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She's not really pretending that it's anything other than her opinion but what she is doing is presenting her list of preferences in order and highlighting the challenges faced by recruiters in this draft. Given that Melbourne bidded its second pick for Heeney, I think it's a fair call for her to make that he's the best of this lot in the draft. It points out the unfair advantage Sydney has in this draft (and is likely to have in the next where they will be in a similar situation) and why the AFL is reviewing the bidding system. I've found most of her work to be thorough, well-researched and professional which is well above the norm for journos these days. It's interesting to note also that she not only found it necessary to increase the size of her list from 25 as it was in the past but up to 30 and for good measure has added another dozen who she found hard to leave out. That means we can expect our pick 40 to possibly be of reasonable quality in this draft which matches what our chief recruiter and our list manager also believe.

Credz to a guy of the Fb page This is apparently next years clash guernsey and WOWOWOWOW

BB, for a quality poster you do yourself a disservice with these references to "Demonland groupthink" for any opinion you happen to disagree with. On last season's form, Grimes is no longer CLEARLY best 22. He is on the periphery, and that is an opinion shared beyond Demonland. The reality is that he will be there in Round 1, but he didn't do much to justify his spot in 2014.

2 year bans all around They were not duped and I am sick of the sympathy for the players

I was going to post this here this morning but the thread mysteriously disappeared into the ether for a few hours. I went to the club's draft information night on Thursday evening which featured Jason Taylor and Todd Viney. They discussed the club's 2014 trade and draft strategies and the development of the club's list. The main thing I came away with was that the only imperative when making selections 2 & 3 was to take the best player available. Of course, there's still a subjective element there because the "best" would have to comply with the style of game the head coach and football department are striving to achieve. Jason Taylor gave his brief impressions of the four leading candidates for picks 2 & 3, stressing that they were not in any particular order - Christian Petracca, Patrick McCartin, Angus Brayshaw and Jake Lever. He gave brief pen pictures of all four and I won't go into exact details but they were generally in accord with what the better draft watchers in the media have been saying. The impression I gained was that the expectation is that Petracca is likely to be picked by the Saints and that we're more likely to take McCartin and Brayshaw ahead of Lever. I gathered this mainly from his body language and voice when describing the players. I could be wrong but he sounded quite enthusiastic about McCartin and unless he's a very good actor, it seems to me that he'll be taken ahead of Lever if it comes to that. Taylor and Viney's best 4 differs from that referred to by Josh Mahoney in a recent interview (he had Peter Wright in there and not Lever). Taylor also said that he was not fazed by McCartin's diabetes issues (he was in receipt of updated medical reports) or the fact that some consider him a similar type to Jesse Hogan and he believed that if we took McCartin they would complement each other. I wouldn't worry about any other player as a candidate for 2 & 3. The choices will come from those four names. I also attended a charity lunch for Les Twentyman's foundation for homeless and troubled youth and Paul Roos was keynote speaker. While he didn't cover any specific ground relating to who we would pick here or anywhere else he did stress the importance of character and commitment of young recruits, something about which both Taylor and Viney were both strong in their presentations and which their best four definitely fit very well.

The AFL integrity shop never opened !!

Not only should we not stuff up and go ahead and secure the skipper to a fair deal given his status at the club and his contributions to it over his time as a player, but we should also move forward and become the predators when it comes to free agents and out of contract players from other clubs. I believe we've already been proactive with Dangerfield (and will continue to follow him up along with Tex Walker and Rory Sloane) but we should approach this bloke ~ Contract can wait, says young Giant Shiel. We've been the targets for far too long.

Bate and Martin have been gone for two years and Davis was actually at the club in 2014 as a VFL listed player. The problem for Casey was certainly the loss of AFL experience but it was also the loss of VFL experience as well combined with injury. The young kids with light bodies simply couldn't cut it when opposed to bigger bodied and more experienced opposition especially when they were called on to play a defensive game plan which called for super fitness and massive tanks. They should be better at it in 2015 especially if they get money to recruit some suitable players.

Are you thinking Paul Johnson, 200cm, good below the knees, reasonably agile for a big bloke but......

The key question of interest for me is what is the status of "Jab" Watson's Brownlow? Can he retain it if this banned substances ruling is substantiated? Would the second placegetter become the medalist? The AFL would not want to go into this territory.

The Luke Beveridge appointment as coach of the Western Bulldogs struck me as having some similarities with the appointment of Mark Neeld at Melbourne a few years ago. A young untried coach with a record of multiple premierships at local level, more flags as assistant at AFL level and a team split by dissension and internal power plays. But the first answer to the first interview Beveridge gave after his appointment does not bode well ~ Luke Beveridge believes timing is right for Western Bulldogs coach-appointment

Is this some form of haiku?

I just need Ben to be a good solid worker. Not looking for shiny baubles here. He like really most of the team just need to go out , play good footy, be their role and contribute. When that happens we'll kick ass. Ben is no Bernie....but dont need him to be a good decent consistent B graded is fine...a step up from recent history.

Actually that's not right. There was a much greater doping scandal in world cycling. The Operacion Puerto scandal which like the Essendon fiasco was caused by one person, Doctor Eufemiano Fuentes. Masses of riders from many different teams and even entire teams were suspended. It was way more massive than this case. Have a look at this from Wikipedia if you are interested http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operaci%C3%B3n_Puerto_doping_case

Agree! The credibility of WADA is on the line here, the Dons had the perfect "cheater template" and it must hammered flat! How many clubs, coaches and players would just love to get on a program with so much upside (drugs that will enhance performance for years) with the risk of only a few months suspension? If the AFL have any foresight at all they should save WADA time and effort and apply the maximum penalties to the players and the club!

No he didn't. That player was Wade Lees who did unwittingly import a banned supplement and received what virtually amounted to a 2 year sanction. Actually, there's an good amount of comment on this particular thread that's more informed and I suspect closer to the mark than some of the drivel you read in the written media.

what a farce to back date a suspension when the players have already played those games, to make such a deal is an absolute blight on the AFL and sport in general. But then again whats another blight to the money greedy AFL who only look after the rich clubs.

If the 34 players are found to have been administered a banned drug (TB4) then I can't see how they can get less than 12 months. Even then, they would have to plead 'no significant fault or negligence". The players were negligent in signing a waiver that listed Thymosin on it. A Google search would have told them that there was "good" and "bad" Thymosin. Hird and Dank didn't help the situation by sidelining Reid who would have been the one to check with ASADA. Having said that, Reid had reservations about Dank's use of AOD9604, and was not forceful enough in his objection to the use of that. During the player interviews, it was apparent that some players were told more by Dank re Thymosin than others. It didn't help the 34 players that something like 12 did not have the injections. BTW the story about Zaharkas having an aversion to needles was rubbish. Looking at the NRL penalties, I think the players will get 12 months backdated to the issuance of the initial SCNs (mid-June). They would then miss half the 2015 season. If the players are found guilty the AFL tribunal may try to get away with the minimum. I reckon ASADA will appeal if the bans are less than 2 years. They'll go in hard as they did in both Matt Clark's and Saad's case.

I'll wait until it is confirmed as a clash jumper and not a training jumper before getting too excited.

There's going to be a lot of competition for these places this preseason 'CB' and that's a good thing. Kent is going to have to make a big step up, I think from current output he is overrated on this forum. I see the potential but 2015 is a big year for him. JKH will have to have a really good preseason to make round one. Bail, Mitchie, Grimes, Riley, Toumpas, Salem...there will be a lot in the mix. Jones, Tyson, Vince and Cross would be the locks for a mid place and we also have Garlett coming in to play some mid time. I think Newton will be there.

Gee opened the can of worms with the chatting to players, they are human beings as well and some actually enjoy the interaction with supporters, Howie, Watts, Terlich, Salem, Vince.....others not so much, but all the players are willing to chat at the end of the session, so that is when I chat to them, there have been observers who have tried to interact during, the players usually gently remind them they are working I have been trying to gauge through talking to them whether what the posters who are at training are observing, ie whether it has gone up a notch or two again, is true and yes it has, for instance Nev Jetta knows when his 3k time trial is scheduled and he is already working on what time he wants to do As for the question on Salem and Toump, both worked solidly during the off season and came back ready to go, Toump has had a bit of gastro but is travelling fine now, they know they have a challenge ahead to get into the opening 22 but are up for it

I think there are a lot of midfielders who are very effective because they do what they do very well. They may become known stars because of consistentcy and longevity, not because what they do is flashy ie Jordan Lewis, Joel Corey etc. A few foot soldiers who can operate under pressure and hit targets would be a nice start.

Injury free he will play round 1.

Oh I understand now, because Tom Gillies was no good, every DFA is hopeless and will never improve. Ever had a bad meal? That would mean you don't eat anymore, correct?

Agree...we have too many C graders. Bail & Mckenzie are surplus that are clogging up the list. Newton will boost our midfield depth. He is likely to be an emergency Round 1 but we will give him a run Round 3-6 depending on results. HE IS TOUGH AND SKILLED...thats a bonus in my estimations.

Yes agree with that. A player doesn't need to be impressive to be effective.

Emma Quayle has nominated her top 30 in her usual very well reasoned way. Her top 5 on performance (not necessarily pick order): 1 Heeney (head and shoulders above the rest) (N.A. Academy pick) 2 Wright 3 Petracca 4 McCartin 5 Moore (NA. F/S pick) She does say it is a very close race between 2 to 5. Brayshaw is at 6. Also mentions hard for a team to use a high pick on a player like Lever who hasn't played all year and has him at 11. All credit to her for not focusing on who has which pick and simply ranked the players as she sees it. One of the few unbiased journos around! AFL draft a level playing field for recruiters

Correct. We lost Hannath a little while ago the same way. Once bitten.

Scenario 1: ND23 and someone at PSD2 or DFA. No Frost. Scenario 2: Frost, ND40, and ND53. No other scenarios look plausible to me. The Saints got Membrey in DFA, they would be in negotiations right now with Frost if we didn't do that deal. I don't think we made a bad decision here. The bad decisions may come with ND40 and ND53 however...

what gets me about all of this is the hypocrisy of clashing in the first place and then the dubious and different treatment some teams get. below are actual 'clash " strips from 2014 : not a whole lot of WHITE happening there !!! Still the last one , the Doggies , is interesting to me. A team who is predominantly Blue with some red is now predominantly red with some blue...and both a dash of white. if thats the case why cant we change from mainly blue to mainly red as follows ( have posted before )

scratching ones balls is a much undervalued pastime

Gee watching that vid shows how close we were to knocking off Port twice this year - the report card on season 2014 would have been somewhat different if we'd managed to get over the line. Arguably, it would have given us a real shot of confidence that would have spilled over into other games and might have snared us another win or two along the way. Shoulda woulda coulda... I still maintain that we're closer to being competitive than current results might indicate.

Differing opinions make the world go round 'rp' but I think the MFC history and what it stands for is the culture of the club and the MFC emblem signifies this without all the clutter. A little bit like the flag and anthem debates there is no right or wrong, but of course I'm more right lol!! I don't like the shield at all.

The AFL has announced the following unlisted players currently have permission to train with AFL clubs: Adelaide Crows Nil. Brisbane Lions Nil. Carlton Jason Tutt (Western Bulldogs). Collingwood Tony Armstrong (Collingwood). Essendon Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti (Essendon VFL), Sam Tagliabue (Essendon VFL). Fremantle Nil. Geelong Cats Nil. Gold Coast Suns Greg Broughton (Gold Coast Suns), Andrew Raines (Brisbane Lions). GWS Giants Nil. Hawthorn Nil. Melbourne Mitchell Gent (Casey Scorpions), Edward Morris (Casey Scorpions), James Munro (Casey Scorpions), Bryce Rutherford (Casey Scorpions), Luke Tapscott (Melbourne). North Melbourne Cameron Delaney (North Melbourne), Max Warren (North Melbourne). Port Adelaide Nil. Richmond Nil. St Kilda Cameron Banfield (Sandringham), Elliot le Grice (Sandringham), Shaun McKernan (Adelaide Crows), Jack Noone (Sandringham), Kenny Ong (Sandringham), Jared Petrenko (Adelaide Crows), Adam Schneider (St Kilda), Jeremy Taylor (Gold Coast Suns). Sydney Swans Nil. West Coast Nil. Western Bulldogs Brett Goodes (Western Bulldogs), Alex Greenwood (Western Bulldogs), Daniel Pearce (Western Bulldogs).

Jimmy Stynes day.

actually we dont... weve had a lot of D and C graders.. Good B graders is what Jones used to be ti he got even a bit better Flashy players might add to the spectacle but Id rather a team effort that added to the scoreboard...the only thing that matters

A nice problem to have, for once....pick the best available player and team, regardless of how long the player has been around or their status on list.

I read somewhere this week that the clock will start ticking from the date of the Infraction Notices. Ie Friday. They are supposedly banned from then. I would have thought that means they can't train withe the Club but haven't heard anything about that. I'm a bit confused about the likely penalty. Saad got 18mths although he didn't know the energy drink he had was only banned on match days the rest of the time it was ok. ASADA appealed and wanted 2yrs. No 12mth discount for ignorance, only 6mth for co operation. The Essendon players supposedly didn't know what they were taking so could get the 12mth discount but on the basis of what happened to Saad I'm not sure why they would get it. Maybe because the Club told the it was legal and they should be entitled to rely on the Club including Doc Reid. (How he is not charged here as well is a mystery to me. On that basis, if found guilty I can't see how they could get less than 12mths and if their reliance on the Club doesn't help them, on basis of Saad case, as they haven't co operated, it looks like 2yrs.

He seems to have been talked up more by DL posters than by the club. Lever named on here (and the press) as a strong possibility along with several others (Laverde, Cockatoo, De Goey) then we all jumped on the bandwagon. Not sure the club had much to do with fanning the flames.

Well we should sign up James Magner and Tom Couch. The draft age is 18. Everyone older than that has been passed up in previous drafts. 18 years old (mainly) have school commitments. They are also not fully grown. Nor are the fully developed mentally. Aggghh why am I even replying. You are either a troll or an idiot.

That it came to this is terrible list management. But it was probably a good decision for both parties. Evans wasn't a part of our future which means he's no longer locked into playing for Casey in 2015. If it doesn't work out for him hopefully he can make something of his law/commerce degrees. Good luck to him.

Just talking to a Port Adelaide mate who lives over in SA and follows both the Power and SANFL team. Reckons Newton is a really good pick up a bit unlucky with the depth of there mids not to get more senior game time. Hard at it reminds him a bit of Boak in his words.

I'm most impressed by the fact that he effectively shepherded for a teammate. You don't see that very often at MFC.

No he doesn't. Being able to take hangers doesn't equal "x factor".

Let's please not go through another Chip style melodrama. The Giants came knocking, both club and player said "no thanks". The rest is speculation. It's basically a nothing story. I'll be quite surprised if he doesn't re-sign.

I'm only passing on reliable knowledge I've got. Which says whilst Evans isn't number one in the Paul Roos fan club the greater issue is how the players who were stuck at Casey last year felt as a whole. I understand the importance of defensive effort, but Dom Barry got picked on the back of a 7 disposal game last year, only a couple of weeks after playing Casey reserves. Other guys had 25 touches each week and weren't getting a look in. I mean in a bad team you have to be pretty good to win a lot of touches and also defend your own man and the wave of players coming against you. Personally I'd take the guy at least winning the ball because that's step one to winning a game. Our lesser names being upset is hardly the end of the world. Don't let the broom hit you on the way out lads. But next year our lesser names at Casey will likely be quite a few kids. Almost by default some of the higher ranked kids of the last few years (Kent, Toumpas, JKH, Salem, Pick 2, Pick 3, even Frost, Newton or Michie, pick 40 this year) are going to be spending time at Casey. If they aren't then that's not a good sign for our senior players! I don't want them to be content being in the VFL, they need to strive to make it. But they have to have faith in the system. Langford from Hawthorn is the perfect model for how he knew his time at Box Hill would serve him well for the AFL and how despite barely playing a senior game in 3 years I think he felt he was on track for AFL success.

The biggest issue with Evans is not his ability or even his desire, but his body which has continually failed him at almost every turn. He had injury issues in 09 & 10 which meant he didn’t end up representing WA in the Nationals. We were rapt to rookie him, and I was rapt with his early output for Casey and eventually Melbourne. Alas, he still hasn’t had an injury free season in his time at Melbourne. It’s been at least six years since he has been injury free. Unfortunately the question is will his body ever allow him to play AFL footy consistently? The weight of evidence suggests it’s unlikely. Giving him a rookie spot is a lower risk option to give him one more chance to see if his body holds up, otherwise it’s probably time to move on.

Nobody here knows who we are taking at pick 3, settle down PF

If Garlett, Lamumba, Frost and Newton become regulars, coupled with Tyson, Vince and Cross last year, that is 1/3 of the side turned over in 12 months. Also half the list has gone in the same period, when you add the draftees and a few other trades. That is one hell of a list change and there will be more to come next year.

Think a three year deal would be fair for both parties. 2.7 over 3