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

 

[Couchpotato]

As we all know, running is a focus in the heat - so what would they be working on with the recent cool weather?

Cool weather? Our Vic draftees were complaining about our current heatwave. Can't wait to see them in Feb.

 

[mattyc75]

Maybe, I mean he was rated a Top 20 draft talent by many at the start of the year so you would think there is something there to work with even if he didn't come on this year.
But if that is the case, why not just extend Livo for an additional year instead of having an empty spot?

I think they cleared Livingstones spot for Evans but that backfired.
Sure its a free hit this year but if it affects us next year then better to keep the spot open.
We'll know whether champion is going to make it too by then

 

[Doashuey]

I think they cleared Livingstones spot for Evans but that backfired.
Sure its a free hit this year but if it affects us next year then better to keep the spot open.
We'll know whether champion is going to make it too by then

Was Evans Cat B eligible? If so that probably makes the most sense. I don't see how Livo for 2026 would affect the following year. If it is a 2 year minimum then he has already done his 2 years so could be extended by an extra year, without impacting our flexibility the following year. So yeah, if it was for Evans and he didn't get there, that would be the most logical reason.

 

[mattyc75]

Was Evans Cat B eligible? If so that probably makes the most sense.

He was, shame he didn't get through, we ballsed that part of the draft up

 

[FKASC]

As we all know, running is a focus in the heat - so what would they be working on with the recent cool weather?

Curling a few beauties from behind the boundary line

 

[sharps24]

Yep and we left a spot vacant after punting Livingstone and yet decided to not fill it with WW. I can't think of one good reason why we have done that. Anyone got any theories?

Livinstone was living in one of the dingy appartments the club owns in highgate or wherever it is. We are in a full blown rental crisis and apart from adding a bunch of interstate kids we also brought over mature age rookies with no WA roots. Coen was handy at WAFL level but having an extra bed to park new players in was even more valuable. Tough times.

 

[Bender_]

Livinstone was living in one of the dingy appartments the club owns in highgate or wherever it is. We are in a full blown rental crisis and apart from adding a bunch of interstate kids we also brought over mature age rookies with no WA roots. Coen was handy at WAFL level but having an extra bed to park new players in was even more valuable. Tough times.

I heard Schoenberg only signed with us so he could stop living in a cardboard box and finally stop washing himself and his clothes in servo toilets.

You're so full of shit lol

 

[Byron_Clanger]

 

[mitchzz]

May have missed it but any intel on which positions these guys are training in: McCarthy, Maric, Hutch.

Interested to see what we do with them

 

[THE A5]

Whats with the ochre socks?

 

[Barrybran]

Whats with the ochre socks?

Probably something to do with tomorrow's jumper announcement

 

[Elite Pete]

 

[The Gtrain]

I think Lindsay has a big future ahead of him and we’ve got a bargain at pick 19. His disposal and IQ are elite. I reckon he’ll line up round one.

Plus saints f2, say pick 28. Points wise that's pick 9 in total...

 

[WCErevival]

If anyone heads down to training today, can you let us know who the new pasty red-head is for us?

Cheers

Kelvin Crumps son is a train on for the Beagles.

 

[bzparkes]

Explains the orange socks then.

Sadly, no Ochre making a return to the store anytime soon...

 

[RanaNaved]

Plus saints f2, say pick 28. Points wise that's pick 9 in total...

Still a bargain, points don't mean anything in this instance

 

[bzparkes]

Gee, Allen's an impressive speaker.

 

[Doashuey]

Livinstone was living in one of the dingy appartments the club owns in highgate or wherever it is. We are in a full blown rental crisis and apart from adding a bunch of interstate kids we also brought over mature age rookies with no WA roots. Coen was handy at WAFL level but having an extra bed to park new players in was even more valuable. Tough times.

 

[Byron_Clanger]

Young defender Josh Lindsay was arguably the standout, which his main weapon of his lethal left foot giving the Eagles’ fans in attendance plenty to be excited about

Lindsay didn’t miss a target with the ball in hand and looks prepared to be a real damaging option for coach Andrew McQualter out of defence.

One who I expect to make a much earlier than expected debut. I'm excited...Big Kev style

 

[Elite Pete]

One who I expect to make a much earlier than expected debut. I'm excited...Big Kev style

For those who dabble $81 for rising star.

 

[LittleFires]

A fairly light session this morning for open training, lasting a bit over 90 minutes with a heavy focus on skills and fundamentals. As is often the case for Wednesday sessions, quite a few players either didn't train or were on light duties.

The players came out around 9:10 and got into their warm up before getting into some kicking work. Over the following hour the players rotated through several drills in smaller groups, working through handballing in congestion, ground balls, kicking, marking and set shots.

There wasn't a heap of running involved in (or in between) any of the drills today, with skills clearly more of a focus (in the lack of heat). The players finished with some set shots and went inside just before 11.

Details on who did/didn't train:

• Yeo is the only listed player I didn't see today
• A group of players - Cole, Gross, Barnett, Harley Reid and Allen - did little to no on-ground training and were restricted to working on the exercise bike and some stair work on the far end of the oval.
• Bailey Williams also did virtually no training, walking a lap or two while the main group warmed up and spending the rest of the session spectating or chatting to other players
• Duggan and Cripps didn't do much training either, only coming out around 9:30 to do a bit of light kicking and set shot practise.
• Waterman participated in the warm up but did so at a light pace before splitting off from the main group, doing some light run throughs and handball/kick work for about 30 minutes. Fortunately it looks like the hammy he did on Monday is on the lighter end.
• Ginbey also warmed up with the main group but split off after to do some run throughs and handball/kick work with the rehab group. To finish he spent about 20 minutes working solo with a trainer in what looked a bit like a fitness test - did some sprints, agility work and running, some with the footy involved. Headed inside around 10:20
• Kelly and Owies also did the warm up but spent the rest of the session training together away from the main group. They went through some run throughs, agility work and light skill work, before finishing up around 10:30
• Brockman warmed up with the main group but spent the next hour or so running laps by himself
• Dewar and Young did the first 30 minutes of the main session before splitting off to do some run throughs (some at quite high pace) and skill work with the rehab group. Both finished with some time on the exercise bike
• Jack Williams did a similar load to Dewar and Young but probably did slightly more work with the main group, joining a couple of the drills involving contested marking with the talls.
• Robertson was in and out of the session, doing some light run throughs and skill work with the rehab group but joining the main group for some drills
• The draftees (minus Allen) did the majority of the session today, which makes sense given it was fairly light

The lack of full-ground ball movement drills today meant there wasn't too much to take away from this morning's session, but here are a few general notes anyway:

• Barnett appears to have ditched his leg brace, but still wore quite a bit of strapping on that left leg
• Bo Allan is emerging as one of my early standouts this preseason. Not because of anything spectacular he did today, but in general he looks fit, is moving well and looks powerful and strong. Skills also looked sound today from what I saw
• Repeating what I said on Monday but Rodriguez looks like his body is AFL-ready. Really well-built for an 18-year-old
• The players all wore orange socks today, I'm assuming as part of the 16 Days in WA initiative against domestic violence

 

[Keys]

Got to training in what looks will likely be a customary 20 minutes or so late

As people would know, Wednesday is the lightest of the three sessions each week with today being no exception.

Players were generally divided up into small groups ranging in numbers from 6-8 to around 16, depending on the particular drill with some players training separately away from the main group.

Drills were all focused on differing fundamentals like overhead marking/reading the flight of the ball, ground balls, handballing through congestion etc.

Spent my time walking around the oval to try get a closer look at a particular group rather than trying to keep track of everything. There was too much going on to accurately watch all of it

Session finished around 10.45 so it wasn’t particularly long or gruelling

This is what I saw/noted bearing in mind I was both late and not watching everything:
• Waterman was jogging at about half pace on the boundary so whatever he did to his hammy on Monday, could reasonably be described as minor
• Kelly and Owies trained together away from the rest doing specific short sprints and running
• Robertson also did his own running but was doing so at good pace and looked comfortable. Is in very good shape
• Williams (Jack), Young and Brockman were others doing a running program
• Ginbey was just moving around the ground not doing anything in particular
• Duff-Tytler was involved in an overhead marking drill with the other talls when I arrived and didn’t look out of place - but body contact was minimal
• Rodriguez is a bigger body than I thought and didn’t look out of place in the slightest
• Duursma I didn’t see much of but he was both very pale (as buggery you might say) and wiry
• Not sure if it was by design or coincidence but in a couple of drills, Starcevich was the sole senior player working with the new draftees alongside one of the coaches. His experience is going to be more than useful. He’s also pretty imposing physically
• Harry Taylor continues to be very hands on as one of the coaches- was particularly involved in the marking drill
• Might be recency bias, as in something I only noted today, but the coaches seemed quite vocal during drills - certainly more than I recall from other years. Who I think was Jamie Maddocks (Head of Development) was particularly vocal with his instructions
• Saw Barnett on the boundary line towards the end, with significant strapping on his knee but sans the brace he’s been reported as wearing previously
• Like what I’ve seen early from Newton
• Jack Williams looks in good nick even though I only saw him running
• Can see the slight difference in body shape/size between Schoenberg and Macrae compared to the younger guys - even if it’s only in the WAFL they will be important contributors to the overall group

Just what I saw, and if I didn’t mention them it doesn’t mean they weren’t there as a big group of players trained across the other side and some just didn’t have anything noteworthy to add

 

[Keys]

A fairly light session this morning for open training, lasting a bit over 90 minutes with a heavy focus on skills and fundamentals. As is often the case for Wednesday sessions, quite a few players either didn't train or were on light duties.

The players came out around 9:10 and got into their warm up before getting into some kicking work. Over the following hour the players rotated through several drills in smaller groups, working through handballing in congestion, ground balls, kicking, marking and set shots.

There wasn't a heap of running involved in (or in between) any of the drills today, with skills clearly more of a focus (in the lack of heat). The players finished with some set shots and went inside just before 11.

Details on who did/didn't train:

• Yeo is the only listed player I didn't see today
• A group of players - Cole, Gross, Barnett, Harley Reid and Allen - did little to no on-ground training and were restricted to working on the exercise bike and some stair work on the far end of the oval.
• Bailey Williams also did virtually no training, walking a lap or two while the main group warmed up and spending the rest of the session spectating or chatting to other players
• Duggan and Cripps didn't do much training either, only coming out around 9:30 to do a bit of light kicking and set shot practise.
• Waterman participated in the warm up but did so at a light pace before splitting off from the main group, doing some light run throughs and handball/kick work for about 30 minutes. Fortunately it looks like the hammy he did on Monday is on the lighter end.
• Ginbey also warmed up with the main group but split off after to do some run throughs and handball/kick work with the rehab group. To finish he spent about 20 minutes working solo with a trainer in what looked a bit like a fitness test - did some sprints, agility work and running, some with the footy involved. Headed inside around 10:20
• Kelly and Owies also did the warm up but spent the rest of the session training together away from the main group. They went through some run throughs, agility work and light skill work, before finishing up around 10:30
• Brockman warmed up with the main group but spent the next hour or so running laps by himself
• Dewar and Young did the first 30 minutes of the main session before splitting off to do some run throughs (some at quite high pace) and skill work with the rehab group. Both finished with some time on the exercise bike
• Jack Williams did a similar load to Dewar and Young but probably did slightly more work with the main group, joining a couple of the drills involving contested marking with the talls.
• Robertson was in and out of the session, doing some light run throughs and skill work with the rehab group but joining the main group for some drills
• The draftees (minus Allen) did the majority of the session today, which makes sense given it was fairly light

The lack of full-ground ball movement drills today meant there wasn't too much to take away from this morning's session, but here are a few general notes anyway:

• Barnett appears to have ditched his leg brace, but still wore quite a bit of strapping on that left leg
• Bo Allan is emerging as one of my early standouts this preseason. Not because of anything spectacular he did today, but in general he looks fit, is moving well and looks powerful and strong. Skills also looked sound today from what I saw
• Repeating what I said on Monday but Rodriguez looks like his body is AFL-ready. Really well-built for an 18-year-old
• The players all wore orange socks today, I'm assuming as part of the 16 Days in WA initiative against domestic violence

It’s almost like we went to the same session and saw many of the same things

 

[Plague]

Good to see you down at training today Keys really enjoyed the sign you brought with you, too

 

[WCE777]

Gee, Allen's an impressive speaker.

Geez he is a motivated young man, hope he has a long career at WC.