RUGBY LEAGUE
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Dragons recruit George Rose is expecting the club's new heavyweights to take the most out of a tough pre-season schedule ahead of a clash with his former club Melbourne in round one.
No fan of pre-season training, Rose welcomed a return to on-field action against Mackay last week.
He'll come off the bench in Saturday's Charity Shield and the 116-kilogram wrecking ball said there's no substitute for match fitness.
"You really can't beat match fitness," Rose said.
"You can run around the oval as much as you like but match fitness is the main thing you want. I dare say there'll be some empty lungs and some sore bodies in the first couple of trials but it'll be good to get the cobwebs out and get ready for the season."
Saturday's Charity Shield match, his fifth Indigenous All-Stars selection and the Dragons clash with a match-hardened Warrington outfit in England will see the 31-year-old enter the NRL season with four tough matches under his belt.
"I think a real important thing is that we're getting to play some quality football before round one," he said.
"Between the Charity Shield, the All-Stars game playing against the best players in the NRL, going into the England game where you're playing one of the best England sides who've already played a few games and are a bit more game ready ... it's going to be a good preparation for us heading into round one."
A mauling at the hands of the Rabbitohs in last year's Charity Shield led to suggestions the Dragons were vulnerable through the middle.
Rose has been brought to the club as a remedy and said the Dragons forwards had been throwing their considerable weight around at training.
"I can only really comment on what we're doing now and from what I'm training with, there's blokes hitting me as hard as I've ever been hit, regardless of size," he said.
"There's some really tough forwards who don't take a backwards step.
"I think they'll leave their actions to do the talking for them."