West Coast Eagle Daniel Kerr's patched-up hamstring stood up to its first match since a serious tear but his composure did not.

Playing for East Fremantle, television cameras captured Kerr striking Claremont's Luke Blackwell during the second quarter of the WAFL match on Saturday.

It was Kerr's first match since sustaining the tear in an AFL victory over Essendon in April, 2010 and he may be in for another rest if the incident with Blackwell is followed up by the WAFL tribunal.

In Melbourne, St Kilda fullback Zac Dawson pushed to reclaim his place in the Saints team for round one of the AFL against Geelong with a sound showing for VFL side Sandringham.

Dawson was shuffled around the ground as St Kilda's coaches sought assurance he will be capable of minding Cats spearhead Cameron Mooney on Friday night after an interrupted pre-season.

"He played fullback in the first half and then went up the ground a little in the second half," said Saints football manager Greg Hutchison.

"He's done all he can to present himself for round one."

One of four St Kilda players suspended by the club for six weeks due to aberrant behaviour on a pre-season trip to New Zealand, Dawson has also been recuperating from an ankle injury.

Hutchison said that while it was "debatable" as to whether Dawson could be back to his stingy best against the Cats, he was doing his best in the circumstances.

"He's done what he had to do to be able after a limited pre-season, he's done all the sessions away from the club to keep up to speed," Hutchison said.

"He'll now have two sessions during the week before we choose the team for round one and he's done all he can so far."

The other suspended players, Rhys Stanley, Jack Steven and Paul Cahill, also took part.

So too did Jarryn Geary, who will be looking to earn a more permanent place in the St Kilda line-up in 2011.

North Melbourne's defensive stocks rose with each uneventful minute played by Nathan Grima and Ben Cunnington for Werribee and North Ballarat respectively.

Grima's 12-week recovery from back surgery has been carefully modulated with plenty of running and strength work, putting him well in line for the Kangaroos' season opener.

"They both pulled up well so that was good, they played out the whole game in their usual positions so it was encouraging," said North Melbourne football manager Donald McDonald.

"We'll just see how they pull up this week (before round one), just to see how they hold up after playing."

Sydney were given a useful filip ahead of round one as tall duo Jesse White and Myke Pike showed their readiness with dominant displays in the Swans' reserves against the East Coast Eagles.

White booted five goals, including three in the first quarter, though he struggled for traction later as rain set in.

Pike won a clear majority of the ruck taps, while the opportunistic forward Trent Dennis-Lane kicked a goal in each quarter while also making the occasional dash through the middle.

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