AS THE Blues returned refreshed from a short Christmas break, they wasted no time getting into some match play.
Speaking to the media at LaTrobe University, midfielder George Hewett noted the group was fit and firing in the early stages of the pre-season, describing their first hitout as 'intense'.
Here's what he had to say.
On the last month:
"It’s been good. Everyone came back from the off-season in really good shape, there were a lot of PB’s in their running and then the camp up in the Sunshine Coast was awesome, it was a bit wet.
"We had three weeks off for the Christmas break and we had our first training session last Friday and we’ve come back in pretty good shape and we had a bit of match play on Monday. Everyone is looking good."
On the early focus:
"We focused a lot on contest pre-Christmas and then we came back and the boys are looking physically strong. Monday's game was pretty intense."
On Jesse Motlop impressing the group:
"I think Jesse Motlop has been pretty strong. He had a really good pre-season last year then had a few injury-hiccups but this year he has come back in really good shape, he looks like the standout for a lot of us at the minute. He looks really confident, he’s put in the work."
On Sam Walsh's injury:
"It’s not great news, he was training really well as he always does. He pulled up a bit tight and I think he’ll be out of a couple of weeks. He’s flat out with everything so hopefully he’ll attack his rehab again the way he does and hopefully be back soon.
"I think Walshy knows his body pretty well now, he managed himself really well in the off-season and came back really fit. It’s just one of those things where sometimes you do soft tissue injuries."
On the integration of Rob Inness:
"Rob’s brought in fresh ideas, as everyone does. I had him at Sydney for a year, so it probably doesn’t feel as fresh, but he’s very clear in what he wants, he’s very confident in what he believes in and he’s really attacked more of that high speed with short rest, which is pretty hard but has been good."
On a new-look midfield:
"It looks a bit different with Jagga [Smith] and the two Campoerale boys. Everyone will get a look, it’ll be a bit different but the boys are training and competing pretty well to get their spots.
"It’s a bit early to tell. Our first match play was on Monday and it was a good hitout, it felt pretty even, so the boys are competing hard and see how it goes."
On the goals for the season:
"Mainly just to get better and train harder. There’s no secret, we’ve done a bit of work into the Penrith Panther’s story and Ivan Cleary talks about their game plan pretty simply where they try and do everything better than their opponent.
"It was a bit of a mix. We played some quite strong footy throughout the year and then we didn’t, so it was an inconsistent year. We’ll be looking to improve that and that all starts on the training track."
On Jack Silvagni:
"Jack’s been good. He’s still doing a bit with the rehab group but he’s the ultimate competitor so hopefully he gets a clean run at this pre-season and I’m sure wherever he plays, he’ll give it his all like he always does."
