I don't get the argument of someone being dropped because they're on big coin.

Let him string more than one game in a row this season before calling for him to be dropped.

Agreed. He is on big money because that's what we were required to pay at the time, or else he would be in another jumper. It's completely irrelevant now.

Far more concerned about our midfield. Until we improve here, our forwards will continue to struggle.

He just needs to play his role.

Whatever it is...

Far more concerned about our midfield. Until we improve here, our forwards will continue to struggle.

Completely agree. For too long, even where our mids have managed to win clearances to make 50 metre entries, our options have been few. Mitch Clark did not play enough for obvious reasons, which saw Dawes about our only true forward option, apart from Pedo chipping in occasionally and Frawley making cameo forward appearances last year.

Let's hope Hogan stays sound and with Garlett and hopefully JKH being dangerous as crumbers, our options begin to become more potent. But to try and sum up Dawe's performance after just one 2015 game, in the new forward set up, smacks of a premature evaluation, which many of us may have suffered from. Oops ...... yes I mean "evaluation"

Completely agree. For too long, even where our mids have managed to win clearances to make 50 metre entries, our options have been few. Mitch Clark did not play enough for obvious reasons, which saw Dawes about our only true forward option, apart from Pedo chipping in occasionally and Frawley making cameo forward appearances last year.

Let's hope Hogan stays sound and with Garlett and hopefully JKH being dangerous as crumbers, our options begin to become more potent. But to try and sum up Dawe's performance after just one 2015 game, in the new forward set up, smacks of a premature evaluation, which many of us may have suffered from. Oops ...... yes I mean "evaluation"

Why is it that we NEVER see Dawes, deep inside 50, charging at the ball-carrier, leading his opponent to be on the end of a chest mark as a result of a midfielder delivering inside 50

We always see him with often two opponents in a contested mark situation that is not to his advantage, where he has very little hope

Is it

a) The supply from our midfield generally sucks

b) Dawes himself does not do a good enough job to be in the correct position and make a good lead

c) The game plan is not even designed for this outcome

If it is c) then you have to wonder how does Dawes actually fit in to our plan

I say judge him after this year. Did the whole pre season and is as fit as he has been since 2010..

If he only gives us 15-20 goals then I'll agree he isn't up to it..

Dont understand why he went on a complete diet change and lose 8 kilos.. dont see how that will improve his concrete hands Or kick more goals.

People may bag Dawes but if he wasn't in the forward line making a contest we would be far worse.

Thought he was very good in the preseason, and even though a little rusty in his first real match back against GWS, and not clunking his marks , his work rate was still very good, will only get better once he settles into the season and finds his marking mojo.

Edited April 16, 201510 yr by DeeZee

_{Dawes is GOLD for Hogan. For that reason alone he must be one of the first picked every week despite his limitations.}

I'd rather play Pedersen.

Dont understand why he went on a complete diet change and lose 8 kilos.. dont see how that will improve his concrete hands Or kick more goals.

Actually Dawes "concrete hands" could be easily rectified with a little practice of approaching a mark with his hands already above his head, not reaching up at the same time as impact.

Have seen this work on a lot of players struggling to mark overhead, whilst on a strong fast lead. Note - to maintain a break/separation on the defender these players often raise the hands at the last moment resulting in forward movement of the hands approaching the forward movement of the ball coming from the opposite direction, making marking just that little bit more difficult - of course raising the hands slightly earlier results in loss of speed (try sprinting with your hands above your heads).

Most players with ‘soft hands’, already have them in place before the ball arrives.

_{Dawes is GOLD for Hogan. For that reason alone he must be one of the first picked every week despite his limitations.}

maybe but I am not sure about this assertion. would be interested in your reasons GNF. hogan is fast, mobile and needs to be given space. dawes can't mark and also needs space to lead up field. hogan can mark and does not need to be hindered by his team mates. so really the question is whether these two can use space in a way that suits both without hindering one another. It also needs set plays, good midfield movement and the midfielders knowing who they will go to and when. also has to be viewed in the context of the whole forward line set-up and how the ball is coming in. scatter gun approach is not going to work.

^^ Earnest. Sounds good in theory. But they should never be in the same space. Only played together once in real comp* so they need a bit more I am sure.

*which I know is once more that the previous great hope duo, Dawes and that scumbag who went to Geelong did.

_{Dawes is GOLD for Hogan. For that reason alone he must be one of the first picked every week despite his limitations.}

I like Dawes, but he isn't even getting the team's no1 defender. Hogan had Davis all game last week, dawes had Nick Haynes or some other defender with long blond hair who hurt his leg but played the game out on dawes. If it was nick he had 11 disposals (47 fantasy points), Chris had 12 disposals (56 fantasy points). I like the IDEA of what Dawes can do for hogan by taking the No1 defender, but the thing is he isn't at this stage. HOGAN looks and is a lot more exciting and damaging.

So if the premise is that Dawes takes the best defender then we need to re-think this. Just a thought, but even though Gawn has started poorly, he is more likely to get the better defender purely because of his size. SO would Gawn in the goal square be better than 'GOLD' for Hogan?

I don't know the answer, just hope Dawes can pick up his game this week (he had 5 marks last week, so not bad).

I'd rather play Pedersen.

Totally agree Play Pedo until Dawes if ever learns to play as a forward ie Run to space, don't contest against Hoges and Catch the bloody ball!!

How is Fitzpatrick going? He can play forward and fill in, in the ruck.

Dawes is unlikely to get the better defender if teams have done their research. But he'll still help Hogan.

For one it divides the contests each has to stand under and take big hits, because there will be plenty of up and under kicks. It also allows Hogan to go closer to goal if that's his best match up or go up the ground and get involved in play knowing we have another deeper target.

Funny how everyone creamed themselves about Watts' tap down to Garlett last week but I didn't see much praise for the way Dawes not to mark but to tap it down to Kent for a beautiful crumbing goal in the first quarter.

Don't get me wrong, Dawes is a limited player and I struggle to see him getting a game in a top side. I would love to have a dominant ruck/forward player out of the goal square, a mature Hogan playing traditional CHF and then Jack Watts fulfilling his talent as the 3rd option. A couple of crumbers and resting mid or half forwards who can take a grab and we've got a really good set up.

But we don't have that really good 2nd ruck/forward. Hogan is 2 games in to his career. Watts looks improved this year but still has a lot of work to do to show he's a marking target not just an overly tall flanker.

How is Fitzpatrick going? He can play forward and fill in, in the ruck.

They saw so much of his talent in preseason they decided to move him down back at Casey.

Pedersen and Gawn are next in line for the key forward and 2nd ruck roles respectively.

Although Jamar forward and Spencer in as the number 1 ruck might happen before either of those options.

It might work for a week or two before ending in disaster and we'll be scratching our heads saying play Frost/Pedo/Gawn whoever again.

People may bag Dawes but if he wasn't in the forward line making a contest we would be far worse.

Debatable. We kicked 17 goals without Dawes in round 1. I haven't written him off yet but he needs to prove that he belongs in our forward line.

http://www.melbournefc.com.au/video/2015-04-16/last-time-we-met-adelaide

This is what Dawes did to the crows last year.

Edited April 16, 201510 yr by Brayshaw Self

Dawes' good games are the ones where he is up the ground halving contests when outnumbered (which he did once excellently early on last week), harassing opposition defenders with fierce tackling, and a huge workrate. He is never going to be a big breakout forward who kicks 5 goals, but he can do an important job, which he didn't do last Saturday.

It just seems he has one of these great games every 5 or 6 weeks, where he is everywhere and contesting further up the ground, but he needs to do that each week as his hands aren't reliable enough to play deeper and kick 3 goals a week.

http://www.melbournefc.com.au/video/2015-04-16/last-time-we-met-adelaide

This is what Dawes did to the crows last year.

we could certainly do with a repeat

that link went 404 maybe this one

http://www.melbournefc.com.au/video/2015-04-16/last-time-we-met-adelaide

Debatable. We kicked 17 goals without Dawes in round 1. I haven't written him off yet but he needs to prove that he belongs in our forward line.

i would prefer to see him play up the ground a little. Dawes can still be a very useful CHF or high flanker when our crumbers learn to read him better

What Hogan does is take a ONE GRAB Mark.

But he is not a long booming kick.

Give him space to move in the arc like we did for the wonderous Allen Jakovich

_{Dawes is GOLD for Hogan. For that reason alone he must be one of the first picked every week despite his limitations.}

Hogan did alright in the first game without him so I don't see that at all.

Dawes needs to give real value; lets hope he starts this week.