Women's Footy Bulldogs Free Agency Period May 15-26th

[CaptainMurphy]

Between signing two of the three youngest players at the club and hitting the draft hard I'm glad to see us getting a bit younger, I thought we went to old with our drafting last year.

 

[VitalDread]

Between signing two of the three youngest players at the club and hitting the draft hard I'm glad to see us getting a bit younger, I thought we went to old with our drafting last year.

It was a very win now draft last season

 

[threenewpadlocks]

It was a very win now draft last season

Injuries killed us. The top-end talent of women's footy (or lack of bottom-end depth from another perspective) means that top-end injuries matter, a lot. I genuinely think we were Katie Brennan playing 7 games fully fit away from challenging from the flag, and that's before you consider O'Connor, Lambert etc.

Adelaide and Brisbane were very good but they suffered pretty much no injuries to their top-end players.

 

[VitalDread]

Chloe Molloy has already kicked 15 goals and is avg 3.75 per game which compared to last year Katie Brennan was avg 3.66pg

 

[Pugz89]

Is she a lead up sort of fwd or a contested mark type?

 

[Bemoreboyddog]

Maybe one for the rebel thread but think Brennan is a bit over-rated from what I saw and how hyped up she was before last season and still after it.

Kearney and Blackburn are the real guns of our side.

 

[threenewpadlocks]

Maybe one for the rebel thread but think Brennan is a bit over-rated from what I saw and how hyped up she was before last season and still after it.

Kearney and Blackburn are the real guns of our side.

She played two games with injuries (rolled her ankle badly in the pre-season game, that was only 9 days before the season opener, the 3 other games were played at least two weeks before hand, get that). Probably jabbed up to play before succumbing to the injuries and missing all 5 games.

I've watched all of the Dogs' female exhibition games over the years, and caught glimpses of other female games over the years. She's that good. It's debatable where she places relative to the Daisy Pearces of the competition, but she's certainly one of the best 5 female footballers in the country that we haven't seen the best of on a national stage yet.

Her and Molloy will go a long way to improving a forward line that got a lot of delivery from Blackburn and Kearney being gun midfielders but not much of a forward line.

 

[Bemoreboyddog]

She played two games with injuries (rolled her ankle badly in the pre-season game, that was only 9 days before the season opener, the 3 other games were played at least two weeks before hand, get that). Probably jabbed up to play before succumbing to the injuries and missing all 5 games.

I've watched all of the Dogs' female exhibition games over the years, and caught glimpses of other female games over the years. She's that good. It's debatable where she places relative to the Daisy Pearces of the competition, but she's certainly one of the best 5 female footballers in the country that we haven't seen the best of on a national stage yet.

Her and Molloy will go a long way to improving a forward line that got a lot of delivery from Blackburn and Kearney being gun midfielders but not much of a forward line.

She might have been good in the exhibition games, honestly I only sort of paid attention to the results of the exhibition games, not the games themselves so happy to take your word for it.

But what I will say is that Mo Hope was the star attraction of this league before the season started, was carving up exhibition games (from what I heard, plus saw on highlights) and dominating at VFL level.

Didn't work out too well for her last season, Pies would have been pretty disappointed with their value for money with Mo last year.

 

[threenewpadlocks]

She might have been good in the exhibition games, honestly I only sort of paid attention to the results of the exhibition games, not the games themselves so happy to take your word for it.

But what I will say is that Mo Hope was the star attraction of this league before the season started, was carving up exhibition games (from what I heard, plus saw on highlights) and dominating at VFL level.

Didn't work out too well for her last season, Pies would have been pretty disappointed with their value for money with Mo last year.

Mo Hope kicked the most goals in the VFL but was inflated by kicking bags against the best teams, for example kicking 16 against Knox, who were getting demolished by 100 points every week, and multiple bags of 9+ against the bottom few teams. In her last 5 games against other finals teams, she only kicked the 5 goals. Compare that with Brennan who only had one bag of 8+ in the entire season but kicked 6 in the semi-final (same game that Hope kicked 0) and "only" kicked 20-odd less goals across the season than Hope in the VFL last year.

Combine that with the 6 that she kicked in the exhibition all-star game (coaches who were playing free-flowing, attacking footy, as opposed to the defensive/sour style that Brisbane and Adelaide cottoned onto as the winning formula and both made the grand final with, Brisbane played a loose defender for pretty much the entire season), it's easy to see how she was rated whereas most people who knew footy didn't rate her. Collingwood were pretty much the only team that wanted her as a marquee, but even then they didn't rate her as one of the best 10 players, they just wanted her for marketing value. Anyone who knew much about women's footy knew that Hope was all hype and not really that much performance - but it's easy for those who hadn't watched a minute of women's footy outside of the 2016 all-star game to get sucked in.

Brennan is a superstar, and we didn't see anywhere near the best of her. Hope's lifeline is going to be the expansion of the competition to more teams, if they kept to 8 teams for a 3rd year and another batch of U/18 players came through there's every chance she'd find herself delisted.

 

[Bemoreboyddog]

Mo Hope kicked the most goals in the VFL but was inflated by kicking bags against the best teams, for example kicking 16 against Knox, who were getting demolished by 100 points every week, and multiple bags of 9+ against the bottom few teams. In her last 5 games against other finals teams, she only kicked the 5 goals. Compare that with Brennan who only had one bag of 8+ in the entire season but kicked 6 in the semi-final (same game that Hope kicked 0) and "only" kicked 20-odd less goals across the season than Hope in the VFL last year.

Combine that with the 6 that she kicked in the exhibition all-star game (coaches who were playing free-flowing, attacking footy, as opposed to the defensive/sour style that Brisbane and Adelaide cottoned onto as the winning formula and both made the grand final with, Brisbane played a loose defender for pretty much the entire season), it's easy to see how she was rated whereas most people who knew footy didn't rate her. Collingwood were pretty much the only team that wanted her as a marquee, but even then they didn't rate her as one of the best 10 players, they just wanted her for marketing value. Anyone who knew much about women's footy knew that Hope was all hype and not really that much performance - but it's easy for those who hadn't watched a minute of women's footy outside of the 2016 all-star game to get sucked in.

Brennan is a superstar, and we didn't see anywhere near the best of her. Hope's lifeline is going to be the expansion of the competition to more teams, if they kept to 8 teams for a 3rd year and another batch of U/18 players came through there's every chance she'd find herself delisted.

Whack! Pretty savage on poor old Mo.

 

[threenewpadlocks]

Whack! Pretty savage on poor old Mo.

It's not entirely unexpected. She's a very good suburban footballer who didn't quite have the level of self-professionalism to adjust with the rest of the league in an elite environment. For example, reading about her "typical day", she says she sleeps for 4 hours a day. Of course, it's common sense that more sleep is good, but more and more research is coming in about the impact of sleep on athletic performance - everyone knows it's important, but it's actually more important than many would consider.

She might have been able to get away with it at VFL level, where players aren't getting paid, they don't have the same elite facilities and medical staff members etc. as they did at the AFL clubs. So basically, every player's performance was improved by transitioning to AFL level - you can assume the vast majority of players improved as players through the introduction of proper AFL-trained strength and conditioning staff, they made sure they got better sleep, etc. etc. than they were the year before. But here's Mo Hope, openly admitting that she's still getting 4 hours of sleep a night a matter of days before the season opener.

That raises the question - if Hope's dedication to a transition to semi-pro football wasn't that of the rest of the league's players in regards to sleep (why the hell didn't she try to change her lifestyle to fit sleep into the equation - it's just common sense), how about everything else? Did she adjust her diet like a lot of other players did? Did she spend more time in the gym or honing her skills outside of training sessions etc? We have to assume not, therefore, it's not any real great surprise she didn't dominate at AFLW level.

Compare that to Katie Brennan who is the perfect professional - not only goes to the gym, but owns and runs her own gym, is a qualified strength and conditioning coach, is professional with a perfect diet, her whole life revolves around getting the most out of herself as a player. And I can bet my bottom dollar that she tries to get 8 hours sleep a night.

 

[jatz14]

It's not entirely unexpected. She's a very good suburban footballer who didn't quite have the level of self-professionalism to adjust with the rest of the league in an elite environment. For example, reading about her "typical day", she says she sleeps for 4 hours a day. Of course, it's common sense that more sleep is good, but more and more research is coming in about the impact of sleep on athletic performance - everyone knows it's important, but it's actually more important than many would consider.

She might have been able to get away with it at VFL level, where players aren't getting paid, they don't have the same elite facilities and medical staff members etc. as they did at the AFL clubs. So basically, every player's performance was improved by transitioning to AFL level - you can assume the vast majority of players improved as players through the introduction of proper AFL-trained strength and conditioning staff, they made sure they got better sleep, etc. etc. than they were the year before. But here's Mo Hope, openly admitting that she's still getting 4 hours of sleep a night a matter of days before the season opener.

That raises the question - if Hope's dedication to a transition to semi-pro football wasn't that of the rest of the league's players in regards to sleep (why the hell didn't she try to change her lifestyle to fit sleep into the equation - it's just common sense), how about everything else? Did she adjust her diet like a lot of other players did? Did she spend more time in the gym or honing her skills outside of training sessions etc? We have to assume not, therefore, it's not any real great surprise she didn't dominate at AFLW level.

Compare that to Katie Brennan who is the perfect professional - not only goes to the gym, but owns and runs her own gym, is a qualified strength and conditioning coach, is professional with a perfect diet, her whole life revolves around getting the most out of herself as a player. And I can bet my bottom dollar that she tries to get 8 hours sleep a night.

Think you are a bit hard on her. St Kilda kicked a grand total of 5 goals in their 2 finals games, of which she got 2. They got smashed by Darebin and only got 1 goal, so I suspect she never even saw the ball. When female teams are really under the pump, they tend to struggle to even get it out of their back half. She did get big bags against weaker teams, and not against strong teams, but its hard to kick 10 goals when your whole team only kicks 5. She was also the one Saints player who strong teams put time into on their defence. These teams all had multiple defenders who became AFLW players, so Mo (and Katie), have been playing on AFLW quality defenders for years.

Also, Katie plays in the forward line/midfield for Darebin, Darebin rarely lose, and never get thumped, Katie always sees plenty of the ball. Same is not true for Mo and the Saints, so the up and down scoring to a degree reflects up and down supply.

I think she played injured (and out of form), I also think the Pies handled her badly The forward line set up didn't suit her, and it took them basically the whole season to start to work it out. Doesn't mean 2017 is guaranteed to be better, but it is certainly a possibility.

The lack of sleep is part and parcel of being a part time professional footballer. Lack of sleep indicates many things, but in a person who is a full time carer, and a business manager, and a professional footballer, lack of the right attitude isn't one of them.

 

[threenewpadlocks]

Think you are a bit hard on her. St Kilda kicked a grand total of 5 goals in their 2 finals games, of which she got 2. They got smashed by Darebin and only got 1 goal, so I suspect she never even saw the ball. When female teams are really under the pump, they tend to struggle to even get it out of their back half. She did get big bags against weaker teams, and not against strong teams, but its hard to kick 10 goals when your whole team only kicks 5. She was also the one Saints player who strong teams put time into on their defence. These teams all had multiple defenders who became AFLW players, so Mo (and Katie), have been playing on AFLW quality defenders for years.

Also, Katie plays in the forward line/midfield for Darebin, Darebin rarely lose, and never get thumped, Katie always sees plenty of the ball. Same is not true for Mo and the Saints, so the up and down scoring to a degree reflects up and down supply.

I think she played injured (and out of form), I also think the Pies handled her badly The forward line set up didn't suit her, and it took them basically the whole season to start to work it out. Doesn't mean 2017 is guaranteed to be better, but it is certainly a possibility.

The lack of sleep is part and parcel of being a part time professional footballer. Lack of sleep indicates many things, but in a person who is a full time carer, and a business manager, and a professional footballer, lack of the right attitude isn't one of them.

That's fair enough I suppose - but her goal tally was still inflated by kicking bags against the weaker teams, and the pre-season hype about her was way over the top for anyone who put a bit of critical through into her.

Not saying she has the ability to get a full 8 house every day, I get that, but 4 hours each and every day is batshit crazy, for an elite athlete who is probably earning over 50 grand a year from her football and related endorsements. Like surely you'd get at least 5 or 6 hours or whatever. I am being a bit harsh but surely you can agree with me on that. Whenever I have consecutive days of less than 6 hours sleep, I slumber around like a zombie. I try to get at least 7+ hours the night before any given training session no matter how busy I am. 4 hours (presumably) 5 nights a week cannot be good for your training and playing.

 

[jatz14]

That's fair enough I suppose - but her goal tally was still inflated by kicking bags against the weaker teams, and the pre-season hype about her was way over the top for anyone who put a bit of critical through into her.

Not saying she has the ability to get a full 8 house every day, I get that, but 4 hours each and every day is batshit crazy, for an elite athlete who is probably earning over 50 grand a year from her football and related endorsements. Like surely you'd get at least 5 or 6 hours or whatever. I am being a bit harsh but surely you can agree with me on that. Whenever I have consecutive days of less than 6 hours sleep, I slumber around like a zombie. I try to get at least 7+ hours the night before any given training session no matter how busy I am. 4 hours (presumably) 5 nights a week cannot be good for your training and playing.

Recommended for an athlete is 9, generally only get 5 or 6 myself. All the other forwards also played against those weak teams, and had the opportunity to kick bags. The ability to kick bags against weaker opposition doesn't necessarily translate into an ability to kick goals at a higher level, but again, a good portion of the defenders she played against, she was already playing against.

That said, if the Pies treat her again the way they did last time, I suspect she will fail again. Her chief attributes seem to be, reading the play, body positioning and out turning and out manoeuvring her opponents, she also has a pretty good kick. She is not particularly fast, nor big, and not a very good overhead mark. Collingwood left her isolated, and defenders were dropping on to her, out bodying or outmanoeuvring 1 opponent doesn't help if you immediately run into 2 more, which is what was happening to her. She was also fairly anchored to the forward 50, which made it easier for the defenders to collapse onto her.

I do not think Brennan is outstanding overhead (although she is much better than Hope), but her attribute is work rate, mobility, and a truly beautiful kick. Its hard to shut her down as her constant motion makes it difficult to gang up on her, and the bigger defenders have trouble going with her. I suspect it will always be a case of Hope delivers big, or not at all. If the defence is on top of her, she is in trouble, but if the forward line works, and the ball is coming in quick so she is genuinely 1 v 1, she can do a lot quickly.

Brennan will always be a threat, even on down days as she just keep working.

 

[threenewpadlocks]

Recommended for an athlete is 9, generally only get 5 or 6 myself. All the other forwards also played against those weak teams, and had the opportunity to kick bags. The ability to kick bags against weaker opposition doesn't necessarily translate into an ability to kick goals at a higher level, but again, a good portion of the defenders she played against, she was already playing against.

That said, if the Pies treat her again the way they did last time, I suspect she will fail again. Her chief attributes seem to be, reading the play, body positioning and out turning and out manoeuvring her opponents, she also has a pretty good kick. She is not particularly fast, nor big, and not a very good overhead mark. Collingwood left her isolated, and defenders were dropping on to her, out bodying or outmanoeuvring 1 opponent doesn't help if you immediately run into 2 more, which is what was happening to her. She was also fairly anchored to the forward 50, which made it easier for the defenders to collapse onto her.

I do not think Brennan is outstanding overhead (although she is much better than Hope), but her attribute is work rate, mobility, and a truly beautiful kick. Its hard to shut her down as her constant motion makes it difficult to gang up on her, and the bigger defenders have trouble going with her. I suspect it will always be a case of Hope delivers big, or not at all. If the defence is on top of her, she is in trouble, but if the forward line works, and the ball is coming in quick so she is genuinely 1 v 1, she can do a lot quickly.

Brennan will always be a threat, even on down days as she just keep working.

I was just using it an example of rumours I've heard/other things I've read about how Hope hasn't transitioned to a more professional competition. Firstly, 4 is still less than 5 or 6 and every hour you lose is more important than last (ie the between 4 and 5 is greater than 6 and 7) plus she's openly admitting it in an interview - I mean I get that she's busy and does a lot of things, but 4 hours sleep every single weekday is 4 hours sleep every single weekday when you've got training multiple times a week. Like, you seriously cannot improve as a player if you're training like a zombie - that's how bad habits etc. creep in.

Hope I think suffered from AFL coaching resources helping defence more than it did attack and ball movement - teams with better camera angles and access to stats did more defensive tactics, and better training and physical conditioning meant that the players improved their ability to defensively run moreso than their skills through this flooding. Even with 16 a side my guess is Hope managed to get 1 out in attacking 50 a lot more often in VFL than she does in the AFL, where the league as a whole probably played a loose in defence more often than they didn't. With the U/18 players coming through an AIS Academy and TAC level where they get access to these education of professionalism (not to mention better development) Hope might be left behind a bit, a relic from the suburban days. I get that she's busy, but there'll be U/18 players getting their 9 hours sleep a night that gives them a leg up. She'll be saved by the expansion of the league, but I feel she'll be less and less effective season-on-season (after all, she will be 30 next season).

I agree Brennan isn't a better overhead mark, but she is in a way by virtue of being taller (if that makes sense) but she's a player who will, I feel, thrive in the professional environment, as not only will she not be "left behind" I feel in a way that Hope has, but she'll actually make her teammates better as a captain with her physical preparation leading to a greater workrate on the field inspiring and leading her teammates.