AFL 2022: Follow all the news as the Crows, Power begin pre-season
Some Port stars are fit and firing early on in pre-season as both SA teams ramp up preparations for 2023. Check out who from your club is impressing the coaches early on.
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Port Adelaide’s prep for 2023 has seen a host of new recruits and young stars hit the track at Alberton, as the club looks to rebound from a disappointing 2022 campaign. These are the key takeaways from a day at the Power’s pre-season session.
X-MAN RETURNS
Look out for a Xavier Duursma bounce back in 2023.
Duursma has only played 22 games at AFL level in the past two seasons, with his 2021 hit hard by injury.
He also had injury issues in 2022 but also spent time in the SANFL and was dropped by the Power after some inconsistent displays at AFL level.
But the young gun looks to be fit and firing early on in pre-season.
The 18th pick of the 2018 draft blitzed the field during the first running component of Friday’s session and then backed it up in some match play, looking sharp throughout.
Mitch Georgiades was another standout for the Power.
The young key forward spent time in America and has returned in ripping shape.
Orazio Fantasia is also training strongly after he didn’t play a single minute of AFL action last season.
SLIM JUNIOR
Junior Rioli is looking lean after his move to Alberton from West Coast.
After spending some time in Darwin the 2018 premiership winning small forward has made a strong start to pre-season training for the Power.
He has started pre-season looking noticeably lean and has impressed early.
Port Adelaide midfield coach Josh Carr said after the session that the Power were excited about what Rioli can do in 2023.
“We’ve seen what Junior can do at AFL level, he has played in a premiership,” Carr said.
“He has been really good at the highest level so we know we can do that.”
Small forward was a big issue for the Power last season, if Rioli can continue this positive momentum then he can go a long way to rectifying this for Ken Hinkley.
ON THE SIDE BUT NOT OUT OF MIND
While the majority of players were put through their paces in the hot sun at Alberton, last year’s No. 1 and No. 12 picks Jason Horne-Francis and Josh Sinn were in the interchange dugout.
But that didn’t spare them from the hard work.
Horne-Francis had surgery in October to decompress the arteries behind his knees while Sinn has a hernia and abdominal tendon repair.
The two young guns rotated through boxing, battle ropes, medicine ball exercises and stints on the assault bike.
Horne-Francis had to do most of those exercises sitting down, while he didn’t use his legs on the assault bike.
Sinn was able to do a bit more of a full body workout.
The wingman/defender looks to have put on some size to his shoulder region and looks set to be one to watch for the Power after he played just the one game in 2022.
Lachie Jones and Jake Pasini were also on modified programs.
Jones had some hamstring trouble last season but was able to fully sprint and is around two weeks away from getting in full contact drills.
The Power are hoping that Pasini returns to action in Round 4 or 5 after his ACL injury.
TALL ORDER
Scott Lycett was another Power player to be hit by injury in 2022, dislocating his shoulder against Melbourne in Round 4.
He then had to undergo more surgery when he suffered an infection later on in the year when he neared a return to action.
The 30-year-old was with the Power’s first to four-year players and looks to have shed a bit as he looks for a better 2023.
He was joined by fellow ruck Sam Hayes in returning early.
Hayes played seven games for the Power when Lycett went down but later on in the year Hinkley preferred Jeremy Finlayson and Charlie Dixon in the ruck.
Hayes moved well on Friday in a positive sign for him.
Finlayson was at Alberton earlier on in the week, and seriously impressed.
Other senior players who have returned early include Tom Jonas, Aliir Aliir, Trent McKenzie, Ryan Burton and Riley Bonner.
INSIDE DAY ONE AT ADELAIDE’S PRE-SEASON
Fischer McAsey will follow a training program provided by Adelaide, with Crows high performance manager Darren Burgess saying he is confident the former No.6 draft pick taking personal leave won’t put him behind the eight-ball.
The Crows announced on Sunday the 21-year-old was not expected to start pre-season training until after Christmas with McAsey granted leave from the club.
Crows head of football Adam Kelly said on Sunday the club was understanding of McAsey’s circumstances as he works through the personal issues.
McAsey was due back at West Lakes next Monday as he played in the Crows SANFL finals campaign, but other players who featured in the state league finals including Josh Worrell, Luke Pedlar and Kieran Strachan were at day one of pre-season for Adelaide.
After playing 10 games in his debut year, following his selection at No. 6 by the Crows in 2019 – the highest ever pick by the club at the time – McAsey has had two interrupted pre-seasons in a row and hasn’t featured at AFL level again.
SCROLL DOWN TO SEE THE KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM DAY 1 OF PRE-SEASON
First, his dad Chris had a major health scare while McAsey was back home in Melbourne in 2021.
He then suffered a stress fracture in his femur in December 2021, which sidelined him for six weeks.
A full pre-season has been seen as key for McAsey in 2023, the final year of his contract, and Burgess said he was confident the Crows had the program and support in place to limit any impact.
“I need to respect Fischer’s personal situation, we are trying to give him as much support as possible,” he said.
“He is doing a fair bit of work in Melbourne, he has been given a program by us and our staff are in constant contact with him.
“But that is for Fisch to deal with and we sort of need to respect his privacy.
“We have Josh Manuel in constant contact with him to give him a daily program, that’s where it sits.
“The good thing about it is that he has not missed a session for us, we give our guys individual sessions and he has ticked them all off.”
McAsey signed his existing two-year contract in April 2021, after speculation that he would look for a move back to Victoria.
Ahead of the trade period this year, he revealed that he had been in discussions about a move back to Melbourne, but nothing eventuated.
Burgess said he understood that it was important for McAsey to spend time with family.
“What we know is it is important that he is spending time with family,” he said.
“We give all of our players as much time as we can with their family, I don’t think we can put a price on that.
“Even though my job is to get them fit it is equally as important that players are also happy.”
As well as McAsey, Paul Seedsman is away from pre-season as he looks to try and recover from the concussion symptoms that plagued his 2022 campaign and life.
Burgess said Seedsman was still in constant contact with specialists in Australia and overseas.
“He has done a mountain of physical work, I don’t have much on when he might be coming in,” he said.
“One of the good things about Seedo is that his skills are his weapon so we are really confident that if he ticks all the boxes he needs to from a concussion point of view he will not miss a beat.
“At the moment he is tracking as good as he has been.”
KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM CROWS’ FIRST SESSION
Adelaide was one of 10 clubs to return to pre-season training on Monday, with all eyes on a high-profile recruit.
Here are the big takeaways as the Crows hit the track.
Rapid Rankine
He was wearing the non-contact hat after off-season shoulder surgery but Izak Rankine moved well and showed exciting signs on his first day of pre-season for the Crows.
The former Gold Coast Sun looked to be in good condition and was even around the ball for periods in match simulation.
He also got on the end of a couple of chains for goals and produced a fine volley effort during shooting practice.
The Crows have indicated that Rankine could move into the midfield after his move back to South Australia and Adelaide fitness boss Darren Burgess said the early signs were promising.
“It was nice to see Izak rankine move, that was pretty impressive and we are all excited about working with him,” he said.
“He definitely has that ability already (to be in the midfield), and that is something that we will work on.
“I guess my job is to get them fit and Nicksy (Matthew Nicks) can put them where he wants but from what I’ve seen he has the ability to do that for sure, he was up there with our midfielders so it was exciting.”
Rankine will lose the orange hat in December and will be in contact drills post Christmas.
Izak Rankine’s first official training at West Lakes.
— Emma Henderson (@EmmaHendo9) November 21, 2022
In non-contact hat as he recovers from shoulder surgery. @9NewsAdelpic.twitter.com/iwQkuwGJMt
Crouching Tiger, holidaying Laird
After no interest from other clubs during the trade period, Matt Crouch was with the Crows first to four year players on day one of pre-season.
After an injury interrupted 2021, Crouch had a bit of a slower start to pre-season in 2022.
He moved without issue during the session on Monday and got plenty of the footy during match sim.
He was joined by Taylor Walker, Brodie Smith and Wayne Milera in returning earlier than expected.
The players who played in SANFL finals are expected back next week but that didn’t stop Kieran Strachan, Luke Pedlar, Lachlan Gollant, James Borlase and Josh Worrell from turning up to West Lakes on day one.
Burgess said he was extremely pleased with the turn-out.
“I guess the exciting thing for us is that we had expectations of about 12 coming back and we had basically everyone other than Rory Laird there today,” he said.
“They are looking good, they are looking fit, everyone says that this time of year but they look great and their skills were good given the wind so we were pretty happy.”
But that’s not to say Laird will be behind the eight-ball in any way.
“Lairdy is in ripping condition, he has been in Noosa for a bit and I’ve been getting some really good reports from some of the ex-Demon players up there who have been training with him,” Burgess said.
“He is in flying condition, this is the Laird protocol and this is what works for him.
“They just find themselves in different parts of Australia on holiday.
“So a couple of Melbourne players messaged me to say a he is a good fella, which is unusal and he is in great nick which is good.”
Skipper building
Rory Sloane emerged from the gym halfway through the session and did some running drills.
After tearing his ACL in Round 5 the Crows captain moved well.
He was joined by Ben Keays, Mitch Hinge, Sam Berry and Tariek Newchurch in training away from the main group.
Burgess said Sloane would be back in skill work with the main group prior to Christmas.
“He is looking good,” Burgess said.
“He probably could have done some of the drills but we will take it slowly, particularly in that pre-christmas period with Sloaney.
“He is looking really good.
“He has put on some good size and is in a great position to tackle most of pre-season.”
Sloane has said he is targeting a Round 1 comeback and Burgess said he was on track for this.
“We will certainly be cautious with him but at this stage he is doing everything right to best prepare himself for Round 1,” he said.
The Chayce is on for Jones and Sholl
The early pre-season is Lachie Sholl and Chayce Jones’ time to shine with the two continuing their habit of being among the stronger Crows runners when the majority of players did some gruelling shuttles at the end of the session.
Smith and Milera also looked strong.
Burgess said he was extremely impressed with the size Sholl had put on during the off-season, singling him out along with Ned McHenry and Brayden Cook for some praise.
“One of the most impressive parts is the amount of skill work they’ve done (in the off-season) and the amount of gym work they’ve done,” he said.
On the other end of the scale second-year player Zac Taylor was in some serious trouble and he limped to the line.
But he got plenty of encouragement from his teammates as he battled.
“Zaccy only just got back, he made the long drive from Melbourne,” Burgess said.
“He was a bit behind the eight-ball so I probably should have gone easier on him but that is not my style.”
But overall Burgess said he was pleased with where the Crows were, compared to some of his previous clubs such as 2021 premiers Melbourne.
“We are tracking really well, and some of the players on the way back in asked how was that compared to the teams you have worked with and I can honestly say they are in at least as good a position if not better,” he said.
“But it is still early days.”
Two fringe Crows shone in some gruelling shuttle runs, but one youngster struggled.
— SuperFooty (AFL) (@superfooty) November 21, 2022
All the latest from the track: https://t.co/ShpGtiHiropic.twitter.com/BzwOExFaBz
CROWS TOP-10 DRAFT PICK TAKES PERSONAL LEAVE
Former No.6 draft pick Fischer McAsey isn’t expected to start pre-season until after Christmas after Adelaide granted him personal leave.
The Crows first to four-year players will begin pre-season on Monday, with boom recruit Izak Rankine expected to be at West Lakes as he recovers from shoulder surgery.
Players who took part in the SANFL finals campaign have been given an extra week and will start their pre-season campaigns next Monday.
McAsey was in that group but on the eve of pre-season the Crows announced that the 21-year-old had been granted personal leave.
Crows Head of Football Adam Kelly said the club was understanding of McAsey’s circumstances and he was not expected to return until after the Christmas break.
“We are fully supportive of Fischer taking personal leave and we will give him the time and space that he requires,” Kelly said.
“We will remain in regular communication with him, as well as his management, to ensure he has ongoing support while away from the club.
“As always, the welfare of our people is the top priority and we ask that Fischer’s privacy be respected during this period.”
When he was selected with the sixth pick of the 2019 draft, McAsey was at the time the Crows’ highest ever draft pick.
He played 10 games in his debut season, but hasn’t played at AFL level since.
In the 2021 pre-season his father, Chris, had a major health scare while McAsey was back home in Melbourne for the first time in months due to coronavirus travel limitations.
He signed a two-year contract extension in April 2021 after speculation that he would look for a move back to Victoria.
He played 18 SANFL games last season and finished eighth in the Crows’ state-league best-and-fairest in 2021.
But McAsey suffered another setback when he sustained a stress fracture in his femur in December 2021, which sidelined him for six weeks.
When he returned via the SANFL he was shifted forward in an attempt by the Crows for him to find some form.
He then revealed to TV crews that he had been in discussions about a move back to Melbourne. But nothing eventuated during the trade period and Crows list manager Justin Reid told News Corp in September that a full pre-season would do McAsey the world of good.
“I guess being a high draft pick there is also high expectations, but we feel like we have the program around Fischer and his off-season and pre-season will dictate the season he has next year,” he said.
But for the third year in a row McAsey will have an interrupted pre-season, ahead of the final year of his contract.
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