I thought MCG was sensational inside the contest also. Looked as if he was been tagged at times too. Was very impressed.
Walla, was great in the first half, I think a rotation of Walla, Smith, and Fanta through the middle should be, and probably will be done often.
I still don’t see Langford as an inside mid. But looks great pretty much everywhere else around the ground. Especially Half forward.
Stringer is the bull we need inside the midfield. Showed so many good signs and if his head right and he works hard there is no reason he cant become our Danger/Dusty.
Thanks guys for the BBQ. Left at half time since I just got in from Overseas. Was stuffed. Many apologies. Great event though, and good to meet a few of you.
A few thoughts.
Smith was an absolute steal. He is going to be a great player for us this year.
Stringer is the X factor for us. Will excel when on bigger grounds and have more room.
Saad was solid, and we will be fast out of back half. McKenna looks like he has bulked up. Looked good.
Note, never try to take on Tippa when he is stalking you…
Re Hooker’s kicking and whether he runs in too fast and kicks too hard.
I suspect that his kicking is poor when nurses the ball along the line from 30m or less. Why this is I am not sure. I would hope that Hooker, and whoever might be trying to help him, would look at ultra slow motion video of his kicks to pinpoint the problem.
Nonetheless, his running in fast and kicking it hard is, I think, an attempt to avoid the little inconsistent floaters he gets when he kicks it gently.
Carlisle had the same problem when he played forward for us, maybe worse. He just popped it up and hoped, and it went anywhere. Hooker is trying to kick low hard spears to avoid this. I remember how he kicked into the man on the mark a few times early in his rebirth as a forward, from trying to kick it low and hard.
How’s the tap he gave Merrett after being tackled? (Which gave away the 50). He’s fired up!! Want to see that aggression on the field during the season…but obviously a fine line to walk without being reported/suspended.
Edited: I just remembered a question directed at Heppell during his press conference. They asked if Essendon’s game style is starting to reflect the “unsociable Hawks” style a few years back. Heppell brushed that off, but interesting that even media outlets are picking up on the increase in intensity and aggression of the boys.
My first time at the new training facilities today.
Had a really good kick of the footy on the Etihad Oval before and after the Intra Club game.
Others have touched on the game so I won’t bore you with my thoughts, other than to say I was pleased with the competitiveness of the contest.
There is serious competition for spots.
On a side note, there were some great specials on last year’s Clash Guernsey in the BomberShop.
Picked this up for bltn Jnr…He loves it
Joe kicked 52-23 last year after copping heaps after the Melbourne game in round 6. Proved the 1-6 in that game was an outlier (a 5 day break after being BOG in the ANZAC day match).
52-23 is over 69% accuracy, the same as Tony Lockett’s career average.
I noticed a lot of manning up, heavily congested situations in the intra club game, with few opportunities to run through the middle in space and a distinct move away from the uncontested mode we have trained for in previous years. If thats what they have been training, then it appears to have worked. But, take the best 22 and i would expect spread and movement patterns to allow the A team to open the game up and, as they say, go to another level.
Tommy was easily the best ruckman, and at one point even took a run down the wing. Stoppages are still a work in progress and it was good to see Laverde and many others including even Corgy trying out through the middle. I think we have brought in enough mids to make up for the loss of Jobe, but how much we improve at stoppages will only be known during the season.
Thanks Soulnet and the club for facilitating the BBQ. Thanks to the blokes who cooked snags with their backs to the footy, its good they get a chance to see the replay.
Well, this is a bit weird. Yesterday on the way to the ground, l stopped off at a sports store at Southern Cross and bought an Essendon top. l didn’t bother trying it on, as l was pretty sure it would fit, so l just stuck it in my backpack, which l don’t remember opening until got to my brother’s place. When l did open my backpack, it was gone. If anyone from the Blitz bbq yesterday saw a top with the big bomber logo splashed across the chest, please PM me. Anyone with a contact for the club, so l can check with them? l have to stop shopping at this store, this is the second top l have bought from them, and both have gone missing at short notice. Karma is trying to tell me something.
