Training 2024 Pre-Season discussion

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Most teams speak about the need to peak later in the season, teams who win flags typically enter finals on a solid win streak. But those teams bank wins early "by hook or by crook".

The best teams the last 7 or 8 years have gotten wins early but rolled on from the halfway point of the season. I think the only 2 games we drop early in the season if we are going to have a good year is likely the Adelaide and the Brisbane games. Win the others and we are healthy.
I agree, but just noting that we're tinkering with the gameplan again, and in all likelihood that's not going to peak until later in the season, hence the comment.

Scott spoke about it in 2022, that we're going to take that risk and might finish 9th doing so, but if it clicks, we'll be unbeatable. This feels similar.

FWIW, Kingsley said similar to the Giants last year.

There's some great footage of a pre-season meeting, where he mentions that it's going to take 2-3 months to get this thing to work, but if it does, we'll come home flying.
 
Harsh?- Guthrie is easily our best, and really our only inside plus outside mid. His ball handling is exquisite, he can accumulate, can defend, can score and distribute. He won B & F in 2 GF years.
Along with Danger and Blic and Stewart, he is in our MVP's.
No shock that our impotence last year coincided with his absence.
The fact that he was able to get himself to that elite standard anyway is significant.
Sadly, he may well be done as far as that output, hence my thoughts about where we are at as a team this year.
As I keep thinking, ANY position on the ladder would not surprise.
Danger, Blic, & Duncan- they are all one significant FURTHER soft tissue injury away from a similar situation that Guthrie is in; they have all had them, and it's fanciful to think they are immune to further such injuries at this stage of their careers.
So who steps up big time to help us compete in the MF?
Bruhn and Holmes are at good ages to break out.

Bowes will surprise a few.

Dangerfield and Duncan fresh, with a big pre-season in hand, will help.

Conway to support Stanley when we need it.

Blicavs is still capable of his 2022 form, especially if we have the rest of the support team in (minus Guthrie). He only dipped last season when the likes of Dangerfield, Stanley and Duncan were sitting out. Same for Holmes actually.

Get the rest on the park and it's still a decent midfield, believe it or not. People are focussing heavily on the large parts of the year where too many of the above were missing or playing injured at the same time.
 
Won't publish player weights, but want clubs to reveal exact player injury timeframes. Yeah, I know it was part of the negotiated CBA, but like many things in the AFL, it doesn't make a lot of sense.
Couldn't agree more Catman.

Of course there is no debased gambling money to be ripped off people regarding players' weights.

A players availability on the other hand. :rolleyes:
 

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Harsh?- Guthrie is easily our best, and really our only inside plus outside mid. His ball handling is exquisite, he can accumulate, can defend, can score and distribute. He won B & F in 2 GF years.
Along with Danger and Blic and Stewart, he is in our MVP's.
No shock that our impotence last year coincided with his absence.
The fact that he was able to get himself to that elite standard anyway is significant.
Sadly, he may well be done as far as that output, hence my thoughts about where we are at as a team this year.
As I keep thinking, ANY position on the ladder would not surprise.
Danger, Blic, & Duncan- they are all one significant FURTHER soft tissue injury away from a similar situation that Guthrie is in; they have all had them, and it's fanciful to think they are immune to further such injuries at this stage of their careers.
So who steps up big time to help us compete in the MF?
Maybe I didn't articulate myself well.

I agree broadly with what you're saying - he is clearly the most well-rounded midfielder on our list currently (or at least he was when he was last playing which was 2022), and his loss last year, and the first part of this year, can't be understated.

But, he didn't really have his 'breakout' year until 2021 when he was 28. So, for a large part of his career he was in the 'good but not great' category. Now I think him taking his game to another level was a large part of why we performed so well over 21/22 (and probably a good reason we underperformed last year). But I'm just saying that with even more time out with injury, maybe we can't just assume he'll return to that level.

Having Guthrie back will no doubt help our side. But becoming a genuine contender again is probably more reliant on someone like Holmes, Bruhn, Bowes etc. to step up their game and be that All Australian level mid.
 
At least this year I feel will should be more able to cover Guth not being there, simply from teh expected natural improvement in Bruhn, Bowes, Holmes and even anything from Clark.

Doesn't guarantee anything, and would much prefer to have Guth... but it shouldn't hurt to the same level it did last year IMO
 
At least this year I feel will should be more able to cover Guth not being there, simply from teh expected natural improvement in Bruhn, Bowes, Holmes and even anything from Clark.

Doesn't guarantee anything, and would much prefer to have Guth... but it shouldn't hurt to the same level it did last year IMO
As long as they get onto it early so we get Guthrie back for a finals tilt. Last year felt shambolic.
 
Maybe I didn't articulate myself well.

I agree broadly with what you're saying - he is clearly the most well-rounded midfielder on our list currently (or at least he was when he was last playing which was 2022), and his loss last year, and the first part of this year, can't be understated.

But, he didn't really have his 'breakout' year until 2021 when he was 28. So, for a large part of his career he was in the 'good but not great' category. Now I think him taking his game to another level was a large part of why we performed so well over 21/22 (and probably a good reason we underperformed last year). But I'm just saying that with even more time out with injury, maybe we can't just assume he'll return to that level.

Having Guthrie back will no doubt help our side. But becoming a genuine contender again is probably more reliant on someone like Holmes, Bruhn, Bowes etc. to step up their game and be that All Australian level mid.
Agree completely
 
Bruhn and Holmes are at good ages to break out.

Bowes will surprise a few.

Dangerfield and Duncan fresh, with a big pre-season in hand, will help.

Conway to support Stanley when we need it.

Blicavs is still capable of his 2022 form, especially if we have the rest of the support team in (minus Guthrie). He only dipped last season when the likes of Dangerfield, Stanley and Duncan were sitting out. Same for Holmes actually.

Get the rest on the park and it's still a decent midfield, believe it or not. People are focussing heavily on the large parts of the year where too many of the above were missing or playing injured at the same time.
Everything you say makes sense, and you are a consistently positive supporter and poster. Your pov is respected and appreciated.
No BUTS.
My only thinking is that EVERYTHING came together perfectly in 22, headed by the motivational Selwood.
I just wonder(and probably doubt) if we could ever have such a season like that again.
Maybe we will one day win a flag in a different manner, where we are not the standout team with the greatest farewell game possibly ever seen.
 
Everything you say makes sense, and you are a consistently positive supporter and poster. Your pov is respected and appreciated.
No BUTS.
My only thinking is that EVERYTHING came together perfectly in 22, headed by the motivational Selwood.
I just wonder(and probably doubt) if we could ever have such a season like that again.
Maybe we will one day win a flag in a different manner, where we are not the standout team with the greatest farewell game possibly ever seen.
Yeah the Selwood loss remains huge. Even past his peak he glued together the group and probably helped us swing some tricky close games, the likes of which we lost in 2023.

I do think now that we've had a year to adjust and move on, with a big pre season as opposed to a surgery/party one, the group as a whole will step up more from round 1 this year.

For instance it took Atkins a while to get going and by the time he did we had Dangerfield in cracked rib mode limping to seasons end. Bruhn was also a late bloomer in season 2023. Whereas Holmes and Blicavs started well but then injuries and form interrupted them. Stanley and Duncan had availability issues and then coming back half crocked. It can still be a good midfield nucleus that supports the capable defence/forward lines. Of course they could all get injured and peak at different times again, and maybe Bowes does have another flat year. I like to think not. But we'd likely need a disastrous set of events to be as poor as last year.
 
Geelong’s social media has posted where Gary Rohan’s been for the past match and a few training sessions:

His parter has just had a baby.

I wonder if he was also actually generally sore as reported
 
Geelong’s social media has posted where Gary Rohan’s been for the past match and a few training sessions:

His parter has just had a baby.

I wonder if he was also actually generally sore as reported

The Club has been a little slow with that one - the little guy was born a couple of weeks ago and announced by the couple of 17 Feb

Even the Geelong Addy has already run a story

Maybe someone at the club stuffed up a scheduled post
 
I'm just saying I understand the logic on paper but I do not like it as much as I like Holmes in the middle. Maybe I'm stupid. I'm willing to admit I'm stupid if the comment looks stupid in retrospect
You certainly aren't stupid and I hope my post didn't convey that as it wasn't the intention.

My take on your initial post was you aren't a fan of having a player or players who bring run, overlap, break lines, and set up chains in the back half. Or at least you didn't regard it as important.

I think Max could be a revelation in the back half. That isn't to say it'll be his lot for all time.

So long as we have a player of two with the ball skills and pace to break lines in the back half as is the approach of all succesful clubs in this day and age I'm happy. Regrettably, there hasn't been an obvious choice on our list fot that role for some time. Hence trying Oisin well before he was AFL ready.
 

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Ohhh I see 😂
I didn't think your sweeping statement required any further comment. Have a gander at not only how deep into the forward half the chains Nick Daicos started,or was a key part of last year, ended up, but how many scoring looks were a direct result of those rebound chains. Jack Sinclair of the Saints is another who is very effective in that regard.

Just sinking the slipper into the pill often results in shallow forward entries. However, that's not the way back half rebounds are trained or desired as the game is ideally played today.

Nathan Buckley went into some detail on radio this week when explaining how important run from the back half is in setting up scoring looks. Second only to centre clearances where the 6 x 6 x 6 ensures the forward half is open. If I have time I'll see if I can find a link to it.

There's good reason for coaches placing so much emphasis on forward-half pressure and in locking the ball in the forward half.
 
You certainly aren't stupid and I hope my post didn't convey that as it wasn't the intention.

My take on your initial post was you aren't a fan of having a player or players who bring run, overlap, break lines, and set up chains in the back half. Or at least you didn't regard it as important.

I think Max could be a revelation in the back half. That isn't to say it'll be his lot for all time.

So long as we have a player of two with the ball skills and pace to break lines in the back half as is the approach of all succesful clubs in this day and age I'm happy. Regrettably, there hasn't been an obvious choice on our list fot that role for some time. Hence trying Oisin well before he was AFL ready.
Yeah I certainly think that kind of role had the potential to impact, I just think we need Holmes in the midfield more. Plus I think more than a few sides will get found out defensively trying to replicate a premier
 
Squad of 26 against Essendon. 31 played against Carlton so 5 need to make way assuming Rohan isn't back.

Guthrie is obviously one. You would think Bews is another considering he only played a couple of minutes right at the end.

So 3 more. I wonder if we rest a couple of senior guys and give all the younger players who are in the frame another run.
 
I didn't think your sweeping statement required any further comment. Have a gander at not only how deep into the forward half the chains Nick Daicos started,or was a key part of last year, ended up, but how many scoring looks were a direct result of those rebound chains. Jack Sinclair of the Saints is another who is very effective in that regard.

Just sinking the slipper into the pill often results in shallow forward entries. However, that's not the way back half rebounds are trained or desired as the game is ideally played today.

Nathan Buckley went into some detail on radio this week when explaining how important run from the back half is in setting up scoring looks. Second only to centre clearances where the 6 x 6 x 6 ensures the forward half is open. If I have time I'll see if I can find a link to it.

There's good reason for coaches placing so much emphasis on forward-half pressure and in locking the ball in the forward half.
I know what you are saying it is important to have that but we need the cattle through the midfield that we have in the midfield or the wings. Daicos is linking up with some quality midfield and wings who have Holmes like speed, we already have Tom Stewart one of the best intercept and best kicks also Duncan provides that drive as well. I’d rather him deliver to a Holmes and danger through the midfield and they release the ball and get it deep in our forward line. The 6 position is quite irrelevant in general play as well and that is when a rebound will most likely happen, centre bounces is where it is most effective.
 
Squad of 26 against Essendon. 31 played against Carlton so 5 need to make way assuming Rohan isn't back.

Guthrie is obviously one. You would think Bews is another considering he only played a couple of minutes right at the end.

So 3 more. I wonder if we rest a couple of senior guys and give all the younger players who are in the frame another run.
Also would need to consider if there were players from the vfl match worth a look against afl players.

Thinking Jeka/Humphries. Maybe test Hardie against afl players. See if big George can make it work at a faster pace of play
 
Squad of 26 against Essendon. 31 played against Carlton so 5 need to make way assuming Rohan isn't back.

Guthrie is obviously one. You would think Bews is another considering he only played a couple of minutes right at the end.

So 3 more. I wonder if we rest a couple of senior guys and give all the younger players who are in the frame another run.

I would like to see them rest a couple of the senior players. Stewart, Atkins, Duncan, Danger etc. Their roles are set and we know what they bring to the table.
There’s probably 2 spots (barring injury) up for grabs heading into rd 1. Let the contenders battle it out.
Let’s see more of Mannagh, Clark, Knevitt, Conway, Neale, Dempsey etc. Give them good game time. Conway to be number 1 ruck, Mannagh starts, Clark a starting mid, Neale the go to key forward etc.
If someone really impressed in the VFL maybe give them a run.
 
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I know what you are saying it is important to have that but we need the cattle through the midfield that we have in the midfield or the wings. Daicos is linking up with some quality midfield and wings who have Holmes like speed, we already have Tom Stewart one of the best intercept and best kicks also Duncan provides that drive as well. I’d rather him deliver to a Holmes and danger through the midfield and they release the ball and get it deep in our forward line. The 6 position is quite irrelevant in general play as well and that is when a rebound will most likely happen, centre bounces is where it is most effective.
Yeah.
For me, I like seeing the clever ball users in the back half. The small forwards and mids need to be able to run all day and be full-ground defenders.
So talk of Holmes at half-back and Stewart in midfield.. oh boy, that makes me nervous.
I really hope its all just talk that we soon forget about once the season starts.
 
Also would need to consider if there were players from the vfl match worth a look against afl players.

Thinking Jeka/Humphries. Maybe test Hardie against afl players. See if big George can make it work at a faster pace of play

It would be very strange to bring someone in from outside the best 31 one week to inside the best 26 the next.

The only possibility I see would be giving Parfitt one last chance with Guthrie out.
 
It would be very strange to bring someone in from outside the best 31 one week to inside the best 26 the next.

The only possibility I see would be giving Parfitt one last chance with Guthrie out.
Yeah but it's a nothing game though. If you want a look at someone against afl players this will be your last shot to do so without 4 points on the line until next year. I wouldn't discount the idea entirely.

We really need more preseason games to be able to test the list
 
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