The battle of the Magpies at the Camp Reserve is one of the biggest home and away games the two clubs have played in years.

The spotlight is on home team Castlemaine, which goes into the season-opener with a new playing coach in Michael Hartley and a new-look senior team.

Castlemaine hasn't played finals since 2005 and there's genuine positivity emanating out of Camp Reserve that the Pies could challenge for the top five in 2024.

"There's an expectation around the club this year, which is a good thing,'' Castlemaine FNC president Caleb Kuhle said.

"In my time at the club we haven't had those expectations. If you don't have expectations it means you're not going too far.

"There's a mix of nerves and excitement about Good Friday's game. To be the only game played in the Bendigo and Maryborough Castlemaine leagues on Good Friday... it's a big occasion for us."

Selection headaches are nothing new for the Pies, but in recent years those headaches have centred around not having enough players to fill the reserve-grade team.

That's not the case this year.

"We'll have close to a full list to pick from,'' Kuhle said.

"We'll probably have players missing out on a game in the reserves, which is something we haven't had for years.

"There's a really good feeling around the club."

Maryborough is eager for its young list to share centre stage with Castlemaine on Good Friday.

Maryborough co-coach Matt Johnston said the opportunity to play in a finals-like atmosphere in front of a big crowd would be a great learning curve for his players.

"The beauty of having a young side is that they really get excited for these moments,'' Johnston said.

"We've spoken about the importance of playing in a stand-alone game, the fact that it's against Castlemaine, who are probably our main rival, and with the buzz around Castlemaine... it's a big game for us to play in."

Johnston and co-coach Coby Perry, who is fully fit and ready to lead Maryborough's midfield group, are confident the Pies are better prepared for 2024.

"We're pretty happy with where we're at,'' Johnston said.

"We had a really good intra-club hit-out, then we had a really good practice game against Hepburn.

"Physically, we're in really good nick and I think we're in a good spot to start the season."

The Castlemaine-Maryborough clash starts at 2.20pm at Camp Reserve.

CASTLEMAINE

B: L. Wilkinson, T. Hickey, J. Watson

HB: Z. Murley, N. Woodman, J. Sutherland

C: D. Semmens, B. Henderson, A. Rixon

HF: A. Frankling, M. Hartley, B. McConachy

F: Z. Greeves, B. Moran, B. Keogh

R: B. Browne-Kerr, K. Huntly, C. McConachy

Int: R. Pedretti, J. Hood, D. Slingo, J. Cochrane

MARYBOROUGH

B: J. Swatton, J. Britten, C. Perry

HB: L. Dunne, A. Brown, K. Looby

C: D. Reece, A. Humphrey, F. Russell

HF: A. Medlyn, R. Castiglia, K. Constable

F: S. Collins, K. Lanfranchi, T. Myers

R: T. Stewart, B. Edwards, L. Hurse

Int: M. Mcclure, C. Read, B. Snelling, J. Twycross

Adam Bourke - Castlemaine by 22 points

Luke West - Castlemaine by 36 points

Kieran Iles - Castlemaine by 44 points

Richard Jones - Castlemaine by 42 points

To read Castlemaine's season preview, please click here

To read Maryborough's season preview, please click here