Known for his elite running ability, midfielder Raines said that a recent running session was the toughest session he’s ever completed in ten years of AFL football.
Speaking with Radio Sport National on Tuesday morning from the team’s training base in Flagstaff, Raines said that the training environment was a stark contrast to the Queensland heat.
“We had our biggest conditioning session two or three days ago, where we did a lot of sprint work early, then built into a bit of middle-distance, and then stretched it out and did some 1km efforts,” he said.
“That was probably the hardest session I’ve done in ten pre-seasons - it’s just the lack of oxygen and backing up efforts… you feel the fatigue straight away.”
“In saying that though, being out of the heat of Queensland, you do back up sessions day after day a bit better - being in cooler conditions, it just doesn’t zap you as much as being in the heat.”
The team is stationed out of the Northern Arizona University, where they are making use of the training tracks, the gym, cafeteria, pool, and of course, the NAU turf Super Dome.
“It’s a fantastic facility here,” said Raines.
“It’s mind-blowing the amount of money these Universities have got, and the facilities that they have. It’s been absolutely fantastic.”
