Darcy Graham (Warrnambool) and Dan Nicholson (Russells Creek) played in the pre-season hit-out.

Graham has missed two years of Hampden league football. A serious knee injury wiped out his 2019 campaign before coronavirus restrictions forced last season to be cancelled.

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Nicholson has joined the Warrnambool and District league after a stint with Hampden league outfit Port Fairy.

Warrnambool coach Matt O'Brien said Graham's return was a boost for the Blues.

"He went through with the onballers and got plenty of it and his running capacity was outstanding," he said.

Russells Creek mentor Peter Timms said Nicholson, a former AFL-listed player, was primed for "a big year for us".

"He is just cruising along at the moment and it was fantastic for him to get out here," he said.

"You can just tell with the way he leads on the ground those younger blokes stand up.

"He is all about the team and that's all he's focused on."

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Warrnambool also welcomed back goal-kicker Jason Rowan after his tenure as Merrivale coach.

"He did have plenty of it across the whole night but the whole forward line functioned pretty well together," O'Brien said.

"He's been a real leader down there for us and taken a lot of drills with the forward line."

Warrnambool youngster Ben Howard shared the ruck duties with the experienced Dan Weymouth and Liam Bidmade, Braeden Ross and Joel Reinheimer also pressed their claims for senior opportunities.

Sam Morgan was another teenager to impress.

"He missed 2019 with a knee injury and has come back well and put in a good pre-season," O'Brien said.

"He's one on the list who has put his hand up for selection."

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Russells Creek also unveiled fellow ex-Port Fairy player Dylan Herbertson, who slotted in across half-back.

Sam Alberts, who played midfield and forward, was the Creekers' best while ruckman Dylan Burns and recruit Taylem Wason also shone.

"It was really good to play against a Warrnambool outfit because they've got one of the better midfields running around," Timms said.

"It was a really good experience for our young guys and we got a bit of run into our older fellas as well.

"The main thing was to get that hit-out because players haven't played for 12 months (due to coronavirus restrictions) and the first quarter we were fairly rusty.

"Once we took the ball off Warrnambool a little bit, we were better, but we've obviously got a heap of work to do too."

O'Brien said it was a good opportunity for the Blues, whose Reid Oval base is undergoing a multi-million dollar redevelopment, to play at The Pond before the season proper.

He said the oval was in "beautiful condition".

"There's full grass coverage, the lines have been put down and the lights are relatively new out there as well," O'Brien said.

"We finished after 8pm and it was a bit of a dull night and there was no problems under the lights."

The Creekers were without Jyran Chatfield, Phil Chatfield, Aaron McInnes and Xavier McCartney - another former Port Fairy player.

Sam Cowling, Tim O'Keeffe, Jordy Foott and Wil Fleming were among those on the sidelines for the Blues.

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