binman

I love that Taylor has really targeted elite foot skills in his drafting over the last 3 seasons. In my opinion our kicking skills across the board has long been our biggest weakness. Maintaining possession of the ball and hitting targets has never been more important. Turnovers have always hurt in footy of course (because they often result in oppo scores), but if you can't reliably spot up free players under pressure so they can take a mark (as was often the case in the back half of last season) you can't control the tempo of the game or give the defensive zone time to set up behind the ball. Salem out of form and Bowey out of the team really hurt us in this regard last year. Laurie, Bowey, Howes, Deakyn Smith and Jefferson are all excellent kicks. if you add Schache and Hunter, then that is pretty big injection of high level kicking skills over a relatively short period.

I'm pretty sure that's right. From memory it took ages to sort

Good to hear your take on Deakyn Smith. Might be a bolter. He might be able to play that half back small medium lock down role (agree its a weakness - Hunt couldn't quite make it work). Though he might be better as a running half back as sounds like a good athlete (not unlike hunt).

Stiff arms too

A key reason why they might wait, as bbp alludes to, is to ensure he doesn't miss any sessions in what is their critical preseason training block. Better for him to have surgery, if it's needed, right before the seaon starts than Oliver not being able to put down the fitness foundation.

To be fair, his knee injury threw a spanner in the works. Wiped out his 2021 season (when he was in the starting 22). And he never seemed to regain his mobility and lateral movement (which was not great even pre injury) in 2022. That's pretty common though. Hopefully he is back to his optimal physical shape this season. Though even if he does I think it is unlikely he'll make the ones

Perhaps that was a reference to us training at Yea 7 Feb as per (thanks WJ)

I'll note that from the training reports, he seems to be trying as a defender. If so, he is going to find it all but impossible to get a spot in the ones down back given the players ahead of him.

I'm not suggesting tomo plsy chf this year - quite the opposite. I did say I thought he might have been worth trying in that spot to REPLACE tmac after his injury last season. I'm suggesting I think his best option to get a regular seniors game is a high half forward role (and even then he'd be pushing it up hill to get a spot). But would need to be more athletic than he has been over the journey. By the by, on his size the MFC website has him one cm shorter than tmac, which ain't much. But he is only 94 kg - 7kg less than tmac. That's quite some difference for a kpf. He"s close to being big enough for chf, but as I noted I reckon he's a touch undersized for that role.

How about these aspirational names (aspirational in the sense that Jackson has no impact whatsoever for Freo): Inaction Jackson Not in action Jackson

What I really like is the way he squares himself to the goal face up a split second before kicking. That's a pure footy skill.

McClure has always left me cold. But that is an excellent interview. Great questions and richo found a nice balance between cliche and honesty. Asked about game plan, richo said no wholesale changes, but philosophicaly more aggressive. Which gels with observations from track watchers.

Simple. Get fitter.

Nominated for muliple Oscars I believe

Great minds.

Prior to the start of last season I predicted freo as the bolter, and possible top 4 chance. They looked rhe goods too before falling away. Part of my confidence was based on a sense Longmuire was following goody's template in terms of development and game plan (with some tweaks eg switch and outside run) - and he also has a similar temperament and approach I still think they are on the right track. They should make the 8 - they have an ok draw, and have a pretty easy opening 6 or so games, which gives them a chance of banking critical early wins. But one divergence from the goody template is the recruitment or Jackson. The golden rule is you draft for premierships - and only add star recruits to address a specific gap in order to go to the next level. Lynch to tbe tigers is a good example. Our equivalent is Lever and May. We were no chance of winning a flag without sorting our defence, which meant their recruitment made perfect sense and would have ruffled zero feathers within the team - and only minor ruffling with fans. What rarely happens however, is a team building towards being a genuine contender adding a really high priced recruit part way through the development phase who doesn't fill a a specific, and obvious gap that needs to be filled to win a flag. Doing so risks team cohesion as a new superstar salary impacts every other player on the list come contract negotiation time. And also plays havoc with tbe overall balancing of the salary cap. Recruiting a star also raises fan expectations - and if they are not met pressure builds. I wonder if Jackson is just such a recruit. I really don't see him being a massive game changer for them this season. Don't get me wrong, I think he will be a star. And may end up being a big factor in a premiership win. But freo aren't desperate for a ruck. To win a flag tbey need at least one elite big forward and at least one big bodied mid. Jackson's contract is going to make it hard to trade any such players. And if freo lose early games, his teammates and freo fans might start questioning the decision to put so many eggs in the Jackson basket. And if that happens angst can infect the club and Jackson risks becoming the loci of that angst. Which heaps note pressure on him. And grumbles about how much he is being paid and his performance start feeding in creating a mutant version of tbe virtuos cycle - the dreaded angst cycle. Jackson is now in the ultimate footy fiah bowl. If the wheels start wobbling the pressure on him will be immense. Bring it round one sainters.

100% agree. We played the roos in the corresponding game last season. And smashed them. But the roos were a rabble - and super young to boot. Men against boys. We were pretty wound up for that 2021 practice match against the tigers, who had near their best 22 IIRC. It was a willing contest that the dees looked intent on winning.

Yep, Fritter could def play that role. And may well do. But it might be a rob Peter to pay Paul scenario. Fritter has been our leading goal kicker in the last couple of seasons, and with Tmac is our most reliable set shot. If he were to play higher, we would have to find another player to kick those goals. Would JVR offer the same goal scoring ability?

And no combining live training reports and COVID vaccinations

That deescalated quickly.

I agree with this - if they are being asked to play the same role. To be honest i thought it was worth trying Tomo in that role last season. Unfortunately Weed wasn't up to it and i would have considered giving tomo a crack at it, such is the structural importance for us of that role. But as i said, Tomo is little undersized i think to be true KPF. Which is why i think a mobile forward role might be his best option. And to play that role he has to almost change body shape from previous years, become lighter and more like a 800 metre runner than a 100 metre sprinter (who are generally strong, power athletes). Or more like say Grundy than say hawkins - tall but lean. And he definitely has to improve his lateral movement and agility, something he has, like most players (eg Lever) struggled with post ACL. He doesn't look much different in this photo from training the other day, so perhaps I'm of the mark. But I'd be interested in the views of regular track watchers whether he is more agile and moving better this preseason - and what role he has been playing in match sims and in drills.

Training reports suggest we have been practicing a set up similar to the Cats model of leaving space inside 50 with the ball kicked over the head of forwards who run back into that space to mark and have a shot on goal. In that set up Cameron essentially plays as a high half forward, not the KPP role he has played for most his career. That leaves Hawkins inside 50 - and any other tall marking target, such as Blicavs who might have pushed forward. Cameron suits the role super well because he is athletic, moves well, marks well on the lead out into space (which is the critical link up kick we employ too - ie long leads from players like Tmac from the half forward flank into space on the wing) and is a penetrating and accurate field kick who creates scoring opportunities. And importantly he can still compete, for example in pack marking situations, as a key position forward, when necessary (though that is clearly not a strength). Cameron is critical for the Cats in terms of how they transition the ball from their back half and enter their 50. That is the role i suspect they have Schache in mind for. He has the athletic profile and skill set for the role - and like Cameron, marks well on the lead, likes to have space and is a beautiful left foot kick. And i hope for Schache's sake i'm right. Otherwise, his chances of cementing a spot in the ones are minimal, as as you point out he is competing with TMac, Brown, JVR and the resting ruck for a spot as a key forward. He could certainly slot into Fritter's role as a medium leading forward, but would only ever do so as a fill in. And really, he'll never be a one on one key position forward (like JVR so obviously is for example), so it doesn't make much sense that they would have traded him to play a role he is, one, unlikely to get many opportunities to play and two is no good at.

I agree. He played CHF for a few games with the giants. I don't think he set the world on fire, but he's a bit small for a true CHF. He's struggled with agility and lateral movement since coming back from his knee. But is looking in great shape and seems to have trimmed down. If he can get a bit more agile, high half forward is perfect for hom. He's big enough to almost be a key position player, and not bad one on one so he'd be a tricky match up. Good field kick too, which can't hurt. A high half forward role is probably his best chance of getting a regular game in the ones. We are pretty well set for key defenders. If he were to focus on that role he'd probably be competing with melksham and Schache.

Under loaded?