What we noticed at Geelong’s first full session of pre-season
Geelong went out to North Shore for its first session with a full group this pre-season and we were there. Here’s what we saw.
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Geelong entire list was back to work on Monday for the first day of pre-season proper.
Training out at a windswept Windsor Park – the home of GFL club North Shore – the Cats wasted little time getting into action.
Here are five things we noticed.
Oisin has class
Oisin Mullin only flew in to Australia last week and is keen to keep a Sherrin in his hands as often as possible to adjust from the Gaelic ball.
But he had few issues in his first training session with senior players, displaying a simple kicking style in a skills drill and plucking a nice one-hand mark, to cheers from his teammates.
The 22-year-old appears to have an AFL-ready body, so he will be left to focus on his skills as he adjusts to footy.
Speaking of class, a couple of months after booting four goals in a grand final, Tyson Stengle cemented himself as the king of highlights by sporting some in his hair.
Bews back at it
One of multiple players to undergo surgery after the grand final win, Jed Bews was back on track on Monday and showed no signs of discomfort.
The tough defender had a clean-out of his shoulder soon after the premiership.
Others to have injuries sorted post-season such as Tom Hawkins and Sam Menegola weren’t out on track at North Shore.
Names such as Rhys Stanley, Mark O’Connor and Zach Tuohy also weren’t on track.
Running machine keeps pace
No surprises here.
Mark Blicavs soared to the front of a long running drill about 20 mins into the session, carving his way past a bunch of senior players.
The running machine looked like he was back to his athletic best.
In a shuttle run, Max Holmes showed his prowess alongside Gryan Miers.
Number giveaway?
Cats fans will be kept waiting with the club to announce the jumper numbers for new recruits early next year.
That means its worth taking with a large grain of salt, but some indications may have been made on Monday.
Tanner Bruhn trained in Shaun Higgins’ old No.4, Ollie Henry stepped out in No.41, which was last worn by Zane Williams, and Jack Bowes was in Cooper Stephens’ No.12.
No player dared to sport Joel Selwood’s No.14.
Harry hangs around
Geelong is set to lose medical boss Harry Taylor after one year in the role, but the Cats haven’t lost him yet.
The champion defender was his cheery self at North Shore and walked laps while watching training.
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Originally published as What we noticed at Geelong’s first full session of pre-season
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