Exciting halfbacks Courtenay Dempsey and Michael Hibberd could be seeing some time through the midfield during the 2014 season.

Hibberd had a breakthrough 2013 season working in tandem with Dempsey to provide important run out of defence.

Assistant coach Matthew Egan who will this season take charge of the club’s defensive group believes the team needs to become more flexible across the entire field.

“We will change a few little things and we probably need a little bit more flexibility in our team,” Egan said.

“We want guys like Michael Hibberd and Courtenay Dempsey to be able to play in the midfield and a few of the midfielders to be able to play across half back a bit more.”

“I think if we can get that little bit more flexibility it gives us a little bit better balance.”

The Bombers will use the experience of veteran defender Dustin Fletcher more than ever this season.

Fletcher enters his 22^nd season at AFL level with his first match of 2014 breaking the club’s all time games record of 378 games held by Simon Madden.

Egan said he was looking forward to utilising the experience of Fletcher during the season.

“He obviously knows the game better than anyone and we need to be able to get that out of him,” Egan said.

“We need to drill down to how he does things, why he does it and why he is always where the ball is and then I want him to be able to teach that.”

“He does it already but I am going to pick his brain and use him probably more than he has ever been used.”

One of the most improved defenders during the season Cale Hooker proved his ability to take a strong intercept mark and set up the Bombers out of defence.

Egan is looking forward to seeing further progress in Hooker’s game over the next twelve months.

“Cale had a fantastic year, his mark intercepts were outstanding and some of the opponents he played on he did really well,” Egan said.

“It is about putting him on the really good players, trusting him and knowing that he is going to do a really good job which he does”

“Adding to his game with his attack, his ball use adding a few different parts to his game.”