The Albury-Wodonga Spitfires men's side recorded three wins from four games in their pre-season tournament against visiting Melbourne clubs at Albury Hockey Centre on the weekend.
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Players were tested with three games in hot conditions on Saturday afternoon, but came away with victories against Altona Blue (3-1) and Altona White (5-4), before falling 3-1 to Toorak-East Malvern in the final clash.
The Spitfires bounced back on Sunday morning with a very polished performance, defeating Altona White 8-1.
Co-coach Jeremy Payne was very pleased with the effort of all the players.
"The boys made it really hard for (co-coach) Tony Donnelley and I to start looking at the squad and future teams," Payne said.
"Everyone played really well and put in.
"They were full length games as well, so it was very hard on the body with the heat as well and it definitely tested our fitness.
"We had a decent sized squad (of 21 or 22 players) and everyone got a good amount of time without being overcooked.
"By the third game on Saturday, a few boys were suffering from cramps and other little niggles that pulled us up quickly.
"It was pretty hot, we weren't quite all there for that one, but we did our best."
Sam Quick, Oscar Smart and Larry Simpson impressed throughout the four games, but Payne admitted it was the defence that particularly caught his eye.
"Our defence was what set the tone for the rest of the team," he said.
"Tim Jones, Jordan Thorneycroft, Josh MacVean and Noah Erdeljac lined up through our defence and really built it for us."
Thorneycroft hasn't featured in the Spitfires squad for a number of seasons, but, according to Payne, hasn't looked out of place upon his return to the Capital League outfit.
"He's been really good," Payne said.
"He played through most of the games and it was probably a bit hard on him, but he coasts through it at his own pace.
"Because he reads the game so well, he puts himself in spots where he doesn't have to overwork himself.
"He still makes a tackle or the right pass, he's quite a smart player."
Payne and Donnolley are expected to settle on their primary squad of players by the end of the week.
"It won't be discarding or pushing anyone out, it will be more our core players who we expect to really put in for us," Payne added.
"By all means, we'd love to have 25-30 players at every training session because it makes it stronger."
Defending premiers Wests await the Spitfires in round one.
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