Training Pre season training

[The Jack]

it'll be interesting to see where Wood trains over the summer

At Moorabbin mostly, would be my guess.

 

[_Maximus_12]

it'll be interesting to see where Wood trains over the summer

Wood was a bit down this year. I think he’s one that if he regresses slightly again could find himself playing an important development role at Sandringham.

 

[akaifu]

Wood was a bit down this year. I think he’s one that if he regresses slightly again could find himself playing an important development role at Sandringham.

Wood had a serious shoulder injury then got played as a key forward when he returned to fill in for king and Caminiti

I wouldn’t say he regressed

 

[_Maximus_12]

Wood had a serious shoulder injury then got played as a key forward when he returned to fill in for king and Caminiti

I wouldn’t say he regressed

Pretty much every stat regressed bar his goal kicking. Shoulder injury or not, he regressed slightly on the year prior where he was in the mix for AA after 10 rounds.
Should he regress again by the same margin his spot will likely be at risk given the age profile of our list. I think that’s a pretty reasonable call to make

 

[tony74]

I'm thinking I might try and get along to the session this Friday - is it normally a serious session on a preseason Friday?

Friday is usually the toughest day on the track. As well the senior players should be on deck as well

 

[dudeintheswamp]

Really underplaying Wood's injury early in the season against the pies. Knocked out, convulsing on the ground, nasty concussion and a broken collarbone. Personally I still have a lot of faith in Mason to deliver this coming season.

 

[True Believer]

Friday is usually the toughest day on the track. As well the senior players should be on deck as well

Thanks T74 - I guess that confirms that I'll put it in the diary!!

 

[_Maximus_12]

Really underplaying Wood's injury early in the season against the pies. Knocked out, convulsing on the ground, nasty concussion and a broken collarbone. Personally I still have a lot of faith in Mason to deliver this coming season.

Not underplaying it all, never stated his injury was insignificant nor did I say he couldn’t deliver this season, simply stated that if his form continued to trend down he would be at risk of losing his spot. That is a good thing for us, as it means we have competition putting pressure on one of our previous mainstays.

I think all of Wood, Stocker, Webster, Byrnes, Clark, Jones and Butler (to a lesser extent) could find themselves in the VFL should their form not command selection. The addition of Travaglia and Tauru will likely squeeze someone out.
Ross has shown a penchant to play our early draftees.
Add a healthy Henry and Max King and there’s 4 players who miss.

There will be some genuine AFL quality players playing regular VFL for us this year which hasn’t been common for Sandringham in the past.

 

[aussierulesrules]

Wouldn’t have thought that Mason regressed. In fact watching him take all those strong marks at the highest point and do beautiful left foot passes was one of the very few things that I looked forward to, when going to watch us play during that really bleak period in the early/mid part of the year.

Took 8 or more marks in 11 of his 18 games and was top 10 in the comp for marks per game.

His abilty to take those high marks in any part of the ground is incredibly important and so is his running power and versatility. Not to mention his beautiful and long kicking.

He is IMO a hell of an asset to our team and club and that’s why he got a 3 year contract extension, despite being about to turn 31yo.

Most guys his age and profile get just a 1 year deal, so the fact he got 3 suggests that at least 1 other club was offering him 3. Same with Hill.

I would have absolutely hated to have lost him. Blokes with his attributes and skill set don’t grow on trees.

 

[SteeleSaints]

Pretty much every stat regressed bar his goal kicking. Shoulder injury or not, he regressed slightly on the year prior where he was in the mix for AA after 10 rounds.
Should he regress again by the same margin his spot will likely be at risk given the age profile of our list. I think that’s a pretty reasonable call to make

He did look to have lost a bit of zip in his game, he looked like he might have been playing fatigued/injured at times.

 

[_Maximus_12]

Looking forward to seeing form of some of our young guys over the summer.

Keeler, Garcia, Shoenmaker, Travaglia, Barrat, Collard & Tauru could add a really different dynamic to our mix next season.

Add to that the likes of Macrae and Carroll and suddenly our side could look very different.

Great competition for spots

 

[FraserFridays]

Friday is usually the toughest day on the track. As well the senior players should be on deck as well

Any idea what time they start?

 

[akaifu]

Pretty much every stat regressed bar his goal kicking. Shoulder injury or not, he regressed slightly on the year prior where he was in the mix for AA after 10 rounds.
Should he regress again by the same margin his spot will likely be at risk given the age profile of our list. I think that’s a pretty reasonable call to make

He was a winger and got moved forward. Of course his stats are going to decrease. Doesn’t mean he’s regressing, it means he’s playing a role that places less emphasis on gathering the ball

 

[kick it lace out]

I noticed the Zebras announced the signing of Joey Campigli today (from Old Brighton). He has been training with the Saints throughout the pre-season. Perhaps they invited him down so that BJ could take a good look at him. Not sure he was ever good enough to be considered be considered by the Saints.

 

[_Maximus_12]

He was a winger and got moved forward. Of course his stats are going to decrease. Doesn’t mean he’s regressing, it means he’s playing a role that places less emphasis on gathering the ball

He went forward on the odd occasion but he predominantly played wing.
Mason Wood of 2024 was not the same player of 2023.
Yes he had a serious injury, but the point remains the same. If he doesn’t improve
or hold form, he will be under pressure.

 

[aussierulesrules]

Pretty much every stat regressed bar his goal kicking. Shoulder injury or not, he regressed slightly on the year prior where he was in the mix for AA after 10 rounds.

Did you take into account the fact that in the Collingwood game he played just 18% game time (for just 3 disposals and 1 mark) which affected his stats? The year before he played 80% or more of all games bar 1, where he played 70%.

Take out that R3 game and his disposal average gets within 2 on last years average, while his marks per game went up to 7.65, which is 1 more per game than he averaged last year, and would have pushed him up to no.6 in the comp for marks per game.

While his goals per game average went up to 0.95, up from 0.6 last year. That’s more than a 50% increase.

Should he regress again by the same margin his spot will likely be at risk given the age profile of our list. I think that’s a pretty reasonable call to make

A bloke who averaged 19 disposals, 7.6 marks and basically a goal a game is in no danger whatsoever of losing his spot in the team any time soon, I wouldn’t have thought.

Especially when he can play any one of a handful of different roles at the drop of a hat and has plenty of experience.

We could do with one or two more of him, not less!

 

[akaifu]

He went forward on the odd occasion but he predominantly played wing.
Mason Wood of 2024 was not the same player of 2023.
Yes he had a serious injury, but the point remains the same. If he doesn’t improve
or hold form, he will be under pressure.

Given you are the stats man, you should probably back up that "odd occasion" claim with numbers

Because I'm certain his time in forward 50 % in 2024 is significantly higher than 2023 to the point where a comparison of his stats is negligible

 

[gringo2011]

Pretty much every stat regressed bar his goal kicking. Shoulder injury or not, he regressed slightly on the year prior where he was in the mix for AA after 10 rounds.
Should he regress again by the same margin his spot will likely be at risk given the age profile of our list. I think that’s a pretty reasonable call to make

Missed a lot of footy and had to play catch up. Also throw around a lot more. He is often one that scores against the flow. I reckon he could be a good option for Battle's interceptor role.

 

[L_W_P]

Caniniti has shown nothing to suggest he can play Battle's role, in my view.

On SM-S908E using BigFooty.com mobile app

I wouldn't have him play Battle's role.

I'd play Hammer as our Tomlinson/Petty, Howard becomes the Steven May and Wilkie is the Jake Lever 3rd tall.

 

[CaptainRisky]

He went forward on the odd occasion but he predominantly played wing.
Mason Wood of 2024 was not the same player of 2023.
Yes he had a serious injury, but the point remains the same. If he doesn’t improve
or hold form, he will be under pressure.

Did mason steal your GF , you sure have a bee in your bonnet about him

 

[aussierulesrules]

I wouldn't have him play Battle's role.

I'd play Hammer as our Tomlinson/Petty, Howard becomes the Steven May and Wilkie is the Jake Lever 3rd tall.

Speaking of Tomlinson, I’m stunned that no club has picked him up. Especially us, given what a thorn he was in our side when we played them this year. That game was about as good as any Battle played, and they’re almost identical players. I’d rather him back there than Cordy, that’s for sure.

 

[_Maximus_12]

Did you take into account the fact that in the Collingwood game he played just 18% game time (for just 3 disposals and 1 mark) which affected his stats? The year before he played 80% or more of all games bar 1, where he played 70%.

Take out that R3 game and his disposal average gets within 2 on last years average, while his marks per game went up to 7.65, which is 1 more per game than he averaged last year, and would have pushed him up to no.6 in the comp for marks per game.

While his goals per game average went up to 0.95, up from 0.6 last year.


A bloke who averaged 19 disposals, 7.6 marks and basically a goal a game is in no danger whatsoever of losing his spot in the team any time soon, I wouldn’t have thought.

Especially when he can play any one of a handful of different roles at the drop of a hat and has plenty of experience.

I have considered all of those factors.
I’m not advocating for him to be dropped, let me make that clear.
I simply implied that should he regress he could spend time at VFL level next year.
A 32 year old, suffering the injuries he did very rarely improves to career best form which is what he’d have to do to get to 2023 form.
I think he has enormous value to the group as a person, and character but he is by no means a lock should he regress and one of many young flankers/wingman improve.
As it stands there’s an argument for either side of the coin and time will tell.

 

[MordySaint]

We were wining games later this season against top teams, kicking good scores and without King or Caminiti or much from Butler. Mind you Membrey chipped in for some good games and now he is gone, then I hope Owens can take a step after an ordinary season. If Caminiti is a forward then he needs to be at CHF to give extra body strength up high in the forward half. Sharman is best floating around the forward 50 when he can use his footy smarts, not so much as a KPP. One thing though, I hope someone gets in King's ear about the value of leading as a FF- one his weaknesses in an otherwise top skill set.

Late 2024 - Absolute junk time wins, when the pressure was off and teams were taking us for granted.

I was talking about 2023 when he first started, winning games without King as well.

He's a natural forward, could be a great forward.

 

[Joffaboy]

Wouldn’t have thought that Mason regressed. In fact watching him take all those strong marks at the highest point and do beautiful left foot passes was one of the very few things that I looked forward to, when going to watch us play during that really bleak period in the early/mid part of the year.

Took 8 or more marks in 11 of his 18 games and was top 10 in the comp for marks per game.

His abilty to take those high marks in any part of the ground is incredibly important and so is his running power and versatility. Not to mention his beautiful and long kicking.

He is IMO a hell of an asset to our team and club and that’s why he got a 3 year contract extension, despite being about to turn 31yo.

Most guys his age and profile get just a 1 year deal, so the fact he got 3 suggests that at least 1 other club was offering him 3. Same with Hill.

I would have absolutely hated to have lost him. Blokes with his attributes and skill set don’t grow on trees.

Mason Wood is my favourite recruit story at the Saints for years. We have had Cal Wilkie become AA, a short but extremely sweet venture with Paddy Ryder, Timmy Membrey and Roberton as DFA who have been great successes.

Wood was something else rising 28 when delisted by North, however for years I had watched him and often wondered if we could get him to the Saints. Always seemed to kick a few against us. Then we picked him up as a DFA and I thought, worth a shot. He kicked 4 against North in 2021 and hasn't looked back.

Has been a really great wingman, runs all day, not afraid to go when it is his turn and is an automatic first 23. His problem at North was his constant injuries, never could get a run at it. His highest number of games for North over 7 seasons was 18 with only 3 times in double figures.
Since becoming a regular in 2022 he has gone 19, 24,18 games. He has played a total of 135 games with 70 or over half in the four years at the Saints. Consistency and a run of games is everything in football.

More than that he has been a great clubman, won best clubman in 2022 or 2023 and has helped new recruits settle in. Apparently was instrumental in keeping NAZ at the club. Does a tonne of behind the scenes work with the kids, (video reviews etc). It is obvious the club sees his worth with the 3 year deal he got.
He has been a great get by the club.

 

[SteeleSaints]

Yeah well it is gunna happen apparently so hope I am wrong (usually am)

I would imagine if it occurs it wont be forever, although if he dominates in defence he will be harder to shift.