It was a nervous wait for Josh Bruce until his trade to the Western Bulldogs was a done deal.

But those nerves were settled quickly post-trade, by new teammate and soon-to-be forward partner-in-crime Aaron Naughton.

“When the trade went through I FaceTime’d ‘Naughts’ and we’d had a couple of beers and we were having a laugh,” Bruce told SEN Time On on Monday night.

“I’m looking forward to working with him and hopefully we can work really well together in a formidable forward line.”

Chemistry might take time to build – but it’s clear that Bruce is already feeling at home at the Kennel.

He’s excited by the prospect of lining up alongside Naughton and fellow forward Josh Schache, who combined to great effect in the back half of 2019.

A full pre-season aided Bruce’s cause last year, as he managed to play every game. His approach to putting in a strong pre-season will stay the same in his first year in red, white and blue, albeit with the need to synergy with his new teammates.

“Obviously we’ve got a high-class midfield there to bring the service in, so I’ll be looking to work with those guys as much as possible and work out the ins and outs of their games and the way they like to kick it in,” Bruce said.

“Hopefully I can be on the receiving end of it.”