Mackie on the pre-season

We have had a good pre-season, it is always hard to quantify but we have had a few months back now.

Obviously the playing group evolves every year, it was great for our players to have some new voices, they have come in and done a great job.

The players seem like they are in a really good spot, you get to this point in pre-season where you just want to start playing against some opposition.

Monday was really good, great for both teams to have a really good hit-out. We got different looks at all things you wanted to from a coaching point of view. 

Mackie on Bailey Smith

It is great to see him running around out there.

It has been a long time, I think we forget how long it has been since he played.

Just the way he covers the ground is impressive, but once again we managed him like a few others. For him to drive home last night, feeling like he enjoyed his footy and the feeling you get after within your body is pleasing.

It is all part of that next preparation and we play Essendon next Tuesday night, which will be another massive lead into the Opening Round up in Brisbane. 

Mackie on Sam De Koning

Yeah he has, he is another one that I would put in a similar category.

He had surgery at the end of the year on a knee, so once again he gets some confidence out of playing a game of footy. He has done a great job since the end of the year, we didn't know how long the rehab was going to be.

He has done a lot of work, he is physically ready to do it, I thought he was really bouncy in that game early on. Once again, knowing that he has played a game and got through will help him get confidence out of that.

He is so long and when he can jump, he has got great hands and great touch.

Sam De Koning at his best is a game changer for us, so we are looking forward to what he can do. 

Mackie on the midfield mix

It is an exciting one, I feel like we have got plenty of options and it is just about exposing them to their centre bounce craft.

We mentioned Paddy [Dangerfield] who could be forward or could be mid, Tom Stewart can go into centre bounces, Bailey will spend time in there.

What it exactly looks like, we will refine that leading into the Opening Round. It is something that gets talked about a lot, there is ways that the game can look alright depending on how the opposition exits stoppages. There is a lot to it, its not just a numbers thing.

Clearly centre bounces are a big part of the game, they always have been and we would rather win more than we lose.

We are not exactly certain as to what that will look like, but we have a lot of numbers going through there.