Corey Wagner’s probably just gotten himself rubbed out.
Umps have been pretty good, but one shocker there, McKay (about 200cm ish early pick kid for North ) throws a 40m clearing kick onto his non preferred and it skids out: gets pinged for deliberate.
Both sides have about 145 tackles each.
Only a few have really stood out, Preuss for North, Pederson has been good at CHB for Melbourne, Machaya(?) #5 forward pocket for the Dees and Vandenberg on return from injury.
LOL Norf: all the way to Casey to play on an ice rink, score 7 points to just beat your lowest score for 118 years.
And that’s only because they went nuts at the end and scored THREE points in the last five minutes of the game!
312 tackles for the game…
For those who want to be scared about syndesmosis injuries…
Shortly after coming from North Ballarat to Essendon, an ACL rupture in December 2016 ruled the 22-year-old out of VFL action for the following season.
Having completed his rehabilitation, Hooper returned to training and set his sights on making his debut for the Bombers in 2018, but he suffered another blow when he injured the syndesmosis joint in his left ankle during a pre-season practice match against Noble Park.
While the roles of being in the 2018 leadership group – “staying involved and keeping an interest in what’s going on in not only what the VFL group is doing but how the boys are going locally” – have not been compromised for Hooper, he says that the challenge of meeting his own standards has been with him every step of the way.
“As soon as you miss a week or you drop your bundle for a couple of sessions, you fall behind,” Hooper said about his rehabilitation.
“It was about keeping on top of that, making sure that I was doing the right things. That falls into leadership and setting the example.”
Apart from physiotherapist Brady Green – who Hooper says “really opened my eyes” to the rights and wrongs in recovery – the promising key-position player says that being around fellow Bombers who had endured the long and lonely hours, days, weeks and months of rehab has helped support him.
“You bounce off all the other boys that have had similar issues. We can relate to each other and where we’re at in different parts of the year and parts of the rehab.
“I’ve spent enough time in rehab over the years to know that you can’t beat playing, full stop. Rehab can be a dark place at times and it can get a bit monotonous and boring.
“It’s one of those things that you take for granted when you are playing; you’re out there running around with your mates, enjoying it, enjoying that competitive spirit … you miss all that.”
After nearly two years on the sidelines, Hooper made his return to football three weeks ago playing for local club Keilor and says his touch is returning game by game.
“I wasn’t overly nervous before playing but there was probably a bit of nervous energy once I got out there.
“I’d done three weeks full training going into it, so I was confident in my body. It had been two years since I’d played so it was more being worried if I’d get a kick or not.”
With the Bombers preparing for the final six rounds of the home and away season, Hooper is not taking anything for granted when talk turns to making a VFL berth.
“For a start it was more just get some games under my belt, get back to playing footy, get used to knocks and get a bit of match fitness.
“I’m feeling better each game and I’m starting to string some good footy together in my last two games. I’m building slowly, which is good and hopefully I’ll continue on that path as the next few rounds go by and we’ll play it from there.”
By Callum O’Connor
Did you k ow his physiotherapist trialled for Manchester united?
Look out, we’ll be up against this bloke on Saturday:
Steak Knives
The walking steak knife is back. Welcome back to Essendon Ricky Dyson
Good governance. Gotta sign him up officially before we trade him out.
I’m more interested in how we’ll use the mandatory 3rd rounder he’ll come to us with??
Didn’t know where to put it but Sam Lonergan is the new coach of the Eagles in the SANFL
Hope he doesn’t get a big head about it.
Hocking is going around again. Nice.
Saw him running laps at The Hangar a few weeks ago.
I’m so incredibly happy that Hocking is going again. He provides AFL quality leadership.
Obviously the team are sour about just missing out on a Grand Final. They’re hungry for a premiership and want to stick together.
I recall when Hocking won Essendon’s 2017 VFL Best and Fairest award he was somewhat flippant about getting it, being for VFL rather than AFL. You could understand that as he’d been delisted and hungered for continuing with AFL footy. So it’s really pleasing to see how he has embraced his role and importance to the VFL side and the kids coming through. He has a lot to offer, so it is great see him staying on for 2019.
Things could get all kinds of exciting this year it seems…
Not having clashes with the AFL would be good. Curtain raisers would be good too.
Might need some VFL players with speed, having lost Colyer and Hind.