COLLINGWOOD midfielder Dane Swan reminded fans he had lost none of his brilliance in an electrifying five-minute burst in the third quarter of the Magpies' intra-club match at the Westpac Centre on Thursday night.
The 30-year-old turned it on for the crowd kicking two goals and gaining two clearances in quick succession, demonstrating his readiness to bounce back from a disappointing 2014.
He played all but the final 10 minutes and was busy all game.
Assistant coach Robert Harvey said it was evident Swan was moving better at this stage than he did last season and his form reflected his impressive approach over summer.
Click here to see more pics from Collingwood's intra-club clash
"The way he moved tonight was really positive," Harvey said. "Now the challenge is to manage him and get him up and going and get enough work into him to have him ready for round one."
The Magpies were impressed with the early form of its first pick in the 2014 NAB AFL Draft Jordan De Goey, who was conspicuous around the packs, winning the ball in tight and showing great strength and pace.
Harvey said there were still areas De Goey needed to work on but he could be pushing for senior selection early in the season.
"He's a confident kid, who feels he belongs at that level … certainly the contest does not worry him," Harvey said.
Although De Goey faded out of the game he did not look out of place while fellow top 10 draft pick Nathan Freeman – who missed virtually all of 2014 with hamstring problems – performed better the longer the game went.
Harvey said Freeman should gain confidence from his performance after a horrific 2014.
Another player cruelled by injury in recent seasons, Alex Fasolo, played up forward, signalling the experiment of playing him in defence might be over. He kicked a trademark snap in the final quarter.
Harvey said Fasolo had trained as a forward this pre-season and was likely to begin the year close to goals. Fasolo also pushed up on the wing late in the game.
Captain Scott Pendlebury showed his class at times but played an outside role while key forward Travis Cloke kicked two goals and was busy.
Scott Pendlebury sandwiched between three Magpies. Picture: Getty Images
Recruit Travis Varcoe played on the wing and forward of centre attempting to take the game on and showed he will add the run that Heritier Lumumba provided before he left for Melbourne at the end of last season.
"We saw [Varcoe's] class at times tonight and he is going to be really important for us," Harvey said.
The coach also praised Levi Greenwood – who crossed from North Melbourne in trade week – and said he had not put a foot wrong since joining the club.
In front of an impressive crowd on a balmy night, Magpie supporters looked to enjoy the festive atmosphere.
Harvey knows it's early days but he was satisfied with what he saw.
"Bucks has talked a lot about how even we want to be this year as a team and that was a good start for us in that regard. There were guys putting their hand up at times all night."
The only downside was the late withdrawal of defender Nathan Brown who pulled out of the game after receiving a corkie at training on Friday.
Harvey said there was no point risking him in an intra-club game and the move was a precaution.
With a squad of 37 available the only significant names to miss other than Brown were Ben Reid, Clinton Young, Darcy Moore, Matt Scharenberg and Brent Macaffer. Sharenberg and Macaffer are recovering from knee reconstructions.
Brodie Grundy marks strongly in front of Scott Pendlebury. Picture: Getty Images
Ben Kennedy gets off a flying handball. Picture: Getty Images
Tony Armstrong is tackled during the Magpies' intra-club match. Picture: Getty Images
Steele Sidebottom getting his hands on the ball. Picture: Getty Images
Ben Sinclair in action during the Magpies' intra-club match. Picture: Getty Images
