McElhone's Impact

Think he will be a massive help to the club having worked at a very high level with spurs.

The players will improve their fitness massively over the next few weeks and hopefully the niggly injuries that they have been getting will be kept to a minimum.

I don’t think he has made the difference in the past few games. I think that’s due to Edin being removed and the increase in confidence that this has brought to everybody at the club.

 

Think I heard Hopkin say on the pulse that he always knew he would be coming. Maybe because of his contractual situation, we had to wait until last week for him to come in.

The whole fitness levels seem to have gone up 50% to where they were a few months ago. Players are hustling and picking off their opponents time and time again. Not seen that intensity since the Parky days to be honest.

 

I actually think he will have made a small difference. He will have been reviewing their diet and giving advice on what to eat and when. That will have had an immediate impact. That is an important part of being a professional.

He was on the touch line yesterday, encouraging the players; they all seem to love him, he has been getting general fitness up to scratch, he has been taking them on long runs. Normally not necessary as playing games does that, but he needed to get their fitness levels up.

 

A player I know has been impressed with him so far..says training is a lot more interesting and more akin to his previous (top level!) Club

 

Bruenker?

 

Nope.. their clubs were in the same country tho. The other one being the very top level there

 

Isherwood

 

A mate of mine went to watch training a couple of times over the summer when Collins was “head coaching” and was surprised by what he was seeing. All tippy tap passing, no intensity, nothing more than a gentle jog and a couple of sprints and that was about it. And we wonder why we’ve been so shit and why the players have looked about as fit as the Red Lion players will do this morning after their Christmas piss up last night

 

Anton McElhone has been brought in as Hopkin's assistant along with Martin Drury, yet Ben Nicholson is the Performance Coach.
McElhone who specialises in sports science and conditioning will also work as assitant coach, as with Phil Parkinson you need a backroom staff to be invoved in so many other parts of professional sport, diet, conditioning, personal performance levels, technical, tactical, physical & mental, all different aspects of the modern game.
You have to ask after being coached with regards the above how the hell can players still get caught off side .

 

Yep that was pre-season training in a nutshell. Collins thought fitness would be built up playing in training games with increasing intensity ... surely his coaching badges were fake?

 

On the basis that first team players didn't play in most pre season games I would say if that was Collins philosophy then you have to ask what badges did he have.

 

The badge of being cheap and malleable.

 

Cycling proficiency and blue peter

 

I took my grandson a couple of times in pre season and to be frank having coached kids for 10 years I was quite embarrassed by the standard of coaching the professionals received. Especially the goalkeepers, Banks was a terrible lazy keeper coach.

 

You don't need big changes. that extra couple of percent can get you to the ball a foot quicker. run a bit quicker but most of all give you confidence. you make more mistakes when tired

 

he did play as a profession so you'd hope he would have some clue how to get players fit. obviously not

 

Should we also expect youth team improvements with Collins out the wsy?

 

That is criminal, Dave ..... But can often be explained as a mix of 'Enthusiasm, and a rush of blood'.
The same can't be said for backing off from a player, all the way back to the 6 yard box - or failing to pick up, in the first place.

Interestingly .......... Todays T&A suggest that Hopkin (and his team) have identified those who lack both ambition and desire, by their absence from the matchday squads.
Perhaps a bigger turnover of Players in January, than we all suspect ?