AFTER soaking up Sam Mitchell's knowledge, West Coast's midfielders are preparing to put some Hawthorn intel into practice in their pre-season clash against Fremantle, star onballer Matt Priddis says.
The Eagles are set to field a near full-strength line-up against the Dockers in Geraldton on Saturday after sparing most of their big names the long trip to Narrandera for a 33-point loss to Greater Western Sydney in their JLT Community Series opener.
Mitchell could make his first appearance in Eagles colours in the pre-season Western Derby and clearance specialist Priddis is keen to implement some of the ex-Hawks champion's stoppage tactics.
"We have (been learning from him) and no doubt we'll get more and more as we get into games now," Priddis said.
"Sam's not afraid to speak up in meetings, which we want him to do, because he's got so much knowledge.
"I'm excited about playing with him this weekend."
Drew Petrie is also in line to debut for his new club after Nathan Vardy carried the ruck against the Giants, and Priddis also praised the ex-North Melbourne forward for passing on tips to his new teammates.
"It's pretty rare that you get two players that have played 300 games. Sam and Drew have just been fantastic for our footy club," Priddis said.
"They've obviously been in the system for a long time and we've got so much we can learn from them, so at every opportunity we're asking questions and they're doing the same because it's a new environment for them also.
"It's a great opportunity for our footy club to get better."
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With the additions of 34-year-olds Mitchell and Petrie, West Coast will take the AFL's oldest and most experienced list into 2017.
Despite the expected absence of star ruckman Nic Naitanui (ACL) for most, if not all, of the season, the Eagles' premiership window looks to be wide open.
But Priddis admitted the Eagles learnt a harsh lesson that their midfield needed to bat deeper after last year's shock elimination final loss to the Western Bulldogs.
"Every club throughout the competition has looked at the Bulldogs and Sydney and the numbers they generate through the midfield for the depth is really important," Priddis said.
"We've got that and adding Mitch and Drew into that is really going to help too with their experience. It's something we're working on."
Sharrod Wellingham picked up a team-high 28 disposals against GWS after moving from defence to the engine room, while Dom Sheed (27), Mark Hutchings (24) and second-year onballer Luke Partington (12) also impressed Priddis.
Highly-rated youngster Liam Duggan looks ready to take another step this season despite a slight hamstring setback recently, and the Eagles expect more from Jack Redden and Lewis Jetta after both battled to have an impact last year.
"Redden's someone who has got a lot of experience and I think he's someone who can play some great footy for us," Priddis said at the Sunshine Beach Run raising money for the Red Nose foundation.
"There's been a lot made about (Jetta's 2016 season), but his attitude over the off-season was the thing that really pleased me.
"He was in the club most days doing his weights, he attacked his running program really hard and he hasn't missed a beat during pre-season.
"He can take a lot of confidence out of that and hopefully it translates into good on-field performance."
