Brendon Goddard has said he is looking forward to seeing the return of some of his fellow Grand Final teammates at Saturday night’s NAB Cup Round 2 match against Sydney at Etihad Stadium. Speaking at the AFL press conference this afternoon, along with Swan Jude Bolton, Goddard said the return of players, including Nick Dal Santo, Jason Gram and Lenny Hayes, will add an extra level of leadership to the team who won against the Pies last weekend by one point.

“The older, wiser heads (of returning players) will give a bit of leadership out on the field. Saying that, the young guys who played last week and stood up, including Armatige, Stanley and Stevens, who is out injured this week, all injected a bit of life into the team and played a role for the team last week.”

Brendon also gave a suggestion at what we might be seeing of the Saints team in the coming season, with the possibility of both he and Dal Santo having the chance to get up forward and show their skills in front of goal.

“Due to injuries and things in the past I haven’t been able to do that (get up forward) so it’s always been on the books to get me up forward, but at the end of the day Ross (Lyon) has the final say on where you’re playing.”

According to Jude Bolton, Sydney has also had a successful pre-season with minimal injuries which is a welcomed change for the Swans who have struggled in this period for the past couple of years. Giving us a hint on what to look for in tomorrow night’s Premiership Round 1 preview, Bolton spoke of the newly developed forward line with Jesse White returning as well as ruckman Shane Mumford.

Both players are looking forward to playing on a newly laid surface at Etihad Stadium tomorrow night with a 7:10pm start. To make sure you’ve got your ticket go to ticketmaster.com.au