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

[Greenfinger]

Just read on Adelaide Now that we were one of the last clubs to resume full training! Similar to teams that finished in finals. Why the hell would we do that!?

 

[Betts are off]

For me the midfield pace is the area of the ground we stand to have the most gains in 2025.

Rankine was essentially the only point of difference mid last year, and he played 75% forward.

This year with Ranks and Peatling both providing midfield speed, and Draper hopefully joining the mix early, I suspect we might finally have a rotation with that point of difference speed factor at all times.

You can have a Crouch, Berry or Laird in the mix, but they days of all bulls no speed need to be over IMO.

 

[Crow till I die]

For me the midfield pace is the area of the ground we stand to have the most gains in 2025.

Rankine was essentially the only point of difference mid last year, and he played 75% forward.

This year with Ranks and Peatling both providing midfield speed, and Draper hopefully joining the mix early, I suspect we might finally have a rotation with that point of difference speed factor at all times.

You can have a Crouch, Berry or Laird in the mix, but they days of all bulls no speed need to be over IMO.

I truly hope so as it means if you get hands on the ball first you are off and ending it forward and putting the other side under the pressure. We can finally look to play offence out of the centre with real pace from multiple players as rotations allow

 

[bigman]

One of the positives thus far this pre season has been (knock on wood) the consistency of numbers across each session. With Thilthorpe joining the main group for a fair chunk of today’s training, it means that only Hinge, Strachan and Butts are in the rehab group - and I’m pretty confident Hinge is just about ready to go as well.

Welsh isn’t injured as far as I can tell but was only doing bike work alongside Strachan, who has a compression bandage on his calf. Butts was a no show again so perhaps he’s hit a roadblock in his recovery from the foot injury. Milera joined the rehab guys midway through the session but it looks a pure management thing.

A young lad wearing number 46 joined for some of the early skills work as well as running alongside Hinge. He looked roughly 186-187cm, lean build with a dark mop of hair. At a guess I’m thinking it was Mitch Stevens? Not sure the AFL academy lads are joining yet so not sure who else it would be. He’s quite a broad lad despite being reasonably skinny, should really fill out in time.

Today looked to be a pretty exhausting session in 30 degree heat. Not a heap of running drills but rather it was the football stuff that knackered the players. Much of the session involved five groups (blue, red, yellow, white and green) split into three drills, with them rotating a number of times over the course of 45 minutes. They were:

1. Occupying about two thirds of the ground, two teams tried to move the ball by foot to score without turning it over. Any turnover or grounded ball would result in the other team gaining possession. Players were also forced to move the ball on quickly after taking a mark.

2. Taking place in the other third, this drill went across the ground and was all about using hands and speed to work the ball up. There were two sets of miniature goals at each end and teams could only score by handpassing the ball through. Only a certain amount of handballs were allowed and any mistake resulted in the ball being given to the opposition.

3. Basically a ground ball exercise on the sidelines with bags used to apply pressure. More of a recovery period than anything else.

The two main drills above involved a heap of defensive transition running and by the end players were noticeably fatigued and more prone to error.

Finally there was a bit of match sim work minus stoppages. Teams were as follows:

Blue team
Def: N. Murray, Borlase, Bond, Worrell, Ryan
Mid: Sholl (wing), Crouch, Cumming (Wing), O’Brien, Peatling, Soligo
Fwd: Rankine, Neal-Bullen, Keays, Walker, Cook
Int: Dawson, Taylor, Draper

White team:
Def: Keane, Nankervis, Laird, Michalanney, Smith
Mid: Jones (Wing), Berry, Dowling (Wing), T.Murray, Rachele, Curtin
Fwd: Schoenberg, Murphy, Burgess, Fogarty, Pedlar
Int: Edwards, Gallagher, Drury

Not sure how much to read into these teams, on paper the blue team was the stronger of the two but not necessarily any indication of how we will look next year. I didn’t record goals as it was less true match sim and more about ball movement and structure but the intensity was pretty high, a few tackling efforts were pretty vigorous one in particular leaving Sholl with a corked leg that he thankfully shook off by the end of the session.

Some player thoughts:

Jones - thought he had a really strong session. Got a heap of the pill on the wing, looked nimble and set up a number of shots at goal with pinpoint kicking. Yes it’s only training but it’s the best he’s looked since the foot injury.

Keays - got on the end of a few chains including a ripping dribble goal from the boundary 30m out, which he promptly celebrated hard as you’d expect. He appears bulkier than previous summers although it might just be an illusion from the buzz cut.

Berry - had a couple of good moments but also had a mare of a fumble. It was pretty much a dead ball and he was in space, yet still fumbled not once but twice ultimately causing a turnover.

Curtin - unlike previous sessions, thought he struggled to get into it today. Looked a bit off the pace and in particular struggled in the air. I have noticed he appears rather bandy legged? As in his legs shape outwards, which probably explains the running gait. At times he can be sluggish off the mark which I think he needs to work on. Once he gets the ball however he moves like silk.

Thilthorpe - didn’t do everything today but gee those hands. Was too good for his opponent on a number of occasions and looked like the version we saw late last season. To be honest Filthy being held back a bit this time of year might not be the worst thing as he tends to overtrain and hurt himself during the summer.

Rachele - bit of a broken record but wow does he look fit, just a really noticeable transformation. It’s clearly helping his footy too, his kicking and sharpness has been a standout so far this summer.

Pedlar - made a number of errors particularly once fatigue set in. Frustrating player as he’s got the skill and class but can make some head-shaking mistakes at times. To be fair it was his only underwhelming session thus far.

Edwards - is good at finding space to be used as an outlet coming out of defence. Also showed a bit more physicality in one moment through the corridor where he shrugged off a tackler and used his speed. Kicks like a mule too. Signs are there, just needs to really assert himself.

Dawson - ball use was the best I’ve seen from him in a while - only training intensity I know but some of the kicks he was hitting today were elite, particularly those long balls over the top.

Soligo - still think he needs to trim down a touch but he was great today. Took a couple of clunk marks under heat and was super clean in traffic including a lovely one handed take.

Cook - did some good things, work rate was solid, but let himself down with a couple of efforts including letting Smith beat him in the air near goal despite being in the van. Needs to take those moments and have more of a physical presence or he will be left behind.

Peatling - isn’t particularly flashy but one thing you quickly notice is his touch. Just a one grab player on the deck and really solid in the air as well. Will be good to watch him go to work once stoppages are introduced.

Schoenberg - similar to Pedlar, had some shocking turnovers under not much pressure. On the plus side he appears to have regained some of that explosiveness which was absent last year after the Achilles.

Laird - credit where it’s due, he was a standout today across half back. Racked it up and ball use was generally tidy, no sky balls. Obviously game intensity may change that but he looked great out there today.

Dowling - really like his composure but he needs to up the intensity a bit. Couple of times he got sweated on as soon as he took possession and didn’t really have an answer for it. Needs to be a bit stronger with his attack on the ball, today he looked a touch meek at times.

Draper - once again featured a bit more and had a couple of nice moments in the match sim. Intercepted a ball at half forward and followed up with a goal on the run which got a lot of love particularly from VB. Also laid a run down tackle on Berry. Still just bits and pieces as not doing all the work but some good signs for sure. Also has a handy leap on him, doesn’t mind jumping for his marks.

Borlase - wish his athleticism matched his footy smarts and ball use. Really nice user of the football and his positioning has come a long way. Quietly having a solid pre season thus far.

Gallagher - can take a grab and kicking has gotten a bit better, certainly longer at least. Unfortunately however he lacks polish and I don’t think he’s shown enough improvement since arriving at the club, even with basic things like his handball technique. Does make me question if we’ve coached and developed him well enough or if he was always going to struggle.

Cumming - will be a serious recruit for us. Rarely makes a mistake and is just cool as a cucumber even under heavy pressure. Lovely kick too. Should he stay fit, will be a great help to our side.

 

[bigman]

Forgot to add that Murray Davis ran the match sim part of the session

 

[jenny61_99]

Just read on Adelaide Now that we were one of the last clubs to resume full training! Similar to teams that finished in finals. Why the hell would we do that!?

Trying something different? Clearly training earlier didn't work for us in recent years...

 

[Betts are off]

One of the positives thus far this pre season has been (knock on wood) the consistency of numbers across each session. With Thilthorpe joining the main group for a fair chunk of today’s training, it means that only Hinge, Strachan and Butts are in the rehab group - and I’m pretty confident Hinge is just about ready to go as well.

Welsh isn’t injured as far as I can tell but was only doing bike work alongside Strachan, who has a compression bandage on his calf. Butts was a no show again so perhaps he’s hit a roadblock in his recovery from the foot injury. Milera joined the rehab guys midway through the session but it looks a pure management thing.

A young lad wearing number 46 joined for some of the early skills work as well as running alongside Hinge. He looked roughly 186-187cm, lean build with a dark mop of hair. At a guess I’m thinking it was Mitch Stevens? Not sure the AFL academy lads are joining yet so not sure who else it would be. He’s quite a broad lad despite being reasonably skinny, should really fill out in time.

Today looked to be a pretty exhausting session in 30 degree heat. Not a heap of running drills but rather it was the football stuff that knackered the players. Much of the session involved five groups (blue, red, yellow, white and green) split into three drills, with them rotating a number of times over the course of 45 minutes. They were:

1. Occupying about two thirds of the ground, two teams tried to move the ball by foot to score without turning it over. Any turnover or grounded ball would result in the other team gaining possession. Players were also forced to move the ball on quickly after taking a mark.

2. Taking place in the other third, this drill went across the ground and was all about using hands and speed to work the ball up. There were two sets of miniature goals at each end and teams could only score by handpassing the ball through. Only a certain amount of handballs were allowed and any mistake resulted in the ball being given to the opposition.

3. Basically a ground ball exercise on the sidelines with bags used to apply pressure. More of a recovery period than anything else.

The two main drills above involved a heap of defensive transition running and by the end players were noticeably fatigued and more prone to error.

Finally there was a bit of match sim work minus stoppages. Teams were as follows:

Blue team
Def: N. Murray, Borlase, Bond, Worrell, Ryan
Mid: Sholl (wing), Crouch, Cumming (Wing), O’Brien, Peatling, Soligo
Fwd: Rankine, Neal-Bullen, Keays, Walker, Cook
Int: Dawson, Taylor, Draper

White team:
Def: Keane, Nankervis, Laird, Michalanney, Smith
Mid: Jones (Wing), Berry, Dowling (Wing), T.Murray, Rachele, Curtin
Fwd: Schoenberg, Murphy, Burgess, Fogarty, Pedlar
Int: Edwards, Gallagher, Drury

Not sure how much to read into these teams, on paper the blue team was the stronger of the two but not necessarily any indication of how we will look next year. I didn’t record goals as it was less true match sim and more about ball movement and structure but the intensity was pretty high, a few tackling efforts were pretty vigorous one in particular leaving Sholl with a corked leg that he thankfully shook off by the end of the session.

Some player thoughts:

Jones - thought he had a really strong session. Got a heap of the pill on the wing, looked nimble and set up a number of shots at goal with pinpoint kicking. Yes it’s only training but it’s the best he’s looked since the foot injury.

Keays - got on the end of a few chains including a ripping dribble goal from the boundary 30m out, which he promptly celebrated hard as you’d expect. He appears bulkier than previous summers although it might just be an illusion from the buzz cut.

Berry - had a couple of good moments but also had a mare of a fumble. It was pretty much a dead ball and he was in space, yet still fumbled not once but twice ultimately causing a turnover.

Curtin - unlike previous sessions, thought he struggled to get into it today. Looked a bit off the pace and in particular struggled in the air. I have noticed he appears rather bandy legged? As in his legs shape outwards, which probably explains the running gait. At times he can be sluggish off the mark which I think he needs to work on. Once he gets the ball however he moves like silk.

Thilthorpe - didn’t do everything today but gee those hands. Was too good for his opponent on a number of occasions and looked like the version we saw late last season. To be honest Filthy being held back a bit this time of year might not be the worst thing as he tends to overtrain and hurt himself during the summer.

Rachele - bit of a broken record but wow does he look fit, just a really noticeable transformation. It’s clearly helping his footy too, his kicking and sharpness has been a standout so far this summer.

Pedlar - made a number of errors particularly once fatigue set in. Frustrating player as he’s got the skill and class but can make some head-shaking mistakes at times. To be fair it was his only underwhelming session thus far.

Edwards - is good at finding space to be used as an outlet coming out of defence. Also showed a bit more physicality in one moment through the corridor where he shrugged off a tackler and used his speed. Kicks like a mule too. Signs are there, just needs to really assert himself.

Dawson - ball use was the best I’ve seen from him in a while - only training intensity I know but some of the kicks he was hitting today were elite, particularly those long balls over the top.

Soligo - still think he needs to trim down a touch but he was great today. Took a couple of clunk marks under heat and was super clean in traffic including a lovely one handed take.

Cook - did some good things, work rate was solid, but let himself down with a couple of efforts including letting Smith beat him in the air near goal despite being in the van. Needs to take those moments and have more of a physical presence or he will be left behind.

Peatling - isn’t particularly flashy but one thing you quickly notice is his touch. Just a one grab player on the deck and really solid in the air as well. Will be good to watch him go to work once stoppages are introduced.

Schoenberg - similar to Pedlar, had some shocking turnovers under not much pressure. On the plus side he appears to have regained some of that explosiveness which was absent last year after the Achilles.

Laird - credit where it’s due, he was a standout today across half back. Racked it up and ball use was generally tidy, no sky balls. Obviously game intensity may change that but he looked great out there today.

Dowling - really like his composure but he needs to up the intensity a bit. Couple of times he got sweated on as soon as he took possession and didn’t really have an answer for it. Needs to be a bit stronger with his attack on the ball, today he looked a touch meek at times.

Draper - once again featured a bit more and had a couple of nice moments in the match sim. Intercepted a ball at half forward and followed up with a goal on the run which got a lot of love particularly from VB. Also laid a run down tackle on Berry. Still just bits and pieces as not doing all the work but some good signs for sure. Also has a handy leap on him, doesn’t mind jumping for his marks.

Borlase - wish his athleticism matched his footy smarts and ball use. Really nice user of the football and his positioning has come a long way. Quietly having a solid pre season thus far.

Gallagher - can take a grab and kicking has gotten a bit better, certainly longer at least. Unfortunately however he lacks polish and I don’t think he’s shown enough improvement since arriving at the club, even with basic things like his handball technique. Does make me question if we’ve coached and developed him well enough or if he was always going to struggle.

Cumming - will be a serious recruit for us. Rarely makes a mistake and is just cool as a cucumber even under heavy pressure. Lovely kick too. Should he stay fit, will be a great help to our side.

Thanks Bigman. TBH I think it's awesome Laird is looking great in defence. I've like many in here have had a negative 12 months on Rory. But if he's played in defence and can give us that AA level small defender version of him he can be a real asset.

And if he's playing there all preseason and playing it super well, then is probably underrated storyline of the offseason for us.

 

[jackster83]

Trying something different? Clearly training earlier didn't work for us in recent years...

Start later but have a smaller break over Christmas could be a good idea. That period of binge eating, drinking and watching test cricket usually derails whatever progress I made in the preseason.

 

[Danger in Texas]

Thanks Bigman. TBH I think it's awesome Laird is looking great in defence. I've like many in here have had a negative 12 months on Rory. But if he's played in defence and can give us that AA level small defender version of him he can be a real asset.

And if he's playing there all preseason and playing it super well, then is probably underrated storyline of the offseason for us.

I don’t think anyone will complain if Laird looks great in defence, but if he shows anything like last year’s form when the season starts, he’ll still be in the gun, for me

 

[StickerMan]

Trying something different? Clearly training earlier didn't work for us in recent years...

Someone mentioned that Burgo has been an advocate of starting later.

I would imagine that each player would have had a strict off season program and submit GPS numbers etc to ensure they were on track.

Pre-Season 'working from home', if you will.

By the look of the various Socialz that were posted, most chose to work with each other anyway.

Time will tell, but by all reports they all look fit so no harm, no foul, and straight in to the ball work/match sim

 

[skittlebrew]

Appreciate the write up, love your work!

Cumming - will be a serious recruit for us. Rarely makes a mistake and is just cool as a cucumber even under heavy pressure. Lovely kick too. Should he stay fit, will be a great help to our side.

Scope to be an inside mid or moreso a back flanker in your opinion?

Also what does it seem like Crom view his position as? Getting any CBA opportunities in training?

 

[Cromulant]

Sounds like Keane flattened Nank and the lads got a bit of fire in the belly ??

bigman did you happen to see this or is it another media beat up ??

 

[Jeffcrowe]

Someone mentioned that Burgo has been an advocate of starting later.

I would imagine that each player would have had a strict off season program and submit GPS numbers etc to ensure they were on track.

Pre-Season 'working from home', if you will.

By the look of the various Socialz that were posted, most chose to work with each other anyway.

Time will tell, but by all reports they all look fit so no harm, no foul, and straight in to the ball work/match sim

Part of it is to give ownership and trust to the players which Burgess thinks they’ve earnt through habits and training standards outside of the club

So knowing that they’re doing their own training just gives them their chance to put their own stamp on their pre season

I’ve also heard him say the Adelaide players get themselves fit on off season which allows full footy sessions from the get go when they get back

Let’s hope it coverts to a good start to season this time ( unlike last year )

 

[cmndstab]

Appreciate the write up, love your work!



Scope to be an inside mid or moreso a back flanker in your opinion?

Also what does it seem like Crom view his position as? Getting any CBA opportunities in training?

I'm pretty sure the Crows view him as either a winger or a back flanker. I don't think they're looking for him to go in the engine room.

 

[Redline]

I don’t think anyone will complain if Laird looks great in defence, but if he shows anything like last year’s form when the season starts, he’ll still be in the gun, for me

He is not a lock down small defender so his decision making, disposal and run would need to improve alot as you say.

I don't think he is a defender. I think the days of putting someone back when they are struggling in the midfield are over. You have to offer a point of difference as a defender now a days.

Hope he proves me wrong.

 

[StickerMan]

Hey bigman would be interested to hear if Hugh Bond is used as a defensive midfielder (dare I say, tagger) at all throughout the pre-season.

Has all the tools to become a very good midfield stopper I reckon. Massive engine, aggressive tackler, defensive stopping ability.

 

[BRL121]

Yes, I'm excited about Draper too, but if we want a midfielder who can run down Berry there's around half a dozen of them on every list in the league.

Still, good to see him involved in match sim early! I remember some years where it felt like our draftees just did restricted training for 90% of the preseason.

Yes, it's a Berry problem. Unlike others, I'm not worried by some fumbles from him, but I am worried by his continual assumption that he can break through tackles and run away at his leisure: he gets run down more often than not. He has to learn that he is not fast enough and needs to get rid of the ball very quickly.

 

[GROTTO]

Start later but have a smaller break over Christmas could be a good idea. That period of binge eating, drinking and watching test cricket usually derails whatever progress I made in the preseason.

If I am not mistaken, DJ had this issue during his playing days for us as did a few other Crows players back in the day? Johncock from memory too?

By no means I am referring to his current status.

 

[Golumless]

He is not a lock down small defender so his decision making, disposal and run would need to improve alot as you say.

I don't think he is a defender. I think the days of putting some back when they are struggling in the midfield are over. You have to offer a point of difference as a defender now a days.

Hope he proves me wrong.

Playing as a defender will cause a pretty large upswing in decision making and disposal just by the positional switch (Lairds kicking efficiency dropped by ~12% with a switch to the inside). After all, it's less ball in congestion and that makes a huge difference to skills.

Laird has put up monster numbers and been an 2xAA as a half back before. So he's certainly capable. It'll just be about the mental side of things, and does Rory have the fire left in him to fend off the kids (after all, 250 games is a long career and he's certainly got stuck in a rut before). If he doesn't, he'll get overtaken within the year. If he does, he could last for a while yet.

 

[Nicks_out_now]

Just read on Adelaide Now that we were one of the last clubs to resume full training! Similar to teams that finished in finals. Why the hell would we do that!?

Because Darren Burgess believes an AFL pre season is too long and should only go for about 6 to 8 weeks.

 

[Danger in Texas]

I'm pretty sure the Crows view him as either a winger or a back flanker. I don't think they're looking for him to go in the engine room.

Tbh we have enough inside mids of quality to give minutes to and/or develop

Dare I say… we’re unironically stacked? Lol

 

[skittlebrew]

Tbh we have enough inside mids of quality to give minutes to and/or develop

Dare I say… we’re unironically stacked? Lol

Really? Thought we are lacking some top end. Have decent depth at HB.

Cumming on the wing would be the ideal fit.

 

[Danger in Texas]

Really? Thought we are lacking some top end. Have decent depth at HB.

Cumming in the wing would be the ideal fit.

Reckon that, given Hinge seems to be more a A-/A half back, we need another of similar quality to pair with him. Most of the top teams either have one elite half back, or if not, they have two very good ones

Might be worth a shot eventually if we want to mix things up, but realistically Cumming’s not going to be a top end inside mid

 

[hugecannon]

Playing as a defender will cause a pretty large upswing in decision making and disposal just by the positional switch (Lairds kicking efficiency dropped by ~12% with a switch to the inside). After all, it's less ball in congestion and that makes a huge difference to skills.

Laird has put up monster numbers and been an 2xAA as a half back before. So he's certainly capable. It'll just be about the mental side of things, and does Rory have the fire left in him to fend off the kids (after all, 250 games is a long career and he's certainly got stuck in a rut before). If he doesn't, he'll get overtaken within the year. If he does, he could last for a while yet.

That was before the 6-6-6 rule came into effect, he really struggled once it did and he had to be more accountable for his man.

Hopefully he can adjust, as I can’t (hope) see him getting back into the midfield .

 

[FR0GGY]

I do read probably- I have the right to an alternative opinion that I don’t have an issue with how it was handled other than Lairds comments

I’ve gone over my reasons a million times - not going to continue to flog a dead horse

Move on - the player has


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and we have the right not to be called bed wetters because you want to lump everyone in the same basket.
Tone down the higher than thou attitude and 5 year old insults and you won’t get called out.