It all leads to this. The grind. The sacrifice. The hill sprints. The saunas and the ice baths. The relentless pursuit of greatness.

Pendles takes us behind the curtain as the pre-season journey transforms into game day reality. Inside the team meetings, through the nerves, and into the pages of his game day diary—20 years in the making. From a pre-season hit-out against Richmond to the real deal: Opening Round against the GWS Giants.

The final preparations for game day. The airport. Waking up in Sydney. Finding the coffee shop for the team. The nerves from the hotel room. The smells and feelings of the match itself. And even the car ride home. 

The pre-season is officially done. Now, the marathon is underway.

Thanks Pendles. 

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Collingwood is also welcoming fans into their inner sanctum during the 2025 AFL pre-season through their new docuseries, 'The Grind'. The Grind is now live and available to watch on the Collingwood Football Club YouTube channel. 

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If you have arrived at episode eight, head back to the episode one to hear the full journey. 

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