Our facilities (& injuries)

[estibador]

Been watching the various football shows on Fox and over the past few weeks they've been showing segments about the amazing new facilities some of the Vic clubs have going on over there.

Space age shit like nitrogen chambers instead of ice baths, weightless treadmills (did we ever end up getting one of those?), alternating hot and cold temperature controlled recovery spa's next to each other, not to mention gyms with the sort of computer technology that would make NASA green with envy. The Tiges (and others like Collingwood I assume) even have a pseudo hospital ward with beds their injured players can stay in so they can ice up every few hours during the night.

Can anyone give us a run down on what sort of facilities our boys have at the moment? I know they were probably decent back in the day but with facilities going out of date quicker than computers we're probably in the bottom quartile right now, which is bullshit for a supposedly well off club like us.

You can't help but wonder whether technology like that would help with our ridiculous injury toll. Much is down to bad luck but prevention and recovery time can only be enhanced with those sort of facilities at your disposal. With the comp so even every little microscopic advantage over the opposition can be important. I fear we're falling behind on this front. Let's hope this rumoured redevelopment of Freo Oval is done soon and is done properly with no expense spared.




*As a side note this only reinforces my disgust about the AFL's proposed 'rich tax' on us (is this still going ahead?). Here we are battling to keep up with Vic clubs leaching off the govt to build better facilities than us... and yet we're still expected to pay extra to keep them afloat?

 

[Keys]

I suspect your facilities are similar to ours in that they were probably advanced at the tome they were built but are now outdated compared to the newer facilities some clubs have

nisbett made a comment recently that we wanted a decision on the new stadium so we could move on upgrading our existing facility or building a new one

both clubs are probably in need for an upgrade and both should have the dollars to do it. It doesn't take long to fall behind in the afl

 

[estibador]

I suspect your facilities are similar to ours in that they were probably advanced at the tome they were built but are now outdated compared to the newer facilities some clubs have

I remember when ours where first built at the turn of the century (now there's a way to make them sound old) I was amazed that we actually had a full size lap pool built in. Our own damn lap pool all to ourselves, can you imagine it! Neesham would have been in heaven - we wouldn't have had to go out on the field at all!

Mind you, when you come from a base of a WAFL training shed even buying weights to put on the bar would seem a massive improvement.

Of course now even teams like Richmond have 15 recovery pools of differing temps to work with.

nisbett made a comment recently that we wanted a decision on the new stadium so we could move on upgrading our existing facility or building a new one

And that's probably the only positive to come out of all this political procrastinating - that it's denied the eagles the chance to build a new quadrillion dollar training facility that would leave us all in its wake.

 

[Seppo]

Forget lap pools and weights!

We need to look at some fandangle sprinkler system at Freo Oval to prevent occurances like Ibbotsons happening again. Some big gear drive monsters with built in computer chips that dissapear deep into the surface once a player is in the proximity... that will do the trick nicely!

Prevention is better than the cure.

 

[shibz_1989]

I love the saying "Prevention is better then cure", it is what I live my life by!!

 

[prattsta]

Forget lap pools and weights!

We need to look at some fandangle sprinkler system at Freo Oval to prevent occurances like Ibbotsons happening again. Some big gear drive monsters with built in computer chips that dissapear deep into the surface once a player is in the proximity... that will do the trick nicely!

Prevention is better than the cure.

Proximity sprinklers? I like it.

They would need to have some kind of journalist detecting sensor though. A guy like Hutchy could do with a bath.

 

[Chops_a_must]

Neesham would have been in heaven - we wouldn't have had to go out on the field at all!

Well... sometimes... we didn't.

 

[Tas]

Unless you rebuild/refurbish every year, you are behind clubs that update their facilities. AFL only threw chump change into the facilities, most of the funding came from local/state/federal government and they found the money for most of the 10 clubs to get training facility upgrades.

Clubs generate a lot of revenue for the local economy and the government, clubs are an investment for them and they can't neglect their investment.

I think it is probably getting to the stage clubs will have to look at upgrading/improving their facilities every 5 or so years so they don't fall too far behind the pace.

 

[OuterWing Parrot]

I think it is probably getting to the stage clubs will have to look at upgrading/improving their facilities every 5 or so years so they don't fall too far behind the pace.

Influence of training facilities is overstated in my opinion. In the late 90s Nth Melbourne were a dominant team while their home base was a rotting collection of portable rooms and sheds. Having enough gun players is way more important. And fitness management helps too.

 

[Memories]

Influence of training facilities is overstated in my opinion. In the late 90s Nth Melbourne were a dominant team while their home base was a rotting collection of portable rooms and sheds. Having enough gun players is way more important. And fitness management helps too.

The game has changed a fair amount since those days. Recovery wise there is a fair amount you can do.

One thing fancy training rooms do is give mentally weak players a perceived edge in their own mind. You'd just need a barbell, 2 dumbbells, some weights and a few poles in the ground to develop a body that would compete well in the AFL. Look at someone like Barlow, probably struggles to bench 80kg yet dominates. AFL isn't really close to hitting the human maximums in regards to athletics, not enough people to recruit from.

 

[Tas]

Influence of training facilities is overstated in my opinion. In the late 90s Nth Melbourne were a dominant team while their home base was a rotting collection of portable rooms and sheds. Having enough gun players is way more important. And fitness management helps too.

The way footy was played in the 90s yeah, facilities meant nothing because the players spent more time on the piss than pumping weights.

In this day it makes a huge difference imo.

 

[Freo88]

I fear we're falling behind on this front. Let's hope this rumoured redevelopment of Freo Oval is done soon and is done properly with no expense spared./

What are these rumours your talking about- i havent heard anything about it yet. any links etc?

 

[BeinPurplenGreen]

I remember when ours where first built at the turn of the century (now there's a way to make them sound old) I was amazed that we actually had a full size lap pool built in. Our own damn lap pool all to ourselves, can you imagine it! Neesham would have been in heaven - we wouldn't have had to go out on the field at all!

Neesh would have been ecstatic with a lap pool, that way we could have just stuck to playing water polo which was all he really had in mind anyway...

Influence of training facilities is overstated in my opinion. In the late 90s Nth Melbourne were a dominant team while their home base was a rotting collection of portable rooms and sheds. Having enough gun players is way more important. And fitness management helps too.

True enough, in the sense that no amount of fantastic facilities can mask poor recruitment or average players. Fitness shouldn't have to be expensive either...

 

[estibador]

What are these rumours your talking about- i havent heard anything about it yet. any links etc?

Don't have any links at hand but I think one of the Steve's was quoted a while back - around the time the lunatic fringe were talking about a conspiracy to have us moved from Fremantle and drop our name.

True enough, in the sense that no amount of fantastic facilities can mask poor recruitment or average players. Fitness shouldn't have to be expensive either...

Fitness doesn't have to be expensive but rehab can be. That's where I'm worried were falling behind -and god knows we need all the help with rehab we can get.

 

[im_a_lazy_sod]

Ibbo did his injury at a suburban park where the boys were training - not at Freo oval IIRC

We need to spend more on facilities though, with Freo oval being used by Souths as well, we'd likely need to keep the ground in good knick to help reduce the chance of something similar to what Morabito did happen again

We are one of the richest clubs after all