Riversiders meeting

[El Bobbers]

I spoke to somebody whose opinion I value and he says that re Feka what MF says is correct. You can convert 1 type of fast twitch muscles to improve endurance but it may affect his destructive ability. It is very hard to comment without detailed data re an individual.

My only reservations are that our interchange are IMO 99% pre determined prior to kick off and players would have set time limits give or take - or + say 2 minutes. I looked at the first 11 games and Feka was playing the same amount of times and often interchanged at the same time in each game.

Sam Thaiday has been converted from an interchange impact forward to a 60 minute+ forward. However, as I said earlier you need to know the exact individual make up.

I agree that the Feka changes are almost regimented which I think wastes the chance to give the rest of the team a lift as often happens when Feka comes on.

I sometimes find myself thinking "we could do with getting Feka on to give the lads a boost" but often it seems he only comes on at a particular minutes in the game.

It's not just the destruction that he causes, it's also the positive mental effect that it has on the rest of the team. This needs to be used better for me.

[Nine]

Well I don't think my eyes are deceiving me in that Feka appears larger this season than last and that some of his bulk is a little flabby!

I am sure Feka has the explosive muscle type etc etc and I am also sure what the experts say about different types of athlete are correct but I am not sure what any of that has to do with him being possibly overweight.

Did they specifically comment on that?

Dave

No, it wasnt. Maybe no one else thinks he's flabby and overweight. Or maybe if they do they just weren't at the meeting, or were too polite to ask about it if they were.

[FROM A TO B]

Well I don't think my eyes are deceiving me in that Feka appears larger this season than last and that some of his bulk is a little flabby!

I am sure Feka has the explosive muscle type etc etc and I am also sure what the experts say about different types of athlete are correct but I am not sure what any of that has to do with him being possibly overweight.

Did they specifically comment on that?

Dave

No, it wasnt. Maybe no one else thinks he's flabby and overweight. Or maybe if they do they just weren't at the meeting, or were too polite to ask about it if they were.

Would you tell Feka he's a porker? Bet you wouldn't outrun him if you did

[josie andrews]

Well I don't think my eyes are deceiving me in that Feka appears larger this season than last and that some of his bulk is a little flabby!

I am sure Feka has the explosive muscle type etc etc and I am also sure what the experts say about different types of athlete are correct but I am not sure what any of that has to do with him being possibly overweight.

Did they specifically comment on that?

Dave

No, it wasnt. Maybe no one else thinks he's flabby and overweight. Or maybe if they do they just weren't at the meeting, or were too polite to ask about it if they were.

Would you tell Feka he's a porker? Bet you wouldn't outrun him if you did

Well I think he's very cuddly and I would deliberately let him catch me

[weststand-rich]

Hi CP,

regarding this:

" spoke to somebody whose opinion I value and he says that re Feka what MF says is correct. You can convert 1 type of fast twitch muscles to improve endurance but it may affect his destructive ability. It is very hard to comment without detailed data re an individual."

That's not quite true. The proportion of fast twitch and slow twitch fibres is genetically set at birth and can't be converted. However you can train and enhance the endurance ones or the sprint ones with training. It's a fine line on what sort of training to focus on - any athlete only has so much recovery resource in them.

I'm more with Dave concerning Fekas conditioning. Regardless of whether he's at the sprint end of the spectrum or the marathon of the spectrum his weight does have a bearing on his work rate, power impact and recovery in games.

Do a simple experiment. Strap 2 stone of weight on and do several 100 m runs. Take the weight off and repeat and watch the seconds drop down. Feka weighs in at around the 20 stone mark, regardless of what his official stats are. He could afford to drop 20 pounds and still have the same impact but with better recovery.

[nathan_rugby]

It does make some sense about fekas conditioning as Muscle fibre % either fast or slow can be improved by training until your about 21ish, and since feka is over 21, his cant be improved.

Feka could be on the pitch for longer, but he wouldnt have the ability to perform his powerful movements and would look very average and be very vulnerable in defence.

Fibre makeup is a tiny part of performance, and in ttruth all muscle fibres are the same, what is different is the neural impulse sent to the fibre. Neural aspects can always be trained to some extent.

On a broader note, if the atlete can't improve his conditioning to the point that he can be effective for a longer duration then that is a problem for the S and C guys - it is there responsibility.

To say that it is impossible for him to improve over a 2 year time frame may or may not be true - depends on where he is now - for example if he joined the club at at his physical "peak" after many years of properly organised training etc and a gradual improvement in ability over many years followed by a plateau then yes, maybe he has topped out.

Far more likely though that the coaching staff are happy to use him as a special playmaker or "one-off" tool as there are other players in the pool with a higher skill level, and although they value his impact on plays or a series of breakdowns they do not wish to play him more, hence his lack of game time.

If they honestly want him to play more, and he is their "first choice" player but his conditioning wont allow it then they need to fire him or the S and C staff.

[cpwigan]

Hi rich. The person I spoke to said that one thing that could be done potentially is for Feka to lower his body fat percentage which will mean he will have less weight to move with the same power meaning he will increase his speed/acceleration. A little can be done on his fitness but not too much. We could however improve his agility and that would be an area to work on with him regards lateral movement in defence.

[cpwigan]

Rich I found this myself;

Can Training Change Fiber Type?
There is some evidence showing that human skeletal muscle may switch fiber types from "fast" to "slow" due to training.

Fiber type is part of a great athlete's success, but it alone is a poor predictor of performance. There are many other factors that go into determining athleticism, including mental preparedness, proper nutrition and hydration, getting enough rest, and having appropriate equipment and conditioning.

[cpwigan]

The whole issue is very interesting and it sounds like the Riversiders had a really good meeting. At an elite sport level it sounds incredibly complex and that is why I keep thinking do we search for the best people in such fields or look to utilise centres of excellence elsewhere.

I just recall how as an example we used to find world class medical experts to look after injuries to say Ellery Hanley and so forth. We would send players to the best facilities.

Feka? Do we leave him as he is or take a route whereby wedevelop him and perhaps make him less explosive but better overall? I do not have the answers. I do know that what makes Feka effective is far more than his physical makeup. He can actually use footwork, he can go to the line and pass like he did to Tommy, he can carry and offload. Those for me are skills, rugby league skills and why it is not simply enough to say here is an athlete, your ideal for RL. I guess it is for others with far more expertise than I will ever have to balance that athleticism and rugby league skills.

[FROM A TO B]

Regardless of high fibre, low fibre or man made fibre, how many sports would openly discuss such matters with their fans?
Hats off to the club for being so open