PORT ADELAIDE small forward Sam Gray has revealed his side has been practising having shorter warm-ups ahead of its Round 1 clash against Fremantle on
The League sent a memo to clubs last month detailing the change, which means players will no longer be able to warm up as a team on the ground before a game, aside from just prior to the first bounce.
The move is about allowing more curtain raisers and pre-game activities at venues.
Players will still be allowed to enter the arena an hour or two before the start of play if there is no
The League also dictated that the teams enter the field eleven minutes before the bounce, with the away team on field three minutes before the home team.
“We’ve been doing it a bit before training,” Gray told Adelaide radio station FIVEaa.
“We do 12 minutes of our own stuff then come back in, then go back out as a group to do team stuff 12 minutes before the game.”
“So it is a bit different but it shouldn’t take the blokes too long to adjust to.”
As part of the changes, players will also have less time to practice goal kicking, with shooting for
Gray, who played every game in 2017 and booted 28 goals, said he thought the change was unlikely to affect his individual preparation.
“I don’t get there too early, I just get there when I’m required and get changed early and get strapped up.
“I like to get out on the oval and have a kick around and kick goals from both ends but my match routine stays the same.
“I don’t get there three hours early like Polec and Boak do.”
Gray spent significant game time on the ball in 2017, and collected an average of 18 possessions, but said while he enjoyed playing more in the midfield at times, he expected the injection of experienced recruits like Tom Rockliff and Steven Motlop would see him stationed closer to goal in 2018.
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