JAMES Harmes’ versatility may have brought about his downfall in 2020.

Trialled at half-back, the 25-year-old struggled to find his best form, managing just 13 games and ending the season on the sidelines.

But the hard-nut, who placed in the top-four of the club’s Best and Fairest in 2018 and 2019, is much more comfortable with where he has settled this pre-season.

“I’m back inside playing in the midfield, so I’m pretty happy about that,” Harmes told Melbourne Media.

“Obviously trialled playing half-back last year and it didn’t really work as well as we would’ve liked, but back inside and stoked to be in there.

While the 2021 pre-season is shorter than usual, with the Demons returning to Casey Fields for the first time in January, Harmes already has plenty of work under his belt.

“I’m feeling really good,” he said.

“It was a little bit of a different off-season for me – obviously stayed in Australia, wasn’t able to get overseas.

“I did a lot of training at Hurt Locker Gym … and I’m feeling great – really excited to be back and really excited to see what we can do this year.”

And with the majority of Melbourne’s playing list completing Monday’s main session, there’s plenty of competition for spots in the senior side.

“Every session everyone’s training really well and it’s a great thing to have,” Harmes said.

“Going into Round 1 I think Goody’s going to have a few challenging conversations.”