TAC Cup Preview Thread 2006- Nth Ballarat Rebels

[johnson_26]

Key Players: Shaun Grigg, Matt Tyler, Rohan McHugh, James Frawely, Myles Sewell

Injuries: Peter Weir, Injured Lower Back, Prognosis: Indefinite. Scheduled to play last night against the dragons but pulled out late. Been injured most of pre season, has missed all of the praccy matches.

Strengths: Nth Ballarat are just a class outfit. The way the move the ball is exceptional, they make space and their skills are simply fantastic. They have a plethera of these 6 foot 2 players who are so athletic and run like the wind, and have silky skills (Grigg, Tyler, Mchugh, Frawley). They also have some 'twin' guns in the Brown's. Very quick, strong builds, they'll be effective in setting up play for the rebels. Their half back line looks magnificent, with the likes of frawely, grigg and tyler all being rotated throughout. Further, they have a list of bottom agers, as ballarat usually does, that will add great depth to their list. Guys like Matt Austin (U16 Vic Country 2005), Ryan Gurton (U16 Vic Country 2005), Peter Weir (U15 Vic Country Schoolboys 2004, All Australian 2004), Tim Houlihan (U16 Vic Country 2005, AIS Scholarship holder), Clayton Hinkley (U16 Vic Country 2005). All these players add respective depth to their areas of the field, providing the rebels good drive throughout the year.

Weaknesses: Their weakness, although they have some reasonable talls in the foward line (Tyler, Tas , etc) they lacka bit of depth down there. They will rely heavily on their midfielders to push down and kick goals. That seems to be the major area. Watched the rebels game last night, and unfortunately, although they dominated the first 2 qtrs and the start of the third in terms of inside 50's, they just couldnt convert those insides into scores. In addition, they lack an oversize ruckman, and also lack another quality back up ruckman, so they'll struggle in that area, forcing mids to work even harder around stoppages. Major cause for concern as they lost alot of hitouts last night.

Verdict: As Mentioned ealier, they are just a class outfit. Work really hard for each other to make space. Although they are a hard side, their strength is their skills and ball movement across the field. Any team that can stop that, can stop the rebels, but it will be very difficult.
Likely Finish: 3rd-7th

[Chandra]

Great Summary, johnson.

Thye coaching staff to have these blokes so committed to working for each other in a similar mould to the Swans in the AFL. I saw them come from behind a few times last year when most sides would have given up the ghost. They're hard to get down and even harder to keep down.

[Grimmett]

Nice work johnson, again.
Keep an eye on Damien Horbury who the coaches have high hopes will develop this season.

[Williams02]

What about George Knowles. he is a 18 yr old turning 19 soon who played alot last year but was plagued with constant knee troubles. had cartledge taken out at the end of the year. At 195 cm. and now a mature body he can surely be a more than capable ruck man. has a magnificent mark and can play forwad and back

[Grimmett]

REBELS TO SHINE WITH NINE LEADERS

First published by:

Ballarat Courier
Friday, March 17, 2006

By Simon Gladman

NINE players will lead the North Ballarat Rebels into battle this season.
The TAC Cup team has named its largest ever leadership group and a new captaincy policy based on rotation.
The peer-elected players of the leadership group are twins Mitchell and Nathan Brown, James Frawley, Shaun Grigg, Clayton Hinkley, Damien Horbury, Rohan McHugh, Myles Sewell and Matt Tyler.
Hinkley is the only first-year player among the nine.
Each will have a stint as captain during the season.
Rebels assistant coach Rob Carroll said the team was full of natural leaders.
He said the rotation policy was a fresh change from having one captain and two or three vice-captains.
"At this level we would expect that all of the 22 players would be leaders on the field," Carroll said. "We've seen that the AFL clubs are experimenting with their leadership structures. Last year we had one captain and three vice-captains. We're of the feeling that the captaincy role might be overrated."
The leadership group was formed following a gruelling camp at Mt Egerton in January.
Players on the playing list had to rate their peers on values such as courage, commitment, respect, mateship and passion for the team.
"All of our leaders rated at least eight out of 10," Carroll said. “We know that the leaders we've got are endorsed by the playing group. While all the players had a big say, the coaches also had an input into the make-up of the group because we watched over those players at practice matches and at training."
Only two of the nine players - Sewell and Tyler - were in the leadership group last year.
Sewell, who has been appointed captain for the season's opening four matches, said the rotation policy would give each a chance to "shine".
He said the team was aiming high.
"We're the senior guys so everyone will be looking up to us each week no matter who the captain is," he said. "There's a lot more talk about the team this year and we have a very strong spine. We've got a lot of unfinished business from last year. We lost two finals without a win, and that was not good enough."



Post-game DVD analysis to help players lift their performance

THE Rebels will have new technology on their side this year to help them improve their game.
In a first for the team, it will copy what AFL clubs do and use digital footage for analysis instead of video tape.
Champion Data will provide each player with a three to four-minute length DVD of his performance.
Rebels assistant coach Rob Carroll said the "exciting technology" would take the Rebels and TAC Cup football to a higher level of professionalism.
"It will allow us to get digital footage of the game immediately after the match," he said. "It links the individual's statistics to digital footage and produces a detailed DVD analysis. A player won't have to watch two or three hours of game tape. They will take home their own DVD, use it as a learning tool, and also get feedback from their line coaches."
Carroll said the team would also be able to review specific footage of areas such as centre bounces, throw-ins and set plays.
The Rebels will also have access to footage of opposition clubs and players.
"It will allow us to do some tactical work on other clubs and their players so we will be able to combat their strengths," Carroll said.

[Grimmett]

TAC CUP

Hocking back in Ballarat

First published by:

Ballarat Courier
Saturday, March 18, 2006

GEELONG legend Garry Hocking returns to Ballarat's Austar Arena today in his new role as Geelong Falcons coach for the TAC Cup.
Hocking spent a year at the Northern Oval after ending his AFL career, playing seven games in 2002 with the North Ballarat Roosters in the VFL.
He has returned to Geelong to take over the Falcons after a senior coaching stint with Peel Thunder in the WAFL.
Hocking will lead the Falcons in practice matches against North Ballarat Rebels.
The arch-rivals meet in three games - under-16s at 10am and under-18s at noon and 2pm.

Rebels under-18 teams:

GAME ONE (noon):
B: Trimble, James Delahunty, Clarkson;
HB: Denson, O'Connell, Gardner;
C: Peters, Ross, Chaplin;
HF: John Delahunty B.Barnes, Murnane;
F: Otto, Caldow, Adlington;
Rucks: Kitchin, Edwards, A.Tyler;
Inter: McLeish, Evans, Orr, Weir, Luke, Maher.

GAME TWO (2pm):
B: Hinkley, Graham, Horbury;
HB: Houlihan, M.Tyler, Kermond;
C: McHugh, Grigg, Frawley;
HF: George, N.Brown, Clingan;
F: McDougall, M.Brown, Searle;
Rucks: Hardy, Sewell, Shipsides;
Inter: Tickner, Britten, Cheney, Austin.

[Grimmett]

Few more Rebels reports available at http://araratfc.vcfl.com.au currently.