At the moment it's looking like 3-9 at the bye at best (maybe 4-8), so yes the season is done. Even if we make the finals as 8th, surely all the petrol tickets would have been spent just getting there.

After the St. Kilda (?) match last year, the club spoke about how they tweaked the structure to be less aggressive and use Gawn behind the ball. With that, the turn around happened until the Prelim where West Coast, apparently, did nothing to beat us, and we just didn't turn up. Since then, a similar style, with the re-addition of the ultra-aggressive, chaotic, congested, inside, and ultimately easily-countered style of the first two thirds of last year.

 

I'm concerned that the football department has thought natural progression of individual talent would allow for the proper implementation of a gameplan that has already proven to be average at best. What's even worse is that this decision seems to have come off the back of a degree of success last year, and scant regard for both opposition countermeasures and significant rule changes from an AFL determined to rid the competition of the style of football Melbourne are stubbornly trying to play. Whilst I understand, to an extent, feelings of vindication of the approach last year during the team's hot form, surely there is now 3/4 of a season to recognise the failures of focusing on four of five key stats and assuming good results when those stats are won, and implementing a more creative approach that gets more from less.

Edited April 21, 20195 yr by Cam Schwab's Whiteboard

We might pull a win out of our [censored] vs the Tigers to give us more false hope, only to lose the next 8 games.

Melbourne supporters truly are tortured souls.

We have had trouble keeping players on the field due to injury and recovering from surgery. Dave Misson has already indicated he we be moving on at the end of the season. Should the change be made now. Appointing a new fitness head now would allow time for that person to get to know the players and their needs thus allowing for a more thorough preparation for our next pre season.

15 minutes ago, John Lord said:

We have had trouble keeping players on the field due to injury and recovering from surgery. Dave Misson has already indicated he we be moving on at the end of the season. Should the change be made now. Appointing a new fitness head now would allow time for that person to get to know the players and their needs thus allowing for a more thorough preparation for our next pre season.

I would hope that the search for Misson’s replacement would have started a long time ago and that any suitable replacement would already been contracted and employed by someone else.

12 minutes ago, John Lord said:

We have had trouble keeping players on the field due to injury and recovering from surgery. Dave Misson has already indicated he we be moving on at the end of the season. Should the change be made now. Appointing a new fitness head now would allow time for that person to get to know the players and their needs thus allowing for a more thorough preparation for our next pre season.

not a bad idea. It would most likely involve a payout to Misson. The fitness coach is within the soft salary cap so it could be expensive. A club is allowed to exceed the cap but for every dollar by which the cap is exceeded the club has to pay a dollar to the AFL

Agree move Misson on NOW!  He has indicated he’s done so like any employee, it’s time to reset. 

4 hours ago, Diamond_Jim said:

not a rebuild but a redesign of the gameplan and strategies

We have the core now regards competitors inside .  We need to change gamestyle and bring in runners end of season.

The game has been changed on us. 

 

Did they ask us,  or did they just ask Kennet and Hawthorn.? 

All of Roosy's former coached teams are struggling at this time because of  '666'.

3 hours ago, Wiseblood said:

Maybe for you.  But not for me.  When we can't mathematically make the finals, then it is season over.

Until then I'll hold on to the small sliver of sanity I have left and believe we can make changes now and turn our fortunes around.

Yep, until its mathematically impossible, i will continue to believe its possible..... because it is.

Probable though...... im not so confident atm.

Our high press is killing us as we just dont have the fitness and legspeed to do it effectively.

Something major has to change in the next 2 weeks or we are done.

Tmac is no working forward, shift him back and when May gets back, put him forward. Why can we not try Hore forward. Can atleast mark the ball.

1 hour ago, John Lord said:

We have had trouble keeping players on the field due to injury and recovering from surgery. Dave Misson has already indicated he we be moving on at the end of the season. Should the change be made now. Appointing a new fitness head now would allow time for that person to get to know the players and their needs thus allowing for a more thorough preparation for our next pre season.

I twas keeping players on-field too long that has caused our major Problems.. ie: TMc and Viney when they had they're initial injuries.

Viney Plantar Fascia, of a couple of years back.

TMc, with his turf toe/foot issues,  of a couple of years back.

 

Serious problems, that should have been addressed at the time. 

 

I agree with your idea of moving forward now,  Re Fitness and Conditioning manager...  but bring in one of the best 2ic's around now (rising star of this field)... to take over officially, from Misson, at end of season.

Misson to stay on til end of season... to assist & to inform the new "person",  of whats been happening,  and treatment plans already being applied.   The history of actions applied.

.

5 minutes ago, Ugottobekidding said:

Tmac is no working forward, shift him back and when May gets back, put him forward. Why can we not try Hore forward. Can atleast mark the ball.

TMc's a high half forward... he's best as an outside F50

6 hours ago, Diamond_Jim said:

2019 is over..... to say otherwise is to don the rose coloured glasses that have dogged this team for the last fifteen odd years.

Ok... the coach is going nowhere but perhaps some outside mentoring would help in this regard.

First step for me is to change the Casey gameplan to emphasise skills and possession. It's an easy one.

Then post bye we introduce it at senior level with input from the youth who have become used to it at Casey level.

Develop a few trick plays using Gawn and Oliver.

Let Weideman show us if he has the goods in the forward department in an uncrowded forward line.

Then comes the hard part. Play Petty, Stretch and one or two others for a run of five games.

Results and ladder position are irrelevant as long as there is a plan that can be used to win games in 2020.

It started a fortnight ago after the Essendon loss!

It's an odd year.

1 hour ago, DV8 said:

TMc's a high half forward... he's best as an outside F50

Not working atm anywhere... sadly out-of-form and weid isnt upto it.

14 minutes ago, Ugottobekidding said:

Not working atm anywhere... sadly out-of-form and weid isnt upto it.

Have to agree. Weid shows bugger all hunger or desperation for the contest.

Agree that trade is a realistic option at years end.

As mentioned in my OP the first thing I would do is change the gameplan at Casey level in favour of a more skills based approach.

It's a no brainer.

Secondly I am tired of us winning the hit outs by big margins but at best breaking even on the clearances. This is a coaching strategy that should be capable of being fixed.

1 hour ago, Ugottobekidding said:

Not working atm anywhere... sadly out-of-form and weid isnt upto it.

you;['ve got rocks in your head,  'Ugtbk'.

 

So your saying a 21Yr old tall forward with 25 AFL games under his belt,  should be holding up the front half of our team... and because he cant do that yet,  HE's not up to IT. ???

Goodness me... no wonder were in a constant pickle... with footy minds like that.

 

Maybe you should be looking to our  23Yr olds and up,  to see who isn't good enough...  or not pulling their weight ?

16 minutes ago, DV8 said:

you;['ve got rocks in your head,  'Ugtbk'.

 

So your saying a 21Yr old tall forward with 25 AFL games under his belt,  should be holding up the front half of our team... and because he cant do that yet,  HE's not up to IT. ???

Goodness me... no wonder were in a constant pickle... with footy minds like that.

 

Maybe you should be looking to our  23Yr olds and up,  to see who isn't good enough...  or not pulling their weight ?

Wow

When you don't make the finals you rebuild. Hopefully it's only a short rebuild. We have to be aggressive at the draft and trade period.

Top 10 untouchables: Viney, Oliver, Brayshaw, Gawn, Harmes, T.McDonald, May, Lever, Salem, Melksham.

The rest up for trade. Anderson will be good on our wing ATM.

2 hours ago, WERRIDEE said:

When you don't make the finals you rebuild. Hopefully it's only a short rebuild. We have to be aggressive at the draft and trade period.

Top 10 untouchables: Viney, Oliver, Brayshaw, Gawn, Harmes, T.McDonald, May, Lever, Salem, Melksham.

The rest up for trade. Anderson will be good on our wing ATM.

'Werridee',  its not a  'rebuild' .

We've 're past the rebuild,  which is starting from scratch...  We have to add a few player types to our list and hope we draft & develop them well.

5 hours ago, dl4e said:

It's an odd year.

True, but we're an even headed club. its not our year.

Maybe 2020 will be more to our liking .

11 hours ago, DV8 said:

you;['ve got rocks in your head,  'Ugtbk'.

 

So your saying a 21Yr old tall forward with 25 AFL games under his belt,  should be holding up the front half of our team... and because he cant do that yet,  HE's not up to IT. ???

Goodness me... no wonder were in a constant pickle... with footy minds like that.

 

Maybe you should be looking to our  23Yr olds and up,  to see who isn't good enough...  or not pulling their weight ?

No i am saying that at the moment, tmac is badly out of form and weid cannot hold down a key forward spot. Msy has played forward so he might take the best defender. He has kick goals at gold coast.

We can drop 4 more games and make the finals.

right now can anyone see us even winning 4?

such a waste of a year.  

7 minutes ago, buck_nekkid said:

We can drop 4 more games and make the finals.

right now can anyone see us even winning 4?

such a waste of a year.  

No

6 hours ago, buck_nekkid said:

We can drop 4 more games and make the finals.

right now can anyone see us even winning 4?

such a waste of a year. 

I cannot see the point, when we are so lacking on our list...  Of finishing around 8th or 9th... that will just hamper us,  moving forward in coming seasons.

We need desperately an injection of quick running players with solid physical disposition.

 

What I would give for the Mfc to have a young Steven Tingay,  and a young Rodney Grinter on our list right Now.