CAPTAIN Nathan Jones says he’s relished the opportunity to play in the Northern Territory and has indicated his desire to keep playing Melbourne home matches in the Top End beyond this year.

Jones said he hadn’t been consulted on his thoughts about playing further matches in the Territory, but suggested that it had been a great opportunity for the club to make a foot print in the NT in recent years.

“I’ll leave that up to [chief executive] Pete [Jackson] and the board and those guys to make those decisions,” he said at TIO Stadium on Friday.

“We just play where we’re told to play, but in saying that, the NT has been a terrific supporter of the club over many years and I’ve had some great experiences.

“I’ve played up here six or seven times now and we’ve had training camps [up here] and the facilities have only ever improved. It’s been a great partnership.”

Jones said he had no problems with playing in the warmer Northern Territory climate.

“I played up here [in Darwin] last year and the conditions were pretty beautiful. As long as it stays clear, it should be a great game. The oval’s in great condition and the facilities are unreal, so we love being up here,” he said.

“You play under lights tomorrow (Saturday) night and it’s not as hot as the middle of the day.

“The boys adjust pretty well – we’re pretty finely tuned – and in the end, there is no excuse with the weather. We’ve come up here on an amazing deck in great conditions, so it should be a great game.”

Jones said Melbourne expected Fremantle to be at its best at TIO Stadium on Saturday night.

“We’ve respected them over the last five or six years, when they’ve been a really strong team and we expect them to play at that level tomorrow night – and that’s what we’re preparing for,” he said.

“It’s an exciting challenge for us and on the back of last week’s performance, we’re pretty keen to get out there and put on a good show.”

Jones said it was important to have a run around TIO Stadium on Friday.”