Apples' Training Reports

[Hardas]

Thanks. I enjoy these training reports more than our actual games.

Know the feeling, VP.
It's a weird time.

 

[Finnishpie]

Training Report No.6: Thursday 20th April
Weather: Warm & Sunny 22°
Not Training: Brayden Sier (eye socket injury), Mitch McCarthy, Adam Oxley, Josh Smith
Limited training: Ben Sinclair
I said it last week, but it’s as healthy a list as I’ve seen in years.

The players began quite late this morning, with drills not getting underway until 10:40, but it was an intensive session of kicking inside 50 and fast hand-work in close.

After quite a few kicking and handball under pressure drills, the players broke into two groups; I’ll call them A & B. Group A moved to the centre and broke into two competing teams to win the ball and deliver to a leading forward.

Group B went to the Social Club wing and broke into orange team v white team. These boys took part in stoppage clearance work with the emphasis on getting the ball to an outlier who would then deliver long to a leading forward. After 15 minutes, the teams swapped over.

The Group B drill was interesting to watch. Anthony Rocca and Burns oversaw this. White team tried to win the ball from the stoppage and kick backwards to a waiting Treloar, who then kicked long to a target leading from CHF.

A few match ups in this stoppage work: Pendles v Wills/Ramsay v Faz/Mackie v Wells/ Green v Varcoe
When the ball in won in this contest, it is centred and then taken forward to the waiting Moore, Max Lynch and Grundy.

Wills is very hard at the ball in the packs. He’s a strong body and is not afraid to use it. De Goey came off second best as Wills out-chested him and then delivered nicely by hand to Sidey.

Now Wills again wins it in close and hand-passes to Fasolo, on to Elliott and then to Treloar. Now they switch ends but Moore, Lynch, Grundy and Cox are the forward targets.

Burning it up:
Daicos – in everything and very clean around the contested stoppages. He will play soon.
Brown – like Daics, very clean at ground level and doesn’t mind it tough close in.
De Goey- worked really hard and looks as good as I’ve seen him. Unfortunately, he’s two more weeks away.
Wells- Alex Fasolo will be praying Wells is selected this week; he was terrific today. At one stage, Wells won the ball on the outer wing and then paused before delivering lace out to Fasolo on a fast lead 50 metres away. Fasolo kicked truly.
Crocker- worked really well and was very clean by foot. I’d like to think he’s not far off a run.
Shade- watched him closely this morning. Seems very poised with ball in hand. Used it very well by hand and foot. Doesn’t rush or panic under pressure.

Now we finally get to full ground match simulation and all eyes are on the forward line. Will Bucks try Reid or Howe down there to assist Moore? Well, not if this drill is anything to go by.
Backs: Maynard, Reid, Howe, Goldy, McLarty & Shade
Forwards: Cox, Moore, Hoskin-Elliott, Fasolo, Broomhead, Elliott
Key match ups:
McLarty V Cox, Mackie v Hoskin-Elliott, Dunn v Moore, Howe v Fasolo

From what I saw this morning Bucks is not going to move either Howe or Reid forward. Cox is the only option if today’s drills mean anything. Wells simply must come in after today’s run. He’s as ready as he’ll ever be.

Yeah, looks like Cox is in.

 

[regpies]

I think you might be spot on. White was training slugger01 but let's put it this way, he didn't catch the eye. Neither did Cox for that matter, but Bucks put him next to Moore so that move looks to be on the cards. My heart did sink when I saw both Reid and Howe line up down back. Surely Bucks has to try one of these guys? Is Cox a smoke screen for Anzac Day? Both Howe and Reid judge the ball very well in the air. They make great position. Both can kick accurately. Oh yes, they can mark over head. Come on Bucks, your future depends on being bold.

Bucks future depends on our goal kicking accuracy. We would be 4-0 if we kicked just 3-4 shots straighter in each loss. We've had enough scoring shots, just haven't converted. We've applied no scoreboard pressure in any game, yet in each game there were periods where we could've, and should've, been 5 goals up.

Our backline is holding up quite well so I wouldn't want to change much there. Our points conceded I think is the 3rd best. Our biggest loss is 19pts, Hawks are getting pumped by 80+. We get the ball into the f50 quite a bit.

We should spend an entire session just goal kicking. I think the rest of our game is ok, it's not as early as bad as it's made out to be.

 

[TradeDraft]

Yeah, looks like Cox is in.

On a Very Wet. Is that a Good Idea

 

[PIEWITHSAUCE]

On a Very Wet. Is that a Good Idea

Sounds good to me. He'll be stiff if he misses out really.

 

[Darkyprotector]

G

Rupert just can't come back quickly enough to my way of thinking....

GREAT CALL
He,s a hardbody we need ,will release Tiny Sidney to be the lynch we need where those dinky kicks and smart football might be an asset
Wills is Tough tough tough
With a name like that it's a given
I'm a big wrap , he's had to fight his way through as a late growth spurter
Adams of half back ,it looks great very underestimated, would release Maynard to the guts too , suddenly our softer more skillfull A rated can finish better in space
Young blokes will walk taller, blend in adjust ,impress and debut ! changing it up again,
Heaps of upside if we DARE!
All this Will make forwards better and Wait to wells comes in ,I'd be licking my lips too if I was a forward
No wonder we're 1/4 our best team hasn't even seen the park ,come to think a of it ,Dunn and cox ,degoey and Sinclair so with possible 3 changes 4 maybe like 5 myself would allow us gooey in 2 weeks and aish ,brown and Kirby ,Shaz a chance going forward!
We need to not fall away and loose touch ,we're at 50% at present with no sync! We need a tune up!
Imagine the fear playing collingwood knowing wills ,Levi,Adams and Maynayd SMASHING key midfielders at the clearances grundy putting it so we CAN SMASH THE OPPOSITION RECIEVER much like we have copped!
PLENTY of time left

 

[Finnishpie]

On a Very Wet. Is that a Good Idea

Yeah, I guess the rain might change things.

 

[Scodog10]

Rupert just can't come back quickly enough to my way of thinking....

Your way of thinking is inaccurate then. What part of our midfield is screaming out for a one dimensional, slow, inside mid with iffy footskills?

If he were a dominant clearance and first possession player sure he'd be in consideration, but after being brained by a VFL player in Mellington on Saturday he's a long way off it!

A comparison with JDG gives a fair indication of where he's at!

 

[Dogs_Playing_Poker]

Got to feel for Dunn. Came to the Pies coz he was only playing VFL for Melbourne. By all reports performed well in the VFL for Melbourne. Now at the Pies can't get a look in. I was really hoping they would pick him this week and either throw Reid Forward or even give Dunn a crack up forward. Bucks has to swallow his pride be daring and try something different. Dunn is a good organiser and a beautiful long kick. He could help organise a non dangerous forward line. Drop Jesse White, Give Darcy Moore a role to help Grundy in the ruck (might get some touches and get his confidence up). These changes I would like to see happen.

Wells in for Blair.
Dunn in for Jesse White.

 

[sr36]

Your way of thinking is inaccurate then. What part of our midfield is screaming out for a one dimensional, slow, inside mid with iffy footskills?

If he were a dominant clearance and first possession player sure he'd be in consideration, but after being brained by a VFL player in Mellington on Saturday he's a long way off it!

A comparison with JDG gives a fair indication of where he's at!

Whoops.Thanks for liking the original where I forgot to post my response, Scodog. You'll probably not like this comment as much.

I'm going solely on senior AFL experience, and when I compare JDG's AFL performances with those of Wills at the end of last year, I have Wills well ahead in terms of midfield. At AFL, Wills tackled brilliantly and when he got the ball in traffic, he stood up in tackles and released handballs. On the other hand when JDG got the ball in congestion, his first instinct was to break tackles, regularly failing to do so and losing the footy or resulting in a blind hack forward. I'm bullish on Wills, because I think that he's bullish.

 

[frizzle]

Your way of thinking is inaccurate then. What part of our midfield is screaming out for a one dimensional, slow, inside mid with iffy footskills?

If he were a dominant clearance and first possession player sure he'd be in consideration, but after being brained by a VFL player in Mellington on Saturday he's a long way off it!

A comparison with JDG gives a fair indication of where he's at!

Agree. Mellington clearly had the better of him on Saturday. Just as hard at the contest & comfortably outran him both ways.

I enjoy Neil's training reports as much as anyone, but calling for AFL inclusion because you read one is ridiculous. It's just training.
Watch a replay of last weeks VFL game & his matchup with the blonde guy Mellington & then tell me he needs to be in the seniors.

 

[Darkyprotector]

Agree. Mellington clearly had the better of him on Saturday. Just as hard at the contest & comfortably outran him both ways.

I enjoy Neil's training reports as much as anyone, but calling for AFL inclusion because you read one is ridiculous. It's just training.
Watch a replay of last weeks VFL game & his matchup with the blonde guy Mellington & then tell me he needs to be in the seniors.

Some guys always play shit when playing against the same
We need his toughness around the pack and big body
You forgot the finish to his previous season 115 super coach 5 games
Certainly the hawks didn't appreciate his work in close
THATS why he needs to come in
release Adams to the back line ,Sidey forward, Maynard and him as key smashers
Even pendles back and forward
Remember it's a lot like rugby now
Our slight evasive players are outside not inside
AT,pendles are finishers link ups not warriors
Adams is too small to play the role he wants to play, this was showed when blicavs tagged pendles , bigger and was able to keep him from the contest.
It's a given we need size
Don't be mislead by 1 game of vfl rubbish
Meant zip to us

 

[regpies]

We seem to want to hit forwards on the lead a bit more this year but we are moving the ball so slow there isn't much room to lead.

If we bring in Cox to play deep we could move the ball a bit quicker and kick it in long to a target. At worst he brings it to ground, no one is going to mark over him. We have Elliott back so our crumbing ability will improve. Allows Moore to play up the ground.

 

[Baltimore Jack]

Rupert just can't come back quickly enough to my way of thinking....

I think he is a long way behind players like De Goey, Wells and the current midfield group

 

[Scodog10]

Agree. Mellington clearly had the better of him on Saturday. Just as hard at the contest & comfortably outran him both ways.

I enjoy Neil's training reports as much as anyone, but calling for AFL inclusion because you read one is ridiculous. It's just training.
Watch a replay of last weeks VFL game & his matchup with the blonde guy Mellington & then tell me he needs to be in the seniors.

Yeah it was clear to anyone that watched that game closely that he isn't adding to the line up any time soon. Especially if you look at his body of work at senior level. He literally adds a tackling presence to our line up and that's it.

Considering our biggest downfalls currently are our ball movement and overemphasis on pressure it would be a huge error to bring Wills in unless it's replacing an injured Adams or Greenwood through the middle.

 

[frizzle]

Yeah it was clear to anyone that watched that game closely that he isn't adding to the line up any time soon. Especially if you look at his body of work at senior level. He literally adds a tackling presence to our line up and that's it.

Considering our biggest downfalls currently are our ball movement and overemphasis on pressure it would be a huge error to bring Wills in unless it's replacing an injured Adams or Greenwood through the middle.

Yep. Replacing one of these when inured is fine & I admit he is a decent grunt player. but his lack of any speed is an issue.
As it stands Adams & Greenwood offer more.

 

[frizzle]

Some guys always play shit when playing against the same
We need his toughness around the pack and big body
You forgot the finish to his previous season 115 super coach 5 games
Certainly the hawks didn't appreciate his work in close
THATS why he needs to come in
release Adams to the back line ,Sidey forward, Maynard and him as key smashers
Even pendles back and forward
Remember it's a lot like rugby now
Our slight evasive players are outside not inside
AT,pendles are finishers link ups not warriors
Adams is too small to play the role he wants to play, this was showed when blicavs tagged pendles , bigger and was able to keep him from the contest.
It's a given we need size
Don't be mislead by 1 game of vfl rubbish
Meant zip to us

I think our grunt work is fine. We need to add some speed & run to go with it. Wills adds to the grunt but that's it in my opinion.
He will get his chances again no doubt. I just don't see him making much difference.

 

[frizzle]

We seem to want to hit forwards on the lead a bit more this year but we are moving the ball so slow there isn't much room to lead.

If we bring in Cox to play deep we could move the ball a bit quicker and kick it in long to a target. At worst he brings it to ground, no one is going to mark over him. We have Elliott back so our crumbing ability will improve. Allows Moore to play up the ground.

I agree with you, the problem is there is nobody to crumb when all our forwards have been told to push up the ground.

 

[Apples]

They did spend quite a bit of time kicking for goal yesterday, which I should have mentioned. It appeared that players were in teams and were competing against each other. The coaches took part as well. I was very impressed with one kick that sailed through the middle post high from about 60 metres out. What skill! Thanks Bucks! The players really enjoyed this session. They were moved through the pockets for the shots as well, so not just from in front.

I was interested that Bucks spent some time with Brayden Maynard goal-side of the centre square. Maynard took possession inside the square and let rip towards goal. I hope we get to see this translate to him playing through the corridor in games.

 

[Kilmo]

Bucks future depends on our goal kicking accuracy. We would be 4-0 if we kicked just 3-4 shots straighter in each loss. We've had enough scoring shots, just haven't converted. We've applied no scoreboard pressure in any game, yet in each game there were periods where we could've, and should've, been 5 goals up.

Our backline is holding up quite well so I wouldn't want to change much there. Our points conceded I think is the 3rd best. Our biggest loss is 19pts, Hawks are getting pumped by 80+. We get the ball into the f50 quite a bit.

We should spend an entire session just goal kicking. I think the rest of our game is ok, it's not as early as bad as it's made out to be.

You're not wrong, I remember thinking at quarter time in both the tigers and the saints game that both teams were a rabble and it was only a matter of time before we were, as you say, about 5 goals up. Just never happened. Both games we stagnated for two quarters then allowed them to get on top and lose the game by a couple of kicks. Dogs game not too dissimilar, but I thought both the Dogs and Collingwood played at a better standard in that game than the other two.

Imagine if we were 4-0 or 3-1... God damn...

 

[Darkyprotector]

I think our grunt work is fine. We need to add some speed & run to go with it. Wills adds to the grunt but that's it in my opinion.
He will get his chances again no doubt. I just don't see him making much difference.

I don't think our grunt work is fine
We have the players , just need to refine roles and use our players in better roles
Bigger blokes falling on you hurt more than a stick , bigger body's can block better

 

[frizzle]

I don't think our grunt work is fine
We have the players , just need to refine roles and use our players in better roles
Bigger blokes falling on you hurt more than a stick , bigger body's can block better

Sure they can, but the ball spends more time on the ground & we wont be able to hold it there.

 

[Rohan25]

Some guys always play shit when playing against the same
We need his toughness around the pack and big body
You forgot the finish to his previous season 115 super coach 5 games
Certainly the hawks didn't appreciate his work in close
THATS why he needs to come in

No he went around 80SC in his 5 games last year. Also, his game against the Hawks was clearly his worst, not sure why you called that one out as an example of his work "in close". He had 2 tackles, 2 Contested Possessions and 0 clearances that day. His numbers in the first 4 games were pretty good though. He will get another opportunity in due course, but he's a fair way off it right now I'd say.

 

[TW Sherrin]

Yeah, looks like Cox is in.

boom tish.

 

[Finnishpie]

boom tish.

Then again, Cox'll probably be out again before you know it.