Meanwhile Clayton is sharing his only recipe with his new GWS teammates

sink spaghetti :

Run water hot in sink

Put in plug

Add spaghetti (alphabetty spaghetti good)

Wait 10 Mins

Pull out plug

Add tomato sauce

Eat from sink so no washing up

In psychological terms, ie what happens in the mind, the theory may go that Petracca was always going to consider/coincide/acquiesce (however you may put it) to his wife Bella.

If they were honest, it appears she was a driving force to live in the QLD. A young family, sunshine money and all.

if you look at CP he’s a mummies boy and will acquiesce to the dominant female in his life. He will also take all the knocks to cover over feminine influences that would inevitably be born upon him by the [censored] up male dominated culture of the AFL.

You could write a book about this stuff. Others have.

Scratch the surface. He’s taken hits for those in his life who want more than what the MFC and Melbourne offered.

I wouldn’t begrudge him for greener pastures. I would be honest to say what brought you to where you were led.

Happy wife means a happy life. As they say.

Her influence is being labeled as ‘brand Petracca’.

The only people who really care are those who are paid to write stories, and that “care factor” is debatable.

Don’t give them any weight. They’ll manipulate and lie to you at every opportunity.

As far as CP goes. He’s a great player but not a great of the MFC.

Although in years to come, if he did a RDB and couched the team, in say 2035, then you’d likely think he was worth the time to converse.

Edited Tuesday at 22:093 days by Stem Splitters
spelling

1 hour ago, RickyJ45 said:

SLIDING DOORS:

## IF…

Damian Barrett sees Christian Petracca doing anything north of the Tweed —

THEN…

prepare yourself, because “**Brand Petracca**” will be declared the biggest thing to hit the Gold Coast since the last expansion draft.

## IF…

Petracca signs a sponsorship deal, posts a beach photo, or is spotted near a surfboard,

THEN…

Barrett’s Narrative Accelerator™ will turn it into a discussion about “focus,” “priorities,” and whether the Suns can handle such a powerful brand aura.

## IF…

Petracca dominates a game,

THEN…

it’s because “Brand Petracca thrives in the Queensland lifestyle.”

But if he has an off day,

it’s because “Brand Petracca is distracted by the Queensland lifestyle.”

Either way — the brand is undefeated.

## IF…

Barrett coins a phrase like “Brand Petracca,”

THEN…

expect it to echo across every AFL platform until even the Metricon seagulls are quoting it.

## IF…

Gold Coast fans push back on the label,

THEN…

Barrett will calmly explain he’s “just calling it as he sees it,” which is media shorthand for “I’ve created a storyline and I’m not letting go.”

## IF…

Petracca posts a cooking video from a Gold Coast apartment,

THEN…

Barrett will wonder aloud whether the Suns are comfortable with their marquee player sautéing instead of centre‑bouncing.

## IF…

Petracca says nothing at all,

THEN…

Barrett will describe the silence as “interesting,” “telling,” or “a developing situation.”

## IF…

Barrett hears even the faintest whisper about the Suns,

THEN…

it becomes a “story worth monitoring,” which is AFL media code for “I’m about to make this a thing.”

## IF…

there’s absolutely nothing happening in the AFL world,

THEN…

don’t worry — Barrett will find a way to bring up Brand Petracca again, just to keep the content ecosystem hydrated in the Queensland heat.

## IF…

you think this is all a bit dramatic,

THEN…

congratulations — you’ve mastered the Barrett Method™.

#24CaratGold 👏👏👏

11 hours ago, Ghostwriter said:

What a complete waste of energy, though. You should consider redirecting that energy towards cheering for our players. That’s energy well spent.

I'll give him a golf clap during the warm up, but will cheer when one of our players eats him.

I'm not into booing. But I'm in some stage of grief because I can't bring myself to watch the 2021 GF.

Don't like him at all anymore, very glad to see the back of him and his primadonna antics: was a boat anchor for our club in his last couple of seasons.

2 hours ago, biggestred said:

I legitimately read 6 of those sliding doors before I realised they were taking the mickey. which just shows you how bad Damos's "column" is.

..or...........?....

1 hour ago, Ghostwriter said:

#24CaratGold 👏👏👏

I can just imagine the FUN you had creating it, @RickyJ45!

Upon reflection he lost me when he dabbed up he who shan't be named

I'll always love Trac, disappointing in the manner he left but it's as much on the club as it is him. One of the key pillars of our only flag in recent history and our only ever Norm Smith medallist.

I wish him well at the Suns and would love to see them get some success. They are a great team to watch and Hardwick has them playing a good brand of footy.

1 minute ago, Dr. Gonzo said:

I'll always love Trac, disappointing in the manner he left but it's as much on the club as it is him. One of the key pillars of our only flag in recent history and our only ever Norm Smith medallist.

I wish him well at the Suns and would love to see them get some success. They are a great team to watch and Hardwick has them playing a good brand of footy.

Why is it on the club as much as him? I see this being touted around a lot on DL, but why is the club to blame? If we are talking about his QB injury, it wasn't the clubs fault last time i checked the game footage. Not necessary to go over the happenings of the rest of that day, but the ultimate finding was that it wasn't on the club. Our club doctors followed the right process and Trac went back on with his own blessing. Nobody was to know he had a ruptured spleen.

The post-injury, NDE phase is a little more contestable. In that moment of weakness, Trac somehow got to the view that he was no longer loved / wanted / appreciated. How that happened, as i said, is contestable. There are 40+ players in that group and I find it a little strange that all of them had somehow kept their distance. The reality is they were almost certainly asked to by his family, which at that time were completely putting the blame on the MFC. - again something I find somewhat amusing, but understandable given they were looking for someone to blame. His tantrum following his recovery at the end of 2024, was probably what lost him his connection with the playing group, his reputation and standing within the club.

So in all of that, we can all celebrate his GF performance and the Norm Smith Medal - cannot deny him history, but that is where it stops for me. He has basically ruined his standing in the club. I hope that with time, he can come to recognise that and look to make things right. At the end of the day, he was the one who chose to leave.

3 minutes ago, GS_1905 said:

Why is it on the club as much as him? I see this being touted around a lot on DL, but why is the club to blame? If we are talking about his QB injury, it wasn't the clubs fault last time i checked the game footage. Not necessary to go over the happenings of the rest of that day, but the ultimate finding was that it wasn't on the club. Our club doctors followed the right process and Trac went back on with his own blessing. Nobody was to know he had a ruptured spleen.

The post-injury, NDE phase is a little more contestable. In that moment of weakness, Trac somehow got to the view that he was no longer loved / wanted / appreciated. How that happened, as i said, is contestable. There are 40+ players in that group and I find it a little strange that all of them had somehow kept their distance. The reality is they were almost certainly asked to by his family, which at that time were completely putting the blame on the MFC. - again something I find somewhat amusing, but understandable given they were looking for someone to blame. His tantrum following his recovery at the end of 2024, was probably what lost him his connection with the playing group, his reputation and standing within the club.

So in all of that, we can all celebrate his GF performance and the Norm Smith Medal - cannot deny him history, but that is where it stops for me. He has basically ruined his standing in the club. I hope that with time, he can come to recognise that and look to make things right. At the end of the day, he was the one who chose to leave.

I'm talking about the culture and leadership of the club more than the circumstances of his injury.

7 minutes ago, Dr. Gonzo said:

I'll always love Trac, disappointing in the manner he left but it's as much on the club as it is him. One of the key pillars of our only flag in recent history and our only ever Norm Smith medallist.

I wish him well at the Suns and would love to see them get some success. They are a great team to watch and Hardwick has them playing a good brand of footy.

We’re death riding the suns so I don’t want any success for them this year. From next year on I don’t mind.

3 hours ago, biggestred said:

Upon reflection he lost me when he dabbed up he who shan't be named

Re watch the video. Oliver and May did also. There may have been other demon players not shown on camera.

I'[m not sticking up for Trac, I loathed the behaviour of all those players but to call out one player requires all those involved to be called out.

4 minutes ago, Lucifers Hero said:

Re watch the video. Oliver and May did also. There may have been other demon players not shown on camera.

I'[m not sticking up for Trac, I loathed the behaviour of all those players but to call out one player requires all those involved to be called out.

fair point. i just remember watching it and being filthy

2 hours ago, Dr. Gonzo said:

I'm talking about the culture and leadership of the club more than the circumstances of his injury.

I dont disagree with you on the culture and leadership, but i was trying to say is that there were 40 other players in our club that didnt seek a trade or kick up a stink in the public arena. So what was Trac's excuse?

Edited yesterday at 01:301 day by GS_1905

2 hours ago, GS_1905 said:

Why is it on the club as much as him? I see this being touted around a lot on DL, but why is the club to blame? If we are talking about his QB injury, it wasn't the clubs fault last time i checked the game footage. Not necessary to go over the happenings of the rest of that day, but the ultimate finding was that it wasn't on the club. Our club doctors followed the right process and Trac went back on with his own blessing. Nobody was to know he had a ruptured spleen.

The post-injury, NDE phase is a little more contestable. In that moment of weakness, Trac somehow got to the view that he was no longer loved / wanted / appreciated. How that happened, as i said, is contestable. There are 40+ players in that group and I find it a little strange that all of them had somehow kept their distance. The reality is they were almost certainly asked to by his family, which at that time were completely putting the blame on the MFC. - again something I find somewhat amusing, but understandable given they were looking for someone to blame. His tantrum following his recovery at the end of 2024, was probably what lost him his connection with the playing group, his reputation and standing within the club.

So in all of that, we can all celebrate his GF performance and the Norm Smith Medal - cannot deny him history, but that is where it stops for me. He has basically ruined his standing in the club. I hope that with time, he can come to recognise that and look to make things right. At the end of the day, he was the one who chose to leave.

SNAP. Well said agree 100%

His brand manager and Mumma Trac have there finger prints all over the hospital stay/recovery and his feelings good or bad afterwards.

2 hours ago, GS_1905 said:

Why is it on the club as much as him? I see this being touted around a lot on DL, but why is the club to blame? If we are talking about his QB injury, it wasn't the clubs fault last time i checked the game footage. Not necessary to go over the happenings of the rest of that day, but the ultimate finding was that it wasn't on the club. Our club doctors followed the right process and Trac went back on with his own blessing. Nobody was to know he had a ruptured spleen.

The post-injury, NDE phase is a little more contestable. In that moment of weakness, Trac somehow got to the view that he was no longer loved / wanted / appreciated. How that happened, as i said, is contestable. There are 40+ players in that group and I find it a little strange that all of them had somehow kept their distance. The reality is they were almost certainly asked to by his family, which at that time were completely putting the blame on the MFC. - again something I find somewhat amusing, but understandable given they were looking for someone to blame. His tantrum following his recovery at the end of 2024, was probably what lost him his connection with the playing group, his reputation and standing within the club.

So in all of that, we can all celebrate his GF performance and the Norm Smith Medal - cannot deny him history, but that is where it stops for me. He has basically ruined his standing in the club. I hope that with time, he can come to recognise that and look to make things right. At the end of the day, he was the one who chose to leave.

Like it or not marquee players require special treatment and the club failed spectacularly in that regard following his injury, I think between that and other culture issues going on at the club we gave him a reason to go. It’s a hard lesson and I hope the club has learnt it because players of his level at the mfc don’t come round very often and id hate to go through this again

5 hours ago, biggestred said:

Upon reflection he lost me when he dabbed up he who shan't be named

Please explain?

7 minutes ago, Garbo said:

Like it or not marquee players require special treatment and the club failed spectacularly in that regard following his injury, I think between that and other culture issues going on at the club we gave him a reason to go. It’s a hard lesson and I hope the club has learnt it because players of his level at the mfc don’t come round very often and id hate to go through this again

Again what did the club do wrong that had specifically ostracised Trac to the point where he wanted to jump ship and not be part of the solution? No matter how you look, you cannot justify the club's mishandling. In fact there is an argument to be made thatk the club actually went above and beyond - they were able to calm him down keep him on the books for another 12 months and get a decent return on his trade value. In the mean time, all senior positions of the board were changed, Coaching panel shake-up and more.

Trac through is own making damaged his relationships with his team mates to the point where not letting him go would have done further damage to the club.

I wanted him to stay but then we absolutely fleeced the Suns in that trade so I've moved on quickly. Three first rounders for a guy who may have five years left in the game, but is also five years past his prime and probably has only one or two more seasons where he is anywhere near his best. All we need is one of Taylor, Pickett and this year's pick to be a 200 gamer and we are laughing. Worth it for the Suns too if they pinch a flag.

49 minutes ago, Robbie On Skates said:

Please explain?

2024 King's birthday, first game vs Pies after Brayshaw was forced to retire - dabbing up the perpetrator pre game like he was our best friend instead of, well, I'd have done something much different.

36 minutes ago, Bang Bang Bang said:

I wanted him to stay but then we absolutely fleeced the Suns in that trade so I've moved on quickly. Three first rounders for a guy who may have five years left in the game, but is also five years past his prime and probably has only one or two more seasons where he is anywhere near his best. All we need is one of Taylor, Pickett and this year's pick to be a 200 gamer and we are laughing. Worth it for the Suns too if they pinch a flag.

I think it was a win/win for both clubs. GC are ready for a tilt at top 6 and beyond, as evidenced by them making the finals last year. There is no doubt they are on the up. Their list is ready. However, one thing they did lack, was an experienced finals campaigner, who can turn a game on its head. That is Petracca. They may have overpaid slightly for him, but that is what clubs have to do to get quality in. If they make top 4 and give themselves a double chance, then its worth it. Even if they can host a couple finals up there it would go a long way for them.

47 minutes ago, biggestred said:

2024 King's birthday, first game vs Pies after Brayshaw was forced to retire - dabbing up the perpetrator pre game like he was our best friend instead of, well, I'd have done something much different.

Gotcha ta

6 hours ago, Garbo said:

Like it or not marquee players require special treatment and the club failed spectacularly in that regard following his injury, I think between that and other culture issues going on at the club we gave him a reason to go. It’s a hard lesson and I hope the club has learnt it because players of his level at the mfc don’t come round very often and id hate to go through this again

No. Marquee players should be treated the same as everyone else in the team. That’s what encourages a team instead of a bunch of individual players.

Favouritism creates schisms within the team structure.