By Michael Whiting

It is hard to believe Gold Coast SUNS Jared Brennan is doing his 10th AFL pre-season, but the GC SUNS one-man highlights show is more advanced than ever this time around.

The 27-year-old has had a raft of off-season surgeries over the years that have limited his pre-seasons, but has avoided similar pitfalls this summer.

Although he had a shoulder arthroscopy in September that has affected his upper body work, the big bonus for Brennan has been his ability to complete every running session.

He said off-season surgeries in the past few years had put him behind the eight ball.

"I had the shoulder 'scope this year but because I've had the two ankles (surgeries) the last couple of years, it's different, and I've been able to hit the ground running," Brennan said.

"I didn't miss any running, which was good. I haven't got back to full bench press and heavy upper body stuff, but the running is pretty good.

"It's the first pre-season I've started where I've been able to run from day one. A few ankle surgeries have held me back, but with the shoulder surgery you can still run. I'm a few kilos lighter than this time last year but that'll come back."

Brennan is one of just a handful of GC SUNS players over the age of 25 and said even though he was fitter, it was tough work keeping pace with the young group.

"I'm getting older and they're getting fitter and I'm just trying to keep up with the pack," he laughed.

Brennan said Gold Coast SUNS two-week altitude training camp in Arizona in November had been a welcome change for someone in the system as long as he's been.

Like most players who have spoken since returning, the versatile left footer said getting to know his teammates was just as important as the physical benefits they gained from the gruelling camp.

He said he was already far more excited about the GC SUNS 2012 prospects compared to the same time last year.

"I've got higher expectations of the team," he said.

"This time last year it was really an unknown of where we were heading and how we'd go.

"Now I've got higher expectations of the team, not ladder-wise, but different individuals and higher expectations of them and what they can produce. Hopefully we can move forward together and see how we go."

Brennan said he had been most impressed by Dion Prestia and Charlie Dixon in the pre-season and expected a bumper output from David Swallow when the season got underway.

The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the AFL or its clubs.