Training 2022 Training Reports and General Club Updates
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76woodenspooners
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OK, I’ll take a crack at a training report …
It was a glorious Wednesday morn, with cool gentle gusts of breeze and zephyrs and willie willies from the East. The sky was of a colour somewhere between Tuscan blue and Abbotsford aquamarine.
The Governor of the State of Victoria was in residence, with her yellow ensign flying high and prominently above her home just across the Yarra. Unfortunately for her she chose not to sit on the top deck of her tower in a banana lounge and watch the Collingwood lads strut their stuff on the Olympic Park oval - a treat wasted by her.
A crowd of around 30 fans plus three film crews plus a small army from Collingwood media had gathered to witness Beau McCreery dominate training, and dominate he did.
Collingwood’s new big hairy loud dude - Jarrod Wade - got proceedings underway with various warm up drills. This included various knee strengthening exercises like ‘hopping forward’, ‘hopping backward’, ‘hopping to the left’ and ‘hopping to the right’. Beau McCreery then did the hokey pokey and he shook it all around. That’s what it was all about.
The big hairy loud dude is clearly working on building up the players’ core strength. Lots of ‘rubber band man’ stuff, where the player would have a band around their abdomen running in one direction, whilst a couple of folks on the end of the band would try to pull them in the other direction. McCreery needed a team of working oxen to move him. That lad is good, damn good.
Whilst all this warming up stuff was going on, the footies were spread tantalizingly around the warm up area, like a platter of cherry chocolate cheesecake surrounding the limp iceberg lettuce leaves and overdone steak gristle at the Sizzler buffet. The lads were not going to be able to have their pudding until they’d eaten their meat.
Then followed a bunch of agility exercises. Curious thing this one. The lads went about their business, ducking and weaving between cones and around poles. But then the big hairy loud dude rejigged things to make it competitive - players racing each other around the cones and the poles - and the lads changed down a gear and put their foot down. This is a competitive bunch. McCreery dominated of course.
Then came time for the footies to be used and a broad smile spread across McCreery’s face. This is what this lad was built for. This is his life’s mission. The lads did a bit of kick to kick to find touch and McCreery dominated like a boss. At one point Daicos the elder fended off his man strongly, marked and kicked the footy back to kinda whence it came - ball going far left. At another point Daicos the younger fended off his man strongly, marked and kicked the footy back to kinda whence it came - the ball going far long. At another point McCreery owned Howe, marked strongly, and kicked the footy back to Leppitsch with such precision and force that it knocked all wind out of Leppitch’s bread basket and left lying him on the turf for a few minutes gasping for oxygen. I may or may not have exaggerated there a little.
Four stations where formed.
At one station they were running a defensive rebound drill. The lads practiced bringing the ball to ground then sending it to back into the centre. It was 7 defenders v 3 forwards, so it was hardly set up to be a fair contest. It looked more like about the defenders practicing their rebounding tactics.
At another station they practiced a contact drill. Players formed a single file as they took it in turns to pick up a ground ball - while getting smashed on both sides with pads, and a coach giving them a mild grappling contest. Ain’t nobody gunna accuse a Collingwood player of being scared of contact in 2022!
Didn’t see what was going on at the other two stations, but can reasonably assume that McCreery dominated them both. At the same time.
Three stations were formed.
One was about dealing with ground balls with dexterity and finesse.
Another was about dealing with ball-ins with dexterity and finesse.
The third was about marking the footy in a 1v1 contest with dexterity and finesse. Winner stayed on. Daicos the elder was notable and outmarked all who came against him - until he was eventually gassed and let others have a go.
If I’m being honest, and no point being here if I’m not, the skills across the board were a tad rusty. But I no complain - it’s early in the year and now is not the time to peak.
The lads were then split into four groups where each group was divided into two teams playing a game that was kinda like quidditch. Minus the broomsticks. And with footies. The aim was to work with your assigned team-mates get the footy into the net by hand only. Think the opposite of Irish dancing and you have the right idea.
At some stage McMahon looked like he did his right ankle and looked mightily upset. He hobbled into the Westpac Centre with a couple of trainers in tow.
At another stage Jamie Elliott chilled out on the turf while a physio worked on his calves and thighs.
Players were paired off, with a forward versus a defender engaging in marking contests. Notable was Henry owning IQ. Multiple times. Unitl IQ found his mojo and eventually brought his superior experience to bear. McCreery was paired up with Howe and we all know who dominated that contest!
Begg took a strong mark over Maynard to great cheer from the lads.
The full squad then played two short halves of a full ground match sim under a glorious sky that was getting further away from Tuscan Blue and closer to Abbotsford aquamarine. The easterly gusts and zephyrs and willie willies had picked up a little, testing the skills of the forwards who had marked strongly and were taking set shots at goal. Ginnivan did well, taking strong grabs and getting into dangerous positions.
A whistle was blown to end formal proceedings, and the lads then gathered in the middle with the coaches for a chat and a chinwag. They all then wandered off to do extras. Some practiced their goal kicking. Some practiced their ground ball collection. Some went into the Glasshouse and chill out in their newly renovated digs.
Last to leave the track was Coxy, who practiced his goal kicking from all positions around the clockface.
Things had kicked off around 9am and finished around 11:30am
The Good
The Bad
- Hard to fault such a lovely morning
The Ugly
- McMahon - never like seeing lads hobble off the turf grabbing their ankle, all the more so for a young lad at this early stage of the year.
- The ground needs shade for spectators. Build something over the terrace on the Eastern side of the ground. Yeah, the sight lines to AAMI park need to be considered but surely it’s not that hard. This has been a recorded message
- Now I appreciate a beautiful patina as much as anybody, but the new Glasshouse building is looking a bit tired and worn already despite being only around 5 years old. The cladding would appear to be of low quality. Hope it’s not that highly combustible stuff. Plus winners work in a facility that they feel proud to turn up to. The Glasshouse (old and new) really could do with a decent clean and a lick of paint. Some of the windows look like they’ve never been cleaned. This has also been a recorded message.
It was a glorious Wednesday morn, with cool gentle gusts of breeze and zephyrs and willie willies from the East. The sky was of a colour somewhere between Tuscan blue and Abbotsford aquamarine.
The Governor of the State of Victoria was in residence, with her yellow ensign flying high and prominently above her home just across the Yarra. Unfortunately for her she chose not to sit on the top deck of her tower in a banana lounge and watch the Collingwood lads strut their stuff on the Olympic Park oval - a treat wasted by her.
A crowd of around 30 fans plus three film crews plus a small army from Collingwood media had gathered to witness Beau McCreery dominate training, and dominate he did.
Collingwood’s new big hairy loud dude - Jarrod Wade - got proceedings underway with various warm up drills. This included various knee strengthening exercises like ‘hopping forward’, ‘hopping backward’, ‘hopping to the left’ and ‘hopping to the right’. Beau McCreery then did the hokey pokey and he shook it all around. That’s what it was all about.
The big hairy loud dude is clearly working on building up the players’ core strength. Lots of ‘rubber band man’ stuff, where the player would have a band around their abdomen running in one direction, whilst a couple of folks on the end of the band would try to pull them in the other direction. McCreery needed a team of working oxen to move him. That lad is good, damn good.
Whilst all this warming up stuff was going on, the footies were spread tantalizingly around the warm up area, like a platter of cherry chocolate cheesecake surrounding the limp iceberg lettuce leaves and overdone steak gristle at the Sizzler buffet. The lads were not going to be able to have their pudding until they’d eaten their meat.
Then followed a bunch of agility exercises. Curious thing this one. The lads went about their business, ducking and weaving between cones and around poles. But then the big hairy loud dude rejigged things to make it competitive - players racing each other around the cones and the poles - and the lads changed down a gear and put their foot down. This is a competitive bunch. McCreery dominated of course.
Then came time for the footies to be used and a broad smile spread across McCreery’s face. This is what this lad was built for. This is his life’s mission. The lads did a bit of kick to kick to find touch and McCreery dominated like a boss. At one point Daicos the elder fended off his man strongly, marked and kicked the footy back to kinda whence it came - ball going far left. At another point Daicos the younger fended off his man strongly, marked and kicked the footy back to kinda whence it came - the ball going far long. At another point McCreery owned Howe, marked strongly, and kicked the footy back to Leppitsch with such precision and force that it knocked all wind out of Leppitch’s bread basket and left lying him on the turf for a few minutes gasping for oxygen. I may or may not have exaggerated there a little.
Four stations where formed.
At one station they were running a defensive rebound drill. The lads practiced bringing the ball to ground then sending it to back into the centre. It was 7 defenders v 3 forwards, so it was hardly set up to be a fair contest. It looked more like about the defenders practicing their rebounding tactics.
At another station they practiced a contact drill. Players formed a single file as they took it in turns to pick up a ground ball - while getting smashed on both sides with pads, and a coach giving them a mild grappling contest. Ain’t nobody gunna accuse a Collingwood player of being scared of contact in 2022!
Didn’t see what was going on at the other two stations, but can reasonably assume that McCreery dominated them both. At the same time.
Three stations were formed.
One was about dealing with ground balls with dexterity and finesse.
Another was about dealing with ball-ins with dexterity and finesse.
The third was about marking the footy in a 1v1 contest with dexterity and finesse. Winner stayed on. Daicos the elder was notable and outmarked all who came against him - until he was eventually gassed and let others have a go.
If I’m being honest, and no point being here if I’m not, the skills across the board were a tad rusty. But I no complain - it’s early in the year and now is not the time to peak.
The lads were then split into four groups where each group was divided into two teams playing a game that was kinda like quidditch. Minus the broomsticks. And with footies. The aim was to work with your assigned team-mates get the footy into the net by hand only. Think the opposite of Irish dancing and you have the right idea.
At some stage McMahon looked like he did his right ankle and looked mightily upset. He hobbled into the Westpac Centre with a couple of trainers in tow.
At another stage Jamie Elliott chilled out on the turf while a physio worked on his calves and thighs.
Players were paired off, with a forward versus a defender engaging in marking contests. Notable was Henry owning IQ. Multiple times. Unitl IQ found his mojo and eventually brought his superior experience to bear. McCreery was paired up with Howe and we all know who dominated that contest!
(Both players shared the chocolates there)
Begg took a strong mark over Maynard to great cheer from the lads.
The full squad then played two short halves of a full ground match sim under a glorious sky that was getting further away from Tuscan Blue and closer to Abbotsford aquamarine. The easterly gusts and zephyrs and willie willies had picked up a little, testing the skills of the forwards who had marked strongly and were taking set shots at goal. Ginnivan did well, taking strong grabs and getting into dangerous positions.
A whistle was blown to end formal proceedings, and the lads then gathered in the middle with the coaches for a chat and a chinwag. They all then wandered off to do extras. Some practiced their goal kicking. Some practiced their ground ball collection. Some went into the Glasshouse and chill out in their newly renovated digs.
Last to leave the track was Coxy, who practiced his goal kicking from all positions around the clockface.
Things had kicked off around 9am and finished around 11:30am
The Good
- Perfect summer’s day in Melbourne
- Training.
- Big hairy loud dude has a real presence.
- McCreery is sharp
The Bad
- Hard to fault such a lovely morning
The Ugly
- McMahon - never like seeing lads hobble off the turf grabbing their ankle, all the more so for a young lad at this early stage of the year.
- The ground needs shade for spectators. Build something over the terrace on the Eastern side of the ground. Yeah, the sight lines to AAMI park need to be considered but surely it’s not that hard. This has been a recorded message
- Now I appreciate a beautiful patina as much as anybody, but the new Glasshouse building is looking a bit tired and worn already despite being only around 5 years old. The cladding would appear to be of low quality. Hope it’s not that highly combustible stuff. Plus winners work in a facility that they feel proud to turn up to. The Glasshouse (old and new) really could do with a decent clean and a lick of paint. Some of the windows look like they’ve never been cleaned. This has also been a recorded message.
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great stuff!
MyManLynch
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You didn’t report on the status of the coffee shop…
TradeDraft
Premium Platinum
^^^
Holden Center is a Terrible place for Spectators and Club has done nothing to Fix it
Holden Center is a Terrible place for Spectators and Club has done nothing to Fix it
76woodenspooners
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Closed. No muffins to be seen.
MyManLynch
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That’s disgraceful…could be grounds for an EGM…
I’m flying back in 2 weeks & expect to have my Latte with Lica.
I actually think it's both. Midfielders still tend to stay on the move, jogging slowly into position to get some relief from their direct opponent and to keep structure. They need to manage the explosive efforts as much as the continual motion.
Lovely wrap there 76woodenspooners .
Shall we have a Lions-Club-style weekend with a bunch of high pressure hoses and a few tins of paint to lick it back into shape?
76woodenspooners
Brownlow Medallist
Yes.
Obviously this is what Jeff Browne’s new membership drive is all about.
Exactly the problem with not having a dedicated training facility.
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MyManLynch
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Slight of hand…a donut here, a roast beef sandwich there…
Or a distraction…Wow look…it’s Nick Daicos topless…could net you a lobster roll.
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Don't be mean to poor Chugg, Sco, he really is a good player I promise. Don't ask me for evidence, just believe me okay. Here, look at his biceps.
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Thanks for the report 76woodenspooners, now have a crack at the tough bit, who of the new /inexperienced crew look most likely to play early on ( sans Nick )
If no one really did, at least make up a few names!!!
If no one really did, at least make up a few names!!!
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This is some of your best work 76.
But were you really there?
P.S. some of us have been banging on about the absence of shade/shelter/cover at OP for years.
We are like a broken record. But it falls on deaf ears.P.P.S. That does look like dodgy cladding on the Glasshouse. Wouldn’t surprise if so. It was built under Pert’s reign and he was always looking to cut expenditure. It looks cheap.
Pendles to captain for a ninth season, l think is a good move, particularly as he can not only captain our younger guys, but coach and set the standard for them, going forward in their careers....
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What happened to the hairdo's thread? Is it now the biceps thread?Yep, saw him at the footy on Saturday.
Date Posted: 13:27 19/01/22 Wed
Author: Annabelle
Subject: Reflections from the mid-week training session.
The Australian Vigil Movement had set up camp in a grassed area opposite the Rod Laver Arena with a police presence monitoring their actions. A deep blue sky speckled with a few lonely clouds greeted the players today. It was warmish, but the biggest weather factor was a lively breeze which made judgement of the ball difficult during the match simulation near the end of the session.
It was pleasing to see all of Magden, Grundy, Sidey, Dean and Kreuger return from their various forms of hibernation. Magden may have had a niggle because he joined in with Checkers and Pendles when they broke from the main pack to do their customary running and agility work. Callum is still in isolation though, and Murphy who received a heavy knock on Monday was walking slowish laps bouncing a footy. Some young NAB league aspirants joined training today.
The Wednesday warm-up routine is negotiating the mini-hurdles at the Yarra end and the players tackled these obstacles with vim and vigour. Today the emphasis appeared to be on navigating through them in a sideways position. This was accompanied by more resistance work with the ropes. People who haven’t seen the younger group since last season remark upon how much they have bulked up. Perhaps the players’ body sculpting animus may derive from the philosophy of the new regime.
There were a series of drills today and tackling is always the main course on a Wednesday and many activities involved this, with some adding the bags to the exercise. As per usual the instructions were clear and there was a lot of energy expended here.
There were discrete drills featuring players nominated for positions which they are likely destined to play. The defence included: Roughie, Howe, IQ, Pendles, Ruscoe ,Maynard, Moore and Chugg, but Nick D did some work with the mids today, as did Crisp who appears slated for significant onballer minutes. These were focussed on ball movement, with quick, corridor orientation the key instructions. At one point it was only all the youngsters involved in the drill and they moved with alacrity and enthusiasm.
There were other sundry drills prior to the match sim, with perhaps the most interesting one providing an examination of key one-on-one contests. A line of players would stand and then pairs would wait their turn for the match-up. Henry and IQ had an enthralling duel with the former winning the points. Ollie has a penchant for thrusting his body into the right position, even when he is out of the contest, and his purchase on the ball on these occasions indicates his sure hands. IQ won the last of a willing mini competition. Charlie Dean showed that despite predictions of dourness, he is apt to back himself to mark and he definitely outpointed Magden comprehensively and battled hard against Maynard. Draper beat Wilson. Begg competed well with Maynard too, while Howe had his work cut out at times against younger opponents. There were some tackling activities conducted between poles in which tackles were vigorously effected and there has been a lot of focus on players having to break tackles and then release. Reef and Nick D. both showed a capacity to stand up in tackles and lay off to a teammate.
The match simulation was instructive today as it was arguably the most full-blooded since the Christmas hiatus, possibly given the reinforcements who have been augmenting the main break and because we are going deeper into pre-season, so honing our skills and simulating match play is becoming more of a priority. The drills are very good for scaffolding the skills and demonstrating to the players the preferred style.
The match was quite willing and it appeared to be probables versus possible at this juncture. There were pleasing signs from Begg, that his athleticism is not the only attribute stored in his kit-bag. He contested well, winning some. Grundy and Cameron essentially contested the ruck, while Cox was stationed as a key forward. Nick Daicos is a billboard for advertising surgical precision, even under pressure and he seemed to win the pill prolifically, mainly playing in an on-ball role. Reef was again a stand out and at one point, he beat Josh D. for the ball, powering past him and leaving him in his wake. Ginnivan displayed his footy smarts, playing for the probables in the forward zone, presenting and running to the correct spots. His finishing was polished and precise. Johnson too took time over a shot from the boundary line, correctly assessed the wind, and split the middle. Ash also has pace and the ability to out-smart opponents with his elusive traits. Cox at times outpointed Roughie, while Henry competed against Moore, and the latter’s strategy was to punch the ball and try to follow through with aggressive running. Kelly’s hands remain problematic. The marks aren’t sticking, but one can add to that some of his groundwork. The consensus from track-watchers was that he lacks the one-touch ability of the impressive Reef for instance, or the wunderkind ND. Draper also showcased some eye-catching attributes, while Elliott had a stint on the ball and in forwardland, and he like Nick D. is ambidextrous: neither player worries about what foot they must deliver on. Poulter at times displayed some laconic and exciting moves.
After every main drill or the match simulation, McRae leads a plenary session where he is discussing what the players did well, and clearly where improvement is warranted. Today after the match-play, he had the guys standing in a circle and they seemed to be empowered to offer their input into this process. This was the final main activity, though Lepa had the bag out for the likes of Kelly, Cox, Checkers and Begg to practise their high marking skills. On the opposite side of the ground, some of the mids and rucks worked with Fraser and Selwood on stoppages. Grundy is definitely looking leaner and meaner, though still has the same loping style.
The group seems upbeat without the fissuring of the past few seasons being evident and some of the young ones are clearly on an upward trajectory. Today’s training was again played out against a backdrop of streams of patrons pouring into Melbourne Park and constant announcements about arrangements for these attendees.
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Draper has impressed
Quicker than I thought
Bit reserved as a first year but he’ll grow in that regard
Done very well in all he has done
Lot of potential as a FWD/ mid
First play of the match sim today:
Reef wins in the middle
Out to Arlo on the wing
Delivers to Ollie
Quicker than I thought
Bit reserved as a first year but he’ll grow in that regard
Done very well in all he has done
Lot of potential as a FWD/ mid
First play of the match sim today:
Reef wins in the middle
Out to Arlo on the wing
Delivers to Ollie
I love mongrel! Bring him straight in!
jmac70
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The name alone should guarantee him 300 games.
Reading this it sounds like a premiership is on its way in 2023 if not this year.
Out of all the 1st and and 2nd year players who have impressed you the most, and who do you see making impact next season and playing say 15+ games in the best 22. And who are the ones that would require more development in VFL?
