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

 

[Tugga27]

I suspect Tim plays a lot of WAFL next season before a quiet retirement.

Not many players who will be contracted retire early hese days.

 

[Weshi]

This is why I'm glad Duursma wants to get around Baker cos he'll show him how to work and prepare. Whoever was 'mentoring' Harley in his first two years should be ashamed. Harley himself said in that random Revo fitness presser that he didn't fully understand how hard you needed to work/train and be fit at the level, which is why he showed up the shape he did to last seasons pre-season. That's diabolical.

19yr old kid not at fitness levels, wow, using ashamed and diabolical to describe this is way over the top.
We have a supremely talented kid that makes everything look easy, finds out you need to work harder at the elite level. That is just a life lesson some pick up quicker than others, hopefully he has!

 

[FKASC]

Sack Woosha Kelly

 

[rebel23]

I'm not too fussed on Tim Kelly

11

Tim Kelly

Age

31

Ht

184cm

Wt

83kg

Pos.

M/F

Career

Season

Last 5

D

23.6

5star

K

13.5

5star

HB

10.1

5star

M

3.4

3star

T

4.0

5star

CL

4.9

5star

D

19.9

5star

K

12.3

5star

HB

7.6

4star

M

3.1

3star

T

4.7

5star

CL

3.6

4star

D

21.6

5star

K

10.4

4star

HB

11.2

5star

M

2.8

3star

T

3.8

5star

CL

3.8

5star

and his mas score... It wasn't the best but it's not completely terrible.. i mean he is 31... If he was like 25 years old it would be concerning.

He's going to be playing WAFL and i daresay playing it very well...
He's just depth atm and that's fine... Ill lay off the pile on on him... There's no point

 

[Wedgetailed Westerner]

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

I reckon it's a joust off between Keys and Monocle

 

[Cuzz09]

Harleys face is getting Rowell shaped

Bodes well for beast mode Harls

 

[Bender_]

Sack Woosha Kelly

Fold the club league.

 

[Wedgetailed Westerner]

Sounds like he actually has something inside his though

Unlike Maynard

On a side note, do ya reckon Maynard wakes himself up every night as hes yelling "Block!!!"

 

[Wedgetailed Westerner]

Dad?!

Seriously though, I thought I was being unique when I came up with that for my father after my nephew was born

My kids call their's Papagrumps

 

[HoneyBadger35]

Ah good, it’s “bloke who isn’t performing like an A-Grader must therefore be delist material” time of year. And so soon! Just 11 more months of this to go before a brief respite then into preseason 2026.

 

[Astro7]

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

There's many of us older than Keys (god bless his zimmer frame), but maybe not as knowledgeable.

 

[Monocle]

I reckon it's a joust off between Keys and Monocle

Well not that it deserves any particular bragging rights, more so it’s just a unimportant fact, but I can confirm that I am indeed older than Keys

I am officially an “Old Fart” and I am more than happy with that status, because getting old is a privilege that’s not afforded everyone, so I am grateful for it.

Being a father and now a grandparent are two of life’s greatest blessings.

What maters in life is family and friends.

 

[SAweagle]

Well not that it deserves any particular bragging rights, more so it’s just a unimportant fact, but I can confirm that I am indeed older than Keys

I am officially an “Old Fart” and I am more than happy with that status, because getting old is a privilege that’s not afforded everyone, so I am grateful for it.

Being a father and now a grandparent are two of life’s greatest blessings.

What maters I’m life is family and friends.

And hanging shit on senior midfielder Tim Kelly

 

[THE A5]

Ah good, it’s “bloke who isn’t performing like an A-Grader must therefore be delist material” time of year. And so soon! Just 11 more months of this to go before a brief respite then into preseason 2026.

Now it makes sense you were a massive Paddy Mcginnity fan

 

[bzparkes]

What maters I’m life is family and friends.

And flags, of course.

 

[Jeremy McLovin]

And flags, of course.

Forever mad that they ticked that off after 2018. It said FLAGS, not flag.

 

[Bender_]

Ah good, it’s “bloke who isn’t performing like an A-Grader must therefore be delist material” time of year. And so soon! Just 11 more months of this to go before a brief respite then into preseason 2026.

It'll also be spiced up with a mention of "Banfield Jnr" everytime this topic is brought up too.

 

[Ambrose Burnside]

Should have delisted Kelly for Banners Jnr Evans

Anyone else has a sook and it'll be changed to Walley. Silly kents.

 

[mattyc75]

Looking forward to Kelly, owies and yeo having above average seasons

 

[Proeagle]

Didn’t note that down specifically but I’m fairly sure he’s been with the backs in the last couple weeks. I’ll keep an eye on him this week

There are a few that may have new positions.
McCarthy
Hutch
Bo Allen
Maric

 

[THE A5]

My big call is that Owies will kick 25 goals

 

[TY24]

My big call is that Owies will kick 25 goals

Should be pretty easy for him in the WAFL

 

[Ilkka Sinisalo]

Yeah, probably not the greatest look.

Imagine being a draftee starstruck with the 2019 runner up Brownlow medalist and AA Tim Kelly. Thinking he must be elite and then watching him tap out at the first running test ahead of key defender nobody's.

View attachment 2485206

The guys they drafted were 12 years old when Kelly was All Australian and not Brownlow runner up (he was 5th). I highly doubt they think about him as anything beyond a pretty good player on a terrible team, especially the Victorian guys who would rarely have watched him play since the Eagles were always buried in the Sunday arvo graveyard slot.

As for setting a standard and leading, some guys aren’t comfortable with that role. Kelly hasn’t really been in a leadership role and I think it’s safe to say he doesn’t see himself as a leader. I would also say that I am more willing to cut veterans some slack for not turning up in peak physical condition since they’ve been through numerous offseasons and therefore should have a good sense of what kind of baseline fitness they need to maintain to be match ready by the start of the season.

 

[Yeahnahmate]

Don’t worry, he’ll be eagle’d soon with spaghetti arms

Oh yeah, like Ginbey

 

[Deepthroat]

Is Harry Schoenberg going to be our new Chad Rintoul

Chad Rintoul

Age

51

Ht

180cm

Wt

86kg

Pos.

Fwd

Career

Season

Last 5

D

13.4

3star

K

8.8

3star

HB

4.6

3star

M

3.5

4star

T

1.0

3star

G

0.4

3star

No current season stats available

D

6.8

2star

K

5.6

3star

HB

1.2

2star

M

3.4

4star

T

0.2

3star

G

0.8

4star

?