AFLW CONDENSED FIXTURE GAME ANALYSIS PART 8

The condensed fixture is finally over and let's not do this again please.

The last weekend brought 3 videos worth of clips and today brings 5 clips in 8mins looking at:

• Port Adelaide forward press defense
• Port Adelaide using a specific technical tactic that every AFLW player should be taught to use
• Bulldogs all getting past the ball before the ball has even made the aerial contest
• Bulldogs not using the 100% short option and going longer to a 2v4 number disadvantage instead
• Bulldogs not working the ball forward by hand or run and kicking shallow to free Essendon defenders in their own forward 50
• Bulldogs not looking short corridor and going lateral wide instead

For full access to this game analysis post,register for a level 1 membership from https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

COACHING MODERN FOOTBALL CHAPTER 3: MIDFIELDER RUNNING PATTERNS

                                           

Last week I launched my biggest ever project titled "Coaching Modern Football - Coaching Concepts That Matter in Today's Football".

I managed to release the first 2 chapters being "Forward Press Defense"and "Lane Running" last week with another 2 coming this week.

Today is Chapter 3 - Midfielder Running Patterns.

In it you'll be shown some new running patterns being used a lot by Collingwood in games and in different phases of the game.

I will also provide some training tips and activities for teaching this to your own players.

This chapter has 3 game clips showing this in real games + 1 training activity video, along with 7 images that details specific aspects of this concept.

It is now available from the register page as a stand alone product purchased then emailed to you in a PDF, meaning you don't have to be a member to gain access.

If you're a local/amateur football coach then you're well aware that apart from your assistant coaches, there is distinct lack of readily available resources form where you can learn about different concepts used in football.

All coaches watch and read about footy and the different tactics and strategies that are used by are left wondering what is it exactly and how can I teach my players to do that?

That exact question is what I set out to answer in this mammoth series.

My plan going forward is to release a different chapter every Monday and Friday (as per this week) for 2 reasons:

1 - I want space the release time of each chapter enough to give you time read, digest and then get a handle on each chapter before the next one comes out to ease the mental load compared to receiving all of these chapters at once and then wondering where do I start? 

and;

2 - I also want to make all, or most, chapters available for all coaches before pre-season for 2025 commences so you can factor these new concepts into your plans for next season.

Make 2025 the season you positively turn your coaching practices upside down and re-energise your passion for teaching, coaching and leading your players.

COACHING MODERN FOOTBALL CHAPTER 2: LANE RUNNING

                                                   

Earlier this week I launched my biggest ever project titled "Coaching Modern Football - Coaching Concepts That Matter in Today's Football" and chapter 1 was all about forward press defense.

Today I release Chapter 2 - Lane Running.

In it you'll learn what it looks like in games during different stages of play, and more importantly, how it is developed in the heat of games which then gives you a framework of what activities you should be using for this during training.

This chapter has 5 game clips showing this in real games, along with 5 images that details specific aspects of this concept.

It is now available from the register page as a stand alone product purchased then emailed to you in a PDF, meaning you don't have to be a member to gain access.

If you're a local/amateur football coach then you're well aware that apart from your assistant coaches, there is distinct lack of readily available resources form where you can learn about different concepts used in football.

All coaches watch and read about footy and the different tactics and strategies that are used by are left wondering what is it exactly and how can I teach my players to do that?

That exact question is what I set out to answer in this mammoth series.

My plan going forward is to release a different chapter every Monday and Friday (as per this week) for 2 reasons:

1 - I want space the release time of each chapter enough to give you time read, digest and then get a handle on each chapter before the next one comes out to ease the mental load compared to receiving all of these chapters at once and then wondering where do I start? 

and;

2 - I also want to make all, or most, chapters available for all coaches before pre-season for 2025 commences so you can factor these new concepts into your plans for next season.

Make 2025 the season you positively turn your coaching practices upside down and re-energise your passion for teaching, coaching and leading your players.

AFLW CONDENSED FIXTURE GAME ANALYSIS - GOLD COAST v ESSENDON

                                

I haven't done a single game focus for a while and even though I don't intend on actually doing them like I used to, some games just present more things to highlight then others and in this case the Gold Coast Suns caught my attention.

Along with a few other teams, the Suns have been one of the bigger disappointments this season for various reasons in that they've turned over a good 3rd of their team from last season, lost Whitford who was the most improved player in the league last season by a huge margin and they just don't have the depth to cover those sorts of outs.

On top of that they still don't really have a recognisable game style even in their 6th year in the comp, apart from "Rowbotton get the clearance" which to be fair is pretty good starting point?

Essendon came in just 3 years ago but are actually stacked with seasoned talent from other teams and are actually a very experienced team and the difference between the 2 teams was clearly evident over the weekend, especially in regards to work-rate which also ties in game intelligence ore than everyone thinks - Gold Coasts's GPS readings wre probably higher, as happens to most losing teams, but they're running to the wrong spots, their positioning to start with is poor, or both.

In these 5 clips I take a look at:

• Excellent Essendon game intelligence
• Gold Coast defender not being aggressive enough
• Suns with poor inside 50 numbers of a inside forward 50 ball up
• Gold Coast with poor numbers again in general play
• Suns not looking to go off the line an attack on offense 

For full access to this game analysis, register fora level 1 membership from https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

AFLW CONDENSED FIXTURE GAME ANALYSIS PART 7

                           

The condensed fixture is rolling and so am I so today we have 8 clips in 13mins where we look at:

• The Dogs going inside forward 50 off a very slow play but then not sealing the exits on defense
• West Coast high game intelligence
• West Coast suffering from traditional football training practices
• Port Adelaide kick out strategy
• Carlton wing run
• Geelong overlap play
• Sydney forward press defense

For full access to this game analysis post, register for a level 1 membership from https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

COACHING MODERN FOOTBALL CHAPTER 1: FORWARD PRESS DEFENSE

                                             

Today is the launch of my biggest ever project titled "Coaching Modern Football - Coaching Concepts That Matter in Today's Football."

Chapter 1 on learning, teaching and training forward press defense is now available from the register page as a stand alone product purchased then emailed to you in a PDF, meaning you don't have to be a member to gain access.

This chapter has 4 game clips showing this in real games, along with 9 images that details specific aspects of this concept and then 4 different training activities to put this into practice.

If you're a local/amateur football coach then you're well aware that apart from your assistant coaches, there is distinct lack of readily available resources form where you can learn about different concepts used in football.

All coaches watch and read about footy and the different tactics and strategies that are used by are left wondering what is it exactly and how can I teach my players to do that?

That exact question is what I set out to answer in this mammoth series.

I'll be releasing this 1 chapter at a time to give you time read, digest and then get a handle on each chapter before the next one comes out - this will ease the mental load compared to receiving all of these chapters at once and then wondering where do I start? 

Make 2025 the season you positively turn your coaching practices upside down and reenergise your passion for teaching, coaching and leading your players.

AFLW CONDENSED FIXTURE GAME ANALYSIS PART 6

                             

I've no idea where this ends but we're up to part 6 of the AFLW condensed fixture game analysis series and I'm proud of myself for keeping up with this!

Today we have 6 clips in 8mins, including 2 structural breakdowns ending in goals in games decided by less than a kick while also looking at:

• Hawthorn kick out tactic stolen from their men's program
• Sydney defenders commit too high and have zero impact
• GWS with off the line options they refuse to even look at
• GWS not using their numbers out of stoppage
• GWS not being patient enough to utilise their DNA - a handball receive
• Saints wing structure breakdown

For full access to this game analysis post, register for a level 3 membership from https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

FOOTBALL COACHING CHAPTERS SNEAK PREVIEW

                                               

Earlier this week I posted about something pretty major that I've been working on, something that coaches have never had access to before and today I'll give you a preview of chapter 1, or the first chapter that I finished (I'm up to finish my 13th chapter out of about 20.) 

Here it is:

CHAPTER #1 - FRONT PRESS DEFENSE

The forward press defense was popularised by Richmond during their premiership years where then Sydney started using it very soon after and now a bunch of clubs use it regularly.

This needs to be a full team mentality as every needs to be all in on this for it to work, otherwise huge holes will be visible in your team defense, and is why it might scare of more teams from using it more often.

That being said I think the advantages that it can provide your team are too good ignore so I'd definitely want tit to be in my team's defensive toolbox.

Pressure from behind is possibly the "least" pressure you can apply as the ball carrier as they still have eyes on what's unfolding in front of them, space to play through and are relatively perfectly balanced to execute a kick or handball.

Applying pressure from in front of them disrupts all of this by taking away their time and space to do any of this, forcing them to re-route their decision making while under probably physical pressure with the play in front of them blocked.

If they are able to dispose of the ball the handball will be high and loopy to get over the player applying frontal pressure which then gives time for the next layer of front press defense to bet there and so on until they turn the ball over.

A kick will be rushed and high as well and again easily defended by.

I mentioned pressure from behind above and you still need it as if everyone from the defensive side of the ball simply charges forward then you're vulnerable if they make it through so the chaser's from behind still need to perform that, but the hope is that the front pressure delays the opposition ball movement and they can "catch up" and apply actual  physical pressure, saving defensive players from leave their post if they can.

Lastly, you need to determine specific triggers for when this is to happen so that there is a shared mental model of this among all teammates.

Specific language that greatly assist in teaching this includes "press forward" or simply "press", "boundary close-in" and "all-in" or "trading up".  

In the 4 videos below, you'll see exactly what this can look like at different times of the game as well as the triggers for when to "go".

What follows are the 4 videos with coaching insights from each and then 4 training activities that you can train this through, again with coaching points in designing and teaching it.

This is the template for all chapters and goes into excellent detail for each of the game aspects I've chosen to highlight.

This will be a most valuable tool for any football coach who wants greater details or a different set eyes on something they already know about, or for those who want to expand from their current coaching base.

I'm leaning towards releasing this chapter-by-chapter which will give you time to read, digest and process before the next one comes out and you're not flooded with too much new information all at once, causing massive cognitive overload!

It was stop me from rushing to get all this finish for a single release so I reckon early next week could be the first release so keep your eyes open.

BRISBANE LIONS 50 MARKS TRAINING ACTIVITY

                                                         

Brisbane averaged over 100 marks per game in season 2024, capping that off with a ridiculous 158 in the Grand Final itself leading to a whopping possession of 53% for the game!

If each mark and then kick on average is 5secs in length (just making this up), then that's over 13mins with the ball in hand with complete control of the game, and a game model planned specifically around this as well.

It definitely fits the mantra of you have the ball, they have the ball or its in dispute.

And when you watch them it's not they're constantly trying to pick off 50% options, it's mostly to players in space, or enough space to take an uncontested mark off the back of the player movement in front of the ball.

Most local teams are territory-based over possession-based but it doesn't have to be that way.

Train to maintain possession, train it under game conditions, give players plenty of opportunities to explore this game style over the pre-season and build their confidence, and competence, with it via your practice design.

Playing the short, fast and forward game also allows you to regain your defensive formation behind the ball and as you progress the ball up the ground, it also enables you to then squeeze that defensive up as high you want and play a forward half game.

If you kick long and lose possession immediately then you're forward and midfield runners are caught in the middle from chasing the initial kick and nowhere near set up to defend the rebound, and then your defense is extremely vulnerable.

Here's a pretty easy way to do it...

For full access to this premiership winning training activity, register for a level 3 membership from https://aussierulestraining.com/membership-account/membership-levels/.

WHAT COACHING LEVEL DO YOU WANT TO REACH IN 2025?

                                                         

I'm ALWAYS adding to and hopefully upgrading my coaching knowledge, having I've literally just completed my AFL Level 2 Coaching Course.

And with that being said I'm still on my mission of delivering high quality coaching content for local/amateur coaches of ages/ability/experience to assist them up constant upskilling of themselves.

For the last month or so I've been putting together what I'll call "chapters" of content, with each detailing 1 specific aspect of football and how its played in 2024.

These chapters will provide you with all you need to add them into your teams game model for next season and beyond, giving a huge advantage over your opposition stuck in long down the line rubbish from a bygone era.

After a introduction of what that the tactic or strategy is, I then use game vision that I've compiled, and images from that vision to detail the process of how AFL teams go about developing and then executing on them during different parts of the game.

I then give some tips and/or training activities on how you can take this tactic/strategy, introduce it to your own team, train it up and have it ready to use on game days next season. 

I'm not entirely sure how this will end up being put together - it could be an actual book if I can work my way around the video part of it (I have some idea's on that but don't know if they're applicable!) - but it will like nothing else on the market.

So far I've finished chapters on:

• Front Press Defense
• Lane Running
• Mids Angling in and Out at Contest
• 666 Connection
• Exploiting the Man on the Mark Rule
• Team Formations
• Getting Length
• Center Bounce Clearance 
• Forward Craft
• Wing Play

and am currently finishing off:

• Playing Between the Lines
• Kick Out Strategies

With the bigger chapters covered I then have about 8 - 10 more smaller one's to add in.

So keep an eye out for this when it drops, hopefully in the next month, and if you've got requests for anything specific, then simply let me know and I'll see if I can put something together on it.