Bassendean Hears The Noise Of Footy Again

Baby steps leading up to the 2020 Optus WAFL and WAFLW Premiership season continue to grow as the Swan Districts league, reserves, colts and women’s teams returned to the training track this week.

With the sounds of players and coaches echoing through the stands at Steel Blue Oval for the first time since mid-March, clubs will meet today, Friday, to further discuss plans for a competition this year.

Training is still limited to maximum groups of 20 people, with traffic cones separating players in sections of the ground as they move between drills. Used to seeing coaches in close with their teams, they are now forced to call instructions from a distance, with some calling from the boundary fencing around the oval, used as an added precaution.

Despite all the uncertainties and restrictions, league coach Adam Pickering says the players have returned in good shape.

‘We gave them a maintenance program to do while we were in the hiatus’ he said. ‘We also kept regular contact with them all via text, call or Zoom meetings.’

Many players took it upon themselves to help keep each other accountable, forming groups and postings sessions on Strava, an app that uses GPS tracking to record running and riding statistics while offering motivation through challenges and the ability to share photos.

‘From what I have seen so far, they are all in pretty good nick’ Pickering stated.

While most of the players are now back on the track, the club has taken a lenient approach in the current climate. Those with jobs are still able to go to work, even if it falls on a training night.

With the start of the WAFL season still unclear, Adam says his main focus right now is to help all players stay motivated and firing at training.

‘With no end date, the hard part will be keeping these guys enthusiastic and engaged’ he says. ‘Because they’ve been out for 6-8 weeks and uncertain of when things will kick off again, they are up and down. That’s what we are finding a bit difficult at the moment.’

With strict social distancing measures in place restricting fans from attending training sessions, show the players how you support the might black and whites by posting your photos to our Facebook and Instagram pages.

Coaching from behind the fence

Adam directing handball drill