GAME/TRAINING SCENARIOS - DEFENDING CLOSER AND CLOSER (FREE)

This scenario shows and lays out a way to train to gradually ramp up your forward press as you are able to move the ball towards your goal.

I started with lower numbers for simplicity but over time feel free to increase player numbers up to about 15 for the advantage side (offensive) but you can even them up as success has been achieved with the number advantage.

PREVIOUS GAME MOMENT - OPPOSITION LAST TOUCHED OUT OF BOUNDS FREE KICK

CURRENT GAME MOMENT - INTERCEPT MARK HALF BACK FLANK

GAME VIDEO - 

TRAINING VIDEO - 

GAME/TRAINING SCENARIOS- RUN FROM BEHIND OPTIONS (FREE)

I first saw this running from behind play tactic from the Sydney Swans in 2021 based off player movement in soccer but you now see a lot of it in AFLW because it's very effective to lengthening the ground and maintaining team connection all over the ground + they sort of have to do it with 2 less players on the ground (it needs to change to 18 IMO).

It's easily something that could, and should, be introduced to local/amateur football which is usually go forward at all costs as fast as we possibly can which results in a lot of inefficient football even at lower levels of football.

This is crystal clear example of what it looks like and how it can be a powerful tactic to add to your existing game strategy.

PREVIOUS GAME MOMENT - STOPPAGE KICK FROM RIGHT BACK POCKET

GAME MOMENT - MARK AND KICK FROM RIGHT HALF BACK FLANK

GAME VIDEO -

TRAINING VIDEO - 

GAME/TRAINING SCENARIOS - KICK OUT ALONG BOUNDARY LINE

The game video shows the 1 specific way the Bulldogs exited their defensive 50 via their kick out but as I state in the training video, that is just 1 of many options that this set up will present to the offensive team and it's all about taking what the defense gives you and taking it as soon as an affordance becomes available.

There is also a pattern of play in the video that you are definitely trying to emulate in some shape or form in the training scenario but again, it's all about reacting to the defense from all offensive players with and without the ball in hand.

PREVIOUS GAME MOMENT - OPPOSITION BEHIND

GAME MOMENT - KICK OUT

GAME VIDEO...

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GAME/TRAINING SCENARIOS - WING BOUNDARY PLAY SWITCH

PREVIOUS GAME MOMENT - OPPOSITION OUT ON THE FULL

GAME MOMENT - REGAIN POSSESSION STOPPAGE KICK

GAME VIDEO...

For full access to this game/training scenario register or a level 4 membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/. 

LEFT OVER GOLDEN NUGGET NOTES

As you're all aware I do film reviews during the AFLW seasons which means I watch the games, take notes of what I see, go back and video the clips, edit the video then put it up but I also keep a list of every clip I take when I do each round which led me to putting together the AFLW Film Review membership that coaches can use to assist with how they can analyse their own games + it gives out a plethora of little coaching tidbits that you can use in your very next game in regards to individual player positioning, team formation and ball/player movement patterns.

Above is an image of just 3 of my about 35 pages, some front and back, of each game clip so I can easily reference them when I go to post one but I have a miscellaneous section which has notes on about 30 game clips that I won't use for the film review section so I'm just gonna post them here over a number of posts with most of them simply being a quick explanation of what you probably want to do in a specific situation, but some will have very short videos and diagrams to go with them.

Includes:

- 100% v 50% Option

- 2 Tall Forwards

- Stoppage Scenario

- D50 Open Play Scenario

- A1/2 v B1/2

- D50 Number Advantage Scenario

- Defensive Formation

For full access to this coaching/training article register for a level 1 membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

4v3 to 6v5 CONTINUOUS TRAINING ACTIVITY

                                        

This is a continuous training activity that has 3 layers for each team with each layer starting immediately after the one preceding it.

Players must be quick to transition through roles, positioning and mindset while maintaining communication and concentration through 6 different phases of play

Each layer has 2 phases of play as each team has 1 possession on offense trying to score in their goals and on defense obviously trying to stop the opposition scoring.

Each team has only 1 attempt to score and once that shot has been taken then the next play starts immediately.

The team starting the full game in possession will need 8 players at their starting end while the opposition team will need 6 players at their starting end.

LAYER 1...

For full access to this training activity register for an level 3 membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

TRANSFORM YOUR COACHING WITH CHRISTIAN LAVERS/DOUG LEMOV PART 2

                                         

This is the 2nd part of a 2 part post of notes from an article/video posted by Doug Lemov, about a video of soccer coach Christian Lavers.

I went to coaching immediately after reading/watching this and with it fresh in my mind put some of it into action - especially the part on maintaining the same message/goal throughout the entire game and bringing everything back to the main teaching point without having to isolate it in anyway.

If you go to the Christian Lavers hyperlink you'll be taken to the article that all this comes from along with a 30min video of Lavers coaching that the original article was based on.

Part 2 today consists of my notes taken from the 30min video at the Tavers hyperlink above.

It might be well worth your time reading Doug's notes while watching the video and then reading my notes while you watch the video again - that's pretty much what I did putting this together!

For full access to this coaching/training article register for a level 1 membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

TRANSFORM YOUR COACHING WITH CHRISTIAN LAVERS/DOUG LEMOV PART 1

                                             

This 2 part post are notes from an article/video posted by Doug Lemov, someone who I'm pretty sure I've posted about before, about a video of soccer coach Christian Lavers, who I don't really know anything about at all!

Suffice to say that after reading and watching this piece I now know that he is one hell of a coach with some undeniable methods, especially if teaching is your aim (good) rather than simply telling (bad).

If you go to the Christian Lavers hyperlink you'll be taken to the article that all this comes from along with a 30min video of Lavers coaching that the original article was based on.

Part 1 today consists of my notes from the written part of the article which as mentioned is taken from the video by the original author Lemov.

Part 2 later in the week are my own notes from the video.

Either way it'll be well worth your time. 

PART 1- ARTICLE NOTES...

For full access to this coaching/training article register for a level 1 membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

3v3 to 6v6 TRAINING GAME

                                                     

Football is full of transition plays from offense to defense and from congestion to space.

If you train in only open spaces then you'll be subpar in congestion.

If you only train in congestion you'll struggle to spread and find space once you win the ball.

This game adds all these elements into the 1 game in a 2-step process...

To access this training activity and many others register for a level membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

GAME/TRAINING SCENARIOS - SWITCHING TO SPACE v PLAYER

                                                              

When switching the play, especially in open play, you don't always have the time and space to perfectly process, calculate and execute the perfect kick to a teammate and if you do indeed try to in these situations, it can quite often result in a turnover when there is a much simpler way to execute what you're trying to do.

As the title suggests your option is to switch kick to space or switch kick to a player, bit it is usually situation dependent.

GAME MOMENT - TRANSITION OFFENSE FAST PLAY

PREVIOUS GAME MOMENT - DEFENSIVE 50 REBOUND TO FAR WING

GAME SCENARIO VIDEO...

For full access to this game/training scenario and many others, register for a level 4 membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

TRANSITION OFFENSE TACTICS

Intercept marking players are a premium in the AFL ranks and are probably even held in higher regard in local footy with more kicks being long to contested area's compared to the AFL.

It's 1 thing to be able to take manufacture and take intercept marks through your defensive side of the game but games are won by scoring so it's crucial that you are able to build your offense off of these opposition turnovers, where a huge % of total score will more than likely come from with teams being around the mark of each other.

This post will provide you with a framework to start with from intercept marks taken and free kicks garnered in your defensive 50 but the tactics hold true for intercept marks/free kicks in any area of the ground for the most part.

Before we get to the videos, let's talk a bit more about transition offense, which is the phase you are in just after you regain possession of the ball.

On a side note, offense is once you've maintained that possession and have entered your forward half but there is no specific time that this occurs, it's more the actions you use that determines the changeover.

As a team you 1st need to develop some language around transition offense, trigger words that trigger the actions you want and need at that particular time.

The beauty of developing game models, which you can do here by choosing "Develop Game Model", is that it helps build cohesion among the 22 players in your team during any given game which you can't just hope happens on it's own.

The other side to game models is that if you end up in a slump then you work back to find out what's going wrong but without it and with 22 players playing 22 different games instead of 22 players playing 1 game, it's impossible to identify breakdowns during games that start your downfall and you can't correct them which is the area where I reckon 95% of local footy teams operate.

Here are some idea's that you might start to look at to develop your 2 - 3 key area's that you'll focus on during transition offense...

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STUDY WEEK - PRACTICE DESIGN PART 2

                                          

Part 2 of this cracker of a study on developing challenge-based practice design in sports coaching.

• High challenge can about unexpected rewards/close misses which can engage the learner
• Small changes for small periods of time can keep motivation high while balancing the benefits of errors for learning against their costs in motivation
• Performance errors can have psychological/physical costs especially in group settings where they can be compounded by the social consequences increasing psychological pressure
• Feelings of competence is important for engagement in short and long term so you need to provide the awareness of the potential trade offs when introducing challenges and the performance dips that will follow and creating a culture where athletes feel comfortable exposing their weaknesses, performing under novel conditions where successes are not guaranteed and engaging in challenging practice conditions
• Player psychological safety is always paramount so coaches need to take extra steps to ensure precautions are taken when increasing difficulty as it also increases injury risk
• Reduced motivation decreases learning so when challenge increases take protective steps to ensure motivation by promoting competency (feedback after excellent attempts and not criticising average attempts), autonomy (athlete control over challenge) and social relatedness (self comparison v teammate comparison)
• When individual's believe that improvements are made through hard work and not innate talent (examples of growth mindsets), they persist under challenging conditions for longer
• Consolidation refers to the long term process of strengthening memories created in practice into longer/more durable forms which can be recalled later, is transforming information through the continued learning which takes place once practice has stopped and is sensitive to long periods of rest/sleep
• Rewarding activities through feedback/praise/physical incentives helps to promote the consolidation of motor skills which is mediated by dopamine during the practice session (memory consolidation) so create opportunities for success/reward, particularly unexpected success which is strongly linked to behavioral change
• Near misses/falling just short of success motivates players to stay engaged (challenge point)
• The exact balance of costs/benefits is likely individually based on cognitive load, motivational disposition and prior experience + the athlete/coach relationship
• Challenge that reflect cognitive-perceptual/physical/psychological demands will promote better transfer to competition but they might not always be compatible with task challenges to bring about learning
• For maximum transfer you want sensory/cognitive/emotional thoughts and feelings of impending competition during practice, or at least in aspects of practice
• Practice to learn is the most important goal and should underpin the majority of practice-based decisions in designing practice, expanding on challenge point
• Practice to maintain is related to maintaining current skills and developing automaticity in skills and keeping athletes motivated through high competency expectations/relative success
• Practice to transfer creates challenges which simulate game demands
• All 3 practice types regardless of goal, should have at least a moderate degree of specificity to the upcoming game context
• Coaches should worry less about game representation when practicing to learn is the goal as athlete's need to be comfortable sacrificing performance to maximise learning/improvement through increased challenge point and the creation of opportunities for new information
• Because there are fewer opportunities to learn/gain new information at higher levels of skill, creativity is needed to create situations that do this (constraints-led approach)
• If learning is the goal then create situations that are moderate to high in functional task difficulty relative to the individual and based on their constraints at that time
• Conditions that increase cognitive demands on the performer leads to better retention/learning and this is best done via manipulating variability in practice conditions x frequently switching between skills + performing the same skill under different conditions as random training separates the good to very good players
• The aim of variability is for the learner to be actively involved in determining how and when to act and to be constantly thinking of what they’re doing
• Uncertain conditions not only keeps the learner engaged but also provides opportunities for events that mimic competition where vision might be blurred/obstructed or playing surfaces might be damaged/uneven
• Because errors are expected coaches should consider ways to manage expectations, de-emphasise immediate performance and reinforce behaviors in the desired learning zone
• Because errors/decreased performance is considered negatively, a culture needs to be cultivated where players know the difference between practice and learning situations
• As competition approaches there is less focus on learning/permissible errors
• Learning practice can be merged within any practice session where errors are not allowed and where mistakes have agreed upon consequences, better matching game demands/goals of transfer
• Practice to transfer is where challenge is matched to expected game demands with considerations put in to determine the optimal challenge point at which transfer to games will be greatest, which will shift over time
• Practice needs to mimic the psychological/physical states of games, self evaluation, competition, attention demands and fatigue
• 1 way to simulate high cognitive/attentional demands of time-constrained team invasion sports is through practice designed to challenge players working memory such as not passing to person who passed it to you, designating players that the ball must be played through etc as players need to know who just passed the ball, who the receiving players are etc which places demands on working memory so that players always have something to hold in their memory and use before making their decision
• Include consequential practice where errors occurring training have consequences that are completed at the end of training under fatigue but get creative hear as punishing players through activity is not usually the best way to go and only gives them bad experience with increased activity so you'll have a hard time getting them to run in their own time off the back of it, leaving you less time to train more important game aspects like tactics, technique etc if you have to run them for half the session
• Train to maintain is reinforcement practice where accomplished skills/technique's are honed/practiced
• Session plan might start with high challenge/practice to learn leading into low challenge/practice maintain but might need to break up into small groups based on skill/experience

AFLW FILM REVIEW GRAND FINAL - BRIS/MELB

Season 7 has seen over 500mins of review from over 300 game clips and culminates in this 20min review of the Grand Final.

If you watched the game you'll probably have noticed that both teams opted to defend far stronger then attempting to score and with only 16 players/side on the ground it's near impossible for 2 top 4 teams to do both at the same time - it's definitely time to get 18 players per team on the ground so teams can play with more forwards once they go forward with speed.

With 16 players you have to go fast to less forwards or slow to more defenders, both options don't really favor the ability to develop scoring opportunities, especially between the best teams in the comp which are always low scoring unless it's a total blow out.

All that said it was still a tense and engaging contest going right up until the final seconds of the last quarter.

Video x 20mins.

Includes:

• Davidson Leading Patterns
• Brisbane Not Taking and then Taking the Switch Option
• Taylor Harris Set Shot Technique
• Grider Leaves Harris Alone in the Goal Square

For full access to this film review and every other round from seasons 6 and 7, register for an AFLW Film Review membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

STUDY WEEK - PRACTICE DESIGN PART 1

 

This is a bloody long one so it will take 2 posts to cover but as always lot of points to get the coaching-thinking juices flowing and they can also be immediately implemented in your own coaching sessions.

• There are 3 types of practice x practice to learn, practice to transfer to competition and practice to maintain current skills
• Increased difficulty during practice might be detrimental to short term performance but beneficial for long term performance
• The challenge point framework refers to skill acquisition via accumulated playing experiences and is highly compatible with desirable difficulties for learning and cognitive load theory
• Difficulties/challenges in practice can be beneficial for learning but they can also have motivational costs such as introducing more errors into practice/performance which can have implications on competence perception and meeting your own competence needs for motivation
• Reduced motivation can have negative effects on learning as learners may stop practice sooner and also reduced motivation can make learning less effective
• Not all difficulties are equally beneficial for learning as it’s not the difficulty level that boosts learning but the psychological processes which are engaged by the difficulty
• These types of process difficulties have been termed desirable because they beneficially enhance encoding of information and its retrieval
• To determine which difficulties are desirable to practice specificity, refer to do the constraints of practice and if they match those in competition
• The optimal difficulty for an individual is a moving target across practice sessions or across seasons
• The difficulty of a particular practice scenario can change in the short term due to things like fatigue/arousal as well as over the long term as a result of learning, and therefore goals of practice may change such as using high functional difficulty to optimise learning/improvement or at a lower relative level reinforcing successes/promoting competence
• Retention/transfer differentially impact practice decisions where you can learn/execute a skill at training not in games from a lack of practice game representation and experiences that scaffold on an initial narrow set of practice/performance conditions
• Adding new information/degree of uncertainty + finding the optimal level of difficulty/challenge is how you  individualise each players challenge point
• Individual differences can make a task more/less difficulty for each person = functional task difficulty
• Perceived difficulty vary over attempts from the same athlete or between athletes of similar skill levels
• Nominal task difficulty is a more objective property of the task which remains the same regardless of the person
• Block training beats random training for short term improvements giving the illusion of learning/retention but random beats blocked for long term retention
• Desirable difficulties includes to trying an action before been shown how to it, the spacing out of practice for different skills to make them harder to recall and self testing
• Low challenge = high performance
• High challenge = low performance
• Low challenge = low learning
• High challenge (relative to challenge point) = high learning
• In the optimal challenge point zone there can be a small performance drop but not so much that it overburden’s the learner but is also where learning will be greatest because of the availability of new/unexpected information
• If athletes are to do more than simply maintain skill level then they must be pushed out of their comfort zone to a place where they don’t know what to expect and how to respond to new information
• For beginners, new information can be found in relatively low level challenges while still creating uncertainty and in order to make this new information usable, the coach plays a valuable role in determining/directing attention to key information via task specific constraints, rule changes or augmenting practice through verbal instruction/video
• As individuals increase in skill the amount of information available for learning starts to shrink so the practice environment needs to be more challenging/stretching so new information is constantly becoming available
• For intermediates less information/uncertainty is available when challenge is low but increases rapidly when challenge is increased
• When there is uncertainty in what's being performed, information matters and learning opportunities are enhanced
• There is a link between learning to expectations and in particular the violation of these expectations such as how a movement is expected to look/feel, then the motor system detects such violations and uses them as a signal for learning
• When expectations are met, our internal models of the world are reinforced and no change is needed
• By increasing the difficulty of practice, expect a drop in performance such reductions in accuracy, slower and more variable movements, or both and is a signal of learning as information gained from unsuccessful attempts are used to adjust/refine future movements
• Coaches also need to consider the potential motivational costs of errors for both the learner as a person with psychological/safety needs and for learning as a physical process where too high a challenge will be highly frustrating/de-motivational but too low can be de/motivating for different individual’s, as it can meet the need for competence but also be boring

Part 2 coming Friday - AFLW Film Review tomorrow.

AFLW FILM REVIEW FINALS WEEK 3 - MELB/NM

Video x 17mins.

Includes:

• Center Bounce Battle
• North Melbourne Attacking Melbourne Defense Weakness
• North Melbourne Going Inside 50

For full access to this film review and also every other round from seasons 6 and 7, register for an AFLW Film Review membership from https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

NEW TRAINING ACTIVITIES PRODUCT - BLACK FRIDAY SALE!!

"Training Activities for Current Football Practices" is a stand-alone product that uses training activities that have far more game representation, learning opportunities and transfer to games, then traditional and outdated cone to cone drills that a lot of coaches still use.

To ease product navigation I have categorised each training activity of which there are over 50 activities covered in more than 40 different posts.

The categories are:

• Warm Up
• Back Line
• Transition
• Forward Line
• Kicking
• Contest
• Training Games
• School Footy Training Sessions

Until Sunday November 27th, the sale price will be $75, down from its normal price of $100 so head to the register page to get your coaching hands on one before the price increase.

AFLW FILM REVIEW FINALS WEEK 3 - BRIS/ADE

Video x 11mins.

Includes:

• Grider Leaves Player Def
• Hodder Fast v Slow
• Brisbane Midfield Spread

For full access to this film review and also for every other round from seasons 6 and 7, register for an AFLW Film Review membership from https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

I'M AFTER YOUR INPUT!

                                                 

From the feedback receive via my emailing list and social media pages, most readers/coaches are most interested in the 2 training activity memberships.

As of right now I have posted 118 posts containing training activities designed for other coaches like you, to implement in your own training sessions.

These training activities have for now been spread over 2 different memberships.

The game/training scenarios are literal slices of actual AFLW games which I think are a lot to most local footy than AFL which is why I use footage from it,  that you can recreate and then simply let the scenario play out where there could be many solutions to the same problem.

Training drills can be similar to game/training scenarios but usually has a more definite end point in mind so it could be said that they use a single solution to try and solve multiple problems.

Either way I feel, and my feedback backs this up, is that being able to design effective training activities can provide a dramatic boost in team cohesion and individual player improvement.

With this in mind I'm thinking of a new product containing both types of training activities, choosing my best 50 activities out of the 118 I have and releasing it as a stand alone product meaning you won't need to purchase a membership on top of the product if 50 training activities are all the you want.

What I'm wanting to know is if I should release this as an online product like I have been or if there is a want/need by coaches for an actual book/PDF.

That's all I'm after so if you could please simply drop a comment below with "ONLINE" or " BOOK/PDF", that would definitely help me decide which way to go.

I could possibly do both but I'm not sure if I have the ability to actually design the training activities in print form as I usually do videos.

I'm looking to get this all ready to go in the next 2 - 3 weeks and sooner if possible so prompt action on this would be greatly appreciated and in return you can nominate any post from my entire catalog with your response to receive in return.

AFLW FILM REVIEW FINALS WEEK 2: ADE/COLL

Videos x 14mins.

Includes:

• Poor Collingwood Play On Handball
• Collingwood Playing On to Nothing Up the Ground
• Adelaide Kick Out to Transition Offense
• SLT Defensive Wing Run

For full access to this film review and also every other round from seasons 6 and 7, register for an AFLW Film Review membership from https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

AFLW FILM REVIEW FINALS WEEK 2: RICH/NM

Video x 8mins.

Includes:

• Richmond Front Press Team Defense
• Conti Stoppage Goal
• Kearney Using 2022 Game Intelligence

For full access to this film review and also every other round from seasons 6 and 7, register for an AFLW Film Review membership from https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.  

AFLW FILM REVIEW FINALS WEEK 1 - GEE/GEE + COLL/WB

Video x 17mins.

Includes:

• Perfect North Melbourne 2v1 Defense
• Darby Play On Handball
• Poor Geelong Player Positioning
• Great v Poor Moody Contesting
• Bulldogs Stoppage Goal

For full access to this film review and for every other round from seasons 6 and 7, register for an AFLW Film Review membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

INFINITE BUILD UP TRAINING ACTIVITY

                                                         

This is a possession based game with built in mechanisms to implicitly direct players to hold the ball after a mark and also to wait for free options to become available.

It uses 3 connected playing area's and multiple balls to keep psychological and physical requirements high, such as in a game.

Feel free to alter the playing numbers I have here to fit your own training player numbers, as I've used a 5v3 simply to be able show this clearly in my video.

You could use up to 18 players/team (36 total) with a 6v5 in each zone using the entire ground.

If you have less numbers then simply bring the boundaries in on each side but enforce the space constraints with the out of bounds rule and the offensive team loses that ball in that 3 ball sequence.

Here's a quick video of Infinite Build Up...

For full access to this training activity and over 115 others register for a level 3 membership from https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

AFLW FILM REVIEW FINALS WEEK 1 - MELB/ADE + BRIS/RICH

Video x 11mins.

Includes:

• Melbourne Hunting on Both Ends
• Melbourne Lane Running
• Wardlaw Body Work Mark
• Richmond Frontal Press Defense

For full access to this film review and also every other round from seasons 6 and 7 register for an AFLW Film Review membership from https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

STUDY WEEK - SCIENTIFICALLY BACKED METHOD TO IMPROVING KICK PROFICIENCY

                                                   

Pre-Season 2023 is just around the corner and with a new year should come new idea's.

To really amp up new idea's if you can source those that are evidence-based then you'll really be onto something.

This post will provide both of those aspects and will allow you as coach, to maximise your training environment which in turn will increase transfer into games - you know, the point of training in the 1st place!

This all comes from a study performed by Victoria University here in Melbourne and was just released  weeks ago so it's literally hot off the presses.

Maybe the best part of this study is that the test subjects were local/amateur football players and based around local/amateur football timetables and resources, showing that the results attained by the test subject players can be replicated by your own players.

It's not elite players getting elite results from elite training practices, it's everyday footballers like you and I, improving their kicking proficiency by up to 17% in as little 4 weeks and in as little as 160mins of dedicated training time.

The results are mouth-watering but will require you as coach to probably, and I'm assuming here, to possible dramatically alter your training practices, at least for this section of training buy you can keep getting the same results, which if I know local football training, and I think I do, are players simply retraining to the same level of the previous year with no actual improvement, or you can look to get in on some these game transferable results that will improve your win total in season 2023.

INTRODUCTION

• Skill proficiency within a field-based small sided game assessment was 97% successful in identifying players as either novice/sub-elite meaning your best small sided game players at training will be your best game day players irrespective of what they can do in other, closed skill activities
• Skill adaptability is the ability to adjust your performance based on the changing stimulus within the performance environment where players must perceive/interpret their environments (where the ball is, where the opposition is, where teammates are, where space is) and then act upon this perception (lead for the ball by running towards open space)
• An example of this being a player taking possession of the ball and then quickly canvassing the environment to identify an appropriate teammate to kick the to before being tackled where the player may select a teammate to kick to but if their selection/action takes too long (1sec+), then this option may disappear and another opportunity may arise (e.g. handball to a teammate running past)
• By reducing the number of players/area size the total number of technical actions/player increases
• By limiting the number of ball contacts, more shots at goal/faster playing may occur
• Nathan Bonney, one of the study authors has previously developed a 5-level performance assessment x level 1 – laboratory testing, level 2 – field based (stationary), level 3 – field based (dynamic), l4 – small sided game, l5 – match play, and this study focused on level 4 to improve level 5

HOW THEY DID IT...

For full access to this coaching/training article register for a level 1 membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 10 - GWS/GC

Video x 21mins.

Includes:

• Gold Coast Forwards Working in Tandem
• GWS Loose Defender
• Gold Coast Defender Loses Touch
• Gold Coast Inside 50
• GWS Cause a Vacuum
• Poor Gold Coast Spread

For full access to this film review and also every other round from seasons 6 and 7, register for an AFLW Film Review membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 10 - MELB/WC + STK/ADE + GEE/SYD + FRE/HAW

Video x 15mins.

Includes:

• Melbourne Wing Width
• Shierlaw Tall Forward Work Rate
• Sydney Trying to Force Fast Play Out of Thin Air
• Freo Defending Too High

For full access to this film review as well as every other round from season 6 and 7, register for an AFLW Film Review membership from https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

PSYCHOLOGICAL SKILLS SEQUENCE

                                             

The notes for this post comes from study on developing a psychological skills sequence (PSS) that I can't relocate on the internet but I'm pretty sure there's enough here for you to make something of it and have a crack at developing your own program for your club, team and players.

If you're going to let almost anyone off the street walk into your football club, then you can't get upset from a coaching point of view when they don't nail the various psychological aspects of competitive sport if you haven't given them even the most basic of frameworks.

Just like you want evidence from training that players can carry out certain roles come game day, you need to give players evidence that you can help with the psychological side of sport and give them support when they need it, not just spray them, as you can't yell about what you haven't coached them. 

Runs in a sequence of goal setting - imagery - self talk - relaxation

• Previous skill assists in learning/application of the next
• The mental training process consists of 4 layers x philosophy, model, strategies and techniques
• Psychological x the practitioner organises their idea’s/beliefs towards a PSS and the type of program they’ll deliver (educational v clinical approach, program v athlete centered approach etc)
• Model of Intervention x select an overarching framework to guide their PSS (cognitive-behavioral approach etc)
• Strategies x outline of operational plans for how the intervention will run (sequential steps, multiple phases, packaging of mental skills etc)
• Techniques x the specific mental skills that will be delivered within the program (goal setting, self talk etc)
• Practitioner still makes the critical decisions around design/delivery like how mental skills will be packaged (1 or multiple skills at a time x visualisation/self talk)
• Which mental skills you focus on will depend on if it’s a program or athlete centered program
• Athlete Centered Program x individually specific, not often practiced, requires lots of resources/time
• Program Centered Program x pre-planned sequence of mental skills
• Imagery/goal setting should appear early in the program
• Basic psychological skills (imagery, self talk, goal setting, relaxation) serve various functions, can be used on their own or with other psychological skills
• Advanced Psychological Skills x specific strategies to achieve ideal performance states, reaching optimal arousal, maintaining attention (simulation training including self talk/imagery) and managing emotions
• Go in order of goal setting, imagery, self talk, relaxation
• Week 1 x introductory session x introduce yourself, get to know players, an overview of the importance of PSS
• Week 2 – 5 x goal setting, imagery, self talk, relaxation respectively
• Week 6 – 8 x open sessions x review/expand basic skills, advanced skills, team building

AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 10 - BRIS/COLL

Video x 9mins.

Includes:

• Brisbane Hunt
• Collingwood Too Slow Going Inside 50
• Failed Collingwood Play On Handball  
• Collingwood Attacking to an Outnumber Disadvantage then Defending with an Outnumber Disadvantage 5secs Later

For full access to this film review and also for every other round for season 6 and 7 register for an AFLW Film Review membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 9 - WC/WB + HAW/BRIS + STK/PA + RICH/GWS

Video x 11mins.

Includes:

• Wilcox Wing Run
• Hawks/Power Too Loose Inside Defensive 50
• Port Not Pressuring Ball Carrier
• St Kilda Playing On at the Wrong Time

For full access to this film review + every round from seasons 6 and 7 then register for an AFLW Film Review membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 9 - COLL/NM + SYD/FREO

Video x 8mins.

Includes:

• Rennie Replicating King at Center Ball Ups
• Leaving Garner Free - Why?
• Badly Mis-timed Collingwood Play On Handball
• Keeping v Losing Width

For full access to this film review as well as every other round for season 6 and 7, register for an AFLW Film Review membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 9 - ADE/GEE + GC/CARL

Video x 16mins.

Includes:

• Major Geelong Player Positioning Fail
• Niamh Kelly 4 Efforts in a Row
• Perfect Gold Coast Play On Handball
• Carlton Wing Not Getting Width

For full access to this film review and also every other round for seasons 6 and 7 then register for an AFLW Film Review membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/. 

ORLA (O'DWYER) RUNS TRAINING PROGRAM

                                        

It's off-season time which also means...gulp...running time.

For a speed profile athlete like myself, traditional running is a simply terrible thing as I'm a million % better at sprint and rest programs and anything that puts me in the "middle" spikes my rate of perceived effort (RPE) and heart rate (HR) a pretty much as soon as I start.

As I've gotten (way) older (just turned 44), my repeat effort output has obviously declined while I've been able to maintain my max velocity and acceleration speed but that has also been the aim of my training in recent years, with a 3 - 4 week block for threshold running added in around January/February before getting back to my usual set up and practice games.

All "middle" training is left to whatever footy training sessions I can attend which is your classic model for "in the middle training" - not fast enough and not enough rest to gain any max speed benefits from it but also too fast and fatigue building to build sustainable aerobic capacity.

For this off-season, which I'm not sure if I'll be club coaching, school coaching, playing, private sector coaching or a combination of all 4 like 2022, I'm going running route which I haven't done for near on 20 years when that was all you did.

Here's a cycle of what I'm doing right now for my running training.

Session #1 x 20mins of continuous running st 70% of max aerobic speed (MAS) which is slow and is actually a speed I can't run at as it's between a walk and a run so I'm actually running at closer to 75% MAS but no big deal.

The aim is to run at the same pace for the entire 20mins so I've set out lap times and such to keep pace and the long term goal after 6 weeks or so is to be able to do the same workload (20mins @ 70 - 75% MAS = 2735m) at a lower heart rate meaning I can now do the same amount work but by using less energy.

Session #2 x Orla Runs which is a running pattern I've copied from Brisbane Lions AFLW winger and running machine, Orla O'Dwyer.

I used this in 1 of my AFLW Film Review videos to show elite running patterns for a winger, especially in the women's game where there are 2 less players on the ground and there is more space in defensive halves to cover which is the cryptonite of defenders.

Here's what it looks like...

For full access to this training program and plenty of others register for a level 2 membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/. 

AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 8 - VID 1 x GC v MELB + VID 2 x GEE/WC + WB/STK + FRE/COLL

GOLD COAST v MELBOURNE

Video x 17mins.

Includes:

• Melbourne Going Inside Forward 50
• Gold Coast Forward Getting Too High
• Melbourne Forward 50 Team Defense Structure
• Gold Coast Defender's Playing Too Deep

GEELONG v WEST COAST + WESTERN BULLDOGS v ST KILDA + FREMANTLE v COLLINGWOOD

Video x 11mins.

Includes:

• Geelong Ball Movement
• Geelong D1/2
• WB Ball Movement + Transition
• Freo Switch

For full access to this film review and every other round for season 6 and 7 register for an AFLW Film Review membership from https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 8 - PA/NM

                                             

Video x 12mins.

Includes:

• No Port Frontal Pressure
• No 3rd Man Up for Port
• Garner Midfield Masterclass

For full access to this film review and for all other rounds from season 6 and 7, register for an AFLW Film Review membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/. 

AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 8 - CARL/RICH + BRIS/ADE + ESS/SYD

Video x 14mins.

Includes:

• Richmond Transition
• Carlton Taking the Tackle
• Brisbane Getting to Multiple Contests in a Row
• Brisbane Defense Making No Impact
• Sydney Lose Width
• Sydney Corral v Tackle

For full access to this film review and for every other round for season 6 and 7, register for an AFLW Film Review membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 7 - ESS/GEE

Video x 12mins.

Includes:

• Ess v Gee Wing-Off!
• Gee v Ess Forward 50 Entries
• Darby 2 Way Forward Pressure
• Essendon Missed In Board Kick Opportunity

For full access to this film review and every other round from season 6 and 7 register for an AFLW Film Review membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 7: NM/BRIS + HAW/PA + MELB/WB + COLL/GWS

Video x 13mins.

Includes:

• Kearney Game Intelligence
• Poor Brisbane Defense
• Hawks Defender Decision Making
• Port Missed In Board Kick
• Melbourne Wing Play

For full access to this film review and every other game from season 6 and 7, register for an AFLW Film Review membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 7: WC/RICH + SYD/GC

                                    

Video x 10mins.

Includes:

• Richmond Surge Transition Offense
• West Coast Ball Movement
• Sydney Inside Forward 50 Tackling
• Gold Coast Center Ball Up Clearances

For full access to this film review and every other round for season 6 and season register for an AFLW Film Review membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

STOPPAGE CONTEST TRAINING ACTIVITY

                                                    

This is a great training activity to nail the basics of winning the contest at stoppage, especially for lesser experienced players regardless of age.

It takes a tiny slice of the game and narrows the focus so players only need to focus on a few learning points so as not to overstretch too much and new habits, and thus game intelligence, can be attained.

I'll lay out the activity in it's most basic form but you can build of of this as much as you like.

As you can see from the image, the activity starts out...

For full access to this training activity and plenty others to boost your players learning/transfer to games then register for a level 3 membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.  

THE PROCESS PART 3 & 4 - FERGUS CONNOLLY / CAM JOSSE

I actually got these books for Xmas last year, read straight away while taking my usual notes and have only got to typing them out now.

I have posted my notes from Game Changer as well as The Process 1 & 2 at the hyperlinks on each volume. 

These books, and Fergus himself in Twitter PM's in the past, initially shaped my coaching outlook away from traditional coaching and I'me very happy I made the switch before I actually started coaching footy.

That being said it's never too late for current coaches to adopt this method of coaching and put yourself in the stratosphere of local/amateur coaches!

I usually post these in mini posts but I'll lump all of volume 3 here in 1 go, all 1100 words of it.

Volume 4 is mostly graphs and table yo can use to implement everything from the previous volumes.

With the off-season break this is the perfect time to up-skill your coaching and any of these (has to be) 500 points from all these Game Changer/Process posts can do exactly that.

THE PROCESS LEVEL 3...

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AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 6 - BRIS/ESS + FREO/MELB

7min Video.

Includes:

• Essendon Poor Goal Square Defense
• Melbourne Perfect Space Creation 
• Duffy Run and Goal

For full access to this film review and every other round for season 6 and 7 register for an AFLW Film Review membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 6 - GWS/CARL + WB/GEE + RICH/WC

Video x 17mins.

Includes:

• Parker Perfectly Drawing Her Opponent
• Defenders Getting "Stuck in the Middle"
• Carlton Not Using Width
• Positioning Your Outlet Players
• Gold Coast Perfect Example of Slow Play

For full access to this film review and every other round for season 6 and 7,register for an AFLW Film Review membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 6 - HAW/WC + PA/ADE

Video x 16mins.

Includes:

• Anticipating Too Early
• Lewis Leg Drive
• West Coast Forward 50 Structure
• Port Defense Far Too Loose
• Port Not Taking 100% Options
• Port Good v Poor Kick Outs

For full access to this film review as well as every other round for season 6 and 7, register for an AFLW Film Review membership from https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 5 - GOLD COAST v PORT ADELAIDE + ADELAIDE v GWS

                                        

Video x 9mins.

Includes:

• Loose Checking from Port Adelaide Defenders
• Gold Coast Bullying at Center Bounce
• GWS Not Taking the 100% Option

For full access to this film review and for every other round in season 7 register for an AFLW Film Review membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 5 - WB/NM + COLL/ESS + SYD/ESS + CARL/MELB + RICH/BRIS

Video x 13mins.

Includes:

• Forward Self Preservation
• Collingwood Stoppage Goal
• Montana Ham-Balls (see what I did there?)
• Play On Handballs Still an Issue
• Brisbane Inside 50's

For full access to this film review and many others from every round of AFLW 2022 (both seasons!) then register for an AFLW Film Review membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 5 - WC/FREO + GEE/STK

Video x 15mins.

Includes:

• West Coast Inside 50 Structure
• Freo Poor Spacing from Contest
• St Kilda Defense Worries
• The Difference Between Average and Excellent Leaders

For full access to this film review and many others that you can use in your coaching right now register for an AFLW Film Review membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

AFLW FILM REVIEW ROUND 4 - FULL ROUND (FREE!!)

School holidays is my busiest time with footy clinics all over Melbourne but I also had to pick up our new car in between PT shifts yesterday so I'm just getting to this round today.

I'll be out all day tomorrow as well with pre-Grand Final activities so I'll post 2 videos that cover the full round of AFLW from last weekend.

There were quite a few games played in very hospitable conditions last weekend which I tend to not really review because there's not a lot of tactical stuff going, they're more just territory games in very wet conditions so I've only touched on 5 games.

VIDEO 1 - North Melbourne v Geelong + GWS v West Coast + Gold Coast v St Kilda x 11mins

Includes:

• North Melbourne Team Defense
• GWS v West Coast Inside F50's
• St Kilda Possession Footy

VIDEO 2 - Hawthorn v Western Bulldogs + Melbourne v Brisbane x 11mins

Includes:

• Lamb Stoppage Goal...Again!
• Hore Forward Craft
• Brisbane Going Too Fast and Too Slow

4v4+2 TRAINING ACTIVITY

                                              

This is a pretty simple possession focused activity that can be performed in smaller area with handball or bigger area's with kicking.

The main difference to these types of training activities is that...

For full access to this training activity and many others then register for a level 3 membership at https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

CRAIG MCRAE TOP 25

                                         

Craig McRae has been a breath of fresh air in season 2022.

He's taken a traditionally unwatchable Collingwood team and turned them into a must watch for fans of any team but more importantly, a winning team as well.

Even though I'm a Swans man and we're facing this very same team for a spot on the Grand Final, as a coach he's not afraid to "give" a bit extra in his press conferences, which these 25 gems have been taken from.

I love John Longmire but his pressers are quite repetitive but he's been in the game for over 10 years and has probably had enough of press conferences and gets in and out with minimal fan-fair as much as he can.

Have a read and let me know which one/s resonate the most with you and how you can use/expand on it in your own coaching or playing.

1. Don’t reflect on where it went wrong, reflect on when it was going right and what you were doing to make it so
2. Repeat behaviors
3. On last quarter drop offs - it’s not a fitness thing it’s being able to do our style for long enough when team’s are trying to stop you at the same time
4. We had a lot of long shots and long shots become long points
5. We get caught up in the emotion of going well and the excitement with that and then "oh I forgot to do my job for 2mins, for 30secs at center bounce"
6. On running this game out - it’s not a GPS thing it’s about being a bit more calmer in the chaos, not over-committing to the ball and getting our balance all out of whack
7. Take more risks when we’re down, let’s be braver and be prepared to fail having a crack at it instead of sitting back on our hunches
8. We wanna make mistakes, we wanna bounce back and it's what you do next
9. We’d rather lose by 10 than die wondering
10. Sometimes it takes someone just to be brave enough to say "I see a Richmond jumper but I’m still prepared to go there"
11. You can play with a runny nose and still carry out your role
12. I’ve always been a believer in players and give them everything, and believe in them for as long as you can
13. Believe in people and show faith in people, before they’ve got it
14. We teach our players to spend time over the ball so you’re likely to get some front on contact and we wanna keep the ball in front of us
15. I like to revel in the moment to be honest, quite often you get drawn to somewhere you don’t need to be yet
16. At half time if the game was finished and we had to review ourselves, how’d we go?
17. If you’re processed driven like we are, we don’t talk about winning too often, we talk about winning habits
18. Belief can be powerful
19. Value the little things as games are won by small margins
20. I’ll always focus on the positives but we’ve got work to do
21. Belief is built through evidence
22. We’re learning so many lessons as a group, we win today from lessons learnt from losing to West Coast and we win last week from lessons learnt from the loss to Geelong
23. I like to be really measured when things aren’t going our way and then show the emotion when they are
24. We wanna act like winners, the siren goes and there’s half a dozen of our guys lying on the ground - that’s not a winner - we lost the game, we’re not losers
25. We encourage the players around the kicker to see what they’re doing with their eyes and their feet

EDIT - Added after Collingwood best and fairest speech...
    

    26. "Winners Only" was the mantra and when you walk into the 4 walls you wouldn't know if we                   won or lost
    27. What great fight we had and we rehearsed it. Day 1 of pre-season, 1on1's, pair up, you win you               stay in, you lose you go to the back of the line