Andrew McGrath speaks on the return of Zach Merrett to the Essendon football club

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McGrath’s name is at the top of the list of potential replacements for Merrett as Essendon captain should the club make a change.

McGrath said it was too early to talk about the captaincy, but he would not rule out taking on the role if suitable.

“It’s something I haven’t given much thought to yet,” McGrath said.

“We took a break and I got married a few weeks ago, so football took a bit of a backseat.

“These discussions will take place over the next few months. We will sit down with the club and determine the next path forward and decide what it will be.”

McGrath, 27, was among Essendon leaders such as Nic Martin and Mason Redman to speak out about Merrett wanting to leave in September. McGrath told Seven at the time there was “disappointment, some anger and sadness” about Merrett wanting to leave.

McGrath witnessed a lot of turbulence as a Bomber, but he also learned what it takes to be a leader.

“If you’ve been in the system for a while you’ve seen a lot and you’ve seen the good and the bad that football brings out,” McGrath said.

“I’ve been lucky enough to have had so many good leaders around me throughout my career at Dyson. [Heppell] and currently Zach. You learn some things from those guys.

“Everyone my age is a leader at the football club; we have some great middle-aged guys but they look a bit older given how young our player list is at the moment.

“Guys like Kyle Langford, Mason Redman and Nic Martin are great young, emerging leaders and Sam Durham is the same way.

“It doesn’t really feel like a big responsibility because we share the load so well.

“It’s something that comes kind of naturally to me, like connecting with guys and I enjoy being around my teammates, but we’ll see where it goes.”

A chance meeting for Charlie

Superstar Swans new recruit Charlie Curnow admits he is still adjusting to living in the port city away from Carlton and his former team-mates.

He looked shocked when he took breakfast to the car at the McHappy Day event in Tullamarine on Saturday morning, but saw former Blues captain Marc Murphy waiting patiently. Murphy looked equally shocked; especially when two TV cameras are covering the action.

“I think he was just using young Maxy. [Murphy’s son] As an excuse to go through Maccas,” Curnow said with a broad smile.

“I was surprised to see him but I see him all the time in Carlton North, near the cafes.”

Both of Curnow’s fellowships were boosted this week when the AFL announced the Blues would travel to Sydney to face the Swans in the opening round.

“I actually thought we would play them six times and try to make as much money as possible,” Curnow said with a laugh.

“I was talking to a few boys – I’m still getting used to changing which boys I’m talking about, but I was chatting to some of my Blues mates like Weiters. [Jacob Weitering] We talked about the possibility of playing in the opening round and in the end it turned out the AFL had delivered.

Curnow said he was feeling fresh and was enjoying getting back to training after injuries ruined his final season with the Blues.

The two-time Coleman medalist has been in his new city for several weeks, finding a place to live on the water in Tamarama on the east coast.

“I live near the beach in Tamarama and I love it,” Curnow said.

“The driving is a bit crazy, I think there’s a bit of road rage going on there; lots of twisty roads, not grids like Melbourne.”

“I don’t hate it. They’re just in a hurry and I think it looks like they’re speeding around the corner because of the winding roads.”

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