The Bombers Intra Club Clash
Well I ventured out to Casey Fields in Melbourne’s South East on Saturday eventing to have a look at the Bombers intra club game. I think the idea was to test the younger players against the more experienced because the teams were that lop sided it wasn’t funny. At quarter time the black side was up by 10 goals. There were surprisingly quite a few people at the game. There is not a lot of AFL action down that way so I guess it is a good opportunity to get a close look.
Bomber fans would have been impressed with the performance of Ricky Dyson. He is a player that needs to step up for the Bombers in 2008 and it
looks as if he has had a great pre season and looks in great shape. He has put on a few kilos and his fitness was outstanding. He had leather poisoning by the end of the game. Brett Stanton in his first outing in the Number 5 gurnsey also looked like he had bulked up quite a bit and was rotated through the midfield and looked ultra fit. The standout for me was the performance of young Courtenay Dempsey, he played mainly in defense and the rebound he gave from the back half has great. He has blistering speed for a tall and once his lanky body develops he will be certainly a player of the future. Watch out for him this year, he reminds me a bit of Patrick Ryder but with a bit more flair.
The two speedsters, Alwyn Davey and Leroy Jetta showed glimpses of their dashing speed and evasive skills with a few tricks and they will certainly be in or big years and will be very dangerous in front of goal. Adam McPhee spent a lot of time up forward and looks as if me may spend a bit more time there (he looks in great shape). Courtney Johns also looks fit and raring to go and lead strongly and took a few good grabs up forward.
All in all it seemed to be a good hot out although I don’t think the coaching staff would not have been that happy with the skill level of the game with numerous skill errors and missed shots at goal. It was their first hit out though. There is a lot to look forward to for Bomber fans and don’t be surprised if they get on top of a few sides this year.
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AFL Football around the World
For those readers here at AFL Football Blog that are interested in what is happening with the game of Australian Rules Football in other parts of the world should check out this great site World Footy News. You won’t find all the general AFL news that is happening here in Australia but you will find some interesting information about what is happening in the game of Australian Rules Football from around the world.
One article that really caught my eye, considering the AFL Clubs currently flirting with the South African region to recruit prospective players, was this one about an American experiment that the West Perth Falcons are undertaking. The experiment involves two brothers James and Jared Brunmeier from the Milwaukee Bombers who undertook a pre season with the Falcons and then played a full year in the reserves but from all accounts made quite an impression and they have been invited back in 2008.
If you remember a while back Essendon dabbled with an American by the name of Dwayne Amstrong, who I remember playing on at Punt Road one day, he was the biggest guy I had ever seen on a football field, as a 17 year old kid it was a daunting task even though he couldn’t really play. I think he was remembered more for dating Ross Oakley’s daughter than for his abilities on the football field.
Considering the work that the AFL has been doing in “growing the game” and brand of AFL Football in South Africa and the fact that they have over 8000 kids enrolled is Auskick in that Country it would be a fantastic opportunity for the AFL if it could grab a small piece of the market share of the US sports market. There has been a bit of tallk about the possibilities of more Americans coming “Down Under” to try their hand at our game, and given the AFL have a scholarship list that enable clubs to have players from 15 to 23 years of age on the list for as little as $20 000 a year which will be used for schooling. I am sure there is some incentive there for the American kids to make the journey.
It is an interesting exercise that the West Perth Falcons have undertaken and one that I will be watching with great interest to see the progress of the 2 American lads. Hey even Kevin Sheedy thinks there is a need for a stadium in Los Angeles. Who know America could end up following the Irish down here.
Is this the toughest coaching gig in the AFL?
Has Matthew Knights got the toughest assignment in the AFL Coaching ranks in 2008? Well I think he has. Replacing the “Master” Kevin Sheedy will be no mean feat for “Knighter” as the Bomber players are already calling him. There is a wave of changes in the style of coaching between the two and it sounds like the players are welcoming the change.
It sounds to me like the old fashioned and sometimes weird coaching techniques from Sheeds were wearing a bit thin on the players, there were a couple of remarks in a report that I was reading in the Herald Sun a while ago that made me think that his ways were maybe a bit to far from left field for the new bread of footballers. Things like the fact that Sheedy used to sit in the corner of the room as the players came in for a meeting studying clipboards alone whereas Knights would be part of the group. I guess this is the way of the modern day coach. I remember 10 years or so ago when coaches would say that they would totally separate themselves from the players and not become to close to them individually. Nowadays it seems like the coaches are doing a full 180 degree turn and being part of the playing group and becoming a friend as well as a coach.
This is the comment that brought a smile to my face though.
Players are enjoying the fact the message is crystal-clear, where before there were mind games and mental puzzles to work through, successful as they were.
For people who have followed Essendon and more importantly Kevin Sheedy, you could just imagine what his type of meetings would have been like. I can just see the new baby faced draftees leaving one of these meetings scratching their heads and thinking “What the hell is he on about?”.
Although Knights is in no way trying to emulate Sheedy there is no way he will escape being compared to the master. That will be something I am sure he is aware of and is just going to add extra pressure in his first year as senior coach. As Assistant Coach Gary O’Donnell has pointed out , Knights will enjoy a “Honeymoon Period” where players will get a boost from the change in leadership and style of coaching, for some like Matthew Lloyd, this will only be their second senior coach. And Although the Bombers are going through a bit of a rebuilding phase I think their results next year a looking quite promising.
It will be an extremely exiting year for Matthew Knights and it will be fascinating year from a football supporter’s perspective to see how Knights breaks out of the Sheedy comparison and makes his mark in the coaching world with his style of play. He is a very confident coach both with his style of play and also the decisions he makes. He has a strong belief in his own abilities and sounds like the players are bursting with a new found enthusiasm.
How will the Essendon Football Club go in 2008?
Lets talk some footy
Seeing as there is not much talk about the real football stuff at the moment, I thought I would start a few posts about the prospects of some of the teams for 2008. First cab off the rank is the Bombers.
What is in store for the new look Bombers ?
In what was the biggest change at the Essendon Football Club in its history, Kevin Sheedy was sacked and Matthew Knights instated as Senior Coach. Out goes Kepler Bradley, Richard Cole, Mark Johnson, Mark Bolton, Scott Camporeale, Chris Heffernan and James Hird and in comes a host of youngsters:
NAB National Draft
Cale Hooker (East Fremantle)
David Myers (Perth)
Tayte Pears (East Perth)
Darcy Daniher (Calder Cannons)
Pre Season Draft
John Williams (Morningside)
Tom Bellchambers (Tassie Mariners)
