CLAYTON Oliver says working closely with fellow young teammates Billy Stretch and Christian Salem has helped his game this year.

The midfielder has arguably been Melbourne’s best so far in 2017 and attributed some of his form to the work he had been doing with Stretch and Salem.  

“I’ve been sticking really close to Billy Stretch. Me and him are doing a lot together, along with Christian Salem. They’re professionals and do a lot of things right,” he told melbournefc.com.au.

“The three of us are doing a lot of stuff together this year. Last year, I was looking up to Jack Viney, with the way he plays.

“Whatever we need to work on, we’ve been training together and at the end of the day, if we want to do some extra weights, we do that together.”

Oliver added that coach Simon Goodwin had also been pivotal for his game.

“He’s really good. He’s built a really good environment around the footy club,” he said.

“We’ve got the togetherness and team first approach, and he brings everyone really close.

“I think everyone is really happy with where we’re heading.”

Oliver, who has played 17 AFL matches, including the opening four this year, has already accumulated 125 disposals in 2017.

He said his fitness had improved significantly over the pre-season, having dropped “three or four kilos”. Although he hasn’t grown any more, Oliver said he looked taller because he was slimmer.

“I lost a bit of weight and I’m probably a bit lighter than I was last year, so it’s easier to cover the ground a bit more,” he said.

But the 19-year-old played down his efforts, despite his outstanding start.

“I think it’s been a reasonably good start, but it’s been a good start from the whole team,” he said.

“We’ve been a bit up-and-down the past two weeks, but everyone has benefitted from it.

“I just go out there and play footy, and play my role for the team.”   

Looking ahead to Monday night, Oliver said he couldn’t wait to play in his first ANZAC Day Eve clash against Richmond at the MCG, after he was given a breather for last year’s corresponding game in round five, which Melbourne won by 33 points.

It was the first match he missed after he made his AFL debut in round one last year against GWS Giants at the MCG. He subsequently received a NAB AFL Rising Star nomination for his 22-disposal performance and played the first four rounds in succession.

“I got rested that week, so I’m pretty excited to be playing this game. It should be pretty special, so I’m looking forward to it,” he said.