Kev

Yes, both did everything but the contact work. They are looking in good condition. Great to see them out there.

It's on, day one under a beautiful Melbourne morning. They trained from 9 to 12 o'clock. 10 to fifteen support staff wait for the 8 to 10 coaches who are led to the field by Goody. No Bernie Vince or Jordan Lewis yet. The committee members including Barrett are also there and are making themselves available to discussions. The squad come out as one, 5 minutes later. They are brought together by Burgess who gives them the run down to today's work. He is a good communicator and all get his message and an opportunity to respond. In the rehab is Sam Wiedeman, Josh Wagner, Austin Bradke, Mitch Hannan, Aaron Vandenberg, Harrison Petty, Kade Kolodjasni and Neville Jetta. Some participated in the Tan run and the non-contact drills. Missing from today were Joel Smith, Oskar Baker and I think Kade Chandler. Adam Tomlinson was in kit but didn't train. Charlie Spargo in a moon boot and on crutches. Ed Langdon wearing number 15, he looked a bit nervous, struggling with skills though understandable as he gets comfortable with his new club. They start with running drills that stretch the legs. Then there off to a 3/4 lap of the Tan. They set of a startling pace. I was on bike and could just keep up. Probably gliding off at above 20 km/hr. The times are about 10.30 minutes. I followed at the back of the first pack with Jay Lockart and Tom Sparrow. Jake Lever led the second pack over the line. Back on the paddock, and they are into drills and simulations. Bayley Fritsch and Christian Salem setting up with great stab passes. A lot of the drills performed without much defensive pressure. The squad was divided into two groups for simulations. One in a confined area developing the short, congested game and the other working on defensive spread and zoning with offensive midfield turnovers to kick to the leading forwards. the two groups moved between both stations. It appears the positions for players arn't set yet as they all seemed to rotate with different plays. I would suggest that Tom Sparrow given his youth and being down on endurance at the moment is looking to be an attacking back flanker who can break the lines and deliver a good release. I believe Nathan Jones will play back flanker as well, he is also being very vocal out there. Could Marty Hore be used up forward? Thought he is also developing as a leader. Jake Melksham received a welcome back to training by Steven May. A hard fair collision. They finished the session with several 80 meter sprints in 17 – 18 seconds. A few stayed on the track. Braydon Preuss working Corey Wagner, Jack Viney kicking goals and Christian Salem working with James Jordan and I think Kyle Dunkley.

@Satyriconhome I thank you for dedication and resilience @satyricon

I'm out for 6-7 months. Not exactly long service leave but I'll take it when I can get it. See you after the bye.

Paid. Actually I'm off overseas in a couple of weeks and thought I'd encourage the most regular track watcher and his posts.

Thank you Satyricon. I remember the time MFC were preparing for our preliminary game and there you were in the inner circles of the club at the last Gosch's paddock run. Meaning, the club absolutely trust you, your social skills and keeping confidentiality. I find you are generous with your time and dedicated to our cause. As I read the forums, you are more than happy to respond to questions about the team and in-fact encourage our involvement. I believe you would get to a 4.30am training if it was scheduled. You make it to most trainings even in inclement weather conditions. That droll wit and sarcasm are great. Your pics, summations and most post are needed and appreciated. As are your insights and inside information. Thank you again for your efforts, posts and follow-ups.

Thanks Saty for the follow up. I will continue to get there at the advertised time. If I miss things it can't be helped. Trust in MFC and I will respectfully not comment on training I'm not, as a fan invited to (generally speaking). Quite often I can be wrong as most of my observations are from a distance and are formed by opinion. The collision of Charlie and Marty happened right in front of me. Charlie was defending from behind with Marty on the lead, in a loud clash he caused a tangle of the legs. I think he mistimed it with his defensive pressure. He tried running it off and after clutching at his calf he took a knee and the trainer came out. Maybe he over extended his foot but it wasn't trodden on.

They started early again. I arrived as they were doing simulations. On the sidelines, our Chairman Bartlett as well as, Taylor, Mahoney, Richardson and Goody. They were regularly chatting away. Five coaches took the training. Mainly Mathews in the centre with the support of Chaplin, Egan, Rooke, Plapp and Stafford. Goody and Richardson watching on. The senior members included Tom Mcdonald, Max Gawn and Nathan Jones. Neville Jetta and Aaron Nietschke training in rehab. Jake Lever was running laps. Plenty missing today. Steven May, James Harmes, Jack Viney, Angus Brayshaw, Michael Hibberd, Jake Melksham, Mitch Hannan, Aaron Vandenberg, Sam Wiedeman, Oskar Baker, Jayden Hunt, Alex Neal-Bullen, Harrison Petty, Oscar Mcdonald, Josh Wagner, Austin Bradke, Ed Langdon, Adam Tomlinson and Harley Bennell. The simulations were of two types. Handball by the midfielders and a release when called by the coaches using half the field and 3/4 field with the ball starting in the backline. Interesting to see Joel Smith and Tom Sparrow working in the backline. Thought Jones was doing a lot of talk out there organising the plays. Our leads were very good as was the ball movement, The coaches encouraged the players to maintain their 'corridors'. After simulations, they went into the running programs. The bigger players running through the middle, end to end and the others put through gruelling 400 meter sprints. I really felt for them as it was repetition upon repetition. A few sat out some runs and in the last couple they were all running the 400's except for Jones who continued his end to end. After running, the elders finished up and the 1-5 yearers did ball drills at various stations. The young ones were very boisterous especially enjoying the drills that were competitive. I thought Clayton Oliver led the way in being exuberant, and they all seem to be energetic in between drills. I noticed a couple of players with niggles. Charlie Spargo picked up some calf soreness after a collision and had to leave the field. Kade Chandler had his left Knee strapped and was proppy at one stage. Joel Smith was holding his hip and didn't complete the running. Hopefully he is just on his own program. Standouts I thought were Tom Mcdonald, Kade Chandler, Nathan Jones, Clayton Oliver, Christian Salem and Christian Pettraca. There was a nice moment when Jetta welcomed Nathan back to training.

I also have had this problem. I find if I block the cookies the lag is not as long.

Perhaps Saty is right and to observe a full session we should get there at 4.30 am. If Whispering is right, we will need some punters to be camping out there.

Training notice on MFC official site is for Friday 15th Nov at 10.30 am. Does anyone know if they will be out on the paddock earlier than mentioned?

I watched Sparrow drilling kicking skills with Crossy last year in the rehab. He was keeping up with Cross in the precision factors. I thought he had very good skills. Now, there is a cross sparrow.

Yes, though haven't seen much of him in a game. Could see Hibberd being his mentor.

I agree, may have a lot of support from Clayton Oliver, as he seems to be paired up with him a fair bit.

I think Sparrow is the most likely. There will be a lot of pressure for the positions given our recruitment of ready to go players.

The squad was already out on the paddock when I arrived. There were 24 players, 5 coaches and numerous support staff. No Steven May, Nathan Jones, Jake Lever, Angus Brayshaw, Kade Kolodjasni, Jake Melksham, Aaron Vandengerg, Jayden Hunt, Alex Neal-Bullen, Harrison Petty, Ed Langdon, Adam Tomlinson or Harley Bennell. There was a also good number of administration people there. Noticed that Joel Smith and Tom McDonald are on a different program to the rest of the squad by doing some work in rehab. The simulations were going strongly and there were obvious changes in their methods. They were run by Troy Chaplin. The types I saw were, a group of midfielders moving the ball quickly by hand and then clearing to leading players on a call from the coaches. Then, two separated teams, one in the centre and the other in the forward area. The ball is given to the forward team. A fast spread and finding players to pick up entailed. They had to run very hard with plenty of communication to get to position, force a contest, fill space, create a turnover, hit players on leads and make overlaps. All ball movement was by foot. Joel Smith and Tom McDonald both participated in the contact simulations and played well. Thought Kade Chandler, Christian Pettraca and Oscar Mcdonald stood out with skills. Toby Bedford laid good tackles. Michael Hibberd reading the play and getting to many intercepts. Max Gawn leading well always giving an option. Jack Viney playing smart football. If second week in is much to go by, we are looking good. The training is well organised and they are pushing them. They then we're put through the running programs. Half doing fartlek and the others 80 meter sprints. Two coaches Troy Chaplin and Mick Stinnear were also running laps. I don't think Bernie Vince is with us this year. Perhaps Jordan Lewis has taken over his role. At the end, the squad had a moment of silence in a circle and in the middle for remembrance. After, Braydon Preuss did some leading and goal kicking practice. James Harmes and Jack Viney goal kicking at the other end of the field. Christian Salem, Marty Hore and James Jordan finished with some tackling practice.

I arrived late at the session and only saw the running. Clayton Oliver was looking very good, had rhythm, balance and power as he glided across the field. He maintained his competitive instinct with is running mate James Jordan. Tom and Oscar Mcdonald both moving strongly. Tom looking unimpeded and often leading Oscar. Bailey Fritsch and Charlie Spargo running easily and seemed to be enjoying the return to the club. Max Gawn running with Braydon Preuss. After the younger ones left, Max continued doing his own runs and was pushing himself pretty hard. Braydon doing some extra kicking, leading and marking with Gregg Stafford. Marty Hore running hard, together with Troy Chaplin who was regularly a few meters behind him. Tom Sparrow was in the lead most of the time when running with a small group of four players (Toby Bedford, Oscar Baker and I think Kade Chandler or Jay Lockart). Not a big squad a few must have finished early and some still away, I didn't see Harrison Petty. I thought there were about 8 coaches out in middle but no Simon Goodwin or Alan Richardson. Not very vocal but it felt like they were all itching to get on with it and appeared to be happy being back in the fold.

Some of our problems are easy to see. Opposition scoring from turnovers, missing for certain times in games and conversion from the entries into the 50. If we have a good pre-season we should be able to improve in these areas. We were close in a lot of our games making us more than a competitive team. Next season opposition teams won't be setting themselves to beat us as we arn't a big scalp. Our midfield is still strong. Plenty of players with something to prove. Players shouldn't have such an interrupted season again. Younger group got plenty of games at the highest level into them. Easier draw next year. More determined because of this years pain. Hopefully we will have many alternative game plans and are able implement them when required. This year we were too one dimensional as we were trying to just get the basics right.

My two cents worth. Could be the problem of the modern organisation? Working hard, ambition, entitlement, desire, aspiration are not the same as skill. For me the naturally skilled will always come through as superior. Being lazy does not mean you get the lower hanging fruit, though the ambitious expect it to be so. As soon as motivation falls off so does the outcome. Skills create the magic. Alex Neal-Bullen is a prime example, always working hard at it. Compared to Clayton Oliver who is quite often lazy and going through the motions. Clayton will take a game apart whereas Alex can become a liability when his energy is depleted. Organisations are always failing us unless the insider have a vested interest in serving. I don't trust the ambitious, I trust those with heart and altruism. Those that care about the other more than themselves. I believe it is more about group cohesion and sharing than the avarice getting to the apple tree first, controlling the distribution and then saying how they are unsatisfied. A whip merely causes separation. George Orwells book animal farm, “we are equal, but some are more equal than others”. I don't trust our education system (hierarchical utilitarianism) and class system in creating a functioning society. I see hard-working students unable to live up to their resume. So the majority barely get any fruit as the power waste what is there and the society fails through a dysfunctional dystopia. Two billion hungry, 70 million displaced, 40 million enslaved, the majority have no access to medical help, 5% own more than 60% of the assets, etcetera, etcetera. Base the collective around the skilled and those with high emotional intelligence and not the ambitious. That way we get caring, sharing and commitment. The hard workers will always overestimate their abilities. I find them the unhappiest people and that effects the group. Players need connection and the support of each other and only then will we get close to the holy grail.

Is Austin Bradke a chance, 204 cm? Training with a group of 8 forwards this morning. Declan Keilty was with the backs.

Goody and Plapp talking and waiting in the middle for the players to turn up. A bit windy, otherwise good conditions. Rehab out first, Aaron Nietschke doing a bit of ball work, Tom Sparrow getting time tested, Jeff Garlett running laps, Tim Smith walking laps. The light duties had Max Gawn and Nathan Jones in the rehab for a while, both joining the main squad after warm-ups. Also on light duties was Christian Salem and Michael Hibberd who both stayed in the rehab group, but we're running laps strongly together. Out with the rehab was Jordan Lewis, when the squad came out he joined them. He was thanking everyone and being congratulated. After warm-ups, they were straight into drills; blocking, handballs and hit ups by foot. They had two groups drilling a game of keepings off with handball and tackling. Very slick with good skills on show. The simulations were done with some solid tackling and pressure, they were hard at it. Bayley Fritsch cleaning up James Jordan leaving him with a corked hip. Plenty of spoils, one on one contest, blocking, with forwards switching on the opponent and midfield structuring to create overlap. Jack Viney and Nathan Jones leading by example. Goody was looking for the players to create isolation. After the hard hit out they went into their line groups. Backline had Sam Frost, James Harmes and Charlie Spargo in it. Forwards included Austin Bradke, Billy Stretch and Corey Wagner. Max did minimal ruck work but did some leading in the forward area. Most of the ruck craft drills were done by Braydon Preuss with Clayton Oliver the recipient Jay Kennedy-Harris and Oskar Baker with the mids, as well as Clayton Oliver, Christian Pettraca and Angus Brayshaw who were training well. One of the drills was slotting passes at a target. Training ended with the entire squad goal kicking and then they broke off into small group and individual practice. Last on the track Alex Neal-Bullen and Billy Stretch kicking running goals, Braydon marking and a few taking high marks off the bag (including Clayton Oliver and James Harmes ) Tom Mcdonald out on the field wearing a coaches vest and later walking laps with Steven May. No Petty Harrison, Oscar Mcdonald or Kade Chandler. Also, haven't seen Satyricon for some time. The team was boisterous, supportive and generally up and about.

The young players have not taken any game apart in three years! Are they playing roles and not their natural game, are the older listed ones not supporting them? Maybe there is a pecking order problem, MFC a land of hierarchy and knowing your place. The recruitment team can't be that bad, not one of the new selections in three years has had a champion of a game. Let's hope the coaching and support staff can get the best out of some of our young group. Is mediocrity what MFC settle for? Hope we get rid of list fillers and get more stars in the mix.

Looking back on our rising star nominations. Could only find four from 2016, Clayton Oliver, Christian Pettraca, James Harmes and Oscar Mcdonald. None in 2017, 2018 or this year. Is this an indication of our problems? Is it selection and/or development problems our of young players?

Buying players hasn't worked in the past. Tilbrook, Carmen, Ditterich and many more, none took us to finals. My guess is, May and Lever's big salaries have fractured the group. Not much joy out there for each other. Where is our camaraderie and gel? Seems it is manufactured by coaches saying great mates win games. I think respect needs to be genuine, that has disappeared. There seems to be groups within groups as they aren't doing the 1% nor helping each other to be better footballers. Delivery of the football needs to be to the team-mates advantage. So many times we put the receiver under pressure or it is a clanger. No trust in each other. Where are the natural footballers, who is taking the game on, where is our creativity and magic. Perhaps scrutiny of the mistakes at the review has shot their confidence. Too much finger pointing and complicated solutions. Coaches are not getting the best out of the players. We looked scared to get the ball or take the game on. Confidence is shot. Sometimes outward display of anger and frustration, is better than an intellectual response that gets in the head. They are full of anxiety. Better to be the passenger. Players who don't have an impact are getting games, must be doing a role set by the coach. Let's hope this brand of football changes to a culture of winning.

I was there about the same time (9.30). They must have been out from 9 o'clock. Just as dissatisfied, the captains runs and the cancelling of the two Wednesday trainings. They must have there reasons.