St Kilda great Lenny Hayes is keen to get stuck into his 17th pre-season at the club.
While 16 of those came as a player, this time Hayes will work in a coaching capacity under Ross Lyon who also returns to the club after a decade hiatus.
The newly appointed assistant will work closely with the club’s midfield group, and one player in particular that he’s keen to work with is Hunter Clark.
After flirting with a trade to North Melbourne, the 23-year-old ended up staying at Moorabbin and Hayes is “rapt” that the former first-round pick remained a Saint.
“I’m just rapt that he’s still a St Kilda player,” Hayes said on SEN Sportsday.
“I think he’s got enormous upside, I can’t wait to get to work with him.
“We’ve had a couple of conversations already, he’s really driven to have a good pre-season and get to work.”
Hayes feels Clark just needs “a little bit of luck” to reach his potential having battled through several injuries throughout his five years at the club
“As you’ve said, he just needs a little bit of luck,” Hayes said.
“He’s got some attributes that I think will add a fair bit to the side.
“He’s got a bit of lateral movement, he’s good on both sides and we probably haven’t seen his best yet for a number of reasons.
“I can’t wait to get to work with him.”
Clark has played 60 games for the Saints since being taken with pick No. 7 in the 2017 National Draft.