Leaderboard

A few observations from today's training: * I'm getting a little tired of training reports so today's is brief, but I'll dig deep Tues/Wed and keep setting the standards. Saturday's reports show that the work I'm putting in is starting to pay off. Focus Bruiser.... last quarter ... push it out mate! * Another humid one and the sun had a real kick in it when it showed itself today. * No sign of the coaches for the first 2/3 of training, they showed up for the match sims. First time I've seen Stafford at camp today. * Skills were a little off I thought early on, with the fumbling a touch contagious. The skills got better though once they cleared out the weekend's cobwebs. * Earlier part of training not quite as intense as Sat, but it picked up as the session went on. * Stretch's speed and skills - wow * Noticed Toump a bit more today. * Harmes had good intensity and good skills I thought. * A lot of the players sounded like coaches out there today. * Tommy Mac back to the change rooms for something. * Oscar Mac's kicking a little better than Sat - Better than I thought. * Crossy's kicking does look to have improved. * Whitey's kicking is right up there with some of the best left footers I've seen - bullets * Jonesy reckons Newts is going really well. Real happy with him. * Young guys setting the standards at times in training. (Come on young Demonlanders, got to step up to the mark with some good training reports back in Melbourne) * Later in training Jonesy really happy with the standard being set. * Vandenberg stands out the most to me today. Has been in rehab a lot but more involved today. Really sharp hand-balling and strong precise kicking. A good find - Look for him to impress in the NAB cup if fit, but looks right to go right now. * Garlett 70m Torp goal, makes it look easy.

I had the pleasure of being within 10 metres of some of Garland's rebound work on Saturday morning and it made me realize how good he is in traffic His change of direction is exceptional. Roos would be very happy to have such a polished and experienced defender ready to roll in 2015!

Just a few observations to add to the numerous reports above. I was really impressed with the coaching staff. We're in good hands. They seem to be providing the playing group with a consistent message. All the assistants I saw in action communicated in a really effective manner. They didn't waste words, were clear but positive. We have some leaders on our list. Jones, Dunn, Dawes, Cross, Vince, Jamar, Grimes, Garland and now Lumumba form a good solid senior group. Trengove's positive team first approach to his rehab is incredible. Our young leaders are also emerging. Watts is confident and positive. Gawn is vocal and surprisingly serious. Tyson just oozes class and is clearly admired by his team mates. Kent appears to have a solid work ethic and is developing nicely. Viney should be in the leadership group. He epitomizes everything I want this Melbourne team to be about. I don't care how old he is. I'd also like to make special mention of Neville Jetta. He is my smokey for the leadership group. He obviously feels like he belongs now. He understands our game plan and articulates it confidently. He communicates positively with his team mates but demands high standards from those around him. In terms of leadership and communication it was an interesting session to observe. The players are obviously working hard to understand the different elements of the gameplan and I really love the way the whole group seem confident to tell each other exactly what is required if someone is unsure or straight out makes a mistake. There appears to be no ego involved. Players understand the need for concise communication and don't seem to be slighted when a coach or a team mate sets them straight. They all move on quickly. Listening to the different lines during the breaks was also interesting. The forwards really do carry themselves like rock stars. There's a real confidence amongst this group. Hogan's swagger will be infectious. I love our defensive group. They're our bar room brawlers. The communicate really well with each other. Dunn, Garland, McDonald and Grimes have now played a lot of footy will each other. Howe also confident in these situations and shows quite a lot of leadership as well. I didn't get a chance to listen to the midfield group but just wanted to make one key point. As much as we all expect natural improvement from our young players and we're hopeful that the injection of Lumumba, Garlett and Frost and the emergence of Hogan will help us move up the ladder, most of us understand that we're not going to improve greatly until we start winning more midfield battles. Many on Demonland have suggested that little has changed in this department. Having seen Saturday's session I beg to differ. Firstly, with Newton on board and Michie and Riley more settled we have far greater depth. If one of these players becomes a serious B grade genuine midfielder then we're in good shape. Our ruck stocks are looking really really good. Jamar as has been noted, is in awesome shape and appears set for his best year since he was All Australian. I'm a big fan of Jake. If he's our third choice first ruck then I think we're travelling ok. He's now huge. Check out one of the snaps I took! I also come from the school of thought that injury is the only thing that can prevent Max Gawn from being a serious player. Hopefully he shows more signs this year, gets through injury free and may be ready for the number 1 mantle in twelve months time. I think the health of this group and the pre-season training they've already managed will be significant in our midfield improvement. But the biggest improvement will be provided by Jack Viney. Roos rarely played him in the middle last year. This year he seems set to have serious minutes in the middle and he is in incredible condition. His work in game sim was awesome. He reads it so well of the rucks and seems to have found another yard of breakaway pace. Improved fitness will also see less skill errors this year. Salem looks set to take a step but will still need time as will Toumpas. If both make it, we'll make it. Finally, I'd like to make a point about our battlers. Battlers is probably a harsh word. I think we're very lucky to have players such as Jordie McKenzie, Ro Bail and Matt Jones. All three are great clubmen. All three are working their respective backsides off to make our best 22. All three are ripping blokes. I really hope supporters get behind these guys. I'm more than happy in the knowledge that Brayshaw, Petracca, Stretch and Neal-Bullen are exposed to the training habits and team-oriented approach of these guys. I hope each of them has the opportunity to have a real crack at senior footy in 2015 despite the emergence of so much exciting young talent. It was awesome to see so many Dees supporters up and about. This is a well run club, with a hell of a lot of talent that is being guided in the right direction. We're going to be alright.

Well this is awkward.... I spoke to a demons fan at a kids birthday yesterday, I thought he was interested in what I was saying... Moving on, I think the first 4 games are winnable, depending on which Richmond shows up. Could look at another win or 2 in rounds 8 and 11. 6 from 11 wins, could be slightly optimistic but sounds good to me.

I think we should forgive Garland for last year. His fitness was never up to scratch due to injury. The year before that he was in AA form and one of our most important players. At his best he can play tall and small and sets up plays out of the backline. He was a successful full back for a while. No mean effort for someone of his size. As you may have gathered I'm a fan.

Paul Roos 2002-2010 Sydney Swans2002 - traded pick 23 for Nick Davis(Collingwood) 2003- no trades 2004 - traded pick 15 for Darren Jolly(Melbourne) 2005 - traded picks 19 & 50 for Ted Richards(Essendon) 2006 - traded pick 33 for Spider Everitt(Hawthown) 2007 - traded picks 28 for Marty Matner(Adelaide) and 44 for Henry Playfair(Geelong) 2008 - traded pick 46 for Rhys Shaw and pick 61(Collingwood) 2009 - traded picks 39, 46 and 70 for Ben McGlynn and Josh Kennedy(Hawthorn, possibly trade of the decade) pick 28 for Shane Mumford(Geelong) and a three way trade which saw Sydney get Mark Seaby, Amon Buchanan to the Lions and a swapping of picks. 2010 - pretty sure Longmire takes the raines at this point. 2013 - traded picks 2 & 20 for pick 9(Salem) and Dom Tyson(GWS) pick 54 for Michie(Freo) pick 23 for Bernie Vince(Adelaide) 2014 - traded Mitch Clark for H(effectively that's how it happened) picks 61 & 79 for Jeff Garlett(Carlton) pick 23 for Sam Frost(GWS) and picks 40(ANB) and 53(Oscar McDonald) Trading is an artform and Roos is possibly the best in the business. The trades from his time in Sydney turned some of the players looking for a fresh start (some on the scrap heap) into premiership players and All Australians. (Note some may of achieved after Roos had left but we're traded to the club by him).

I also attended training yesterday. Was a fantastic day, bloody hot, but considering we didn't have a Qld game last year or this year, it was worth the red skin that I'm now plastering with aloe vera. Thought I'd add a few of my observations. Please keep in mind that the last time I attended a training session I was wearing the number 43 on my back because my favourite player at the time, Andrew Ford, was still running around. Needless to say, that was at Junction Oval. I was extremely disappointed that I didn't get a chance to meet Saty. Thought he would've made the trip - given he wasn't lurking around the main group I'm presuming he was granted an extended Christmas break by the club. Individual players who impressed or otherwise (apologies for the doubling up as some other posters have said similar); Colin Garland - looks super fit. Having a full preseason could see him return to the form we expect. He provided good run off half back in some drills, and his disposal was pretty good. I think he will be in for a good year. Jack Grimes - looks a totally different player. I'm often quite critical of Jack, but I think this year we will see him go to a different level. Fit, competitive, stronger, looking forward to his season. Ruck division - Jamar is still our number 1 ruck, simple as that. Maxy is coming on, and I was really impressed with the improvement in Spencer. But Jamar, providing he can stay fit, is our most dominant ruck option, many times he would win the tap in a contest against his opponent. Max King - I don't hold much hope here. I know he is a project player, but he is a long, LONG way away from making any impact. Jack Fitzpatrick - could this be his break out year? I think it might. He was leading most if not all of the running drills. Now, that's not to say he was always beating Tom Mc or Jimmy Toumpas, but whatever group he was running in, he was always pushing himself to the front. I'd like to think he gets a handful of consecutive games where he can feel he belongs. Other players get that luxury, so hopefully Jack can. Perfect forward who can ruck option. Oscar McDonald - will be a beauty. I think he'll be better than his brother. Ben Newton - was used as a go-to man in one drill, and I thought he looked bloody good. Given that Watts was another "go to" man, and I couldn't recoginse the third of three, I'd be expecting Ben to be lining up in Round 1. Think he will be a good addition to the midfield. Matt Jones - he cops a fair bit on here, but from what I could hear from Roosy and co, Jones is doing everything they want. He's probably our 5th/6th rated midfielder, but I can tell you one thing, it'll take some pretty strong form for someone to dislodge him. While some won't like what I'm about to write, I think if we see Jones playing at Casey this year, we will play finals in the seniors. I expect him to play a lot of senior footy again. ANB - hard to make a call given I didn't see him pick up a footy. That said, he's a beautiful mover - is really light on his feet. Not sure why, but I think he'll be a very good player. Am I basing this just on his running? Not sure. I'll just call it "the vibe". Some other key points; * I loved how they trained in quarters, just like a game. They'd do drills for 20-25 minutes, then running drills for the last 5 minutes. Often talked about as red-time drills, making sure they run the entire session out. No doubt this is a big focus, given the amount of goals we let through in the 20-30 minute mark of each quarter in 2014, especially if the last quarter. * In game simulation drills (ie more pressure) we still managed to make basic mistakes. We are getting better, no doubt about it, but it is frustrating. * Further to my previous point, I still think there is one decent list cull left. I think 2015 will be the final year of "who's not up to it", then we will focus on finals. * As someone mentioned, they did an extra running session after training finished, player/leadership group-driven due to a drop off in the final "quarter". I loved how Petracca and Brayshaw were leading this (they were the old fashioned suicide sprints from point post to goal posts, etc). Later yesterday evening, I was thinking to myself how the first year players could be leading this at the end of training. I would've thought first year players would be busting their gut during "normal" drills. I'm not saying they aren't/weren't, but I would imagine the coaches would know how they are tracking... 2015 will see more frustration. I think we will starting beating sides, not just winning. We will still lament the games that we could've won but didn't due to silly mistakes. I think 2015 will set us up for a reasonable crack at finals in 2016.

Sod em

He was involved in a heated situation with Lamb and Butters,until things boiled over Then I hear he was not worth his salt. After that he went underground. The word on him is he kept the vampires at bay for a while.

My recollection is that back in the days when rugby union was played by amateurs and league by professionals, Union was described as a thugs game played by gentlemen whereas League was a thugs game played by thugs.

I'm a cliche person, one game at a time. Let's start with a Round 1 win. That's novel. Build from there.

To Roosy's Bruisers, Deemfc, Mega Watts and Demon Ox. Thanks for really informative and entertaining reports! Really insightful as well...just telling it as you see it without any humbug. Like it! Live bayside so will try to get to Casey when we start training there...hope I can do half as good a report as you guys have.

Great turnout on a very hot and humid day. Didn't take notes on paper, all from the neck top computer so if you have any specific questions I am happy to answer. Some general observations first - Roos may try and be behind the scenes but he definitely calls the shots and if he is not happy about anything he makes it very clear. Morale and camaraderie are both higher than I have ever seen before, it appears all the new boys are fitting in well. Dunn, Gawn and Watts the most vocal. Dunn more the dictator in style, Watts more the encouraging type and Gawn encouraging as well as pushing anyone seen to be dropping off. I wouldn't be surprised to see Gawn in the leadership group some time in the future. Rawlings is well respected by the defensive group. Very straight shooter. Players noticeably fitter and providing a lot more options upfield than in recent history. A lot more switching play as well as a more attacking style of play. More players taking the first option from what I could see too. Player observations - Grimes - Definitely gone to the next level. Starting 22 for sure. Has bulked up a little and a lot stronger one on one. Killed everything in the defensive drills before having his nose (accidentally) spread across the park by a Tom Mcdonald spoil. Foot skills improved. Will play on HBF with Lumumba on the other from what I could gather. Lumumba- Very happy to have him on board. Will be the clearing defender we have needed. Very reliable and has obviously been working on his clearance kicking. No long high kicks running out of defence. Lower, accurate kicks to a player running through the centre or wings. Very happy with a swap for Clark. Dunn - Very vocal and always picked the best option when kicking out of defence. Seems to be the defensive general. Frost - This kid will be a monster in a few years. Very athletic for his size too. Good kick of the ball. May spend some time resting in the forward line this year. Jetta - Very focussed and dedicated to get the best out of himself and he has. Look for him to make AA back pocket this year. Very impressive young man. Mcdonald Bros. - Stuck together by the hip. Younger Mcdonald tracking along very well. Will be a player. Older Mcdonald has put on a bit of size and looks better in one on ones. Newton - Was in a lot but fatigued numerous times. To his credit he always came back with 100% effort after any drop off. JKH - Fit and strong for his age. Very team oriented and was not as flashy. I think this will come out with the adrenaline on game day though. Garlett - Numerous vey good intercepts. Will keep the ball in our forward line on more than one occasion this year. A beautiful kick of the ball. Should kick 30-40+ this year if we can get it down there enough. Riley - Not sure about him. 10 for effort though. Seems a bit slow reactively. But did have his ankle in an ice pack near the end of the session. Hogan- Just reeks of natural footballer. Strong, fit and his kicks are very accurate from any range. Don't be surprised to see him roam further upfield this year. Gawn - Was probably the biggest surprise. Looking big and strong. Kicking is also good for his size. Will be the year he makes a statement to the broader AFL community if he can stay on the park. Jamar - Looking the fittest (and happiest) I have ever seen him. Looks like he will spend time forward to let the younger rucks develop. May have a year or two left in him yet. Petracca - Positive kid who doesn't stop trying. Picking up the pace of the game surprisingly quickly. Isn't afraid to put his head down ala Nate Jones. Brayshaw - Very professional. Not flashy but more the skilled trooper. The mainstay every team needs. Think Lenny Hayes. McKenzie - Probably the biggest surprise alongside Gawn. His kicking seems to have improved and might even get the crack at a chance of playing without the dog lead. Needs to prove his worth and seems to be grabbing it with both hands. Will be interesting to watch his season unfold. Cross - Seems to be holding up well in the heat. Biggest surprise is the improvement in his kicking. Very good role model. Howe - Definitely stronger across the shoulders and arms. May find himself forward this year with Lumumba in and if Grimes can stay injury free. Watts - See Howe. Bail, M. Jones, Terlich - All have put on size and strength. Small improvements in skills will keep the pressure on the fight for a position in the 22. If I had to pick one I would say Bail was the standout of the three.

Thanks again I just took the package as an add on to my normal membership, which I renewed in October. I will let everyone knows how well it works when i get to Bangkok in May.

As someone who lives in Sydney, I couldn't even give you the name of a single Cronulla player that was suspended. I'm sure that the NRL "fanatics" will know who they are and will have opinions on what happened, but I get teh feeling that the general public here couldn't give a "fat rat's clacker" I would think - it certainly wasn't the water cooler talk in my office at the time it all went down. You have to understand that Sydneysider's aren't as fanatical about their NRL as their southern and western state counterparts are about their AFL - you just have to look at game attendances to see that. Additionally, I get the feeling that NRL has had a much more controversy associated with it over the years, possibly to the point where your average punter (pun not intended) doesn't really care to much. So essentially, I think that the Essendon players, if found guilty and suspended, will have a far tougher time of it.

Dees2014, a query. You have made many comments about the EFC supplement saga and you seem to speak with a deal of authority on the matter. Also whilst the above quote is not an example, on many occasions you have said or implied that you have good mail on this and have made a number of clear predictions on what might be going on or what might happen in the future. Can i ask what the basis is for your views and can you give a clue as to your sources. Please note, I don't mean any disrespect nor am i questioning your veracity, just curious and would like to get a sense of how accurate your predictions/views might be. For context with WJ's comments i know he is a lawyer and has good contacts in the legal world which helps me frame his comments. Similarly with GNF he has said he has contacts at the club which assists me to assess his comments and Webber clearly has some foot doctor mumbo jumbo thing going on which helps me frame his comments about injuries such as the one Trenners has suffered.

Collingwood Football Club's new home ground with state of the art retractable roof! - courtesy of Kevin 'Bloody' Wilson.

I've just listened to an SEN Podcast of a discussion earlier in the week on the prospects of three teams Geelong, Hawthorn and Melbourne. Cam Mooney felt we can improve and thinks we should be happy to finish in the 7 to 10 game range. I think for the most part, critics still assess clubs on their immediate past performances which is natural and on that basis, even 7 to 10 wins would be a bonus year for us. However, I just have this Tiriel Mora-like vibe that this year there is a clear difference in the mood at the club. Paul Roos has had the opportunity to assess the players first hand for a season, half of the list has been changed in 18 months and the entire outfit is going about things with great professionalism. Call it the vibe but I have a feeling that we're going to lift around about the time we play the Doggies in Round 8 and by the time we play the Saints in Round 11, we'll be flying.

I really, really hope the Saints passing on Petracca proves to be one of the great drafting flubs in history. Sorry McCartin!!

All I know is if one more Dees fan tries to compare us to Port I'm gonna tp their house...

Jack Grimes needs to put his jumper back on.

Thought I would post some comments seeing as today's training may be the only one I am ever able to attend. Obviously I have nothing to compare to, so please take all comments in that context. My crowd estimate was 150. Apparently I am rubbish at basic estimation as the club is reporting over 400. Paul Roos spent almost the whole session watching from "on high" in a cherry picker. I set myself up just in front of him - was interesting to hear him coaching players from there, and giving instructions to assistant coaches via walkie talkies. Highlight comment was from Roos to Brayshaw: "Do we pay more for a kick or handball? They're paid the same". Presumably a smartass way of telling him to kick the bloody thing. As others have said it was hot and sunny. Maybe 31 degrees. They went for nearly 3 hours. Massive session. Extremely funny seeing 40-odd grown men huddling in the tiny amounts of shade between "quarters". Max Gawn was the most vocal player there. Always encouraging. Always talking. He would be a great guy to have around any club. Probably the one player I really want to see have a breakout year. Sam Frost had a good session. He's very quick for his size. Showed serious closing speed on a few occasions to make spoils. Oscar McDonald also looked good. Was getting a lot of praise from the coaching staff, saying "that's AFL standard stuff Osc, great work". My one negative comment is on Max King - looks miles off having an AFL body. He also seems to be a "confidence guy" and from today it looked like he was really down on confidence. Dropped a few uncontested marks. Still looks 3 years off AFL standard. Billy Stretch was another player who stood out to me. Showed some dash and got a bit of the ball in the match simulation drills. Thought he'd be a fair way off, so i was surprised and impressed. Finally Jack Watts seems to be back in full training for those who were wondering.

* Sunny day and already hot at 9am. Probably the hottest day of the camp so far. * Putting on a bit of a show for the fans. Players very vocal from the outset. * Petracca casually lets rip with a 75 meter torp from the boundary. Skill and power combo. * Roosy not taking training today? Didn't see a lot of him. At a guess Goodwin was at the helm. * A few run throughs and kick to kick for the crowd. * Channel 7 and Win TV cameras in attendance. * Noticeable the lift in intensity for today's training from the past few. Pumped up and game speed seems to be on the agenda. * Full ground drill transitioning from the loose ball in the back half to kick a goal at other end. * I noticed the players that where either on or off "AFL intensity" a lot today. Seem to be a theme for the day. Brayshaw a little off the intensity at first but nice composure and disposal. Not far off. * Oscar Mac's disposal is where his brother's was at the same age. * Salem picks the option well. * Newton kicks a bullet. Hodge like. * First thought is Stretch will need time in the AFL, then he proves me wrong with good speed. Players correcting themselves well. * Petracca still learning the system, gets corrected. * Goodwin good tone in his voice & calf muscles. Clear & Concise. Not "putting down" with his instructions. * Can't wait for Stretch to put it all together, something about him excites me. * Viney leading from the front in the 50m sprints. * What makes Petracca more AFL ready is he looks to be adjusted to AFL intensity already. * Terlich's ready to go, great intensity - underrated. * Tyson has a glint of a "star in the making" about him. * Salem up to the intensity. * A Pelican & an Osprey fly over head, the birds thread might be making a comeback. * ANB had a bit of Leigh Mathews about him. Surely it's not just the hairy legs. * Conditioning of these guys is superb given the conditions. Don't know how they do it. * Vandenberg has a nice boot on him. Threads one from the boundary 50m out like it is standard practice. * Petracca has star presence again. * Whitey a good leader * Watts bounces 3 times from the middle and bags a sausage - mmmm.... paleo (not) * Some rehab guys joining in the final match sims. Noticed Kent out there, great tackler. * How Viney can sprint like that after 2.25 hrs in this heat is mind boggling - Mentally strong * Terlich impresses me again. Good trainer anyway. * How 15 players crammed into a 4 man sheltered interchange bench to get shade has me staggered. Jonesy talking about taking your time to get composed to get the kick right when your fatigued. Good spirit amongst them. Lamumba says a bit also. * Kent doing an interview with local WIN/9 camera-women before I leave. Talks about how the heat is good for the lungs and some boys are going to Noosa over weekend and some guys catching a flick. Great session - really impressed with the players spirit today. I'll check back in Monday.

Unfortunately there has been an increasing incidence of these things across most sports in the last decade. Now whenever I see or hear of a great personal performance my first reaction is I wonder what sauce he / she is on. In my case the horse has bolted and I doubt it can ever be put back in stable. No pun intended but now we know horses have been on the receiving end.

I think I saw Cale Morton do a wrestling drill once.

That is paleo dairy milk chocolate, eh Redleg?

A couple of points on Garlett, when he first arrived, had a chat to him, asked him if he was going to join in on the Malthouse bagging that both Lucas and Robinson had done, said he was now a Melbourne player and that was in the past He is really good mates with Nev Jetta, they both laughed about Garlett's love of lap running, almost as much as Nev, but I asked the fitness staff, he has not missed a session and his numbers are where they should be, still doing the same speed etc at the end of the session as at the beginning, so fitness is not an issue Nev, JKH and Garlett are forming a tight little unit, with Nev as the 'Uncle' as JKH calls him And yes the pub moment was out of character, I have asked a few who should know If Roos wanted him that will do me, I have seen a couple of moments of magic that show if his head is in the right place he will be an asset, only training I know, one he was running across the middle of the ground from left to right with ball in hand, stopped, turned and kicked down the throat of Matt Jones on left wing, not even sure how he saw him....another drill was stood with Dunny who we all know has developed into a good one on one player, Garlett went to take off Dunn went with him, but Garlett just spon around and was five metres away before Dunn could react As for him being soft, he does the wrestling drills with Nev, so I doubt he is that soft, he also knows how to tackle

The nature of small crumbing forwards is inconstancy. They don't lead out and mark it themselves they rely on the ball hitting the deck and positioning themselves to exploit it with maximum chance of kicking a goal or creating a goal scoring opportunity. The fact Garlett has kicked 40+ a season a number of times demonstrates he is good at his trade.

The story I heard was; Union. A thugs game played by gentlemen. League. A thugs game played by thugs. Soccer. A gentleman's game played by thugs.

Funny how opinions vary Bbo I think that Dairy Farmers are the toughest of all farmers some of the others are [censored] by comparison.

All teams should get better but they don't. There are so many variables Key football staff leave. If they be coaches or valued assistants or a football manager like Neil Balme or Rodney Eade Coach stays too long. Coach loses players. Poor coaching. Out of date/poor game plan Poor player recruitment Injuries - Long list of out of season surgeries or in season injuries or injuries to key players Board instability. Lack of unified direction. Player leadership vacuum Second class training facilities/fitness staff To some degree all these things can effect on field performances of any club and we have suffered through most of them over the past years plus a few other issues that most on Demonland know well We are now strong across all areas of the club. The opportunity to improve rapidly and ahead of other teams is there and I believe we will. With a reasonable first couple of games and an injection of confidence who knows what could happen

Not when you're in Beech Forest. Trust me.

I disagree teams go up and down. I think Collingwood will go backwards next year as will Carlton, Essendon is anyone's guess but wouldn't surprise to see them falter especially if they cop suspensions. Geelong aren't as fearsome as they were and will struggle to maintain top 2 spot on the ladder, West Coast are hit and miss as are Adelaide and North could easily go backwards of their kids don't come on while their older players head towards retirement (Harvey, Petrol, Wells etc). I think there is scope to improve while other teams decline. On the flip side I think the Lions will improve, GC and GWS should as well, Hawthorn will still be up and Sydney and Freo will remain hard to beat. The Saints and Dogs could go either way but I don't see much improvement from either of them this year maybe in 2016.

I'm going to be the devil's advocate here. It might sound simplistic to say, but if we are improving, so too must nearly all other teams. The standard of the competition gets better and better each year (whether you like the way the game is heading is another matter). I find it impossible to think that other, higher resourced clubs are not also improving at the same or better rate than we are. Don't get me wrong, I'm thrilled to read reports the club is now run professionally and training standards are on the rise. I just find it a tad early to make realistic predictions because I think that there are about 12 clubs which should be improving as well, and they all finished higher than us last year. Sorry to rain on anyone's parade.

I find it really hard to believe that essendons legal team has been selective in what it tells the players. Not. Its been clear from day 1 they havent had the full story. I would be asking for my money back if my lawyer treated me like that.

Forgot to mention one other observation from yesterday's training: *McQueen this one's especially for you mate* On a couple of occasions duration match simulation, Petracca demonstrated how he loves to rise to the challenge. In hindsight, I've seen this quality in him a couple of times during the past week. It tells me he has the makings of a big game player, which is pretty important given our need for match winners. Didn't want to heap too much pressure on the kid but I couldn't help myself.

It's all to do with the coach, some players respond better to some coaches and not others, I was certainly one of those players. Malthouse would be avert hard man to play under, I really hope he can flourish under Roo's, we need goal kickers so badly.

Not like 2 years ago when they simulated game day by having a nap frm 2:30 - 3:30

Burgos Diary Day 6 This diary entry is without non-relatable content, i hope Burgo didn't ready my smart-ass Demonland posts. Anyway, this is my actual highlight. I hope Trenners can make it back, i still believe the kid has what it takes to become a solid AFL footballer:

As an unabashed fan of Grimes as a player and a person, this delights me.

I think we will be the new Port!

Thread title change is in order. Talking point: WJ finds ET boring

It was you? You should have worked out I wasn't interested when I fell asleep ...

Kudos to the posters who not only made it down there but also provided some succinct and insightful training reports. Very refreshing to read guys and it's excellent to hear about the professional nature of training these days, something we've been striving to reach for too long now. Some positive stuff. Cheers.

Went down today and it was bloody hot. Spoke with Jamar and wished him all the best for the season and commented that he looked in good nick. He said he felt great and that this has been his best pre-season and the first full one he has done in about 3 or 4 yrs. I mentioned that I hoped that the good training translates into games to which he replied that the standard of ball movement now is far better than it has been in the past seasons. He was a great fella to have a conversation with. Spoke to Watts who is now back training with the main group. Asked him if he will be right for round 1 and he said definitely which is good considering he has been mainly in the rehab group. Also mentioned to him that I'm sick of him copping it in the media and can't wait for him to stick it up em which he agreed. Great bloke and looking forward to seeing what he can do this season. Max Gawn what can you say. He is the class clown I think. He is hilarious and very approachable. Looked in good condition and hasn't got any shorter. In regards to Dunny, I asked who his hair dresser was (his team mate next to him was pissing himself laughing) and he asked me if I was jealous. First it was that mow now its his hair. Hes got it short on the sides and back with longish on top in a ponytail. Very individuall!! Hes a funny fella and looks set to continue (hopefully) his good form from 2014. At the end of training Jones and Brayshaw were having a goal kicking comp on the boundary about 35-40m out. Both missed their first then Jones nailed the second with ease. A bit of master and the apprentice. To Brayshaws credit he kept going until he got it. Saw the all-famous Burgo and asked him if anyone had asked him for his signature which he said no with a smile and I replied you're not surprised are you. His assistant (I think) had a good laugh about it. All in all it was a good half day the only improvement idea I would give the club is to allow the players/fans more time to sign autographs and have pics as it wasn't long enough IMO. I am more confident with 2015 season approaching but still am calming my expectations until I see the boys play on the park.

A few of the seniors including Dunny and Nat Jones were not satisfied with what they perceived as a drop off in the final half hour. They called all players back on the ground for a pep talk and another short and sharp running activity with the injured players having to do a push-up repeat exercise at the same time. Petracca excelled in the short sprints, a good sign from a junior after a hot 3hrs in the Qld sun Many players then stayed on the ground for some shots at goal

Sensational reporting mate, keep it up! Really appreciate it.

If Dangerfield does move and goes somewhere other than Geelong, I will attempt to eat my scooter

Demonland is built on the same philosophy.