WEST Coast captain Darren Glass says he was surprised and saddened by the resignation of John Worsfold in September, but is looking forward to forging a strong relationship with new coach Adam Simpson.

The 32-year-old, who made a decision late in the 2013 season to sign a one-year contract extension, admitted he was initially disappointed with Worsfold's decision.

"It came out of left field for me," Glass said.

"I was pretty sure that he was going to go on again and we would get another chance to have a crack at it.

"But he obviously thought otherwise. It was tough and I was really disappointed at the time, but if he thought it was the right time, then it was a good call."

Having just begun his 15th AFL pre-season, Glass is unsure whether he will be captain again and believes a decision will not be made later in the pre-season.

"That will play out in the new year I would imagine," Glass said.

"That sort of stuff … Simmo has had a lot on his plate, we haven't had a good opportunity to speak about that.

"But I think he is pretty keen for the players to choose their leadership group again.

"I'm quite happy with whatever the player group decides.

"If it is time to step away and move on or someone else is better equipped to do the job then I happy with that as well."

Glass says the playing group is refreshed and ready to tackle a new game plan under their new coach.

"We're excited about having another crack at it this year," Glass said.

"You kind of get that excitement at the start of every pre-season.

"You normally get back and there's a new coach, a new change or a new tweak to the game plan anyway, so you tend to get that excitement every pre-season.

"Simmo said right from the start that he will bring some of what Hawthorn have done but he's his own coach, his own man, so it won't just be a carbon copy of Hawthorn."