AS the postponement of all seasons commenced over the last few weeks, we head back to the pre-season where we sat down with a number of athletes across the country. In a special Question and Answer (Q&A) feature, Draft Central‘s Michael Alvaro chatted with Geelong Falcons’ Cam Fleeton at the NAB League Fitness Testing Day hosted by Rookie Me.

The balanced defender became an integral part of Geelong’s back six in 2019 after making his NAB League debut in Round 8, showing a steep rate of development to earn his spot in this year’s Vic Country hub and as the Falcons’ co-captain. Standing at 190cm, Fleeton was often made to take on the opposition’s number one forward as a bottom-ager, but is ready to unleash his offensive game from the back half in 2020.

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Q&A:

MA: Cam, how’s the day been so far?

CF: “It’s been really good. The boys have been up and about, there’s been some really good scores so it’s been a really good start.”

Has the preseason treated you well?

“Yeah it’s been great. The new boys who came down are all committed to the program. Every conditioning session we’ve done, everyone’s getting around each other so the vibes are really good and it’s definitely going to set us up for a good year.”

You came on leaps and bounds towards the end of last year, do you feel you’ve come a long way since your NAB League debut?

“Definitely. I think last year was a bit of a learning curve because it did come down (back) a lot. I had to adjust my usual game to playing a lockdown role more so than being offence-minded. I definitely think I’ve improved, I had a big summer down at the Falcons so it should be really good this year.”

Having both the offensive and defensive traits down back, is that intercept marking something you’re looking to highlight in your game this year?

“Definitely. That’s been one of the things I’ve been working on a lot pre-Christmas and this preseason as well especially. I think this year I can play more offensively than that lockdown role that I probably had to play last year. So I definitely want that to be a really good part of my game.”

What are some of the things you’re looking to develop in your top-age year?

“As you said, definitely my intercept marking. I think if I can get that really good, it’ll definitely help the team as well. Also just keeping that competitive nature that I have, I think it’s a really big part of my game. So keeping that and improving my defensive skills.”

The Falcons have a fair bit of top-age talent this year that gained a lot of experience in 2019, do you feel like that will put you in good stead?

“Yeah definitely. I think the boys had a lot of experience last year as well with us having to play a lot of bottom-agers. This year we’ve still got a really good bottom-age group so it’s going to be a really good year.”

Who are some of the boys you’re looking forward to playing alongside?

“We’ve got Josh Sorgiovanni who’s coming back from a knee injury last year, he didn’t play at all so it’ll be really good to play with him this year. And I’m definitely looking forward to playing with Ollie Henry again.”

You had a memorable battle with Tasmania’s Jackson Callow last year, are there any opponents you’re looking forward to coming up against?

“I played against Jackson last year, he’s a really good player. That was a really good matchup, it was good playing against someone of that calibre. Jamarra (Ugle-Hagan), from Oakleigh as well. I look forward to playing on him, it’ll be a tough challenge but it should be really good.”

>> MARQUEE MATCHUP: Callow vs. Fleeton

Are you looking to tick off any goals in 2020?

“I definitely think with the list we’ve got, the goal will be to win the NAB League grand final. I think we’ve all got that same mind-set and it’s going to put us in good stead for the year.”