Traded #25: Jake Stringer - 📦 Traded to GWS for Pick #53 - 16/10

[faible]

Whilst many of our players have had interrupted pre-seasons it sounds like Stringer is as fit as he's ever been in his time here

AFL 2020: Jake Stringer Essendon, best pre-season ever, Bombers injuries

In the midst of his club’s wretched summer injury run, Essendon gun Jake Stringer says he’s never been in better shape after experiencing one of his best and smoothest pre-seasons of his AFL career.

www.foxsports.com.au

In the midst of his club’s wretched summer injury run, Essendon gun Jake Stringer says he’s never been in better shape after experiencing one of his best and smoothest pre-seasons of his AFL career.

A host of key Bombers have, at different stages over the past few months, battled a range of injuries or suffered setbacks, including Joe Daniher (groin), Cale Hooker (hip), Dylan Shiel (knee) David Zaharakis (knee), Dyson Heppell (foot), Michael Hurley (shoulder) and Orazio Fantasia (hip).

However Stringer, who battled foot, knee and hamstring issues to play 19 of a possible 23 games in 2019, has not just been a constant presence on the track, but also one of Essendon’s best trainers.

In his eighth AFL pre-season, Stringer recently ran a personal best in the 2km time trial, slashing a whopping 20 seconds off his previous top time.

Asked on SEN Breakfast how he was going physically, Stringer cheekily said: “I’m borderline flying at the minute … nah I’m going well.”

The 25-year-old said it’d been “one of the hardest pre-seasons I’ve ever done”. He hailed the influence of the Bombers’ new head of strength and conditioning Sean Murphy, who’s come across from Hawthorn and “really tested us physically and mentally”.

“Not being injured is a massive part and I don't think I've missed a session the whole pre-season, which is all you can ask for when you go into a pre-season is complete as many sessions as you can. I’d be probably in the top one or two at the club that hasn’t missed,” Stringer told SEN on Friday morning.

Asked if it’d been one of his smoothest AFL pre-seasons yet, Stringer declared: “Yeah, by far.

“Last year was pretty good, but this year’s been taken to a new level with Sean Murphy coming across. He's really pushed the boundaries with me.

“It's been a hard slog and, don't worry, I'm looking forward to playing and getting out of this pre-season phase.”

Even though Stringer is “flying”, he said seven or eight teammates are still not in full training, but the “majority of them were running”.

“Not everything's gone to plan, obviously. There's been a few blokes that are still not quite into full training, but that's part of football and part of the pre-season. You’ve just got to deal with whatever comes,” Stringer said.

He later added: “We’re in a great position to able to springboard into the season and hopefully get a few more of these top echelon blokes back.”

The first-round draft pick kicked 98.55 for the Bulldogs in 2015 and 2016 before being traded ahead of the 2018 season to the Bombers, where he’s spent recent summers training with the on-ballers.

Stringer said the plan was still for him to play a mixture of midfield and forward minutes this season, but added he’d been training primarily with the attacking group this pre-season and “honing in on my craft as a forward”.

Stringer said Essendon’s succession plan, which will see senior coach John Worsfold gradually hand the reins to assistant Ben Rutten throughout 2020, was working well. He said Worsfold was at the club everyday and engaged with the players, but Rutten took charge of all tactical discussions and meetings.

“The work that John and Ben have done together has been absolutely outstanding and literally the smoothest transition that you could possibly ever see. It's a credit to both of them how well it's actually gone,” Stringer said.

“I couldn’t be happier with where the club is at the minute.”

Stringer said there’d be a noticeable but not dramatic change to the club’s game plan this season.

“It’ll definitely be a lot more consistent,” Stringer said.

“From a whole learning (process) and even in training, you’re seeing it more and more every time we’re doing bits of match ‘sim’. I think it’ll be very noticeable when people come to watch us.”

 

[Lance Uppercut]

 

[crackers65]

Surprise,surprise. He came back from his time off as fat as a pig and totally unfit.
History repeats.

 

[faible]

Surprise,surprise. He came back from his time off as fat as a pig and totally unfit.
History repeats.

Source for the bolded?

 

[dank420_]

Surprise,surprise. He came back from his time off as fat as a pig and totally unfit.
History repeats.

I guess if you ignore his form in the scratch matches to date.

 

[Milanista28]

Seems fairly minor, not sure it needed to be an article tbh.

 

[Beerfish]

Seems fairly minor, not sure it needed to be an article tbh.

Well it gave me more info than I had before.

 

[Don Won]

Surprise,surprise. He came back from his time off as fat as a pig and totally unfit.
History repeats.

Langford was on record saying he’s never seen him fitter. Maybe a low bar, but he’s seen a bit more than the awkwardly angled photo making the rounds on a football forum.

 

[yodellinhank]

Langford was on record saying he’s never seen him fitter.

Could be a typo?

 

[Don Won]

Could be a typo?

It was a as radio interview, but maybe he has New Zealand heritage there somewhere.

 

[andleanback]

Langford was on record saying he’s never seen him fitter. Maybe a low bar, but he’s seen a bit more than the awkwardly angled photo making the rounds on a football forum.

Come on players fluff interviews mean nothing. Every player is flying, we’ve never been more connected as a group etc etc. stringer has hardly been on the track this preseason it would be laughable to think this is the fittest he’s ever been.

 

[DERO]

I've heard back tightness can give you leg awareness.

Was it caused by a knock?

 

[ant555]

Was it caused by a knock?

Yep. A knock at the door. Got of the couch the wrong way when he got up to answer it

 

[ant555]

Come on players fluff interviews mean nothing. Every player is flying, we’ve never been more connected as a group etc etc. stringer has hardly been on the track this preseason it would be laughable to think this is the fittest he’s ever been.

Hardly been on the track ? really ? you best get a new source. Different program to the previous 2 pre seasons but has not missed a beat since they came back.

 

[andleanback]

Hardly been on the track ? really ? you best get a new source. Different program to the previous 2 pre seasons but has not missed a beat since they came back.

Was in rehab before Christmas. They’ve been back for 3 weeks, and he’s been hurt the last 1. There’s been at least a couple of session aswell In Jan when he was on restricted program.

 

[Don Won]

Was in rehab before Christmas. They’ve been back for 3 weeks, and he’s been hurt the last 1.

Missed two maybe three actual sessions before Christmas (may even have been modified training) missed two this week.

 

[andleanback]

Missed two maybe three actual sessions before Christmas (may even have been modified training) missed two this week.

He was running laps a majority of the time pre Christmas stuff from my recollection. Since the new year they had a 2 1/2week block then and break and he’s been injured this week. Not a whole lot of full preseason training if you actually break it down.

 

[DERO]

Was he training on the main oval?

 

[fairbump_playon]

Was he training on the main oval?

The main oval is the one that’s obviously the main oval

 

[DERO]

The main oval is the one that’s obviously the main oval

There is definitely a pattern.

 

[ant555]

He was running laps a majority of the time pre Christmas stuff from my recollection. Since the new year they had a 2 1/2week block then and break and he’s been injured this week. Not a whole lot of full preseason training if you actually break it down.

Get a new source. He has completed what they have wanted him to do until this week and was one of the better players in the last match sim. He has not been in rehab. He has been on a different program so he does not get the groin soreness he has had in the last two pre seasons because of the heavy running load. He stayed of the track yesterday because of back tightness. They are not running the same midfield program they had him on in the past.

 

[yodellinhank]

So is he on a different restricted program or a the same restricted different program?

 

[MiguelM]

Get a new source. He has completed what they have wanted him to do until this week and was one of the better players in the last match sim. He has not been in rehab. He has been on a different program so he does not get the groin soreness he has had in the last two pre seasons because of the heavy running load. He stayed of the track yesterday because of back tightness. They are not running the same midfield program they had him on in the past.

Smart imo. He is a burst player at his best. Always a compromise between strength and endurance. Too much of one and you lose the other.

For Stringer, he doesn't need super endurance of a midfielder and with more depth there he will probably only spend 5 minute bursts in the midfield and only if needed there.

 

[fairbump_playon]

Smart imo. He is a burst player at his best. Always a compromise between strength and endurance. Too much of one and you lose the other.

For Stringer, he doesn't need super endurance of a midfielder and with more depth there he will probably only spend 5 minute bursts in the midfield and only if needed there.

Stringer with more endurance would be the number 1 player in the AFL.

His issue is not that he loses power when he pushes the endurance, it’s that his body breaks down.

Is that because he is unprofessional with his diet and weight? Or his body is screwed from previous injuries (notably the broken leg)? Or just unlucky? Not sure but we are definitely getting only 70% of what could have been.

 

[ant555]

Stringer with more endurance would be the number 1 player in the AFL.

His issue is not that he loses power when he pushes the endurance, it’s that his body breaks down.

Is that because he is unprofessional with his diet and weight? Or his body is screwed from previous injuries (notably the broken leg)? Or just unlucky? Not sure but we are definitely getting only 70% of what could have been.

Previous injury. A period where he did not look after himself that well and he is not an endurance athlete and can not handle the work load. His career has been 70% of what he could have been due to his broken leg.

 

[andleanback]

Get a new source. He has completed what they have wanted him to do until this week and was one of the better players in the last match sim. He has not been in rehab. He has been on a different program so he does not get the groin soreness he has had in the last two pre seasons because of the heavy running load. He stayed of the track yesterday because of back tightness. They are not running the same midfield program they had him on in the past.

Rehab / running program that’s what I meant. He wasnt training with the main squad and doing his own restricted program. He gets hurt in preseason because his body shape cannot cope with the load. He needs to change his body shape if he wants to prolong his career.