What better way to start an early Friday morning than with classic Aussie rock pumping out of the Eels boombox. Chisel, Barnes and the Angels filled the air as the coaches set up the fields. My vote was for Goodbye Astrid as the pump up song.

The session kicked off a little earlier than usual due to the extreme heat. Not that there was much respite by the time it was part way through the morning.

Once again the group of more recent arrivals (or those near the end of rehab) was separated from the rest of the squad after the completion of warm ups. This group included JDB, Moses, Volkman, Foxx, Iongi, Kautoga, Latu and Penisini.

Their catch up continued as they worked through draw and pass drills, hit ups with bumpers up and fends, three on three and general conditioning.

The catch up squad

For the remainder of the squad, proceedings started with defence footwork, and two on two drills.

From there, three rotating teams of seven or eight were created with two teams competing through set plays with the third undertaking conditioning runs.

Single set plays were then run at opposed defence, with left side vs right side. This was a bit of a mixed bag. At times they looked outstanding. At other times it was a bit scrappy with the defence shutting down the play. Maybe that was a case of the defenders doing their job?

On reflection, I had no issue with the plays not being executed as well today. It’s indicative of the players hitting a coaching point, or the place where more input is needed for them to execute to the coach’s required standard.

Probably the most demanding part of the morning was “the circuit”. They had undertaken this before, and today looked just as challenging.

Divided into groups of about five, the players ran around the field, firstly making back to back tackles on a tackle bag, before running a shape of the groups choice, then finishing with a run back to the starting position. There, after the briefest of breaks, the circuit would be repeated.

Action everywhere – the challenge of where to look?

Repeated ten on ten games (unstructured plays with defence hitting the turf when “tackles/tags” were made), with seven on four opposed drills in between, followed for an extended period. There may have been breaks, but the speed and workload seemed relentless.

Given that there is always a focus on defence on Fridays, it was no surprise to see the session end with the players putting on jerseys (that would not have been pleasant in the hot conditions) for tackling technique.

Working in groups of three, the players rotated between defender and attacker, trying to win dominance of the ground. This lasted for around 20 minutes before it was changed to include the take down to the  ground.

For those thinking that an early start on a hot day might mean an early finish, think again. There was a big session scheduled indoors and that was still on the agenda as everyone left the field.

Some quick notes from today’s “games” and opposed drills.

* JDB beat a defender on the inside shoulder with a dummy and a step, and it immediately drew a response of “Inside shoulder!” from Pezet who was watching this drill.

* Kelma provided a series of spectacular catches from challenging passes. He took a rocket to the top of the shoulder, and a few others that seemed out of reach but he somehow pulled the ball in.

* Lincoln Fletcher has a valuable combination of speed and skill. The 18 year old half continues to respond well to his first preseason.

 * I thought that the team vibe was highly positive anyway, but it still goes up another level with the Foxx on deck.

* The ball skills of all of the forwards are well advanced on this time last preseason.

Finally, let’s go back to the title of this report which is essentially a reference to the potential of dual dummy halves in 2026.

I see no way of Ryles avoiding selecting both Smith and Da Silva.

Both bring entirely different games but they do so with class.

Ryley’s service is without peer. His passes fairly snap off the turf, and you know that he’s going to be providing the type of ball that Mitch Moses is famous for demanding. Throw in his dedication to the relentless kick pressure and that collection of one percenters, and he becomes one of the first picked and a future leader of the team.

Tallyn is an instinct player. He thrives in the unstructured moments, and his acceleration is going to catch many defenders unawares. I can already see improvement in his game with a just a few weeks of the preseason under his belt, especially his passing. But above all else, the 2025 mid season acquisition will hit next year with a far greater knowledge of his team mates and a better understanding of his role in the Eels systems.

My early call would be what we witnessed in the latter part of the 2025 season. This would mean Ryley as the run on dummy half and then spending some game time in a lock role, with the coach looking to utilise Da Silva against tiring defenders.

See you on Monday.

Eels forever!

Sixties

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