Slartibartfast

I'm not a Schache fan as you know picket but if it is his time at least he'll have an opportunity to state his case and cement a spot because there is certainly one there for a tall forward who can help in the ruck. You'd think it's last chance saloon. I was critical of his one year contract extension but it's now proving to be an astute bit of planning. Kudos to the FD.

Not me Picket, I saw him last year do the same thing. He's got great skills but that's about where it stops for me. Having said that he may get a go because Petty, Brown, Fullerton, Melksham and now McAdam will all perhaps not be available for the first round. When the real stuff starts he really struggles and I've seen nothing to suggest that's changed.

It was a beautiful day at Gosch's until the players arrived and it seemed most of our tall forwards sat out training and did little or nothing in the rehab group. Someone's got the voodoo doll out for our talls as Turner, Tmac and Verrell were all additions to this group since I last saw them and Petty did about 10 minutes and then absolutely nothing. Salem started with light drills and then just did running (mainly with Clarrie) and AMW, who had just worked his way out of rehab was back there. McAdam was also a new addition. At least Steven May did the whole session unhindered. But the number in rehab is not good at this time of year. The session itself was as low key as I've seen this year. There were few high intensity drills before ball movement drills (match sim is a very glorified description) and these drills were at about 75% intensity I reckon. Of course it's all part of the plan I guess and with matches against Richmond and Carlton not too far away perhaps it's to freshen up, who knows. Some players to catch the eye: Adams: there was some high marking practice and Adams was the stand out with several strong marks against the likes of Verrell, Schache and Tomlinson. He's got very good hands and he's come on in leaps and bounds from last year. You'd think the third tall at the moment would be between Tommo and Hore but Adams is putting his name forward. KBrown: I couldn't be more impressed with what I've seen from this kid over the preseason. He's involved, he's clean and his skills are sound but the most impressive thing is he looks comfortable at the pace and finds the ball really easily. He's a string bean above the waist but his lateral movement is really good and he's learning what he can do and what he can't. Viney: tried to do too much on occasions and got caught a couple of times but looks set for a really good season. Chandler: involved a lot and kicked really well for goal slotting a few from very tight angles. I think he's stepped up from last year and hope he can maintain his form for longer this year. Sparrow: did the whole session in a rare bit of good news. Kossie: did some really magical Kossie things when the ball was on the ground, what a shame about the suspension. Seston: is improving. He's getting more involved and looks like his running has improved and he's got great kicking skills. He was last on the track with JvR practicing his goal kicking and was doing it very well from a variety of angles and distances. He's also getting more involved in general play but today even I could have got a kick (perhaps!) KfW: in match sims he's against Max and just gets a lesson and he seems to have trouble judging the ball in the air to compete but perhaps Max is just too good. But he's improved a lot since last year and he won't die wondering if he could have done more to make it. All players had their moments. The regular senior boys just went about their business and blokes like Howes, Laurie, Woey, Windsor and The Kolt all showed their skills but really this session just seemed to be a loosener and I'm not reading too much into it. A prime indicator is it's the first session where Trac didn't seem head and shoulders above the rest. I'll be interested to read others opinion as perhaps I'm being too harsh, but that's the way I saw it.

Only one was. He’s in good company.

Personally I think the Schache decision is very easy to understand. The coaches believed that Tmac had more chance of impacting the game than Schache. So although Tmac was having a poor game they thought he was still a better bet than Schache. The game was a slog suiting Tmac. In an open score fest Schache would have been used. It wasn’t so he wasn’t used. I agree with them. Tmac puts his body on the line and competes harder than Schache ever has. He was the better bet and they made the right decision not making the change.

Monday morning quarterback.

I saw a Foxtel ad last night saying Preseason footy starts on 18th Feb so I assume they will.

Is there still an offer through the club?

In Robbo’s article it said Clarrie returned to the group on Tuesday at Casey. That helps explain the response on Wednesday. Kev’s observation was quite right, very low key response on Wednesday.

Suggest you read my post more carefully. Petty is clearly competitive.

For what it's worth I've not noticed any changes in our training this year to last. The ball movement drills (which happen on Wednesdays) have always focused on finding a bloke in the corridor. But these drills are only 12 v 12 or 14 v 14 and it's easier to do. I'm not expecting any great change to our game plan. It will be more direct if JvR and Petty get up and firing but if not I think it will be the same. Unless they move Tmac forward we've only got one competitive KPF at the moment (I don't include Schache, he's just not competitive) and we will rely on McAdam and Fritta to provide aerial targets.

Could be Mono but you’re a little late. Demonstone has already had some fun at my expense!😀

Agree Dante, Schache 2024 is the same as Schache 2023. He's a very good trainer and able to do really good things in the training environment but in a truly contested situation he doesn't seem to be able to do it. Treat training form with care, Andrew Strauss was one of the best trainers I've seen over the years.

Much busier.

It was a good day at Casey apart from the weather and the wind but fortunately as the players started the match sim both abated a bit and conditions were not too bad. Watching this match sim is so much more informative than the ball movement drills they do at Gosch's as it's genuinely competitive but tackling is very soft and the intensity is limited. Nobody crashes packs for marks much expect JvR who seems not to be able to help himself. There is the occasional tackle but it's more to impede someone than to take them down. In the ball movement stuff on Wednesday's the main players don't seem to dominate and the youngins do well but today was a different kettle of fish. Trac did what he liked and really ruined the game in the first quarter. Gawn, Trac, Viney and ANB were against an assortment of players the most notable being Rivers. But Gawn had no opposition (KFW played forward all day) and the centre group had a field day. Viney is great and looks set for a continuation of last years form, as someone else said ANB was very good and was heavily involved. But again, as noted, Bill was right up there. He's just a very smart footballer who does smart things. One goal in windy conditions from the boundary and another where he dodged the man on the mark and kick truly from 45 were highlights but he was involved inside and dished the ball out with good vision and precision. I'm not sure he'll play because of the logjam for spots but he'd be an automatic selection at most clubs. I know it's easy to get carried away at this time of year so I've got to be careful but keep and eye out for him. Kade Chandler is another to impress. Sure hands, good kick and quick today with at least 2 goals and perhaps more. He ran out of petrol tickets last year but this year he'll be better and better for longer. Problem is he's competing with Kossie, Spargs and a number of others for a spot in the forward line but he certainly put his name forward today. Howes played deep back and started on Fritta. What he did he did well and he looks taller than last year to me. He's got really good skills and seems to have picked up the pace of the game well but of course with the midfield dominating for Fritta's team Howes had his work cut out. He's an interesting choice for third tall because you'd think it means Lever has to play more accountable footy and that's not his go. Another interesting watch. Kynan Brown is also an interesting watch. He certainly gives it his all and can find the ball well. He played the game on Langdon and they were on the side where a lot of the play was (due to the wind). He did some nice things but in a fully contested game he'd be ragdolled I reckon. But his hands are clean, he is quick enough and he's showing a bit. A great Moneyball pick. I was also impressed with Seston. He was involved in quite a lot of play in the wing/back area and found quite a bit of it in one patch. He used it well and was clean, he's clearly made improvements to this game this year although he's not close to best 22 at this stage. But for a smokie he's not disappointing, he's got some really good attributes, his kicking being the main one. Jake Bowey was really really good. His disposal is first class, his ball handling is very good and his decision making was good. He found it a lot today both inside and outside and was a real standout for me. McAdam is a class footballer but he didn't play the whole game. In the third he, Brayshaw, Billings and some others were just running laps and McAdam was the tailender so I think they are still trying to build his tank. But when he was on he finds it and uses it and will be an interesting addition unless his fitness stops him being selected. Rive played midfield for the last part of the game and did well. He just looks to be continuing his confident run from late last year and as I type this I'm wondering if Howes takes his spot if Riv plays more up the ground. Tmac was good today but he wasn't on anyone much. But he found it and much to DL groupthink kicked it well on all but one occasion. By the way, he wasn't the only one to miss a kick. It was a kickout from a point and I don't expect him to take any of them in the seniors. But in my view he was the third best tall back on the field with the caveat that he didn't really have a challenging opponent. Fritta took some really good grabs, Kossie did some Kossie things and Woey looked composed with the ball but struggled against the first picked midfield. The Kolt and Duke had little influence that I saw but Duke played on the grandstand side and I wouldn't have noticed much of his play if he was involved. Best for others to comment. Kolt seemed to have little input and is still picking up the pace of the game. My final point is that the kicking for goal was very good in difficult conditions. As I commented to others, if we'd kicked like that in the finals we'd have won the flag, but enough of channelling Masie. I can't be bothered proof reading this so apologies for typo's and mispellings. @Demonstone will no doubt do that job for me and this report will be covered in red ink.

Can anyone see Petty? Yep, on the bike.

Brayshaw isn’t wearing a helmet. That’s the intensity. They play at full pace but not much physicality.

Lever doing all drills.

And they’ve locked off the grandstand for the comfort of the supporters😀🤪

And now a shower! Petts doing all the warm up.

Sparrow doing warm up drills. Correction, someone wearing Tommy’s number, doesn’t look like Tom.

Jefferson, Sparrow, Salem and AMW in rehab. Left Melbourne in a breeze and arrived at a cold and wind ravaged Casey.

Interesting comments on KFW. He’s a young kid who hasn’t played much footy and it shows. But I’ve been told by people who know him just how dedicated he is to achieving an AFL career. His body is bigger than last year, he’s taken serious time off his 2km time and he’s much more involved at training. The club will have to assess whether he has the skills to make it but if they think he has he could be a very good long term prospect. It may take him another 3 or 4 years to get there but he’s a big boy who shows good agility and would be a cheap long term investment as a category B rookie. One thing for sure, he won’t die wondering if he could have made it.

I'm just back from training and it's really interesting reading others views of today as they differ from mine a bit. JvR said in a recent interview that today is ball movement day and Friday's are match practice so take that into account when you hear about players scoring goals. It's non stop movement and there is plenty of space and lots of room in the forward line and there are goals scored all the time. It's not "match practice" and the tackling is done with care. For me it's more like intensive circle work but maybe I'm wrong. Perspective at training is always interesting. Bowser has been mentioned a lot particularly for his disposal but I thought he was a bit off today missing some kicks he would usually hit, but he was very involved and very focused. He's agile and tough. Yze was very involved and looks a good prospect. Got lots of the ball and didn't look out of place out there. But my standout for the day was Jack Billings. He's a Moneyball pick and he'll be a beauty. His kicking today was better than anyone out there as he hit up hard targets all day. He's clearly fit and covering the ground well and will be regular best 22 from round 1. JvR is looking very imposing taking contested marks and finding space well. He's put on some bulk but it hasn't impacted his speed or spring and he is still super aggressive at the ball. His kicking is also very reliable. Windsor was more involved today than I've noticed on other days and certainly has a turn of pace although on one occasion when he was out by himself and running down the wing McAdam nearly caught him. Unlike others I don't see him as a round 1 candidate but who knows. All the older players were involved in ways you'd expect and I endorse the comments made about Viney and Trac. I saw Petty in the match sims early but he either didn't get much of it or didn't do much of it because I didn't see him involved much. I hope others can clarify his day. It was a tough day today, hot, humid and they ran for a full two and a half hours. There was also a good crowd, amazing what happens when you advertise training and give people a bit of notice.