GROTTO
TheBrownDog
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Loved that episode, great ending as he picked up using this philosophy in his dating.
Bigman’s Training Reports
- Thread starter George Kramer
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If it's KFC then it has worked okay so far for Brackets. He's had a bloody good AFL career.
On SM-A115F using BigFooty.com mobile app
Training report 4/12/2024
New
A slight concern I do have is that we are running a little low on talls at the moment.
Thilthorpe was back to walking laps which is a concern and hopefully doesn’t spill into the new year. Strachan is in a moon boot so will be out of action for a while you’d think, while Butts was again a no show. Burgess was also absent for some reason.
Not alarm bells just yet but it’s not ideal particularly given our lamentable ruck stocks.
On the plus side Hinge joined the main group for parts of the session while Milera stepped up his workload again and looks to be almost fully fit.
I did notice that Pedlar had some light strapping around his knee and Murray around his calf but both did not seem particularly bothered. Pedlar did head in early but not sure it was injury related.
Both Draper and Welsh participated in the early drills but were held off from much of the main stuff. I expect we will see more of Draper on Friday.
The first major drill involved small teams playing keeping’s off within a rectangular area roughly 50-60m long, with the opposition forced to solely defend (which looked exhausting to be honest). All about spotting targets quickly and minimising errors by foot. Worrell and Fog were the stars of the show here.
I did notice for this drill players still had designated positions. They were as listed on the electronic board:
Backs: Hinge, Bond, Keane, Edwards, Borlase, Worrell, Ryan, Milera, Nankervis, Smith, Michalanney, N. Murray
Mids: Draper, Peatling, Crouch, Jones, Laird, Rachele, O’Brien, Cumming, Sholl, Rankine, Schoenberg, Curtin, Dawson, Berry, Dowling
Forwards: T. Murray, Taylor, Neal-Bullen, Walker, Pedlar, Welsh, Gallagher, Keays, Drury, Cook, Mitch Stevens
Couple interesting things to note, namely Edwards being considered a defender, Laird and Rachele as mids and Taylor a forward. It would seem the coaches are trying to have as many players as possible train in secondary roles over the pre season.
The lads then split into three groups and moved into a bit of match sim across two thirds of the ground, with two teams facing off for roughly 10 minutes before rotating with the other team (which did some basic ground ball and contested work in the other third).
This drill was then expanded into the entire ground, with teams rotating each time there was a score. It’s still hard to truly judge given there were no stoppages and having 40 players divided into three teams meant there was more space than usual for players, but the intensity was impressive and players weren’t really holding back. Defensive work like spoils and intercepts were always celebrated the hardest.
I did also notice that there seemed to be a real emphasis on moving the ball on quickly after a mark and avoiding going backwards (Ryan appeared to cop it from the coach at one point for asking for a cheap kick behind Borlase). Running from behind to receive was encouraged however and players were taking risky options through the corridor, although once again do keep in mind there was a bit more space to utilise than usual.
Some player thoughts:
Murphy - hadn’t caught the eye much until today, but credit to him, he had a great session. Was super switched on defensively and put real heat on the opposition half backs. Also got a fair bit of ball and used it well. I’m well aware he’s not exactly one of the board’s favourites but can only call it as I see it.
Curtin - because there’s no stoppages it’s hard to judge his trajectory as a midfielder. When he drifts forward however he looks quite comfortable and I think his blend of strength, class and agility could serve him well as a centre half forward in the future if the midfield stuff doesn’t work out.
Murray - bull at a gate and is moving really well, definitely the most mobile he’s looked since the knee. He does however need to tighten up on some of his exits from defence. His long kicking is excellent, his short stuff however sometimes sells his teammates into real trouble and in dangerous positions on the ground.
Walker - had a bandage on the front of his knee which may have affected him but I thought he looked a bit sluggish and off the pace today, which is unusual for him as he’s typically a strong trainer. Maybe just a bad day.
Taylor - liked his pressure game today, really chased hard and tackled with intent. Didn’t get a heap of it but had one lovely moment at half forward where he took a contested mark, sold some candy and laced out a teammate. Has genuine talent but it’s a big year for him.
Worrell - had his best session so far this pre season. To be fair the drills really did suit the half backs but I thought his composure and vision up field really stood out. Occasionally overcooked his kicks but that’s about all I could fault.
Nankervis - I wouldn’t be surprised if he has one of the fastest first 10 metres on our list. Just has an ability to accelerate away from opponents almost with a bit of arrogance. Kicking has come a long way too since his first year.
Laird - even though he was listed as a midfielder, he still appeared to accumulate most of his ball at high half back and I thought he was really solid today and once again avoided his patented sky balls. On a side note, seems like he can be a bit of a grump on the training field when others make mistakes. Just something I’ve noticed.
Fogarty - has obviously taken a lot of inspiration from Tex and that includes his voice at training. Would be one of the loudest and most instructive players out there. Has come a long way.
Gallagher - for some reason was a bit of a ball magnet today, just kept finding space at half forward and he would take a lot of confidence from the session. Kicking has definitely improved, it’s still a bit lofty but has a lot more penetration and accuracy now. Curiously he seems to find handballing the harder skill.
Bond - had a great moment in defence where he took a lovely half volley, burst away with genuine pace and laced out his target by foot. On the flip side he is prone to the odd dropped mark or fumble. There may be a player there but needs to eliminate those times where he seems to lose concentration.
O’Brien - I’ve been asked about how he and Toby Murray are tracking in the ruck. Unfortunately there are very few ruck or stoppage drills at the moment, aside from some bag work at the tail end of sessions, so I won’t be able to judge likely until the new year. In terms of general play, Rob was the better of the two today.
Cumming - I keep singing the praises of this bloke but I’ll do it again. Didn’t get a ton of it but everything he does is with purpose and precision. Just super clean and composed. Would be great to play with as he consistently makes the right decisions and rarely puts teammates in bad positions.
Keane - thought he was probably the best of the lot today. Once again it needs to be said that these drills do favour defenders and Keane in particular was given the ball a lot by the coaches, but I love the way he opens the game up with his ability to change the angles and see players upfield that others don’t. He’ll make a bad mistake every so often but he creates far more than he coughs up.
Thilthorpe was back to walking laps which is a concern and hopefully doesn’t spill into the new year. Strachan is in a moon boot so will be out of action for a while you’d think, while Butts was again a no show. Burgess was also absent for some reason.
Not alarm bells just yet but it’s not ideal particularly given our lamentable ruck stocks.
On the plus side Hinge joined the main group for parts of the session while Milera stepped up his workload again and looks to be almost fully fit.
I did notice that Pedlar had some light strapping around his knee and Murray around his calf but both did not seem particularly bothered. Pedlar did head in early but not sure it was injury related.
Both Draper and Welsh participated in the early drills but were held off from much of the main stuff. I expect we will see more of Draper on Friday.
The first major drill involved small teams playing keeping’s off within a rectangular area roughly 50-60m long, with the opposition forced to solely defend (which looked exhausting to be honest). All about spotting targets quickly and minimising errors by foot. Worrell and Fog were the stars of the show here.
I did notice for this drill players still had designated positions. They were as listed on the electronic board:
Backs: Hinge, Bond, Keane, Edwards, Borlase, Worrell, Ryan, Milera, Nankervis, Smith, Michalanney, N. Murray
Mids: Draper, Peatling, Crouch, Jones, Laird, Rachele, O’Brien, Cumming, Sholl, Rankine, Schoenberg, Curtin, Dawson, Berry, Dowling
Forwards: T. Murray, Taylor, Neal-Bullen, Walker, Pedlar, Welsh, Gallagher, Keays, Drury, Cook, Mitch Stevens
Couple interesting things to note, namely Edwards being considered a defender, Laird and Rachele as mids and Taylor a forward. It would seem the coaches are trying to have as many players as possible train in secondary roles over the pre season.
The lads then split into three groups and moved into a bit of match sim across two thirds of the ground, with two teams facing off for roughly 10 minutes before rotating with the other team (which did some basic ground ball and contested work in the other third).
This drill was then expanded into the entire ground, with teams rotating each time there was a score. It’s still hard to truly judge given there were no stoppages and having 40 players divided into three teams meant there was more space than usual for players, but the intensity was impressive and players weren’t really holding back. Defensive work like spoils and intercepts were always celebrated the hardest.
I did also notice that there seemed to be a real emphasis on moving the ball on quickly after a mark and avoiding going backwards (Ryan appeared to cop it from the coach at one point for asking for a cheap kick behind Borlase). Running from behind to receive was encouraged however and players were taking risky options through the corridor, although once again do keep in mind there was a bit more space to utilise than usual.
Some player thoughts:
Murphy - hadn’t caught the eye much until today, but credit to him, he had a great session. Was super switched on defensively and put real heat on the opposition half backs. Also got a fair bit of ball and used it well. I’m well aware he’s not exactly one of the board’s favourites but can only call it as I see it.
Curtin - because there’s no stoppages it’s hard to judge his trajectory as a midfielder. When he drifts forward however he looks quite comfortable and I think his blend of strength, class and agility could serve him well as a centre half forward in the future if the midfield stuff doesn’t work out.
Murray - bull at a gate and is moving really well, definitely the most mobile he’s looked since the knee. He does however need to tighten up on some of his exits from defence. His long kicking is excellent, his short stuff however sometimes sells his teammates into real trouble and in dangerous positions on the ground.
Walker - had a bandage on the front of his knee which may have affected him but I thought he looked a bit sluggish and off the pace today, which is unusual for him as he’s typically a strong trainer. Maybe just a bad day.
Taylor - liked his pressure game today, really chased hard and tackled with intent. Didn’t get a heap of it but had one lovely moment at half forward where he took a contested mark, sold some candy and laced out a teammate. Has genuine talent but it’s a big year for him.
Worrell - had his best session so far this pre season. To be fair the drills really did suit the half backs but I thought his composure and vision up field really stood out. Occasionally overcooked his kicks but that’s about all I could fault.
Nankervis - I wouldn’t be surprised if he has one of the fastest first 10 metres on our list. Just has an ability to accelerate away from opponents almost with a bit of arrogance. Kicking has come a long way too since his first year.
Laird - even though he was listed as a midfielder, he still appeared to accumulate most of his ball at high half back and I thought he was really solid today and once again avoided his patented sky balls. On a side note, seems like he can be a bit of a grump on the training field when others make mistakes. Just something I’ve noticed.
Fogarty - has obviously taken a lot of inspiration from Tex and that includes his voice at training. Would be one of the loudest and most instructive players out there. Has come a long way.
Gallagher - for some reason was a bit of a ball magnet today, just kept finding space at half forward and he would take a lot of confidence from the session. Kicking has definitely improved, it’s still a bit lofty but has a lot more penetration and accuracy now. Curiously he seems to find handballing the harder skill.
Bond - had a great moment in defence where he took a lovely half volley, burst away with genuine pace and laced out his target by foot. On the flip side he is prone to the odd dropped mark or fumble. There may be a player there but needs to eliminate those times where he seems to lose concentration.
O’Brien - I’ve been asked about how he and Toby Murray are tracking in the ruck. Unfortunately there are very few ruck or stoppage drills at the moment, aside from some bag work at the tail end of sessions, so I won’t be able to judge likely until the new year. In terms of general play, Rob was the better of the two today.
Cumming - I keep singing the praises of this bloke but I’ll do it again. Didn’t get a ton of it but everything he does is with purpose and precision. Just super clean and composed. Would be great to play with as he consistently makes the right decisions and rarely puts teammates in bad positions.
Keane - thought he was probably the best of the lot today. Once again it needs to be said that these drills do favour defenders and Keane in particular was given the ball a lot by the coaches, but I love the way he opens the game up with his ability to change the angles and see players upfield that others don’t. He’ll make a bad mistake every so often but he creates far more than he coughs up.
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Loved your note about FOG
Executive Landlord
Team Captain
- Feb 14, 2023
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Jeez Laird just seems insufferable. Should've moved him on
Thanks for another insightful report BM.
I copy these and send them to my 94yr old M.I.L.
She is a mad Crows fan and loves reading your reports!
I copy these and send them to my 94yr old M.I.L.
She is a mad Crows fan and loves reading your reports!
To be fair to Laird I get frustrated too when my co-workers can't execute simple tasks. The difference is I don't yell at them when it happens, that's what managers and coaches are for.
- Jun 21, 2014
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To be fair, this is fine, except he then should be happy to cop abuse on field for getting run-down tackled, walking after a fleeing oppo, and running into an open goal and missing.
Last edited:
I know this question was directed as bigman, but I'll say that I'm quietly hoping we treat him as a midfielder/forward, giving him significant minutes in both roles and letting him cause headaches whenever he moves between them.
He's a unique sort of player, we should give him a unique role.
- Oct 2, 2022
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I loved the suggestion of him at CHF - Fog, Thilthorpe and Curtin sounds very nice.
Also don't pot others when your own house isn't in order. For him to be criticising others after his continued lack of effort in the 2nd half of last year, he needs to zip it up for awhile and concentrate on his own game.
Should clarify it’s generally more of a body language thing than outright ripping into his teammates.
It’s just something I’ve noticed occasionally. It’s not as big a deal as I may have made it sound like.
I don’t think that’s the case, every time he’s listed as a midfielder so I think they’re going to give it a real go. He’s doing stoppage work with the mids at the end of the session.
Whether it ultimately works out or not i guess we will see. If he can work on his acceleration it could work out. He’s very strong for a 19 year old and clean with his hands.
But I do think he could offer a lot up forward too. Something to watch.
- Jul 14, 2012
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The thought of Rankine and Draper tearing it up in the midfield at stages next year fills me with some real hope.... 
Kane McGoodwin
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If Pedlar has yet another injury interrupted year, not sure he will remain on our list much longer.
Really hope he can get his body sorted as has the talent.
FR0GGY
From a cartel villa in Tuscany
Curtin will end up a forward imo
Kane McGoodwin
Make me an Admin!
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If he gets the most out of his talent, we will find a spot for him...
Drugs Are Bad Mackay?
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Outstanding bigman, thank you
How do you remember things in such detail by the way? Do you take notes? Photos of the electronic board? Photographic memory haha
With the ball movement drills, I spoke to an ex-Geelong player a few years ago and he said Brad Scott did lots of this, but that the attacking team was often outnumbered, sometimes quite heavily.
Meant they were always working through congestion, having to work extra hard to find space, had to be very precise with skills, choosing the right option was critical. Overloaded them so that the games felt easier.
How do you remember things in such detail by the way? Do you take notes? Photos of the electronic board? Photographic memory haha
With the ball movement drills, I spoke to an ex-Geelong player a few years ago and he said Brad Scott did lots of this, but that the attacking team was often outnumbered, sometimes quite heavily.
Meant they were always working through congestion, having to work extra hard to find space, had to be very precise with skills, choosing the right option was critical. Overloaded them so that the games felt easier.
Drugs Are Bad Mackay?
Moderator
- May 24, 2006
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Whoops!
