Key Tiger Rance aims to eliminate costly 'brain fades'Nathan Schmook
afl.com.au
February 5, 2014 RICHMOND defender Alex Rance has spent more time this pre-season working on his offence than his defence as he looks to eliminate the "brain fades" that have become a rare weakness in his game.
After producing the best of his six seasons in 2013 and pushing for All Australian selection, Rance identified that stopping goals was generally not a problem.
The turnovers coming out of defence, however, that coach Damien Hardwick calls 'Alex Rance moments', were.
"I've always thought that I'm quite decent at defending one-on-one and things like that, but it was the offensive brain fades that I'd get in trouble for a bit," Rance said at Richmond's Australia Post Community Camp in Warrnambool on Wednesday.
"I'd turn the ball over a bit and probably cost us one or two goals a game, so if I can minimise that to one goal every couple of games, and then I save us two or three defensively, then that's going to be a win.
"That's definitely one thing I'm focusing on this year."
Rance said he was enjoying one of his "more confident" pre-seasons and making better decisions on the track.
The 24-year-old said the improvement had come from getting himself into the right positions in training and spending as much time as possible doing match simulation drills.
"It's another year in the game style, another year being predictable to your teammates … knowing where they're going to be, and not making it up as you go," he said.
"I'm feeling really fit and strong and I'm making better decisions, which is always good.
"I'm really hopeful that I can keep playing consistent footy like I've been doing the last couple of years and really consolidate a good year."
The arrival of free agent Troy Chaplin from Port Adelaide last season was credited with improving Rance's game, and he said the development of the club's young backmen this pre-season was also raising the standard in defence.
"You've got Matty Dea, Jake Batchelor, (Dylan) Grimes, and Dave Astbury's had a really solid pre-season," Rance said.
"So there's a lot of blokes in that three- to five-year category who are really starting to stand up.
"'Dimma' has already spoken about that being where our improvement and growth needs to come from.
"It's good to see that they're putting good, solid pre-seasons together and looking to make the most of this year."
Grimes has enjoyed his most complete pre-season after a long run with injury that has included long-term hamstring injuries in 2011 and 2012 and a stress fracture in his foot in 2013.
However, he missed the Tigers' trip to Warrnambool with a sore right hamstring after complaining of tightness. The 22-year-old is expected to be back in training next week and should figure in the NAB Challenge.
The Tigers started day two of their community camp with a one-hour training session at Warrnambool's Reid Oval before local visits to hospitals and retirement homes.
They will finish with a visit to Framingham Mission for a cultural sights tour and a kick-to-kick session with the local indigenous community.
http://www.afl.com.au/news/2014-02-05/brain-fades-be-gone
