Bigman’s Training Reports (Update: 11th March)

[crows dude]

Who rucked for the Bs?

Looked like McAndrew

 

[Pea Nut]

Who rucked for the Bs?

Mr Nobbly Knees !!!

 

[Betts are off]

Is it just me or does it feel like this has been a fairly intense pre season so far.

Cant remember Bigman reporting on too may easy sessions thus far

 

[Kane McGoodwin]

Hmmm, sounds like ROB is a little worried & given he has been giving away frees in practice, it a concern...

Crows star demands ruck rule "clarification" amid player-umpire confusion

"I still don't know what the frees are for."

www.zerohanger.com

 

[Cromulant]

Hmmm, sounds like ROB is a little worried & given he has been giving away frees in practice, it a concern...

Crows star demands ruck rule "clarification" amid player-umpire confusion

"I still don't know what the frees are for."

www.zerohanger.com

I reckon the coaches would be concerned hearing that he has no idea what theyre for.

 

[Kane McGoodwin]

I reckon the coaches would be concerned hearing that he has no idea what theyre for.

It appears pretty clear - you can't cross the line to engage the opposition ruckman to prevent them jumping at the ball.

Perhaps ROB should buy himself a trampoline & practice jumping.

 

[cleanhands]

Hmmm, sounds like ROB is a little worried & given he has been giving away frees in practice, it a concern...

Crows star demands ruck rule "clarification" amid player-umpire confusion

"I still don't know what the frees are for."

www.zerohanger.com

Run and jump Riley

 

[CrowinNT]

Is it just me or does it feel like this has been a fairly intense pre season so far.

Cant remember Bigman reporting on too may easy sessions thus far

I have wondered if I’ve stagnated in a Nicks thread Oh well we get bored in off season

 

[Betts are off]

Hmmm, sounds like ROB is a little worried & given he has been giving away frees in practice, it a concern...

Crows star demands ruck rule "clarification" amid player-umpire confusion

"I still don't know what the frees are for."

www.zerohanger.com

I remember the season I thought ROB would win the starting ruck off Sauce. Just had feeling that offseason that the Delta in experience no longer outweighed the younger players upside.

From memory Jacobs injured himself and that was all she wrote. But I have that feeling again.

 

[Cromulant]

I remember the season I thought ROB would win the starting ruck off Sauce. Just had feeling that offseason that the Delta in experience no longer outweighed the younger players upside.

From memory Jacobs injured himself and that was all she wrote. But I have that feeling again.

A full pre season for McAndrew is a big deal.

Yes he's been on a list before but that combined with a change in the rules might force a shift in our thinking.

Add in a few fresh faces in midfield and its reason to be excited

 

[bigman]

I’ll keep today’s report pretty short as there wasn’t a heap to write about. Monday‘s are always the least interesting sessions, plus given the ridiculous heat it just wasn’t a particularly enthralling watch.

Unfortunately, Nankervis appears to be injured. He walked out in a club singlet to watch from the sidelines, but he looked quite stiff doing so. I didn’t see him get hurt last session so I’m not sure what happened. Hopefully it’s just soreness but he didn’t look particularly great. A real shame if he’s injured as he’d been killing it up to this point. Typical, huh? Let’s wait and see I guess. (Edit: Back issue apparently. Let’s hope it doesn’t become ongoing).

Soligo trained with the rehab guys at times and sported the yellow fluro hat, but thankfully it doesn’t seem too concerning. He did a power of running and looked fine. No strapping or anything. Hopefully just a minor niggle.

Rankine and Thilthorpe both trained fully after having injury scares last week. Izak did have bandaging around his knee which I didn’t like seeing, but he moved well out there at least. Max also still has knee strapping.

Rachele and Maley both did most of the session but headed in early. Rachele’s seemed to be some sort of knock. Maley I have no idea, maybe the heat got to him?

Keays is still doing a bit of rehab work, but he’s sprinting now so it’s only a matter of time before he’s back in full training.

Draper did pretty much what he’s been doing since the Xmas break - lots of running and some very light skills work. Patience is a virtue but hopefully we see some more progress over the next week or two.

It sounds like I’m listing a casualty ward but I should stress that only Curtin and Draper are write-offs for the early rounds at present. Maybe Nank depending on how bad it is.

Players broke into their respective lines (defs, mids and fwds) for the first part of the session. The drills were:

Defenders - ground ball contest in deep defence before hitting the outlet at half back. Also aerial work vs the coach with a bag.

Midfielders - boundary throw ins and ball ups.

Forwards - hitting up leads plus set shot practice.

They then broke into five groups, rotating between three different concurrent drills. I’ve mentioned these before but I’ll quickly sum up:

1. Handball game - played across the ground inside 50. Two makeshift sets of goals at each end. Players have to use hands and drive their legs to move the ball, and can only score via handballing through the goals. No grounded balls allowed or it’s an immediate turnover.

2. Kicking game - played in the other two thirds of the ground. Players have to use the ball by foot to move the pill from one end to the other. Any grounded balls are an immediate turnover.

3. Tackling - ground ball and pressure work on the boundary.

We then got about 15 minutes or so of match sim, albeit without stoppages. Teams were listed as follows, although Rachele pulled out and was replaced with Peatling.

Blue
FB: Bond Keane Worrell
HB: Cook Butts Milera
_C: N-Bullen Dawson Cumming
HF: Ah Chee Fogarty Taylor
FF: Rachele Thilthorpe Walker
_R: McAndrew Berry Rankine
IN: Pedlar Laird

White
FB: Michalanney Borlase Bell
HB: Ryan Murray Hinge
_C: Jones Edwards Sholl
HF: Cotton Welsh Marsh
FF: Murray Maley Ludowyke
_R: O’Brien Dowling Peatling
IN: Foot McGuane Drury Strachan

Couple of interesting selections there. How much to look into it? Not sure. Obviously McAndrew over ROB is the main one. Then there’s Taylor in the A team, Hinge in the B team. Butts over Murray as well.

The lads were spared a long running portion. Instead they did a few run throughs before working on their craft. No wrestling today.

Overall it was a bit of a sloppy session, I won’t lie. The boys found it hard to generate much energy. Obviously the heat played a big role but I wonder if they’re still flat about Curtin? He is a real energy giver out there too.

Some player thoughts:

3. Berry - he was really good in the handball drill. He is genuinely quick when he finds an opening to use his pace. It was frustrating watching him late last year, as I believe he is a better player than that. Turns 24 soon and OOC so it’s a massive year for him, but with Curtin out I think he will get early opportunities.

4. Ah Chee - doesn’t make mistakes! Even when he takes risks through the corridor. Also picked up a half volley at half forward, clean as a whistle, before spinning around and hitting up Cumming 50m away for a goal. What a get for nothing.

10. Pedlar - looks set to be our pressure forward. Laying big tackles and smothers, just training with real intent. He stays fit, he plays.

17. Welsh - credit to him, he was good today. He’s getting far more ball than he did last pre-season, and it’s no real surprise when you look at his improved body shape. The good thing is his ball handling and use was much better today.

31. Dowling - despite the heat, trained with a real sense of urgency. You can tell he wants it - I just don’t know if the coaches want him. Personally prefer him to Jones and Sholl on the wing. He gets more ball than Chayce and he’s a bit stronger and more dynamic than Lachie. He won’t be a star but we have a wing shortage and he’s one that can play the role.

34. Ludowyke - had a mare last Wednesday but was much better today, especially in the air. There’s something to like here - he’s tall, athletic, clean at ground level, competes aerially and has a pressure game. His hands will be the deciding factor in whether he makes it as a forward - if he doesn’t, I’m confident there’s a key defender still there though.

47. Foot - kicked a nice goal on the run from 45m. Minutes later hit a risky pass to Ryan in the corridor which helped set up another goal opportunity. I like elements of his game, I just wish he was a more natural footballer.

As I said, not much to say so feel free to ask questions.

 

[Peter Doherty]

I’ll keep today’s report pretty short as there wasn’t a heap to write about. Monday‘s are always the least interesting sessions, plus given the ridiculous heat it just wasn’t a particularly enthralling watch.

Unfortunately, Nankervis appears to be injured. He walked out in a club singlet to watch from the sidelines, but he looked quite stiff doing so. I didn’t see him get hurt last session so I’m not sure what happened. Hopefully it’s just soreness but he didn’t look particularly great. A real shame if he’s injured as he’d been killing it up to this point. Typical, huh? Let’s wait and see I guess. (Edit: Back issue apparently. Let’s hope it doesn’t become ongoing).

Soligo trained with the rehab guys at times and sported the yellow fluro hat, but thankfully it doesn’t seem too concerning. He did a power of running and looked fine. No strapping or anything. Hopefully just a minor niggle.

Rankine and Thilthorpe both trained fully after having injury scares last week. Izak did have bandaging around his knee which I didn’t like seeing, but he moved well out there at least. Max also still has knee strapping.

Rachele and Maley both did most of the session but headed in early. Rachele’s seemed to be some sort of knock. Maley I have no idea, maybe the heat got to him?

Keays is still doing a bit of rehab work, but he’s sprinting now so it’s only a matter of time before he’s back in full training.

Draper did pretty much what he’s been doing since the Xmas break - lots of running and some very light skills work. Patience is a virtue but hopefully we see some more progress over the next week or two.

It sounds like I’m listing a casualty ward but I should stress that only Curtin and Draper are write-offs for the early rounds at present. Maybe Nank depending on how bad it is.

Players broke into their respective lines (defs, mids and fwds) for the first part of the session. The drills were:

Defenders - ground ball contest in deep defence before hitting the outlet at half back. Also aerial work vs the coach with a bag.

Midfielders - boundary throw ins and ball ups.

Forwards - hitting up leads plus set shot practice.

They then broke into five groups, rotating between three different concurrent drills. I’ve mentioned these before but I’ll quickly sum up:

1. Handball game - played across the ground inside 50. Two makeshift sets of goals at each end. Players have to use hands and drive their legs to move the ball, and can only score via handballing through the goals. No grounded balls allowed or it’s an immediate turnover.

2. Kicking game - played in the other two thirds of the ground. Players have to use the ball by foot to move the pill from one end to the other. Any grounded balls are an immediate turnover.

3. Tackling - ground ball and pressure work on the boundary.

We then got about 15 minutes or so of match sim, albeit without stoppages. Teams were listed as follows, although Rachele pulled out and was replaced with Peatling.

Blue
FB: Bond Keane Worrell
HB: Cook Butts Milera
_C: N-Bullen Dawson Cumming
HF: Ah Chee Fogarty Taylor
FF: Rachele Thilthorpe Walker
_R: McAndrew Berry Rankine
IN: Pedlar Laird

White
FB: Michalanney Borlase Bell
HB: Ryan Murray Hinge
_C: Jones Edwards Sholl
HF: Cotton Welsh Marsh
FF: Murray Maley Ludowyke
_R: O’Brien Dowling Peatling
IN: Foot McGuane Drury Strachan

Couple of interesting selections there. How much to look into it? Not sure. Obviously McAndrew over ROB is the main one. Then there’s Taylor in the A team, Hinge in the B team. Butts over Murray as well.

The lads were spared a long running portion. Instead they did a few run throughs before working on their craft. No wrestling today.

Overall it was a bit of a sloppy session, I won’t lie. The boys found it hard to generate much energy. Obviously the heat played a big role but I wonder if they’re still flat about Curtin? He is a real energy giver out there too.

Some player thoughts:

3. Berry - he was really good in the handball drill. He is genuinely quick when he finds an opening to use his pace. It was frustrating watching him late last year, as I believe he is a better player than that. Turns 24 soon and OOC so it’s a massive year for him, but with Curtin out I think he will get early opportunities.

4. Ah Chee - doesn’t make mistakes! Even when he takes risks through the corridor. Also picked up a half volley at half forward, clean as a whistle, before spinning around and hitting up Cumming 50m away for a goal. What a get for nothing.

10. Pedlar - looks set to be our pressure forward. Laying big tackles and smothers, just training with real intent. He stays fit, he plays.

17. Welsh - credit to him, he was good today. He’s getting far more ball than he did last pre-season, and it’s no real surprise when you look at his improved body shape. The good thing is his ball handling and use was much better today.

31. Dowling - despite the heat, trained with a real sense of urgency. You can tell he wants it - I just don’t know if the coaches want him. Personally prefer him to Jones and Sholl on the wing. He gets more ball than Chayce and he’s a bit stronger and more dynamic than Lachie. He won’t be a star but we have a wing shortage and he’s one that can play the role.

34. Ludowyke - had a mare last Wednesday but was much better today, especially in the air. There’s something to like here - he’s tall, athletic, clean at ground level, competes aerially and has a pressure game. His hands will be the deciding factor in whether he makes it as a forward - if he doesn’t, I’m confident there’s a key defender still there though.

47. Foot - kicked a nice goal on the run from 45m. Minutes later hit a risky pass to Ryan in the corridor which helped set up another goal opportunity. I like elements of his game, I just wish he was a more natural footballer.

As I said, not much to say so feel free to ask questions.

Excuse me, do you mind not cluttering up this thread with this massive thing?

 

[WaynesWorld19]

It appears pretty clear - you can't cross the line to engage the opposition ruckman to prevent them jumping at the ball.

Perhaps ROB should buy himself a trampoline & practice jumping.

I think the other consideration is, when leaping, can you still strong-arm your opponent ?

 

[1990crow]

I’ll keep today’s report pretty short as there wasn’t a heap to write about. Monday‘s are always the least interesting sessions, plus given the ridiculous heat it just wasn’t a particularly enthralling watch.

Unfortunately, Nankervis appears to be injured. He walked out in a club singlet to watch from the sidelines, but he looked quite stiff doing so. I didn’t see him get hurt last session so I’m not sure what happened. Hopefully it’s just soreness but he didn’t look particularly great. A real shame if he’s injured as he’d been killing it up to this point. Typical, huh? Let’s wait and see I guess. (Edit: Back issue apparently. Let’s hope it doesn’t become ongoing).

Soligo trained with the rehab guys at times and sported the yellow fluro hat, but thankfully it doesn’t seem too concerning. He did a power of running and looked fine. No strapping or anything. Hopefully just a minor niggle.

Rankine and Thilthorpe both trained fully after having injury scares last week. Izak did have bandaging around his knee which I didn’t like seeing, but he moved well out there at least. Max also still has knee strapping.

Rachele and Maley both did most of the session but headed in early. Rachele’s seemed to be some sort of knock. Maley I have no idea, maybe the heat got to him?

Keays is still doing a bit of rehab work, but he’s sprinting now so it’s only a matter of time before he’s back in full training.

Draper did pretty much what he’s been doing since the Xmas break - lots of running and some very light skills work. Patience is a virtue but hopefully we see some more progress over the next week or two.

It sounds like I’m listing a casualty ward but I should stress that only Curtin and Draper are write-offs for the early rounds at present. Maybe Nank depending on how bad it is.

Players broke into their respective lines (defs, mids and fwds) for the first part of the session. The drills were:

Defenders - ground ball contest in deep defence before hitting the outlet at half back. Also aerial work vs the coach with a bag.

Midfielders - boundary throw ins and ball ups.

Forwards - hitting up leads plus set shot practice.

They then broke into five groups, rotating between three different concurrent drills. I’ve mentioned these before but I’ll quickly sum up:

1. Handball game - played across the ground inside 50. Two makeshift sets of goals at each end. Players have to use hands and drive their legs to move the ball, and can only score via handballing through the goals. No grounded balls allowed or it’s an immediate turnover.

2. Kicking game - played in the other two thirds of the ground. Players have to use the ball by foot to move the pill from one end to the other. Any grounded balls are an immediate turnover.

3. Tackling - ground ball and pressure work on the boundary.

We then got about 15 minutes or so of match sim, albeit without stoppages. Teams were listed as follows, although Rachele pulled out and was replaced with Peatling.

Blue
FB: Bond Keane Worrell
HB: Cook Butts Milera
_C: N-Bullen Dawson Cumming
HF: Ah Chee Fogarty Taylor
FF: Rachele Thilthorpe Walker
_R: McAndrew Berry Rankine
IN: Pedlar Laird

White
FB: Michalanney Borlase Bell
HB: Ryan Murray Hinge
_C: Jones Edwards Sholl
HF: Cotton Welsh Marsh
FF: Murray Maley Ludowyke
_R: O’Brien Dowling Peatling
IN: Foot McGuane Drury Strachan

Couple of interesting selections there. How much to look into it? Not sure. Obviously McAndrew over ROB is the main one. Then there’s Taylor in the A team, Hinge in the B team. Butts over Murray as well.

The lads were spared a long running portion. Instead they did a few run throughs before working on their craft. No wrestling today.

Overall it was a bit of a sloppy session, I won’t lie. The boys found it hard to generate much energy. Obviously the heat played a big role but I wonder if they’re still flat about Curtin? He is a real energy giver out there too.

Some player thoughts:

3. Berry - he was really good in the handball drill. He is genuinely quick when he finds an opening to use his pace. It was frustrating watching him late last year, as I believe he is a better player than that. Turns 24 soon and OOC so it’s a massive year for him, but with Curtin out I think he will get early opportunities.

4. Ah Chee - doesn’t make mistakes! Even when he takes risks through the corridor. Also picked up a half volley at half forward, clean as a whistle, before spinning around and hitting up Cumming 50m away for a goal. What a get for nothing.

10. Pedlar - looks set to be our pressure forward. Laying big tackles and smothers, just training with real intent. He stays fit, he plays.

17. Welsh - credit to him, he was good today. He’s getting far more ball than he did last pre-season, and it’s no real surprise when you look at his improved body shape. The good thing is his ball handling and use was much better today.

31. Dowling - despite the heat, trained with a real sense of urgency. You can tell he wants it - I just don’t know if the coaches want him. Personally prefer him to Jones and Sholl on the wing. He gets more ball than Chayce and he’s a bit stronger and more dynamic than Lachie. He won’t be a star but we have a wing shortage and he’s one that can play the role.

34. Ludowyke - had a mare last Wednesday but was much better today, especially in the air. There’s something to like here - he’s tall, athletic, clean at ground level, competes aerially and has a pressure game. His hands will be the deciding factor in whether he makes it as a forward - if he doesn’t, I’m confident there’s a key defender still there though.

47. Foot - kicked a nice goal on the run from 45m. Minutes later hit a risky pass to Ryan in the corridor which helped set up another goal opportunity. I like elements of his game, I just wish he was a more natural footballer.

As I said, not much to say so feel free to ask questions.

Nice to see Welsh show something. He showed so much as an under-age U18 then basically been a non event since then.

 

[Carn The Texan]

10. Pedlar - looks set to be our pressure forward. Laying big tackles and smothers, just training with real intent. He stays fit, he plays.

17. Welsh - credit to him, he was good today. He’s getting far more ball than he did last pre-season, and it’s no real surprise when you look at his improved body shape. The good thing is his ball handling and use was much better today.

thanks bigman. these two piqued my interest most.

is the suggestion that Pedlar will move into that Keays role a bit more? i havent been reading so much of our training reports this pre season but has Keays had any indication of a change in role?

hopefully welsh shows some improvement.

also agree with your comments re Dowling, thought what he showed us at AFL level over the last year and a half was good and he deserves a chance to show what he's got at the level again this year, wing would be a good spot for him to start.

 

[WaynesWorld19]

17. Welsh - credit to him, he was good today. He’s getting far more ball than he did last pre-season, and it’s no real surprise when you look at his improved body shape. The good thing is his ball handling and use was much better today.

This is why writing off players after one PS is fraught with danger

Doesn't mean Welsh will make it ....but he's not the automatic delist most have been believing

 

[bigman]

thanks bigman. these two piqued my interest most.

is the suggestion that Pedlar will move into that Keays role a bit more? i havent been reading so much of our training reports this pre season but has Keays had any indication of a change in role?

hopefully welsh shows some improvement.

also agree with your comments re Dowling, thought what he showed us at AFL level over the last year and a half was good and he deserves a chance to show what he's got at the level again this year, wing would be a good spot for him to start.

Keays has been injured with that hamstring, but even before that Pedlar was still in the A team. Don’t think the two are fighting for the same spot.

Think Peds will play pretty deep, deeper than Keays.

 

[WaynesWorld19]

bigman ....are we any clearer on whether we'll take any of the train-on players ? ....or will we wait for the MSD

 

[bigman]

This is why writing off players after one PS is fraught with danger

Doesn't mean Welsh will make it ....but he's not the automatic delist most have been believing

Still think he’s up against it Wayne.

But he deserves credit today. His work rate has improved substantially.

 

[bigman]

bigman ....are we any clearer on whether we'll take any of the train-on players ? ....or will we wait for the MSD

No idea as to what the club will do.

Foot is definitely showing more though, as you would expect given his age. He’s also ready for the big league physically, whereas McGuane is a long way off.

Foot has impressed me more despite my doubts. McGuane just hasn’t really looked like it.

 

[Scorpus]

Concerning that Berry is still being prioritised over Peatling in the As

 

[jimvic]

I’ll keep today’s report pretty short as there wasn’t a heap to write about. Monday‘s are always the least interesting sessions, plus given the ridiculous heat it just wasn’t a particularly enthralling watch.

Unfortunately, Nankervis appears to be injured. He walked out in a club singlet to watch from the sidelines, but he looked quite stiff doing so. I didn’t see him get hurt last session so I’m not sure what happened. Hopefully it’s just soreness but he didn’t look particularly great. A real shame if he’s injured as he’d been killing it up to this point. Typical, huh? Let’s wait and see I guess. (Edit: Back issue apparently. Let’s hope it doesn’t become ongoing).

Soligo trained with the rehab guys at times and sported the yellow fluro hat, but thankfully it doesn’t seem too concerning. He did a power of running and looked fine. No strapping or anything. Hopefully just a minor niggle.

Rankine and Thilthorpe both trained fully after having injury scares last week. Izak did have bandaging around his knee which I didn’t like seeing, but he moved well out there at least. Max also still has knee strapping.

Rachele and Maley both did most of the session but headed in early. Rachele’s seemed to be some sort of knock. Maley I have no idea, maybe the heat got to him?

Keays is still doing a bit of rehab work, but he’s sprinting now so it’s only a matter of time before he’s back in full training.

Draper did pretty much what he’s been doing since the Xmas break - lots of running and some very light skills work. Patience is a virtue but hopefully we see some more progress over the next week or two.

It sounds like I’m listing a casualty ward but I should stress that only Curtin and Draper are write-offs for the early rounds at present. Maybe Nank depending on how bad it is.

Players broke into their respective lines (defs, mids and fwds) for the first part of the session. The drills were:

Defenders - ground ball contest in deep defence before hitting the outlet at half back. Also aerial work vs the coach with a bag.

Midfielders - boundary throw ins and ball ups.

Forwards - hitting up leads plus set shot practice.

They then broke into five groups, rotating between three different concurrent drills. I’ve mentioned these before but I’ll quickly sum up:

1. Handball game - played across the ground inside 50. Two makeshift sets of goals at each end. Players have to use hands and drive their legs to move the ball, and can only score via handballing through the goals. No grounded balls allowed or it’s an immediate turnover.

2. Kicking game - played in the other two thirds of the ground. Players have to use the ball by foot to move the pill from one end to the other. Any grounded balls are an immediate turnover.

3. Tackling - ground ball and pressure work on the boundary.

We then got about 15 minutes or so of match sim, albeit without stoppages. Teams were listed as follows, although Rachele pulled out and was replaced with Peatling.

Blue
FB: Bond Keane Worrell
HB: Cook Butts Milera
_C: N-Bullen Dawson Cumming
HF: Ah Chee Fogarty Taylor
FF: Rachele Thilthorpe Walker
_R: McAndrew Berry Rankine
IN: Pedlar Laird

White
FB: Michalanney Borlase Bell
HB: Ryan Murray Hinge
_C: Jones Edwards Sholl
HF: Cotton Welsh Marsh
FF: Murray Maley Ludowyke
_R: O’Brien Dowling Peatling
IN: Foot McGuane Drury Strachan

Couple of interesting selections there. How much to look into it? Not sure. Obviously McAndrew over ROB is the main one. Then there’s Taylor in the A team, Hinge in the B team. Butts over Murray as well.

The lads were spared a long running portion. Instead they did a few run throughs before working on their craft. No wrestling today.

Overall it was a bit of a sloppy session, I won’t lie. The boys found it hard to generate much energy. Obviously the heat played a big role but I wonder if they’re still flat about Curtin? He is a real energy giver out there too.

Some player thoughts:

3. Berry - he was really good in the handball drill. He is genuinely quick when he finds an opening to use his pace. It was frustrating watching him late last year, as I believe he is a better player than that. Turns 24 soon and OOC so it’s a massive year for him, but with Curtin out I think he will get early opportunities.

4. Ah Chee - doesn’t make mistakes! Even when he takes risks through the corridor. Also picked up a half volley at half forward, clean as a whistle, before spinning around and hitting up Cumming 50m away for a goal. What a get for nothing.

10. Pedlar - looks set to be our pressure forward. Laying big tackles and smothers, just training with real intent. He stays fit, he plays.

17. Welsh - credit to him, he was good today. He’s getting far more ball than he did last pre-season, and it’s no real surprise when you look at his improved body shape. The good thing is his ball handling and use was much better today.

31. Dowling - despite the heat, trained with a real sense of urgency. You can tell he wants it - I just don’t know if the coaches want him. Personally prefer him to Jones and Sholl on the wing. He gets more ball than Chayce and he’s a bit stronger and more dynamic than Lachie. He won’t be a star but we have a wing shortage and he’s one that can play the role.

34. Ludowyke - had a mare last Wednesday but was much better today, especially in the air. There’s something to like here - he’s tall, athletic, clean at ground level, competes aerially and has a pressure game. His hands will be the deciding factor in whether he makes it as a forward - if he doesn’t, I’m confident there’s a key defender still there though.

47. Foot - kicked a nice goal on the run from 45m. Minutes later hit a risky pass to Ryan in the corridor which helped set up another goal opportunity. I like elements of his game, I just wish he was a more natural footballer.

As I said, not much to say so feel free to ask questions.

Thanks BM - reports so much appreciated. Is there anything to see with Bond in the A's and Max in the B's?

 

[1990crow]

Concerning that Berry is still being prioritised over Peatling in the As

Maybe our coaches went on leave in last years finals and weren't watching. Would explain a lot.

 

[Cromulant]

Concerning that Berry is still being prioritised over Peatling in the As

Max was in the Bs today too apparently.

TBH i think we should do it a bit more. Have Max play on our best forwards at times rather than with them etc.

 

[BRL121]

thanks bigman. these two piqued my interest most.

is the suggestion that Pedlar will move into that Keays role a bit more? i havent been reading so much of our training reports this pre season but has Keays had any indication of a change in role?

hopefully welsh shows some improvement.

also agree with your comments re Dowling, thought what he showed us at AFL level over the last year and a half was good and he deserves a chance to show what he's got at the level again this year, wing would be a good spot for him to start.

He will need to develop some defence.