Training Preseason Training Thread - 2026

[Keys]

The below is the OG faux training report from nearly 9 years ago - often imitated but never surpassed

In the absence of Keys I went down for a trundle this morning to check them out on return. Just a few random notes I took down...

• A lot of running work again, clearly a focus even in the heat.
• Duggan looked on and was hitting targets left and right. Set for a huge 2017.
• Giles went up against Vardy in the ruck contests and I'd say that Giles has the inside running at the moment.
• Mitchell looked a class above the other midfielders bar Priddis. Just knew how to find the footy and wouldn't miss a target all session. Shuey was very quiet and seemed to be taking direction from Mitchell. Doesn't bode well for his captaincy credentials, maybe he doesn't want the gig?
• Won't say too much about it in case I was just reading too much into it, but Rioli looked as though he'd enjoyed the Christmas break a bit too much. A few of the coaches pulled him aside and they were having quite an animated conversation before Rioli was sent to do laps for the rest of the session. Good news for Le Cras, I suppose.
• Sheed kicked on his right foot for 80% of the session, I reckon. Nice to see players working on their non-preferred so readily.
• Petrie looked like he was doing a great job 'coaching' the younger forwards in between the drills. Darling in particular seemed to be following him around.
• Gee Venables has some skills. He mainly jogged laps before spending the last half hour or so on set shots - curled a few beauties from behind the boundary line at the end for a bit of fun. Hardly saw him miss a kick.
• What interested me the most was that McGovern split his time between the defenders and the forwards, could be seeing a swingman role in 2017. He was his usual dominant self down back in some match simulation drills before going head-to-head with Mackenzie in a forward role.
• Bayok is very fast - Cripps was in most of the drills with him and couldn't keep up.
• Nelson is pale as buggery and still doesn't really have the body shape you'd expect of an AFL player.
• There was a big bloke who pulled up next to me and I could have sworn it was Suma, but I'm sure I was wrong...
• Masto was the player picked to kick the goal at the end today and nailed it. Celebrations were huge.
• No sign of Cole, Parto or Hill. Couldn't tell you why.

Will upload pics later if I have time. Let me know if you have any questions!

You might wonder why I’ve put this up and stickied it

Because this is the standard all copies should be measured against and it’s a reminder of how high the bar was set

And to hopefully discourage sequels.

If you want to have a crack in my absence, go ahead but if it doesn’t equal the standard set (as judged by me), then expect

• A one week threadban for a first offence
• A two week threadban for a second offence
• A one year threadban for a third offence

Actual training reports, minus discussion, can become found here:

Training - Preseason Training Reports -2025/26

This thread has been setup for training reports only and won’t be open for replies Informative reports from the preseason thread will be copied into this thread so posters have access to the quality work from the likes of LittleFires without wading through pages of general posts

www.bigfooty.com

 

[jdisc]

Signed up to bigfooty as a 13 year old way back in 2006. Made about 90% of my posts by age 21

much easier to post on bigfooty when you don't know what interest rates are

 

[txbyhull]

much easier to post on bigfooty when you don't know what interest rates are

Can confirm

 

[eagleskickass]

Signed up to bigfooty as a 13 year old way back in 2006. Made about 90% of my posts by age 21

That's about right for me as well, then mostly silence for 19 years

 

[THE A5]

Bigfooty is the final step of being full blown nuff. That said i don’t if it me getting older or not but post 2020-22 there’s been more questionable users than there used to be

 

[Monocle]

I've been on this site since I was 22.

I'm now 41.

It's about the friends you make along the way.

Been here since 2003, sent my first posts in using the Telex Machine.

Picture below because I am pretty sure that none of you young fu(***s would know what a telex machine was, let alone what one looked like.

 

[txbyhull]

Been here since 2003, sent my first posts in using the Telex Machine.

Picture below because I am pretty sure that none of you young fu(***s would know what a telex machine was, let alone what one looked like.



View attachment 2476944

You're very right, I wouldn't have had any ****ing clue

 

[bzparkes]

Been here since 2003, sent my first posts in using the Telex Machine.

Picture below because I am pretty sure that none of you young fu(***s would know what a telex machine was, let alone what one looked like.



View attachment 2476944

You're very right, I wouldn't have had any ****ing clue

Come on guys, there's a lyric about in in Khe Sanh...

 

[Bonjour]

Come on guys, there's a lyric about in in Khe Sanh...

They clattered where the gunships had once been

 

[THE A5]

I wonder who is the longest active member on this board is.

 

[txbyhull]

I wonder who is the longest active member on this board is.

I know who the eldest is

 

[bzparkes]

They clattered where the gunships had once been

 

[wce1990]

Supposedly 16 players achieved PBs in the MAS test this week. Hopefully is a good foundation for a strong pre season

 

[EagleMan87]

Signed up to bigfooty as a 13 year old way back in 2006. Made about 90% of my posts by age 21

I joined when I was 20, and same.

 

[RustyShacklefordFalcon]

Supposedly 16 players achieved PBs in the MAS test this week. Hopefully is a good foundation for a strong pre season

Where'd you find this little golden nugget of intel?

 

[Astro7]

I know who the eldest is

Bearing in mind that longest on here doesn't necessarily make for the eldest

 

[txbyhull]

Bearing in mind that longest on here doesn't necessarily make for the eldest

I didn’t want to say it but it was a Keys being old joke

 

[Bender_]

Supposedly 16 players achieved PBs in the MAS test this week. Hopefully is a good foundation for a strong pre season

It's not hugely surprising considering just how stupidly young our list is right now, but it's still encouraging to see the improvement.

 

[txbyhull]

Supposedly 16 players achieved PBs in the MAS test this week. Hopefully is a good foundation for a strong pre season

It would be a mix of sad, unbelievably ironic, and amusing if Tom Gross wasn’t one of them

 

[Avalor]

I know who the eldest is

That's likely me!

 

[Godfather32]

People my age use it but to me discord feels like a gen z thing.

Isn't discord just kind of an upgraded version of IRC, which I was using in the 90s and it was probably around before that

 

[The_Reaper]

Isn't discord just kind of an upgraded version of IRC, which I was using in the 90s and it was probably around before that

And controlled by furry mods

 

[Godfather32]

And controlled by furry mods

Well...maybe it's changed a bit

 

[Matele]

Been here since 2014. I was 18 and lurking the #returnthewings thread for a while before joining. I didn’t think I’d post much on here beyond that thread.

I’m now edging 30 and have had more usernames than I’d like to admit, plus I’m still ****ing here.

The final piece in my descent into madness is still being active on here when my unborn son (May 2026) makes an account on here.

 

[SAweagle]

Bigfooty is the final step of being full blown nuff. That said i don’t if it me getting older or not but post 2020-22 there’s been more questionable users than there used to be

Reflects the fortune of the club, dropping standards and downgrades in talent across both players and supporters

 

[InTheWings]

I joined in the preseason of 2013. I recall a poster featuring a fictional West Coast novella they were creating about players, Woosha (the coach at the time), and pre-season at West Coast.