On potential inclusions for round two...
“Today’s our main session, so that's the difficulty with having to name your team so far out from a Sunday game.
“I answered a question similar post game around Jack Macrae’s circumstances with missing some training, missing some match practice. We're setting him up to succeed against some of the better midfields. We feel like Gold Coast’s group are of the best in the competition at the moment, and Jack's almost there.
“There were some encouraging signs again last week. He can't be sub, so he's got to play a full game and will most likely play on Sunday against GWS in the twos."
On competition for spots...
“We’re in a period of evolution - significant evolution - again. When you consider coming off 2022, straight out in an elimination final, and then last year finishing ninth – you know the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again thinking you're going to get a different result. Some of the young guys coming through in Ryley Sanders and Harvey Gallagher – that affects selection to a degree. We have to expose these guys to the level.
“We think they're going to be really good, important players for the club, so some of the lads who are a little bit behind or who maybe haven't been as prolific as some of the younger guys during pre-season have yeah, found themselves just out of the team like Jack and CD (Caleb Daniel) as a sub last week.
“That challenges all of our group to emerge and come up to the standards that they're setting for each other. We've got no doubt that Jack will play a lot of AFL footy this year - it could be next week but we’ll wait and see."
On Sam Darcy...
“Yeah, Sam will play this week and I think he's much better equipped and ready to play at the level than he ever has been. He's had a pretty strong pre-season, got through a hell of a lot of work and spent a lot of time in the ruck over the pre-season, so he's competed against Tim and Lobby and a young Lachie Smith. There was a game that we played in Maroochydore where he rucked the whole game, so we've tried to prepare him for the rigours of the game at this level He'll spend some minutes in the ruck this weekend, and he’ll obviously play forward for a fair chunk of the game.
“I suppose with Sam too, he's got that history where he has played as a key defender, so if we get to the point where we feel like we need help or we we're unlucky with injury or something, then Sam's capable of swinging and covering for us back there, but we have to get him going and support him. He’s a fierce competitor.”
On improvements for Sunday...
“We went from when the number one pressure side in that Community Series to being 17th. That just tells you that we weren't good enough around the core aspect of putting pressure on the opposition and dealing with it ourselves. We'll get that right and closer to where we need it to be."
