GAME DAY

[Supermercado 2,797]

Problem with the missing players is that even when you put them in we still put out performances like that all too often last year. It might have been enough to get us over the line against the Lions but we've got to beat some better teams than that to made the finals.

[DeeSpencer 25,714]

Question for those at the game:

1) Where did Jetta play. Someone mentioned Maric and Jetta would be competing for the same spot but it sounds like Jetta played on ball (for some/all of the game. Can someone clarify?

2) I agree we had a second string team, but I have to say, I've barely heard of any of the Vegas players mentioned throughout the game (on this thread). Where was Brisbane's team on the full strength index?

3) Could Tapscott realistically edge out Strauss for Round 1. No offence to Strauss, but he seems to be a confidence player and his confidence is usually about zero.

Comments appreciated

1. Jetta played midfield, wing and half forward. Definitely competing more with the likes of Bail and Jones than Maric. Both should play round 1. If Jones plays round 1 and Jetta doesn't that is a travesty.

2. Brisbane had a strong backline (Merrett, Patfull, Maguire, McGrath, Drummond) and midfield (Black, Rich, Power, Rockliff). I'd say 5 of their best 22 - Brown, Banfield, Cornelius, Leuenberger and Polec were missing but I'm not sure.

3. Strauss has a sore hamstring which would probably rule him out of round 1. Tapscott would be some small chance depending on next week but at the moment I'd say we'd go in with Warnock, Rivers, Garland, Grimes, Macdonald, Bartram and Bail + Bennell in our defensive rotation. I'd look for Tapscott to come in quickly though based on today.

[Guest 36DD]

I had to only have him at bad because his ruck work wasn't disastrous, somehow he kicked a goal and mainly because we need him in the side at the moment.

However I think he's best chance of being effective is to relieve in the ruck and also play down back. There is no rule saying he has to rest forward and he is a liability there. Where as I think he's good enough defensive to play on most resting ruckmen.

I'd agree with that, he showed a bit of promise in the backline during his first season, plain as day he isn't a forward...people saying that the new sub rule has seen the death of the 2nd ruckman, well I reckon its extended Martin's career, everyone is now seeking a versatile player for the sub

[The Great One 99 125]

It also took me half an hour to get a beer. Two people serving about 50.

Now we are getting to the important issues. This is a disgrace. I want answers!!

[Red Sox 2]

A blowout against Hawks next week would not be good.

Need to be much much better.

[waynewussell 5,749]

Only 16 of today's 26 will be required in round 1

Warnock

Jones

Watts

Bennell

Sylvia

Dunn

Petterd

Maric

Moloney

Rivers

Macdonald

Scully

Jetta

Jamar

Spencer / Martin depending on how we play the substitute rule

Bail

Tapscott will follow soon after (along with Frawley, Morton, McKenzie of course)

[dee-luded 2,959]

Jack Watts needs to learn to take marks in his hands. I can't believe the forwards coach hasn't taught him that.

He dropped two chest marks that quarter due to gving his opponent the opportunity to make body contact and spoil.

He'll learn that, he has the ability, he is known for taking overhead marks in packs amongst his peers.

But amongst the kids, I dare say with his speed, he would be used to leading for chest marks & successfully in the lesser grades.

Nearly every young talented forward has to learn stuff like that, as they get to the highest grade.

[dee-luded 2,959]

will be good to hear from people that were there sounded like our forward pressure was poo they rebounded way 2 easy

Nah they were just out to have a hitout, and try a few things. You could tell, the Intensity and the communication was down, as there was nothing riding on it, but a lot to lose if hurt.

The players who shone, and worked hard, were the ones, who needed to Prove themselves worthy of senior selection.

The Regular senior players, needed to come through the game unscathed.

[dee-luded 2,959]

1. Jetta played midfield, wing and half forward. Definitely competing more with the likes of Bail and Jones than Maric. Both should play round 1. If Jones plays round 1 and Jetta doesn't that is a travesty.

2. Brisbane had a strong backline (Merrett, Patfull, Maguire, McGrath, Drummond) and midfield (Black, Rich, Power, Rockliff). I'd say 5 of their best 22 - Brown, Banfield, Cornelius, Leuenberger and Polec were missing but I'm not sure.

3. Strauss has a sore hamstring which would probably rule him out of round 1. Tapscott would be some small chance depending on next week but at the moment I'd say we'd go in with Warnock, Rivers, Garland, Grimes, Macdonald, Bartram and Bail + Bennell in our defensive rotation. I'd look for Tapscott to come in quickly though based on today.

To me, Jetta is an in & under type rover, who keeps busy & is intuitive roving off the packs. IMO, he will be a good player but needs to learn his real worth. Underassuming type, but wiil be a good footy player.

Maric to me is just starting to mature, and has some nice offensive weapons, when he wants to work hard enough to get to enough contests, to win the occaisional spillage or recieve running forward.

I'd be surprised if Tappy plays too much AFL this Year, (maybe a game or 2 later)... I just don't think he'll have the condition in his legs, after being out for nearly all last year & off the track for large parts of last year. I may be wrong, but that's what I imagine. To me it makes sense that he will need to get miles in his legs this Year & build his aerobic capacity.

Strauss, an important year for him.

### PS: I reckon that with the Sub, this year, this could be an opening for players like Tappy, in his condition.

Edited March 5, 2011 by dee-luded

[Je Roos Salem 661]

I was there today, my observations:

Warnock- Played a solid game in defence, picked up much more of the ball than he normally would.

Jones- Work rate was good but his disposal made it a game he'd rather forget.

Bartram- sat in the stands next to me, seemed to be talking to Trengove a lot. Good team bonding.

Watts- Was FAR better than last week, didn't get much of the ball but kicked a couple of goals including a fantastic set shot from outside 50.

Gysberts- found a bit of the ball but didn't stand out all too much

Bate- took a few marks around the ground, kicked a goal that luckily bounced through but he was never really a threat up forward.

Bennell- Quite good, showed a lot of run through the middle

Frawley- In the crowd near Bartram. He was smiling alright!

Trengove- Wore the MFC jacket and sat in the crowd with awesome sunglasses on. He looked like a rockstar.

Morton- Sat over with Green and Davey away from the other players who werent playing in the crowd. Note- he was behind Green and Davey, not in the same row as them. Could that mean something?

Sylvia- He was just your regular Sylvia

McKenzie- I think he was in the crowd too.

Dunn- Pretty good.

Petterd- A lot to be excited about for the season ahead.

Grimes- Just another spectator, albeit one who i had my eyes glued on

Green- See Morton

Maric- 3 goals! I loved the one where he just zoomed into an open goal. What a freak! Most improved player for 2011, smokey for B&F and will definitely play a key role

Garland- In the crowd

Cook- Came on after wearing the vest for the first half (i think). Didn't make any impact, just saw him do a kick (awkward kicking style)

Moloney- Just typical Moloney stuff

Jurrah- Didn't play for some reason! Why not! I didn't even see him in the crowd. I reckon he slept in. Or he probably had a girl in his bed next to him when he woke up and though "ohh stuff it, its only a practice match". He then turned to demonland for updates on the game, and threw a glass of scotch as his computer screen when he saw the final score.

Cheney, Oh wait, he left.

Campbell- In the stands, looked like he was teaching the youngsters about how to talk.

Rivers- carved up by Mitch Clark, looked frustrated, made bad errors but he'll float back into the realms of recognition soon

MacDonald- decent game in defence.

Newton- Didn't see him anywhere

McNamara- Sat in the crowd, blah blah blah.

Scully- Proudly cheered every time he got the ball. Oh how i love him. I didn't like it how he gave away that 50 though, but that was just due to the %490378509436784308657 UMPIRE!

Bruc- (oops)

Wonaeamirri- Probably with Jurrah in his sex cave

Martin- PICK IT UP AND THEN KICK IT AT GOAL

Tapscott- Great to see him out there. HOW MUSCULAR IS HE!

Davey- In the corner with Green and Morton. At one point I thought i saw Davey trying and push green off the stand for the captaincy.

Gawn- Didn't see him. And it's hard to miss him!!!!

Howe- Explosive leap in the last term that was almost mark of the year

Jetta- One of our best. Looked very comfortable around the ground

Jamar- Didn't see much time in the 2nd half when Spencer came in, kicked a goal off the ground early and god i love him.

Davis- I think he was in the crowd too

Spencer- Took a couple of nice marks but gave away a fair few frees. He's a funny player to watch though, he's on the improve.

McDonald- Surprising good and quick running out of defence. Watch this space.

Bail- His day was summed up by his miss on goal. Fairly quiet

Lawrence- Absent

Blease- Absent

Strauss- Didn't do all too much.

Fitzpatrick- in the crowd. Wore a watch on his left hand, wore a ring on his right index finger.

Nicholson- Made a few errors, a costly one in defence included but found a bit of the ball.

Evans- Not as good as he has been previously this preseason but was useful in the middle

Johnston- Nowhere to be seen.

[Grandson of a gun 276]

It's been a long day but i was at Pratt Park today and have 2 cents to offer:

People who are bemoaning the skill level, lack of pressure, poor delivery, lack of structure or targets need to realise a few things. It is not just a case that we had 10 of our best 22 out of the team today. It was that the 10 players who were playing in their place were made up mostly of blokes who've never played AFL or have only played very few games. Many rave about the performances of Howe, Cook, Nicholson, Evans, McDonald and Nicholson however from a brutally honest perspective, none of them are yet up to it. They did some nice things but often fumbled under pressure, missed targets, didn't apply the required pressure and don't have big engines by AFL standards. All of these things can and will improve with time and training but all are reasons why we looked so bad.

In turn it puts pressure on the rest of the team because of the poor use of the ball.

Jetta was good playing on ball or high half forward. Maric was good also although still good go harder when it comes to the defensive aspects of the game.

Tapscott started like a house on fire. Played off half back and it was a deliberate ploy on a couple of occasions for him to do the Daniel Rich and run past the bloke who took the mark or had a free kick, receive the handball and pump it long. He has mongrel in him and gave a good account of himself. He kept cramping up in the second half which is to be expected in your first hitout of the year.

IF he stays fit he will definately play early in the season.

Gysberts also started reasonably well, not getting a tonne of the ball but laying tackles, spoils, quick handballs and making a contest. He seemed a couple fo yards short of a gallop and will improve with more matches- he did however appear to have a slight limp after the game. Don't know if that's how he walks or he had some minor ailment.

Scully was out of it today and looked rusty. Was beginning to come good in the last quarter and will be better for the run.

For the Jones baggers out there:

There was not a bloke out there for Melbourne who played with more intensity or fiercness at the contest. He stuffed a couple of kicks but given the amount of times he won hard balls, you are not going to hit targets all the time when under the pump. If you think we are bad at the stoppages or in the middle at the moment, take Jones and Moloney out of there and see how easily we are brushed aside then. FFS people, if you are going to comment at least have an understanding of the roles each player has and the reason they are in the team. I see nothing that would make me think he (or Moloney) will be out of our best 22 this year. There physical presence alone is an absolute must given the slight builds of most of our other midfielders.

Bate did look out of sorts. I was a big Bate supporter and still have faith in him but at the moment i don't believe he has found the position in which he can settle down into. I still think he is best suited to a deep forward role but with the players we have, spots are hotly contested at the moment.

Watts hit plenty of packs today and whilst the marks didn't stick, it was encouraging from that aspect. He is a sublime kick of the footy. Set shot or in play.

I will admit though that twice he should have extended his arms in the marking contest instead of the Neitz style flying chest mark but he will learn from that.

Strauss struggled to have any real impact in the backline and did have his thigh strapped after he was subbed off- Hammy or Quaddy but likely out for a couple.

Spencer is big. Spencer is still pitiful around the ground at the moment. I can easily see come Round 1 him not getting a game, instead having Martin as either the versatile player (although he has deficiencies) or the sub. The sub rule has killed blokes like Spencer.

Bail is a real goer and even though he misses the target every now and then, he gets the ball a lot, is hard at it, has dash and a bit of mongrel.

As the game wore on blokes like Dunn, Sylvia, Moloney seemed to go out of it and i have no doubt that was due to it being just a praccy match.

The reason we often lacked a target up forward was because we played a flooding full ground press styled of game but the drawback being when we generated the turnover the forwards couldn't get back quick enough to make good position to receive the next kick. With the better players coming back in that problem will be alleviated to a degree.

Jurrah and Wonna sat on the same side of the ground near the interchange area. Juice was by himself in another section spending more time talking to reasonable looking females than anything else. He is dead wood.

Nothing overall to get too concerned about given the cattle out and the young calves still finding their feet that were in today.

The only injury was Strauss (Bennell hurt his shoulder but came back on) so that is no great loss.

Bring on the Hawks or Dockers and then the real stuff.

Edit:

I forgot to mention Warnock, Rivers and MacDonald. All three did some good things but all three suffered from poor skill execution at various stages which directly resulted in goals. That is going to continue to be a bug bear with these three until we get a fit Frawley and Garland back and someone else steps up.

Edited March 5, 2011 by Grandson of a gun

[waynewussell 5,749]

Grandson, that is the most accurate appraisal of today's game I have seen to date. Well done mate... I concur!

[waynewussell 5,749]

I was there today, my observations:

Warnock- Played a solid game in defence, picked up much more of the ball than he normally would.

Jones- Work rate was good but his disposal made it a game he'd rather forget.

Bartram- sat in the stands next to me, seemed to be talking to Trengove a lot. Good team bonding.

Watts- Was FAR better than last week, didn't get much of the ball but kicked a couple of goals including a fantastic set shot from outside 50.

Gysberts- found a bit of the ball but didn't stand out all too much

Bate- took a few marks around the ground, kicked a goal that luckily bounced through but he was never really a threat up forward.

Bennell- Quite good, showed a lot of run through the middle

Frawley- In the crowd near Bartram. He was smiling alright!

Trengove- Wore the MFC jacket and sat in the crowd with awesome sunglasses on. He looked like a rockstar.

Morton- Sat over with Green and Davey away from the other players who werent playing in the crowd. Note- he was behind Green and Davey, not in the same row as them. Could that mean something?

Sylvia- He was just your regular Sylvia

McKenzie- I think he was in the crowd too.

Dunn- Pretty good.

Petterd- A lot to be excited about for the season ahead.

Grimes- Just another spectator, albeit one who i had my eyes glued on

Green- See Morton

Maric- 3 goals! I loved the one where he just zoomed into an open goal. What a freak! Most improved player for 2011, smokey for B&F and will definitely play a key role

Garland- In the crowd

Cook- Came on after wearing the vest for the first half (i think). Didn't make any impact, just saw him do a kick (awkward kicking style)

Moloney- Just typical Moloney stuff

Jurrah- Didn't play for some reason! Why not! I didn't even see him in the crowd. I reckon he slept in. Or he probably had a girl in his bed next to him when he woke up and though "ohh stuff it, its only a practice match". He then turned to demonland for updates on the game, and threw a glass of scotch as his computer screen when he saw the final score.

Cheney, Oh wait, he left.

Campbell- In the stands, looked like he was teaching the youngsters about how to talk.

Rivers- carved up by Mitch Clark, looked frustrated, made bad errors but he'll float back into the realms of recognition soon

MacDonald- decent game in defence.

Newton- Didn't see him anywhere

McNamara- Sat in the crowd, blah blah blah.

Scully- Proudly cheered every time he got the ball. Oh how i love him. I didn't like it how he gave away that 50 though, but that was just due to the %490378509436784308657 UMPIRE!

Bruc- (oops)

Wonaeamirri- Probably with Jurrah in his sex cave

Martin- PICK IT UP AND THEN KICK IT AT GOAL

Tapscott- Great to see him out there. HOW MUSCULAR IS HE!

Davey- In the corner with Green and Morton. At one point I thought i saw Davey trying and push green off the stand for the captaincy.

Gawn- Didn't see him. And it's hard to miss him!!!!

Howe- Explosive leap in the last term that was almost mark of the year

Jetta- One of our best. Looked very comfortable around the ground

Jamar- Didn't see much time in the 2nd half when Spencer came in, kicked a goal off the ground early and god i love him.

Davis- I think he was in the crowd too

Spencer- Took a couple of nice marks but gave away a fair few frees. He's a funny player to watch though, he's on the improve.

McDonald- Surprising good and quick running out of defence. Watch this space.

Bail- His day was summed up by his miss on goal. Fairly quiet

Lawrence- Absent

Blease- Absent

Strauss- Didn't do all too much.

Fitzpatrick- in the crowd. Wore a watch on his left hand, wore a ring on his right index finger.

Nicholson- Made a few errors, a costly one in defence included but found a bit of the ball.

Evans- Not as good as he has been previously this preseason but was useful in the middle

Johnston- Nowhere to be seen.

This is exactly the sort of response I warm to at 12.45am on a Sunday morning. Witty, wise and welcome welief for wayne!

[Al`s DEMONS 0]

The good news- we're missing Jurrah, Green, garland, Davey, bartram, grimes, mckenzie, frawley and Morton.

The bad news is we're playing very ordinary footy. So many simple skill errors and turnovers.

Petterd took some ripper grabs that pleased the fans.

I wouldn't ripped into Watts had he not have kicked a nice goal on the flank. Scully has had about 2 touches. Either he's not going near the ball or the balls not going near him.

Great to see Tappscott get a couple of kicks including a 60mtr bomb that set up the opening Martin goal.

who did the lions have out, Morton yet to influence a game after a couple of years in the system

[... 11]

who did the lions have out, Morton yet to influence a game after a couple of years in the system

Morton didn't play... which makes it hard to impact the game. Jackass.

This site is going to the dogs.

[Beetle 4,660]

Jurrah- Didn't play for some reason! Why not! I didn't even see him in the crowd. I reckon he slept in. Or he probably had a girl in his bed next to him when he woke up and though "ohh stuff it, its only a practice match". He then turned to demonland for updates on the game, and threw a glass of scotch as his computer screen when he saw the final score.

Haha good stuff..

[Bang Bang Bang 5,826]

Thanks to everyone for the reports.

One question - how did Scully go with his kicking? While unlike some I've never considered him a poor kick... it was one part of his game where I felt he could improve over summer.

Disappointing to lose to the rabble that call themselves the Lions but we had 7 of our very best players resting up and you just can't replace that kind of talent. From what I can gather only Jamar, Sylvia and Scully were out there of our genuine top echelon of talent. Thus the result should be taken with a grain of salt. Still would much have preferred a big win!!!

[DeezMan 4]

...

3. We are the youngest team in the AFL apart from the Suns and have the third lowest games experience on our list (Suns and Richmond below us). This is clearly a development year.

Ummmm.... really??? :/ I don't think that's an excuse anymore. Teams are always developing, but we should be on the cusp of the Top 8 by now...

[The Big Ticket 94]

Ummmm.... really??? :/ I don't think that's an excuse anymore. Teams are always developing, but we should be on the cusp of the Top 8 by now...

Yes, it's another development year.

Some of the posts in this thread are hilarious.

Yesterday, we had half our side out, most blokes going about 50-60%, and Black + Power against our kids in the middle.

Bailey's seen what he wanted to see and that was a good showing at the graveyard in Adelaide. He would have told the guys just to go easy.

Edited March 6, 2011 by BattlerBailey

[Lil_red_fire_engine 11,177]

2. It's pretty clear to me that McDonald and Bruce will be tremendous losses to us for this season. Their composure under pressure is being sadly missed at the moment. Right decision though.

The words "Bruce" and "composure under pressure" I dont think I have heard together before nor will again.

[Lil_red_fire_engine 11,177]

For the Jones baggers out there:

There was not a bloke out there for Melbourne who played with more intensity or fiercness at the contest. He stuffed a couple of kicks but given the amount of times he won hard balls, you are not going to hit targets all the time when under the pump. If you think we are bad at the stoppages or in the middle at the moment, take Jones and Moloney out of there and see how easily we are brushed aside then. FFS people, if you are going to comment at least have an understanding of the roles each player has and the reason they are in the team. I see nothing that would make me think he (or Moloney) will be out of our best 22 this year. There physical presence alone is an absolute must given the slight builds of most of our other midfielders.

Lets be clear that no-one can question Jones hardness. However he does not win clean clearances. He is defensively poor at clearances which means the opposition get a lot of cleat takeaways. He won majority of his disposals playing as a link man. He used most of those disposals by kicking it to the opposition, kicking a 50/50 ball or looping a handball and putting someone under pressure.

I do not need to understand his role to understand that if him and Moloney are in the same starting 21 by years end I seriously doubt we will be playing finals.

[biggestred 5,094]

people forget that the cats did all their drafting in 99, 2000, 01 and 02, and the saints followed soon after in 2000, 01, 02, 03. it took them 8 years to be forces. hawthorn were an abberation. pinched one and still building IMHO. we have done ours now, in 08 09 and 10. we shouldnt expect to be going gangbusters and properly having a go at the flag till 2015. dont forget we lost our 3 oldest players again, inc our captain and vice captain. a few steps back are always likely. marathon, not a sprint people.

[sylvinator 96]

Yes. really.

In 2010 the five top teams for average age were WB, St.K, Geelong, Sydney and Collingwood.

In 2010 the five top teams for total games (list) were WB, Geelong, Collingwood, St.Kilda, Sydney.

Do you notice anything about those teams and where they finished on the ladder in 2010? You've obviously got to have good players but with good list management that just follows. You need other things like good runs with injury.

Age and experience isn't an excuse, it's probably more a "reason".

Hard to disagree with you.

This year will be a balance of development and all out attack to win.

We absolutely need to continue to pump games into the youngsters who won't be fully comfortable at senior level until they hit 40-50 afl games.

But I do think we should expect improvement. If last year was 8.5 wins, i'm expecting atleast 10 or 11 wins this season.

[Lil_red_fire_engine 11,177]

Yeh, like Nicholson and McDonald blew you away with their composure did they? It's comparative, not absolute. And Bruce is so much better than he is given credit for here.

Given a fit year he'll play every game for the Hawks and finish top 10 B&F.

Nicholson and McDonald were mediocre. That therefore does not suddenly improve Bruces disposal or decision making. Agree Bruce will finish in top 10 for Hawks but it wont be for his composure under pressure.

Edited March 6, 2011 by big_red_fire_engine

[Samsara 65]

I'll still wait until end of Round 1 before I pass any sort of judgement. We always lose practise matches, so the last two weeks have come as little surprise. We should account for Sydney at the 'G in Round 1 comfortably. If we lose this game, I would start to be a little worried (but not panicking) about our progress. At the moment, getting some games into younger/more inexperienced players and getting through the game without any injuries is more important then the scoreboard.

Maric is going in my SC team based on his efforts so far. Very cheap too.

Edited March 6, 2011 by Samsara