Camp Diary: James Polkinghorne

I got up at ten to five this morning, nice and early (I still had some washing to get off the line and had to pack my bags for Noosa). It was early, but nice to drive to training without any traffic for a change.

Our first pre-season training session of the year was at UQ for a 3km time trial and running session. It was good to see everyone again and talk about everyone’s holidays. I went to Japan in the off-season with some mates from school and had a ripper time over there, and then just floated around Brisbane for the rest of the time.

So it was good to see everyone, but we all knew what was coming up - the 3km time trial. Everyone seemed like they were in good nick and we got away pretty early. It wasn’t too bad because the sun hadn’t fully come out and we were running in the shade. We knew we just had to lock in and get it done and hopefully get a good result. I think everyone came away with a good time. In terms of who was the best performer, you couldn’t go past Richie Newell - he’s come and done it in a fantastic time and shown that he’s put in a lot of work over the break. He’s a little rabbit.

We then went back on the field and had a running session and did some footy skills as well. It was good to get the footy back in the hands nice and early.

We went back to the Club and had a few things to do there, screenings and whatnot. Then I headed up to Noosa with the great Ash McGrath in his GTS or whatever he’s got. There was a lot of bass in his car, a lot of Dr Dre and Eminem. Then really we’ve just settled in and put our bikes together ready for a ride.

I’m living with Andrew Raines, Josh Dyson and Pearce Hanley this week, and I’m sharing a room with the Irishman. He’s telling me all about his International Rules efforts. He’s got a few stories but to be honest, I don’t know if I can share them.

It should be a good week here in Noosa - the weather is beautiful and we’re looking forward to putting our heads down and kicking off pre-season.

The Lions are spending their first week of pre-season at training camp on the Sunshine Coast. Keep an eye on lions.com.au for all the exclusive news, diairies, and video from Noosa..