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Other titbits: Gawn lost 8kg prior to preseason and then has put back on 4kg since returning. His strength is still comparable to last year in the weights room. Petracca ran a PB by 35 seconds in his 2km time trial.

Listening to Gawn on SEN. Hilarious and: Camp with the AFLPA was a beat up and they were already cancelling the camp before the AFLPA got involved Gawn has put on 4kg since he came back Hogan in great shape and might play midfield, but clearly the best forward Lever talking a heap, looks like he'll be in the leadership group Gawn says he's a better barrister than Jobe Trac is going to play midfield and Gawn is looking forward to Danger, Selwood, Ablett v Viney, Oliver, Petracca Gawn looking at wine bars in New York but unsure; looks like there might be one in Melbourne and some food trucks as well. The best story was talking about the Simmons story. So not sure if it has been covered on here yet, but Trac had courtside seats, Harmes and Tyson were in the nose bleeds. The Trac was in the limo to NYC, H&T had to Uber there ($150 later), the uber turned up after the limo so H&T had to wait in the line outside before finally making it in. And apparently, Trac was in an area with Simmons and Le Bron that the other 76ers werent allowed into.

Injuries and form permitting he'll play till he's 35 he'll get to 300. He has been the heart and soul of the joint for the past decade, deserves every accolade that comes his way.

Incorrect I spoke to Misso, it takes on average 3 to 5 years to get a player to a level to consistently perform at AFL level, there are exceptions such as Clarry and a serious injury doesn't help obviously Misso has had the core of the squad for 3 to 5 years and we are now seeing a team of strong athletes that can run all day, only bit missing is to play footy for 4 qtrs each game which will come with ability to run out games and to be physically capable of hammering your body (oo er) for 3 hours

Barista. Although Jobe may have done some studies trying to keep Charlie.

Got along for about an hour with Mrs Worship, Agree with everything everyone else has said. Only a few things to add. Thought Tim Smith cannot be far off rejoining the main group, was impressed with how good his marking, speed and kicking was. Also looks to have put on a bit of size in the arms and shoulders. Jones looked ready to go and for those Kent followers; no he didn't look like he was going flat out at everything but he and Jones were very competitive with each other and there was a lot of banter and smiles, didn't look disinterested at all. Balic looked a little sore/tired to me and I saw him get quite a bit of treatment from one of the trainers. This would have been after the 2km trial, which we didn't see, so that may have had an effect. Some of the funnier /lighter moments in the main group were seeing Jeffy trying to stop/tackle Maxy and at one stage JKH had to take on/tackle first Jessy and then Max in quick succession. Really enjoyed the 9 x 9 drill mentioned earlier and the comments about Dion were what I saw too, but it was also interesting how often Keilty was on the end of the possession chain kicking at goal. I can't not mention young Clayton, I wasn't paying particular attention to him today but he is eye catching and he will surprise a few with his further improvement. From what I saw today I think the Cats might get a bit of a shock in the opener. Can't wait.

Went down for a look this morning. List of things I observed in no particular order. . - Maynard and Balic completed their 2km time trials... Maynard finished about 200m in front. Both were well and truly spent at the finish. - One particular drill was just focused on the "Dustin Martin don't argue". Picking the ball up off the ground and pushing off a bag/opponent with the hand. - Jones, Weid, Kent, T.Smith in rehab. Ditto Viney and Joel Smith but they were running lap after lap rather than the balls. - Brayshaw had his thigh taped up and at one point removed himself from the main group to complete some run thru's. He joined back in soon after. - I was most impressed with Dion Johnstone. Put on some muscle and his skills on both side of the feet was a highlight. Crumbing off the forwards and kicking them from all angles. - Lewis certainty entrenched in the back-line group. Vince also down there. - Omac looked noticeably bigger in the legs and arms. - Trac also looking fit without any strapping on the knee.

deserves everything and anything positive thing that this football club and the football world offers him now and in the future. Has been the soul of this club for 5 years now. Will retire an absolute legend of the MFC, but geeze it would be nice to see him get to 300 and raise the premiership cup!

Hes been a ginger a lot longer than 10 mins.... (someone had to do it )

Got down there for an hour. I am sure it was AVB running laps while I was there? Jones, the Weid, Kent running laps after some limited ball work earlier away from the main group. Jones looks fit to me. Keilty went down in a marking contest and spent 10minutes looking very ginger on his left ankle but recovered well to dominate some later drills. I liked the series of drills pitting defence against offence, the emphasis in working the ball out of congestion. Where was this competitive training stuff in the Bailey, Neeld years? Some of the tacking was very willing which I like to see as well as drills which forced players to work together in confined spaces. This is replicating game day which I think you should be doing at least 50% of the time at some stage of the preseason as well as honing your kicking and hand balling skills in conventional circle work. Liked the work of Clarrie, Vince, Maynard, The Track, J MAC and Hogan.

http://melbournefc.com.au/news/2018-01-15/melbourne-to-play-aflw-practice-match

I'm going to miss listening to Finey get abused and getting upset after the games

The x is for XTREME

I look forward to seeing: Filipovic Smith Keilty Wagner McKenna Petty King Baker Balic Spargo Take this competition by storm!!

still worried about viney wont be happy until i know he can still jump off tall buildings

Link to SEN with report attached: https://www.sen.com.au/news/2018/01/15/gawn-lifts-lid-on-cancelled-preseason-camp/ actual recording is on this page: https://www.sen.com.au/news/2018/01/15/how-petracca-stitched-up-teammates-on-night-out-with-nba-royalty/ Report from the Age: http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/max-gawn-says-simon-goodwin-probably-felt-like-victim-of-mutiny-after-camp-cancellation-20180115-h0iusn.html

16/11? It's January.

The mirror with the smoke was a reflection on our perception here from what was coming out of the club at the time. The story was that we needed a 3 year program (this is what 'Willmoy' was referring to) to build the team to AFL standard fitness levels and whilst I don't doubt that was correct, it was never going to happen and it was never going to be the great hope we held out for. The list wasn't anywhere near good enough and neither was the coach or FD and the turnover meant there could be no consistency in getting the training loads right across the board. With some stability, Misson has been able to do his job. Bringing in some quality players at different stages in the development cycle who have been in good systems also helps. It spreads the load.

I've been barracking so long i lose track of the decades now.....

This goes back to Neeld's time 'willmoy'...I think it was smoke & mirrors, they just weren't good enough. That team could prepare for 10 years and not make a dent on the competition. With the spread of talent through different age groups we have now, you would expect AFL level physical capability to increase with time in the system, so at different rates.

You're on the right track, Ron. If you keep up the good work, you'll be loathing 17 clubs like the rest of us.

Got down to Gosch's today for about 80 minutes... observations other than those already mentioned, Bernie's predicted demise was premature! His ball handling and kicking to position in the conditions was of the highest quality and he was up to speed in the sprints Ditto Lewis Impressed by Filipovic's increased bulk, athletic running and sure hands Jetta terrific in man on man defensive rebound activity Oscar McD consistently effective at spoiling in the arial contests Tom McD had the safest hands in the marking exercises I watched Petracca bustles like a bull and gets what he wants Bugg is looking like best 22 again Lewis an unlikely dead-eyed-dick on the day Oh yes, a bloke called Clayton continues to make the difficult look easy

Unsighted: 4 new draftees (presume it's AFL induction time). Vanders, McKenna Rehab: As PB outlined. Joel Smith did a bit of footy work and plenty of running with Viney. The other 4 did a lot of footy work and you'd think wouldn't be far off joining in the main stuff. Jones looked ready to go. Weid's kicking was a bit off in the swirly breeze. Balic joined the rehab group after his long run. Lots of different group drills really mixing it up but the focus was definitely on sharp kicking and clearing congestion. Most interesting drill might've been working the ball cone to cone in the middle of the ground then getting it in to a forward v defender one on one with Garlett and DJ both swooping on any loose balls from 30m or so in front of the contest. And I was also impressed with Dion. Not under any pressure but he was timing his run, gathering and snapping nicely. The full corridor 9 on 9 or whatever it was had mixed results but Lever was composed with the ball and Clarry took it on and kicked long to targets nicely.

Nathan Jones will be around playing for a number of years yet. He had been around for the bad times and now he deserves better. He is at the top of his game barring any serious injury. He deserves the good times coming. Go Champ!

Jonesy has been a fantastic servant of the Melbourne Football Club. Certainly played many games where he was unsupported and swimming against the tide. And therein lies the challenge for him. I think he got into the habit (understandably) of trying to do it all. Perhaps needs to increasingly play smarter with the realization that the support in the middle is now much greater.

Keep the boring, political tribalism to the loony general board please

Unless you are going to provide more substance than that, you are just another of many on this site who have “the good mail”, but an empty letter box.

I fell asleep before the end, what happened?

I thought the X marked the spot where it could be buried.

What? finey was the only one who spoke his mind Wow. That is pathetic

Vikes, I reckon you can hold their receivers or break even, their run game isn’t as good and Keenum ain’t Brees.

Yeah, no worries, sassy.

I watched the first season of 'Future Man' recently. Bite sized episodes (~26 minutes) of crass, cringe-worthy excellence! http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4975856/videoplayer/vi1185265689?ref_=tt_ov_vi

He's not in the legendary status for mine, but if he wins a flag and becomes our club games record holder, he then takes his place alongside the greats. Particularly, if he retains his captaincy, but this isn't a necessity to ensure legendary status.

might watch replay of The Ghan or play my Marcel Marceau LP this evening with a red or 2 ,tough choice

cant wait for the book to come out

I wouldn't want to be announcing a new sponsor any time in the next fortnight. The Australian Open will be consuming virtually all the media interest. Any leftovers will be absorbed by the Big Bash League.

How come AHG is stil plastered over everything?

By the way @rjay, I hope you are right. I'm entirely sick & tired of seeing the Hawks & Cats pushing for success.

Coombs made passing mention of Gold Coast going belly up, but as much as I'd love to see them sacked, the AFL looks like it's set on 18 clubs. A pity. I still maintain GWS and GCS are AFL vanity projects and I'm yet to be convinced there was any need for their introduction.

Yes i do

Do u work for the ABC

Gerard is a nice person, knowledgeable, balanced, and experienced. I doubt you'd hear a bad word about him. I find him boring.

Tim would have got double the wage to go to 3AW and GTV 9 remember Eddie was a thorn in his side. I doubt Gerard is getting anywhere near that from SEN, but his AFL 360 Terms would be pretty good. The ABC will survive, we always do. Managing Directors come and go

Interesting commentary, hemingway (above). Powerful and supported by an observable tendency.

Whateley is doing a Tim Lane. He is probably the closest radio/TV person to Tim Lane, as an articulate and intelligent broadcaster of virtually all sport. He does his homework and speaks knowledgeably about the sport that he is broadcasting, provides accurate commentary on the action and provides analysis on the sport. He does the micro and macro stuff well. Was Tim Lanes move a success? I'm not sure. Probably ask Tim. The listener may have a different slant but none of us can get into the mind of the commentator. From GW's view it is understandable. Age and career wise, and money wise. Things are not hunky dory at the ABC with cuts, cuts and more cuts. Morale is poor and the ABC risks being cut out of some sports or having reduced coverage or reduced broadcasting rights in the future. People talk about the bogans on other stations, but the quality of commentators on ABC has decreased over recent years, presumably due to funding cuts and the ABCs need to reduce expenses. I don't think it will be a big deal if the SEN thing does not work but it will be a stepping stone for GW to take on other opportunities and improve his pay packet.

I use twitter daily. You are 100% correct.

Bartlett moving to afternoons to be joined by Dr Turf. A hell of a lot better than Dwayne and a couple of the other options we had heard. I really like listening to Dr Turf, and it doesn't hurt he is a Dees man through and through.