Today is a sad day for the club no doubt about it. Would never have thought at the end of 2021 that Petracca and Oliver would finish their time at the Dees in this fashion only 4 years later. I don't know all of what some people hear know about what's gone on... but I know enough to know that (sadly) this is the correct course of action.

Tim Lamb cops plenty of criticism here. Maybe it's warranted. He hasn't brough in any established player of note in years. But he / we did have Cerra on the hook at the end of 2021 (who was the most sought after player that year) and that was probably the only time we were a destination club. Since then the club has had a bad smell about it - whether that be the Entrecote incident, the stories in the Herald Sun about Goodwin etc or even the gameplan which while effective in 2021, was not as attractive as the Pies / Cats in 22 and Brisbane, Hawthorn etc after that. Clearly our training ground situation doesn't help. I liked the idea of getting Grundy but thought the coaches weren't creative in finding ways to use both Max and him on the ground at the same time (think of what Scott has done at Geelong) - seeing this fail so badly wouldn't help a player want to consider coming to us. So although there is a long list of busts for established players coming in, I feel like Lamb hasn't had a lot to work with. The criticism of length of contracts for some of these players is probably fair... although obviously that is part of what is required to get players to leave their club.

I feel like this year has been different. While I hoped like hell (like most here) we would be able to land Humphrey for Trac, it seems like we tried everything. If any of us were in Craig Cameron's shoes, we wouldn't trade him - so to get 3 first round picks (with all the pick swapping), its a good deal.

I'm left wondering whether the comments from Lamb re wanting a player for Petracca was just posturing to try and get Humphrey or whether we had to change our tune when any of the players we wanted either had no interest in joining us or GC made clear they weren't going to trade them (eg Rogers, Walter etc). At a minimum we have a headstart on most in going for Humphrey, Butters etc next year with the extra first rounder to play with (assuming we don't trade it before then).

It's supposedly a weak draft - though the top 3 live picks are high quality players. Will we / can we trade up to them? Or do we back JT and co to find some quality with the picks they have.

Because of the pain of losing Clarry and Trac, my only way of dealing with it is to look forward. And maybe it's not all bad. People often say that when building a list you need to have the spine first (as they take longer to develop) . Our spine has loads of potential - half glass full view is that the forwards will benefit from a more attacking game style and the likes of JVR, Jeffo and Kentfield could be ready to turn the corner and start imposing themselves on games. Having Mihochek should make a difference - as much during the week as on game day. Our defence looks more solid with Petty and Disco great options. Heath is a few cm smaller than Gawn - but maybe he gets to learn the running patterns, ruck craft that Gawn has. We won't be able to replace Gawn... but it seems like Heath has the tools and ability to be decent.

Add to that a generational talent in Kozzie and some exciting midfield kids and who knows what is possible? I think it will take a while to get things to click... but I'm hoping by the end of 2026 we're seeing a side play with flair that is capable of giving most teams a scare on their day with plenty of upside going forward. With clear air (with no Trac and Clarry), no more leaks, exciting game plan we can be aan attractive place to be again.

2028. The gypsy woman said.

View everything from that starting point and it all makes sense.

Mind you, if all this does work out we'll be riding an incredible wave of young talent brought up in a rigorous club culture right as Tassie blows a a fresh hole in the national talent pool.

Anything is possible.

You'd hope we secure Langford, Lindsay et al early next year. Don't want any more sagas with our young core.

2021 was supposed to be the start of a dynasty. Instead, four short years later, 10 of our 23 premiership players are off the list.

Hibberd, Brayshaw, Trac, Oliver, Brown, Spargo, Jackson, Jordan, Harmes, and Nibbler.

The window is firmly closed, let's just hope the bottom out isn't too severe before we contend again.

We just love being at the bottom of the ladder. Year after year after year!

2 minutes ago, Mattyd said:

We just love being at the bottom of the ladder. Year after year after year!

Welcome Matty- thanks for leading off your posting life with pessimism. You'll fit in with most of the folk on here just fine...

Go Dees

ps: @Demonland can we get some current coaching staff icons in play 🙂

Edited 6 hours ago6 hr by Engorged Onion

9 minutes ago, The Red Fox said:

2021 was supposed to be the start of a dynasty. Instead, four short years later, 10 of our 23 premiership players are off the list.

Hibberd, Brayshaw, Trac, Oliver, Brown, Spargo, Jackson, Jordan, Harmes, and Nibbler.

The window is firmly closed, let's just hope the bottom out isn't too severe before we contend again.

Never really understood why people mention retired medically or otherwise players like they have decided to leave or something. Let’s not make it seem worse than it is.

Should have been more than what we got but it wasn’t, got to build on it, and actually get the culture right (unlike the bull [censored] scam they said last year or the year before about love or whatever) and hopefully things turn around.

There is a good bunch of young players there so there’s is hope.

Ultimately going to the draft was our only choice as we have many areas in the 22 that need coverage. 4 more first rounders should get us 80-90 % of what we need and we can trade for the rest.

Unfortunately, i think we are in for a rough 2-3 years where we are unlikely to do better than 10 wins. But watching how quickly Hawks turned things around, we could start to challenge from 2028-2029 if things go our way. It hurts to write that, but we really didnt have the right people in the club around the 2021 - 2023 timeline to help correct course. I dont think it would have ultimately mattered as nobody was going to trade Oliver and Petty at the time when we were contending and the game style really changed so much that half our list was not cut out for it.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing and to borrow a Goodwin phrase, the learnings of that period should help us make better decisions moving forward.

Edited 6 hours ago6 hr by GS_1905

It really is the glass half empty/half full thing. We might as well have faith in King. He cant change everything all at once. But I'm happy to just wait and see whether he did right with Tracc, Clarry and May and what he does over summer with next year's gameplan. He probably won't be but the exciting thing is he could be an exceptional coach - Christ, he could be the best coach in decades. (No one can argue that it's not technically possible.) So far we have every reason to be excited about King and 2026 ( even if it's sad to lose premiership heroes).

Roll on March.

17 minutes ago, Engorged Onion said:

Welcome Matty- thanks for leading off your posting life with pessimism. You'll fit in with most of the folk on here just fine...

Go Dees

ps: @Demonland can we get some current coaching staff icons in play 🙂

Am I wrong though?

Optimistic about the future, excited to watch our young guys develop.

If King’s new gameplan is solid, I think somewhere between 9-14th on the ladder feels about right for next year but if things go really well in terms of injuries and young guys taking a step forward, I could see us competing for 7-8th.

It's going to be exciting watching a newish team grow. Cannot wait. We were simply spinning our wheels this year and the year before that. Simply had to evolve.

21 minutes ago, The Red Fox said:

2021 was supposed to be the start of a dynasty. Instead, four short years later, 10 of our 23 premiership players are off the list.

Hibberd, Brayshaw, Trac, Oliver, Brown, Spargo, Jackson, Jordan, Harmes, and Nibbler.

The window is firmly closed, let's just hope the bottom out isn't too severe before we contend again.

What should we make of this list? Hibberd retired. Some were ruined by injuries. Some wanted to move interstate and some wanted better opportunities. Do we complain about bad luck? Do we blame the club for being the reason we lost two (former) superstars today? Or were they bad luck too? Even if there is incompetence in our coaches and staff we're going through a reset anyway - some can't be righted in a month. (BTW I reckon we've had a lot more bad luck post-flag than many care to admit.)

14 minutes ago, Go Ds said:

Christ, he could be the best coach in decades.

Roll on March.

Amen. Let the resurrection begin.

By valuing the drafts and signing younger players, this team is in a far better spot than we could well have been in if we went down a different path (like the Collingwoods, Carltons etc.)

We're starting to build a really good young core of players. This is our path to the next premiership.

I know it probably should be under 25's but I've been a bit cheeky here and made it a list of under 26's to include Petty and a few others. Don't @ me about certain players who you think are clearly not going to make it in your opinion. This is simply to highlight that we have a list of youth with potential.

OUR UNDER-26 TEAM

B: Adams Petty AMW

HB: Bowey Turner Howes

C: Lindsay Kozz Windsor

HF: Culley JVR Sparrow

FF: Luker Jeffo Chandler

Foll: Langford, Rivers, Moose

Int: CJ, Tholstrup, White, Laurie

Depth: Johnson, Henderson, Sharp, Mentha,

PLUS add in this year's picks (and potentially next years) this team could really build into something over the next 5-6 years.

Edited 5 hours ago5 hr by Young Blood

Didn't King say im the coach you need?

Its an obviously a culture reset, and that had to be addressed before we could move forward. They have replaced better players (trac and oliver) with better leaders (mihochek and Steele), to nurture and lead the young talent we have already drafted, and the hope that we can get a couple more.

Despite the draft concessions, Tassie won't be a powerhouse for quite a while if gws and go were anything to go by. I think we have changed our view (under Goody) that we were still a chance to win, and the new regime is targeting 5 years from now. Its probably the new coach and ceo that have driven the change in planning.

As hard as it is to accept, and i wish we did it a year ago, what has happened is the right decision for the club imo.

I have a little inside Intel, and I think the younger players will be the main beneficiaries and excited by the additional opportunities and responsibility

8 minutes ago, Mattyd said:

Am I wrong though?

Umm, let's see.....

Who's we? The Bailey 'we'? Or Neeld's? Roos's? Goody's? Who exactly? Certainly we can't know if King loves finishing down the bottom.

As for loving this maybe after 4 years of not wanting low finishes standards slipped. But even if for whatever reason things hadn't fallen apart for Oliver in 2023 and Petracca hadn't almost died maybe we would been top 10 the last 2 seasons (,and in 8 of yhe last 9). So, no, we probably don't like finishing near last.

As for next year we do lose a lot of experience. It's certainly possible we go backwards. Then again we have a new coach, there could well ne more motivation and well, maybe Clarry or Tracc were causing tension and affecting team morale and now we gain more than we lose. Plus we have added a new forward, a new defender, a new midfielder and a new ruckman. Any or all of them may well help improve things on their part of the ground or subgroup.

Anyway we should wait and be optimistic for next year. Surely there's no point fretting over summer.

Edited 5 hours ago5 hr by Go Ds

25 minutes ago, Young Blood said:

By valuing the drafts and signing younger players, this team is in a far better spot than we could well have been in if we went down a different path (like the Collingwoods, Carltons etc.)

We're starting to build a really good young core of players. This is our path to the next premiership.

I know it probably should be under 25's but I've been a bit cheeky here and made it a list of under 26's to include Petty and a few others. Don't @ me about certain players who you think are clearly not going to make it in your opinion. This is simply to highlight that we have a list of youth with potential.

OUR UNDER-26 TEAM

B: Adams Petty AMW

HB: Bowey Turner Howes

C: Lindsay Kozz Windsor

HF: Culley JVR Sparrow

FF: Luker Jeffo Chandler

Foll: Langford, Rivers, Moose

Int: CJ, Tholstrup, White, Laurie

Depth: Johnson, Henderson, Sharp, Mentha,

PLUS add in this year's picks (and potentially next years) this team could really build into something over the next 5-6 years.

My, Max Heath has been at the club less than a week and we're already s'posed to know his nickname is Moose?! 😂

I expect that JVR former rising star nominee, Windsor, L & L and Culley will live up to their early form.

1 hour ago, The Red Fox said:

2021 was supposed to be the start of a dynasty. Instead, four short years later, 10 of our 23 premiership players are off the list.

Hibberd, Brayshaw, Trac, Oliver, Brown, Spargo, Jackson, Jordan, Harmes, and Nibbler.

The window is firmly closed, let's just hope the bottom out isn't too severe before we contend again.

I feel your pain . I was at the 2021 Grand Final and the subsequent celebrations. There was so much talk then of a Dynasty, new training facilities, being a destination Club etc I am amazed how how quickly it has all imploded. Let’s just hope that things turn around . One lives in hope.

Edited 5 hours ago5 hr by FabDemon

I think we've got what it takes to compete and soon from this trade period. If you want positivity, you've come to the right place (albeit in the wrong place, aka Demonland)

Before I get into my takes on all these trades, my biggest concern for us this year was the defence. We were too easy to score on if teams took us on down the middle. (St Kilda, Collingwood x 2 games come to mind but there would be others too). Our talls were too slow and our smalls weren't accountable enough. This trade period, with Trac and Oliver leaving, there are obviously holes in the midfield, but we have talent to fill it. But that talent leaves more holes in the defence.

MCVEE & JIATH

I think losing McVee hurts us more than many will realise. We had very few defenders last year who could actually defend, especially with speed. Jiath is a great pickup to replace, he can be accountable in defence and can move quickly. They are even listed at the same height. We lose a bit in disposal, but we didn't have to trade as much out. With Judd obviously leaving before the trade period even started this is good business.

HEATH

Is basically a nobody in AFL land so no one's paying attention to him. Rucks are cool and fun and obvious at the ground but most rucks aren't particularly important and getting less important by the year. Heath doesn't need to be Gawn, he just needs to be the guy for a bit. Everyone is pretty sure Kalani is the next great Melbourne ruck, but we need someone to play until he's 20 or 21 at least. Dogga was supposed to be that guy and then some. Heath is a year younger than Jackson, and while he's a talent downgrade he's perfect for us. He can learn his craft, he knows he'll be next in the prestigious line of Melbourne rucks, but he can cement a spot by giving it his all.

MIHOCEK

You need someone to take the best tall defender. He can do that until JVR develops a bit more and hopefully helps JVR develop a bit of confidence.

STEELE

As many were saying today, he's got leadership at training and on the field. He can do what Viney does but with slightly better disposal.

OLIVER & PETRACCA

It hurts to lose them, for sure, no question. They'll always been Melbourne greats. But they were paid like top 5 players in the AFL and they haven't been close to that for a few years. There are mitigating circumstances, to be sure, but if we want to be about winning, we have to be ruthless. They weren't earning their wages, so our best move is to move them on. (Was it dumb to give them those contracts? The answer is clear now. Hopefully the club learns from this.)

In addition to the draft haul, we unlock a lot of cap room, which gives us flexibility to not only attract FA talent but to retain the key players we have now.

We also get a bit of positivity around the club. I think both players have been a negative presence around the club in the last 2-3 years. It's not said about Petracca because he has better management, but his actions last year (and yes the club was culpable too) would not have ingratiated him to the group.

You can see some of this at games. Petracca gets visibly frustrated during games and hasn't seemed joyous in a long time. Clarry has perhaps been better on the field, but it's no secret that his presence at the club has not always been positive. How does someone like Bowey or Chandler feel when they're giving everything in a games, not getting paid the massive bucks, they're here because they want the glory and you've got these guys going around the field with the bad attitude getting $1m per year? And we're still losing. Let alone what it does for a guy like Langford.

In summary, I'm optimistic, MFCSS be damned1