Interesting article on the Tigers and Hawks young'uns training together ...
http://www.sportsnewsfirst.com.au/articles/2011/01/31/hawks-and-tigers-training-together/Hawks and Tigers training togetherBy Tim Clarke
SportsNewsFirst
31 January 2011 12:59PM ESTIN a huge departure from the usually highly secretive world of AFL training, Melbourne AFL rivals Hawthorn and Richmond have joined forces in a bid to fast track their young players.
In a move that may shock some fans, it has been revealed that the Tigers development players have been running regular drills against their Hawks counterparts at Waverley Park.
Hawthorn football manager Mark Evans said rather than revealing club secrets to potential opponents, it was borrowing a tactic used in the United States to empower their future stars.
“I don’t think (we are bedfellows) but it is two teams coming together to run development training together and I think that has worked pretty well for us,” Evans told Radio Sport National.
“When you are teaching kids how to play you want them to practice as a group and as a unit
“But when you put them against a team which contains (Sam) Mitchell, (Luke) Hodge and (Lance) Franklin they can predict what they are going to do.
“We wanted to do some shadow drill work against someone who would not have complete understanding of what we wanting them to do.
“It is more about giving them the chance to play the lead role in decision making.
“It is shadow play, there is no competitive stuff, it is particularly about ball movement and how you get to replicate parts of the game.”
Evans denied either club would be losing any competitive advantage by coming together.
“It is development – it is all pretty basic – if you watched one game you would have this stuff down pat,” Evans said.
“It is basic drill work, rather than any secret tactics.”
