39 minutes ago, Ham said:

All these calls for Smith out and O Mac in....
People have really bad memories. 

No, it's because Oscar is a better option than Smith. That's how bad Smith is.

5 minutes ago, The Chazz said:

No, it's because Oscar is a better option than Smith. That's how bad Smith is.

Completely disagree.
Go back and remind yourself of the OMac show. 

1 minute ago, Ham said:

Completely disagree.
Go back and remind yourself of the OMac show. 

Watch te Smith show.

You're right, we will disagree.

Just now, The Chazz said:

Watch te Smith show.

You're right, we will disagree.

I have been, and from the sample size of both players, I'd rather pursue with Smith.

39 minutes ago, The Chazz said:

Watch te Smith show.

You're right, we will disagree.

What a great move to get rid of Frost well done Goodwin

9 hours ago, The Chazz said:

Because we are blessed with pace?

Hunt's pace hasn't hurt a team for 4 years

8 hours ago, WERRIDEE said:

What a great move to get rid of Frost well done Goodwin

Frost hasn't set the word on fire this year.

24 minutes ago, jumbo returns said:

Hunt's pace hasn't hurt a team for 4 years

And where was he playing when that was happening 4 years ago? Definitely wasn't deep forward.

 

Hunt May TMac
Rivers Lever Hibberd
Salem CP5 Melk
Bennell Petty Hannan
Koz Smith Fritsch

Gawn Oliver Bray

Int: Viney Van Jones Harmes

Drop Langdon and Tomlinson and Lockhart 

 

 

45 minutes ago, The Chazz said:

Frost hasn't set the word on fire this year.

And where was he playing when that was happening 4 years ago? Definitely wasn't deep forward.

It doesn't matter - coaches have worked him out

He runs into a wall every time

1 hour ago, jumbo returns said:

Hunt's pace hasn't hurt a team for 4 years

God I miss the days when he used to get the ball and stream off half back or down the wing.

7 minutes ago, jumbo returns said:

It doesn't matter - coaches have worked him out

He runs into a wall every time

It does matter. He's being played out of position. Give him a preseason to work on those areas, rather than playing him in a position that doesn't suit him.

It also proves another point. At half time, could have played him at half back, put Salem in the guts, then move Oliver to the forward line. This may or may not have worked, but it changes the look of it up. I honestly can't remember the last time Goodwin made an in-game move where it made me stop and think about it. Imagine how the opposition coaches must feel when they just get the same old Melbourne fronting up each quarter...

4 minutes ago, The Chazz said:

It does matter. He's being played out of position. Give him a preseason to work on those areas, rather than playing him in a position that doesn't suit him.

It also proves another point. At half time, could have played him at half back, put Salem in the guts, then move Oliver to the forward line. This may or may not have worked, but it changes the look of it up. I honestly can't remember the last time Goodwin made an in-game move where it made me stop and think about it. Imagine how the opposition coaches must feel when they just get the same old Melbourne fronting up each quarter...

Do you think, in all honesty, that our list is any good?

I feel our players are limited in their flexibility 

Salem hasn't really kicked on, Hunt is VFL at best, and Oliver needs to develop his kicking

Tiges' intensity was too much for us yesterday

5 minutes ago, jumbo returns said:

Do you think, in all honesty, that our list is any good?

I feel our players are limited in their flexibility 

Salem hasn't really kicked on, Hunt is VFL at best, and Oliver needs to develop his kicking

Tiges' intensity was too much for us yesterday

Spot on. Whilst we have a few with talent overall it is now evident the list is just so so with a hell of a lot of the same types. We drop 10 and put 10 in they in my opinion will be similar and same old story. Get ball and turn ball over.

10 hours ago, Ham said:

I have been, and from the sample size of both players, I'd rather pursue with Smith.

Remind me again who were the key defenders when we finished top 4 in 2018? I'll give you a clue, they weren't Smith or Lever. 

9 minutes ago, jumbo returns said:

Do you think, in all honesty, that our list is any good?

I feel our players are limited in their flexibility 

Salem hasn't really kicked on, Hunt is VFL at best, and Oliver needs to develop his kicking

Tiges' intensity was too much for us yesterday

I think that our list has enough in it to be better than where we are at. You can tell that when we have those moments in games where we show we can produce quality footy, it's just that not only don't we do it for long enough, there's large chunks of the game where we just appear to switch off.

There's talent there, it's having it on display for four quarters that is the key, because when it's not, it cripples us.

I hold the playing group and coaches equally responsible for it.

17 minutes ago, The Chazz said:

I think that our list has enough in it to be better than where we are at. You can tell that when we have those moments in games where we show we can produce quality footy, it's just that not only don't we do it for long enough, there's large chunks of the game where we just appear to switch off.

There's talent there, it's having it on display for four quarters that is the key, because when it's not, it cripples us.

I hold the playing group and coaches equally responsible for it.

That's fair enough - but, how will this unfold?

If it's not Goodwin, then the club must pursue a coach with expertise - I baulk at the word 'experience'

How many years did Chris Fagan spend, waiting for an opportunity? His expertise has lifted that club, not underestimating his savvy around a draft table

37 minutes ago, poita said:

Remind me again who were the key defenders when we finished top 4 in 2018? I'll give you a clue, they weren't Smith or Lever. 

Defence is not our problem. Stop agonising over it.

Our problem is lousy decision making* and lousy kicking into the forward 50, combined with our forwards' laziness or inability to read the flight. Salem as a mid appeals because that would improve our disposal instantly. More movement from the forwards would instantly improve our responsiveness in the forward 50.

We outdid Tigers for inside 50s as we outdid so many opponents last year. The issue is how it gets in there and what happens when it does.

*I agree that happens in the back 50 too: think Rivers and Gawn first quarter, but still...

As much as Smith can frustrate, I'm fine with continuing to play him at present.  We've back ourselves in the May/Lever/Smith combo and there is enough talent there for it to perform.  Might just take time and cause us all a few more grey hairs.

Weid has to come in primarily to assist with our structure.  Right now we have Tomlinson rotating from the wing to the ruck.... this is unheard of.

Furthermore, we have all seen enough of T-Mac now to realise he can't play as a KPF solo - although Carey himself would battle with some of our ball movement.  

Weid in, start T-Mac higher to get into the match more.

I'm not sure who goes out but I wouldn't mind seeing Milkshake higher up towards a wing/on ball to get him firing again and Hunt as well.  These two are suffocated at present. 

Every time I see Milkshake and Hunt right now I feel like they are the slow fat kids in primary school who were always "it" in a game of tiggy against the opposition.... t

 

 

Why on earth are we slight favorites to beat GC?

I still think people haven't quite yet cottoned onto the fact that we're a bottom 2 or 3 side. It will happen eventually. 

I can't think of 1 side we're better than, aside from perhaps Adelaide who are genuinely atrocious at the moment.

In - Jones, Bennell, Weideman/Brown,  Jetta

Out - Hunt, Rivers, Lockhart, VDB

I hate that we keep rewarding Melksham with undeserved games, but hopefully next week it will click for him and he can have a productive 3 goal performance.

 

15 hours ago, Luther said:

I don't think we played our best team at all. Our best team doesn't involve Tom McDonald as a sole key forward, or playing Jake Lever as a second tall back when he should be a third tall. Harley Bennell is in our best team. There are changes that need to be made and I don't think it should involve throwing first year players into such a poorly drilled team or before form warrants it.

I’m not sure you can say Bennell is in our best team yet. It was indeed exciting seeing him on the park against the Blues, but maybe jets need to be cooled a little when we speak of “best team”. I would of course hope like hell he eventually becomes a staple fixture and that day isn’t too far away, but we’re not quite there yet. 
 

I don’t think getting a healthy representation of our youth in the side each week is the wrong attitude at all. This season is a bin-fire in so many ways. All the screwing around with rescheduling, re-homing, reduced quarters, no crowds, dud performances from gun clubs, blah blah. I mean, it’s fine to watch but I really have don’t have the usual amount of passion for this season and I’m pretty ambivalent about who wins whatever tattered flag is on offer at the end of it. It’s the perfect opportunity for a club like ours to get games into our future players, and also an opportunity to hand some much-needed reflection time on the sidelines to our under-performing “stars”. I’m specifically looking at Clayton Oliver. He comes across as a pretty arrogant dude sometimes, and it shows in his needlessly-flash approach to those dumb, quick handballs. He’s been talked up a lot in the press over the last three seasons as the next great midfielder, and it would have naturally gone to his head. Unfortunately the signs are increasing that he is not going to become much more than what he is right now - a great getter of the ball, but 60% of the time an abysmal user of it - and unless he pulls his head in and realises he has some distance to travel towards greatness, he’s not going to improve. 
 

Out: Oliver, Lever, Smith, VDB, Melksham

In: Jones, Omac, Jetta, Bedford, ANB

 

Edited July 6, 20205 yr by Mel Bourne

1 hour ago, poita said:

Remind me again who were the key defenders when we finished top 4 in 2018? I'll give you a clue, they weren't Smith or Lever. 

They were both cut price players in Frost and O Mac, who are both quite frankly better players than Lever, the former actually way better than Lever.

I would only make a couple of changes. Smith does not do enough and every time he gets the ball it looks like he has to think about what to do next. Hore would be a better option if fit. We would have done better if we played Jetta instead of Smith. At the moment Smith is wishful thinking and too aspirational. We play a zone with lots of holes.

Bringing in another Tall forward would help TMac and be at the expense of a small. I think Brown offers more than Weid but getting games into Weid may improve his trade value. As this season is shot I would be trying to sort the wheat from the chaff and try things. 

we also have a problem with Tomlinson, he is not great at doing anything well. It why GWS got rid of him. He is a crap ruck, he is not a natural forward and he is bad at making opponents accountable in the backline. His work on the wing does not end in scores, he need to develop some edge to his game at the moment he is an also ran. We have a few speedy types who could offer more on the wing 

1 minute ago, Mental Demons said:

I would only make a couple of changes. Smith does not do enough and every time he gets the ball it looks like he has to think about what to do next. Hore would be a better option if fit. We would have done better if we played Jetta instead of Smith. At the moment Smith is wishful thinking and too aspirational. We play a zone with lots of holes.

Bringing in another Tall forward would help TMac and be at the expense of a small. I think Brown offers more than Weid but getting games into Weid may improve his trade value. As this season is shot I would be trying to sort the wheat from the chaff and try things. 

we also have a problem with Tomlinson, he is not great at doing anything well. It why GWS got rid of him. He is a crap ruck, he is not a natural forward and he is bad at making opponents accountable in the backline. His work on the wing does not end in scores, he need to develop some edge to his game at the moment he is an also ran. We have a few speedy types who could offer more on the wing 

5 minutes ago, Mental Demons said:

I would only make a couple of changes. Smith does not do enough and every time he gets the ball it looks like he has to think about what to do next. Hore would be a better option if fit. We would have done better if we played Jetta instead of Smith. At the moment Smith is wishful thinking and too aspirational. We play a zone with lots of holes.

Bringing in another Tall forward would help TMac and be at the expense of a small. I think Brown offers more than Weid but getting games into Weid may improve his trade value. As this season is shot I would be trying to sort the wheat from the chaff and try things. 

we also have a problem with Tomlinson, he is not great at doing anything well. It why GWS got rid of him. He is a crap ruck, he is not a natural forward and he is bad at making opponents accountable in the backline. His work on the wing does not end in scores, he need to develop some edge to his game at the moment he is an also ran. We have a few speedy types who could offer more on the wing 

Hore won’t be playing for a while unfortunately. 

47 minutes ago, Mel Bourne said:

I’m not sure you can say Bennell is in our best team yet. It was indeed exciting seeing him on the park against the Blues, but maybe jets need to be cooled a little when we speak of “best team”. I would of course hope like hell he eventually becomes a staple fixture and that day isn’t too far away, but we’re not quite there yet. 
 

I don’t think getting a healthy representation of our youth in the side each week is the wrong attitude at all. This season is a bin-fire in so many ways. All the screwing around with rescheduling, re-homing, reduced quarters, no crowds, dud performances from gun clubs, blah blah. I mean, it’s fine to watch but I really have don’t have the usual amount of passion for this season and I’m pretty ambivalent about who wins whatever tattered flag is on offer at the end of it. It’s the perfect opportunity for a club like ours to get games into our future players, and also an opportunity to hand some much-needed reflection time on the sidelines to our under-performing “stars”. I’m specifically looking at Clayton Oliver. He comes across as a pretty arrogant dude sometimes, and it shows in his needlessly-flash approach to those dumb, quick handballs. He’s been talked up a lot in the press over the last three seasons as the next great midfielder, and it would have naturally gone to his head. Unfortunately the signs are increasing that he is not going to become much more than what he is right now - a great getter of the ball, but 60% of the time an abysmal user of it - and unless he pulls his head in and realises he has some distance to travel towards greatness, he’s not going to improve. 
 

Out: Oliver, Lever, Smith, VDB, Melksham

In: Jones, Omac, Jetta, Bedford, ANB

 

? Oliver out and OMac in, give me strength.  If this happens, my days of following footy are over.  

Edited July 6, 20205 yr by Demons11