Tom McDonald needs to take a good hard look at himself.

[olisik 4,060]

Should refrain from doing interviews talking about how excited he is to win 2 in a row and focus on his kicking. 

He is as bad as Jack Watts with his consistency

[picket fence 17,172]

'His our most experienced tall defender who knows how to throw opposition forwards off their game for starters. MacDonald is often towelled by tall forwards and has lost us games on numerous occasions like the Cloak incident last year.That has never happened to Dunn. TMac needs to grapple more and grab and nudge ect like all the good back men do."

As quoted elsehwere by another poster!

Exactly Correct! an ex AFL player said as much to me in his summation of the game. ( Luckily I couldn't go) he feels the same!

I have said this time and again

1 He gets outmanoevered far far too often

2 Has no awareness of what is around him

3 Is a poor decision maker

Was Towelled up yet again 

No use glossing over it Tom Mc Donald and his brother are massiveley overrated players.

[DeeZee 7,399]

McDonald will never get better , he has had his opportunities,a real Jekyll and Hyde character who gives away as many goals as he saves.....we need to find a better number one defender.

Bugg and Garland were just as bad today, so our backline is going backwards, pardon the pun.

Salem is a good player but I feel he is being wasted down there, needs to be up the ground a bit more.

Jetta is a real winner and showed the others how it is done.

[goodwindees 2,488]

Tom McDonald is not, and probably never going to be a strong, body on body, physical defender such as a Dunn or even a Jetta who is a very good body on body defender.  

This is why Tom is a real liability when playing as deep/last line key defender.

Tom has some exceptional endurance running capabilities and is a very good intercept mark when he can lose body contact thru his ability to read it in play.  There is no doubt that opposition coaches try to get him as deep as possible because as Allan Jeans would say, Tom is a terrible driver in heavy traffic.

If Dunn is not playing I would have Pederson or Frost as the deep Key Defender.  

The other issue is that our Defence is so terribly slow by foot.  Jetta, Tom & Garland are slow by foot and while Salem isn't slow he certainly isn't quick  The Prince is quick, but headless chook quick in that he runs into trouble and then turns it over.

Gee, it's not hard to see why we've won 30 odd games in 5 years!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Adam The God 30,271]

This has been McDonald's problem. Like many others on our list, they show absolutely no sign of consistency. If our team is to show signs of consistency then they must too. Watts is another one. These guys have played enough games now. They've played almost 50 games under Roos and his FD. Jones and Vince show a level of consistency, but pretty much everyone else on the list struggles from week to week. 

We have the younger guys in the first one to two seasons and their form will naturally fluctuate, but it's time these guys with 80-100 games experience delivered some consistency. 

I just can't understand why the FD clearly seems to keep telling McDonald to back himself with ball in hand. It seems incongruous that a coach wouldn't have told him by now, but if so, why does he persist in trying to cut off more than he can chew?

[dazzledavey36 54,955]

8 hours ago, Meggs said:

Time to resurrect this thread Dazzle?

Honestly whats the point. Il just get shouted down by the usual same people. Its not even a situation of 'I told you so!' but the fact people are so blinded how incredibly liability he is to us when he doesn't keep it simple..

I think im just repeating myself.

 

 

[Adam The God 30,271]

23 minutes ago, dazzledavey36 said:

Honestly whats the point. Il just get shouted down by the usual same people. Its not even a situation of 'I told you so!' but the fact people are so blinded how incredibly liability he is to us when he doesn't keep it simple..

I think im just repeating myself.

The interesting thing is he wasn't a liability last week and I wouldn't have said he'd played within his limitations either. He was quite expansive but it came off for him and therefore us. It was either a lucky week for McDonald or it has something to do with the run and spread from our team, enabling an easy option to kick to and more space for him to line break. I'm not totally sure which one it is yet, though given our lack of run today, it's probably the latter.

[Pirlo 813]

Absolutely hopeless today. Will never win two games in a row if he keeps performing like this, and it'll all be his fault.

Last season we had the best FF and CHB in the league. This year, they can't get an effective touch between them and their massively inflated heads.

[Adam The God 30,271]

17 minutes ago, Pirlo said:

Absolutely hopeless today. Will never win two games in a row if he keeps performing like this, and it'll all be his fault.

Last season we had the best FF and CHB in the league. This year, they can't get an effective touch between them and their massively inflated heads.

McDonald had a great start to last year and then fell away badly in the second half of the year.

[leucopogon 1,519]

We need to fast track Frost as our new #1 defender. TMac ain't the man. Maybe he can reinvent himself as a Richo style wingman that can run all day, or perhaps try him as a Forward. He's too often a liability in defense.

[olisik 4,060]

He needs to do more then just go for the punch. We see every week what defenders do and get away with doing to Hogan. TMac needs to grapple, grab jumpers, accidentally fall on people, heckle ect to put forwards off games. Simply going for a 'spoil' doesn't cut it and that's why Dunn is a much better backman.  His forwards do what they want on him and get away with it. 

 

Hogan would have a field day on TMac 

[Soidee 1,496]

If TMac and many others want to walk the walk at the top level, then NOW is the time to get your damn game in order. 

Consistency for this bloke should be part of his game.  FFS Tom get off second base and lead.  We need leaders not clumsy types who fumble their way around a footy field.  TMac always looks good on the training track, like so many others at this club.

when going into battle they turn into bumbling b graders.  If it was easy to walk away I would do it in a heartbeat, sadly I am nailed on.

[Sir Why You Little 37,046]

My God he was slaughtered yesterday...just shocking. 

[dazzledavey36 54,955]

We talk about leadership problems and McDonald and Garland are two prime examples of this.

When you continue to turn the ball over and make simple characteristics mistakes then how are the other players suppose to look up to these guys and say i want to follow you? 

 

[640MD 3,380]

11 hours ago, AdamFarr said:

McDonald had a great start to last year and then fell away badly in the second half of the year.

 Don't think the loss was all due to poor defence from Tmac or even garland. Though they were poor. Our forwards had little run and the ball just came through the centre and into our defence Daniher just too tall, we did not keep it in the centre or our half for long enough. Let alone kick enough goals. But the back back into our defence just too quick with little pressure.  Feels better to talk about it now I was not happy yesterday can only think of two or three good bits 

[Slartibartfast 17,326]

12 hours ago, AdamFarr said:

 It was either a lucky week for McDonald or it has something to do with the run and spread from our team, enabling an easy option to kick to and more space for him to line break. 

His turnover for Essendon's first goal was interesting.  Our game plan all year has been to switch so McDonald switches expecting to see options.

When he played on he couldn't see anyone so he baulked a player and saw Bugg on the members wing.  Bugg was 80 metres away and on his own.  Bugg didn't move expecting McDonald to get it to him.  By the time McDonald kicked it Essendon had covered Bugg and more, McDonald bungles the kick and Essendon goal.  All that had to happen was for Bugg to lead hard and give McDonald an easy 30 metre kick rather than a 60 metre kick.  For the life of me I don't know why he didn't do it and of course while everyone rightly recognizes that McDonald's kick was awful it was Bugg who was mainly responsible.

 

[titan_uranus 25,020]

13 hours ago, dazzledavey36 said:

Honestly whats the point. Il just get shouted down by the usual same people. Its not even a situation of 'I told you so!' but the fact people are so blinded how incredibly liability he is to us when he doesn't keep it simple..

I think im just repeating myself.

Whilst you are certainly guilty of repeating yourself in most threads on this site, last week you said this about McDonald:

On 3/26/2016 at 10:14 AM, hemingway said:

Tom is a great player. Give me contested ball in the defensive half, give me Tom McDonald.  Works his butt off and never shirks a contest. Will (if not already) take over from Dunn as our key back and defensive leader.

On 3/26/2016 at 10:25 AM, dazzledavey36 said:

Already has.

I still think Dunn has a big role to play for us though.

You may well sway in the wind from week to week more than anyone else on Demonland.

[dazzledavey36 54,955]

2 minutes ago, titan_uranus said:

Whilst you are certainly guilty of repeating yourself in most threads on this site, last week you said this about McDonald:

You may well sway in the wind from week to week more than anyone else on Demonland.

Of course Dunn still has a big role to play. I still stand by that. But agaaaain when McDonald just keeps it simple and just limit those errors i find he is much more focused and is right up their as one of the best defenders of the game. Prime example is the Gws game early last year and late against Jeremy Cameron.

His problem is his ego gets the better of him and he tries to bite off more then he can chew. Id also like a please explain why he didn't pay enough respect to Daniher and instead guys like Garland Mjones and even Bugg had to man him while he was too busy guarding space in the defensive 50.

[Mazer Rackham 14,971]

16 hours ago, olisik said:

He needs to do more then just go for the punch. We see every week what defenders do and get away with doing to Hogan. TMac needs to grapple, grab jumpers, accidentally fall on people, heckle ect to put forwards off games. Simply going for a 'spoil' doesn't cut it and that's why Dunn is a much better backman.  His forwards do what they want on him and get away with it. 

 

Hogan would have a field day on TMac 

It would be TMac's dream to play on Hogan. All he would have to do is punch.

Plant himself in the goal square and punch away the rainmakers falling vertically down.

[Dockett 32 1,239]

Pretty good player TMac but got towelled up yesterday .Imagine he wouldn't be too thrilled about it, nor the dopey non selection of Dunne to give he and Garland a 'chop out' against the Gorilla who held a tremendous one on one size advantage. Roos talks to the players about respecting your opponent, but the selectors didn't bother about this one too much. Looked plain stupid.

[P-man 13,366]

Please god why are we not blooding Frost as the defender he was recruited as? So frustrating that we have an athletic brute that gets dropped after he doesn't cut it as a forward utility when he's a DEFENDER.

[Palace Dees 2,330]

45 minutes ago, P-man said:

Please god why are we not blooding Frost as the defender he was recruited as? So frustrating that we have an athletic brute that gets dropped after he doesn't cut it as a forward utility when he's a DEFENDER.

Agree with this. Not yet impressed with Frost as a footballer, but he is inexperienced and apparently a super athlete so I still am hopeful. He has a much better chance to learn if left to develop as a back where his pace can be best used to apply pressure and build self confidence. I was very concerned when 2 bigs were replaced by mids yesterday. A 3rd tall back is essential in any team IMO and O Mac is not ready. That said - Dunn if/when fit has to play - his footy smarts were sorely missed yesterday.

[Deecisive 1,709]

Frost has shown that he is not cutting it as a forward yet, so give him a chance to get his hands on the ball and find some form in the backline a position he has played a little time. Once he starts to show a bit more form then consider him for the forward line. At the moment he should take garlands place against north, we need the height to combat brown and the other north forwards and resting rucks.

[praha 11,240]

I'd give McDonald a run in the middle. 

*runs and hides*

[Timothy Reddan-A'Blew 5,139]

Sorry if this one's been pointed out before.

1st quarter, 11:18 in: Parish 5 metres away running at him, with momentum, directly in his line of sight as he marks. How could he possibly have thought he could play on safely? Is this (lack of) awareness reparable? He has so much upside, particularly the crunch intercept marking. These moments are letting him down.