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EFC Training Report Thursday Feb 3rd
Training Report Thursday Feb 3rd
Much cooler conditions with little humidity that i think got the boys up and about today. They were quite vocal and as February starts you can tell the season is not far from starting. Little did we know too that the boys were going to complete their first proper intra club match for 3 x 20min Periods (no overtime). This is what I wanted to see as you get a much better sense of where players are at.
It was Pink v Blue tops. Pink probably being 80% senior best 22 players. There was a 4-5 goal breeze going to the airport end of the oval.
The first bounce of the game and Ben Hobbs in Blue roves and tries to barge through some players. There is a ball up. Ball is bounced again and Hobbs grabs it again from the ruck and releases the handball…it was then i realised…ok I see you Ben!!! Ben would go on to have multiple clearances, hard ball gets and around 16-20 disposals in three short Qtrs. What was pleasing was that his short kicking was spot on today…was a great small game sample…even better it was against our top line mids in Pink.
One thing that stood out was the senior players who have been going “ok” suddenly showed that they mean business now. Parish was just getting so much of the football and became a threat going forward with two goals…one was a great roving play from Wright who tapped it perfectly to him from a boundary throw in. Darcy looked every bit of last years form. Langford for me probablty was the BOG. His overhead marking was brilliant. He must of had something like 20-25 touches and 8 marks in a 3/4 game. Langers played mostly on the wing but sometimes drifted forward to create an option. He is now playing that role to perfection.
As far as forwards…Wright kicked 3 and they were all solid one grab marks. I have to say his opponent was McBride who was really struggling. Francis played the first half for the Pink team and lined up on Cutler…kicked two on him and was creating headaches with his marking. Glad to see his form progressed to match practice. Never seen him actually smile and joke so much with the group today. He is in a great place. Francis went to the Blue team after half time and the oppurtunities naturally were not as much. Baldwin went to the pink team and suddenly we saw him break out and kick two goals. Importantly he had several strong contested marks today. I still dont think he is quite best 22 yet but I do believe he will get games this year and keep progressing stronger as the year goes on. Great signs today.
Shiel and Merrett were very solid today and got plenty of footy…both look in pretty good shape to have big years. McGrath also is showing good signs. I thought Hepps was probabaly the best as far as defenders today…he is moving really well and a full pre season is bearing some fruit. He could have the ability to help on a wing this year if need be.
The players vying for list spots were all pretty down today besides Clarke. Tex, Fejo and Martin i sense struggled a bit with the quicker pace today. Tex probably looked like he could do more damage and was moving well. Tex was half forward flank for the blue team so was a victim of limited delivery. Fejo just could not get into the game on the wing.
As far as rucks Draper was the obvious stand out. Did his normal 40m sprint from a ruck pack and kick the ball sideways lol. His kicking at pace is a slight concern but he does so many other things that impacts the game for the positive.
There were some players not at training like Eyre, Walla, Zerk and Cox. Unsure why sorry. Perkins completed half of full training. He is about ready to go.
Perkins i hear will join full training next week. Jones is only a week away as well. Brand, Reid, Hurley and Voss were in the modified rehab group.
There was a few positional changes. Lord played half the game as a small forward…created a nice goal for Baldwin actually. Lord is a really nice get…like him a lot.
Cutler offensively from defense was impressive and it was similar to his form in the back end of 2021. He is now a much better depth player…possibly even best 22. Defensively Francis got him a few times but overall still had a solid hit out. Snelling was very busy and doing all the things a coach loves. Caldwell also solid but got a slight knock to ribs or guts that made him a bit proppy for 10 mins. Was fine after that.
With a tricky wind the skills were pretty solid today. It was a fun first hot out to watch. Probabaly the main take away in the end was Hobbs…who the coaches would of been thrilled with today.