Training 2017 - Preseason Training

[sherrif]

Geez, that must be really taxing running backwards and forwards like that in 31 degrees. I watched it for about 15 minutes and they seemed to keep up the same pace the whole time - how long did they do this drill for?

Definitely more than 20 minutes.

 

[Okinakashi]

What you need to understand with Pre-Season is that players are on individual programs so Sandi not running on Monday or Dawss being in the rehab group on that day is not a tragedy. We are weeks away from the season and there is a lot of time for Grif to be ready Apeness is back with the main squad but ran the 3K on Monday and that was his workload for the day.

Thanks for clarifying Danny.

I think we can all agree that out 4 first choice ruck options (Sandi, Zaarke, Griff and Ape) have all been injury prone in the last couple of years and there's a good chance that we might have to put Sean into a game sooner than we'd normally like.

 

[Ragtooth]

Walters was his usual self, good at everything. Unfortunately he hurt himself in the narrow ground sim, I think his lower left leg. It didn't look too bad. He got up with a few expletives and walked with a slight hobble to the trainers. I didn't see him in the full ground sim so I guess that was his day done.

It seemed like training in the heat got to a few today. Langdon, Ballaz, Igbo and Walters all came off before the session was over. Walters I think had a slight ankle injury as he was limping after training.

Epp! I'm worried Walters has dislocated the tendon in his ankle before. And IRC that injury looked innocuous. Fingers crossed

 

[Wally Walpamur]

Thank you again, training reporters!

By the sounds of it, Sean Darcy could turn out to be pick of the draft. As hyped as Logue is, Darcy seems to be bolting.

 

[scon]

Johnson looks bigger than last year, Especially through the legs.

Solid off season regime!
Eating protein Kebabs and boxing into the wee small hours!

 

[Unique Name]

How did kersten train today?. Hoping he plays rd 1, he should straighten us up a lot.

I only saw him running laps. Didn't see him in any of the drills but i might have just missed him. He is a solid unit about 6'3ish.

 

[sherrif]

I only saw him running laps. Didn't see him in any of the drills but i might have just missed him. He is a solid unit about 6'3ish.

He was out there under a cap. Did a ton of repeat sprints. Very, very impressive.

 

[couldhavebeen]

Sherrif gave a very detailed account of training today and I agree with his report . The players are doing far more running this year and the coaches have upped the workload .
Its hard to explain to anyone not at training just how punishing the workload is but as an example Fyfe , Suban and Walters would be considered to have elite fitness . Today everyone of them were showing duress due to the heat and the amount of training .You know how fit these guys are when within minutes of finishing one gruelling session of 20 minutes , they are out there doing another one and another for 2 1\2 hours .
Its the way that they talk to each other and the grins on their faces that says to the coaches and team mates "Give It Your Best Shot Cause I Can Take It ".
Some players that need a pat on the back today but not mentioned by Sherrif . Brady Grey is giving his all ,Josh Deluca has been in the Gym and it shows , his skill level has gone up as well .
Johnson has put on a little weight and the young forwards got to experience his defensive pressure .
Just a side note players were all wearing footy boots for almost all the drills today . They only changed into runners late in the session when running laps

 

[sherrif]

Thanks for clarifying Danny.

I think we can all agree that out 4 first choice ruck options (Sandi, Zaarke, Griff and Ape) have all been injury prone in the last couple of years and there's a good chance that we might have to put Sean into a game sooner than we'd normally like.

I doubt that. In my view Sean is looking very, very promising but he still is miles away from being in the condition required to take on an afl ruckman. I think most of the reports on him in this thread have an untyped 'for a developing ruckman component'. In other words, yes he is promising, but for his age and we will need to give him at least two years before we expose him at afl level. Griffin, Apeness, Dawson, Collins, Hamling (who has a massive leap) and Tabs are all far more equipped to ruck in 2017 if Sandy goes down and Clarke is not yet back. Give the kid time as only a handful of players have been selected to ruck in their first year (provided they are under twenty when drafted) over the last decade even for a game or two. Griffin and Sandy both looked fully fit when running today. Anyone who says our season is in deep trouble purely if Sandy goes down is jumping at shadows in my view.

 

[M_rash]

I doubt that. In my view Sean is looking very, very promising but he still is miles away from being in the condition required to take on an afl ruckman. I think most of the reports on him in this thread have an untyped 'for a developing ruckman component'. In other words, yes he is promising, but for his age and we will need to give him at least two years before we expose him at afl level. Griffin, Apeness, Dawson, Collins, Hamling (who has a massive leap) and Tabs are all far more equipped to ruck in 2017 if Sandy goes down and Clarke is not yet back. Give the kid time as only a handful of players have been selected to ruck in their first year (provided they are under twenty when drafted) over the last decade even of a game or two. Griffin and Sandy both looked fully fit when running today. Anyone who says our season is in deep trouble purely if Sandy goes down is jumping at shadows in my view.

So Darcy is the next Grundy is what I'm reading

For reference, grundy has played 7, 15, 19, 21 games in his first four years to date.

Edit: meanwhile, Zac Clarke is in Japan on the whipper snipper according to one post on instagram

 

[sherrif]

So Darcy is the next Grundy is what I'm reading

For reference, grundy has played 7, 15, 19, 21 games in his first four years to date.

No. Grundy was a dominant underage player who was already physically developed when recruited. He was predicted to go top ten by most experts. Darcy will be slower build as although he clearly working bloody hard he still requires significant improvement to be ready to compete at AFL level. More like Naismith from Sydney who was on afl list for a while before he showed he could ruck at afl level.

 

[meima]

I think there is some amount of ruck work put into Tab, Collins in the pre season to let sean Darcy develop (his potential) in the wafl. Agree with sherrif he is way off afl level. I think if Sandi go down the one replace him will be griffin with tab and apeness providing backup . sorry to confused people here earlier regarding strnadica the kid got a lot of tool in him just not looking like one from the outside , one year wafl will do him good.

1) good hand
2) look deceptive slow but decent speed for a tall player.
3) good kick also.

Edit tool= potential or useful skill

 

[WAnchor]

sorry to confused people here earlier regarding strnadica the kid got a lot of tool in him.

I think that was a general concern.

 

[JunglistPosse]

Training today was brutal as it was extremely hot and the team did a ton of running to finish the session. I may have missed some things as I arrived around 9.30am and I was sitting on the other side of the oval (compared to some of the other training reporters) near the team store. I also stayed to see a very, very tall rehab group train.

It seemed like training in the heat got to a few today. Langdon, Ballaz, Igbo and Walters all came off before the session was over. Walters I think had a slight ankle injury as he was limping after training.

Some points of note from the training I saw included:
Some brilliant play from S.Hii. He seems to be training more as an inside mid from what I can tell.
Johno looking fitter than ever. Running lap after lap.
Cox taking some terrific marks in match sim play. Kicking looked fine to me.
Darcy is definitely a bloody good ruck prospect. His second efforts are fantastic. Both him and Stmadica also ran a ton of laps and seem more mobile that advertised in draft write-ups.
Kersten did some repeat sprint work with Grey and Johno, Kersten was the clear standout of the three. I really like what he could potentially add to the forward line. He is definitely key position size when you see him up close. His legs are massive. Will very hard to push off the ball in a marking contest.
Logue did a couple of terrific intercept marks and his kicking is fantastic in my view.
It was my first look at Luke Ryan and to me he seems a decent way off the pace in terms of making an early debut. He was infrequently involved in the play in match sims.
Ethan Hughes kicked the ball wonderfully today. I would love to see him play midfield for Peel in 2017.
Crozier for mine is a certain starter for round 1 even if everyone is available. His kicking today hitting targets with difficult kicks was superb. I really hope he takes the game on like he did today in season 2017.

They are definitely making up for lost time (compared to last year) in terms of running loads. Today the main group finished the session with a heap of all ground runs. When I say a ton I mean heaps and heaps of running the length of the oval in very hot conditions. The two stand-outs were De Luca and Connor Blakely. The improvement in both, in terms of their running and kicking skills since last year is gigantic. Balic seems to be pushing himself massively too and is definitely improving at a rapid rate in terms of keeping up with the main group.

The rehab group consists of Hamling, A.Pearce, Dawson, Griffin, Bennell, Neale and Sandy, with Clarke and Ueber nowhere to be seen. I am fairly certain Hamling and Sandy are doing individual programs and are not injured as they ran a ton at what appeared to be full pace. Harley has made progress and is now running slow repeat 100's. In my view it will be touch and go to see if he will be ready for Round 1. Neale looked fantastic and ran as well as anyone. Griffin too doesn't seem far off full fitness and he did some full speed running too. Ditto Dawson. Alex Pearce is becoming a beast and his speed is definitely terrific in sprint work.

With the amount of running at the end of the session today was some of the brutal training I've seen the players put through. Fyfe was so exhausted after the session he put his head straight into an esky of ice water. Compared to last year the players appeared to be pushed and extended more than Ive seen them before. I had a quick chat with Cam McCarthy after training and he said the training they were doing was a ton more intense than what he did at GWS.

 

[theGav56]

I think there is some amount of ruck work put into Tab, Collins in the pre season to let sean Darcy develop (his potential) in the wafl. Agree with sherrif he is way off afl level. I think if Sandi go down the one replace him will be griffin with tab and apeness providing backup . sorry to confused people here earlier regarding strnadica the kid got a lot of tool in him just not looking like one from the outside , one year wafl will do him good.

1) good hand
2) look deceptive slow but decent speed for a tall player.
3) good kick also.

Edit tool= potential or useful skill

Useful edit.

 

[rgauci]

It may be worth tempering our expectations. Our previous 2 best runners (Mzungu, Deboer) left and went to GWS, they didn't win there, they came 3rd and 4th. The guy that won our 3km, came from a club where he came 3rd. Though I'm happy we are putting more miles into the legs of our players but I don't believe we are superior in the running stakes compared to other teams. We are probably playing catch up.

 

[Sweetback]

It may be worth tempering our expectations. Our previous 2 best runners (Mzungu, Deboer) left and went to GWS, they didn't win there, they came 3rd and 4th. The guy that won our 3km, came from a club where he came 3rd. Though I'm happy we are putting more miles into the legs of our players but I don't believe we are superior in the running stakes compared to other teams. We are probably playing catch up.

You'd have to compare the running ability of the different lists as a whole, not just use the one or players who lead the pack as representative of their fitness levels. But coming after last year, we will be playing catchup as evidenced by the way we ran out games during the season.

 

[scon]

Who came first in the time trial is not a basis for comparing fitness levels of lists and I don't think it's been suggested.
The time trials are won by the comps elite runners.
Comparing the average of each club's top 25 might correlate to something akin to your best 22's running power or some such but again a fairly esoteric measure even if combined with other metrics to do with speed etc.
What is significant is that last season we seemed to attempt to incorporate the fitness running loads into the game simulation and training drills,failed spectacularly;went into the season vastly underdone and couldn't run out games.
The error has been acknowledged and addressed and we are seeing it at training with increased demand in the running loads.I think Prior says in his most recent interview that players are achieving PB's which is what they're after along with every other club in the comp.
Having a power athlete like Fyfe up in the top endurance runner echelon might be bit auspicious though.

 

[serial_thrilla]

What is significant is that last season we seemed to attempt to incorporate the fitness running loads into the game simulation and training drills,failed spectacularly;went into the season vastly underdone and couldn't run out games.
The error has been acknowledged and addressed and we are seeing it at training with increased demand in the running loads.I think Prior says in his most recent interview that players are achieving PB's which is what they're after along with every other club in the comp.
Having a power athlete like Fyfe up in the top endurance runner echelon might be bit auspicious though.

It's all well and good until we start getting smashed by soft tissue injuries in the back end of the season...

 

[DannyTheDoorman]

Training today was brutal as it was extremely hot and the team did a ton of running to finish the session. I may have missed some things as I arrived around 9.30am and I was sitting on the other side of the oval (compared to some of the other training reporters) near the team store. I also stayed to see a very, very tall rehab group train.

It seemed like training in the heat got to a few today. Langdon, Ballaz, Igbo and Walters all came off before the session was over. Walters I think had a slight ankle injury as he was limping after training.

Some points of note from the training I saw included:
Some brilliant play from S.Hii. He seems to be training more as an inside mid from what I can tell.
Johno looking fitter than ever. Running lap after lap.
Cox taking some terrific marks in match sim play. Kicking looked fine to me.
Darcy is definitely a bloody good ruck prospect. His second efforts are fantastic. Both him and Stmadica also ran a ton of laps and seem more mobile that advertised in draft write-ups.
Kersten did some repeat sprint work with Grey and Johno, Kersten was the clear standout of the three. I really like what he could potentially add to the forward line. He is definitely key position size when you see him up close. His legs are massive. Will very hard to push off the ball in a marking contest.
Logue did a couple of terrific intercept marks and his kicking is fantastic in my view.
It was my first look at Luke Ryan and to me he seems a decent way off the pace in terms of making an early debut. He was infrequently involved in the play in match sims.
Ethan Hughes kicked the ball wonderfully today. I would love to see him play midfield for Peel in 2017.
Crozier for mine is a certain starter for round 1 even if everyone is available. His kicking today hitting targets with difficult kicks was superb. I really hope he takes the game on like he did today in season 2017.

They are definitely making up for lost time (compared to last year) in terms of running loads. Today the main group finished the session with a heap of all ground runs. When I say a ton I mean heaps and heaps of running the length of the oval in very hot conditions. The two stand-outs were De Luca and Connor Blakely. The improvement in both, in terms of their running and kicking skills since last year is gigantic. Balic seems to be pushing himself massively too and is definitely improving at a rapid rate in terms of keeping up with the main group.

The rehab group consists of Hamling, A.Pearce, Dawson, Griffin, Bennell, Neale and Sandy, with Clarke and Ueber nowhere to be seen. I am fairly certain Hamling and Sandy are doing individual programs and are not injured as they ran a ton at what appeared to be full pace. Harley has made progress and is now running slow repeat 100's. In my view it will be touch and go to see if he will be ready for Round 1. Neale looked fantastic and ran as well as anyone. Griffin too doesn't seem far off full fitness and he did some full speed running too. Ditto Dawson. Alex Pearce is becoming a beast and his speed is definitely terrific in sprint work.

With the amount of running at the end of the session today was some of the brutal training I've seen the players put through. Fyfe was so exhausted after the session he put his head straight into an esky of ice water. Compared to last year the players appeared to be pushed and extended more than Ive seen them before. I had a quick chat with Cam McCarthy after training and he said the training they were doing was a ton more intense training than what he did at GWS.

At 9.30 Uber was walking laps bouncing the ball same as he was doing on Monday but he was in the rehab group then in the second session.

 

[scon]

It's all well and good until we start getting smashed by soft tissue injuries in the back end of the season...

Not sure what you're saying?
What is 'all well and good'?The fact that they are running??
Following a programme to get in shape for a gruelling AFL season??
Injuries are inevitable.A plague of soft tissue injuries is possible;seeing as we don't know the future.
Are you making a prediction?
Are you saying they're doing something wrong??
Last year we had a heap of calf injuries attributed to inadequate preseason running loads.
Do you have the option with the guarantee?
If you're simply saying that it's possible that we get a heap of injuries,well yeah that's possible.
If you're saying there's some reason to think that what they're doing will cause a heap of "soft tissue injuries at the back end of the season",well I can't see the evidence for that.

 

[meima]

Big Sandi back for Thursday session. From freo twitter

 

[DeanS]

Big Sandi back for Thursday session. From freo twitter

View attachment 326729

Those shoes of Sandi's deserve their own postcode. They are huge!

 

[Scatter]

Cross training in ballet by the looks of it

 

[masai]

Big Sandi back for Thursday session. From freo twitter

View attachment 326729

Good new training technique, practicing reversing ( holding your ground ) into packs.