East meets West day [Archive] - Whitten Oval Online Forum

GVGjr

17-01-2008, 06:33 PM

Got this from the club.

It's only about a 5 to 7 minute drive from my place so I'm looking forward to it.

I bet there will be a story in the Sunday paper.

Saturday, 19th January
Wesley College: High St Road, Glen Waverley

8.30am – 12noon

Bulldogs fans will have the chance to meet their favourite player and watch the full playing group train at the annual East Meets West Family Day on Saturday.

The team will train from 9am to 10am before signing autographs and meeting fans. Senior coach Rodney Eade will introduce the new draftees and recent recruits to the club and talk about the upcoming season.

Activities on the day will include a breakfast BBQ and children’s activities.

Sockeye Salmon

18-01-2008, 12:12 PM

I'll be there

The Underdog

18-01-2008, 02:08 PM

I'm planning on going. Looking forward to seeing some of the boys train.
Don't get to Footscray too often, so it's good that they do something like this.

Eastside reprazent :o

GVGjr

19-01-2008, 11:57 AM

Just home from the East meets West day. There was light rain for a fair part of the day but I still enjoyed catching up with alwaysadog, Doggy Doo and Cath from the Bulldogs Taskforce and even a couple of potential new members to WOOF. Doggydoo was given the Scott Clayton recruiting task.

Fairly subdued day otherwise though, crowd was down (poorly advertised) and the session was short and sharp.

Great chance to get up close to the players though.

Eade introduce all the new players to the team minus Scott Welsh who is attending a wedding in SA. Eade was in fine form adding some funny snippets of info about all the new boys. Sam Reid appears to be in the Eade dog house because of something he did or didn't do at training but the great thing with Eade is, prove him wrong on the training track and all is forgiven.
Mulligan and Shaw are impressive lads with good personalities. Boumann is a character, Ward a nice lad and Wood, White and O'Keefe quiet types. Grant wrecked a thumb skateboarding but is close to resuming training.
Eade made mention that Tim Callan likes strutting around with his top off so perhaps he is a likely Robbins replacement around the place.
Eade also assured the supporters that we are a top 8 side while he expects the media to list us as a bottom 4 side.

Everitt confirmed that he is either 193 or 194cm and doesn't think he will grow much further. Higgins had his knee heavily strapped but looked sharp in the drills.
The rehab group consisted of Cross, Tiller, Wood, Eagleton and Hill.
A number of players didn't train today including Hahn, Gia, Skipper, Williams, Lynch, Lake and Minson and I also haven't seen Gavin Hughes at all.
alwaysadog was very impressed with Stack. He's added a bit of size and muscle to his frame.

LostDoggy

19-01-2008, 01:38 PM

Whilst the numbers were down and weather turned at the end of the training session, it was good to have the chance to 'size-up' the players.

A few observations:
- obvious increase in height with the influx of young talls (with broad shoulders)
- new mid fielders & flankers on average seem to be taller, possibly 6ft 2's
- 2nd & 3rd year players looked much bigger (muscle/weight) than the drafted players
- young Sam Ried has a very defined build for his age (according to 3 female experts)
- Griffen, Morris, Stack, 'Itsy Bitsy' (Everitt), Harbrow, Cross, Boyd, & O'Shea are all bigger.
- O'Shea in particular, looked much broader, stronger, & possibly a little taller. Also moved well and 'ranked' very highly in the 'eye candy' category (by the 3 females).
Would liked to have got my hands on the girl's full scorecard.

As for the basic training, generally, all the players moved well. Too busy trying to identify the new players.

Thought:
- Hudson moved well for his size
- Street seemed a 'little' more flexible in his movements (able to bend and gather the ball - not as stiff as we are used to)
- Griffen: great to see him moving freely - trained well.
Didn't notice any other standouts, but again trying to identify players was my focus.

BulldogBelle

19-01-2008, 05:34 PM

Thanks for the reports GVG and Doggy Doo - interesting reading. :)

The Bulldogs Bite

19-01-2008, 06:15 PM

The Underdog

19-01-2008, 07:25 PM

Went along with the family. Had to be somewhere else by 11, so only watched the training portion and left before the intro of players etc.
GVG has covered the details but a few observations from my end.

Mostly a light session. a few higher intensity drills towards the end which showed us a bit more of the players skill and movement wise.

Of the new boys training Ward looked clean and classy and not afraid to use his opposite foot. O'Keefe moved well but is a typical left footer and you may not ever see him use his right. As GVG said Wood was in the rehab group. Boumann only seemed to get there as I was leaving.

Mulligan is a big kid and moves and uses pretty well. Be interesting to see him once he's in game situations at Werribee. "Handbrake" Henry White could almost be a jockey, skinny as a rake. Shaw is a bit shorter than Mulligan, didn't notice much else about him skillwise.

Otherwise, Hudson is huge across the chest and shoulders and moved impressively.
O'Shea moved and marked well, but has a bit of a hitch in his kicking action which makes it a bit ugly.
Street is still slow and will always be, but his skills seem to improve from year to year.

One great moment as they did goalkicking at the end was when Cal Ward was having a shot, Westy was commentating "Big Cal in his first game kicking for goal to win it" etc.
Ward then slotted it. Westy then had a shot and Ward turned to him and said "was that your last game Scooter (?)". Very funny

Will post more if I remember anything.

The Coon Dog

19-01-2008, 07:37 PM

Here are some pics.

http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/8/67864803oz5.jpg

http://img258.imageshack.us/img258/2518/14882084gp3.jpg

The Coon Dog

19-01-2008, 07:38 PM

And some more.

http://img257.imageshack.us/img257/851/66373029sm2.jpg

http://img205.imageshack.us/img205/2489/67188799ka2.jpg

BulldogBelle

19-01-2008, 08:23 PM

Otherwise, Hudson is huge across the chest and shoulders and moved impressively.

Thanks Underdog for your report -

I am really looking forward to watching Hudson play for us - imagine his first game for us playing his old side...he will be pumped!

One great moment as they did goalkicking at the end was when Cal Ward was having a shot, Westy was commentating "Big Cal in his first game kicking for goal to win it" etc.
Ward then slotted it. Westy then had a shot and Ward turned to him and said "was that your last game Scooter (?)". Very funny.

It's good they can have a bit of a banter amongst themselves - Cal seems like he is very confortable with his team mates.

katemeehan

19-01-2008, 10:13 PM

Very good day!
Not much of a crowd, but as said before, the advertisment was pretty low-key.
The players all looked great! Everyone was friendly and the only thing to ruin it was the rain, but it held off for a fair while.

always right

19-01-2008, 11:04 PM

Sounds like young Mulligan is impressing, he's been mentioned on most posters reports. It'll be interesting to see how he actually handles playing the game as obviously, training is completely different. What's his skills like and general ball work/handling? It'd be a big bonus if he could develop into a player.

Nice to hear O'Shea has been given a few raps, too.

Mulligan's skills seemed pretty reasonable but as you say, you won't really know until he gets into match practice. From limited observation though he gives me the impression that he will be very competitive when the ball is in the air and in situations where he can use his running and athletic ability. I get the feeling though that he may struggle a bit more when the ball is at his feet. Not that he isn't flexible, just the way he moves and carries himself.

Looks a very confident type which was supported by a comment from Eade during the introductions when he suggested that Mulligan doesn't mind talking himself up. I'm happy with that as long as he's also a hard worker.

What was really noticeable today was the number of taller players we have in our squad now. Obviously they will take some time to develop and some won't make the grade but it's the first time in a long time where a number of our young blokes have some height and frames to work with. Grant is a god height and obviously has some talent. Of the others, Boumann, O'Shea, Mulligan, Shaw all have impressive frames and even Cam Wight looks much stronger in the upper body.

Our young midfielders are all a good size also. Cooney looked considerably bigger and stronger as did Boyd, Stack and Ray. Ward will fill out nicely without too much effort and Sam Reid has shoulders and a shape that suggest he could play senior footy this year and end up being a powerful midfielder in years to come. And of course Higgins is a good size as well although I expected him to have filled out a bit more than he has so far.

Great time of year this...they all look good and we haven't lost a game.:)

LostDoggy

19-01-2008, 11:30 PM

And of course Higgins is a good size as well although I expected him to have filled out a bit more than he has so far.

Could to do with the fact he had an elbow op at the end of the 06' season and a shoulder reco at the end of last season? He wouldnt have been able to get in early like others because of these injuries.

Dry Rot

20-01-2008, 01:33 AM

One great moment as they did goalkicking at the end was when Cal Ward was having a shot, Westy was commentating "Big Cal in his first game kicking for goal to win it" etc.
Ward then slotted it. Westy then had a shot and Ward turned to him and said "was that your last game Scooter (?)". Very funny

Thanks Underdog.

From all reports Ward sounds very assured. The real deal.

If the selectors have balls and Willi is able to develop our young ones, I really hope that 2008 marks a season where players are purely selected on form. :)

The Underdog

20-01-2008, 07:22 AM

I thought Cam Wight looked good too. Handled it well below his knees, used it well. Definitely looks stronger. Be interested to see if it translates to matches.

Noticed Tim Callan miss a couple of targets.

Also had a bit of fun as we took the bub for a walk to quiet her down was playing guess who owns which car in the players car park. Went Rob Murphy for the Commodore station wagon with the baby seat and rrr sticker. Thought the SAAB with the SA number plates must be Hudson. Was surprised at the lack of big stupid V8 utes and the like for a group of guys with money mostly under 25. Mostly sensible cars.

The Doctor

20-01-2008, 09:01 AM

A couple of things that stood out for me among the younger players

* Callan Ward is a no brainer for senior footy this year
* Mulligan is a smooth mover for a player his size and his kicking was quite good. Very impressive overall and I'm looking forward to seeing him at the intra club.
* O'Shea has a magnificent physique and has filled out as well as you could hope for in a young KP player. I just noticed with his kicking he seems to take a bit of time to transfer the ball to his foot. Almost like taking to much care to place it properly.
* Stack has also built up a long way from last year. Looks very strong and I can see a power player emerging from him in the next few years if all goes to plan.

Of the senior group

* I noticed almost immediately the imposing figure of Ben Hudson and the presence he seemed to have. I felt last year we lacked this in our big guys. I sensed a calm kind of authority in the way he went about training and he seemed quiye jovial among the group. Has obviously landed at the club firmly on his feet.

* Aker looked in great shape. I reckon last year he got us over the line in at least 4 if not 5 games and our season would have really been really ratshit without him yet he copped a lot of criticism. I'm excited by his prospects this year as he looks very fit and settled.

* It was pleasing to see our young veterans looking fit and putting in. Guys like Cooney, Griffen, Ray, Higgins. Williams is a very big boy although he didn't train.

Bulldog Revolution

20-01-2008, 09:38 AM

A couple of things that stood out for me among the younger players

* O'Shea has a magnificent physique and has filled out as well as you could hope for in a young KP player. I just noticed with his kicking he seems to take a bit of time to transfer the ball to his foot. Almost like taking to much care to place it properly.

Sounds like O'Shea is in the process of having his kicking style modified and is very conscious of it whilst working on the skill. Hopefully it will start to look more natural as the season progresses and muscle memory kicks in.

Interesting snippets from everyone - cheers

Great to see some smooth moving bigs - and great that the group seems to be fully of confidence, as bad as our end to the seasons was we wont get anywhere without our players believing

Nice shots TCD - Morris looks ripped, boy will he annoy some of the guys he plays on this year, such a great team man and such a fabulous story of persistence and refusing to give up. I am sure I am not alone but I find Morris an inspiration and love the way he goes about it.

LostDoggy

20-01-2008, 10:30 AM

I went along yesterday.
- Morris is significantly bigger than last season and must be set for a big season. As BR said, he must be an inspiration for other players.
- Boyd is another who is improved his physique. Talked to Boyd for a while and he is an impressive person. He also gave a presentation of a signed cap to an elderly gentleman.
- As a group the new youngsters are physically bigger. Reid for instance has a very mature build.
- Minson says he will be right in another 2 weeks.
- Williams was a bit guarded with why he wasn't training. He looks far stronger than he did last season.
- Ray is nice and friendly bloke
- Gia was very relaxed and fit. He's making good progress,
- Wight is bigger and stronger and as someone else suggested during the drills his skill level looked sharper.
- Addison performed well in the drills.
- O'Shea has a great spring but needs some work on his skills. He could be one that shows a lot of improvement.

No Smorgon with his normal presentation was a bit disappointing but it makes for a change to see the guys running around and enjoying themselves.

wb_age

20-01-2008, 10:33 AM

Thought the SAAB with the SA number plates must be Hudson.
I can tell you that Will Minson just bought a SAAB and my mate was giving him @@#$ because they're an old man sort of car, as for the SA plates ????

ledge

20-01-2008, 10:44 AM

always right

20-01-2008, 11:27 AM

Looked like he's also hit the weights and whilst he is not naturally big, he certainly looked stronger. He trained with the rehab group so you couldn't see how he was moving.

My concern about Tiller is he is an in-between size. I hope he comes on but I have some doubts.

Go_Dogs

20-01-2008, 12:39 PM

Thanks for the reports guys, sounds like it was a good day.

GVGjr

20-01-2008, 01:10 PM

Hello all,
i have to ask, how did Stephen Tiller look i imagine they would try and bulk him up a bit, he has good hands and a good kick, just got pushed out a few times last year.Also where will he fit in? what position?

Physically not much has changed. He doesn't look much bigger than last season but perhaps he is a bit like Hargrave in that area.

Looked like he's also hit the weights and whilst he is not naturally big, he certainly looked stronger. He trained with the rehab group so you couldn't see how he was moving.

My concern about Tiller is he is an in-between size. I hope he comes on but I have some doubts.

I suppose we differ on his size but I agree that at 191cm he could be caught in between unless he develops a particular strength like marking.

GVGjr

20-01-2008, 01:34 PM

http://afl.com.au/Season2007/News/NewsArticle/tabid/208/Default.aspx?newsId=54676

WESTERN Bulldogs coach Rodney Eade used Saturday morning's East Meets West Family Day to rally the club's eastern suburbs supporters, with a public pledge that a top-eight finish is the only acceptable result for his side this year.

After his team trained at Wesley College at Glen Waverley in Melbourne's east, Eade said the Bulldogs were determined to prove critics wrong and play into September this year.

And, with almost an entire list to select from for the opening round of the NAB Cup, which kicks off for the Bulldogs in Darwin in less than four weeks, things are certainly looking positive.

"We're probably only two senior players short of joining in fully, so we've got a full list just about at the moment, so that's good," Eade said.

"There's a few little niggles here and there, which most teams get at this time of the year, but nothing major.

"Will Minson's back is a little bit sore and he's missed a week of training, but he'll be right next week, so I think [Daniel] Giansiracusa and [Wayde] Skipper are the only two at this stage."

Giansiracusa (knee) and Skipper (foot) are expected to be available in round three of the NAB Cup and round one of the season proper respectively, while Ryan Griffen has put his injury concerns behind him and is expected to play in Darwin.

Eade said his side is looking stronger than this time last year, with almost every player participating in pre-Christmas fitness training as opposed to the seven who missed in 2006.

He also said the Dogs will be looking to "win as many games as we can" in the upcoming pre-season competition, with former Crows Ben Hudson and Scott Welsh, and ex-Cat Tim Callan all expected to make debuts in their new strips.

"We won't compromise our programs for certain players that we'll set certain game time [for]," Eade said.

"That will mainly be the older players, so whether they play in round one, NAB Cup, only time will tell.

"We believe in our depth and in the players we've got, and we'd like to win as many games as we can."

The Bulldogs will head north for their community camp ahead of their NAB Cup clash with the Kangaroos, to spend some time in their adopted home of Darwin.

Eade said the players will not be exposed to heat training before the trip this time, as the four-day camp will act as perfect acclimatisation ahead of the game.

"When we went there last year, we spent three weeks in the heat chambers working towards that," he said.

"We probably won't do that this year. We go up on a Tuesday for our community camp, so we'll have three or four days to adjust.

"It will be hot and steamy, so that's an interesting management issue as well."

With the exception of Welsh, who had returned to Adelaide for a wedding, the entire playing list was on hand to meet approximately 300 fans at Saturday's session in damp conditions.
Eade took time to introduce the new Bulldogs, including 2007 draftees Jarrad Grant, Callan Ward, Sam Reid, Easton Wood, Jarrad Boumann and Guy O'Keefe, new rookies John Shaw, James Mulligan and Henry White, and experienced additions Callan and Hudson, to the crowd.

always right

20-01-2008, 02:32 PM

Physically not much has changed. He doesn't look much bigger than last season but perhaps he is a bit like Hargrave in that area.

I suppose we differ on his size but I agree that at 191cm he could be caught in between unless he develops a particular strength like marking.

So how exactly do we differ on his size?

hujsh

20-01-2008, 02:38 PM

My concern about Tiller is he is an in-between size. I hope he comes on but I have some doubts.

191cm is fine. Guys like Fevola and Pavlich are pretty good forwards

GVGjr

20-01-2008, 03:23 PM

So how exactly do we differ on his size?

I thought you had mentioned that he put on some size. From what I saw of him he looks about the same build.

always right

20-01-2008, 03:50 PM

191cm is fine. Guys like Fevola and Pavlich are pretty good forwards

yeah...191cm is fine if you are incredibly talented or built like a brick shithouse. Tiller is neither.

hujsh

20-01-2008, 04:53 PM

yeah...191cm is fine if you are incredibly talented or built like a brick shithouse. Tiller is neither.

So if he was 4cm taller he would be fine?:confused:

If he has a good reach and speed of the mark and some strength he'll be fine.

The Underdog

20-01-2008, 05:10 PM

* O'Shea has a magnificent physique and has filled out as well as you could hope for in a young KP player. I just noticed with his kicking he seems to take a bit of time to transfer the ball to his foot. Almost like taking to much care to place it properly.

You put it better than me but he definitely looks to be carefully placing it onto his foot rather than naturally guiding it.

One other thing was that Doogs was smiling and laughing through most of the session.
I think this is a good sign that he feels comfortable from someone whose mental approach will be very important in how he performs. It wasn't a super serious session so I think this is a positive.

always right

20-01-2008, 05:12 PM

So if he was 4cm taller he would be fine?:confused:

If he has a good reach and speed of the mark and some strength he'll be fine.

In Tiller's case it would certainly help. Do you think it would help Minson and Skipper to be more competitive in the ruck if they were 4cm taller? For the position each of these three are looking to play, their height is not ideal.....and Tiller doesn't have other attributes that offset this...IMO.

aker39

20-01-2008, 05:29 PM

Thanks for all of the reports and for the photos TCD.

hujsh

20-01-2008, 05:54 PM

LostDoggy

20-01-2008, 06:36 PM

Makes sense, isnt Minson an Adelaide boy?

LostDoggy

20-01-2008, 07:03 PM

Makes sense, isnt Minson an Adelaide boy?

He's from Victoria but moved there at some stage during his childhood...not entirely sure when, but he's a Victorian originally.

Dogs 24/7

21-01-2008, 12:28 PM

I was impressed with the stronger bodies of this years recruits. I could imagine if Sam Reid ran into some form he has the size to make the transition to senior football easily. Ward has all the atrributes of a quality footballer.

Sockeye Salmon

22-01-2008, 09:06 AM

Makes sense, isnt Minson an Adelaide boy?

Minson's parents moved to SA when Will was 11. He has publically stated he hated living there and wouldn't go back.

Go_Dogs

22-01-2008, 10:33 AM

In Tiller's case it would certainly help. Do you think it would help Minson and Skipper to be more competitive in the ruck if they were 4cm taller? For the position each of these three are looking to play, their height is not ideal.....and Tiller doesn't have other attributes that offset this...IMO.

For mine, he has the body that could develop into a very solid frame. His hands, speed and ability below his knees have all looked OK.

I don't think his height is an issue, more so his core strength and upper body strength. If he can pack on a few more kg's over the next year or 2, he could become a real option up forward.

He needs to put some runs on the board this year though, otherwise risks going off to oblivion like many before him.

Cyberdoggie

22-01-2008, 10:42 AM