,” he said.

“It was a big jump, but he was helping me get my head around the different set ups and all of that.”

Although he is still new to the position, Petty slotted a game-high three majors from his 10 disposals, providing a tall target for the Demons all afternoon.

“I thought I went alright,” he said.

“I competed pretty well and got on the end of a couple which was a bit lucky.”

The 197cm youngster worked his way into the contest but knows mastering the new role will take time.

“I felt like as the game went on, I got my hands on a couple of those kicks down the line but couldn’t hold the mark which was a bit disappointing,” Petty said.

“There’s obviously room to improve but I enjoyed it.”

While Petty was a strong contributor in Melbourne’s eight-point loss in Round 17, he is unsure where he will line up for the remainder of the season.

“I tried to do my best today, so I’ll see what Goody thinks,” he said.

“When Weido and Tim Smith come back they will probably slot back in the forward line, so I might go back down into defence.

“But I’m just happy to play wherever.”