Training 2026 Preseason Thread

[Crusty Demon]

I guess if you are going to have a hellish offseason this is the one to do it in.

Pretty much. Was looking at a bottom 4 spot anyway. Might give us a look at a few blokes or position changes

 

[Lampers]

Bowser injury a massive blow. Was so good last season. A fair bit taller but Taylor will get his shot. As will AMW. Lindsay a good shout in the back half with his skill too.

What is odd is Bowey was doing a lot of running when I went to training last week.

If it was at the camp (which was prior to that training session) where he originally hurt the foot it seems a bit reckless to be running on it.

 

[TheBoss]

I will never tire of Danster's disgust for Lever. Almost seems personal at this point.

 

[danster168]

Why are you running 16.5 beep tests dan?

I've done multiple shuttle runs/beeps for different sports. I'm coming 2nd behind Sharp as of right now. I found it personally hilarious that people think that afl players like Trac were elite 2km runners. Like, it just tells me that whoever thinks that haven't done any elite sport in their life. There's a reason why draftees often win their teams time trial as 18 year olds with 0 pre-seasons.

 

[PerfectFooty]

On the actual preseason side of this preseason thread. Preseason games have been announced
We have a match Sim against North to be arranged
Then the Tigers in the community series at Ballarat

I feel like we've seen a lot of both of these teams in preseason

Full schedule: Every club's pre-season opponents revealed

The AFL has released the fixture for the 2026 AAMI Community Series pre-season games

www.afl.com.au

 

[The Dr]

I will never tire of Danster's disgust for Lever. Almost seems personal at this point.

It’s on par with that bloke who hates Spargo and only really posts about him.

 

[MarcMaverick]

Fans are wierd, some hate some players to a visceral degree, some live vicariosly through players almost to a parasocial extent.

 

[Lampers]

I've done multiple shuttle runs/beeps for different sports. I'm coming 2nd behind Sharp as of right now. I found it personally hilarious that people think that afl players like Trac were elite 2km runners. Like, it just tells me that whoever thinks that haven't done any elite sport in their life. There's a reason why draftees often win their teams time trial as 18 year olds with 0 pre-seasons.

Isn’t the reason 18 year olds often perform well in time trials because they are 10-15kg lighter than the weight they will need to be to play AFL footy? Once they build their body up they won’t be able to do those times.

I’ve run at 85kg and at 105kg. At 85kg running was a breeze but I got bullied on the basketball court in the key. At 105kg running is a horrific ordeal but I’m the one doing the bullying on the basketball court.

 

[MarcMaverick]

Isn’t the reason 18 year olds often perform well in time trials because they are 10-15kg lighter than the weight they will need to be to play AFL footy? Once they build their body up they won’t be able to do those times.

I’ve run at 85kg and at 105kg. At 85kg running was a breeze but I got bullied on the basketball court in the key. At 105kg running is a horrific ordeal but I’m the one doing the bullying on the basketball court.

What about at 95kgs?

 

[danster168]

Isn’t the reason 18 year olds often perform well in time trials because they are 10-15kg lighter than the weight they will need to be to play AFL footy? Once they build their body up they won’t be able to do those times.

I’ve run at 85kg and at 105kg. At 85kg running was a breeze but I got bullied on the basketball court in the key. At 105kg running is a horrific ordeal but I’m the one doing the bullying on the basketball court.

That's definitely part of it. Although I don't think the players change that much in weight as a general rule. Someone like Harvey Langford for instance, will probably lose 1-2kg of puppy fat and gain 5kg of muscle. But I think ultimately whenever I look at the 2km time trial times, it's always pretty underwhelming. To finish in the top 10 at the combine, you've got to run 6:15-6:30. They're not elite times.

Hell, a 17 year old German girl ran 6:07 in the 2000m steeplechase and she's gotta jump over 25 steeples. lol. So yes, the footy players are still primarily footy players first. There's a lot of poor aerobic athletes but with the interchanges it's become more about explosive effort and then getting a break.