Aussie Rules: Buddy kicking eight goals, Ablett jnr and Selwood gathering 39 disposals and Nic Naitanui successfully returning from injury.

Round 1 has started with a bang and it looks like some of the ageing stars of the competition have still got the class and skill to mix it with the best in the AFL.

Experience v youth is always a precarious question?

Do you give a former premiership star that is not quite at his best a game before an untried youngster who is raw, keen and in peak fitness?

It's a tough one, some clubs would argue it depends whether the club is in a rebuilding phase or in the premiership window.

For the Gympie Cats, we are somewhere in between.

We kicked off our season with a comprehensive 96-point victory over Maryborough Bears last Saturday which by no means came without cost.

For the second match in a row we have been hit with injury, with some of our most crucial and important players going down and not returning.

Our starting ruckman and key centre half forward were injured early in the first quarter so, from that point, we knew we had to dig deep.

So the question is asked: When the game is in the balance and the bench is decimated, what players hold the key to get the team over the line? Youth or experience?

Our best player on Saturday was midfielder Beau Ridgway, a football journeyman who has plenty of experience in country and suburban footy. Ridgway produced a pearler in round one, in and under the contest all day, gathering 30-plus possessions, ironically his biological time line is similar to his match day numbers.

In terms of genuine forwards and popular blokes, we have a beauty in full forward Adam Hendry, Hendry.

Returning from injury and having little preparation during pre-season, Hendry was at his vintage best on Saturday, snagging five goals in a dominate performance, adding another player in his twilight who still has a strong and guiding influence.

Our vice-captain and centre half back Tim Ellingsen is another consistent performer who has reached the back end of his career but, then again, this bloke is a different beast.

The way he moves and leads is second to none at our footy club: This bloke is a fitness machine who never misses a training session and consistently runs the legs off his direct opponent.

As a coach he is always the first one picked and, who knows, may emulate the likes of Harvey, Tuck and Fletcher in longevity.

All three players are fantastic footballers, all three have influenced and led games at different times for victory.

These type of players are dependable, consistent and crucial for team success.

So, the case for experience is hard to argue, particularly in this situation, if we flip the conversation to our club youth.

This for-and-against chat is going to be a tight finish and here is why.

During the week I announced the leadership group of eight players plus our brilliant football manager Jake Mogford, who excitingly and rightly takes the field for us next year after knee surgery.