waynewussell

Talk about rewriting history in hindsight. Riv is a vital member of a 10 man MFC defence. I don't think he will play every game... horses for courses... but he is amongst the best peel off, spoil the contest defenders in the comp. I won't go into the skill set that everyone else acknowledges (courage etc.) but a top 8 team is built on more than 22 players. Riv will be a required player for the next three years!

Yes, he's just behind Jetta. Williams seems to be troubled by a hip problem at the moment. I haven't seen the best of him when attending training. I suggest he will take a while at Casey before figuring in selection talk.

Thanks again trenners.

Yes Lutz that's what I said!

I have been a Cale supporter to this point... In relation to my training report, Cale was getting quite a bit of the ball deep in defence (I suggest the coaches wanted it this way) and he had a few bloopers with short kicks. Nothing critical, mind you, but reminiscent of a few in games we remember. FACT: Cale is unreliable when kicking from 15 to 40 metres... He needs to improve in that facet of his game and we supporters want to see the improvement now!

I think it's more informative to look at who Cale is competing with to get a game in round 1, and there aren't many on the list with his attributes. I reckon he is jostling with the likes of Blease, Strauss, and Tom McDonald, judging on his training group. Blease is almost the incumbent, Strauss may not be ready, and Tom is being tried elsewhere... Cale is in the mix but it will be tough getting a gig in the back half if all our blokes are available... Our best back-half includes Frawley, Garland, Rivers, Bennell, Grimes, and perhaps Sellar and Joel Mac.

Taggert impressed today, not so much ahead of others, but as a rookie. He certainly has a good build and he went hard at the pill in contested work.

Clark didn't do anything too strenuous, he worked with Bail and Sylvia and did some 3/4 running. He didn't seem to be in pain and he didn't seem to be favouring a leg. Just a slight tweak I would say.

I concur with trenners-09 (I put up a report on 'ology). The session was long, 110 minute when I left, with a lot of contested running the ball and in-close handball. It was fairly breezy so quite a bit of skill required to hit a target when kicking to the northern end. All activity was timed and the rests and discussion were well managed before gettng straight back into it. I will respond to specific questions when they arrive.

jnrmac, I agree (to a point)... Strauss has not got the kicking skills of Tapscott, for instance... he can kick it a fair way but hitting targets without giving it too much hang time is another thing. Strauss is developing and he could win back his place during the season, which would be a fantastic achievement after his shocking injury.

I was happy with Jack's progress in 2011. He showed plenty IMO.. there was a drop off from round 18ish, but some of the anxiety here makes it sound like he was a failure last year. I'm expecting Jack to have more impact in 2012 because he is bigger, fitter and confident. No stress... sit back and enjoy!

Excellent detail and analysis daveytrain1... thank you for going to the trouble, I feel informed!

I think its a myth that Bate can't kick on his right. I saw him land a perfect 40 metre right foot pass in 'midfield to leading forward' drills on Monday. He just needs to build confidence in it in match conditions.

Mighty Demon don't forget Gysberts!

Where will the improvement come? Well, we have added a very good player to the list... Clark! We will get back at least one proven 200 gamer (barring injury)... Grimes. We will get more out of some players because of natural development... Trengove. We will get more from players who the previous coach didn't rate or didn't play in the right position... Bate. Ok, this last one is just a theory, but here is what Bate offers the midfield. He has near elite endurance (see all training reports to date). He has a big, strong frame (good for blocking at the stoppages). He is a booming kick (and is developing above average opposite side skills). He is a proven goalkicker. Her is still relatively young. He has been given a lifeline, I hope he takes it!

Strauss is just getting back into short kicking, both feet. He is running as well as anyone but is probably quite a way from the rigours of match practice. However, he doesn't seem to be timid about training, he is going at it with a full head of steam and is showing no signs of soreness. Bail is doing everything asked of him in the main groups. He is one of those who goes quietly and efficiently about his work. Still in our 'best ball-carriers' group for mine!

Howe showed no ill effects and took up training where he left off. The Viney who was in the middle of the action firing off handballs to sometimes unsuspecting players (Sylvia) was Todd. Morton has shown gradual increase in size... He is about where Tuck was when he played his 400th!

Got down to the paddock again this morning. Great to see the senior group back onboard. Not sighted were Viney, Couch, Magner, Tynon, Taggart, Sheahan. Modified program... Jurrah, Jamar, Strauss, Lawrence, Spencer, Bartram, Tapscott, Sylvia, Cook. Of these, Tappy ran some serious lap times, Strauss is close to rejoining the main group, as is Lawrence. Jamar did a lot of steady running and looks fitter and trimmer than last season. Jurrah ran timed 200's at 3/4 pace... still in arm guard. Sylvia did a lot of the initial ball-handling and looked sharp. Running wise... Nicholson cruises at the front, Clark is good, Blease improving, Bate very strong, Dunn dropping off back... Davey gradually bridging gap, Gysberts now challenging Garland and moving up in his group.Petterd ran well, as did Howe. Misson, Royal and Greaves leading activities... Neild a quiet observer, Craig busy in one on one assistance, encouragement. Viney right in the thick of end to end skills work. Moloney can be heard throughout encouraging and supporting. Jack Watts the enthusiast in every new drill. Jack Grimes did everything to perfection, Martin owned the tap work against Fitzpatrick... An impressive 90 minute session

Yeah trenners... thanks for going to the trouble. Interesting that you caught the moment when Davis clipped Howe. I'm hoping Number 38 is on the paddock in the morning. He is set for a breakout that will see him rated highly across the comp.

Thanks trenners... good pics

Yeah, Danners had cause to move me when I got a little close at Trinity a few years back!

Yeah Trenners, upload them ... It was my first training session for the summer as well. I arrived just in time for the warm-up lap. There were 29 players in this bunch, and at least 25 coaches and assistants looking on. The crowd built up to about 70 later in the session, including Damien Hardwick (as already mentioned) and Justin Leppitsch, who stayed for 20 minutes or more. Players not sighted included Green, Moloney, Rivers, Bate, Garland, Tapscott, Morton, Martin, Dunn, Davey, Petterd, Sylvia, Frawley, Gawn, Batram, Spencer, Magner (although the last three made an appearance at the very end of what was a 100 minute session). Jamar, Williams, Lawrence, McKenzie, Jurrah, Strauss, Cook and Viney did not join in with the main group. Lawrence and Cook did a lot of sprinting, kicking on the run, under pressure and kicking for goal throughout the 100 minutes. Both trained at top pace and looked fit. Jurrah ran timed 200's with Strauss and Viney for a large part of the session. Viney looks to have grown considerably and is no longer a boy amongst men. He led the running with this group. Jurrah kept up for 2/3rds of session... dropping of the pace slightly by the end. McKenzie ran strongly throughout, mainly on his own. Couch, Bail, Trengove, Gysberts, Nicholson and Jones did some contested midfield work with Royal. This was done with lots of body contact and blocking. No one stood out, but Nicholson held his own and Couch looked competitive in close. Jetta wore the lime green vest throughout, avoiding body contact, but he impressed with his pace and intensity. Sellar, Davis, Grimes, Jetta, Bennell, Tom McDonald, Tynan and Sheahan worked together in another group. Tynan was impressive and appears to be fitting in very well. During the ball carrying, kicking to lead activities Clark impressed with his speed and kicking. Grimes was also skillful with ball placement in these sessions. Sellar, who is an impressive athlete, did quite well in contested situations. I was admiring how fit Howe looked (he may even have trimmed down) before he was injured in a contest with Davis. He did not reappear as reported earlier. It was during this activity that Leigh Brown joined an illustrious group of Demons, including Ron Barassi, Neale Daniher and doorman King who requested I remove myself from the vicinity! Gysberts did everything well. He looks a little stronger, but his poise and versatility is impressive. Jack Watts worked hard, and on most occasions impressed with the ball. However, there are a number of talls in the squad now so Jack is no longer a standout. The later running and strength activity was undertaken in three groups as follows. Jones, Trengove, Couch, Nicholson, Tom McDonald and Bail worked together. They pushed hard and the only thing of note was that Couch dropped off the back of this group late in the piece. He was stuffed! Grimes, Jetta, Clark, Bennell, Watts and Gysberts ran together with Leigh Brown, who blocked and bumped both Watts and Clark throughout the activity, simulating match conditions which was an impressive component of the new training regime. Tynan, Sellar, Fitzpatrick, Davis, Blease and Joel Mac made up the third group. General observations: Didn't notice Neeld at all. Misson was prominent in the warm-ups and track work. Royal was right into the mids group. Craig offered quiet support to individuals. Brown adds a lot in terms of the body work and the repetitive efforts. I'll add anything that comes to mind later!

Has anyone mentioned Barassi? (yeah Bush Demon) Doc Roet, Don Williams (yeah 3031), Keenan, Elshaug?? Some others, hardly in their prime, Bamblett, Wilson, Charles,

Webber... most enlightening and credible post of this nature that I have read for some time. I look forward to more...

The concept "Jurrah... will he make it?" is about two years too late! What a gift to football!!!! Sit back and enjoy the ride. Who carese how many qualifying times he runs for 400m in November? Does anyone still doubt he is a freak? Yes, there are areas he can develop... but it ain't 'get ball,score goal'