Western Bulldogs Adam Cooney and Brian Lake took the first step towards erasing their fitness queries with solid efforts in an AFL intra-club match on Saturday.
Around 2,500 fans turned up at the club’s Whitten Oval headquarters to watch how the Bulldogs shaped up under new coach Brendan McCarthy.
And perhaps the best sight in a sharp, intense hitout was Cooney and Lake each getting through three quarters unscathed and moving freely.
Brownlow Medallist Cooney’s 2011 was ruined by a chronic knee injury – All-Australian defender Lake’s by a series of niggles and below-par performances when he did play.
But the pair appear on track for round one selection, though assistant coach Steven King suggested they were unlikely to play in the pre-season cup opener against GWS and Collingwood in Sydney next Saturday.
“They were planned to play the three quarters and got through unscathed which is a big tick and hopefully they pull up well,” King said.
“I think we now have to sit down and work out as a group how many minutes they need before round one.”
“Travelling next week, I’m not sure if it’s the one we’ll take them up (to Sydney).
“But looking forward we might have a couple of games around Melbourne.”
Former Geelong and St Kilda ruckman King, part of an all-new coaching team at the Bulldogs under ex-Essendon assistant McCartney, is confident Lake is capable of returning to his best.
“I can only judge people on the experiences I’ve had with them, and Brian’s been up and about, he’s been very diligent with his rehab.
“He’s changed his body shape considerably in the three months I’ve been here and he looks like he’s ready for a big one.”
Forward Liam Jones was one of the stars of the intra-club hitout, taking several big marks, kicking goals, and putting his hand up to step into the void left by Barry Hall’s retirement.
There was plenty of evidence of McCartney’s wish for the Dogs to play a more contested brand of football with plenty of traffic through the midfield.
Forwards Matthew Panos and Daniel Giansiracusa were also prominent.
Of the Dogs’ regulars, skipper Matthew Boyd and defenders Lindsay Gilbee and Justin Sherman didn’t play because of minor injuries.
