Following a pre-season of personal issues, clouded selection status, and media scrutiny, the beginning of Jamarra Ugle-Hagan's off-field concerns have come to light, revealing what potentially sparked the strained relationships between the 22-year-old and key Bulldogs personnel.
Ugle-Hagan has dealt with personal issues this summer that have resulted in extended leave from the club until the last three weeks, essentially following the Indigenous All Stars game, where Ugle-Hagan has been a full-time presence at training.
However, soured relationships with players and staff, as well as unprepared match fitness, leave the former Pick 1 with an indefinite wait to return to the top flight.
Footy Classified host Sam McClure revealed on Monday's airing of the show that Ugle-Hagan has "three key relationships" to fix before he could be considered for selection again, including coach Luke Beveridge, captain Marcus Bontempelli and defender and former housemate Rory Lobb.
What occurred in the leadup to the elimination final clash against Hawthorn could be the beginning of those fractured relationships between Ugle-Hagan and the Bulldogs.
According to Scott Gullan of the Herald Sun, coach Beveridge advocated to drop Ugle-Hagan for the match as he was concerned by the youngster's state of mind, raising concerns from the 22-year-old's "erratic behaviour" across the last month of the season.
Coaches and senior management were concerned about Ugle-Hagan's behaviour, however after "intense discussion", the leadership group compromised with Beveridge to start Ugle-Hagan on the bench.
These discussions were still taking place up to just two hours before the first bounce, and were evidently a distraction as the Bulldogs were off the pace against a rampaging Hawthorn outfit.
An observer who reportedly viewed the pre-game debate said the situation influenced the Bulldogs' September downfall.
“There was a situation before the game and it all went pear shaped after that,” the unnamed individual told the Herald Sun.
Ugle-Hagan recorded just four disposals and one behind for the match.
The Bulldogs head into Round 1 under a gloomy injury cloud, with several notable names unavailable for the clash against North Melbourne. Despite that, it is likely Beveridge will still not select Ugle-Hagan for fitness and integrity reasons.
Skipper Marcus Bontempelli (calf), Adam Treloar (calf), Liam Jones (hamstring), and Cody Weightman (knee) will all be absent for at least Round 1, while Ed Richards (calf) and Bailey Dale (quad) are in a race to reach fitness in time.
