Yackandandah midfielder David Price plays his first senior match of the season

Price was contemplating retirement after being hampered by a leg complaint in the opening rounds.

But the veteran Roo made his first appearance of the season a fortnight ago in the reserves before earning a senior recall against Mitta United on the weekend.

Coach Darren Holmes was quick to hand Price one of the toughest jobs in the competition after he got the job of playing on Morris medallist and Blues trump card Jarrod Hodgkin.

Roos skipper Ben McIntosh said the return of Price would add further depth to the list which has started the season with six wins and a draw to sit second.

"Dave was best on ground in the reserves against Beechworth before the bye and got the call up on the weekend," McIntosh said.

"We had a couple out with Lee and Bailey Dale not playing so Pricey came into the side.

"He might be on the wrong side of 30 but he prides himself on his fitness so we weren't worried that he had only played one reserves match.

"I thought he did a reasonable job on Hodgkin who is going to get a lot of the ball whoever you put on him.

"Dave is a bit of a tough nut and he provides another dimension to our midfield rotations."

McIntosh revealed he was shocked when he first learnt that Price was contemplating his playing future.

"I thought he had his best pre-season this year that he had for several years," he said.

"So I was a bit surprised when I heard he was thinking of hanging up the boots.

"He spent a bit of time in the box in the early rounds watching and it started to eat away at him not playing so it was only a matter of time before he got back into it.

"Pricey is definitely in our best side when he is fit and firing."

Price played in a flag for rival club Thurgoona in 2017 before joining Yackandandah in 2021 where he has established himself as a senior regular.

The Roos also welcomed back high-profile recruit Zac Leitch against Mitta United.

Leitch had been missing since round four with a back complaint.

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McIntosh said the Wangaratta premiership ruckman had impressed his new team-mates with his physical presence at the stoppages.

"Big Zac gives us a bit of presence and doesn't mind throwing his body around which is good," he said.

"We have found that he is better off rucking and then going off for a bit of a spell on the bench than resting forward.

"I think that's when he is at his most damaging because if he rests forward he doesn't seem to have as big as impact.

"He's a lot more dominant when he is fresh."

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