Scott on what he took from Saturday afternoon

A fair bit.

I think a funny old game is a way to describe it, but I actually thought that they were just hot early. We struggled to adapt to the way the game was played at Marvel, it is obviously our first game here for the year.

The game is played slightly differently here, and they are pretty close to Marvel experts. They understand the conditions a bit better and it was not as if we didn't expect it, we are very respectful and were aware of their talent, especially around the ball.

We didn't think it was an effort thing or even a structural thing early, we were just getting beaten by a better team at the time. There were a few tweaks that we needed to make, we struggled to implement them before quarter time. But then after that, the game looked a little bit better for us.

I really admire the way our players hang in. The players retained their composure, really dialled into what we needed to change and we were able to get the game back on our terms. 

Scott on the midfield battle

Some of the rule changes over the last decade have made it harder for coaches to change the way the game is played.

North's centre bounce crew were just going so well, that made it difficult for us right through the game to curtail that. I think a third of their inside 50s might have come directly from centre bounces, that is a huge number.

But I think it does speak a little bit to the fact that outside of that, we were able to make it more difficult for them to go forward.

They still scored a little bit too much for our liking, but outside the centres bounces after quarter time, we thought the game was a little bit more in our favour. 

Scott on Mark Blicavs and Mitch Edwards

He [Blicavs] is an important player for us, and it is nice to have a few options because he is so flexible.

He doesn't just play as a traditional ruck and again, at this stage of his career, he is playing a number of roles. I imagine sometimes it is hard to figure out exactly where he is playing, but they are a nice combination at the moment.

As good as Xerri is and was in this game, and their ground level players are all top-five picks, they are stars in their own right.

But Blicavs, Mitch Edwards as well is a really young and developing ruckman, that combination has got I say potential, but I don't know how much longer 'Blitz' is going to play for. I hope it is another five or 10 years.

Obviously around the ball we were getting beaten, but for Mitch to keep fighting the way he did and push forward, kick a couple of goals, I thought he still had a strong influence later in the game. 

Scott on the preparation for September

I think I would probably refer more to the intensity of the game, that is good preparation.

You can't choose your draw, and you can't choose your path into Finals. I think last year, on paper we had a bit of a softer draw and the question was, are you match hardened?

Well if that is important, then today was good for us.

Again, more and more I am finding that the game is played slightly differently based on who you are playing, where you are playing. The good old days of going out and playing our game and everything will be fine, for us at least are over.

I think we saw early on how the game was being played differently, we sort of expected it going into this game at Marvel, but it was almost like we needed the sighter to get a bit of a feel for it.