Slartibartfast

GW are you talking about big ballsy changes on friend or off field? I’ve seen a lot of training over the last few years and every year I’m told of “a new game plan” or at least of significant tweaks but I don’t see them. Training has always been about quick ball movement and using the centre corridor but training is usually something like 14 v 14 with little pressure on the ball carrier allowing this methodology to be practiced. In games of course it’s quite different because the opposition is trying to stop you do what you want. I think we will basically see the same game plan this year but with different players executing from the back half. Windsor back is a clear indication of an intent to quicken us from there and Bowser will be a good addition. The addition of Sharp makes the Windsor move possible. A fit Clarrie and Trac back will make the biggest difference to last year. If you’re talking about off field then we have made some significant changes which have been initiated by the club. It will be interesting to see if the members have the same resolve to improve us. We will find out on Tuesday night.

I'm really surprised by the doubts about our ability to contend, and seriously, in 2025. Last year we were two wins and percentage out of the 8 and this was without Clarrie having any sort of year and Trac being unavailable for the last half. Further we lost three games by a total of 9 points against top 8 teams in this period. All in all we won 11 games and lost 13, hardly an uncompetitive season. In my opinion Clarrie and Trac are the kernel of next season, if they can have 2021 type seasons or close to it we are a genuine chance of a flag. If they have poor seasons we are a chance for the bottom of the 8 but no more. And of course we need some luck with injury, but that stands for all teams. It's hard to imagine we won't be significantly better than last year given how young our team is and the prospect of getting some handy players back. Bowser has been training really well and he was a bigger loss last year than some realise. Spargo will add depth, Langford and XL class and Windsor and Kolt have come back in great shape and are training really well. Sharp is a nice addition and looks good on the track. It's a competition of inches and small gains can take you place just as small losses can. We've got the prospect of some pretty significant gains. Anyway that's my take. Clarrie and Trac hold the key and at the moment both look very good.

Interesting observations Kev, on Howes particularly I’ve not seen it that way. I’ve seen all players make disposal mistakes and Howes hasn’t stood out to me but I’ll keep an eye on it on Friday. Adam’s is a slow burn I reckon and is just starting to believe. IMO he’s much improved ( more involved) than last year, whether he can improve enough is yet to be seen but he’s taking steps in the right direction.

I was at training today and the reports seem very accurate to me regarding how individual players went. Perhaps one that hasn't been mentioned enough is Clarrie. There have been lots of comments over the preseason saying he's out of condition and carrying too much weight. Well from what I've seen that's not strictly the case. He's not ripped like he was in 2021 but he's still in very good condition and he is working extremely hard and pushing himself to the limit. I reckon that as long as he maintains focus over the Christmas break by the start of the season he'll be really fit. He looks to have got that initial speed back and the ability to find a bit of space in congestion. His disposal today was very good on a day where a lot struggled to hit a target. On that, I reckon today was the first time I've seen them in a true contested situation and hence the disposal skills were down as there was a lot more pressure on the ball carrier. It was good today but it's early in the PS. Secondly, I've been to a lot of PS training sessions over the last few years and every year I read that we are going "more direct" and using the corridor more. I've not noticed any difference in the way we've used the ball in the full field drills so it will be interesting to see. On other players: Langford got caught a couple of times, a good thing I say, better to learn the pace of the game in PS than during the game. He works really hard around the ground. Concerns expressed about his pace don't seem evident and he's building nicely. Sparrow looks a lot more involved than he was last year, he's moving very well and kicking it well. Tmac was, again, very good today. Those thinking he'll play at Casey need to reconsider. I was also impressed with Fullarton today, he was strong and involved and kicked very well. Fritta looked a class above on occasions, strong in the contest an elite with his goal kicking. May had an opportunity to send Tmac into next year at one stage and thankfully made a decision to avoid contact. I reckon Tmac will buy him a bunch of flowers as a thank you! AJ has impressed but he learned a lesson today. In the handball drill he decided that the best option was just to run through Clarrie but he learned that's not all that easy. Lots of smiles and laughs when Clarrie helped him up. I like AJ, looks a ripper bloke and has lots of good attributes. It's a crowded forward line for talls but he's in the conversation. Looking forward to Friday, hope JvR is there, missed today but hopefully nothing in it.

He tried to run through Clarrie in a handball drill today. He learned a lesson. He looked good, Clarrie looked great.

I've been to all but one of the training sessions this year and I think there is a spot in the best 22 for Harry. He's been very impressive. He attacks the ball hard, he's got good clean hands and makes good decisions. He can run all day gets to the right spots and has been heavily involved in all the full field match sims. His disposal has been iffy at times but the same can be said for most. My view is that Chandler will take the ANB spot, Sharp will take the wing with Windsor playing off half back. That's the initial plan as far as I can see. Jed Adams was impressive today and certainly had a few cameos but he's still 5th banana for a spot down back and even perhaps 6th because Howes is tall, similar in height to Tmac and has been playing the Lever role pretty well. Howes reads the play well and is clean and disposes well. He's also been good in the contested possession drills I've seen and will fight hard to consolidate his spot in the team this year. He strikes me as someone who will mature late but mature well. He's a lot taller than when drafted and it's probably taking a while to adapt to the different role he'll play given his growth. The Kolt just reeks leadership and enthusiasm on field. He goes hard the whole time and he's a 1st round talent. There is a fair bit of competition for spots but he'll be a valuable player this year. He didn't participate in full field drills today and was running the boundary but didn't look impeded in any way. I'm different to many on AJ. He's got to show he's AFL standard before he gets in the team and he won't get in just to be Max's chop out. He hasn't shown me that he's up to that and he's only had half a season of VFL exposed form really. Turner and JvR will be two talls, whether we play a third or whether we look for a different structure I don't know but if Petty is going to play back AJ or Jeffo have to step up. Whilst there have been signs neither has grabbed the opportunity to date. Having said that the match sims don't really seem to give the talls much of a chance to show their stuff so there is a bit of water to go under the bridge. Missing today were Verrall and Bowser although I notice someone said they saw him. I didn't and if he'd been there I think I would have noticed as he's been a bit of a standout to date. As reported Kossie, Clarrie and Windsor were very good and I thought Knuckles played well. Chandler was very vocal today and played his role. I expect him to be part of the leadership group when it's decided. It was also good to see Fritta in all the drills as was Campbell. Lever and Spargo look to be the ones with issues with Lever behind Spargs. Makes me wonder if that explains the "Petty back" decision but that is total speculation.

I'm a bit late to the party but I made it down to training today and the boys were really put through their paces. The time trials were interesting. Harvey went out hard and held on well only to be overtaken by a few of the mature boys but he's fit enough to play AFL. Clarrie was at the back of his group but only by a small margin but he was totally spent at the end of it and I thought he was going to be sick. But then to my surprise he was up and at it in all the later drills. Interestingly they all did the time trials with shirts off and reports of Clarrie being overweight are grossly exaggerated, he might not be at his thinnest but he is far from fat. He looked in very good shape to me and as others have reported he's in good spirits. He was in the same group as Kolt who beat him but interestingly when all that group finished they fell to the ground in exhaustion but the Kolt didn't. He stayed on his feet and encouraged the others to get up. Leadership written all over this kid. Sesso also seems to have slimmed down well and is running much better than previous years. I don't think he's there yet but he's made big steps towards AFL fitness and if he continues as he is he might be a smokey for R1 when Koss is out. Verrall is really struggling in the running. He was a long way back in the time trial and in the end one of the trainers ran with him to keep him company. He really needs to get that right because he's way below AFL fitness at the moment and he's now entering his third preseason. I'm not suggesting he's not putting in the effort, just that he really struggles with this sort of running. Interesting in later running drills he was keeping up much better which was a positive. I was also interested in Aidan Johnson's performance. He looked pretty comfortable out there and kept up well in the time trials and other running. Beyond that I didn't really notice him much in the drills. To my surprise Petts is training with the backs as is Windsor. McVee is there too so it would seem that Duke and Knuckles won't be in the midfield this year which is against expectations. I don't see how Petts, May (who does look like he's been in a good paddock) Lever and Tmac fit in the one backline and it's hard to see Tmac missing out because he is in the best knick I've ever seen him. He's moving really well, he's really lean, his ball handling and kicking is good and his lateral movement is better than for a while and I'd suggest that's as a result of his feet being injury free. I've been to all but one session and he's the standout so far for me but I'm a big fan so perhaps I'm bias. Beyond that it was a great day for the track watcher I didn't think. Lots of little drills which didn't really show much and the boys were spread out all over the field making it hard to get an overall picture. I liked what I saw from Langford who to my eye didn't appear much taller than Clarrie when I saw them standing together but it's hard to tell given Clarrie's hair. Fritter was doing heaps of running at a very good clip and he did it for a long time. He looks really fit so I've no idea what his issue is. McAdam also did a fair bit of running and looked comfortable and he looks in good condition. I wonder if they just want to get him really fit before throwing him into full training and exposing his body to the level of stress. I can confirm previous report on Sparrow. He looks really lean and he was running really well. I think he may have got a rocket at the end of last season, he looks a new player. Billings also looked really fit. I'm going again on Wednesday and hopefully they'll do a bit of full field ball movement which is where I think you can judge players more critically. Boy was it humid at training today, skills were pretty good given the level of fatigue and the conditions.

So much written by so many who know so little about one player. I’ll give you my in-depth analysis of Trac’s psychological condition after I’ve been to training on Monday. You can take it to the bank!

I wish you wouldn’t.

Oliver. 2 Brownlow votes in his first game and arguably BOG to half time.

I'm not criticising his record but he's had the living in Sydney allowance for some of it and first dibs on players like Heeney, Mills and Gulden for starters. Given the thrashings in their last two GF's I'm not surprised. As usual the Swans very professional.

Turner looks really good. Very good in the contested marking drill and prominant in the handball drill which were both in front of me. Jefferson was pitted against Petts in the contested marking drill and was beaten in the first three and looked despondent. He then took a ripper in the fourth. He's looking much more involved and comfortable at the level this year compared to last year. Didn't notice Laurie much, sorry.

Is Hotton worth the risk?

I don’t, looked like the Essendon strips distance.

No. Windsor kicking on his left foot but participating in all the drills.

It won’t offend me Dazz, good idea to keep it from other clubs though, good thinking. Happy wit what you’ve heard?

So what’s the intel this morning Dazzle? Can’t wait for Wednesday, the suspense is killing me! Givemethenews!

Draft night is like Christmas, once you open the presents all the mystery is gone. I love the speculation and this year is special. Don't ruin it @goodwindees, we can all wait and enjoy the suspense. And if you do have quality mail, keep it to yourself, it can't do any good by releasing it but there is a very small chance it could do some harm. We'will know soon anyway! Patience grasshopper.

Not having a crack at you but this concept of "best available" just doesn't make sense. How can you say "best available" when your comparing a ruck, a key position forward, a small crumbing forward and a mid? Apples, oranges, pineapples and kiwi fruit. What's best? It's not just based on talent, it's based on scarcity, risk, needs and projection. We will be picking based on best available taking into account all of these factors and what we take will be instructive. If we believe Clarrie and Trac will be ours at their best long term then our picks are more likely to take into account May and Tmac's age. If we believe they will both be gone next year then that will impact our choices albeit that we would hopefully have Richmond like suite of first round picks. If we believe Jefferson will succeed then that will influence what we take. Our picks aren't in a bubble and what is "best available" to one club will be very different to another. Just look at NM looking at taking Tauru well ahead of his "best available" statue. Our picks on Wednesday will tell us quite a lot.

That seems really odd to me.

I’m not reading much into “positions” yet as there aren’t enough for a proper sim where players can play their usual positions. It’s still a wait and see for me. Im usually not into “he’s noticeably bigger this year” as I’m not convinced you can notice that much development over 8 weeks but Verrell looks very fit and strong. Kentfield is a beast, what a bonus if he succeeds. Seston is another where his body looks more defined. I find it hard to see where he fits in but he’s got some real AFL traits. Very strong in the clinches and a great kick. His ball handling is solid. One to watch I reckon. He looks very focused this year and comfortable in the group.

Monday’s plus Riv and Sparrow. That’s all.

Sparrow and Rivers trained today. Seston and Windsor stood out. Kentfield is a really big unit. Adam’s doing lots of running and not looking in any discomfort.

Sorry about the autocorrect, not a good start by Slarti. The session went for around 90 minutes and as far as I could see all 1 to 4 year players were there with Woey in 12 and Jed Adams in 19. It was pretty much a non contact session with the normal handball drills, lots of running and a little bit of field ball movement stuff. Good to see none of these boys in any sort of rehab group. Of the oldies Tmac, Viney, Chin, Marty Hore, Petts and Bowser did the full session with the young blokes and Salo and Fritta did a lot of lap running and a bit of kicking away from the group. It's really not possible to take much out of the session but Duke, Kolt and Disco sort of stood out but others would have picked others. Kentfield was there and he is one big unit. I was a bit disappointed Trac and Clarrie weren't there as it would have made a bit of a statement but it probably means nothing.

TMac, Petts, Vines, Chin, Bowser all training with the 1 to 4’s.