Brisbane Roar have commenced their pre-season for Season 8 (Photo Credit: Katrina Gorry)

Brisbane Roar look set to continue their tradition of recruiting locally for the upcoming W-League season.

The Roar commenced their pre-season with a conditioning session over the weekend with established players and trialists alike participating.

While five of last season's players including FIFA All Star Elise Kellond-Knight and World Cup players Laura Alleway and Haylely Raso are confirmed departures by the club, Roar have also managed to retain several key stalwarts.

[MORE: Brisbane Roar confirm pre-season departures]

Along with Matildas co-captain Clare Polkinghorne, reigning AFC Player of the Year Katrina Gorry and former Julie Dolan Medallist Tameka Butt, Brisbane will once again call on the experience of Brooke Spence, Vedrana Popovic, Emily Gielnik, Amy Chapman and Kate Stewart.

However, it is the void left by the departures that head coach Belinda Wilson is using this pre-season to address.

"We now have a good opportunity to have a look at various players and not only assess their technical and tactical ability, but also assess who they are as a person and see if they fit within our culture and can adapt to the game/training intensities that are required to play in the Westfield W-League,” Wilson said last week.

[MORE: Laura Alleway departs Brisbane for Melbourne City]

Youth internationals Brooke Goodrich (Defender), Natasha Wheeler (Defender), Angela Beard (Defender) are a number of players that could get their chance in 2015/16.

Local Queensland Women’s Premiers players Maili Forbes, Gabe Marzano, Ruth Blackburn, Summer O’Brien and Noran Abaza - all from premiers The Gap - and Palm Beach duo Meaghan McElligott and Deanna Thompson are also training with the squad in pre-season, as is former Roar and Newcastle Jets defender Ashley Spina.

The experienced Spina is returning to the game after a second knee injury suffered against Adelaide United two seasons ago.

Blackburn is no stranger to the W-League with the 23 year old defender having played 3 seasons for Brisbane (2008/09) and Adelaide United (2009 - 2010)

For Marzano, a member of Perth Glory's premiership winning squad last season, it is an opportunity to return and play in her home state after pursuing football opportunities on the west coast.

For the others it will be a real opportunity to step up to the W-League environment with McElligott stating in a Football Queensland article:

“It can be a little bit intimidating when you’re making plays with Matilda's and W-League players that you’ve always looked up to.”

“I am still finding my way through their drills and skills training, but it gets easier every session.”

With the Brisbane Young Matildas returning this week, Wilson has a healthy group to choose her squad of 20 from in the following weeks.

The Roar will also have a full quota of internationals available with Nadine Angerer set to retire from football at the end of the NWSL season.

Roar, as with all the other W-League teams, could also have an extra international spot with the overseas player quote highly likely to increase from 3 spots to 4 despite some fierce debate.