Versatile Bomber Jake Stringer says a clear run at the pre-season will help him focus on improving his fitness ahead of the 2019 season.

After entering his first ever sessions at The Hangar with restricting niggles last year, the 24-year-old says he is better prepared to make the most of the pre-season this time around.

“(My goal is to) continue to build on that fitness base,” Stringer said on Monday.

“I was coming off a couple of hammies last year, so I was pretty limited during the pre-season, and this one I’ve had no interruptions.

“It’s really good to be able to do full sessions at the start and hopefully just build into Christmas and then take off after that.”

Stringer’s commitment to improvement has been clear to see in recent weeks, but he played down his return to the club last Monday when he joined his younger teammates ahead of schedule and said he has had a good chance to refresh over the off-season.

“I just came back from holidays on the Sunday before and I just thought I’d go in with the boys on the Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

“There was nothing in it, I just wanted to have a run around. It’s better than running laps by yourself.

“The break was good, I got away to Noosa with the kids, the family and my partner, so it was good to get away and I’m very grateful to be back.”

Stringer impressed in his first season in the red and black this year, leading the side for goals and recording career-high season totals for clearances and contested possessions as he developed his midfield craft.

With the prospect of a more comprehensive pre-season under his belt and a more consistent line-up in attack as star forwards Joe Daniher and Orazio Fantasia strive for more games next year, there are plenty of reasons for fans to feel excited about Stringer’s future.

Injury held Daniher to just seven games in 2018, while Fantasia was restricted to 13, but Stringer said Fantasia had been among the club’s most energetic players in the past week.

“Raz is behind me dancing, we had a pretty tough session and he’s still buzzing so he must be going alright.”

Joined by the remainder of the Bombers on Monday, Stringer said he was pleased to be surrounded by his teammates again.

“It’s been really good, (there was) really good energy today,” he said.

“It’s just good to have everyone back, it means you can get into the full-ground ball movement, which is good.

“Everyone seems to have come back in good nick, so it’s all positives.”

Exciting new recruit Dylan Shiel was among the group for his first ever session at The Hangar, and Stringer expects the former Giant to make a significant impact for the side both on and off the field.

“He’s going to be a great addition, he seems to have fit in really well.

“His knowledge and finals experience will be really good for the boys and driving those standards going forward he’ll be a really big part of that.”