WESTERN Bulldogs midfielder Adam Cooney was so sharp in an intra-club scratch match at Whitten Oval this morning that coach Brendan McCartney had to order the superstar midfielder to ease off the accelerator.
Watch highlights of today's training session at Whitten Oval on BulldogsTV here.
A concern though, was skipper Matthew Boyd, who tweaked an ankle in the dying stages of the session.
When Boyd went down, he threw himself onto his back momentarily, clearly out of pain and perhaps frustration, before being tended to by medical staff and hobbling off the ground.
To the relief of Dogs fans, their skipper was soon cleared of any serious damage.
At a press conference following the hit-out, Bulldogs veteran Daniel Giansiracusa admitted he hadn't seen the incident but dismissed any suggestion it was a serious injury.
"I think it was just a little knock," Giansiracusa said. "'Boydy' is pretty tough - he doesn't miss too many games - so I think that's not going to affect him too much."
Giansiracusa was excited by the performance of Cooney, who won the ball in close, displayed his trademark speed and evasion, and delivered some deft footpasses.
"I thought he moved all right out there," Giansiracusa said.
"He's slowly stepped it up, as [have] a lot of the guys that had post-season ops from last year.
"I think he played half of that match practice, which is a great sign for us.
"With a player like Adam, you just have to make sure you manage him well. And from what I saw today he's still got his zip and his spark.
"'Macca' had to slow him down a bit actually."
Brian Lake was also held back - as planned. Lake moved well in the early drills but took no part in the match simulation.
Asked if Lake could recapture his All-Australian form this season, Giansiracusa was optimistic.
"I'm hoping he can get back to that," he said.
"I think [that] not only the people in this footy club but the lovers of football would like to see him back to his best because he was almost worth three [players] when he was at his best a couple of years ago - they couldn't get it past him because he's such a good mark.
"But we're not putting any added pressure on him. He's just another part of the 22 that will play.
"Macca's brought in from the start that we're not going to be heavily reliant on the superstars of our team."
The Bulldogs would have been particularly pleased with the performances of their young forwards today. Liam Jones and Jordan Roughead - both of whom are looking to nail spots in an evolving attacking zone - were among those to take strong contested marks and finish their work with goals.
One of the highlights was provided by exciting indigenous left-footer Zephaniah Skinner, who soared to claim a high chest mark in the goalsquare that drew gasps from supporters. Skinner was also dangerous on the ground and finished with multiple majors.
Giansiracusa also included Matthew Panos and rookie Jack Redpath in the key-forward mix, and added that several midfielders could also be handy resting in attack.
"You don't want to look into the past but when we did play our best footy we had six or seven options and guys kicking 30 or 40 goals," he said.
"I think you need a spread if you're going to be successful and hopefully we can have that this year."
This pre-season has brought change at Whitten Oval. The new coaching regime led by McCartney has taken a harder edge to training and weight sessions, and the game-plan has become more defensively based.
For experienced campaigners like Giansiracusa, change has been reinvigorating.
"I think it's different because it's a new voice," he said.
"Obviously we had 'Rocket' (Rodney Eade) for seven years and had somewhat success with him … We've had our time with Rocket and the club moves on, Rocket's moved on, and we're excited about this year.
"Obviously Macca's come from that Geelong system [and] been successful … The game's going down that path of [being] very defensive and I think we'll be better in that area."
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