Year one: it's all about the fundamentals for the Magpies' top draftee Brayden Sier Credit:Shannon Collins They want him to have developed good off-field habits, habits they will continue to hone in their first year so that by the time a new batch of kids comes in, he can be a role model. In his second summer they want him to have had a good glimpse of the full training without doing all of it, and to understand enough of the game plan that the fundamental philosophies are lodged in his head and he can identify what they can do within it. That understanding and immersement will increase again in year three, by their fourth pre-season it is hoped they are driving the group. "People talk about compliance and buy in and ownership, and they're so different. A first-year player might comply without truly understanding something, but someone who understands and has ownership will drive the standards," said Grace. "The sooner that happens, the better for the whole group because those players start to put pressure on the older players, not just in terms of position, but influence. It says a lot about the health of your program if your third and fourth year players are the centre of influence instead of the older players and are driving what needs to be done." But back to the beginning. As Grace and Davoren see it, the first pre-season is about learning the right habits and putting things in place; Grace calls it the scaffolding. Davoren will look further into each draftee's training history, and the medical and physio teams will take a closer look at their bodies, highlighting any imbalances that need attention. The boys who have never done much weight training will learn basic techniques, and the conditioning team will take a good look at how they move. Some players might get a small look at what a full day of the program looks like; (they typically do about 60 per cent), and they all learn what "prehab" or injury prevention looks like. "We'll look at how they move, what their aerobic capacity is like, where they're at in the gym. But the big thing for me is where are they at psychologically and socially? Because they come in at different maturity levels," said Davoren. "There's a lot of conversations in the first pre-season about habits: what are the decisions and choices you're going to have? And that might be as simple as, when I arrive for the day, what do I do? Check in with the physios, talk to the doc, record all your wellbeing data, make sure it's accurate feedback, and make that a routine."

Year two: emerging forward Darcy Moore will be a role model to new draftees. Credit:Shannon Collins There are other things to get used to. What to eat, and when. Some draftees' diets need a significant overhaul. How to hydrate properly, before and after sessions. How spending much of their day off on their feet might not help them recover well from the week's training. How if they go out with mates they should do so with a plan: how many drinks will they have, and how will they get home? How good sleep doesn't simply mean lots of it. "The young fellas can tend to go home, crash on the couch, sleep for three hours, not get back to sleep until midnight and then wake up feeling tired," Grace said. "They come in scratching their heads, thinking why am I so tired?" Alertness is important. Before Christmas, the new players are taught the fundamentals of the game plan: the key defensive and offensive principles. That happens mostly in small meetings: each player has a "duty of care" coach who looks after him in a football sense, and is also across the other things going on in his life. They can study more of it with their coach, watching vision or using an app the club has developed, but they are generally taught the more intricate parts of it in game simulation sessions, by the other players: helping teach their teammates what to do in certain scenarios is something that helps the second, third and fourth-year players continue their own development as leaders, as they simultaneously form stronger ideas of what they want to work on as individuals. Year three: Jonathon Marsh should be able to direct other players on the track. Credit:Shannon Collins Collingwood's coaches favour strength-based coaching. "I think the biggest flaws in some programs can be the fact that you don't allow the players to shine. They come in and it's easy to feel inhibited. It's a vast sea they're looking at, trying to pick out the small islands they can jump on to," Grace said. "I think it's important to keep asking them: why are you here? You got drafted for a reason, so let's make those things weapons while continuing to work away systematically at your 'room for improvements'. As they move through, each player will start working out his own action plan - strengths, RFIs, short-term needs, long-term needs. They generate more of that as time goes on. Over those first few years you want them to be firm and to keep adding to their games, becoming aware of those things, not limiting themselves and starting to push others."

You don't know what you don't know. But once you do know it, you need to keep adding to it, as demand and expectation increases. At the end of their first pre-season there is one thing the draftees must let go of: their naivete. In their second year, depending on where they are at, they might get a bigger taste of the full pre-season program. In their third year, some might do almost all of it. Davoren has had fourth-year players in his office this summer, with some very clear ideas on what they want to add to their game, debating the coach on aspects of their program. Year four: Brodie Grundy is ready to be a "centre of influence". Credit:Shannon Collins "They work their way through the system, they get the fundamentals down and then it's how do I take the next step?" Davoren said. "There's still a lot of education and long conversations about what they want and what they need to do, but they start to gain knowledge of what they're doing what they're doing so they ask better questions and they challenge you. They're all different and and they'll develop in their own ways, but by the end of year one you can see them starting to grow."