I read in the Hun this morning that Aaron is a chance of a recall this weekend.

I looked back and he was dropped last week (acknowledged by the coaching staff) due to form but was made an emergency and taken to WA so he did not play at Casey.

This doesnt make much sense to me. If you are dropped for form you should play at Casey to try and recapture the lost form. Our emergencies should be the in form players at Casey who cant quite crack the seniors. So I had no problem with McDonald being an emergency ( and was used instead of Martin). I didn't have a problem with Tynan being an emergency - as a first gamer he did ok and I almost would have kept him in 1st's. But I would have had Couch as an emergency and let Aaron find some form at Casey.

How can we be talking about Aaron getting a recall when he has proved nothing? The article on his recall talks about match simulations - this doesnt cut it for me. I was excited for the season due to our training and match simulations right up until a ball was bounced for the first real game.

Doesnt make sense to me that Aaron wasnt at Casey and now can be talked up as a "recall".

Note - the recall part might be paper talk which is out of the clubs control however my issue is him not playing at Casey which is in our control.

As I said in the other thread... We all need to understand that footy clubs know players really well, and naturally they would rate the hell out of Davey, his skills are amazing despite losing a step of pace, so they would want him in the team. Also that being said his lost a step of pace means he is still quicker than 80% of the league...

At the end of the day Davey HAS proven something, he has proven over many years that he is the most skillful player in this god awful team. One of the only players who can deliver the ball by foot, and can at least make something positive happen.

He was bad alot of last season and in round 1... But considering how bad our team is I am not even a little bit surprised that the coaches want to rush him back in the team.

mark neeld with robbo said it was a conditioning thing

I read in the Hun this morning that Aaron is a chance of a recall this weekend.

I looked back and he was dropped last week ( acknowledged by the coaching staff) due to form but was made an emergency and taken to WA so he did not play at Casey.

This doesnt make much sense to me. If you are dropped for form you should play at Casey to try and recapture the lost form. Our emergencies should be the in form players at Casey who cant quite crack the seniors. So I had no problem with McDonald being an emergency ( and was used instead of Martin). I didn't have a problem with Tynan being an emergency - as a first gamer he did ok and I almost would have kept him in 1st's. But I would have had Couch as an emergency and let Aaron find some form at Casey.

How can we be talking about Aaron getting a recall when he has proved nothing ? The article on his recall talks about match simulations - this doesnt cut it for me. I was excited for the season due to our training and match simulations right up until a ball was bounced for the first real game.

Doesnt make sense to me that Aaron wasnt at Casey and now can be talked up as a "recall".

Note - the recall part might be paper talk which is out of the clubs control however my issue is him not playing at Casey which is in our control.

I may be wrong, but wasn't the admission from the coach that there were certain areas of Aaron's game that weren't up to AFL standard? He went to WA and they put him through 2 hard, running sessions. Perhaps it was the running/chasing/endurance side that weren't up to AFL standard?

Just a thought. FWIW - I'd have him at Casey this weekend.

mark neeld with robbo said it was a conditioning thing

If a player is going to let the team down due to conditioning then dont play him in the seniors.

I could understand if his form over the last year was sensational and you play him because even in an underdone state Davey would be value but we all recognise that he has been ordinary for all of last year. So combine ordinary form with underdone conditioning = dont play him in the seniors.

As I said in the other thread... We all need to understand that footy clubs know players really well, and naturally they would rate the hell out of Davey, his skills are amazing despite losing a step of pace, so they would want him in the team. Also that being said his lost a step of pace means he is still quicker than 80% of the league...

At the end of the day Davey HAS proven something, he has proven over many years that he is the most skillful player in this god awful team. One of the only players who can deliver the ball by foot, and can at least make something positive happen.

He was bad alot of last season and in round 1... But considering how bad our team is I am not even a little bit surprised that the coaches want to rush him back in the team.

I don't buy this.

I admire what he has done in the past but he didnt give a yelp last year.I also suggest that on his past year and current form opposition coaches would rate Davey as very easily put out of the game. Wear him tightly - he doesnt like it.

I will cut a player some slack if their form is down but you can see the effort. What I didnt see last season and so far this season is the effort. (Davey's scintillating early forms were sublime skills backed up by a large dose of wanting to run and chase hard)

I think Neeld realises that whilst Davey isnt the player he was in 08 he adds value and i think he'll play on the weekend

Watching the chat with Robbo on DeeTV its clear that Neeld has come a fair way in a short time. He's joking around with robbo and being far more understanding of the team's performance than he would have been a month ago. I think he's working out pretty quickly that he needs the lads to be on side with him if he's going to get through to them and has toned down his approach somewhat. That being said he still is clear that we're not near where we want to be, but he's being far more realistic about what is required to get us there (ie. its not as simple as a tough preseason and being demanding).

I think Neeld realises that whilst Davey isnt the player he was in 08 he adds value and i think he'll play on the weekend

Agree... I think that what Davey provides is the "perceived" threat... opponents can put pressure on themselves because of Davey's reputation rather than his actual current level of performance.

We don't know why Davey didn't play at Casey. Maybe his knee was a bit sore (which wouldn't make him a sensible emergency - unless there was no intention of playing him or anyone else and therefore an injured player was picked as an emergency to ensure fit players got real game time with Casey). Maybe the club decided after his week from hell his mind wasn't right to play with anyone last week (my preferred theory, by the way). Maybe he's over his physical and mental problems and now has his mind and his body right so he's ready to play. At least, I hope so.

I don't buy this.

I admire what he has done in the past but he didnt give a yelp last year.I also suggest that on his past year and current form opposition coaches would rate Davey as very easily put out of the game. Wear him tightly - he doesnt like it.

I will cut a player some slack if their form is down but you can see the effort. What I didnt see last season and so far this season is the effort. (Davey's scintillating early forms were sublime skills backed up by a large dose of wanting to run and chase hard)

You don't by what though?

Do you not believe that Aaron Davey is our most skillful player? Because he is, no one on the MFC list can hit a target like him.

This is why we need Davey, our team desperately needs some skill.

I may be in the minority but what I want from the club is players who give something.

I have stated I am not a fan of Bartram because he coughs up the ball way too much for my liking but I still would put him in the team before Davey as he has a go.

Davey's skill will never be as an in and under player or diving in like a maniac but what he does have is the ability to link and run outside and he aint doing that.

Step one- dont play players that dont put in.

Step two - once we have a team of goers - then move on players that may put in but dont have the required skillset.

We don't know why Davey didn't play at Casey. Maybe his knee was a bit sore (which wouldn't make him a sensible emergency - unless there was no intention of playing him or anyone else and therefore an injured player was picked as an emergency to ensure fit players got real game time with Casey). Maybe the club decided after his week from hell his mind wasn't right to play with anyone last week (my preferred theory, by the way). Maybe he's over his physical and mental problems and now has his mind and his body right so he's ready to play. At least, I hope so.

he was in perth

You don't by what though?

Do you not believe that Aaron Davey is our most skillful player? Because he is, no one on the MFC list can hit a target like him.

This is why we need Davey, our team desperately needs some skill.

Aaron Davey is only our most skillful player if he gets the ball in his hands. He hasnt had the ball in his hands all of last season and the beginning of this season due to his efforts.

We all need to understand that footy clubs know players really well, and naturally they would rate the hell out of Davey, his skills are amazing despite losing a step of pace, so they would want him in the team.

I don't rate him. He doesn't put his head over the footy, he's never front-on tackled, he's virtually only ever played well against lowly teams and he's placed a very high price on self preservation. Good sides have usually managed to blanket him, often without a whimper. He had one stand-out year in 2009, but he won't recapture that year.

Finals have never been won with the Davey's of this world and that is how every player should be judged. You're delusional if you think Davey could perform in the red hot pressure cauldron of a final.

I'd be happy never to see him in a Melbourne jumper again.

BIt harsh B-H

Id like to see him exerting the pressure that his pace although a little slower can still deliver.

Id like to see someone giving him the ball when he is outside the contest

Id like to see him delivering the ball to that leading or isolated player in space.

It can still happen maybe not every week or every second in every game.

But if he is used appropriately against the right opposition within the right structure it will. I hope that this week if he is in he is played against the right opponent in the right position (OK I admit I dont know what/where that is) but I still have confidence that the coach does.

Aaron is an experienced player whose best is good enough to win the Melb B&F in 2009. For many reasons he's been down on form and impact. Some of these reason are within his control (effort and spirit) many are not (injuries, confusing role in underdeveloped game plan, general shift to a bigger bodied game style across the AFL, etc...).

Many of these things are being dealt with by the new FD i.e. play consistently Davey where his strengths are utilised and his weaknesses unlikely to hurt the team. Unfortunately this new game plan and the roles that Neeld has in mind for Davey (and others) is not clear or they have struggled to implement.

I'm sure he will adapt and thrive. Two games does not make a season and the lynch mob on this site would be better served exploring where Davey would thrive and why another Melb B&F has fallen on hard times...

You don't by what though?

Do you not believe that Aaron Davey is our most skillful player? Because he is, no one on the MFC list can hit a target like him.

This is why we need Davey, our team desperately needs some skill.

Great. But its totally useless if he hangs around the back of Jamar, takes a short handball and dinks it 15m to another Melb player. One of highest paid and most experienced players and he should be an elite player. But he ain't.

We need a run and carry linebreaker. We all hoped Bennell would be it but he ain't . We all hoped Strauss would be it but he ain't. We all hoped Blease would be it be he ain't (yet).

Bartram can't do it, neither can Grimes, Garland or Frawley. Maybe Tappy is it. Carry the press with his 70m kicks. I hope so cos we need it.

As for Davey. His complete lack of interest in playing is a much bigger issue.

Aaron is an experienced player whose best is good enough to win the Melb B&F in 2009. For many reasons he's been down on form and impact. Some of these reason are within his control (effort and spirit) many are not (injuries, confusing role in underdeveloped game plan, general shift to a bigger bodied game style across the AFL, etc...).

Many of these things are being dealt with by the new FD i.e. play consistently Davey where his strengths are utilised and his weaknesses unlikely to hurt the team. Unfortunately this new game plan and the roles that Neeld has in mind for Davey (and others) is not clear or they have struggled to implement.

I'm sure he will adapt and thrive. Two games does not make a season and the lynch mob on this site would be better served exploring where Davey would thrive and why another Melb B&F has fallen on hard times...

Only one for Davey so far in 2012

For better or worse we have him till the end of 2013.

At his best he has been one of the Dees best players, he had speed and his kicking to position was amazing to watch.

For whatever reason we have not seen to much from him since he was injured in 2010.

IMO we probably will not see him ever again back to those previous levels.

However at 80% of 2010 he is better than the those who could replace him.

I believe the FD will try to get him back there for most of 2012.

In the end do we have a choice?

Neeld said in this week's chat with Robbo that Davey was taken to Perth to do conditioning work to get him fit enough to play 85% game time.

We've got to accept that 1 David Misson pre season is not going to bridge the gap between our level of player fitness and the top sides' levels of player fitness.

Hopefully Davey will return fitter and more determined to perform in the role of defensive small forward.

Neeld said in this week's chat with Robbo that Davey was taken to Perth to do conditioning work to get him fit enough to play 85% game time.

Taken on a four hour each way plane flight (which is recognised as a significant impost on player's physical wellbeing) to do conditioning work.

Really?

>>>>

For better or worse we have him till the end of 2013.

At his best he has been one of the Dees best players, he had speed and his kicking to position was amazing to watch.

For whatever reason we have not seen to much from him since he was injured in 2010.

IMO we probably will not see him ever again back to those previous levels.

However at 80% of 2010 he is better than the those who could replace him.

I believe the FD will try to get him back there for most of 2012.

In the end do we have a choice?

No we don't.

We cannot have a scorched earth policy when it comes to our senior players because if we are worried about what messages they send to the kids, what kind of a message is "never playing Davey in a Melbourne jumper again."

He had an awful 2011 which was highlighted by that occurence at Etihad against St Kilda, but he has not blown his 2012 yet. If everyone gets a clean slate, so do the senior players.

I am their biggest critic but they have the first half of the season to prove to the club they will be a help, and not hindrance, to the continuing build (note: not another rebuild, just the build part of the re-build started under Bailey) of the playing group.

I know it is a hated thought but I would still like to see Davey playing as a defender as he did in 2009, as Leon Davis did last year and as Chris Yarran is this year.

Speed to run it out of defense, skills to deliver the ball out of the 50 and a specific role.

Melbourne supporters are the absolute worst when it comes to attacking players. They are the worst because they say things like "never seeing Davey in a Melbourne jumper again"... They say these things knowing full well a week from now we will all complain about our side looking slow and having no players who can deliver the ball by foot wah wah wah.

Here are the facts:

• Best user of the ball in the club
  
• Still top 3 for speed in the club
  
• Showed no effort in round 1 although he did lay 5 tackles which was ok I guess
  
• We have no senior players at all. When will we as a supporter group recognise that even dud senior players are better than none
  
• Oh and the single most important fact in all this, there is absolutely no one on our list who is screaming out for the role Davey plays, not one.
  

Don't give me Blease (he is even softer than Davey)

Don't give me Tapscott (he is underdone and doesn't have the required pace)

Don't give me Bennell (do I even need to explain?)

Don't give me Strauss (I have faith in his ability but has shown nothing and coming off a broken leg)

Don't give me Nicholson (he is quick but doesn't dispose of the ball well or make good decisions)

If Aaron Davey can get a game this week, without going back to Casey to prove his worth to the TEAM then IMO we have officially hit Rock Bottom.

Just shows how barren the last 4 years really have been.

I have a family birthday this saturday so i will rely on Davey reports on here.

Watch him closely, if he doesn't go in hard how can we expect the list to do any better

If Aaron Davey can get a game this week, without going back to Casey to prove his worth to the TEAM then IMO we have officially hit Rock Bottom.

I take issue with this because it isn't just Davey that needs to 'prove worth.'

Aside from Jones, Magner, Clark, Watts, and most of the backline - they all need to prove their worth. So if we are dedicating around 15 positions in our AFL side to those 'proving their worth' - I hardly think allowing Davey to do that in the AFL is 'hitting Rock Bottom.'