LIVE / McGovern press conference 30.04.24

e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e I don't interrupted a conversation about I'm glad he interrupted that one while it sounds that I can R don't know yeah really I don't got the wrong block I think how you big feeling yeah i' been feeling good yeah um personally yeah great um obviously as a team uh up and down a little bit obviously like our formed last couple of weeks but um yeah overall feeling good you put together a few games in a row now haven't been able to do that for a while you worried do you have full confidence in the body at this point um yeah I'm just happy to be out there really um not too worried yet um I've had a good preseason I've done all the prep I need to do to try and SA stay there as long as possible but um yeah obviously injuries can happen but I'm hoping not to me but yeah no it's all all been pretty positive on that front that's the longest trip which means it's the hardest with have you pulled up I actually pulled up right yeah um not too bad it it was a long trip um for us but uh we're pretty used to it now so um but yeah and I pulled up pretty well I think everyone pulled up pretty well so six day break now into into bombers so we we're switched on to that continuity is the thing that the team has La completely individually joy and collectively do you find your um confidence and momentum and ability growing the more you play after missing so much do you think uh yeah it definitely definitely helps with the continuity side and having a steady I guess 24 26 sort of Rota through most weeks it definitely helps on the field and off the field uh so it's been good to string that together the last few weeks since the start of the year really um obviously missed cut the boys in the weekend but um overall it definitely helps with that side of things and plan understanding and understanding of your teammates all these little things that we probably lacked the last few years so um hopefully it stays that way and we can keep building your it's almost like your best gift is your ability to read a the play and B the drop of the ball um be where it's going to land all the time um that seemed to come straight back to you at the start of the Season even with all the footy You' missed um was it as easy as it looked or did it take while uh oh not no I think it's just a natural thing um to be honest yeah I don't I train it for say I don't overdo it I just I guess I train as normal as as most um maybe I'm lucky in that space that's a strength of mine I guess so um yeah i' I've just trained as normal and um to be honest the main focus has really been on the body and getting that right so I can go out there and play as much as possible so um yeah I've I guess that's just a natural part of my game I guess in a way what's allowed you to string games together with your body specifically what's changed uh all we obviously went to aspar which been well documented um in the offseason so we we did that had our own tweaked a few things to make the program a little bit more personalized um and then just continually actually training getting a full pre season in uh We've obviously got m in in from the west and Bulldogs is bought a new sort of look of the way training is um which has helped um so yeah there's a lot of different factors but yeah most of it's just trying to get some continu and be on the track as much as possible more is better rather than less is more sort of scenario yeah more is better preseason and then as this season goes on you probably just want to gear up as much as you can for game day so um the older boys as you say loping around a little bit early on the week and then get up for main training so um yeah a bit of both are you aware in the back of your head how you feel each day and am I pushing too much is there a concern turn coming up or are you me confident now that everything is just normal when you're feeling sore from a game and stuff yeah oh it's normal to feel sore yeah obviously after a game but um yeah for me it's just trying to get up for every session I can because like I said before the more you can sort of get in uh the better you the better you are um so yeah I'm just trying to get up for training and help the boys on the track as well as on the field so um it's obviously different each week but um I didn't realize everyone you want to know how well I feel all the time anything else have you changed anything week to week that you haven't done in the last few years to keep your body where it is or get it to where it is um no I don't think I have I think sort of you I've tried to adjust over the last three years um to obviously drop a bit of weight get a bit fitter a bit stronger you're always trying to improve obviously um no matter how old you are so I've sort of had that mindset last few years uh I've got a bit unlucky with injuries but I think the aspar program and Matty inis killer in our weights with just CED the program that's helped but I've only played seven games so I love to chat here in two years time and I haven't missed a game would be great but um yeah there's a lot of different things that have helped me be on out in the footy field you feel some of the Improvement up the field in terms of the the boys putting in stronger contest and getting the ball into your for line more as ease the pressure you're not so much under the pump as a defensive unit anymore so you don't have to be bashing into packs and putting your body on the line so much so far this year yeah yeah it's definitely been a lot different to the last few years for sure um obviously starts with the stoppage stuff as well that's that's been great and obviously the more time is where King goals or something the four unless we have to do down back so yeah of course it's it's always great um but yeah if we got to do that down back we will um as a group but um the overall has been good to see see us score when we getting it in there um we just need to try to get it in there a little bit more how big of a boostable Baris be if he well he will be back this weekend hopefully yeah it'd be great great to have him back obviously we missed him the weekend he's pretty unlucky with his with his decision but um yeah it' be great to have him back um along with Harley and Noah hopefully get them all back would be great yeah Harley's back um from Melbourne is he pleased to be reunited on only a few days but back with teammates yeah yeah of course he um he obviously needed a bit of a spell and I think the club managed that really well um for him and obviously he's different to most people most 19 year olds and most footballers really with the um hype and the pressure and everything around him so I think the club's done well to handle that in the right way and hopefully we've got him for the rest of the year now in the middle of 2021 when a few of you had a few dents and minor mishaps and it felt like as soon as you were technically available you were raced back into the team so that the names look good on paper but the team didn't necessarily function that well is the club managing that sort of stuff differently now I mean with Harley sit him down for a week make sure he's okay um they seem to be getting a good outcome with you and a couple of others yeah I think it helps when you got a pretty much full list I don't know how many we've got injured at the moment but it's a lot less than we've had the last few years so it's a bit of a not luxury but it's a yeah it is a luxury for the coaches really um they can make those sort of decisions um yeah we're in past few years it's just we need to get whoever we can out there we've had waful players playing the last few years so um it's definitely a lot easier to manage players when we've when we've got a full list so it definitely helps um but yeah we've we'll do what we can in that space I think yo plays his 200th he's the other great rehab story if you like from over Summer and the trip to um the Middle East has he surprised you with how strongly he's come back no no he hasn't surprised me know I think he's reminded a lot of people um about how good a footballer he is um and how much his bodies to let him down last few years for sure but um yeah 200's obviously massive um he's been massive for us this year he's always been a top two or three player in our team for since I've got here since I've played with him so we're a much better side with him in it um I'm stoked for him to get that he's got to 200 um I'm sure he's got plenty more in him but um yeah hopefully he puts another big one together this weekend for us be would be awesome what does he bring you think what's the if there's an outstanding quality that BR what is it a Competitive Edge y yo is extremely competitive um in everything he does and I think that's what we love about him um he'll give absolutely everything um you see it with his footy but even with his standards is the way he carries himself around the club and standards around skills and understanding of the game he he holds at a very high level so um he's he's aggressive he gets a bit grumpy sometimes which which we love uh but yeah I think his his Ultra competitiveness is is what sets him apart does he also have a point of difference to the other gun mids you think in the comp like a lot of them are just see ball get ball run offensively Elliott has the ability to play on someone as well and has been sent to Dusty Martin before he been sent to Nathan 5 before he's played on Toby green before does that make him unique amongst those guys do you think yeah I think so yeah he's he's played down back as well um for a portion of his career um and he's extremely handy down there so um yeah I think if you can nulli try and nullify one of their key mids and actually be damaging as well uh which I've seen y would do multiple times it's definitely a massive asset um it's very hard to compare midfielders and and players in the competition I really like doing that but for us I'm picking yoi first and I'm glad he's on my team what you make of the decision to send Harley home how much um how beneficial is it for someone who's so young to get a chance to spend some time with family at this point of the Season yeah like I said I think it's a good decision for the club obviously dealing with Harley he's come straight in he's 19 um hasn't had the full preseason yet he's carried a massive workload through the Midfield obviously the off field PR so I think it was just the right time for him to to go home and have a break um and obviously the club's dealing with that on that personal level as well as the physical level so um for us when we heard he wasn't playing it I think everyone wasn't surprised it was just more whatever the best thing is for Harley at the moment and I'm sure we'll do the same with other players throughout the year so um yeah he's hopefully he's all refreshed and ready to go for like I said for the rest of the year was trying cut short today because of the thunder and lightning no I don't think so who would well few was Sur Prim for the lightning for a little bit there but uh no we didn't cut it sure we just went inside the um shared and utilized that and played some soccer games and had a little bit of fun off the back of the training session so um yeah I don't think it was cut short Don Pike said on the club website that that um thinking about some potential changes to the club song heading into next year how do you feel about the club song um whatever I'm yeah whatever's going on it doesn't really bother me as long as we're singing it um whatever it is it is um and whatever it suits the fans in the club obviously I don't make those decisions so um whoever's making those decision we back him in uh to make them and as long as we can sing it after every game would be great but um yeah we waiting waiting to see I was the first I've heard of it so yeah looking forward to hearing it you going to tap Jake W on the shoulder and ask him to slow down he's shutting the door on your chances to move up forward occasionally yeah he's killing me the duck we're calling him the duck at the moment um Jakey wman he's he's flying he's had a great pre season he's worked his ass off so I'm not surprised he's got obviously a bit more opportunity with Oscar not there at the moment um and he's grabbing it with both hands so um now I hope he stays up there I'm more than happy to stay down back and and let him take all the glory but um yeah it's it's good to See's he's getting some reward for his effort you expect um Harry to stay uh in the side this week with Tom coming back as well oh that's obviously it's a match Community decision but i' I'd love to have the both of them for sure so um yeah IA i' love to back the whole backline in the team I'm very biased towards the backs but um yeah that's obviously a magic committee thing but I thought Harry did really well for his first game back for a little while and he's obviously interrupted last year as well so um yeah massive effort on the weekend do represent any specific challenges you think for a defense uh we haven't dug too deep into them yet we obviously just reviewed the game of the weekend so we will throughout the week and um have a look but they're they're significantly better team than last year um and they've got threats all over the ground so uh we'll dig a bit deeper throughout the week and identify some key areas that we need to either match them in or nullify them in and um it should be a good contest and looking forward to seeing all the fans get out on Saturday Saturday night someone like Langford is kind of like it requires a slightly different match up to other dangerous forwards that are capable of kicking four or five in the game yeah yeah definitely they got a pretty dangerous forward line obviously Langford string is different as well to match up on and they got some good quality TOs and good quality small so um as a backline I think we'll review that throughout the week and see what the best matchups are and um yeah we'll we'll go over it a bit deeper throughout the week thank you thanks guys