Training - Wednesday 7 January, 2009

[JJJ 1,313]

Attended training this morning.

They started off doing some light running and stretching and then proceeded to some harder, faster running.

The running drills allowed a few players to stand out, including Frawley who looks pretty focused. Luckily no player in particular looks to be struggling.

The full length of the ground drills were pretty standard. They feature running in numbers and handball out of the backline to organise a release man forward of the centre square to kick to a leading target. The main leading targets were Miller, Watts, Newton, Jamar and Jurrah.

1: Buckley: Injured, groin related at a guess. Handballing and helping out the younger players in the rehab group when I was there. Looks very strong and physically imposing.

2: Jones: Looks great. Ran hard in the running drills and was vocal during the ball work. His 2nd efforts were a standout.

3: Bartram: Looks like he has added muscle to his frame but he did miss quite a few targets and fumbled a bit. Fantastic at the gut running drills.

4: Watts: He is quick. Very quick. He isnt as skinny as I thought he would be. His kicking to McLean in a kick to kick drill was sensational (on both sides) as was his kicking for goals later. Doesnt seem to have a massive engine. Has an air of confidence that is very encouraging and was vocal in the drills. His lateral quickness was also on display and combined with clean hands should allow him to play a variety of position early on in his career.

5: McLean: Going at 75% I would have thought. Ran hard through all of the drills and his skills by hand and foot were excellent as was his decision making. He and Miller were the most vocal and enthusiastic.

6: Bate: Injured or at least having a very light week. Participated with the main group for most of the drills but did go inside the change rooms once or twice during.

7: Miller: Trained like his life depended on it. Interestingly he wasnt always starting from the goal square in the length of the ground drills.

8: Frawley: Trained very strongly. Looks bigger. His 2nd efforts on the running drills were excellent. After 2007 I thought he would develop into a powerful runner but last year left me unsure. Today, he was leading his running group time after time. His kicking was ok and his carry of the football was very good.

10: Morton: Started with the rehab group and looks to have added some weight. Was stationary kicking with Strauss and he looked awful. He joined the main group in the full groud stuff and looked great. His kicks to the leading forwards were spot on. He timed his runs to perfection to ensure he was the designated kicker. He was giving instructions as to where to run to some 1st year players.

11: Johnson: Meh, looks to be fit and raring to go. Much of the same from Johnson.

12: Sylvia: One of the best. Hit targets, ran hard and generally showed clean hands and good decision making. He pushed aside Bartram in one drill so easily it was embarrassing. He did lag a little towards the end of the running drills but not through lack of trying, he just needs more work. He was vocal, enthusiastic and generally pretty exciting.

14: Dunn: Trained well. His running was good. Even in drills he makes some weird decisions though.

15: Peterd: Unsighted early. Then walked into the sheds shaking his head and talking to a trainer regarding his right hammy. He then reappeared kicking with Meesen who did very little.

16: Grimes: Bulked up. Has an interesting kicking technique which is accurate but I think will limit his distance. He is a very good decision maker and can run hard for a long time. He doesnt act like a 2nd year player and certainly knows the game judging by the way he finds the ball.

18: Green: Unusually sloppy for a seasoned vet. Made fairly average decisions in traffic.

19: Maric: Injured. Handballed. Stood around.

20: Garland: Trained very well. Made few errors and moves as well as anybody on the team. Not as big as I had hoped.

21: Bell: Kicked well. Ran hard and looks vgood when he didnt have to think about it.

22: Moloney: Injured. Helped the younger rehab guys.

24: Robertson: Injured did some jogging and handballing.

25: Cheney: Looked great. He seemed to move pretty well and his disposal was neat. He caught my eye on more than the odd occassion. He is really aggressive, especially considering its January.

27: Rivers: Trained with the main group. He looked healthy and happy. Probably the highlight of the morning was his presence along with McLean.

29: Newton: Looks like he has hit the weights. His field kicking is excellent but he still dropped the odd mark which says something about his concentration levels in my eyes.

30: McNamara: Doesnt look 190cm.

32: Bruce: Looked up and about. Trying to impress?????? Still cant handball, hopefully Scott West can address this.

33: Martin: Looks huge on the field. So nimble and strong but I never saw a kick really hit the target well and his overhead marking was a bit off.

35: Zomer: If he is who I think he is he may not be seen too much this winter.

36: Davey: Another who looked great. At one stage he had Jetta chasing and he just took 3-4 steps to gap him. His kicking was sublime.

37: Warnock: Looked pretty average to be honest.Im not a big wrap for him so I could be a fraction biased.

38: Spencer: Enthusiastic, ran really hard and tried. His kicking is something else. How a forward could have any idea where the ball is going is anyones guess, including big Jakes.

39: Wona: Kicking is great, either side. Showed a bit of leadership in helping Jurrah. Looks to be in great shape.

Bennell: He is small but moves well. Showed neat skills and a bit of toe.

Blease: Pretty sure the boys were calling him sauce. His kicking looked a little shabby. He is quick though and skinny.

Jurrah: started the longer drills deep forward. He is quick and has good skills. He stood next to Rivers and looked a couple of cm's shorter. He showed a bit of class with his deft hands and decision making in traffic. He is really skinny, particularly in the lower body but you can see the promise.

[Rhino Richards 1,467]

Thanks for the detailed report JJJ. Very informative.

[montasaurus 0]

Great report!

Watts - Doesnt seem to have a massive engine,

I thought this was one of his key attributes at draft time. I think he was likened to NR at Stkilda for this - it will be interesting to see how he progresses

[LeBron James 41]

Awesome JJJ, great work.

[Goodvibes 3,596]

Great stuff! Cheers JJJ

[ChannellingHopgoodAgro 4]

That's great JJJ - many thanks.

Really looking forward to hearing more of Grimes's progress especially.

[Gorgoroth 13,016]

Watts will gain a better engine with a few preseasons.

Great report, thanks for putting in so much effort.

[Whispering_Jack 30,578]

That's great JJJ - many thanks.

Really looking forward to hearing more of Grimes's progress especially.

Thanks JJJ. Hope to make it out there myself on Friday.

There's a few missing - Junior, Wheats, the Russian, Wheels and Valenti that come to mind. But having been to a few of these training sessions I know how easy it is to miss somebody.

Cheers!

[MrMoose 262]

Great report - thanks.

I'm interested in taking the kids to a training session - did it start at 8.30 am as advertised on the MFC website?

[Wolfmother 182]

Thanks to JJJ and anyone who does a report us diehards love it

[Guest melbman]

Thanks JJJ

Great report

BTW I noticed Watts got very tired mid way through a training late last year. At the time I thought it was because he put in so hard during the early drills

Cheers

[JJJ 1,313]

Thanks JJJ

Great report

BTW I noticed Watts got very tired mid way through a training late last year. At the time I thought it was because he put in so hard during the early drills

Cheers

Watts did run very hard early on. He came through metres in front of his group in the 1st couple of sprints. Im happy for him to push himself and hang on. Its how all the great players do it.

Mr Moose: Training actually started at 8am and there were at least a dozen younger kids buzzing around.

Whispering: There are a few missing. I cant actually remember seeing McDonald or Whelan but that doesnt mean they werent there, Valenti left the track a little early with a physio (didnt seem serious, they were laughing etc), Wheats was there but didnt stand out and Russian was his typical self, strong marking and below average disposal (He actually played as a deep forward in the drills).

[Freak 100]

how was strauss and jetta?

[True Believer 1]

how was strauss and jetta?

Thanks for the very informative post.... a great read

[Lil_red_fire_engine 11,233]

Excellent summary. I was also there but most has been covered above.Whelan was not in attendance. Strauss was on the sidelines for most of the session. Wheatley came off mid way through and was not seen again unsure what the reason was but did not look serious. Mcdonald trained but was in the group on the far side of the ground for most of the session. Frawley, Dunn and Newton have noticeably bulked up and along with Sylvia were the most impressive. There was a strong focus across the session on decision making particularly under pressure as well as alot of team oriented excercises.

[Freak 100]

so let me get this straight. Strauss, Buckley, Mclean, Petterd, Maric, Bate, Moloney, Robertson and Morton all have some sort of injury. Not good.

[Slartibartfast 17,518]

JJJ and BR, thanks.

Did Rivers join full training?

[waynewussell 6,237]

Thanks JJJ and Big Red, a comprehensive report on the whole list, greatly appreciated by this Demon junkie!

[timD 994]

Great stuff JJJ and BR - I needed my 'Demon fix'!

[Deeoldfart 8,061]

Great stuff JJJ and BR - I needed my 'Demon fix'!

Ditto! Living in Canberra makes Demonland and reports like these critical to my sanity in the off-season (although there are some who doubt that it works).

[MrMoose 262]

Thanks, will take the kids to a session - cheap holiday outing! LOL

[Lil_red_fire_engine 11,233]

Rivers appeared to do full training. I would not be concerned with Strauss, Buckley, Mclean, Petterd, Maric, Bate, Moloney, Robertson and Morton not doing full training. Buckley, Strauss, Moloney and Robbo were the only ones to sit out all sessions. The others were rotated through various sessions. I would assume to protect them from specific niggles, manage their workload or to ensure they do not recurr an ailment they are recovering from. McLean completed nearly all sessions (if not all) but agree he was probably not at full pace.

[e25 5]

so let me get this straight. Strauss, Buckley, Mclean, Petterd, Maric, Bate, Moloney, Robertson and Morton all have some sort of injury. Not good.

Possibly managing the player's individual training loads?

Unless they are on crutches I wouldn't be too worried, i think the younger players would be managed & restricted more carefully than the older players.

I'll try to go down on friday or some time next week & take notes.

[JJJ 1,313]

so let me get this straight. Strauss, Buckley, Mclean, Petterd, Maric, Bate, Moloney, Robertson and Morton all have some sort of injury. Not good.

Of those only Maric, McLean and Robertson would seem to be serious with McLean and Robo well on the road to recovery. I will be curious to hear what happens on friday with Buckley, groin injuries with young players scare me.

One thing I forgot to mention, Strauss' kicking action is similar to a former MFC B&F winner who now plays up in QLD. Hopefully he has a better work rate and application to his career.

[CARN THE DEES! 14]

Of those only Maric, McLean and Robertson would seem to be serious with McLean and Robo well on the road to recovery. I will be curious to hear what happens on friday with Buckley, groin injuries with young players scare me.

One thing I forgot to mention, Strauss' kicking action is similar to a former MFC B&F winner who now plays up in QLD. Hopefully he has a better work rate and application to his career.

Whats wrong with Maric??