A CHAUFFEUR ready in your van
Will take you to your entry gate
Say the word, off you go
A second lost, is a second late

THE 41 players on the camp don't know it yet, but before they depart Queensland, they will have to decode a Dr Seuss cryptic puzzle. Inspired by the 1991 children's book Oh, the Places You'll Go, Luke Beveridge has crafted a two-page document that will lead his players along a 9km circuit to Hells Gates and back in Noosa National Park. 

The 54-year-old has been digging into this playbook since he famously coached St Bede's Mentone to the VAFA C-Grade, B-Grade and A-Grade premierships in consecutive years between 2006 and 2008. Back then, Beveridge's amateur players would sprint around the bayside neighbourhood searching for clues on street signs and number plates.

Now on the eve of his 11th season at the Mission Whitten Oval, Beveridge sits back on the couch inside his hotel room at the RACV Resort to explain the method to the madness. Under his watch, the Western Bulldogs have routinely spent the business end of pre-season on the Sunshine Coast. Every camp ends with an adventure run, completed along trails, up and down stairs, across beaches, working in small teams to solve the riddle.

Resting next to Beveridge is a dog-eared copy of The Lion Tracker's Guide To Life. Dozens of sticky labels in a rainbow of colours poke out of the book written by Boyd Varty. The life coach and lion tracker writes how the wisdom derived from the ancient art of tracking can teach you how to live in a state of greater awareness. Beveridge always thinks outside the box. But only he could apply the lessons learned in the South African bush to life in the AFL.

Across four days this week, AFL.com.au was granted inner sanctum access ahead of a crucial campaign in Footscray, for both the out-of-contract premiership coach, and a football club that celebrates its 100th season in the VFL/AFL. From players to coaches, executives to board members, high performance staff to property stewards, not much was off limits in Queensland.

"A lot of time goes into it [the adventure run] and this camp," Beveridge explains. "It can't be too left field, but there is a lot of symbolism in it. I put a pretty big price on it. You always want the players to invest in each other, the game, the challenge ahead. It's not a total escape from it, but it adds a metaphoric angle to what your ultimate vision of success might be.

"In its infancy, it might start from a paragraph in a book. It's me looking at literature or listening to podcasts – I listen to more podcasts than I used to – with very wise men and women providing layers to aspects of life that interests me.

"My undergrad was faculty of law, so I tagged all my statutory law and tagged books so I knew where to get back to. I do that when I read books, take notes and tag things. Ultimately, I start with the end point and work backwards. My three or four days before anyone else comes up here for the camp is spent in the forest or in the hinterland in nature, mapping out a challenging course, writing scripts."

The players are informed what they will be searching for before dinner on Wednesday night when Beveridge delivers the preamble. You're in search of nine letters. Two words the puzzle trends. Read the clues most carefully. Collaborate amongst your friends. When the final training session of the camp finishes the following morning, every player will be handed directions for the Dr Seuss Hells Gates Run. The game is afoot.

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"YEAH, I've walked a cat before. You've got to give it some outside time, it's an inside cat. I put it on a leash, a little harness."

Cody Weightman can't believe what he has just heard when he makes it back to the bench after his first rotation in Sunday's intra-club. Fortunately, digital content producer Ruby Harkness has lodged a microphone in the GPS pouch of the small forward's guernsey, so we have now all heard the confirmation from Brayden Crossley. We might not have believed it otherwise.

Day two of the camp is one of the most crucial sessions of the entire pre-season, more important for some than others, none moreso than the two players competing for the final spot on the rookie list. Werribee captain Dom Brew started training with the club when the pre-season supplemental selection period (SSP) opened at the end of November, finally getting a look-in at an AFL club after winning the J.J. Liston Trophy in 2024. Up until last weekend, the 27-year-old midfielder was the only player trialling at the kennel.

That changed in late January when the club reached out to Crossley to gauge the 25-year-old's interest in auditioning for a second chance, more than five years after his time controversially ended at Gold Coast due to an anti-doping violation. The initial offer was just for the weekend: Captain's run and intra-club. Nothing more.

National recruiting manager Dom Milesi has flown up from Melbourne especially for the intra-club and is stationed on the balcony at Maroochydore Sports Complex with a pair of binoculars. List boss Sam Power and senior coach Luke Beveridge stand metres away. All three will be involved in making a final decision by the SSP deadline on February 21. The Bulldogs are determined to keep Sam Darcy in attack and Rory Lobb in defence, which is why they are considering extra ruck security behind Tim English. They were two days late in reaching out to reigning Magarey medallist Harry Boyd, who was signed by St Kilda earlier in the SSP. Now they have a big decision to make on two cult figures from the VFL.

Crossley is embraced by more than a dozen friends and family minutes after the intra-club. The Southport captain made the most of his opportunity against developing young ruckman Lachie Smith and tall utility Ryan Gardner. Within the next 24 hours, the club has extended his trial, but not for the rest of the camp. The enigmatic ruckman with the signature handlebar moustache is back on the road the following morning as a support worker for Being Mentors. Crossley will train with the Bulldogs when they start back at Mission Whitten Oval next Wednesday. He will get the chance to secure a second chance when he faces Essendon in the practice match next Saturday. Iconic Australian swimwear brand Budgy Smuggler have already mocked up a sample of Crossley walking his cat. And yes, Weightman was involved in that, too.

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RYLEY Sanders has been on a mission since last year's elimination final. He never wants to feel the way he did while sitting among 97,828 onlookers at the MCG. He doesn't want to be sitting on that side of the fence in the games that matter most. But missing out on selection all last August when the whips were cracking – and in his first opportunity to play in September – may prove to be the making of the Tasmanian.  

The 2023 pick No.6 had never experienced being dropped or overlooked before last year. He spent most of his off-season getting back to work back home in Launceston before heading to Brisbane for a training camp with Adam Treloar and Lions star Josh Dunkley. Since then, Sanders has moved in with Treloar, his fiancée Kim Ravaillion and their daughter Georgie in Highett. He has filled the room that belonged to Charlie Clarke, who remains akin to a son to Adam and Kim, someone the reigning All-Australian is still in daily contact with, someone who is helping the delisted small forward navigate the gut-wrenching reality of a shattered dream. 

Sanders hasn't missed a session across his second pre-season at the Whitten Oval. He was a clear best on ground in Sunday's intraclub, kicking three goals from the midfield while amassing 30+ disposals, flaunting the gains he has made since his 14th and most recent AFL appearance in round 21 last season. He is obsessive with his preparation, weighing his food at home, constantly wearing recovery boots and using a massage gun, but is gradually becoming more balanced under the guidance of Treloar. 

"I can't really explain how grateful I am to 'Ads', Kim and Georgie for opening their doors to me," Sanders said while standing in the middle of Maroochydore Sports Complex after the dominant display in front of nearly 1000 Western Bulldogs supporters on Sunday.

"I've been there for a couple of months and just love picking his brain. I've probably never met someone who is so similar to me in terms of how we go about life and footy. It has definitely helped me chill out a bit from footy. I have been too over the top and excessive in the past and it can do your head in a bit. This pre-season I have found a better balance away from footy.

"Georgie has actually been great for that. She's the best. I can see why a lot of the boys play better after having kids because it does give you a better perspective. Outside of my family, 'Ads' is probably the closest person to me. He is such a generous and giving person, he just cares so much about other people."

Standing next to Sanders, something is distinctively different. He carved out a reputation for his insatiable work ethic and fastidious attention to detail during a glittering underage career that culminated in a Larke Medal. He famously skipped the Year 12 formal at Melbourne Grammar to ensure his preparation wasn't hampered ahead of a Sandringham Dragons final the following day. Living with Treloar is ideal for him, given the infrared sauna and plunge pools in the backyard. But spending two years in the boarding house in South Yarra wasn't conducive to an elite diet. 

That has changed since the end of last season.

North Melbourne young gun Harry Sheezel has taught Sanders what to eat and, importantly, when to eat, resulting in a dramatic physique change. The 20-year-old has stripped six or seven kilograms off his frame, allowing him to cover the ground more efficiently. It means, just like many in their 20s, Sanders cooks a different meal to his housemates. Although most people that age aren't consumed by calorie counting or interested in legumes and eating wholegrain bread without butter.

"I identified at the end of last season that I wanted to get leaner to cover the ground a bit better. I feel like that's helped me this pre-season. I'm covering the ground better because it's become more of a running game," Sanders explained.

"I finished the season 89kg and I'm now 82 or 83kg. I wanted to get leaner by really focusing on diet. I cut out all the crap, which was hard at the start, but now I'm at the stage where I don't crave it anymore. Harry Sheezel is one of my best mates and I'm constantly messaging him about what he eats. I've pretty much copied his diet. He is all wholefoods: rice, potato, carbs, meat, veg and salad. It's worked for me. I feel like that has really helped me cover the ground. Seeing him, Nick Daicos, Chad Warner and other midfielders explode out, that's what I want to be like."

Treloar produced the best season of his career last year, earning All-Australian selection for the first time after previously being named in the squad three times without being measured up for a blazer. He finished runner-up in the best and fairest alongside Bailey Dale, behind now six-time Charles Sutton medallist Marcus Bontempelli. But the soon-to-be 32-year-old has endured a frustrating summer due to multiple calf strains on both legs either side of Christmas. He won't play in the first month of the season, creating an opportunity for his new housemate to cement a spot in the midfield. 

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THESE camps aren't just for the players. They provide the opportunity to knit deeper connections between all areas of the club, from the commercial department to list management, from the communications team to football operations. More than 40 staff members congregate on the terrace of the Noosa Surf Life Saving Club after dinner on Sunday night. Hours earlier, ESPN's NBA insider Shams Charania has set social media ablaze after breaking the biggest trade bombshell in American sports history. Sam Power and Ameet Bains have been involved in these personnel decisions in our code for a long time. They can't remember anything closely resembling the trade involving the Dallas Mavericks, Los Angeles Lakers and Utah Jazz, resulting in 25-year-old five-time All-Star Luka Doncic swapping places with 10-time All-Star Anthony Davis out of nowhere.  

Power is interim head of football following the departure of club legend Chris Grant before Christmas. After seven seasons as list manager at the club, following four at Carlton in player ID and total player payments, the 41-year-old has a lot of support internally – and across the industry – to continue the role on a permanent basis. Bains spent the Christmas break with his family in the south of France visiting his sister and will make an appointment in conjunction with football director Luke Darcy before round one, if not sooner.  

Seldom is there a dull moment at the Western Bulldogs. Power has already been at the coalface of a situation that only became public last month, one involving one of the most prodigiously talented players in the League, which the club has been worried about for some time. Jamarra Ugle-Hagan has barely trained this pre-season due to personal challenges that have led to the club placing him on a "flexible" training arrangement.

Power has remained in constant contact with the 2020 No.1 pick, scheduling regular meetings each week, while player welfare manager Brent Prismall, Indigenous programs manager Lachlan Edwards and chief medical officer Dr Anthony Hipsley are all involved in helping Ugle-Hagan overcome his challenges. Ugle-Hagan took a step towards a return on Monday night by training with Footscray at Mission Whitten Oval for the first time. The 22-year-old wasn't picked for the Indigenous All-Stars game and won't feature in the Bulldogs' practice matches against Essendon and Hawthorn this month. He isn't expected to be available for selection in the early rounds of the season.

"Jamarra's wellbeing is our No.1 priority and no timeframe is in place around returning to regular training or games at the moment," Power said. "He has continued to take positive steps while completing his program. Given players and staff have been on the Sunshine Coast for our annual training camp, Jamarra remained in Melbourne and has been training with the VFL program. Several staff members remained in Victoria to support that program and Jamarra."

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"I PRETTY much told him in no uncertain terms that the nickname 'Doc' is mine, you're not having it. So we are now 'Junior' and 'Senior'."

When Taylor Duryea first met Sam Davidson, the mature-age recruit mentioned to the veteran he was also called 'Doc'. Duryea wasn't having it. Someone at boarding school was the first to call him that after American rapper Dr. Dre, but it didn't stick at Caulfield Grammar. It wasn't until he arrived at Hawthorn and future premiership teammate Matt Suckling started using the nickname that it stuck. Davidson wasn't expecting to exit that conversation without his nickname intact, but he did exit it with a veteran in his corner. The pair have become tight across the first few months, forming an unexpected alliance despite the 10-year age gap. It was Duryea who dropped Davidson back to the RACV Resort for this interview after a swim in the ocean first thing on Monday morning.

Davidson isn't your typical draftee. Far from it. The 23-year-old has completed five years of a medicine degree at Monash University, hence the nickname. He can't continue that degree while he is playing AFL. Although that won't prevent him from studying in 2025. He has arranged to start a PhD part-time on paediatric health, which will take five years to complete. His mum and older brother are both paediatricians, and right now, that is his plan down the track. He had never played a state league game this time last year – in fact, he didn't even have a contract with Richmond's VFL team – and never featured in any squads through the talent pathways. His football CV reads like a gun for hire chasing envelopes full of cash across Victoria. He spent half a season at Sale City in 2022, before starting 2023 at South Mildura and ending that season playing for Maffra. There is a simple explanation to the movement: rural placements. 

But at the end of 2023, Davidson contemplated not playing footy at all last year. Heading into the business end of his degree, the St Kevin's College product wanted to travel across Europe with a group of mates from uni. "I was worried that I was giving up a year of immense fun with my mates for something that might just be a pipedream," Davidson said. "I did struggle with that decision for a little bit. My dad thought I should have gone travelling at the start of the year, but I think he realised by halfway through the year that it was a good decision." His mates still went on the eight-month trip. Davidson stayed. It proved to be a life-changing decision for the lifelong Western Bulldogs supporter, who was picked by round three and played 17 games for the Tigers, before being selected at pick No.51 last November after winning the prestigious Fothergill-Round-Mitchell Medal.

Davidson has surged into round one calculations over the past month, splitting his time between a wing and a mobile tall target in attack across the summer. With Jamarra Ugle-Hagan set to miss the start of the season, ‘Dave-o' – the high school nickname he has returned to – is in the frame to face North Melbourne on March 15 after kicking three goals in Sunday's intra-club, while showcasing his elite gut running capacity in taxing conditions.  

"It's definitely the No.1 goal at the moment," Davidson said. "When you come into a new club you try and wrap your head around getting to know everyone, but after that everyone is aiming to be in the AFL side for round one. There is a lot to learn coming to a new club, new tactics, new gameplan. You want to put your best foot forward. I do have the belief I can play round one. I'm training and playing as hard as I can."

Duryea turns 34 in April and is the second-oldest player on the list behind Liam Jones. He has lived on one-year contracts for more than half of his 214-game career. His time looked up in 2020 when he couldn't get on the park due to injury and only managed three games. In 2022, he had to wait until October to land a deal. Twelve months later he was delisted and then added to the rookie list. Yet, the two-time premiership player is still here after delivering 22 dependable games in 2024. 

"I didn't think I would still be in the AFL after two years, let alone still here now," Duryea said later in the day next to the pool. "There are lots of sliding doors moments. That's not to say I'm lucky. But getting into a Grand Final team at the right time and injuries creating opportunities, but I still credit myself for getting those opportunities.

"I just really value my role and how I can positively impact the team in my role. What people don't realise is you can have a successful and rewarding career by being a good team man. That's something I hang my hat on and just try to be reliable. If I can be described as anything that would be reliable. I want to get better and try to be the best player I can be, but if I wasn't as committed as I am to being a team player I wouldn't still be here today. That's on and off the field. That has helped my longevity."

Andrew Westacott enters the conversation. The Western Bulldogs board, including president Kylie Watson-Wheeler have flown up to Queensland for multiple engagements, including a Monday night dinner with the coteries at popular Asian fusion restaurant Sum Young Guys, led by chief commercial and strategy officer Kon Karavias. The BBQ pork and the crying tiger short rib were supposedly showstopping but not distracting enough to stop members from the Locker Group and the Sutton Club from chasing answers for what went wrong in last year's elimination final. The morning after, Westacott is energised by the passion of those who love the club. He joined the board at the end of 2023 after 13 years as the CEO of the Australian Grand Prix Corporation. He has been around athletes for decades and wants a temperature check on this camp. Duryea has been on more pre-season camps than anyone in camp. Papua New Guinea. New Zealand twice. South Africa. And now ten years on the Sunshine Coast. The soft cap cuts since the pandemic have put a line through overseas training camps. Kokoda Trail was the standout, but for now, these are a thing of a past. At least in the current climate. 

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MONTHS after Mitch Wallis retired, another Mitch Wallis started at the Whitten Oval. Now more than two years into the role as Western Bulldogs property steward, the 27-year-old still laughs when players dial his number expecting their former teammate to answer. It happens all the time. 

Pre-season camps, and interstate trips for that matter, can't function without people like Wallis. Volunteers are the lifeblood of community sporting clubs across the country, but even at AFL level they play a role. Three volunteers rotate to assist Wallis during the year.  

Wallis and his crew packed up more than 1000 kilograms of training gear for the camp, ranging from nine massage tables and two bins of Sherrins to boxing gloves and more than 100 training guernseys. They arrived on the Sunshine Coast a day earlier than everyone else to ensure everything was ready for day one. 

"It's relatively similar to travelling interstate for a game," Wallis said. "We've taken a touch over 1000 kilos on the plane up here. We came up the day before to ensure everything was right to go. The last thing you want to do is get up here and have forgotten something pretty important. It's a logistical nightmare at times to try and figure it all out, but it has all gone to plan so far."

Wallis was the first one out at Maroochydore Sports Complex on Tuesday morning and is the last one to leave. Everything was out 45 minutes before the players arrive in a fleet of Avis minivans. Mini hurdles and cones on the ground. Massage tables set up and ready for rubs. Dietician Sam Coppinger is in the canteen and has organised all the food and fluids, but Wallis has packed the Gatorade drums. Every detail matters.

The other Wallis – the one who played 162 games in the iconic No.3 red, white and blue guernsey – also happens to be in Noosa this week with his wife Emily and two children. Board members, football department staff and players have all seen the charismatic 32-year-old in and around Hastings Street and let the new Mitch Wallis know all about it.

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USUAL programming is out the window in this neck of the woods. Queenslanders rise earlier than those down south. Much earlier. Which is why Matt Egan sits down for a coffee at Moto in Noosa Junction covered in sweat just before 7am. He has just walked to Hells Gates with midfield coach Brendon Lade, development and player leadership coach Jarryn Geary and football operations manager Dave Newton. 

Egan arrived at the Western Bulldogs at the end of 2023, amid an off-season overhaul in Footscray. After initially being appointed as coach and performance manager, the 41-year-old was promoted to general manager of football operations within a matter of months, following Peter Jackson's review. Since then, the All-Australian defender has worked closely with Luke Beveridge to help run the performance and operational elements of the football department. 

Injuries are part of pushing the envelope at this time of year, but the Bulldogs have been afflicted worse than most this summer. Adam Treloar has been ruled out of the first month of the season due to a series of calf strains. Jason Johannisen underwent hamstring surgery last week and will be sidelined for months. Cody Weightman has managed a knee niggle across the summer.

And then there is Liam Jones. The veteran will be sidelined for at least a couple of months after sustaining a high-grade hamstring strain in the final quarter of Sunday's intra-club. Head of sports medicine Chris Bell didn't have to wait until the scan on Monday; he knew walking around the boundary with Jones that it was bad in the moment. Head of communications Elliot Raiter was equally quick to realise the outside interest; his phone buzzes incessantly, like it has for much of January and February, fielding calls regarding Jamarra Ugle-Hagan.

"The word crisis definitely hasn't been mentioned internally," Egan said over coffee on Wednesday morning. "The papers have built it up a fair bit. Obviously, it's not ideal to have two really experienced players like ‘JJ' and 'Jonesy' have pretty decent hamstrings. Both very different (injuries) and both have had a few over the last few years. 'Jonesy' was playing really well in that practice game and is obviously a really decent player for us. He did it in a quite unique way. We feel like we've got a lot of depth in that area. The other injuries are all different, so it's not something wrong with our program. 'Ads' has had an interrupted pre-season with calf issues, which he has had a few over the years and Cody has had a niggling knee. 

"We feel like our depth is strong. We've developed our young players over the past few years and think they are ready; guys like Ryley Sanders and Sonny Garcia – who we are absolutely rapt he stayed last year – are developing really nicely and really stepped out. Then down back, guys like James O'Donnell and Buku [Khamis] didn't cement their spot last year and we're hoping they can do that this year."

Aaron Naughton is the other marquee name that has been restricted to a modified program for much of the pre-season. The West Australian battled a calf issue in December, then dealt with a bout of glandular fever over the Christmas break. But after playing the first half of Sunday's intraclub, as planned, Naughton has an adequate runway to bank the work required to face North Melbourne at Marvel Stadium on March 15. 

"We're confident he will be there in round one," Egan said. We had a good hitout on Sunday where he played 40 minutes. We've got five weeks until round one, where we will build his loads really nicely. The Essendon game he will play three quarters and hopefully a full game against Hawthorn in Tassie. Then we have two weeks before round one. Even though he hasn't completed a heap of match play he has completed a lot of work, so he is building his contested marking craft and running loads. We're really confident that he will be there against North Melbourne."

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LIKE the majority of future AFL stars, Ed Richards started out as a midfielder. He spent Sundays playing in the middle for the Hawthorn Citizens until under-12s and started off there at Carey Grammar. But he was drafted at pick No.16 in 2017 as a half-back. That's where he thrived in the APS and for the Oakleigh Chargers. And that's the role he appeared on a path to being an All-Australian before Brendon Lade intervened when Tom Liberatore was sidelined early last season with concussion. Lade wanted the game-breaking left-footer around the ball. Luke Beveridge agreed, and the rest is history. The 25-year-old with the famous Collingwood blood coursing through his veins became one of the best positional switches of 2024 – along with Rory Lobb's stunning switch to centre half-back.

Tucked away in the corner of Vision Performance Training in Noosaville on Wednesday morning, Richards has just ticked off the final weights session of the camp. After a summer training with the midfielders – and a summer where he proposed to long-term partner, Elle Neofytou, at Polperro Winery in Red Hill – Richards is settled on-field and off-field.

"It is heaps different this pre-season. Obviously, the running is very different. I had a little bit of exposure to it last year just in-game, but pre-season is meant to be harder and it definitely is. It's been fun," Richards says while Liberatore weighs in with a quip from 15 metres away.

"We've been pretty competitive in there. We've had heaps of match practice. We've had lots of one-on-one contest work. Everyone is improving. I'm really grateful to be playing in there alongside our best players like Marcus, 'Libba', Adam when he's back, Tim is obviously an All-Australian ruckman. I'm looking forward to a full year in the role.

"I've really been working on stoppage craft. Being up against 'Bont', who is a class stoppage player, 'Libba' as well is handy. It's a shame 'Ads' hasn't been on the park much, but he has still been able to help us. 'Sando' has come a long way with his stuff as well. Matty Kennedy has come in and he can be massive for us with his hardness and competitiveness. 'Sonny' [Riley Garcia] has been hitting so hard with his tackling; it has been great to watch; he's been putting blokes like 'Libba', blokes like 'Bont' under duress. He will put his hand up for selection as well. It's been super competitive in there."

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"SEEING Joey Richards get drafted is one of the most enjoyable and rewarding experiences I've had in footy."

Back at the RACV Resort, Ben Reid has caught the coaching bug. It wasn't the plan when a persistent hamstring injury – the latest in a cursed run of soft tissue strains – forced him to retire in 2020 after 152 appearances across 14 seasons with the Magpies. He returned to his hometown of Wangaratta with his family and joined the local team in 2021. The following year he became player-coach for two seasons, leading the Magpies to the premiership in 2022, before it was sensationally stripped off them for a salary cap breach.

Months after that Grand Final, Collingwood selected a 22-year-old teacher's aide at pick No.48, who had just won his third best and fairest for the Wangaratta Magpies. The Ovens & Murray League has produced a handful of draftees in the past few years, including Shaun Mannagh, Riley Bice, Aidan Johnson and Toby Murray. But Richards' rise from pocket rocket in the country to playing for Craig McRae's side – before making the bold call to be traded to Port Adelaide – helped fuel Reid's ambition to return to clubland in development.

Luke Beveridge, in his first role as a development coach in the AFL system, helped launch Reid's playing career. After being selected at pick No.8 in the 2006 draft, the Murray Bushrangers product managed only eight senior games in his first three seasons at Collingwood. Then, by the end of 2010, Reid had a premiership medallion hanging around his neck after playing 21 games in a breakout season. He was named at centre half-back in the All-Australian team the following year and was one of the premier key defenders in the AFL for a few years before injuries curtailed his career.

"He was my first development coach and had a massive impact on my playing career when I was playing in the VFL," Reid said on Wednesday. "And then ultimately ended up playing in a flag a year after he got there. We hadn't really spoke for a little while, then reconnected last year. To sit here and listen to him now, you can see why he's been so successful."

Reid has spent the week living with former St Kilda captain Jarryn Geary and Sydney premiership player Alex Johnson. The three former defenders are the development coaches at the Western Bulldogs. Reid played at either end, kicking 25 goals in 2013, and is coaching the young crop of forwards under Matt Spangher.

"I played a lot back and it's handy in a way that I played on some good forwards, so you are able to pass on that experience," he said. "What did Jack Riewoldt do so well? Tom Hawkins, 'Buddy' (Franklin), Nick Riewoldt. What did they do so well that made it hard for you? I've really enjoyed working closely with 'Spangh'. It's been great so far."

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MOST clubs don't jump on planes for pre-season training camps anymore. They stay home or head somewhere in their state. The AFL soft cap has risen by $400,000 to $7.675 million in 2025 but is still nowhere near the level it was before COVID-19 became part of the modern-day vernacular. Luke Beveridge sees more value in getting away than most, which is why the Western Bulldogs have just spent seven days on the Sunshine Coast.

"When I first started, I pushed pretty hard for the club to invest in a couple of camps; one pre-Christmas and one over the January/February junction and our club was happy to fund these camps," Beveridge said. "Ten years down the track the club understands the importance of helping set up the year with these camps and how historically they have mattered. I think our people genuinely look forward to them.

 "What provides the platform for good performance is relationships and being close, learning things about each other and experiencing things together that you wouldn't normally experience. From the time I started coaching at St Bede's Mentone until now, I've always placed a significant amount of importance on getting away from your usual workplace together and sharing in some things that you wouldn't normally share at the football club. They are pretty expensive exercises but it is just looking for that one to five per cent extra from a unity perspective, as much it is looking at a slight gain from a training perspective."

Like a pre-season camp, Beveridge knows this gig won't last forever. Not many last this long at the one club in this caper. But he has been defying the odds since he replaced Brendan McCartney in November 2014. And he might defy his critics again this year to extend his time in Footscray into 2026 and beyond. If that happens, the Western Bulldogs can expect another adventure run – and another riddle – next summer.