So Fritsch is playing?

2 minutes ago, DubDee said:

What’s the story with Rivers?

He’s carrying a knee grumble/niggle.

10 minutes ago, Ghostwriter said:

He’s carrying a knee grumble/niggle.

Otherwise known as kneemoania.

4 minutes ago, Demonstone said:

Otherwise known as kneemoania.

11/10 👏

So Fritsch has been named in the Side..

Should i now change my tip for Sunday?

I would really like to pick the Demons, but if Fritsch is pulled an hour before the Bounce i will be furious!!!

Such a Dilemma 😎

11 minutes ago, Demonstone said:

Otherwise known as kneemoania.

This is the kind of Thursday night entertainment the AFL has been screaming out for.

2 hours ago, Queanbeyan Demon said:

Four goals against Carlton looked great. I'll give Fritta that. But I've been watching Bayley Fritsch for eight seasons now, and Sunday felt familiar. The ball raining into an open forward line, Carlton's defense scrambling, Pickett doing the heavy lifting. Fritsch was in the right spot. He usually is. The question is what happens when he isn't.

I pulled his career data from Wheelo Ratings and compared him against five peers who kicked similar tallies in 2025: Zurhaar (38 goals), Higgins (46), Fogarty (40), Curtis (38) and Gunston (62). The picture that emerges is one I suspect many of us have sensed but struggled to articulate.

His goal assists sit at 0.5 per game — lowest of the peer group, whose average is 0.64. Score involvement percentage of 22.5% — again lowest. He is involved in fewer than one in four scores his team registers. When he gets the ball, he looks for goal. When he doesn't, he waits. That's not a caricature but rather it's what the numbers say.

Defensively: 1.7 tackles per game against a group average of 2.3. Tackles inside 50 — the truest measure of forward pressure — just 0.7, against 1.1. Pressure acts 9.1, group average 12.0. Curtis and Higgins do nearly twice the defensive work.

Fogarty is the most instructive comparison — similarly passive, similar pressure numbers. But Fogarty's career accuracy is 59.9%. If you're going to be a pure finisher, be elite at finishing. Fritsch at 52% last season isn't quite making that case.

He's a good footballer. He's not irreplaceable. King has options, and this week is a chance to use them.

PS. I haven't figured out how to statistically track and make meaning out of his penchant for regularly burning teammates.

Thanks for going to the trouble, but Fogarty???? Not like for like. That’s the problem with analysis of Fritsch. He is unique! Don’t look for comparisons in statistics… He is poetry in motion, every so often, and it’s a beautiful thing! There is no other! Enjoy the fact that the twinkle toed quiff is a Demon!

6 hours ago, Ghostwriter said:

Agree. And I just wanna point out I never said he broke his foot… I said he did his foot. No surprise that I knew about this when it happened but since DogBiteGate… well, you know what they say: Once (Dog) Bitten Twice Shy. 😁

And now ima moonwalk outta this convo lest I’m harpooned twice in as many weeks 👍🏽

Evidently his dog stood on his foot. Backed up then stood on it again. Kingy has banned the pooch from the rooms and training.

Any way it is what is and we just have to work around it.

Edited 10 hours ago10 hr by manny100

3 hours ago, Bowserpower said:

People claim to be in the know and build their reputation

Fritsch is named in the side. If this is the player you alluded to @Demonland …

Turner for CJ makes sense

Because of GC's height I'd go either Heath or Kentfield for Cross. Have to keep Andrew accountable.

Those ins don't give much away.

Do we play the 4 talls down back? Would be interesting to have a look at it and can always swing Petty or Disco forward if it's not working?

That would free up Kolt to play a different role as he did in the first two weeks, perhaps tag but possibly role him right in to the role Cross did last week trying to get a deep forward who can hit a pack and provide some ground pressure.

Which gives us the 23rd spot for Heath, Melk, Luker or Laurie with also the potential of a late Fritsch out.

Luker in would be very exciting but I'm just not sold on the idea of picking a guy who's been out for 5 weeks for a debut even if he's just set for limited minutes.

5 hours ago, binman said:

Can't see either Melk or Heath being selected.

As i noted in the Casey v Box Hill thread, with King's game plan he selects a bunch of what are essentially utilities with no fixed positions as such (except at centre bounces when everyone starts in a fixed position).

After a restart, players like Langford, Culley, Sharp, Chandler, Langdon, Latrelle, Kolt (if not tagging or playing at HB) and Cross (though he did play pretty deep) play roles similar to that of high half forwards across the comp in the previous 2-3 seasons - ie pushing up the ground deep into defence when required, running ahead of the ball on turnover to provide an option and tonnes of box to box running.

So, i think under King the idea of a like for like replacement, except for some very specific roles such as key defenders, key forwards and ruck is no longer relevant. Meaning not focusing on who might come in as 'replacements' for CJ, Fritter and Cross.

Kolt could go forward, play as a utility or play at half back. Culley can play as the medium tall forward if needed.

Laurie would be a good fit because he can play the utility role, and whilst not particularly quick is not slow and has the tank required to cover the ground utilities need to cover under King.

If they are 100% confident Disco is good to go, he'll come in (and i suspect they'll be keen to bring him in to play on King). If Fritter wasn't out, my guess would have been Tmac out for Disco. But Tmac might stay in and play as a key forward and chop out Maxy.

My guess on selection:

Out: CJ, Fritter and Cross (and pos Tmac)

In: AMW, Laurie and Disco (poss Riv instead of Laurie or Tmac if he comes out)

I would have thought given the job on McKay & being a better ‘lockdown defender’ McDonald would get the job on King…

totally fair points re ‘positionless’ - I almost want to say basketball as that’s where the NBA has moved to…I just think Melksham is such an intelligent footballer, he’d figure it out

Edited 10 hours ago10 hr by heath55

The 3 who drop out will be Batman, Heath and Laurie.

5 hours ago, Bowserpower said:

This is what I find really frustrating.

People jump the gun and share their 'inside info' and then have to walk it back when they are caught out. People are reading these insights and being led down a path.

Been happening for a while. Yet same old folks on here still take those same people on face value because they're too scared ****less to call them out lol

23 hours ago, KoltTheRam said:

Mitch Cleary just said on Agenda Setters that Riv will be back in the team this week.

Swing and a miss there 😄

28 minutes ago, heath55 said:

I would have thought given the job on McKay & being a better ‘lockdown defender’ McDonald would get the job on King…

totally fair points re ‘positionless’ - I almost want to say basketball as that’s where the NBA has moved to…I just think Melksham is such an intelligent footballer, he’d figure it out

I've never rated tmac as a one in one defender, but if he can take King that's frees Disco up to get up the ground mote and be more aggressive - which suits him a he's surprisingly quick and agile for a big fella. That woyld also allow kolt to go forward

I agree on melk's smarts, but he looked miles o his optimal condition when I saw him against footscray two weeks back, and his knee was heavily bandaged.

Still, if Fritter can recover from his foot being amputated so quickly, anything is possible.

Fritsch’s hair is damn near perfect every game. There has to be at least 3 inches between his scalp and top of the bouffant.

@Ghostwriter find out his products of choice if you please, I’m needing to maximise my volume to mask my receding 🙏

12 minutes ago, binman said:

Still, if Fritter can recover from his foot being amputated so quickly, anything is possible.

Modern medicine. Incredible.

Fritta has the will to play!

1 hour ago, FTB said:

It will be Melksham and Turner for Cross and Jiath.

I saw the news, it said Disco in, Heath in, and two others I couldn’t recall.

Cross and Jiath out.

I read earlier Frittata is out for 6 weeks, is this confirmed?

8 hours ago, FTB said:

I agree.

What I meant, was I would much rather see Kentfield be picked ahead of Jefferson once available.

Um I wouldn't

No Petracca AND no Humphrey?

It's like the ghosts of past and future didn't turn up for the Christmas Carol.

At a practical level, it does make this the first game this season Gold Coast's forward power could be debated. Realistically we'd probably still need King to statistically balance his goalkicking accuracy a bit.

Do we try a tag on Anderson, their other prime mover? Culley or Langford would be tall enough. Fit enough?

Well the only thing I have going for me is a lifelong passion for the Dees (75+ years) …….….. and I 100% acknowledge that the modern game has probably passed me by! ……. but I’d love to see Disco replace CJ, and Kenty replace Crossy in the final lineup. Neither change is exactly ‘like for like’ but in IMO, these players are our future!

PS. There may have a small red wine influence in this post. Please forgive me!

7 minutes ago, GawnOfTheDead said:

I saw the news, it said Disco in, Heath in, and two others I couldn’t recall.

Cross and Jiath out.

I read earlier Frittata is out for 6 weeks, is this confirmed?

Fritsch broke his foot prior to the Freo game, managed to play on the weekend still with foot broken, then got ruled out for 5 weeks. That was updated to 6 for the hell of it. Then it was reported that scans showed his foot wasn’t broken. Now it turns out he is playing against GC and no one appears sure whether his foot is sore, broken, bitten or sat upon by a dog or even amputated. Several serious types on here are so disgusted at the amount of mayo on their ham and salads that they’ve filed complaints to @Demonland.