The Kangaroos have relished the bash and crash of match practice in recent weeks, and it’s come as no surprise to Drew Petrie.

Many players been left bruised and battered, only to bounce back to their feet and go again. Competition for spots is fierce.

“When Brad (Scott) took over there were probably only 25 blokes competing for spots on game day, but now I’d push that into the 30’s,” Petrie told Triple M Adelaide.

“When you’ve got 32 or 33 blokes capable and ready to go and you can only fit it into 22, you get a bit of that.

“As long as you can walk off the track and still be mates, which the boys have been, then that’s OK.”

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While draftees Sam Durdin and Daniel Nielson are keeping their older teammates on their toes, Jarrad Waite and Shaun Higgins’ are likely to be straight in contention for senior spots.

“We’ve matured overnight almost and gotten a lot more experience into the side, so having those senior players come straight in means the expectation now is to deliver,” Petrie said.

The vice-captain has been particularly impressed by his forward counterpart.

“He’s (Waite) agile, he’s just got to keep his body right.

“I think he’s only averaged 15 games a season since he’s started, so you want to pump that up to 20-plus.”

The former Blue has found his feet quickly at Arden Street.

“He’s fitted in really well. He’s very competitive,” Petrie said.

“He adds a different dimension because he’s got really long arms, a really good leap, and he can leap early and hold his position in the air, stretch his arms out and take some really good marks.

“Our defenders have been troubled by that and we’ve all seen his exploits when he had the navy blue jumper on, so hopefully we can bring out more of his best in the blue and white stripes.