The reviews are mixed. 

 

Jake Niall is petty spot on with his assessment. Hibberd & Hunt give us elite half backs. Lever is an elite intercept mark. Oliver, Tyson, Viney & Jones are all fantastic inside mids. Petracca gives us forward X factor. Hogan & Mcdonald are solid key talls. 

I think the missing piece is really that outside runner, which is why I think we should be going after Gaff at the end of this year.

I agree. In my opinion, the journalists, opposition supporters and, indeed, many of our own supporters who are playing down our top 4 prospects are probably heavily influenced by their perceptions of a different MFC, namely the Melbourne of old.

This playing group, this coaching group, is not.

Objectively, we have a super well balanced list in terms of experience and ability, we have a very good coaching group, and I think, injuries permitting, we’ll be in the mix year. Big time.

 

"if they weren't called Melbourne we would probably believe....." sigh.

"If they weren't called Melbourne, we'd all believe"

It's hard to argue with that.  His assessment is excellent though, and does put into perspective the list we are building.  If we can get over the mental hurdle of making the finals then the sky is the limit for this team.

1 minute ago, Ron Burgundy said:

 

This playing group, this coaching group, is not.

 

It's pretty well the same team as that which played Round 23 and let's not forget they didn't exactly cover themselves with glory against the lowly Bears the week or so earlier.

Ask me at the bye how we are doing and hopefully I will agree with you.

Remind me by the way of the season .... I think it was 2008 or thereabouts under Bailey where we were glowingly reviewed as the next best thing. Lost badly to Brisbane in the first round and it was all downhill thereafter.

Hate to echo SWYL but this team has a lot of proving to do before it gains the confidence of its supporter base let alone the general public.

Also I've never rated Jon Pierik or Peter Ryan in their assessments of any team.  Muppets.

3 minutes ago, Diamond_Jim said:

It's pretty well the same team as that which played Round 23 and let's not forget they didn't exactly cover themselves with glory against the lowly Bears the week or so earlier.

There are a few things that have changed since then:

Jesse Hogan is back to full fitness and he has put a horror year behind him.  Even if he doesn't play Round 1, Viney is over his foot issues and he's ready to go.  We've added Jake Lever to our backline, which has allowed us to now fully release Tom McDonald to play as a permanent forward.  Our kids have all got another pre-season under their belt and the pain of Round 23 will spur them on.

They are just a few examples, but while they are the same names on paper, I do believe it will be a different side, both mentally and physically, lining up for us in Round 1.

5 minutes ago, Salems Lot said:

"if they weren't called Melbourne we would probably believe....." sigh.

It does take time to change perceptions doesn’t it. I still don’t rate Richmond that highly and are confident of rolling them on Anzac Eve and they’ve just won the flag!

9 minutes ago, Diamond_Jim said:

It's pretty well the same team as that which played Round 23 and let's not forget they didn't exactly cover themselves with glory against the lowly Bears the week or so earlier.

Ask me at the bye how we are doing and hopefully I will agree with you.

Remind me by the way of the season .... I think it was 2008 or thereabouts under Bailey where we were glowingly reviewed as the next best thing. Lost badly to Brisbane in the first round and it was all downhill thereafter.

Hate to echo SWYL but this team has a lot of proving to do before it gains the confidence of its supporter base let alone the general public.

“Agree to disagree.” 

Wiseblood beat me to my substantive reply.

Round 23 was obviously a disaster, but I now see it as a positive for this group: it was perhaps the loss we needed to have.

 

On paper we can at least match it with any team in the AFL.  Only time will tell if we can do that consistently on the park, but I'm very confident that we will.  I read The Age writers predictions out of interest, but I prefer to stick with mine.

35 minutes ago, Diamond_Jim said:

It's pretty well the same team as that which played Round 23 and let's not forget they didn't exactly cover themselves with glory against the lowly Bears the week or so earlier.

Ask me at the bye how we are doing and hopefully I will agree with you.

Remind me by the way of the season .... I think it was 2008 or thereabouts under Bailey where we were glowingly reviewed as the next best thing. Lost badly to Brisbane in the first round and it was all downhill thereafter.

Hate to echo SWYL but this team has a lot of proving to do before it gains the confidence of its supporter base let alone the general public.

The same team means little. The same team that lost to Geelong heavily at the end of 2016 were responsible for great leaps last year. The same team will be responsible for great leaps this year.

It's all down to natural development and the evolution of our game style.

To my mind, the bolded part is not a strong argument.

The game against Brisbane hurt us more than the Collingwood game in my view.  Lions had nothing to play for, we were 6 goals up early in the last quarter, and limped over the line by 7 points or whatever it was.  That was the game that cost us percentage.

Collingwood were always going to come at us hard, that's just who they are.  They had the chance to end our season, and did just that (with a combination of our own doings too).

I will assess where we are at for 2018 after Round 3.  Two games there that we should win, and another against a false flag favourite.  We start the year 3-0 and I will believe that Top 4 is ours to lose.  Get to 2-1 (losing to Geelong), and I think we will make the bottom part of the Top 8.  Lose one of North or Brisbane, I will be back on the phone to my psych, cancelling my Dan Murphy's account, and will be looking forward to holidays in early September.

Yes, it's a long season, but the first 3 games will show which Melbourne we are. 

46 minutes ago, Wiseblood said:

There are a few things that have changed since then:

Jesse Hogan is back to full fitness and he has put a horror year behind him.  Even if he doesn't play Round 1, Viney is over his foot issues and he's ready to go.  We've added Jake Lever to our backline, which has allowed us to now fully release Tom McDonald to play as a permanent forward.  Our kids have all got another pre-season under their belt and the pain of Round 23 will spur them on.

They are just a few examples, but while they are the same names on paper, I do believe it will be a different side, both mentally and physically, lining up for us in Round 1.

Also a key change WB is the message sent by Goodwin to the whole list when he dumped Watts - he is emphasising and standing behind standards over talent. 

Hopefully this mindset improves our first quarter performances this year, this in particular was a real concern last year.

Oh what difference a strong pre-season doth make...

Sorry if I've heard that before

Most of the players in Round 23 had been back for 4-6 weeks ... about the same as a pre-season

Just saying the jury is quite rightly out on this team and its coach.

Had we made finals last year we would probably have another 5,000 members at this time... we would probably have had a better draw from a FTA exposure viewpoint.

By the way for a club struggling like we are, merely making the 8 is not a great thing in an 18 team competition. Time says we have to hit it lucky some time. Success is needed at a high level over a sustained period.

PS... and of course we had a great game against Carlton in 2016 when the future was on the line.

Edited March 7, 20187 yr by Diamond_Jim

40 minutes ago, Diamond_Jim said:

Oh what difference a strong pre-season doth make...

Sorry if I've heard that before

Most of the players in Round 23 had been back for 4-6 weeks ... about the same as a pre-season

Just saying the jury is quite rightly out on this team and its coach.

Had we made finals last year we would probably have another 5,000 members at this time... we would probably have had a better draw from a FTA exposure viewpoint.

By the way for a club struggling like we are, merely making the 8 is not a great thing in an 18 team competition. Time says we have to hit it lucky some time. Success is needed at a high level over a sustained period.

PS... and of course we had a great game against Carlton in 2016 when the future was on the line.

Careful DJ you can’t be too negative around here, even though your just quoting facts

Wiseblood will be upset now....

3 hours ago, Is Dom Is Good said:

Jake Niall is petty spot on with his assessment. Hibberd & Hunt give us elite half backs. Lever is an elite intercept mark. Oliver, Tyson, Viney & Jones are all fantastic inside mids. Petracca gives us forward X factor. Hogan & Mcdonald are solid key talls. 

I think the missing piece is really that outside runner, which is why I think we should be going after Gaff at the end of this year.

ANB could be tweaked - not much needed - to be that outside mid, as could Spargo. They do not have to be absolutely elite, simply competent and capable of ongoing learning in that role. 

8 minutes ago, Deemania since 56 said:

ANB could be tweaked - not much needed - to be that outside mid, as could Spargo. They do not have to be absolutely elite, simply competent and capable of ongoing learning in that role. 

ANB doesn't quite have the pace that you'd want in that role, although his running capacity is an asset. Spargo maybe. Hunt?

It's great to see that our greatest weakness last year was the lack of a decent intercept defender, and we have now addressed that in the absolute best possible way.

3 hours ago, Diamond_Jim said:

Oh what difference a strong pre-season doth make...

Sorry if I've heard that before

Most of the players in Round 23 had been back for 4-6 weeks ... about the same as a pre-season

Just saying the jury is quite rightly out on this team and its coach.

Had we made finals last year we would probably have another 5,000 members at this time... we would probably have had a better draw from a FTA exposure viewpoint.

By the way for a club struggling like we are, merely making the 8 is not a great thing in an 18 team competition. Time says we have to hit it lucky some time. Success is needed at a high level over a sustained period.

PS... and of course we had a great game against Carlton in 2016 when the future was on the line.

Just with the bolded part, Jim - I agree.  I agree that the jury is out on the team,. especially with our finish to 2017.  It's up to them to make sure we learn from it, build from it and never let it happen again.

The part I was disagreeing with you on was more that we won't see exactly the same 22 come Round 1.  We've got players who are coming back from injury, who are fitter than last year and, hopefully, much mentally stronger than how we finished off the season.  It will make a heck of a difference for us and ensures that we are going in with close to the same team in name only.  So much has happened since then, much of which they will have learned from in a big way.

2 hours ago, Sir Why You Little said:

Careful DJ you can’t be too negative around here, even though your just quoting facts

Wiseblood will be upset now....

Not at all my old pal.  I'm happy to give reasoned responses to those who give them as well.  I take umbrage to those who offer nothing more than shallow, out of date and thoughtless observations that they repeat ad nauseum.

You work out which category you fall in.  Good luck.

13 minutes ago, Wiseblood said:

Not at all my old pal.  I'm happy to give reasoned responses to those who give them as well.  I take umbrage to those who offer nothing more than shallow, out of date and thoughtless observations that they repeat ad nauseum.

You work out which category you fall in.  Good luck.

You take umbrage??

Haha that takes the cake

”let’s all do it my way or else...”

Tickets on yourself....

1 minute ago, Sir Why You Little said:

You take umbrage??

Haha that takes the cake

”let’s all do it my way or else...”

Tickets on yourself....

Hard to determine what you mean, Wiseblood. A static thought can be a very useful tool upon which to ponder for the ongoing edification of the intellect, perspective and many other positivisms, including tolerance of others. Glad that you are working on it - and good luck.

7 minutes ago, Sir Why You Little said:

You take umbrage??

Haha that takes the cake

”let’s all do it my way or else...”

Tickets on yourself....

The concert is sold out.

Year after year we peak early and run out of steam in the latter part of the season. Last year, the team was physically and mentally destroyed by season end. 

No point starting the race in a sprint when we are running a marathon.

This year, we have an improved list and better depth.  Hopefully, the coaching staff and players know what is needed this season.

In particular, the importance of "peaking" at season end.

The GF is our Olympics. 

 

22 minutes ago, hemingway said:

Year after year we peak early and run out of steam in the latter part of the season. Last year, the team was physically and mentally destroyed by season end. 

No point starting the race in a sprint when we are running a marathon.

This year, we have an improved list and better depth.  Hopefully, the coaching staff and players know what is needed this season.

In particular, the importance of "peaking" at season end.

The GF is our Olympics. 

 

Injuries killed us last year Ernest. That was the main problem three less injuries in the last game,  we win and play finals.