MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - JUNE 09: Jamarra Ugle-Hagan of the Bulldogs celebrates a goal during the 2023 AFL Round 13 match between the Western Bulldogs and the Port Adelaide Power at Marvel Stadium on June 9, 2023 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images)
With the 2024 AFL pre-season all done and dusted, all eyes turn to Opening Round.
Despite the summer games meaning close to nothing, it allows clubs and fans to establish where they stand heading into the new year.
Young draftees were unveiled in their quest to forge an AFL career, and a host of familiar names were seen in fresh colours.
St Kilda and Brisbane were the strongest performers during February and March, with the latter hoping to rectify their heartbreaking four-point loss to Collingwood in the Grand Final.
The reigning premiers flexed their muscles in the inaugural Charity Shield match against Richmond while West Coast battled, which is to be expected.
But what else can be taken from the 2024 pre-season?
Who impressed? Who disappointed? Has any club changed their potential over the past few weeks?
After being robbed of a finals appearance by a goal-review blunder, the Crows are setting their sights on a return to September action for the first time since 2017.
Coach Matthew Nicks said recently to AFL.com.au that he's "sick" of missing out
"We don't want to finish up in August. You get sick of watching finals footy … as do our players the longer they're in the game. So we'll embrace the expectation," Nicks said on Monday.
But where will that jump come from?
Young guns Josh Rachele, Izak Rankine and Luke Pedlar have been touted as big improvers in season 2024, with more midfield minutes on the agenda.
The trio have combined strongly in the past fortnight against arch-rivals Port Adelaide and the Eagles.
Rachele and Rankine combined for seven goals in the last tune-up before the year kicks off and look primed to help their club rise into premiership contention.
Not much needs to be said for the Lions, given the club is well and truly in their premiership window.
But the shattering four-point Grand Final loss to Collingwood can either galvanise a group or fracture it.
Despite coming so close to the ultimate glory, Chris Fagan's men must look at innovative ways to improve to find that edge over opponents.
In December, former captain Dayne Zorko said on SEN that the club wasn't prepared enough for "the tricks" the Pies threw at them, admitting they lacked a few of their own.
“I think we're just probably missing a couple more tricks,” Zorko said on SENQ Breakfast.
“It is something that we, as players, identified and the coaching group identified that we could do throughout games that the opposition team hasn't necessarily seen."
Starting with defender-turned-forward Darcy Gardiner, who throughout the summer has been trialled as a third tall in the attacking half.
The departure of Jack Gunston has opened a spot in Brisbane's forward line, while free-agent recruit Tom Doedee will eventually fill Gardiner's role down back once returns from his ACL injury.
The Blues fans have been flagged as genuine premiership fancies following an extraordinary run that led them back to finals for the first time in over a decade.
Orazio Fantasia (Port Adelaide) looks poised to don his third set of colours to add more chaos to the current line-up, consisting of Jesse Motlop, Matthew Cottrell and David Cunningham.
After a preliminary final in 2023, Carlton will look at adding further strength to their backline and hope Zac Williams will be another string to their bow.
Michael Voss' team are primed for a full-out attack at their 17th premiership and many pundits believe they are perfectly placed to do so.
Craig 'Fly' McRae is gearing up for his club's premiership defence but with a slightly different tact.
Listening to players like Steele Sidebottom and Isaac Quaynor during the summer months, they've refused to use the phrase "back-to-back" when talking about winning consecutive premierships.
Speaking on SEN, Sidebottom gave insight into how Collingwood look toward season 2024.
“To be honest, there's been no talk about back-to-back,” Sidebottom told SEN Whateley.
“For us, it's just been about getting back to work.
“Our season last year was exceptional, but our best last year is not going to be good enough to win it again this year."
Holding the oldest list in the competition, the Pies have shown they are willing to give more opportunities for their youth coming through.
Finlay Macrae and Ash Johnson are two that have sprung to mind, with vacancies from last year's team opening due to Taylor Adams (Sydney) and Daniel McStay's (ACL) absence.
The pair look like they are a consistent fixture under McRae, with Reef McInness also waiting in the wings for his opportunity.
Lachie Shultz is another who will walk into the side, being seen as an upgrade to Jack Ginnivan.
One of the more active players in the most recent trade period, coach Brad Scott has some big decisions to make.
Luring Todd Goldstein and Ben McKay from North Melbourne, as well as Xavier Duursma (Port Adelaide) and Jade Gresham (St Kilda), the Bombers seem poised to make a genuine push towards finals. Or so they believe.
Whilst a focus on defence has been at the forefront of their mind, Scott has his side playing with a bit more dare, something that has lacked for the majority of the past few years.
As seen against Geelong, Essendon were able to cut the Cats up through the use of short, sharp kicking skills in between the arcs.
Although the Bombers like to share it around, the pre-season showed their intent to move forward more often.
Fremantle appears to be on a downfall despite high hopes for the club after an impressive 2022 season.
Failing to make a similar dent into last year, coach Justin Longmuir's pressure gauge is ramping up ahead of 2024.
In these circumstances, bold moves must be made to yield different results and putting a two-time Brownlow Medalist into his natural habitat is a good start.
Across the pre-season hit-outs, Nat Fyfe returned to the midfield and was joined by Hayden Young, who's arguably been the most impressive at the Dockers.
Along with some positional changes, pre-season supplemental selection (SSP) Jeremy Sharp has found a spot on the wing.
Mastermind coach Chris Scott will undoubtedly start looking at bringing some young guns through the senior mix in 2024.
The Cats were found out in 2022 due to a large range of injuries to key players and not being able to cover their absences given the lack of depth.
Former first-round pick Jhye Clark looks ready to add to the solitary game he featured in last year while Ollie Dempsey and Shannon Neale have put their hand up for more responsibility in the forward line.
And as we know, Scott isn't afraid to try new things so with Geelong, expect the unexpected.
The Suns are keen to see what landing the 'big fish' does to their club: Damien Hardwick.
The former Richmond premiership coach made the move up north in a boost to take this club to the finals for the first time in their history.
Captain Touk Miller said to the Sun's media, that the introduction of Hardwick to the organisation has been "fantastic" in righting the ship.
“He's been fantastic. For us, what's been the biggest piece for the club is his ability to implement a system," Miller said.
“He's been unreal, we haven't lost sight of what we are and that's a strong running team. We're highly engaged in being coachable and I think we've done that really well.
“He works on a lot of people's strengths. Obviously, he's been there and done it before and I have a lot of trust in what he's delivering and doing.”
And what we can glean from that is, like the Tigers during their premiership years, the Suns will attempt to play a fast, chaotic brand of football, showcased throughout their pre-season outings.
With all things remaining equal, the Giants will come into the 2024 season relatively unchanged in terms of personnel.
Quieter than previous years during the trade period, GWS will look internally for improvement after coming so close to a second grand final berth.
With some of their stars staking claims as the next wave to take over the competition, one of those is none other than former number-one pick Aaron Cadman.
Fallen behind a forward mix of Jesse Hogan, Jake Riccardi and Callum Brown, Cadman has done himself no harm for senior selection in what he's done in the past fortnight.
The 19-year-old slotted four goals against cross-town rivals Sydney and produced some highlights against the Suns in their final tune-up ahead of season 2024.
Coming into this year, Hawthorn boasts the second youngest list in the competition, behind only North Melbourne.
Having only four players (Luke Breust, Jack Gunston, Chad Wingard and Sam Frost) 30 years or older, coach Sam Mitchell will need to rely upon his young guns.
So we can expect Mitchell to throw the magnets around and get some exposure to some of his youth.
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Henry Hustwaite has been touted as a chance for round one, being likened to Collingwood champion Scott Pendlebury with his build and composure in traffic.
Nick Watson - who was the Hawks' top draft pick in 2023 - hasn't put a foot wrong so far in his first pre-season in the league and is ready for the big time.
The Demons have already revealed the introduction of three new faces for their opening-round clash against Sydney.
Caleb Windsor (pick seven from 2023), Blake Howes (pick 39 in 2021) and Jack Billings (St Kilda) have all been named.
Both Billings and Windsor will occupy the half-forward and wing roles in Melbourne's senior side, as both have shown throughout the summer how strong they are in those positions.
Howes - who plays as a rangy utility - will be deployed across multiple positions where needed but could stand alongside Steven May and Jake Lever down back.
After an interrupted start to his coaching life at North Melbourne, Alastair Clarkson finally has both hands on the wheel.
Resuming control late in 2023, the champion coach has now started implementing a system called 'North-ball'.
Seen across their two pre-season outings against Collingwood and St Kilda, the strategy behind the Kangaroos' new game style relies on fast and direct ball movement, particularly through hands.
Being the youngest side in the competition, Clarkson will attempt to use his excited youth to carve up opposition sides that will have their fans on the edge of their seats.
Rising Star fancies Colby McKercher and Zane Duursma will also have their chance to impress as other new faces like Zac Fisher (Carlton) and Bigoa Nyuon (Richmond) are prepping for round one.
The Power went all in on restocking their defence, bringing in Esava Ratugolea (Geelong) and Brandon Zerk-Thatcher (Essendon).
Deemed an improvement area for the club, the new pair are expected to make an immediate impact and should shore up the back half under Ken Hinkley.
After a top-four finish which yielded a straight-sets exit, Port Adelaide is excited by their prospects in 2024 and realistically should be around the mark again.
New coach, new game plan.
Adem Yze has quickly left his mark on the Richmond side in a matter of months, with there being an intent to move the ball quickly.
Against Collingwood, the Tigers were able to handball their way through and get the ball in dangerous hands like Dustin Martin and Shai Bolton to deliver into the forward half.
With limited expectations for the year, Yze and his men could focus on playing freely which can work in their favour as surprise packets for 2024.
Fresh faces Jacob Koschitzke and Sam Naismith will also be granted responsibilities on the senior side.
Arguably the team of the pre-season, Ross Lyon's Saints were faultless in their preparations for 2024.
Following a sixth placer finishing last year, St Kilda appear well poised to attack the top four and secure a double chance in September.
Quickly becoming one of the stingiest defensive outfits, Lyon has worked on the club's fleet-of-foot roster, adding more pace to the line-up.
Draftee Darcy Wilson looks ready to debut while recruit Liam Henry looks comfortable in the new system.
Riley Bonner will likely start given the absence of Jimmy Webster due to his high-hit on Kangaroos skipper Jy Simpkin.
Starting the year without the experienced trio Callum Mills, Luke Parker and Taylor Adams has many implications.
One of them is a heavier reliance on their young guns, the next wave coming through.
Chad Warner, James Rowbottom and Errol Gulden are set for the jump into stardom (if they haven't already) while prized recruit Brodie Grundy will likely feed the footy to them all day.
But what we've come to know and love about the 'Bloods' is their contest ability, which has been their DNA for the better part of two decades.
Expect to see it again.
Struggling to see the light at the end of the tunnel, the Eagles didn't leave fans with a pleasant taste in their mouths heading into the new season.
Handed two beltings at the hands of Fremantle and Adelaide, Adam Simpson has plenty of work to do to avoid 2024 being another disappointing year.
However, the positive is the fact that the coaching staff at West Coast will have no choice but to play some of their young guns.
Pick one Harley Reid is set to feature in round one while Reuben Ginbey and Elijah Hewett will be better off for the exposure in 2023.
Luke Beveridge's men were impressive across the pre-season as they attempted to rectify a poor outcome from 2023.
Being a thereabouts-side the past few years which included a grand final loss in 2021, a long hard look was needed to see which way the club would go.
However, what we've seen so far is the combination of Jamarra Ugle-Hagan and Aaron Naughton up forward quickly becoming a lethal duo.
The pairing could see the Bulldogs be taken back to September action but also make some waves in doing so.