What do you think will be the team structure for the early part of season 2009?

I reckon we will start with mostly players on the 2008 list + maybe 1 or 2.

fire away, do your darndest.

BL Whelan Warnock Garland

HB Grimes Rivers Buckley

CL Morton Jones Jetta

HF Bate Miller Wonaeamirri

FF Martin Robertson Sylvia

Rk Jamar McLean Green

Int Johnson Bruce Petterd Bail

BL Whelan Warnock Martin

HB Bruce Garland Buckley

CL Morton McDonald Blease

HF Sylvia Miller Wonaeamirri

FF Green Newton Davey

Rk Jamar McLean (Capt) Jones

Int PJ, Grimes, Petterd, Watts

Emergencies: Strauss Bartram Bate

You guys are dreaming. None of our draft picks will play round 1.

You guys are dreaming. None of our draft picks will play round 1.

Disagree. If form allows I think Bailey will seek to make a statement. Jetta might be the one to get an early game. Bail has the physical side covered if he is good enough.

More importantly I would love to see Spencer start dominating for Casey.

not sure if robbo will be in contention to play

You guys are dreaming. None of our draft picks will play round 1.

I tend to agree although i do think Bail if any just might

possibly jetta or bail will play

not too sure about benell

Robbo won't be right until Round 9 at the earliest won't he?

B Whelan Warnock Martin

HB Wheatley Garland Buckley

C Green Moloney Morton

HF Davey Miller Bate

F Sylvia Newton Wonaeamirri

Foll Jamar Bruce McLean

INT PJ Strauss Jones Grimes

EMG McDonald Petterd Dunn

Notes:

Rivers and Robbo won't be right for round 1, while I hear Blease is recovering from an injury so I'd rule him out too.

Strauss to be our only 1st gamer.

Could easily have Petterd, Dunn, Maric, Bartram, Frawley, Bell, McDonald and other 2008 draftees in the team depending on NAB Cup form, match-ups and injuries.

We actually have a bit of depth when we don't have injuries - which is never

You guys are dreaming. None of our draft picks will play round 1.

After 4 rounds of the NAB cup, you would assume that if Bail goes ok he could step right in. He's got the body. As for the others I'm certain Strauss and Blease will get a taste in the season just so they know what they're in for, but expect a Garland-like debut from all of them. Watts is the interesting one. He has the skill to walk into a team and play 2 quarters... do a few good things and keep his place. But only if there's a free spot on the wing or flank that no mature player has earned. I can see Jack playing a bit in the NAB cup, and if his skill level rises to the surface, DB will have no reason NOT to play him round 1. It's not like we're swimming in players. And it worked for Morton didn't it?

As for the side itself...

This isn't going to be a popular sentiment, but I hope DB stays true to what he claimed he's going to do, which is keep the kids largely out of the side and give them a year to develop their bodies. The reason being that we NEED to play Bell, Bartram, Dunn, Jamar and Sylvia. Why? Because winning 8 games instead of 4 gets us nowhere... but MOST importantly you would assume one of those names, and if we're lucky 2 or 3 will have really good seasons... I've always had a soft spot for Belly, but our defence is taking shape now, and he's not part of it. If he can smash a few good opponents, the recruiters and coaches of those clubs might see his market-value raise. If we could nick another pick in the teens, in a trade for say a pick in the 30s and Bell.... then that would be sensational.

The only problem is how the GC thing works. We may be trying to deal with them for that pick in the teens... And none of those players being from up north would be a factor you'd think. Also, I'm not sure if GC first year in the comp will be 2010.

B Whelan Warnock Martin

HB Wheatley Garland Buckley

C Green Moloney Morton

HF Davey Miller Bate

F Sylvia Newton Wonaeamirri

Foll Jamar Bruce McLean

INT PJ Strauss Jones Grimes

EMG McDonald Petterd Dunn

Notes:

We actually have a bit of depth when we don't have injuries - which is never

If Junior is not in the starting 22 then he should have been retired last year. He will be in Strauss/ Buckley to come out.

The depth is an illusion when you lack the class in your top 6.

Whelan Warnock Rivers

Whetaley Garland Green

Morton Jones Buckley

Davey Miller Bate

Wona Newton Sylvia

Jamar Mclean Moloney

Johnson Bartram Strauss Mcdonald

Grimes, Dunn, Maric

Think that may be, not my personal best 22 or who I would like to see but I think it will be close to that. I believe Strauss is a player who can make an impact early in his career. Naturally if Robbo is fit bring him in for Newton and if Rivers isn't fit bring in Martin.

I doubt Blease will get much game time next season, he has alot of skill but is very light and doesn't have the natural abilities of Cale Morton so he would struggle early on I think. Watts will definately play next season, roaming a flank, but im just not sure if he will play round 1. If Jamie Bennell were to be selected it was be placed heavily on how he goes in the NAB cup, we all don't know much about him but if shows dynamic natural skill he could find himself on a wing throughout the season. Jetta is a good chance to play I believe, he is a hard at it midfielder who i think could push his way in for a few games. Bail is suppossedly the most AFL ready, I would like to see how he goes in the NAB cup before suggesting he plays in his first season.

FB:Grimes Warnock Martin

HB:Rivers Garland Green

W:Morton McLean Buckley

HF:Davey Bate Jetta

FF:Maric Miller Wonnaeamirri

R:Jamar Sylvia Moloney

I: PJ, Strauss, Whelan, Petterd.

Bate will come out for Robbo when he's fit and Miller will move to CHF.

Make no mistake Bruce, Bartram and Jones don't have the footskills to go with Bailey's gameplan and will subsequently be dropped.

Assuming they are fit...

Whelan Martin Garland

Green Rivers Bruce

Morton McLean Buckley

Sylvia Miller Bate

Davey Newton Robbo

PJ Dunn Moloney

Jamar Jones Petterd

J Mac

emrg

Warnock, Grimes, Maric

If all are fit this is how I would line them up.

Many dont have Dunn in the side but I recon he may get a go on the ball to mind Harvey.

Unless there are some stand outs in the NAB cup I cant see any of the draftees playing round 1. They will get a go as the year progresses

Bate will come out for Robbo when he's fit and Miller will move to CHF.

Make no mistake Bruce, Bartram and Jones don't have the footskills to go with Bailey's gameplan and will subsequently be dropped.

They're not dropping Bate unless absolutely necessary. He may not be your normal Brown/Tredrea/Riewoldt type KP forward, but the guy is hugely important t our next 5 years.

Robbo won't be right until Round 9 at the earliest won't he?

I've never heard a firm date that he won't be ready by like that, but Bailey has said he's the only one who will still be recovering and will be unavailable round 1. From that you'd think he'd be missing for at very least another 4-5 weeks. Whatever it is i wouldn't be including him for round 1 at this stage.

They're not dropping Bate unless absolutely necessary. He may not be your normal Brown/Tredrea/Riewoldt type KP forward, but the guy is hugely important t our next 5 years.

Yeah i see Bate as an important player for us, either as a foil for a quality defender or as the bloke to step up when our KP players are being beaten, our Bradshaw to Lynch & Brown.

I really think that Bail should be pretty close to the starting 22 in round 1. He's been playing AFLQ and has done very well there, so why pick up a 20 y.o. if he's not very close to being at AFL level? I expect him to play probably the most of any draftee next year, unless he struggles for form. Jetta is the other one with exposure to playing against men and he will hopefully put early pressure on Wona & Davey to perform.

Of our top midfield picks, Strauss has a much more mature body then Blease & he'll also not have to worry about school, i'd hope that he could play 10-15 games and he'd be the one i'd be including earliest in the year.

Jetta wont be putting pressure on wona and davey they are way diferent players.

Jetta plays of half back!! Not a speedy/cruming forward .

Jetta wont be putting pressure on wona and davey they are way diferent players.

Jetta plays of half back!! Not a speedy/cruming forward .

Oh, you mean he's slower than cam bruce or brad green?

Well i've sat down and done alot of shuffling and made my team that i feel would be our best. I have put some unique choices in, but i feel they could really work

B Matthew Warnock, Stefan Martin, Colin Garland

HB Rowan Bail, Jared Rivers, Ricky Petterd

C James Strauss, Sam Blease, Cale Morton

HF Matthew Bate, Brad Miller, Cameron Bruce

F Brad Green, Paul Wheatley, Addam Maric

R Mark Jamar, Brock McLean, Jack Grimes

Int Paul Johnson, Aaron Davey, Nathan Jones, Austin Wonaeamirri

Emergencies: Simon Buckley, Clint Bartram, James Frawley, Jack Watts, Jamie Bennell, Brent Moloney, Neville Jetta, Colin Sylvia, Russell Robertson, John Meesen, Daniel Bell, Lynden Dunn, Matthew Whelan, Michael Newton

A full-back line of Garland, Warnock and Martin is very solid and will be very good for a long time i feel.

On the half-back line i have gone with Bail coz he looks very ready for AFL and quite quick and classy so he can provide alot from there. Rivers and Petterd will be back in 09 and will add a huge amount to our line-up.

I have gone with a centreline including Blease for speed and dash with polish, complimented by Strauss and Morton (both who are pure class) on the wings. That centreline looks mighty classy to me

On the Half-forward line i reckon Bruce can be very very handy like he was in his early days at the dees, he can provide a nice target and kick 30+ goals from half-forward i believe. I believe that Bate and Miller are also best used floating around half-forward as lead-up targets and can work with Bruce to create a very formiddable half-forward line. I really really like this setup.

On the full-forward line i have thrown a spanner in the works. Watts will not be ready and i feel that Wheatley is tall and has good hands, whilst being a very nice, long kick. Wheatley would provide a nice option at full-forward i think. I like the idea of Green playing as a second full-forward and have Wheatley and Green as multiple targets. Maric is a specialist forward-pocketer with dead-eye accuracy and he is a lock in the forward pocket for the next 10 years. This full-forward line is alot better than will be given credit for, i think they could be very successful.

Jamar and Johnson can share ruck duties til Spencer is ready, and i feel that Grimes and Mclean are our best ruck rover combination. I reckon these two will add to the class of the centerline previously mentioned.

It is very very exciting looking at the quality that is still on the list as depth. We have got a good list coming along now and i am really excited...

Well i've sat down and done alot of shuffling and made my team that i feel would be our best. I have put some unique choices in, but i feel they could really work

B Matthew Warnock, Stefan Martin, Colin Garland

HB Rowan Bail, Jared Rivers, Ricky Petterd

C James Strauss, Sam Blease, Cale Morton

HF Matthew Bate, Brad Miller, Cameron Bruce

F Brad Green, Paul Wheatley, Addam Maric

R Mark Jamar, Brock McLean, Jack Grimes

Int Paul Johnson, Aaron Davey, Nathan Jones, Austin Wonaeamirri

Emergencies: Simon Buckley, Clint Bartram, James Frawley, Jack Watts, Jamie Bennell, Brent Moloney, Neville Jetta, Colin Sylvia, Russell Robertson, John Meesen, Daniel Bell, Lynden Dunn, Matthew Whelan, Michael Newton

A full-back line of Garland, Warnock and Martin is very solid and will be very good for a long time i feel.

On the half-back line i have gone with Bail coz he looks very ready for AFL and quite quick and classy so he can provide alot from there. Rivers and Petterd will be back in 09 and will add a huge amount to our line-up.

I have gone with a centreline including Blease for speed and dash with polish, complimented by Strauss and Morton (both who are pure class) on the wings. That centreline looks mighty classy to me

On the Half-forward line i reckon Bruce can be very very handy like he was in his early days at the dees, he can provide a nice target and kick 30+ goals from half-forward i believe. I believe that Bate and Miller are also best used floating around half-forward as lead-up targets and can work with Bruce to create a very formiddable half-forward line. I really really like this setup.

On the full-forward line i have thrown a spanner in the works. Watts will not be ready and i feel that Wheatley is tall and has good hands, whilst being a very nice, long kick. Wheatley would provide a nice option at full-forward i think. I like the idea of Green playing as a second full-forward and have Wheatley and Green as multiple targets. Maric is a specialist forward-pocketer with dead-eye accuracy and he is a lock in the forward pocket for the next 10 years. This full-forward line is alot better than will be given credit for, i think they could be very successful.

Jamar and Johnson can share ruck duties til Spencer is ready, and i feel that Grimes and Mclean are our best ruck rover combination. I reckon these two will add to the class of the centerline previously mentioned.

It is very very exciting looking at the quality that is still on the list as depth. We have got a good list coming along now and i am really excited...

Ha you state that Watts won't be ready yet you put a player in Blease who will require more physical development right in the guts of the ground? Another thing this is not club footy where you can swap a player to other positions that seem to suit there physical requirements, Paul Wheatley will never ever play full forward, the concept is just ludacris, I don't think I've ever seen him take a contested mark. And you have Sylvia in your emergency's.

Ha oh well at least you trying something different and I like your emphasis on youth.

Emergencies: Simon Buckley, Clint Bartram, James Frawley, Jack Watts, Jamie Bennell, Brent Moloney, Neville Jetta, Colin Sylvia, Russell Robertson, John Meesen, Daniel Bell, Lynden Dunn, Matthew Whelan, Michael Newton

This is best described as "Sitting on the fence."

3 emergencies will do.

Jetta wont be putting pressure on wona and davey they are way diferent players.

Jetta plays of half back!! Not a speedy/cruming forward .

They are different players, but Jetta is not limited to playing off half back. He played back, forward & midfield in the u18 champs and has played forward, middle & back playing colts.

I would imagine that Jetta would at very least start in a half forward type role, which is one of the roles Davey plays & a role that Wona may play next year if he has increased his fitness. Cyril Rioli (i know different type of player again) is seen as a future midfielder at Hawthorn, but rarely played there this year.

There may be room for all of them in the team in time, but i believe that early Jetta will start forward, which would mean putting pressure on Wona & Davey

They are different players, but Jetta is not limited to playing off half back. He played back, forward & midfield in the u18 champs and has played forward, middle & back playing colts.

I would imagine that Jetta would at very least start in a half forward type role, which is one of the roles Davey plays & a role that Wona may play next year if he has increased his fitness. Cyril Rioli (i know different type of player again) is seen as a future midfielder at Hawthorn, but rarely played there this year.

There may be room for all of them in the team in time, but i believe that early Jetta will start forward, which would mean putting pressure on Wona & Davey

Yes, thats how I see it to, he's strong overhead, & can apply maximum defensive pressure to hurt opposition defence.

B: WHELAN, WARNOCK, MARTIN

HB: GRIMES, GARLAND, BUCKLEY

C: DAVEY, MCLEAN, BRUCE

HF: BATE, MILLER, MORTON

F: GREEN, WATTS, WONAEAMIRRI

FOLL: JAMAR, SYLVIA, MCDONALD

IC: JONES, MOLONEY, BARTRAM, P.JOHNSON

EMERG: WHEATLEY, BELL, DUNN

Watts will play he is the best kid in Australia playing for the worst team since Fitzroy he will definately get a game ahead of Newton. They are going to go slowly with the injury prone Rivers and Robertson so at best they start the season with Casey. I'm hoping they will go for youth in Grimes and Buckley forcing

Wheatley out.

CASEY

B: BELL, FRAWLEY, CHENEY

HB: PETTERD, RIVERS, STRAUSS

C: WHEATLEY, BAIL, BLEASE

HF: BENNELL, JURRAH, JETTA

F: NEWTON, ROBERTSON, MARIC

FOLL: MEESON, DUNN, VALENTI

IC: MCNAMARA, MCKENZIE, HUGHES, SPENCER

Ha you state that Watts won't be ready yet you put a player in Blease who will require more physical development right in the guts of the ground?

why do u think blease will require more physical development?