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They will turn up after the quarter time siren.

Agreed. I still can't believe I haven't heard Mitch Kings thoughts on our end to the season. Baffling.

Unsure if this has been posted elsewhere.

Right now Gil is in his study sitting in a leather upholstered chair in front of a roaring fire. Nursing a huge balloon of brandy, smoking a Cuban cigar. Congratulating himself and contemplating how he has managed to steer his prodigal son back to bigger finals attendances the path of righteousness.

Lever has verbally committed to having a career full of misery commencing from 2018.

This time last year, he was something of a surprise hero for the Scorpions when he emerged out of the Development League into the ruck where he had a good finals series with the Seniors before he was drafted as a rookie with Brisbane. Now, congratulations go to Oscar McInerney on winning the Brisbane Lions Reserves B&F last night.

Certainly would not have Watts in the trading game. Injury mucked up his second half of the season. Just like big Max.

Lever is not the end of the world. He is an intercept player. Most teams have one. I think Lever is a tad over rated and not the most important position we need to fill. If he comes to us, i hope we dont pay overs.

Dude this is a thread to talk about today's game, get this toxic rubbish out of here

For those not so enamoured with getting Lever...think Josh Gibson, who would have guessed he would be the player he became. Yet this guy is a no brainer, at worst he's going to be a very good player. We're cherry picking to build a team people. We either sit on our hands or do something proactive. The football department have marked KPD as a weakness from last season, this hasn't changed. I like the approach, we need some class down back.

I'm tempted to make a long-winded post in regards to all points, but I genuinely can't be farked so I'll say the following. Your general reductionist view of 'the third tall' means you're unable to see what makes Lever such a truly special player. Given the way the game is now played with zone defences, the need for versatility, agility, marking and spoiling skills are more important than ever when it comes to key defenders. Lever is the number one intercept mark in the AFL at age 22. The same age as Oscar and similar games experience. You grossly underestimate this rare skill he possesses. Knowing when and where to run to make an intercept mark or spoil. He is elite in this area. Better than Hibberd. I'm going to again post a video of a highlights package from his second year. None of our key defenders even come close to impacting the marking contests that Lever wills himself to. Oscar simply doesn't have the speed nor intensity, Frost doesn't have the game understanding or awareness and Tom is similarly hit and miss with contests. Lever is a [censored] amazing footballer at 22 years of age and the reason club's are offering the money is because of how good an intercept player he is. He is the prototype key defender.

Why would you put those two unpopular clubs on TV, when you could have Casey v Williamstown, two goliaths in Victorian football?

It was always gonna happen. The AFL was desperate to give them positive press after all the drug stuff. Soft draw, let them keep their top picks, 3 AA selections.... the AFL has no credibility at all. They were barely punished.

The AFL are pumping up their tyres. (Gil chairs the Rising Star Selection Committee) Ess aslo have 5 current or ex players in the final 22 AA team, 3 of whom were suspended; one of whom (Daniher) is a dubious selection (in front of Ben Brown) and Zac Merrett in before Kennedy? Not saying they are all undeserved but their is a definite selection bias toward Ess from the AFL.

Hah ha comedy gold. You're dreaming. Hibberd AA in his first year. Pick 29. Break even? Melksham our best fwd in the second half of the year by some margin. 2nd round pick? I'd like four more disasters like that this trade period.

Mitch King is just in it for the dollars and fame. Couldn't give a stuff about the fans.

My wife hid the finals pamphlet from me. Apparently she thinks I wouldn't have been able to handle seeing it and don't have access to any forms of social media or run a demons website where I would have found out about it anyway.

A disappointing day for Casey today, with a sense of dee-ja vu. From sitting in the new grandstand for the first time at this ground, it was hard to determine whether or not the wind was favoring any end in the first quarter, but the next 3 quarters emphatically answered that question. Goals kicked to the grandstand end after qtr time were 21 to just 3 up the scoreboard end. From the opening bounce, the die was set as Nick Meese, all (alleged) 105 kilos of him, stood his ground like the human tree that he is, Spencer seemed more concerned with his opponents positioning than actually winning the ball, and the hosts cleared the ball out of the middle thanks to an uncontested tap from Groot. This sequence was repeated 4 more times in the first 7 minutes, and the day didn't get any better for free agent Jake. It's one of the worst performances I've seem him put in. So much so that Mitch King, who started deep forward in a tall setup alongside Weideman and Fritsch, ended up spending the majority of the rest of the game as first ruck. Another interesting, but not unprecedented in recent weeks, move was starting Wagner on ball. Losing the important Jimmy Munro to what i can only assume was concussion after backing selflessly into a huge pack from a kick in didn't help our cause in the first quarter either. The ball spent most of the quarter in Willys forward line, as their mids were getting the ball quickly to boot out of the middle, and their half backs were working hard to constantly repel our backline clearances. We were probably lucky to be as close as we were at the first break, but no-one was prepared for the second quarter onslaught that followed. Willy sparked immediately playing long direct forward entries that had our usually reliable captain Hutchins scrambling at shadows, Dyl Collis caught outsized in marking contests and Willy forwards using their knowledge of the grounds wind quirks to kick goals from all angles. We got some respite eventually hitting the scoreboard late in the qtr with 2 goals, one a beautifully curved kick from Fritsch from a set shot. The 3rd quarter saw the roles reversed, all of a sudden Brayshaw was in everything, and was ably supported by Kennedy and Kennedy-Harris. Fritsch's 3rd quarter was sublime, he was playing in front ready for a quick kick out of the centre, and a short time later playing from behind outsmarted 2 defenders taking a mark he had no right to. The coach swung Kielty forward as well to push home the advantage, he had a very good qtr at both ends. Angus Scott popped up as he so often does to be in the right place at the right time toslot a couple, and a long range bomb on the run from Kennedy topped off an astounding comeback qtr. The last started perfectly with Casey hitting the lead with the first goal of the qtr, but that was to be it. All of a sudden the seagulls pressure around the packs lifted, and the goal onslaught began to mirror the 2nd term. 3 free kicks for ruck infringements to the home side inside their forward 50 resulted in 2.1, they were diabolical decisions that had me completely baffled as to how the ruck rules are interpreted. As the skys and my mood darkened, the siren thankfully brought things to a close. I must also add that Williamstown have seemingly the most inept scoreboard operator going around. They completely missed a Willy goal in the 2nd qtr onslaught, then missed a point of theirs in the 3rd qtr, so it appeared scores were even whereas in reality the home side still had the slenderest of margins. Without being privvy to the stats, here's my thoughts on mfc players: 15 Stretch- Tried hard, but found himself running sideways rather than forwards trying to find space to get his kicks away when in possession. Just a game in the end. 26 Weideman- I'm getting sick of Plapps match reports saying that the conditions weren't conducive to Sam's game, I've seen it many times this year. The fact is Fritsch found a way to get on the end of leads and affect many many more contests than Weideman managed to. And just like in the afl, when he found himself clunking one and having a set shot on goal he fluffed it. A wasted stuttering development year. 34 King- Thrust into the majority of the centre bounce work due to Spencils failings, i thought he battled manfully but was ultimately beaten. There's plenty to work with here for the future though, he looks like a future ruckman. Obviously needs to put on several kilos and develop his core strength as he had the chance to take a couple of big pack marks today but couldn't quite hold them. 37 Johnstone -Is a bit harder at the ball than i realised, didn't ultimately have much of it or any discernible impact on the game, but definitely making incremental improvements in his game. 42 Wagner - a surprising start onball didn't ultimately last, he did get a fair bit of it early but his disposal ultimately let him down time and time again. Whether that be an errant kick or a slow looped handball that pressured the recipient, he was his own worst enemy today. 45 Kielty- started slowly but got better as the game went on, taking several crucial intercepting marks. In our best half dozen. 48 Maynard- battled well, albeit a lot of his possessions are in heavy traffic a la Oliver so can go unnoticed. Also pushed forward well to have a few shots on goal. 54 Trengove - played off half back most of the game, was ok. even at this level now his possessions look slow, and a couple of his clearances went out on the full. What can't be disputed is his tackling which was outstanding and his leadership. He pulled all the defenders into a huddle during the 2nd qtr goal spree and tried valiantly to get them to structure up better. 55 Hulett- when i look at stats from his games this year I'm amazed at how little of the ball he has. Today was no different I'd be amazed if he had more than 5 possessions all day. He did lay 2 nice tackles in the 1st qtr once he came off the bench, but that's it. Will be lucky to his spot next week. Delisting looms. 57 Kennedy-Harris- I didn't mind his game, was good in the 2nd/3rd qtrs particularly. His workrate and 2nd efforts have definitely improved this year. 59 Spencer- Possibly the worst game I've seen Jake play.. Banished to full forward/ bench/ relieving King for the last 3 qtrs after his embarrassing opening term. 64 Brayshaw - easily our best today, started off half back, but soon swapped with Wagner and found himself the catalyst for all of our good chains of play. Wether in an under or on the outside, his football smarts, composure and balance stood out for the last 3 quarters. Will be interesting to see if tigers tag him next week. 69 Kennedy- played well after a slow start but wasn't alone there. His ability to get in and extract the footy, as well as find space on the outside meant his workrate was rewarded with plenty of touches. An atypical 2017 vintage BenKen game. 83 Bugg- If Spencer wasn't out there today, he'd be my choice as the most disappointing player of the day. Played I the same wing for the whole game, but was rarely sighted. Not sure if he was being tagged, it's rare to see him have this little impact at vfl level where he usually dominates. Special mention goes to Bailey Fritsch. I know I'm not Robinson Crusoe here in pointing this out, but this kid is seriously talented and could play afl round 1 next year. Listed at 189cm and only 81kg, he somehow plays taller than his thin physique would seemingly allow. He effectively plays as a key forward, yet it's also unmistakable his resemblance to Robbie Flower. Not only does he wear #2 and is a left footer, it's his ability to snake his skinny body through traffic or to outbody an opponent that makes him such a hard matchup. A lay down misere to be drafted. Bring on the tigers!

Those best players I'd agree with. Kennedy did some good things also. Trengove was solid. Weid very little influence, Fritsch was clearly go to forward. Bugg and Spencer no impact. King better than Spencil but both beaten by a journey man at least 15cm shorter. wagner and JKH had almost games. Stretch did some good things. id be surprised if Hulett on the list next year. Expect King to be. and once again Fritsch is a gun.

Sounds like the ND line "the boys didn't come out to play"!! Maybe MFC and Casey could share a psychologist.....the boys felt flat FCS is just no excuse, unless they actually had a flu epidemic. We hear that total BS too often at our club.

FFS he was in the All Australian squad at 21 years of age and people here are saying his stats aren't good enough???

72-67 in front! Wow

We were in this exact situation against Sandy a few weeks ago, only lead by a goal at 3QT, coming against the wind in the last and ended up kicking a few against the grain and winning so don't count out the boys just yet

this is pretty much my thoughts on this kid he's a far better kick than most on here are giving him credit for being, and coupled with his intercept prowess - which went to another level again in the back half of the year, as he started marking rather than simply spoiling (and boy, when he spoils, he KILLS the contest) - he's the ideal man to have as part of a zone defence i would suspect if he is contemplating coming to us (and i really, really hope he is) then part of the appeal would be that the zone he's asked to play is pretty much tailor-made for his natural abilities

QT - Casey 2.2.14 trail Williamstown 3.1.19 Goals Bugg Morris Disposals Brayshaw 7 Stretch 6 Wagner 5

Christ some people will do anything to saying something negative about the club. It drives me crazy. Negativity follow our club around because of [censored] like this. He was pick #52. Very players in that range make it in the AFL. "One of the very worst picks" is an exaggeration beyond belief.

do you mean ...the deal fell over or he fell over afterwards ??

Can confirm that all 14 AFL listed players are playing, including Brayshaw!! He looks pretty keen too

Our glaring weakness is still our midfield, I'm afraid. If we're not winning the ball and are off even a little bit, the opposition mauls us on the rebound, leaving our defence wide open. I've been saying this for a while, but we're still missing 2 further A graders to compliment Oliver, Viney, Tyson, Jones, Petracca, Salem, Brayshaw, Lewis and if I'm being very kind, Bernie Vince. With Vince and Lewis on their last legs (particularly the former), we're really going to need to address this soon. Oscar, Frost, Jetta, Hibberd, Hunt with Lever and TMac as swingman is fine for the moment. The midfield still struggled against weak opposition but reasonable midfields. This says it all for me. When Petracca, Salem and Brayshaw can play longer minutes in the midfield, we'll appear deeper, but we need reinforcements now.

Good luck to them trying as the house was demolished last saturday.

As has been posted by a few others, we should now avoid recruiting any depth players. Any trades or FA's should be seen as best 22 or ignored. The draft can give us more depth players, being the ones that don't quite make it, added to those we retain.

And now they win the Rising Star with the player they got for being drug cheats. What a heartwarming story of battling against adversity, what heroes, what role models.

That was other thing I said in the email , someone should be steering the ship with an official club statement after a gut wrenching weekend . Im not sure what's happening there but I dont like it.

Agreed. I would think a short email along the lines of: Hi.... Our whole club is very disappointed with how our season ended. Our captain Nathan Jones had a press conference today sharing that disappointment with you. It can be viewed at .......... In due course our coach Simon Goodwin will talk to you about the season and our future. You will receive a booklet on finals tickets which was sent out prior to round 23 to all clubs in contention to ensure that if we made the finals you would have every opportunity to share it with us. Unfortunately we didn't get there so we ask you to recycle it or return it to the club. Thank you for your support this year. How is that bb? Not that hard is it? I've worked with organisations who would have gone into 'damage control' mode: At 6.00pm last Saturday developed a communication plan to customers (in our case members) and press releases to the media, in case WCE won. At 8.00pm on Sunday it would have been activated in time to be in the Monday morning newspapers and in member's email boxes when they woke up. It would have stopped many of the angry phone calls and emails to staff. Not stopped all but a lot of them. The club could then control the public narrative. There is no doubt the Jones press conf was a reaction to the sh...t storm that they got Monday morning. Not one iota of pro activeness! They could have managed it properly and stopped the whole debacle! Not that hard is it!

I am really surprised the club has not made direct contact with members this week leaving them in limbo. Possible news with/from the club: A member has called/emailed them first then received a response. the Jones press conf on the website - how many members saw it? (Not sure about other media like twitter or fb). Did anyone receive an email, sms telling them it was there? Other info sources: Fan forums like this one. Newspaper/radio/TV reports (mainly ridicule) There are 42,000 of us! How many of those members have not accessed one of the above: 20,000? 30,000? They have been left in limbo. Without Demonland to keep me informed, I would have gone spare. I have been waiting for an email from the club all week. Nothing. Have other members received anything from the club (aside from finals ticket booklet)? Rightly or wrongly I am now feeling let down by the club itself. The club has missed the opportunity to get on the front foot and get its own message to members. I can only think they are still in a state of shock and have no idea what to do. The silence is deafening.

I'd target Whitfield over Kelly based on long term salary cap and probability of getting a deal done in terms of not giving as much away. I personally think Whitfield playing outside of Clarrie and Viney would be huge

They can start by using the brick that clocked Salem in the head in last year's pre season.....I never want to see that lazy brick get carried around again. Pull your finger out, brick! And while we're at it, can we throw into the foundations some of the useless witches hats that took to the ground against Norf and the Pies?

Does he have mail? It sounds like he is making out he does to cover himself in case it happens: "...There’s people at Melbourne whispering to other people that they believe that Lever may have had a verbal commitment to join Melbourne,” Robinson said...That’s just speculation..." Doesn't sound convincing! Maybe he is listening to the same Melbourne people who thought we were in the finals...

Leads the AFL for intercept marks at 22. Overrated lol.

Since I saw the result (couldn't watch) of the Adelaide West Coast game I have not read, watched, listened to, anything to do with AFL footy, let alone getting on here or the Dees website. And I am not reading any of the previous 600 odd posts on this thread. I just have to remind myself that we were so bad, so so ordinary that all I ever wanted was a team that gave themselves a chance each year. Based on that I am satisfied and can come to terms with the end of our season. Truth is we weren't good enough. Or smart enough. I am also satisfied with that and comfortable in the knowledge that the coaching staff understand this. Still though, an absolute ball breaking way to bow out. BALL BREAKER!!!!!!

Hahaha. Good one. Mate if he was a Melbourne player, he'd be treated like Jesus' second coming.

This is something that the club should have explained in their media release to members about how the season ended and... oh wait... That's right... since last Saturday the whole "Executive" group have gone to the snow... Does anyone know if the are still alive or did they all die after the game?

Miller and particularly Hall are turnover merchants. The rest I agree with though. Jack Martin would be a dream.

I've gone back to my 'failsafe' stance with Melb. Anything spoken or written is bullshlt.

Lewis hasn't been perfect and had some howlers (as all players do), but in general I think he was willing to pull the trigger on quick 25-35 metre kicks to move forward and hit the target on the vast majority of them.

Speed is only any good if it is combined with good decision making - Hartung hasn't got that.

Tumbleweeds from MFC All must be on annual leave now!!!

Yeh. The Hibberd trade was a disaster..

McCartin? No thanks.

Wouldn't have mattered. MFC would have put him in a stupid blazer , beat the mongrel from him, made him publicly repent in front of the media for his sins and reduced his effectiveness by half.