Coming off an underwhelming campaign blighted by injuries, David Zaharakis took it upon himself to get to an altitude training camp during the off-season, setting the midfielder up for a standout summer.

Zaharakis spent two weeks in Boulder, Colorado and Bombers high performance manager Justin Crow said the results have been obvious, with the soon-to-be 26-year-old winning a club triathlon : "He's running personal best 2km time trials, he's had an excellent pre-season. He's been flying ever since (going to Boulder)".

Young spearhead Joe Daniher has significantly bulked up his slender frame, adding four kilos and getting much stronger in the gym to match it against some of the League's biggest defenders.

Third-year players Zach Merrett and speedster Orazio Fantasia are set to shoulder more responsibility after suspensions to 12 senior players and both are in top shape after feeling the benefits of full pre-seasons.