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Arrived 45 minutes late, stayed for an hour... steady rain throughout! Oliver trains with the same intensity he shows in the real thing. He is eye-catching, even in a training drill. Needless to say, it was very wet under foot. I was impressed by the intensity shown by all. Jeffy G was walking the boundary and seemed really sore, possibly left leg/ankle. Didn't notice Garland, Lumumba or Max King. Spencil walked around, Brayshaw, Vandenberg & Viney were on reduced duties, mainly kicking routines with Crossy. Brayshaw had one ankle bandaged. I was pleasantly surprised to see Newton do full training, as well as Dawes, who seemed ok in one on one contested stuff. Great to see Petracca and Trengove do everything. Both impressed with their footy smarts. Dunn looked fit and trained in his normal, full throated manner. I watched him slot a 45 metre goal effortlessly (while Hogan settled for several of the 35 metre variety) and was reminded of his ability to play forward. With Oscar seemingly fully fit, could Dunn be a CHF option? He certainly can score from outside 50, and can also pin-point a leading player by foot. Stretch's breakaway speed was good. ANB reminded selectors of his prowess in the packs. Mitch King was the only opponent for big Max in the ruck contests and he struggled. During this session I was reminded of the worth of White, Grimes and Terlich, particularly in the heavy going. Another who seems to have the size and speed to play senior footy is Wagner. I left with renewed confidence in our ability to rebound from Saturday's debacle. We have depth and it is being developed by a very good group of coaches. The main objective should be to keep this group together. I am sure we are looking at a climb up the ladder on the back of the current list and coaching panel. It will probably take longer than we had hoped. No predictions on how long, but Bernie was right when he said "We know where we are as a team and we're sure we are on the right track"!

Probably won't be drafted until about 2034 but we've already got a picture of the young lad.

Same hairdo as his/her old man.

Beaten sides always look slow and unskilled. Then when they win again they look speedy and slick. (Unless it's a close game in which case both sides look equally marvellous or equally [censored].)

This could possibly turn out to be the longest ever running thread on Demonland. Let's hope so.

That is [censored]. His endurance is one of his strongest assets. We just have been playing as a stay home forward. Once forward line is sorted out he will play CHF and run the Sh!t out of his opponent.

We have a game plan? Can someone please tell the players? Because they were running around on the weekend like we didn't have one. Come to think of it it's Roos' 3rd year. You reckon we might have something by now. Bolton looks to have made early inroads at Carlton. Simpson did pretty well in one summer at the Weagles. Beveridge has been a revelation in one summer but our boys, well its a bit complicated for them. We need to teach them defence first. Then we move on to handballing. Then to kicking and marking. We have years to go before our game plan is settled. Of course the world will have moved on but we'll be ready to go in 2025...

Biggest thing that stood out for me today, aside from the rubbish Weather, is i think a lot of people have forgotten just how good a player Jack Trengove is, he looks starting 18 at least on training form, and clearly played well for Casey! he has the class, smarts and skills we're desperately lacking.

I haven't had any desire to reflect on the loss, which is a direct result of how flat i felt/feel about it. But for what its worth here are some random thoughts: Suggestions that the loss is as bad as 186 or for that matter some forensic investigation investigation by PJ is warranted is tosh That said there is no getting away from the fact that for a range of reasons it was a very, very bad loss. One reason is that it undid so much of the positive energy that had built up over the last few months and allowed the media jackals to launch into us again The loss exposed how fragile any confidence is from fans A mate suggested to me that apart from anything else it might have cost us 2k members which is about $400k in revenue. I reckon he's probably right I lauded Roos last week but he deserves a wack this week: After making a point of saying before the first round they were focused on picking only fit players they seemingly picked an underdone Brayshaw (though that's confusing - after all he dominated in the VFL and racked up 30 plus possessions) and a 'tired' Oliver Such was the importance of getting a win they had to have as many hardened players in as possible, which meant they simply had to pick Dunn Roos noted they were preparing for the bombers best. Well their best involves Daniher being up and about. If truth be told if Daniher could kick they would have won by 5 goals. As many have suggested they should have picked Frost and sat him on Daniher, He has both the height and tank to go with him. We might have won the game had they selected Frost The team should have been rabid at the opening bounce and ensured they gave the bombers no sniff. They weren't. of course the player bear some responsibility here but so do the coaches God knows why they didn't 'put a defensive forward on McDonald-Tipungwuti, such was his influence. He got a ridiculous amount of easy ball We were out coached. Woosha came up with a possession heavy game plan that flummoxed us and neither the players or coaches adequately responded As 45HG says players refused to run to cover space/players on the outside and were lazy. Unforgivable Much of the commentary about Hogan is way over the top. That said he needs to address his body language. i'm sure he will. The game exposed one of our biggest weaknesses - how slow we are I'm sick of us not winning such games.

Love it how people who watch the Footy Show, don't really watch the Footy Show. It was just on in the background..... Come out of the closet people...

Why's that? When fit, Brayshaw and Oliver are best 22. Dont understand this comment at all Oli.

I am still angry.

It takes two to tango. one, a mid field that can kick accurately to the forward two, a forward who makes some attempt to get away from three defenders so they can't punch the ball away

Lethal is one of the best players ever but he made his mind up before he even saw Hogan play. Last year he was commentating and more or less said Hogan was an aerial threat but didn't have the tools to compete when he didn't mark. Remember his pickup and left footed goal vs St Kilda? How about him gathering his crumb and getting around Thompson from North? Or his handball to Pederson into an open goal? Lethal actually knows Hogan's game less than the average poster on here. Hogan for his size actually has above average speed and very good aerobic endurance. I'd be willing to bet Matthews isn't even aware of this. If what he is saying was true, Walker and J Reiwoldt wouldn't have the tools for the modern game. Hogan's problem at the moment is purely attitude, he showed that he is much more than capable last year and the game doesn't immediately change in 6 months. The best players from last year will be the best players this year. At least the other people criticising Hogan have an idea of how he plays, Lethals is largely based on very small samples and preconceived notions.

Dave Misson on the MFC website has basically said the AFL article is rubbish - Garlett will 'absolutely, definitely play on Sunday." A bit of good news this week is nice for a change. http://www.melbournefc.com.au/news/2016-04-06/no-dramas-with-garlett-says-misson

Yep its about speed of ball movement too...

Would have done it earlier but I was too stoned.

The club should take Jesse off air for a while. And give a script to mfc people before interviews so they say the same stuff. eg Roos says Hoges looked tired, Vince says it was the poor delivery. It doesn't matter which, I would just like to hear a consistent voice from the club. Jesse keeps getting wheeled out, on his own, for no apparent or seemingly silly reasons and sometimes innocently triggers a headline eg vs the Ox. He doesn't need the attention and it creates more pressure. There is a sense of dejavu here. We overexposed an ill prepared Jack Watts on field too early creating untold pressure. We now seem to be overexposing Jesse off field in roles for which he seems equally ill prepared. And the external pressure on him is mounting. The club should protect him and get him off air because now that the gloss of winning the RS has worn off, the media standard questions are awful: contract, run-up, sooking. All negative and for which there are no real answers - a terrible media situation for him. Just let him play.

Thank you to all the ratbags who live vicariously on this thread. There are times when in deepest despair I turn to this thread for light relief and to catch up on affairs of state, International trade, and activities at the Manor. From Cuba to Romsey, from bananas and guava paste to ugg boots and Conchita. Reading the other threads is just so depressing and this week I got close to ending it all (you know my penchant for alcohol and firearms and my underlying pathology of depression and sense of futility in staying alive). And of course following this crazy football team triggers many of these pathologies and behaviours. Then I turned to this thread and my salvation. Thank you to all the wonderful characters that live on this site. Bitters, Earl, Redleg, Maple, Daisy, OD, Picket, Emerald, Red and Bluebeard, Wiseblood. The list goes on and apologies to those not mentioned who frequent this thread with intelligence, humour and matters of utmost seriousness. You make my day and give me hope that there are enough ratbags out there that make life worth living and provide reason to think that following this crazy dysfunctional football team is worthwhile. What wonderful irony that this thread has for the most part, nothing to do with football.

This is what I don't get. You know you're coming up against a side with a point to prove, they're rallying their supporters pre-game and have a parade of legends coming out. Surely you want to come out and put your foot on their throat from the opening bounce so they go into their shells instantly and don't get a sniff. Snuff out their hopes in the first 10 minutes before they even have a chance to get going and then you can cruise in the 3rd/4th quarters if you're far enough ahead. I just don't get how professional athletes wouldn't come out with this mindset. We used to do it in under 13'some ffs.

The saints NAB challenge game was our best 4 quarter effort of our game plan. We defended and attacked very well with good balance. Defending: The forwards and midfield suck towards the player with the ball to trap them in their half and the backline push up and corridor side of their opponents. The risk is an opposition wingman can get free with a really good switch but if the side is awake as they were for a lot of the saints game they can spread over and cover that player and force the next kick to a contest. Attacking: Turning the ball over in good places leads to instant attack. If you get the ball in the forward half then kick it straight to a forward. If you get the ball at half back there should be space to attack, generally out the other side before the other team is in place. Watts was receiving a tonne of switches in that Saints game getting out to the open wing/forward flank. GWS opened us up from a lot of set plays. Particularly kick outs where they would stack one side of the field then run down the lines with run and carry. We simply weren't fast, smart or worked hard enough to counter this game plan. In some ways I wasn't too upset because GWS are a fantastic side at this plan. Their issue is plan B. Essendon smashed us everywhere. They ran rings around us on the ground. Dominate the air up forward (Daniher) and stacked numbers behind the ball when we attacked slowly. They overloaded the switch and we just didn't have nearly enough numbers for it. They also then always had our switches walled off with an extra man. I'm hoping this was mostly just really poor effort. Otherwise some of it will be teething pains. When you spend 4 years (2 Neeld, 2 Roos) playing very uncreative football it's going to be hard to be bold and aim to open the game up. My major concerns with our attacking game plan is: 1. We don't create by hand enough yet. There's simply not enough players who can get on the end of handballs and link up to move the ball that way. So that means we'll be kicking a bit and we still aren't good at that. We need to work much harder to have options so a kick can be followed up by another quick kick before space closes up. 2. Our forwards seem so keen to get the ball running back inside 50 and sitting deep when I'd love to see more leading up. Even if they start leading back to goal if they can turn and lead sideways or back to the ball carrier Otherwise it's work rate and skill that will cause the issues more than game plan. We simply have to cut out the unforced errors like long kicks down the line that go to a little guy instead of to Gawn or another talls advantage. The lack of mental application is staggering.

Jesse isn't helping himself, every man in his dog will write an article every time he says or does anything, that's just what his career is going to be like, but when he doesn't lead, chase, tackle and constantly looks for free kicks, he just gives them ammunition

There is never a bad time for Weed.

Either way he has performed well in reserves competition and is still struggling at AFL level. Does Weid have the strength yet? Probably not. Does he have the fitness required? Almost certainly not. Does he have form in the 2's to demand a spot? Not yet. What box has he ticked that makes him deserving of a debut? We do play young players if we think they can impact such as Brayshaw and Oliver, we even give players games for experience such as ANB, Stretch and O Mac who got games after injuries and form in the VFL. Weid has barely any experience at state level, missed a lot of last year, is underdeveloped at the moment and is yet to earn a spot in any capacity other than him being a high draft pick. What sort of selection policy is that? It isn't daring or exciting because it's not like he will come in against the Roos and shake things up and be a matchup problem. Hardly high risk-high reward stuff, just high risk, very little reward for either the player and the club.

It's the win the AFL wanted.

Still annoys me to this day that adelaide could be so comprehsively beaten in first week of the finals after finishing 5th and not be eliminated but instead put on the easier side of the finals series and not have to face north until the gf who were the clear premiership favourites ...and where norf choked and gifted the crows back to back flags Glad they subsequently changed the format a couple of years later, but 98 was a golden chance for us to pinch a flag- we were more than capable. Lady luck has not been on our side for a long long time

A few weeks ago there was mention from Roos & co. regarding the Melbourne brand of footy but so far I have failed to see it. What is it? What's our style? We have a team of competitors yes? but what is the game plan? At times I've felt like I'm watching a combination of Neeld's structured defense with Bailey's congested offense. Over the first two years Roos decided to develop a team with an elite level defense, however in both the GWS win and Essendon loss I witnessed a huge amount of missed tackles and a structure that continually failed to counter the switch and developed holes through the corridor. During this the team never reverted to a back up defensive structure or simply play man on man. When we have the ball, particularly within our defensive 50, the team appears so congested they are often hand-balling to a man in danger and fail to spread. And when we do get a run on rarely is there anyone down field to kick to, and if they are rarely do they lead or present themselves as a target. We were very fortunate to win the GWS game, their inaccuracy cost them because our 2nd and 3rd quarters were as bad as the four in the Essendon match. Even our narrow NAB win against the dogs reserved side was nothing to gloat about. Over the last two weeks the 4th quarter of Round 1 and one passage of play that resulted in a Hogan goal (from Watts-Jones-Vince-T.Mac) from the Essendon match have shown promise, but I still don't know our style. After watching one Dogs match I can see they've upgraded their high risk high reward erratic offense by playing a few minutes of kick to kick keepings off to get the opposition defenders running and tired and then at the flick of a switch revert to the quick fast paced attack. Heck I knew Essendon's basic game plan by half time on the weekend. Surely the players aren't "tired" enough to simply spread and present themselves as a target by round 2. Let's hope they promptly get the fundamentals back in place so we can interpret the style in which the club is attempting to play. What are your thoughts on the game plan and structures, and where do you think it's gone wrong within the first two rounds of the season?

I took up your challenge and looked up Stallone's filmography hoping to unearth a couple of hidden gems and ... I got nothing.

Diary of a Demon lover. Sunday “the wake” I wake up tired and despondent, wander up to the café for a coffee and to read about last night’s loss. I read words such as “honorable loss” and “signs of improvement” as I soak up the reality of another 40 point loss. I sigh alot and spend a quiet day licking my wounds and thinking of “Sunday Bloody Sunday”. My family is compassionate to me. Link: “ ” by U2 Monday “suck it up” Supporters of the team Melbourne just lost to, call to “offer condolences” and enjoy my sorry state. I suck it up, silently swearing to enjoy it when the tables inevitably turn. I avoid Footy news and commentary so as not to suffer another in-depth analysis of Melbourne’s woes. I listen to “ People Ain’t No Good” and question my Demon love. Link: “ ” by Nick Cave Tuesday “consoling and purging” I spend time nodding in sympathy to other Melboure supporters and hanging out with the supporters of other losing clubs from the weekend. We discuss what went wrong and how can we improve next game. I ignore winning supporters when they try to tell me how their team too will also improve. I let go of the last game and forgive my players their flaws. I start hoping that the next game will be better. I hear “Too Afraid to Love you” and sigh for my Demon Love. Link: “ Too Afraid To Love You” by The Black Keys Wednesday “eye of the storm” I relax and recover. Wednesday is my favourite day of the week at the moment. I dream about seasons to come. Link: “ ” by Brian Wilson Thursday “the build up” I catch up on news and commentary from earlier in the week, read Demonland and contemplate the form and composition of the next opponent. I contact friends who support the upcoming opposition and arrange to meet for a drink before the game (never after). I wind them up with a bit of pho (as in phoney) confidence to which they are as gracious as only a massive favourite can be. I note for future revenge cockiness for any mates (brothers are the predictable worst in this area). I digest the team and listen to the commentary on their game analysis and predictions. I stop listening as all predict Melbourne to lose again. I watch the Dog Days video with Liam and ponder how this weeks game will be better than the last. Link: “ ”, music by Florence and The MachineFriday “game on” I am excited all day. I contemplate favourable match ups and imagine how the boys should and will go tonight. I text my Melbourne supporter buddies to discuss how we’ll go, who’s in/out, and where we’ll sit. I meet up with my friends who are opposition supporters, and I enjoy arguing that the pleasure I’ll have if we win will make up for the likely scenario of having to endure another lose. They laugh, as I drink and think how many times I’ve run this argument. My opposition friends are content winners, happy to talk up Melbourne’s team and prospects in tonight’s game as a backhanded way of singing the praises of their own team. I talk up our chances, they smile, and I drink. I walk to the “G”. The night is cool and clear, the crowd is gathering, and I can smell possibilities with a scent of hope. I meet my regular Melbourne supporting buddies, suss out who’s suffered the week the most, laugh at our prospects and ourselves for turning up. We discuss who and what we’d like our team to do as the team are warming up. I try and gauge if they are switched on, a sign of what is to come. They Break the banner, we sing the song and smile nervously. Count down to ball bounce and I am happy and full of Demon love Go Demons

When I see no one in our forward line and loose men at the bounce I have no idea what our game plan is.

Garlett an absolute "will definitely play" according to Misson. That negates any of my replacement suggestions

I think he is being played out of position - we have tried to make him into a bullocking "Plugger" type forward when he should be a roaming CHF. Get him up the ground, let him work his opponent over and double back into space.

Thought he would have towelled up the likes of Gwilt and/or Hartley. Double team or no double team against him. If he was on the stockxchange, it would have been a disaster for investors.

i think the time has come to be inventive and put Dunn or Garland up forward if only to give the older heads a new lease of life and keep the opposition guessing. Garland would be a good defensive forward who can also take a grab.

First, there are a lot of mobile 200cm forwards these days, and the threat they pose will only get greater over the next few years as the likes of Peter Wright & Tom Boyd improve. We don't have an obvious physical match-up for them, since getting rid of Jack Fitzpatrick. Second, shorter but stronger defenders have historically always been able to blunt the effectiveness of taller forwards in the air, but only by getting body-on-body contact and leaning into them & using their lower centre of gravity to stop them getting into the right body position. The only one we now have who can really do this (now we don't have Frawley) is Dunn, who's so good one-on-one because he uses his body so well in contests. But it sounds from what T-Mac said before the game that we were playing zone defence, with no defender assigned to any particular attacker. That might work overall, but there are times, with a particular dangerous forward (e.g. Betts) where he'll need a "stopper" all game (e.g. by Jetta and nobody else but Jetta) and if we play zone defence he's going to carve us up. We also need to have the flexibility that, if a forward that we didn't expect is carving us up in a particular game, we can make the change and put a "stopper" on him. But this didn't happen with Daniher, partly because we didn't have an adequate match-up against him, and partly because putting the "least-worst" option (T-Mac) as a "stopper" on him might have deprived us of a lot of attacking drive. I'd like to think we won't make that mistake again, but I wouldn't bet on it. Clearly the coaches had no contingency plans in place to cover the possibility of Daniher carving us up, because they just didn't seem to anticipate how vulnerable we'd be if he did. Again, poor planning, poor responding to situations within a game.

Whole thing is a joke & overreaction to a kid playing in his second yr in the toughest position! Get real people he's reaction is frustration & to be expected.. Coaches will assist him in working through it....

I wanted Brayshaw in round 1 last year. I wanted Oliver in round 1 this year. I don't want Weideman in the senior side because he's not ready. It's got nothing to do with conservatism, more having a feeling for the game.

We killed Watts, lets also kill this kid because of a poor game by the club. We have moved on from this type of over reaction thankfully. Let him find his feet and if he earns a game then play him.

DIRTY HANDS by The Oracle Melbourne ends its week of humiliation on Sunday with a trip across Bass Strait for a game against a team it has not beaten since Methuselah played in the Under 9s. To make things worse, North Melbourne is riding high after two solid wins, carrying few injuries and playing at its home away from home. The Kangaroos are chock full of confidence but on top of that are unlikely to treat an opposition with the same disrespect that the Demons showed Essendon in their encounter last Saturday (and for that matter, when they met last year). Melbourne was caught napping against Essendon when its expected midfield dominance failed to eventuate despite the fact that big Max Gawn dominated the ruck duels. Despite this, the Bombers won the ball out of the clearances and were also given far too much latitude on the outside by an undisciplined unit. I can only suppose that the Demons believed their own publicity after earning kudos from a virtually unblemished pre season and a come from behind win in the season opener against the Giants - achieved through some discipline on the ground including a willingness by all and sundry to go down and get their hands dirty. Coach Paul Roos has a lot of thinking to do with regard to how he can get his charges back into the headspace they occupied up until the Bomber debacle. It won't be easy if you consider the game starts at the first bounce and the opposition midfield will be a much tougher proposition than the one that beat it comprehensively last week. And that is where the challenge begins and it does so on the shoulders of the tallest man in the team. When the teams met last year Todd Goldstein gave big Max Gawn a football less amassing 50 hit outs and nearly doubling him in the possession count. The differential was enormous and it reflected in the overall dominance of the Kangaroo midfield. If Gawn has pretensions to becoming a top of the range exponent of the art of ruck work then he needs to take some big scalps and none could be bigger than the man he faces this week. In order for the team to have a chance of winning, the midfield will have to take the ball away more often from the stoppages and when they do, they must hit targets. The task is not beyond them but much will depend on whether the team is shell shocked, whether it has the desire to turn things around and to get its hands dirty. For this assignment, North in Hobart will be a tough proposition and I'm therefore tipping them to win by 25 points. THE GAME: North Melbourne v Melbourne on Sunday 10 August, 2016 at Blundstone Arena at 1.10pm HEAD TO HEAD: Overall North Melbourne 78 wins Melbourne 83 wins 1 draw At Blundstone Arena North Melbourne 0 wins Melbourne 0 wins Last five times North Melbourne 5 wins Melbourne 0 wins The Coaches Scott 3 wins Roos 0 wins MEDIA TV - Fox Footy 1pm RADIO - SEN, ABC THE BETTING North Melbourne to win $1.30 Melbourne to win $3.50 THE LAST TIME THEY MET North Melbourne 19.13.127 defeated Melbourne 14.8.92 at the MCG in Round 2015. North led by seven goals to two at the first break in a game that threatened to be a complete blowout but the Demons made a spirited comeback and by close to three quarter time threatened to snatch the lead. The Kangaroos steadied with a late goal to take a 10-point lead into the final break and ran out comfortable winners in the end. THE TEAMS North Melbourne Backs: M.Firrito R.Tarrant S.Wright Half Backs: S.Atley S.Thompson L.McDonald Centreline: N.Dal Santo D.Wells B.Jacobs Half Forwards: J.Ziebell J.Waite B.Harvey Forwards: S.Higgins D.Petrie L.Thomas Followers: T.Goldstein B.Cunnington A.Swallow Interchange From: L.Hansen T.Dumont A.Mullett T.Garner J.Macmillan S.Gibson B.Brown In: S.Thompson, A.Mullett, T.Dumont Melbourne Backs: N.Jetta, T.McDonald, T.Bugg Half Backs: M.Jones, H.Lumumba, C.Salem Centreline: B.Vince, D.Tyson, J.Harmes Half Forwards: J.Watts, A.Vandenberg, B.Kennedy Forwards: D.Kent, J.Hogan, J.Garlett Followers: M.Gawn, N.Jones, J.Viney Interchange From: C.Oliver, L.Dunn, B.Stretch, S.Frost, C.Pedersen, J.Grimes, J.Wagner In: L.Dunn, B.Stretch, S.Frost, J.Grimes, J.Wagner Out: C.Garland, A.Brayshaw

i don't believe the club is doing enough to protect Jesse at this stage, keep him away from the media he has enough on his plate. I am not of the opinion anything major has changed with Jesse's commitment to the club, clearly he has a few things on his mind outside footy and i'm sure they're playing a role in this, but a good number of AFL players do at some stage. Jesse will be fine when he returns to doing the basic things, we all know how good he is and he knows how good he is, once he gets back to playing his role, the team will be fine. I think we're missing Dawes a fair bit out there, he has the leadership to keep Jesse Leading and so on when he falls into these slumps. He'll be fine.

The 7 news promo at the start of the video is classic too...it wouldnt be 98 if there wasn't a bill clinton and Monica lewensky reference ☺

Has not earned it yet... Have we learned nothing over the last decade people!

I'd say might, not will. Same thing was said of Nick Riewoldt, even more so when the Suns came in to the comp and could offer him the Earth. I truly think he won't leave if we are successful. The travel for Perth sides is terrible and the AFLPA keep pushing for longer holidays. There's every chance he could spend all of October until after Christmas in WA as a senior player. There's also the reality of him going from a boy to a man and if that means finding a partner from Melbourne he might not be going anywhere. Win a good share of games this year, sign him on to 2019/2020 and worry about the rest later is what I'm hoping for.

each generation hands down what they have to the next one's leaders. Pre Jones leaders could give him little. We were a soft joke. Talent amongst us, but marshmallows. when the heat went up, it was way too much. This new breed I feel are different fish. I won't name them as they are too raw to have that perception weighing around their necks. but we know they are there. we have t let them grow their way first. they'll turn up when they feel they're needed. It'll happen quick IMO, as I've just looked through 'footywire', checking our player list 'age wise'. We have a lot coming into 24 - 25 age bracket, so our future will come quick, but we need to keep adding from under, & above. this is why its imperative we keep adding, keep building on this clubs competitiveness first. before the slight skilled. we mneed hard mongrel players who could eat a leather Sherrin', onfield. the Hawks were different, they already had a culture, a DNA of bullying opponents. They could afford to slip back a tad & become more skillful-sublime. For us the skilled has always been our 1st love, but our weakness has been the dirty work, the workmanlike efforts go unappreciated amongst our flock. This is where Jones'y is under respected most times. as was Jnr Mac. & to a lesser extent even a Godfrey. Not saying Godfrey was a star, but we didn't have enough willing to work they're arrrzes off, for the club & one another. I'd give you a green bruce & davey, for a Jonesy & a Jnr Mac every day of the week. < these boys you can build a club culture going somewhere,,, around them. Once we have become competative beasts, we can put all the icing we can afford on. But as yet we have no Selwood, no Boak, no Wines... just young players who might. So to me, we have to keep maintaining a bias to competative beasts, not solely, but say a 70%-30%ratio. this is not to say we won't play garlett or stretch, we have to, but the hardness has to become ingrained in our psyche once again. Not easily done at a club that loves those squeaky clean & skilled outside types.

I'd say at least 4 VFL games for Petracca given he has not played games since 2014. Maybe a few more for Trenners. It'll bring a tear to the eye when he makes it back to the ones. Early signs are encouraging.

You said, "He's gone and has agreed to terms with Freo". I'm saying that is patent nonsense. You can please yourself.

This thread is turning into a disgrace.

His body language last week vs the GWS in the 2nd half was fine, hell the guy was ecstatic when the siren sounded and he celebrated every goal we put through in the last quarter. A week is a long time in footy and the AFL media are cretins with a 24 hour memory span.

I think Weideman will crack it for 5-7 games this year but wouldn't put him in yet. Trengove and Petracca are at least 3 games away. Roos won't be putting underdone players in anytime soon after Brayshaw's game yesterday.