Hamish Hartlett on his comeback from a knee tidy up:
“I had a knee operation at the end of last season.
“I am on the comeback from that, so I’ve just started running over the last couple of weeks. I will get tested out there today in 42 degrees.
“Pre-season number 12, so I’ve been here a few times before. It’s been good to be back so far.
Hartlett on training in the extreme heat:
“As far as I’m aware, nothing will change.
“The boys will be out there between 9-11.30. Obviously, there will be plenty of drinks to keep the boys as cool as possible.
“It’s a bit of a one-off at this time of year to be this hot. We will just grind through it and come midday we will be inside for the rest of the day.
Hartlett on the balance between running and football skills in pre-season:
“Every main session on a Monday, Wednesday and Friday is a combination of both.
“We find a lot of our running numbers - particularly the distance stuff - will come through the drills we do.
“If we ever need some top-up stuff - high speed or the real sprinting type efforts - we can always do that at the end of the session.”
“75 to 80 per cent of our running comes from within the drills we do,”
“The drills we are doing are game-based drills to adapt us to running the right patterns for the high half-forwards and the half-backs, and the mids getting from contest to contest.
“The stuff we are doing is game scenario based. There is an element of having to kick as many footys as possible and get your hands on the football as much as possible.
Hartlett on how pre-seasons have changed over the years:
“We had a couple of years under Darren Burgess’ regime where we went over to Dubai.
“We trained at some really incredible facilities over there, which was a great experience to get over there, but we were exposed to some pretty extreme conditions.
“I think the main reason behind doing that was because we had made the second week of finals, we didn’t have a great deal of time before the Christmas break to get some decent training in.
“It was almost like he shoved three weeks’ worth of training into 10 days before Chrissy.
“The main difference is we are doing a lot more skill-based stuff a lot earlier in the pre-season these days.
Hartlett on his position in 2020:
“As far as I’m aware, I will be floating across the half-back line again.
“I’ve already planted the seed with Kenny that if he needs me to slide into the midfield for three or four minutes, I will put my hand up. He didn’t seem too keen on that.
“I said ok, I’m happy to play a wing role as well. I’ve planted a couple of seeds in his head but I’ve just got to worry about getting out on the track first.
Hartlett on who is impressing so far this pre-season:
“We are only two days in, so I can only really go on what I’ve seen on the Monday.
“Zak Butters has come back in great condition physically. His running has been unbelievable. He had a shoulder operation at the end of the season, so in terms of his contact and ball work, that will be limited.
“The other two - in terms of the running numbers and how well they are moving on the track - are Sam Powell-Pepper and Cam Sutcliffe who have come back in great nick.
“I will have to keep an eye on it over the next couple of weeks to see who is really standing out in terms of ball type stuff.
“Certainly, those three guys are physically great condition at the moment.
Hartlett on whether he would be in the leadership group again:
“Definitely - I will put my hand up to be a part of that group.
“It was a really a condensed group last year with myself, Tommy Jonas and Ollie Wines making up a three-man leadership group.
“I think it worked really well, so I’d imagine we would go down a similar path again.
“It will be a case of going to the whole playing group and voting on who they think are going to represent our club the best.
Hartlett on the captaincy model:
“First and foremost, it’s important to understand that these decisions are made by the football club in the best interests of the team.
“I know a lot of people were turned off by that or upset by that decision, but make no mistake, it was in the best interests of our playing group.
“Tom and Ollie were two standouts, and we thought that was going to be the best way forward for us as a group.
“It is a big responsibility to captain these days and a lot of clubs are going down that two captains path.
“The process will get reviewed again, whether we go one or two, will be in the best interest of our playing group.
Hartlett on the positives of last year and what needs to improve in 2020:
“We were really happy with they way we developed our younger guys last year.
“We feel like they will improve again over this pre-season and give us some real depth in our squad.
“We have established that our ground ball efforts in the forward and back half of the ground need to improve, so that’s certainly an area we need to look at.
“And just our efficiency going forward. I think we had the most inside 50s and most time in forward half last year, so there were a lot of things working in our favour, but the ability to capitalise on the dominance was really poor.
Hartlett on mental health support in sport:
“There is no doubt sports are putting steps in place to support their players.
“Our football club over the last three or four years has employed a couple of guys - John Hinge and Paul Steward - for us to reach out to as players to support us in that area.
“It has almost been a domino effect from the first player - whoever it was sort of six or seven years ago that said this is really getting on top of me from a mental a mental point of view, I need to step away from the game.
“There have been more and more players from all codes that have been able to say, I’m feeling the same way or I’m in the same boat, and seek some support.
“I think it’s great from that point of view that people are feeling far more comfortable in doing that, and seeking the support they need to feel better.
Hartlett on the idea of shortening pre-season and working:
“I don’t mind that idea of working prior to Christmas.
“I know luckily or unluckily I had a year out of school before I was drafted, so I was toiling away at Adelaide Metro in the public transport sector, answering phones calls and helping people buy and sell bus tickets.
“It’s something I lean on when I feel like I’m doing it tough at the football club - I shouldn’t be complaining, I’m doing something I love.
“I fully support that idea - I think it’s a great idea. But there is obviously that balance between getting fit, understanding the game plan and getting your skill level to the level it needs to be at as well.
