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Toby Bedford learnt a valuable lesson in the session yesterday Was matched up on Nev at one point and cheekily gave him a love tap Nev bided his time and then happily buried Toby in a ball and all tackle Chandler is my early pick to be a surpise packet Corey Wagner will be keeping all the medium small forwards honest

he's been very chirpy at training the coaches are sure to throw a few crumbs his way i expect we'll see him flying at some stage

FB: - N.JETTA(180cm) - S.MAY(193cm) - M.HIBBERD(186cm) HB: - J.LEVER(195cm) - S.FROST(194cm) - C.SALEM(183cm) ? - J.HARMES(185cm) - C.OLIVER(187cm) - K.KOLODJASHNIJ(190cm) HF: - C.PETRACCA(186cm) - S.WEIDEMAN(195cm) - J.MELKSHAM(186cm) FF: - A.VANDENBERG(188cm) - T.McDONALD(194cm) - A.NEAL-BULLEN(182cm) RR: - M.GAWN(208cm) - A.BRAYSHAW(187cm) - J.VINEY(178cm) INT: - N.JONES(180cm), B.FRITSCH (188cm), J.SMITH(191cm), B.PRUESS(206cm) EMG: O.McDONALD(196cm), M.HANNAN(189cm), C.SPARGO(173cm), J.LEWIS(186cm) If Lever doesn't get up then replace with Lewis. O.mac doesn't get into the 22 just yet as he's spent the majority of preseason in rehab while Frost has been tracking nicely.

Most people don't, which is why it should be called 'rare sense'. Although I appreciate a self-effacing comment when I see one. Melbourne, like Richmond (and unlike West Coast), play a high pressure and chaotic territory game. But even then, the better teams, despite their differing styles, are in the positive when it comes to 'metres gained differential'. Fast ball movement, high pressure, out-number at every contest possible, play on quickly, and get the ball into the F50 is our 'one wood'. We had the most inside 50s in 2018 and the best inside 50 differential, as well as being no.1 in countless other stats. And if we can't mark in the F50 we at least want to bring it to ground. It's no accident we're the highest scoring team in the AFL by 25 goals. Here is a stat I found very interesting and it confirms that our manic game-style has its advantages: Being no.1 in 'metres gained differential' obviously was a large reason we were no.2 in 'points gained differential', as you can see above. To retain the ball in the F50 and to out-number at every contest isn't helped by having a second lumbering ruckman. West Coast play a different game-style (precise kicking / retain control of the footy) to us that is more conducive to a second ruck. And it's also worth noting that Vardy is a very mobile and athletic big man with decent pace. He's as much a forward ruck as a ruckman, so a different type of ruck to Preuss. It's also worth noting that turnovers are the no.1 scoring source for scoring shots in the AFL. Generally speaking, mid-size players force more turnovers that 206cm giants. Gawn, Tom McDonald, and Weideman for me is enough talls to provide an aerial forward threat. Gawn won't be needed to fill the hole down back this year, so when he does need a rest Weideman can pinch hit in the ruck and Gawn can prowl the F50. And occasionally McDonald might get a 5 minute ruck burst. They'll most definitely try the Gawn/Preuss combo and if it works great. But for our game-style and strengths (outlined above) I'm not keen on it. We need to build on what works, not strip it back. There's plenty of room for improvement, which will come from hopefully Viney playing more than 7 games in the H&A, Weideman progressing, May/Lever controlling D50, Kolodjashnij and Fritsch up around the wings, for once a fit vandenBerg, and the natural improvement from over half the best 22 due to their age. I know we'll tweak our game-style. It doesn't need reinventing, just some improvement. The foundations are very strong. But I'm not convinced a second 206cm ruck helps our game-plan. For me it hinders it. You occasionally have to give something up to take a step forward, but playing Preuss gives up too much in my mind and I don't see the benefits of him playing with Gawn as any great panacea to where we're deficient. A wingmen has to be able to deliver inside F50 with precision. Smith on a wing is a diabolical suggestion. If you read training reports you'll see that Kolodjashnij has been playing this role well. He's the prototype wingmen and I suspect it's why we got him to the club.

ANB will be the transition player with his strong running. He'll set another record for km's per game expect 17km in a game, a few times this year. Midfield and Wing, then he'll run forward into a wide open 50 with his direct opponent a long way behind. Sparrow with his long kicking and solid possesion will be his trademark. We'll see him this year. Toby Bedford is dynamic, expect his fitness to increase and his tackling pressure reminds me ex-rugby junior Matthew "The Wrecker" Whelan. I loved watching him play. Haven't seen much of Marty Hore or Chandler.

Turned up at 10:20 so might've missed a bit but they were in to some decent match practice between two teams. Maybe 12 or so per side. (Keilty the latest in rehab doing a fair bit with Baker, Lever and Viney laps). Ball use across the backline and creating angles to work the ball in to the middle of the ground was slick. From there it was really going quick and aggressively in to the forward line which meant some errors but also some nice pieces of play. Standouts: T Mc - got on the end of a couple and marked well May - a couple of nice intercept marks Fritsch - finding a stack of ball on a wing with some sharp ball use Vanders - not always the best with the ball but high work rate, was constantly in play The draftees all showed a bit as well. Hore was composed across half back. Bedford stuck a tackle on Gawn and bought him down. Jordon linked up nicely received a handball and kicked perfectly to a fat side lead. Chandler was busy and has sure hands overhead. Corey Wagner another who gets involved quite a bit. Part of the forward group and working hard up and back. Lewis did a few nice things, took a strong mark and looked very sharp but then got the ball under pressure and did this thing twice where he holds the ball low over his boot and quickly squirts out a shanked kick that just puts team mates under more pressure. Concerning. They moved in to small 2/3rd ground match practice with 4 different teams rotating. Again, ball use, overlap, quick movement. After that they split talls and smalls, with the smalls working on quick hands and pressure. A bit of 3 on 3 kind of stuff. In two different groups they did some running, not flat out but up and back over about 40m at a good pace for a period of time. Jordon/Neita/Chandler/Bedford did some one on one tackle/evade drills, the two smalls look strong tacklers as you'd expect. Some of the main guys did an exercise that involved fast steps then receiving a ball whilst rolling to ground on either side of the cones, bouncing up for an attempted hanger, then a bump/tackle, out to get a high ball then on to a lead. It looked pretty brutal stuff but also like a really good drill to simulate in game movements and 2nd/3rd/4th efforts. It's the kind of stuff I like seeing because it's smart training rather than just flogging them laps. By that time it was well in to the 30's and I'd seen enough.

I don't think I'm going out on a limb to say that I think Tom Sparrow will play senior footy at some point this year.

I watched Hore in the match simulation last Friday. He was defending and seemed to me to be out of position, keeping the an eye on two or three forwards, not near any of them and looking a bit lost. However when the ball was kicked to his area he prevented his opponents getting a clean possession and killed off the forward thrust. Could develop into a pretty useful defender.

I don't think he uses the ball well enough 'Fat'... We now have a mix of players who can play this position & are good users/decision makers. I would rather them play into form/team in preseason. I think we are past trialling players in positions as far as best 22 go. Casey will be used to further develop depth.

Interesting that Corey Wagner is training with the forwards. They may play him as a high half forward who pushes up the ground and back to goals with his endurance running. Hannan will want to get his body right and play some good footy.

His barrel on the 3/4 time siren in Alice Springs was one of the best kicks for goal after the siren I have ever seen....

He desperately needs to improve his lateral movement, without this he won’t improve. If he can improve this he’ll become a very valuable asset for us like he was a couple of years ago.

Stretch didn't train with the main group and did a number of drills by himself. First he moved the guys' backpacks into a big pile. Strength training, probably. Then he unwound extension cables for the boom box and laptops. Then plugged them together to make one really long cable. Great agility. Then he tightened the guy ropes on the tent. Then watched the other guys training for a while. I think it was a recovery period mandated by the physios. Most of the rest of the time he was running slow laps, between Gosch's and AAMI getting cold water bottles for the guys. Didn't slow down at all, even in the heat. Each time the coaches gathered the players in a group for instructions, he ran out and held up some whiteboards with magnets on them. I couldn't see what was on them. At one stage I saw Goodwin approach him and ask for a loan of 50 bucks. Stretch got out his wallet but his reaction time was a bit slow and Goody really gave it to him. High standards even at this time of year. You play like you train! While the main group was doing match simulations, Stretch cut up a whole bag of oranges with his non-preferred hand. Towards the end of the session, he picked up a big sack and collected the stray footies in it. One was right on the boundary line, he tried a freak goal with it and it missed and the ball went out on to Punt Road. Macca paid out on him and said he's supposed to be collecting the footies, not playing with them. Part of his rehab I suppose. A really strong session and if he keeps it up, there's every chance we'll see him collecting footies on the G in September.

Players who rely on their spring to take contested marks, like Fritsch and Jeremy Howe, often don't make it as forwards despite seeming to have great potential in attack. For defensive units in modern AFL teams, it's too easy for someone to block their run or get some body on them. Howe takes a lot more marks in defence than he ever did in attack because he doesn't have one or two players devoted to stopping him. Same with Fritsch. In defence, he will often be able to float across packs whereas up forward he would be blocked or knocked off his line. So half back might actually be a better use of Fritsch's marking ability than up forward. I agree with what others have said about it being a better use of his kicking skills aswell. Having said all that, I hope he can sneak forward a few times during games from half back/wing - would be a headache for opposition coaches.

Maybe the transcriber misheard or misread and everyone's friend auto correct didn't pick it up, I only read for the gist not the lesson in grammatically corect flowing prose, you? Like in the 70's, a friend asked to borrow my personal recording device He said 'can I borrow you Dictaphone?' I said "no, use your finger like everybody else'

Nev has been raving to me about Toby for 2 years, was overjoyed when we got him, thinks with the correct development we have now will be a crowd/cult favorite when he gets his chance Nev relishes the mentoring role

Incredibly, four of the nine listed were born within a six day period in May 2000. Bradtke and Bedford both born on the 27th, Nietschke one day earlier on the 26th and Sparrow on the 31st.

Yes I think 90% of demonlanders and observers think Sparrow will play for MFC in 2019. But I’m happy if he has a full year at Casey. That would mean we had enough mids and low injuries. He probably gets a game if we start to run down midfield stocks. Wagner is the same. Handy depth. Hore is a very good signing and should see some MFC game time. Lewis could get rested during this year and Lever is unlikely to be ready for Round 1. Most of the others should have a year to develop at Casey with no pressure to step up just yet.

sorry for the tough conditions Dr. By the way, maybe its time you changed your avatar name to 'Dr Time'... just sayin.

Hunt has so much dash. Hopefully he is bringing a high level of professionalism and discipline to his mental and physical preparation and will bring that forward on match day. Like others, he is probably going to have play some exceptional footy with Casey early in the season.

i don't have any - walk me through it.

Which, unlike previous incarnations of the MFC, will mean he's totally earned the opportunity and we'll be all the better for it. Going by all the reports, he sounds like a ripper.

You will be wrong, Preuss came across because Melbourne said that they will play him and Gawn. Typical set-up will be Tom McD at CHF leading way up. Weids at FF leading to the ball carrier and resting ruckman in the forward pocket or on the bench. You will also see Weids and Tom McD play very little ruck; this hurt Melbourne when they did that last year as they started losing most of the centre breaks. They will try and use Gawn's and Preuss' height to stretch defence match-ups, might even force some teams to play their second ruckman in defence.

Billy Stretch adjusting the ropes

I'm a little surprised that with all the forward talk there is never a mention of Spargo ? He pretty much cemented a spot last year as our small crumber in the forward 50 and from what I saw did a pretty good job Seems like everyone thinks there are others ahead of him now - I feel the coaches like him because he seems to play very much to his instructions / team focus I would expect he will still be very much in the mix this year unless he has gone backwards

I had to work this afternoon, so pics on here and Insta tonight Fritsch was the standout, with Salem running him a close second and Tommy Mc next, in my humble opinion of course Umpires there again, which is great initiative It was a really good near 3 hour session, for a hot sweaty session the skills were excellent Tommy Mc charged past me on way back to AAMI in just shorts, obviously the barefoot is the rule, was hardly sweating Vanders proves footy is back, has a lovely black eye, as displayed on the party shirt photo on here Even though he has a fight on his hands reckon Jeff Garlett will shut up some of the experts on here, the battle for the small forward spots is going to be hot

Overall thoughts: - Game simulation was high intensity, Macca made big point of saying to the lime coaches that if we can execute in last 15 when other sides are knacked, we’ll Win. This seems to be a real mean theme this year, as too often we let close games slip and could easily of won top 2 spot if we won 90% of those close games. Standouts: Fritsch disposal and acc of touches. Vanders was a bull and did some great work entering attacking situations turning slow transitions into scoring plays. Brayshaw showed great hands & timing. Pruess was solid w/disposal. May solid & gave his all through entire session l, and was certifiably buggered at end of the training session. Tmac was sensational with hands & positioning, looked cut above. Nev was talking all throughout and encouraging every play, whilst also showing absolutely insanely accurate short passes. Sparrow looks to be one they’re working to develop foot skill wise before anything else and his focus was solid all session. Chandler to me is a sleeper too. Has real poise & game sense. Oscar was frustrating coaches quite a bit throughout missing key instructions & being a bit clumsy. Clarrie’s size is at another level again - 2-3cm talker IMHO to 12 months ago & bulk is now more refined clearly more powerful in arms especially. Joel Smith’s hands again looked great but foot skills short are really questionable & can’t see him breaking into back 6 this year will be more a fwd and utility option. Fritter clearly a wingman and sweeper. KK, Salem, May, Lever, Hibs & Nev all look like forming a truly gifted backline with Frosty ahead of Oscar for Mine. Petty worked reallly strongly all session, def has development to come and could be ready to make a mark if called upon. Jeffy looks a little behind fitness wise but is def pushing with Bedford for small spot.

And now we have some teammates who’s brains he really can pick. Teammates who really have been there done that, teammates who really believe in themselves and teammates who realise that with hard work and dedication, the prize may not be too far away. A culture that is still building but one that Sparrow and the other “kids” will embrace as natural. A big, big turnaround from 8 - 10 years ago. I know we all thank Paul Roos but I want to thank Daniel Cross for importing a professionalism of dedication and training that shocked many at the club into changing their ways (or getting out)! How much talent was waisted a decade ago by ineptitude, amateurism, and pure stupidity, a bloody lot IMHO.

Barring any injuries VandenBerg is a shoein and is in our best 22 IMO. The kind of player with the big body aggressive and hits hard.

http://www.afl.com.au/news/2018-12-15/r1-2019-who-plays-in-your-clubs-seasonopener My team considering pre season form. B: JETTA, MAY, HORE HB: HIBBERD, FROST, SALEM C : KOLODJASHNIJ, OLIVER, HARMES HF: PETRACCA, WEIDEMAN, NEAL-BULLEN F: MELKSHAM, T.MCDONALD, SPARGO FOLL: GAWN, VINEY, BRAYSHAW IC: JONES, LEWIS, FRITSCH, PREUSS Depth B: JORDON, O.MCDONALD, J.WAGNER HB: NEITSCHKE, PETTY, HUNT C : STRETCH, MAYNARD, BAKER HF: KENNEDY HARRIS, KEILTY, HANNAN F: GARLETT, T.SMITH, J.SMITH FOLL: BRADTKE, VANDENBERG, SPARROW IC: C.WAGNER, CHANDLER, BEDFORD, WALKER INJ: LEVER

I'm a sucker for some of his attributes: aggression, courage and speed. I also liked his first quarter in AFL footy against St Kilda at Etihad before he was injured over the boundary line by Riewodlt. But I've seen enough now to be very concerned by his decision making and kicking. I think he's one of those boom or bust footballers with little in between. I see too many polished footballers ahead of him at the MFC.

I miss Ricky Pettard....

To dworship Thanks for the reminder. No disrespect intended but given the numbers this year, I am finding it harder and harder to remember all the names while writing on the run. Apologies to Gus, Harmes and also to Hannan. Adding these three brings the running total to 31 who have all shown that they can make solid contributions. As I have said in another post, the hardest task for the coaching staff will be to find the best combination. 2020 Go dees.

Fritta is our wing/floating back intercept marker/distributor until Lever comes back into the team. He should then be our wing/floating forward. *waiting for the "why cant we have both" GIF.

I'm just not a fan of playing Preuss and Gawn. I very much doubt it's sustainable. I see it only happening on the odd occasion and it will largely depend on matchups. If I'm wrong I'm wrong. I won't be. I've also gone from being a Joel Smith advocate (look at my posting history) to being dubious. He's a scatter brain with poor foot skills. I don't think his incredible athletic prowess, courage and attack on the contest will overcome is low football IQ and decision making under pressure. I watched his game again recently at the Adelaide Oval in round 19. It would have done Tom Gillies proud it was that bad. Sure, it's just one game, but I'm no longer confident he's best 22 in a top 4 team.

They said the same thing about Robbie Flower, when 'Barass' put him to halfback... to teach him the defensive side... and to plug holes, as Barass ripped the side apart, in rebuilding the club. Then down the track, Flower went to Half Forward and R/R. Flower was at his most damaging on ball, covering the whole field. Fritta is just starting to learn the caper.

The club might not have major issues but I think we should nevertheless be concerned. This follows a report from a Demonlander that he was complaining about knee soreness at a training session last week. I've heard the "no worries" story enough times to be a trifle sceptical.

I love jayden's run off half back when he is breaking the lines at the blink of an eye and kicking that magic 50 metre goal on the run it really can get the team pumping. His tackles are hard and they stick and that his acceleration off 20 meters is very quick. Yes his form in 2017 warranted his place in the best 22 and l still consider him at something near his best he would make us even a much better team with him there. 2018 is a year to forget with leg injuries and loss of confidence and he is better than that. Bring on 2019.

Hunt was so good in 2017, I thought we had a star on our hands. Let's hope he can get back to it. So quick, hard at it and a good kick once he slows down enough to pick a target. An in-form Hunt off half back or a wing makes us a better team

I hope young Jaden can really put focus on the Wing position... and also from the goal square, where he would be running straight lines at the ball... then turn to come back the other way.

Don't think Bayley will ever fill out much, he just has that slight frame, of Cam Bruce/Kade simpson. he reminds me a bit of Kade Simpson off half back actually. what a beauty he is. love having guys in the team that when they get it, you just relax as you know they won't cough it up he will play multiple roles in 2019 you would think. great option to have

If you believe the PR, dropping Fritsch was about height and matchups. WC were playing 3 talls. I really like the idea of Fritsch, KK and Salem rotating the HB sweeper / wing positions.

Billy’s looking sprightly and pretty sharp so far.

Terrific move to have this included on the Demonland agenda during the pre-season, especially since the club has been unfairly prevented from defending its AFLX crown from 2018 by the Marvel Comix comp which we can all ignore in favour of this initiative (Andy, this deserves a podcast on its own). Interested to know if Sportsbet is running a market on this and surprised that TMac has been in the wilderness since his shock victory over Mitch Clark in 2013.

You guys must be on pills. I've been promoting this bloke for the past two years, but his disposal in our second to last match was atrocious - by far the worst on the field. I'm afraid that can't ever be fixed. If we're to move forward, Vanders doesn't have a place in the team without significant improvement - despite his physical impact, which the majority are now bringing to the mix. Werridee, others inclined, show your best 22 and who Arron will keep out of the team in the longer course of the season if we are to approach and make our mark on the finals? Setting the tone is one thing, for a young immature team, but maintaining elite standards for a flag-challenger is another thing altogether.

Go back to round 22 against the eagled and watch the 1st half. It was Vanders who set the tone for the day with his manic agressive pressure and tackling. Vanders is best 22 and a crucial part of our structure.

Yes your mum knows nothing about footy. AVB was one of the few who stood up and handled the footy properly in the prelim.

You lost me as soon as you said it was on preseason form then included Hore for round 1 who is a recruit who has not even trained with the main group. How does this logic stand up?

*Facepalm