Go inside Essendon players’ US training camp with vice-captain Andrew McGrath
What started as a trip to kick start their pre-season turned into a player driven team-bonding exercise for Bombers players ‘sick’ of where they were at were at.
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Essendon vice-captain Andrew McGrath can sense a greater ownership and a more intense hunger to succeed amongst the playing group as he looks expectantly to 2024 and beyond.
Fresh from a return to The Hangar off the back of a two-week, player-driven and player-funded US training camp last month, McGrath knows nothing is a given in the future.
But he is confident in the club’s direction heading into next year.
He and teammate Jordan Ridley were the catalyst for the trip to the Exos facility in Scottsdale, Arizona, in November.
And what started out as a trickle of players keen to join them in a jump-start on the pre-season ended up being a team-bonding experience for more than 15 Bombers players.
Speaking to this masthead about the camp, McGrath said the trip had come off the back of a desire to leave no stone unturned in a quest to give the Bombers the best chance of success.
“There comes a point in your career where you hit a crossroad, and either you continue the way it is going or you change it, and Essendon fans and players have sort of heard the same narrative time and time again,” McGrath explained.
“In conjunction with (coach) Brad (Scott) and the player leaders, we are sick of that a little bit. We want to achieve something. We want to be a great group.
“We know that every other club wants the same thing, so we have to push in a slightly different direction, or find little gains here and there that every club is searching for.
“If that makes one per cent difference to our season next year, it will be 100 per cent worth it.”
Essendon has embarked on a transformation across the past 14 months, with numerous changes within the club, the most telling being the appointment of Scott as senior coach.
On the field, the Bombers won four more games (from one extra match) this year compared to 2022, but bad losses to GWS Giants and Collingwood in the final two rounds showed how much work is still required for the club in its pursuit of success.
Externally, there had been some criticism of the playing group over whether it is prepared to go to the next level physically to match it with the best sides in the AFL.
Scott was pointed in his best and fairest speech when he said the club would take “extraordinary measures” to improve the standards and the list capabilities.
While McGrath knows the camp alone won’t be the difference between the Bombers breaking a 20-year finals victory drought or not, he is certain the benefits can be significant for the players who took part.
McGrath and Ridley’s idea of an overseas camp for those who wanted to attend had been in the pipeline for some time, having both recalled the benefits they took from a similar experience just before Covid hit.
They figured it would be the perfect way to attack the start of pre-season training.
“We spent a week there when we were both 21 and didn’t really know what high performance looked like to the level that we do now,” McGrath said.
“But we left the camp back then thinking ‘Wow, the possibilities are endless’. We were really keen to continue to do that year on year, but Covid made it pretty tricky.
“Based on the past couple of years we had, and the age (demographic) of where we are now, we were really keen to bring some others along with us. Thankfully, the club was fully on board with it and by the end of it we had about 15 players over there with us.”
What started as a group of five or so mates ended up being a third of the playing list.
“It started with a smaller group of about five and as things panned out, other guys got wind of it,” he said. “Once the club showed how happy they were and how proud that we were going down that route, some of the players thought ‘this is something which might suit us as well.”
The experience
McGrath knew it would be a team-building experience, but also figured that with each of the attending players having to pay their own way, those who made the trip would want to get the full benefits from it.
“I think whenever you are going away on a trip like that, especially if you are funding it, too, you have a vested interest in yourself and want to get the most out of it,” he said. “You buy in with all of your might.
“It was a credit to the boys how bloody fantastic they were over there. We did quite a lot of interesting stuff and some really physically demanding stuff, but they got on board and we are now putting together some really good results on the track.”
McGrath said the players were lucky enough to have access to an elite training coach and top-level facilities, carved up between track and gym work.
“We trained alongside some really cool athletes,” McGrath said.
“A lot of major league baseballers were there during their off-season. We spent some time with a few NFL free agents.
“We had the day basically broken up into two parts – the field session and the gym session. Our field session consisted of a lot of speed work, agility, change of direction, acceleration and deceleration … a lot of high end stuff combined with a little twist of AFL, with a bit of endurance in there as well.
“Our trainer Nick was an awesome guy. He trains a lot of wide receivers in the NFL over there off season, he trains guys like Saquon Barclay and Odell Beckham.
“We learnt a hell of a lot from him.”
Importantly, a few of the lessons the Essendon players learnt have been brought back to The Hangar.
McGrath added: “The club has been super in asking us as many questions as they need and to really delve into the experience we had.
“They are keen to implement as many positive things that we took away from the trip.
“There is a real hunger to attack sessions like we did over there.”
The connection
McGrath hopes the training camp can be replicated in future years, saying the galvanising moments it provided can be something they can take into the season ahead.
He was impressed that Essendon’s first draft pick from last year – Elijah Tsatas – chose to make the trip as the youngest player to attend.
Tsatas, 19, had a challenging first AFL season as he overcame knee surgery injury to play the last four games of the year.
“Elijah was our youngest guy there,” McGrath said. “He was in the Airbnb with me, we had three houses around Scottsdale, where we were staying.
“I think back to when I was 19 and I don’t think I would have (voluntarily) done a camp like that. It would have been outside my comfort zone and too demanding. So for someone like Elijah to put his hand up … was a big thing.
“We are all close mates, but it is another step when you are only 19 … I was super proud of him and how hard he worked. He has taken a lot away from the camp. He loves his American sport, and now he loves America.
“You can’t read into the future too much, but the work he is putting in now will hold him in good stead.”
Defensive role
One of the first things Scott did when taking over as coach was to ensure Essendon was geared towards playing to its strengths.
Part of that was to return McGrath to a rebounding half-back role, which brought about career-best disposals numbers and a fourth-placing in the best and fairest award.
McGrath expects to play a similar role in 2024, but has left the door ajar to be used in other roles where the coach sees fit.
“I have really enjoyed my time there (at half back),” he said.
“Coming in, Brad was really clear on playing everyone to their strengths and he was open to the position that I might play.
“I was spending time back there last year and loved the group of guys down there.
“I think I will start down back, but things can always change. I want to be selectable every week in whatever position I need to play.
“I think my home (in 2024) will be in the backs’ group. Some of my best mates are in the group down there, like Jordan Ridley. We are like brothers from another mother.
“The guys we have got down there have been together for awhile now. We know what it takes to be a good side, and to be an average side, and we are striving to be a good team.”
Back in Ben
McGrath has been buoyed by the vote of confidence of free agents and trade prospects eager to join the Bombers in recent years, with Ben McKay, Xavier Duursma, Jade Gresham and Todd Goldstein the latest batch.
“Those guys have added a wealth of knowledge and they will make us better,” he said.
“Todd is a legend of the game, to have someone like him want to come to the club is amazing, and Xavier and Jade have some great footy ahead of them.
“Ben has said a few times he is excited to help build a backline that is sustainable for a long period of time.
“It was well documented how we have been searching for a key pillar in our backline.”
McGrath is confident the former Kangaroo defender is exactly what Essendon needs.
“Ben is first and foremost an awesome person,” he said. “He has fit in really well; he is a leader and he is going to drive standards.
“I am super excited to play alongside him in the biggest games. He adds something to our backline that we haven’t had.”
Follow the leaders
McGrath has enjoyed his leadership role as vice-captain to skipper Zach Merrett, even leading the Bombers in a game this year when the captain was out.
“It is something that comes naturally,” he said. “It is not something I push on people. I found over my time that authentic leadership is the best form of leadership.”
“You need to do things because you want to do them, rather than feeling like you have to.
“It was a nice stepping stone helping Zach in any way that I can, it was an amazing privilege and to be able to captain one game was something I will never forget.
“It is something that does not sit lightly with me.
“I am super proud to be in that position (as vice-captain), but more importantly to be recognised by my teammates and the coach as someone they trust.”
He said the constant reminders of Essendon’s rich and successful past shouldn’t be a negative for the next generation of Bombers.
“We are reminded of that all the time; our club is etched in footy history, with some of the best and most influential players to ever play the game.
“Our challenge is to now try and write our own chapter and become like the teams that Essendon fans have seen before.
“We are trying to do everything in our power to make sure that happens.”
Essendon’s inaugural Member Fest is on Saturday at the NEC Hangar from 8.00am. Member Fest gives members the chance to watch training, mingle with the players and hear from AFL and AFLW team leaders, players and new recruits in two interactive panels. Zach Merrett, Kyle Langford, Bonnie Toogood, Sam Draper and Ben McKay will all speaking to members.
McGrath’s Dons vow ahead of free agency
One of 2024’s leading free agents, Andrew McGrath, has vowed to repay the faith that Essendon has shown in him as he prepares to enter the final year of his current deal.
While the Bombers’ vice-captain is focused more on getting the best out of himself and the team than on any contract negotiations, the 25-year-old moved to allay any fears about his long-term future in red and black.
“As players, we don’t really think about things like that at this time of the year,” McGrath said when asked about his contract.
“It is about wanting to get better individually and as a team.”
But the defender stressed he was confident a deal would be done at the appropriate time, saying he desperately wants to help the Bombers overcome a finals drought stretching back two decades.
“Obviously you are aware of the contract situation,” he said. “I am super confident that the club and my management will sort that out at the right time.
“I am in no rush at this point in time … I am super happy at the club.
“Essendon put their faith in me seven years ago and I want to repay the faith as much as I can. I love the boys here. I love the football club.
“I really want to be a part of something great here, so I’m super committed. I love the place.”
McGrath will next year close out the two-season deal he inked with the Bombers.
His management will likely look at a long-term deal early next season, given the recent contracts negotiated with some of the Bombers’ best players, including skipper Zach Merrett, Mason Redman, Darcy Parish, Nic Martin, Peter Wright and new recruit Ben McKay.
McGrath had a career-best 524 disposals this year, with coach Brad Scott bringing about his return to half back.
He would attract strong interest from rival AFL clubs on the open market for his on-field talents and leadership.
But having joined the Bombers at one of the club’s lowest ebbs, he is clearly eager to Merrett and co to lead the club back to finals success again.
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