Kade Kolodjashnij took no time to earn the respect of his new Melbourne teammates.
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In the first turn out for the Demons, the ex-Launceston junior finished third overall in the club’s 2km time trial.
He kept pace most of the way with Alex Neal-Bulleen until the perennial pacesetter ran away in just under six and a half minutes around the Gosch’s Paddock course.
The 23-year-old twin of Geelong’s Jake Kolodjashnij said that he wanted to get back to full fitness since his trade from Gold Coast.
“Over the offseason, I had goals of working on my tank and get a really good block in,” he told Melbourne radio in his first media interview since the switch last month.
“Coming into a new club you want to impress in the first half and I ran really well on Monday, which is great and I just want to look to continue that now.”
He played 78 games in five seasons for the Suns, but did battle with concussion issues in his last days at Carrara.
Kolodjashnij believed the change of environment that included Gold Coast teammate Steve May as part of a deal for pick six in the AFL draft would do him good.
“I was always pretty keen to get down to Melbourne in the heart of footy,” he said.
“I just felt like it was time for me to have a fresh start.
“I’m just looking forward to staying with Melbourne.
“It’s obviously a great club at Melbourne – they’ve really built strong foundations over the few years under Goody.
“I am not looking to far out, but hopefully I can push into that best 22.”