Yes.

Logistically it is very possible and given a clear run with injury I would suggest top 4 is likely.

Of all the teams in the comp ours has the most scope for the greatest immediate and tangible improvement.  That is given the profile of the list, the coaching group and the administration.

I think the exits of a few players will also have a positive impact on the ethos of the group and the club as a whole.  

I'm bullish this season, for the first time in a long time.

 

1 hour ago, Bring-Back-Powell said:

The Bulldogs flag win was an absolute fluke. How they went from finishing 7th and ending the season with a loss to a 3-18 side to winning a flag defies a logic.

The Richmond flag win was anything but a fluke. They dominated all 3 of their finals, and I cannot remember a premiership side who has won all their finals by 3 qtr time. Not to mention they also won 9 of their last 10 games including finals.

 

You don't 'fluke' premierships in any sport. They are earnt. The Dogs more than earnt theirs by defeating a very good Swans team.

Bulldogs flag was well deserved imo they had to work hard for it, you don’t fluke a flag having to travel twice during finals 

3 hours ago, The Chazz said:

What's your problem?

While I could've worded my post a bit better, my point was in response to why the media run these sorts of articles.  It's to fill the 5th-18th teams supporters with hope before the season starts, mainly because a lot of those supporters will dare to dream, especially given the last two premiers.

Does that mean I think North, Brisbane, Carlton have any chance of winning the flag?  Absolutely not.  But there are many of their nuffies out there that probably do, and if there is an article written about it, they will read it.

Now, go away and annoy someone else please.

I wasn't aware of your post so it was not aimed at you. Some goose at North made some comment like this and that's why i posted.

1 hour ago, brendan said:

Bulldogs flag was well deserved imo they had to work hard for it, you don’t fluke a flag having to travel twice during finals 

Well said. The last 5 AFL premierships ( 3 x Hawks, 1 x Bulldogs & Richmond ) have all came from the same source, the formula is no secret. You are 100% right hard-work is part of the formula but so is injury prevention/ management but that component does not come cheap. 

2 hours ago, Mazer Rackham said:

Wasn't injury, wasn't luck.

In spite of all those setbacks we were already in the 8.

Our destiny was in our own hands and we let it slip through to the floor, tripped over it, and broke our necks on it.

We did suffer 'heart' problems though!

3 hours ago, Bring-Back-Powell said:

The Richmond flag win was anything but a fluke. They dominated all 3 of their finals, and I cannot remember a premiership side who has won all their finals by 3 qtr time. Not to mention they also won 9 of their last 10 games including finals.

 

Finding the winning formula was a fluke though. It only happened after most of their talls were injured and a forward line had to be manufactured. Did work well but the better teams will have worked out how to counter it.

18 hours ago, don't make me angry said:

Between 2004 to 2006 we hardly lost at the MCG to anyone, and almost never to interstate teams, we could not win at docklands ever in those years.

Yes we did, and yes we could.

In 2004 yes we had a great record at the MCG, but in 2005 and 2006 we dropped many games there. As a finals team you'd expect we would have won more at the MCG than lost but we were hardly a sure thing for those 2 years.

12 minutes ago, Clintosaurus said:

Finding the winning formula was a fluke though. It only happened after most of their talls were injured and a forward line had to be manufactured. Did work well but the better teams will have worked out how to counter it.

And let's not re-write history, the biggest reason for Richmond winning was the tagging job they did on Sloane after 1/4 time.  In the first quarter, the Crows were all over them, starving their small forwards of opportunities.  Sloane was running rampant.

As soon as Sloane was shut down, Richmond got their hand on the ball more, which created their run (which is what they used against a slow Geelong).  They got confidence and momentum, both of which you need to stop more against Richmond than any other team (especially taking the crowd factor out of it.

Talking about "doing a Richmond" - this article penned on the Roar last week is definitely worth a read.

http://www.theroar.com.au/2018/02/20/one-opposition-team-can-dream-copying-richmond/

I like the cut of his jib. I especially liked his commentary on Tom Bugg.

29 minutes ago, small but forward said:

Talking about "doing a Richmond" - this article penned on the Roar last week is definitely worth a read.

http://www.theroar.com.au/2018/02/20/one-opposition-team-can-dream-copying-richmond/

I like the cut of his jib. I especially liked his commentary on Tom Bugg.

Goosebumps. No really.

All hopes are premature at this point. It is just great that we play well in the pre-season after what has been a gruelling yet beneficial training lead-up - or so many DL posters report. Depth is at a very high level and in the main, injuries are not too great an issue thanks to this available choice of players.

The fact that so many of our newer players are performing better than ever is also very encouraging so there is a pleasing anticipation of the 'real' season to come. It would not be fair of us to regard this improvement as a panacea for our lack of success.  To predict the season wash-up wherein the MFC is in a dominate position somewhere in the top seats is folly but hope springs eternal. It would be nice, for a change. I'd really like to see a continuum of our competitiveness as a team - more than anything; win, lose or draw, if we shake long-standing impressions in a positive vein, we will have enjoyed a rewarding season. It is an agony to await the start of the season and the week-by-week fixture but let us be mature about what should be seen, what could be seen and what, ultimately, is seen. 

Luck and good luck must eventually be on our side, too. It is just great to be a supporter and patriot of/for the MFC.

48 minutes ago, small but forward said:

Talking about "doing a Richmond" - this article penned on the Roar last week is definitely worth a read.

http://www.theroar.com.au/2018/02/20/one-opposition-team-can-dream-copying-richmond/

I like the cut of his jib. I especially liked his commentary on Tom Bugg.

From the article:

Key defender? Small defender? Rebounding defender? Inside midfielder? Outside midfielder? Ruckman? Key forward? Small forward? There isn’t an area on the ground where the Demons don’t have a player that is either already elite, or has the talent to get there.

That right there is amazing to read.

5 minutes ago, Choke said:

From the article:

Key defender? Small defender? Rebounding defender? Inside midfielder? Outside midfielder? Ruckman? Key forward? Small forward? There isn’t an area on the ground where the Demons don’t have a player that is either already elite, or has the talent to get there.

That right there is amazing to read.

He is going a little early on that call, but the Roar never does things by halves. I do agree that it is a very balanced team we are building. Instead of the 2011-2015 teams where you wonder who you can bring in to replace someone, you wonder how the hell you are going to fit them all in. My best 22 runs to about 26. Balanced. About the only two things I think could be improved is having an AFL ready back up ruck... but those things take time and luck, and sure as hell don't grow on trees, and a little bit more outside polish, but even there most of that can be coached when players get confidence in their team-mates and game plan. Let's face it - it's a lot easier to leave your man and run into space if you believe your team will win the ball and won't [censored] it up when they do.

The thing I really like the most about this side is how many of them are out of no-where / cost nothing trades. They have the talent and the drive, all they have to do is believe that they belong, and can match it with the best for 4q's then we will have a bloody good side. I think that, and a little bit of maturity, is all that is lacking.

Do I think we can do a Richmond this year? No, I think Richmond will do another Richmond this year. I think their talent, maturity and belief will put them right up there again. But if we don't make the top 4 I'll consider it a very wasted year. We should have had that last year but for brain farts, injuries and stupid suspensions.  

2 hours ago, Deemania since 56 said:

 Depth is at a very high level 

 

This is critical and often overlooked general public tend to focus on elite talent - but such is life. 

 

 

4 hours ago, small but forward said:

Talking about "doing a Richmond" - this article penned on the Roar last week is definitely worth a read.

http://www.theroar.com.au/2018/02/20/one-opposition-team-can-dream-copying-richmond/

I like the cut of his jib. I especially liked his commentary on Tom Bugg.

 

Written by a member of the public good click bait - not sure I'm in favour of pumping up the tyres pre-premiership but always like to hear good positive stuff about our boys. 

On 26 February 2018 at 1:27 PM, Clint Bizkit said:

Didn't we do a Richmond last year by finishing ninth in the most cruel and agonising way possible?

Clint do you have any idea how many times the Toiges ended up @ 9th before they won last year? 

On 28 February 2018 at 5:34 PM, DaveyDee said:

Written by a member of the public good click bait - not sure I'm in favour of pumping up the tyres pre-premiership but always like to hear good positive stuff about our boys. 

Can someone tell me where the Bugg painting in that article?  Quite impressive

On 2/28/2018 at 2:09 PM, Choke said:

From the article:

Key defender? Small defender? Rebounding defender? Inside midfielder? Outside midfielder? Ruckman? Key forward? Small forward? There isn’t an area on the ground where the Demons don’t have a player that is either already elite, or has the talent to get there.

That right there is amazing to read.

Yeah... reading this, I don't agree on the outside midfielder, unless he's referring to Salem, who is playing mainly on the inside...

However, an exciting article. We can all dream.

Edited March 1, 20187 yr by A F

On 28/02/2018 at 2:43 PM, Uncle Fester said:

He is going a little early on that call, but the Roar never does things by halves. I do agree that it is a very balanced team we are building. Instead of the 2011-2015 teams where you wonder who you can bring in to replace someone, you wonder how the hell you are going to fit them all in. My best 22 runs to about 26. Balanced. About the only two things I think could be improved is having an AFL ready back up ruck... but those things take time and luck, and sure as hell don't grow on trees, and a little bit more outside polish, but even there most of that can be coached when players get confidence in their team-mates and game plan. Let's face it - it's a lot easier to leave your man and run into space if you believe your team will win the ball and won't [censored] it up when they do.

The thing I really like the most about this side is how many of them are out of no-where / cost nothing trades. They have the talent and the drive, all they have to do is believe that they belong, and can match it with the best for 4q's then we will have a bloody good side. I think that, and a little bit of maturity, is all that is lacking.

Do I think we can do a Richmond this year? No, I think Richmond will do another Richmond this year. I think their talent, maturity and belief will put them right up there again. But if we don't make the top 4 I'll consider it a very wasted year. We should have had that last year but for brain farts, injuries and stupid suspensions.  

They have had a ton of publicity over the last week many of “their little secrets” are now hitting the streets. I’m sticking with them for 1 more year then hopefully I can finally look at us. 

Go Dees

Momentum is incredibly important. History shows that teams in the top 8 after round 8 usually make finals.

We need to get off to a good start, fuel belief and keep the pressure on through depth at Casey that will keep our players focused on getting a game. Oh, and no injuries is a huge factor as well. 

Watching the Richmond / North game tonight, the biggest thing (aside from team cohesion) is work rate. The Richmond players are outnumbering North at every contest and hunting in packs. It's North, but Richmond look good.

On 26/02/2018 at 3:58 PM, Demonland said:

I don't think this warrants it's own thread so I will put this here. https://www.sen.com.au/news/2018/02/26/everyones-playing-for-second/

KB thinks everyone else in the league is just playing for second place based on the 4 games of practice matches. Is he high or off his meds?

Is this footy's version of The Onion?
 

 

KB you are dreaming of the the late 60s and early 70s when you won  some flags, in fact 4 Ps  This Richmond side WON A FLUKE that is all it was. However you won it good luck. When we win it, we will deserve it.

9 hours ago, nosoupforme said:

This Richmond side WON A FLUKE that is all it was. However you won it good luck. 

Not sure they would agree with you - but winners are grinners. I shaw first hand all the hard work that went into it - it was very motivational, very positive environment to be around. 

10 hours ago, nosoupforme said:

KB you are dreaming of the the late 60s and early 70s when you won  some flags, in fact 4 Ps  This Richmond side WON A FLUKE that is all it was. However you won it good luck. When we win it, we will deserve it.

1. KB is a stirrer of old. He's world class at it too. Let the senile old bugger have his moment of joy.

2. Fluke or no fluke. Either way it's not easy. The RFC players and fans will be sorely disappointed at fluking a premiership. I know I would be.

 

 

 

 

 

(not)