NORTH Melbourne will run a scaled-back high-altitude camp in Utah this year, with most of its players set to remain in Melbourne for pre-season training.
North has run Utah training camps of up to three weeks in each of the past four pre-seasons, with nearly all of its players making the trip to the United States.
Roos coach Brad Scott said in August that the club's Utah camps had largely served their purpose, stressing that high-altitude training was not crucial to the Roos' fitness program.
North announced on NMFC.com.au on Tuesday that just 13 players would travel to Utah this year for a two-week camp in mid-November.
The only senior players set to attend are captain Andrew Swallow, Jack Ziebell and Daniel Wells, with Brad McKenzie, Ben Jacobs, Trent Dumont, Shaun Atley, Luke McDonald, Mason Wood, Jamie Macmillan, Aaron Mullett, Kayne Turner and Joel Tippett to join them.
North football director Geoff Walsh said the Roos had scaled back this year's trip given how arduous their previous Utah camps had been.
"I think the program always evolves and 'Scotty' and the coaches always look to tweak the program and seek what advantages or changes we can make," Walsh said.
"A number of the older guys have been for four or five years in a row. It sounds a bit trite, but I think it starts to wear on them a bit.
"It's a pretty exhausting camp in a lot of ways, particularly for guys with young families. Being away from them for three weeks is hard."
Walsh said Swallow, Ziebell and Wells viewed the Utah camp as a chance to fast-track their pre-season training after injury-interrupted 2014 seasons.
Walsh said the three leadership group members would set an invaluable example for the younger players in Utah through their preparation and training.
The Roos footy boss said this year's shorter camp would exclude the long hikes of previous years and focus more on aerobic running and skills sessions.
Recruits Jarrad Waite and Shaun Higgins will remain in Melbourne and are set to join the start of pre-season training from December 1.
But Walsh said Waite and Higgins had already been down at Arden Street to train and get to know their new teammates.
