Training 2025 Off-Season & Preseason reports and discussion

[cs61]

From observing today’s session the biggest thing that stood out for me today ……. the boys do turn up early coming in through the car park. It’s a report but that’s all I got!

They do look in great condition. There seems to be a real vibe about improvement from reading all the various reports as well. Jiath working on clean off the deck and 'one touch; Ginnivan on goal scoring to take more chances, Amon to take his running to another level to move back up to the wing at times, Weddle on strength and speed to make him a true utility, Ramsden strength in arms and core to hold up in ruck and marking contests, etc etc. Feels like everyone has their own focus over pre-season on what they need to work on to take the next step, as well as collectively having very high standards as a group.

 

[matey]

They do look in great condition. There seems to be a real vibe about improvement from reading all the various reports as well. Jiath working on clean off the deck and 'one touch; Ginnivan on goal scoring to take more chances, Amon to take his running to another level to move back up to the wing at times, Weddle on strength and speed to make him a true utility, Ramsden strength in arms and core to hold up in ruck and marking contests, etc etc. Feels like everyone has their own focus over pre-season on what they need to work on to take the next step, as well as collectively having vary high standards as a group.

Yes they are driving and feeding off each other and anyone not on board will be left behind

 

[Gaston]

Yes they are driving and feeding off each other and anyone not on board will be left behind

Dylan Moore's comments that you don't win a premiership over Christmas but you can definitely lose it, seem to be a mantra driving the group at this time of the year.

 

[Sirlemsip]

Yes they are driving and feeding off each other and anyone not on board will be left behind

There is now competition for literally every position on the field.

Nobody is 'safe'. Complacency means you'll be playing for Box Hill.

 

[LRobbo]

If Dear misses early parts of the season I wonder if Weddle will play as a CHF?
Has all the tools and would blow defenders up leading up the ground and then charging back to goal.

Just a thought

 

[hilly82]

Has anyone got some key take away from seeing Matt Hill in the Match sim and scaled down scratchie they played yesterday?
Does he add pressure in the back six and make them pay when he uses his pace out of contests??

 

[Simon Crawshay]

If Dear misses early parts of the season I wonder if Weddle will play as a CHF?
Has all the tools and would blow defenders up leading up the ground and then charging back to goal.

Just a thought

In some ways I feel like Wedds is more a natural forward than a defender. He is a very instinctive player and he loves to kick a goal which is a great sign.

As you say he would blow up pretty much every key defender in the league with his endurance running. The question is whether his contested marking is good enough I think.

 

[Newmo89]

Let me entertain you: The Hawk ready to excite in 2025

A luckless Hawthorn backman looks to be a pre-season standout to start the new year.

www.zerohanger.com

I recently joined Zero Hanger as a writer and this is my first piece for them. Have a read and let me know what you think. Would love some feedback.

 

[TheFourPillars]

Let me entertain you: The Hawk ready to excite in 2025

A luckless Hawthorn backman looks to be a pre-season standout to start the new year.

www.zerohanger.com

I recently joined Zero Hanger as a writer and this is my first piece for them. Have a read and let me know what you think. Would love some feedback.

Great article mate. it helps that you have in depth knowledge about this, and you have seen him on the track.

 

[kazzooka]

In some ways I feel like Wedds is more a natural forward than a defender. He is a very instinctive player and he loves to kick a goal which is a great sign.

As you say he would blow up pretty much every key defender in the league with his endurance running. The question is whether his contested marking is good enough I think.

Weddle would blow up pretty much every wingman too. I know Amon beat him in the 6 minute but for a full 4 quarters and his speed, endurance and also just his strength would absolutely exhaust opponents.

 

[grumbleguts]

Like us, I admire the way your club ruthlessly goes about winning flags each decade and plays good, hard footy. No eternal mid table middling bullshit like the drug rats over at Essendon, whom I despise. I’ve also got a strong Tasmanian connection and despite the Hawks being paid handsomely for it I’ll always be grateful for their football and economic investment in the state over the last 20 or so years. Tassie may not have got their team without it.

Plus I f**king hate the Cats.

Are you the guy that high-fived Isaac Smith in the 2015 grand final after his goal from the pocket?

 

[Roddy]

This is why I'm so deeply fascinated by what Sammy and the coaches are going to do with Weds this year. The only thing for certain is that he's not needed down back any more. I think he could be highly effective as a wing or forward (I can see him going forward more, with Lewis and Calsher's short-term futures looking uncertain), and even swing into the midfield on occasion. Hell, the bloke can even pinch-hit in the ruck!

Someone asked if his contested marking is up to speed. I've seen him take some excellent grabs, and he's only going to get better.

Training attenders, any bede on where they're going to use him yet? What group does he break off into when they do?

Maybe he'll just be a perpetual versatile swingman?

 

[grumbleguts]

Great report, Newmo89. Thanks. Are these pics working for anyone else? They are coming up blank for me.

Working for me.

 

[TheFourPillars]

Has anyone got some key take away from seeing Matt Hill in the Match sim and scaled down scratchie they played yesterday?
Does he add pressure in the back six and make them pay when he uses his pace out of contests??

Hey mate hilly is still learning the structures and how we play. In the match sim he did get lost a couple of times. It's so much to take in. A lot of the team know each others game. Hilly will just take some time to get up to speed.

 

[OnTheRocks]

 

[fairdinks]

nothing to add as I am 1000 klms away but wish to add my appreciation for all those that take the time get to training and post their views. It is very much appreciated.

Big thanks to Siri and Newmo today.

Exciting time to be a hawk fan.

 

[eaglevision]

Are you the guy that high-fived Isaac Smith in the 2015 grand final after his goal from the pocket?

View attachment 2203365

Not me mate. I would have chopped that hand off by now knowing that I’d high fived an eventual Cats premiership player.

 

[RutegerJones]

So I took my two boys to today's training session with the best intentions. My youngest has special needs, so unfortunately I had one eye on my boy & the other eye on our boys. I stayed for about 90 minutes. Massimo was the first player out & Calsher retreated to the rooms after walking a couple of laps with a trainer.

Stunning day with beautiful blue skies and no wind. From the onset, there was a great vibe amongst the group & plenty of banter as they lined up for a team photo. Jars was the loudest motivator.

The rehab group consisted of the usual suspects (Lewis, Blanck, Frost etc) who ran numerous laps before partaking in a kick to kick & repeat sprints. They were on the far wing so it was difficult to gauge if they did any drills where they changed direction etc. Ginni & The Wiz also ran laps before concentrating on passing to one another & goal kicking. They didn't partake in any of the main drills, although they didn't appear to be stifled in any way. On one occasion coach Mitchell was (again) mentoring The Wiz on kicking around the corner, from the left pocket on the right. Mitchell nailed every shot (freak) whilst The Wiz went at about 60 or 70 per cent. Both Ginni & Wiz look very fit.

The remainder of the group partook in numerous drills which consisted of handballing under pressure, kicking in tight (multiple players stood in a set of cones, there were heaps of balls in play & they had to chose the best option outside of the cones) & end to end play. The end to end play was pretty dynamic & there was an expectation that players would run on after disposing of the ball & create space to present as an option, decoy or receiver. Day, CJ, Newk, Weddle & Massimo stood out to me & my eldest, each for different reasons. CJ was moving beautifully ... I mean really beautifully (although his hands were a little hard), Day is just a footballer's footballer, Massimo's kicking is sublime, Weddle excites you (even at training) & Jai terrifies his own team mates. Moore was also prominent but his disposal was a little off. During the handball drills no one could get a hand on Chol. He just meandered through the contest, as fluid as my drool. He really seems motivated.

Due to niggles or training loads (I suspect) some players would peel off & run laps or sprints as opposed to partaking in the drills. McCabe, The Beast, Seamus, Breust, Gunners, Butler & Sic ran past or watched on ... just to name a few.

The match sim kicked off around the time my youngest was motioning for fish & chips. It was hard & mouthguards were in (for both me & the players). Anyway ... the teams consisted of the usual vests & no vests. From what I saw, Jai & Worpel were fantastic in close. On one occasion Worpel evaded three tackles prior to kicking it forward. Although his kick was below par, his evasive skills & core strength were evident. I couldn't stay for much longer, but I did note that players were instructed not to man the mark, but peel off to shut down space. On one occasion Scaife forgot to do this & Chol gave him an absolute spray from the boundary. I was taken aback a little, as Mabior otherwise seems to be so laid back. To me it screamed of him taking on a mentoring role for Jasper. On another occasion Weddle crashed into / soared over Meek (who is just massive) to kill a ball. His team mates responded accordingly. The Beast unleashed to run down CJ & all tackles were full on. It was definitely a match sim. Battle surprised me with how agile he is & as someone said earlier, Barrass is just a quintessential full back.

At this point my youngest had had enough so we had to peel off. I had no intention of posting, but figured that I'd try to share the love. It was my first training session this year & it's left me & my family pumped for 2025. Everyone looks fitter than Schoenmakers with bigger hands than Pittonet. Go hawks!

"He just meandered through the contest, as fluid as my drool. "

This would have to be a strong contender for sentence of the pre-season."

 

[grumbleguts]

Not me mate. I would have chopped that hand off by now knowing that I’d high fived an eventual Cats premiership player.

I know what you mean. Every time I think of that move, there's a little vomit in my mouth.

 

[Yardie]

I know what you mean. Every tie I think of that move, there's a little vomit in my mouth.

You just have to lean into it. Tell my Geelong acquaintances that the only reason they got over the line after all those years was because they needed a Hawthorn champion to get them there.

They don't like it, and they can't argue against it

 

[grumbleguts]

You just have to lean into it. Tell my Geelong acquaintances that the only reason they got over the line after all those years was because they needed a Hawthorn champion to get them there.

They don't like it, and they can't argue against it

It's the only reason they were even competitive in the 89 GF

 

[kazzooka]

You just have to lean into it. Tell my Geelong acquaintances that the only reason they got over the line after all those years was because they needed a Hawthorn champion to get them there.

They don't like it, and they can't argue against it

This is just opening the door to them saying Simpkin is the only reason we won in 2013.

 

[Mojo]

So I took my two boys to today's training session with the best intentions. My youngest has special needs, so unfortunately I had one eye on my boy & the other eye on our boys. I stayed for about 90 minutes. Massimo was the first player out & Calsher retreated to the rooms after walking a couple of laps with a trainer.

Stunning day with beautiful blue skies and no wind. From the onset, there was a great vibe amongst the group & plenty of banter as they lined up for a team photo. Jars was the loudest motivator.

The rehab group consisted of the usual suspects (Lewis, Blanck, Frost etc) who ran numerous laps before partaking in a kick to kick & repeat sprints. They were on the far wing so it was difficult to gauge if they did any drills where they changed direction etc. Ginni & The Wiz also ran laps before concentrating on passing to one another & goal kicking. They didn't partake in any of the main drills, although they didn't appear to be stifled in any way. On one occasion coach Mitchell was (again) mentoring The Wiz on kicking around the corner, from the left pocket on the right. Mitchell nailed every shot (freak) whilst The Wiz went at about 60 or 70 per cent. Both Ginni & Wiz look very fit.

The remainder of the group partook in numerous drills which consisted of handballing under pressure, kicking in tight (multiple players stood in a set of cones, there were heaps of balls in play & they had to chose the best option outside of the cones) & end to end play. The end to end play was pretty dynamic & there was an expectation that players would run on after disposing of the ball & create space to present as an option, decoy or receiver. Day, CJ, Newk, Weddle & Massimo stood out to me & my eldest, each for different reasons. CJ was moving beautifully ... I mean really beautifully (although his hands were a little hard), Day is just a footballer's footballer, Massimo's kicking is sublime, Weddle excites you (even at training) & Jai terrifies his own team mates. Moore was also prominent but his disposal was a little off. During the handball drills no one could get a hand on Chol. He just meandered through the contest, as fluid as my drool. He really seems motivated.

Due to niggles or training loads (I suspect) some players would peel off & run laps or sprints as opposed to partaking in the drills. McCabe, The Beast, Seamus, Breust, Gunners, Butler & Sic ran past or watched on ... just to name a few.

The match sim kicked off around the time my youngest was motioning for fish & chips. It was hard & mouthguards were in (for both me & the players). Anyway ... the teams consisted of the usual vests & no vests. From what I saw, Jai & Worpel were fantastic in close. On one occasion Worpel evaded three tackles prior to kicking it forward. Although his kick was below par, his evasive skills & core strength were evident. I couldn't stay for much longer, but I did note that players were instructed not to man the mark, but peel off to shut down space. On one occasion Scaife forgot to do this & Chol gave him an absolute spray from the boundary. I was taken aback a little, as Mabior otherwise seems to be so laid back. To me it screamed of him taking on a mentoring role for Jasper. On another occasion Weddle crashed into / soared over Meek (who is just massive) to kill a ball. His team mates responded accordingly. The Beast unleashed to run down CJ & all tackles were full on. It was definitely a match sim. Battle surprised me with how agile he is & as someone said earlier, Barrass is just a quintessential full back.

At this point my youngest had had enough so we had to peel off. I had no intention of posting, but figured that I'd try to share the love. It was my first training session this year & it's left me & my family pumped for 2025. Everyone looks fitter than Schoenmakers with bigger hands than Pittonet. Go hawks!

Were you sitting on the steps with your boys in the shade? I think I was sitting behind you.

 

[Siri]

Were you sitting on the steps with your boys in the shade? I think I was sitting behind you.

Yes mate. My boys were smashing the fish and greasies, if that was you with your lovely young family.

 

[JZedd]

Let me entertain you: The Hawk ready to excite in 2025

A luckless Hawthorn backman looks to be a pre-season standout to start the new year.

www.zerohanger.com

I recently joined Zero Hanger as a writer and this is my first piece for them. Have a read and let me know what you think. Would love some feedback.

Great job mate.