By Jennifer Witham - For afl.com.au

As Gold Coast's first appearance in the 2011 NAB Cup approaches, the GC SUNS Senior Coach Guy McKenna sits down with afl.com.au's Jennifer Witham to talk about how the summer has gone and what lies ahead for his team and players. 

What's your evaluation of how your pre-season has gone?

It's obviously been different. There was the devastation up north and we had more rain leading into Christmas, which restricted our training. I would have thought we've been batting at about 90 per cent as far as training days, and for a young group that's not ideal.

We're not making excuses but we've had to train at the beach in the soft sand because we had to spend so many days indoors on the hard surfaces. We've had to be a bit creative but that's good for a young coaching group.

The boys have been pushed hard and we've cracked a few eggs in the process but I don't think we've broken anyone. The boys have noticed the difference between a VFL and AFL pre-season, and we’re coming good at the right time as far as getting our players back on the track. We couldn't be happier.

So there's not a huge amount of concern about the skill work lost when you couldn't train outdoors?
 

It wasn't ideal but there wasn't anything we could do about it. Not being big headed about it, but most of our kids are technically okay because of the draft picks and things like that. You wouldn't want to have three or four pre-seasons where you can't get on the ovals because they're flooded but you've just got to become creative.

How many players will you have available next week?
 

Josh Caddy is really the only one out. Jared Brennan is coming off his ankle and I think we could play him but I don't think we need to risk him at this stage. Caddy had a groin scrape but he's back on his feet and doing the warm up now, and he would be an outside chance for round two.

By round two of the [home-and-away] season, if everyone gets through the NAB Cup, we'll have everyone up and about.

Much has been made about Gary Ablett and his groin and hip but how much can we read into it if he doesn't play NAB Cup?
 

I've spoken to him and the conditioning staff and they're of the opinion that Gary will get more out of training than playing. There's no further damage we can do to the hip and he'll probably sub the first game and if needed he'll play and if not then we'll probably line him up against GWS in the second.

So the management with him is also largely concerned with his age and fact he's done 10 pre-seasons before?
 

His history at Geelong was he didn't do much before Christmas anyway so we weren't getting concerned. I don't think fitness was an issue for Gary last year; he was still getting 40-odd possessions up to the last game he played. He developed this problem, we've rectified that, he's back training and I think it will be a great effort for him to come up for the NAB Cup. I wouldn't be playing him in the NAB Cup to risk him.

You mentioned at a coaching clinic on Monday that you'll practice the three-interchange rule in the later weeks of the NAB Cup or Challenge by using three in each half. Can you explain why you think it's important to do that?
 

I'm sure the other coaches will be doing the same sort of thing. To go from a pre-season competition with six on the bench and two subs to three players and one sub, it makes sense for us to use those same rules. I can't speak on behalf of other coaches but we've come off a VFL season where we've had five on the bench so most of our squad are used to a lot of rotations.

We're going to compromise that because we're going to play two rucks most weekends because we want time into our developing ruckman so that means we're going to have two runners on the bench. We're fairly limited.

We've got to manage the rotations as best we can so we'll be doing that with on-field rotations and then styles of football where we can maintain possession as best we can and slow the game down.

We won't be disrespecting the competition. We'll have six on the bench and two in green bibs and there will be three set aside for rotations in each half.

We don't want six blokes running off the bench because if that happens in round two, we'll be in trouble.

THE PLAN
 

You coached at Collingwood and Shane O'Bree and Josh Fraser were there as recently as last year. How much of their style is reflected in your game plan?
 

David Parkin and Mick Malthouse endorsed that a game plan is a game plan and don't do what we're doing at Collingwood at the Gold Coast because the list is different. It gets down to recruiting; there are subtle changes to each side. Essendon and the Western Bulldogs' style is different to West Coast and Sydney, which is different again to Collingwood and St Kilda. Adelaide is different again. They've all got their own thing and what happens over a period of time with the same coach is you recruit a certain style of player because you want to play a certain style of football.

With our list, we want to move the ball quickly and down the corridor and kick as many goals as we can. Now with the defensive mantra that St Kilda took to a level, and now Collingwood has taken it to another level, there's a style of football that says there's hopefully ways and means around it, and you try to come up with that with the personnel you've got.

I'm Guy McKenna, I have to coach the way Guy McKenna feels comfortable. I can't speak and talk like Mick Malthouse, although you'd love to do it because it's served him pretty well.

There are elements we pull in from all clubs to mesh in what we think is the right game plan.

So are you on top of getting the players to play the way you want them to?
 

Last year, when we'd go and play Box Hill knowing they were affiliated with Hawthorn and we'd do an opposition [analysis] on Hawthorn so the kids were starting to know about Cyril Rioli and how good Luke Hodge is when left loose down back and the work rate of Buddy Franklin. We were looking at that rather than the players at Box Hill, because in 12 months time, our group was going to confront these players.

It's helped having a coaching group with Ken Hinkley from Geelong so he understands that great offensive style intimately, Dean Solomon who was helping Chris Scott out in a defensive role at Fremantle, so he's aware of their style and that helped Fremantle go from just a side to a good side on the verge of becoming a great side. Shane O'Bree out of the Collingwood midfield, ranked two or three in the league for clearances, and having coached him myself I know how clever he is, and then we've got St Kilda and an old mate of mine in Andy Lovell up here who was coaching Sandringham, aligned to St Kilda. It makes for a very dynamic coaching group.

We're taking the view of such a young group. We're not dismissing wins and losses; we want to go into every game to win it, of course, but we think it's more important how we play, how we structure up.

Are you confident in the conditioning and players lasting the year?
 

They'll get through the whole season but they won't play the whole season. I look at the young kids who have come onto the scene like Dustin Martin, who was a mature kid, and Tom Scully, who played 21 games last year. There were a few others but on average, the top 10 last year played 12 games and that's our mark.

If we can get David Swallow, Harley Bennell, Sam Day … if we can give them 12 games experience of AFL, I'd be very happy. What that means is because we've got 14 players over the age of 22, assuming they're all fit and up, that still leaves eight to pick from the kids. Some will last a game, some two, some three – we don't know. We're not putting ceilings on that because there are some freaks and looking right now, players like Swallow, Mav Weller, even Dion Prestia are mature boys and are probably going to last longer than a Jacob Gilbee. The big boys – Tom Lynch, Sam Day, Zac Smith, Tom Nicholls – are going to get battered and at some stage will flatten off.

The percentage of first year players playing a game is very low but we have no choice. We don't expect eight kids to play the whole season.

Are some of your younger players in for an unavoidable shock when they move into the AFL?
 

There's only so much you can tell them about how fast and ferocious and tough it's going to be but once they get out there and witness it, they'll understand it needs to go to another level. We can't manufacture that at training so that's why we have the NAB Cup before it goes to another level again in the season.

They're like labour pains; they're just things you need to go through and the sooner you get through them, the better you're going to be.

THE PLAYERS
 

Have you got your best 22 settled?
 

I don't think we're far off it. The eight uncontracted players pick themselves and then we'll assess Karmichael Hunt and Nathan Ablett and how they're travelling. Our mature-aged boys – Danny Stanley, Sam Iles, Daniel Harris and Michael Coad – aren't walk-up starts but with their experience and size of their bodies they're a better than average chance of getting in. Then it's really the kids that have shown enough in the pre-season, which is no different to other clubs. I would think there's at least eight to 10 of our young kids I would have no hesitation in picking for round two, so that's a good sign.

How's Jarrod Harbrow tracking after his shoulder operation?
 

He's flying. He's up boxing, tackling, bumping, marking, spoiling; all that stuff. What we've noticed with Jarrod is, he's been that sort of good player – and Nathan Krakouer is another one, and Jared Brennan but he's a bit older – that have come from clubs where they've had that very senior leadership group and they've turned up here and they're one of 14 senior players over the age of 22. Taking away that top-level leadership, these boys have just blossomed and I've been really impressed with their ability to communicate, talk, instruct and coach the boys throughout the pre-season. Michael Rischitelli is another one; his voice has been excellent.
Harbrow has had no setbacks with his shoulder. He was operated on about two weeks after the Bulldogs finished and he could still run. He was doing semi-contact drills before Christmas; he could have done contact but why take the punt?

Campbell Brown and Nathan Bock have played at both ends throughout their career. Do you see them settling in defence or being available to swing into attack?
 

We sifted through the draft and knew there were going to be some good defenders but they were probably going to be later in the pecking order. The plan of the uncontracted players was for defenders because they're hard to find. Four of our uncontracted players are natural defenders. In time, we'd like to think Krakouer and Harbrow - because of their use and ability to break lines - will move into the midfield and they can be replaced by young players but initially, those four will be in defence.
I've been really impressed with the chemistry between Krakouer and Bock. One's Adelaide and one's Port Adelaide – fierce rivals – but they look like long-lost teammates. Their synergy when they're out on the track is fantastic.

Who's your tip for kicking the SUNS first goal in the home-and-away season?
 

The coaches will give me a ragging but I'll say Trent McKenzie.

Have you had a pre-season surprise packet?
 

Probably not because my expectations are so high with the kids' level of work ethic and discipline and intensity, but the one I was hardest on throughout the pre-season was Dion Prestia, our smallest player. He's someone I wouldn't have thought would see a lot of action but he's really bubbled up to the surface and has timed his run really well.

Daniel Harris has been out of the AFL system for a year and is the second oldest player on your list. Do you have any concerns about how he'll go after a year in the VFL?
 

It would be a good before-and-after shot to have – a photo of him in his last years at North and one of him now in a jumper. It's chalk and cheese. He's slimmed down, I'm not saying he's got his speed back but he's certainly a lot quicker, he's chasing blokes down from behind, running defensively, which was a knock from his former club, and he's done everything we've asked of him. In my opinion, he's gone to another level. I may have helped him do that but most of it's through Harris. He doesn't want to retire on 149 games but he doesn't want to play 150 either. He wants to play as many years as he can and he's put his best foot forward to do that.

How has Marc Lock taken stepping back from the captaincy role?
 

I'm sure he was disappointed but we could all understand why. It would be no different if Gary walked into any start-up club; I think everyone would just stand back and hand it over. The work Marc has done as captain has been fantastic and it's allowed for Gary and Campbell and Bock to jump into a lot easier role because of what Marc has done over the past two years with his leadership and culture he's been able to set.

Are you happy with where Karmichael is at?
 

I've spoken to Nathan Bock about him and he said where he has come from to where he is now is a credit to him. He's dropped three or four kilos and he's in a good place. I've just moved his tag to fullback for the first game against Sydney.

With his skills, I look at players in other sides and see how they kick the ball and how they make decisions. The focus on him because he's a code jumper magnifies him but I see him out on the track and he kicks better than half of our fellas. He doesn't need to be an elite kick. There are other things in his game that can make him an elite player for us.

Has Josh Toy done enough to play this year, considering his convoluted 2010?
 

He's going to be playing senior footy. He's certainly in our best 22 and he's one of those kids that if he gets to 12 games, that's great. Because of his limited preparation last year with school, he's probably more eight to 12 games rather than 12 to 14.

You've kept Alex Keath on the list for another year. Is that just a formality or do you actually believe there's a chance he'll change his mind?
 

There's no point in delisting him and my fingers are crossed he'll go to the West Indies or South Africa and get his head bounced off by some bouncers and not enjoy it, but the simple fact is, with what we know about Alex Keath, that's not going to happen. It's a formality to keep him on the list but there can be sliding doors – things can change and we live in hope.

Do you keep in contact with him?
 

When he made his Shield debut for Victoria, I sent him a note and told him I hoped he went well. We have the occasional text but I'm conscious of not getting in his head and annoying him. He's made his decision to go with cricket; I endorse that and I'm disappointed as the Suns' coach and for his potential teammates because some of them know how good he was. We'll keep a close eye on him and I'm thrilled for him to make runs and take wickets.