Jump to content

Tom McDonald?

DeeSpencer
DeeSpencer
in Melbourne Demons

Featured Replies

Tommy Mac stands tall, doesn't give in and has some handy scalps.e.g he can run with Riewoldt (except when he has two corkies), Franklin and last saturdya night stood tall again. His 1% are valuable because the blokes against him are scorers. We need to support him. Just a few weeks ago everyone was saying how well the defence knits and now we tear them down .

Frremantle scored less than 100 points and a lot of them were through turnovers further up the ground. Let's be fair.

  • Quote
    •  

    Is it that bad really? He's probably "bottom quartile" in the AFL (and someone has to be) and I know he has a funny action, but in the error riddled game just gone, I don't recall any Tom McDonald howlers, and he was involved in the game plenty.

    It's probably a case of being way overplayed amongst supporters because a small number of very bad errors stick in people's mind and skews their perspective.

    He was good on Saturday night. You may be right. I may be suffering from the "Clint Batram's". Probably didn't make that many errors but when he did they were real stinkers. Goes back to my point - the times he turns it over is when he has too much to decide what to do. Makes it look worse.

  • Quote

    Getting hung up on his skill execution misses the point.

    He is a CHB. He would be dynamite if Nick Malceski was on his left and Rhyce Shaw on his right.

  • Quote
    • Like 1
     

    why is skill execution a non debatable ?

  • Quote

    Getting hung up on his skill execution misses the point.

    He is a CHB. He would be dynamite if Nick Malceski was on his left and Rhyce Shaw on his right.

    Agreed. We have a backline that only has one damaging kick - Lynden Dunn. Our inability to break lines from defence, by foot or with run, has been a big problem for a while. Ironically, McDonald is actually one of our best at running through the lines from defence!

  • Quote

    yeah skills....so overrated :rolleyes:

  • Quote

    I assume that wasn't in response to my post.

    why ?

    do you not rate skills ?

  • Quote
    •  

    youre so precious Bob

    it was your inference to RP's post..

    dont you read ??

  • Quote

    yeah skills....so overrated :rolleyes:

    You've really missed it on this one.

    rpfc said, and AoB agreed, that focusing on his skill execution misses the point that he's the FB/CHB and shouldn't be the one doing the bulk of the kicking.

    It's a good point.

    Doesn't change the fact that his kicking is still not good enough even for a FB/CHB, but it vastly changes the dynamic of the discussion when you realise that he's not supposed to be the player doing the elite kicking out of the back.

  • Quote
    • Like 2

    youre so precious Bob

    it was your inference to RP's post..

    dont you read ??

    Let's go back a step.

    You implied that I don't think skills are important. This was directly in response to my post, which was of me bemoaning the lack of highly skilled players in our backline.

    *sigh*

  • Quote

    Don't think its been mentioned, but McDonald got 2 votes in the AFLCoaches votes (presumably from Roos), and Roos singled him out in his presser. McDonald aint going anywhere (unless he wants out).

  • Quote

    lets rewind..but purposely

    YOU ,A of B agreed with RPFC that getting hing upon execution misses the pojnt

    That is the pojnt. You missed it

    Execution is the skill..its what he lacks go fish

    nice try

    If you stopped focusing on the poster and looked to the problem maybe youd make sense

  • Quote

    Apologies to everyone else, but this will get boring for a little bit.

    I agreed with rpfc's post that we lack skill in defence, and that focussing solely on McDonald is missing the point. I reinforced this by explaining that we lack skill in defence. In fact, my exact words were:

    "We have a backline that only has one damaging kick - Lynden Dunn. Our inability to break lines from defence, by foot or with run, has been a big problem for a while."

    You didn't read my post. You saw the first word and assumed it was a direct attack on your POV. You made a mistake because you didn't read properly. The best response you could have made was "Oops, I misread your post" which would have resulted in nothing further happening. By continuing to try to cover up your mistake you are just making yourself look foolish. You don't get out of a hole by digging.

    At no stage did I focus on the poster. I responded to rpfc's post, not yours, because he is a good poster who makes interesting points.

  • Quote

    He's a solid contributor, pretty quick. His kicking used to be woeful, it's improved a fair bit. McDonald isn't really a problem, it's a difficult time for our defence, Garland hasn't been great, Questions over Frawley, Grimes is struggling, Terlich too, is Howe comfortable down there? Only real standouts in recent weeks have been Dunn and Jetta

  • Quote

    why is skill execution a non debatable ?

    It's not. But how about we worry about those in the list who lack these qualities but don't bring serious attributes like Tom. Like RPFC says, he'd be dynamite if we had better users off half back, he shouldn't have to be one of them.

  • Quote

    What people seem to fail to realise is that Tommy is a fantastic contested possession player and is rarely beaten.

    He turns it over. Fancy that from a young key position player.

    MFC will be desperate for him to extent his contract.

  • Quote
    • Like 8

    Has Beezlebub always been this asinine?

    I remember him being at least readable, but now pretty much everything he says is ridiculous.

  • Quote

    What people seem to fail to realise is that Tommy is a fantastic contested possession player and is rarely beaten.

    He turns it over. Fancy that from a young key position player.

    MFC will be desperate for him to extent his contract.

    You summed it up for me there Bob. I can have diametrically opposed views on Tom from one game to another. Hell sometimes within the same passage of play I can go from wild enthusiasm for his defence work to abject despair over his disposal. But let's face it we all knew that when he went down against Riewoldt in round 1 that it was probably going to be game changing. We would have won that match if he didn't get injured. If his kicking was even a 7/10 then you could comfortably assume he would be a fair shot at AA CHB for the next half decade.

    The MFC will be desperate to get his signature but hopefully Tom can spend less time in the offseason gut running and more spent on honing his disposal

  • Quote
    • Like 4

    It's not. But how about we worry about those in the list who lack these qualities but don't bring serious attributes like Tom. Like RPFC says, he'd be dynamite if we had better users off half back, he shouldn't have to be one of them.

    Speaking of our need for better users off half back, does anyone know how long Garland & Grimes have on their contracts?

  • Quote

    Speaking of our need for better users off half back, does anyone know how long Garland & Grimes have on their contracts?

    Nah, not a clue...

  • Quote
    •  

    Re-signed until the end of 2016. Good news.

    Welcome to the next era Tommy.

    Please continue your good work and ethic but please please work on that kicking ...please :)

    Good to see you have faith in the club

    Edited by beelzebub

  • Quote
    • Like 1

    Join the conversation

    You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

    Guest
    Unfortunately, your content contains terms that we do not allow. Please edit your content to remove the highlighted words below.
    Reply to this topic...
    Go to topic listing

    Featured Content

    • GAMEDAY: Hawthorn

      It’s game day and the Demons are chasing a fourth straight win as we take on the high flying Hawks at the G. After decades of being tormented by the Hawks the Dees will be keen to extend their 7 year dominance over Hawthorn.

        • Clap
        • Thanks
        • Like
      • 8 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • NON-MFC: Round 09

      Round 9 kicks off out west with the Dockers hosting a Collingwood side resting several stars. Fremantle need to make a statement on their home deck after some disappointing form on the road, while the Magpies will be keen to maintain their Top 2 position. Friday night sees a must-win clash between two sides desperate to stay in touch with the eight. St Kilda have shown glimpses while Carlton are clinging to relevance after a flat start to the season. Saturday’s twilight game at Marvel pits the Bombers against a struggling Sydney outfit. Essendon can’t afford another close match against a lower-ranked side, while the Swans risk sliding down the ladder even further. Up in Darwin, the fourth-placed Suns will look to extend their stay in the top four. The Bulldogs have hit their stride with three big wins on the trot and will be very keen to consolidate on their momentum. The always fiery Showdown looms as pivotal for both clubs. Adelaide are eyeing a spot in the Top 4 with a win, while Port Adelaide’s season could slip away if they drop another game and fall further behind the pack. Sunday begins with a yawn fest between Richmond and West Coast. The Tigers need to bank the points to stay clear of the bottom two, while the Eagles are still chasing their first win of the year. The Giants face one of the league’s toughest road trips as they travel to GMHBA Stadium to face the Cats. With GWS at risk of a third straight loss, Geelong will be eager to consolidate their position inside the eight and start their climb up the ladder. The round wraps up with the top-of-the-table Lions heading to Ninja Stadium to take on the second-last Roos. The Lions should easily take care of the struggling Roos who might be powerless against the best in the comp. Who are you tipping and what are the best results for the Demons?

        • Thanks
      • 142 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • PREVIEW: Hawthorn

      Melbourne and Hawthorn who face off against each other this week have more in common than having once almost merged and about to wear a blue jumper with a red v triangle and an embroidered picture of a bird on the front. They also share the MCG as their main home ground, their supporters are associated with the leafy suburbs of Melbourne and in recent times, James Frawley graced the colours of both teams. Even more recently, both have bounced back from disastrous five game losing streaks to start off a season. Of course, the Hawks turned their bounce into a successful leap from the bottom of the ladder into a finals appearance, making it to the semifinals in 2024 and this year, they’re riding high in third place on the AFL table. The Demons are just three games into their 2025 bounce back, and are yet to climb their way out of the bottom four although they are sitting a game and percentage out of the top eight. However, with the current sportsbet odds of $3.90 to win this week’s encounter, it seems a forlorn hope that their upward progression will continue much longer.

        • Thumb Down
        • Clap
        • Thanks
      • 0 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • PODCAST: Harvey Langford Interview

      On Wednesday I'll be interviewing the Melbourne Football Club's first pick in the 2024 National Draft and pick number 6 overall Harvey Langford. If you have any questions you want asked let me know. I will release the interview on Wednesday afternoon.

        • Clap
        • Love
        • Thanks
        • Like
      • 35 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • REPORT: West Coast

      On a night of counting, Melbourne captain Max Gawn made sure that his contribution counted. He was at his best and superb in the the ruck from the very start of the election night game against the West Coast Eagles at Optus Stadium, but after watching his dominance of the first quarter and a half of the clash evaporate into nothing as the Eagles booted four goals in the last ten minutes of the opening half, he turned the game on its head, with a ruckman’s masterclass in the second half.  No superlatives would be sufficient to describe the enormity of the skipper’s performance starting with his 47 hit outs, a career-high 35 possessions (22 of them contested), nine clearances, 12 score involvements and, after messing up an attempt or two, finally capping off one of the greatest rucking performances of all time, with a goal of own in the final quarter not long after he delivered a right angled pass into the arms of Daniel Turner who also goaled from a pocket (will we ever know if the pass is what was intended). That was enough to overturn a 12 point deficit after the Eagles scored the first goal of the second half into a 29 point lead at the last break and a winning final quarter (at last) for the Demons who decided not to rest their champion ruckman at the end this time around. 

        • Thanks
        • Like
      • 0 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • PREGAME: Hawthorn

      The Demons return to the MCG to take on the High Flying Hawks on Saturday Afternoon. Hawthorn will be aiming to consolidate a position in the Top 4 whilst the Dees will be looking to take a scalp and make it four wins in a row. Who comes in and who goes out?

        • Thanks
      • 334 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland
    View All