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A stark contrast to practice games in years gone by where we’ve seen our side underperform/lose the game by some margin, with posters usually defending the performances without really being able to see warning signs either good or bad. (Usually bad up until last year). Regardless of the fact that these games are not worth points, if a team is fielding a near full-strength side, then these games should be taken seriously from many angles. Individual development, synergy between positional lines, observable gameplan, arousal levels/urgency at contests. All of those things were on show yesterday which is an enormous positive imo and the warning signs are positive in this case.. I don’t care that North will most likely finish in the bottom five this season. They similarly fielded a strong side and the end score-line flattered them tbh. There’s now an obvious and real blueprint in the way we are both playing and talking about ourselves as a club. Whether it’s Jennings in his post AFLX interview last week or Bernie in his interview during yesterday’s match, the line “playing the Melbourne way” is becoming thematic. We’re back it up in the way we’re carrying ourselves on-field. Whilst I don’t wish to bring it up as a discussion point, it’s easy to see why Watts was pushed out. A player who simply doesn’t display the traits that Goody and co hold every player accountable to. If you want to create and breed a culture that will stick at a club, everyone needs to display those traits. I don’t care that it was a JLT game. To me these changes are real and what we’re building is very real as opposed to years previous. The list, personalities, coaches and board are all clearly hell bent on re-branding this club. And I love it. Of course I know there’ll be plenty of downs this along the way and this season especially. But for the first time in many many years, I genuinely love watching us play, the “Melbourne” way. Go Dees.

For those calling for Oscar to be dropped.. He kept Brown to 1 mark for the game. He out marked Brown twice, and hit a target with nearly every kick. He got pinged twice for holding but was not conclusive on the telecast. He looks stronger and more composed. Like the coaching staff, I’m going to back him in. Yet to turn 22, he must be in the top few KPD under that age.

A few journalists have excused North somewhat due to their in experience line up that took the field yesterday. Now to correct that uneducated observation. North Melbourne’s total games experience 2458 games. Melbourne’s total games experience 1837 games For some reason North had 26 listed players and Melbourne 24 so if you use that to compare the fielded teams average games experience North had 94.5 games / player and Melbourne 76.5 games / player

Scientists have discovered that the galaxy contains not just one giant black hole ,but a whole series of black holes ,much like those to be found in Robbos liver and brain. When Robbo saw his career counsellor after failing year 9 English ,she advised him that he would never make it as a forklift driver, which involves remaining sober for part of the day ,so he fell into a career as a Sports writer at The Herald Sun. From there he learnt to mangle the English language into his own creation ,using neither nouns nor verbs, but instead nicknames, as a substitute for context and meaning in sentences.The very mention of a popular or successful players' moniker gives the reader/listener both the subject matter and a hint at Robbos intimate knowledge of the game/player itself. After 5 failed marriages, Robbo has decided to give up searching for love on Filipino Brides.com and dedicate himself solely to AFL coverage and beer.When Robbo is not pursuing his only two passions, he sleeps in the janitors closet so as to be awoken at 9am ,fresh for work, by his trusty friend and ally Rajesh ,who sometimes lets Robbo borrow his Glen 20 as a deodorant substitute and will reluctantly lend him a jacket for TV appearances. Despite failing mental health and declining personal hygiene Robbo has built a fan base of 16 dedicated bar flies who have steadfastly attempted to listen to his rambling oratory and miscellaneous observations on beer nuts,bosoms and what great bloke James Hird is.Closing time is cited as Robbos deepest regret in life,one that constantly comes back to haunt him as he regales his followers with story after story after story after story.....Usually the same one repeated. Robbo has enjoyed all the fruits of a life in the media and has invested wisely over the years to prepare for his inevitable forced early retirement.He is rumoured to have shares in a Nigerian Oil syndicate backed by a large conglomeration of African Royalty ,which are expected to pay off handsomely after maturation.He is also alleged to have invested in Chemical production facilities that stretch along the Eastern seaboard from Lara to the Gold Coast with his "mate" Bomber. With his business acumen and his bloodhound -like ability to both smell a good story and smell like a bloodhound ,Robbo has excelled at making numerous friends across the country ,friends who are so busy and successful they never have time to answer their phones nor reply to his misspelt messages but that is the rarified oxygen he steals. He is truly a one-off.And an off-one at that.

Give it a break mate... ...put him on the open market and see how unregarded he is...not.

Had this beauty done last year after we beat Port at the G. Go Dees.

Who is calling him to be dropped? He is a lock best 22 and will be a mainstay of this side for the next 10 years. Ther will be a fair bit of humble pie eating on DL. I'm looking forward to comments like 'playing well now, but needed to step up', 'where has this been?', 'he was lucky we had dearth of KPDs', "he was gifted games so he should be repaying us" blah blah blah. For anyone with an ounce of football knowledge his ability has been obvious since his firt game and his development clear, Which is why he has been in the side bar being dropped once, for one game, since his debut. Good thing the footy department have more than ounce of footy knowledge I did see that Deemania56 has selected a side for JLT2 and has dropped him. Which gives me some hope that poster might have the fortitude to take my long standing bet. Walk the talk so t speak. We'll see.

Some people being very unkind to Oscar. I thought his field kicking was really good. Was out muscled in a marking contest once, but also took some terrific defensive grabs. He is improving. Also some love for Pedo is warranted after his season last year. It was career best, and he played his role fantastically well at times, especially with Hogan out. Good game, very pleasing result. Nice to see a smashing at any time. Getting excited for round 1

The backlash when we traded for Melksham was ridiculous at the time. Melksham is proof that patience is required with any deal. It took him half a season to settle, but he's looking better and better with every game. He is looming as a very shrewd piece of business.

I sometimes wonder what people watch. I've been critical of Oscar at times, but he showed his development today. He spoiled well, he's a far better kick than his Brother and hits targets, and he outbodied Brown to win a 1v1 marking contest. He looks stronger and more composed. And he's 3-4 years from his best footy. McDonald takes Brown. Brown is beaten and has a stinker. McDonald is criticised.

I hope Dr D is right because Hogan will kick a bag every game if he is regarded as not a threat to the opposition.

he's a cat supporter.....maybe getting nervous for round 1

I was at the game. Rocked up in jeans and a jacket and ended up sweating and getting a sunburnt face, classic Hobart. Quite windy but not as bad as the two roster matches over the last couple of seasons. I was watching Oscar closely, his body work in the one on ones was very good, his decision making and execution were also good, apart from one handpass that was picked off and they scored from it. Bugg stood out, as did ANB and Harmes. Lever was very instructional, especially when we had the ball locked in our F50, he was organising the backs. Stretch is a running machine, but didn't have a huge impact. All day we just looked a few levels above the opposition, which is a nice change for us demons supporters. Even when they bounced back in the second, you could just tell it wasn't really going to be a contest in the end. Really enjoyed Hibbered making Waite look stupid in the final quarter. That bloke is a gun and I'm stoked we have him.

Amazing isn't it. Some just can't believe what they see. Oscar has been on a steady improve all through last season.

Not a chance he is anywhere near our top 5 players. If the team was picked for round 1 now on merit, he would not be in the side. He has been underwhelming in the little we have seen this preseason. Was given a go in the midfield yesterday and failed to make an impact then gave away silly free kicks when playing down back. The biggest concern is his poor skills, that kick to Salem 1 on 3 was dreadful. Like everyone I'm hoping he can become what we thought he would be, but he is far from that at the moment.

I watched the replay this morning and he went well... but please don’t wish a gurney on him! ?

Watch with the sound turned off. All you need to know is who has it and where on the ground it is. You can see that for yourself. If you need deeper analysis, then (i) do you really trust the commentators to provide anything meaningful? They prefer cliches and sensation; (ii) entertain yourself by making it up. You're bound to be as accurate as the paid commentators if not more so. Does anyone really need the commentators hyping up the context of the game? One of their KPIs is to keep the "excitement level" up to stop neutrals from changing channels. (PS. when I say "you", I mean "people in general")

Hogan looks set for a big year, touch wood. And I'm very confident Salem is going to be our big mover this year. Absolutely class ball user.

With these sorts of games at this time of year I tend to focus on the new recruits be they rookies or imports, and the fringe players. You know what you're going to get with the senior experienced guys, even at their different levels of preseason readiness. Of the new players, watching plenty of Casey games last year meant I was excited at the prospect of seeing Fritsch at this level (disregarding the abomination last week where he slotted a couple of cheap ones), and he didn't disappoint. And he still hasn't shown what I think are his greatest assets, his ability to win the marking contest in traffic and set shot goalkicking. After this and if he plays a half decent game next week, he's a lock for Round 1. Lever did enough, the ball didnt come down his way too much, but he showed he'll fit comfortably into our structure down there. Of the fringe players, I thought Harmes was excellent, Hannan was OK, Brayshaw struggled to impose himself, Stretch worked diligently all day for not much reward, he needs to ensure his possessions are more constructive rather than playing every one safe, Wagner was decent, and Bugg was pretty handy. I don't count ANB as a fringe player, cant understand why people still underrate him, he just missed out on a Top 10 B&F finish last year, and Melksham is also no longer a fringe selection, nor is Salem, if he's fit he's in our best 22 he has simply struggled for continuity in his footy to be able to remind people of his ability. If our mid tier can continue their improvement, we'll have some good depth dilemmas when Viney, Tyson & Jetta return and we get a full game from Lewis...roll on the Saints!

Surely posters realise we'll pick our best team available in JLT2 ? It's not about "hoping to see" anyone, it's about our best team preparing for round one.

Welcome to the Dees Lever..... where we focus on 3 things you did in a 50 point win first practice game of the year and not the other dozen times you made great decisions, made north second guess coming through the middle by floating back or killed contest.

I can't talk this guy up enough. Some of the marks and goals he took last year were unbelievable. If he can emulate that in the AFL he will soon become a fan favourite. Kid is a gun.

So I got this tattoo done last year and was interested to see if anyone else has a demon tattoo, show us yours?

Give it a rest. Brayshaw had a fantastic debut season where he only missed one game, followed by injury interrupted (knee and concussions) in 2016/17. Give him some time to build some confidence before you make him the new whipping boy.

I was at Kingston with my brother-in-law (a norf supporter) and he said to me they were basically full-strength. Preust (spelling??) just wasn't in the 24(??), the only one they were missing was the guy who had the unfortunate run-in with the scooter when on the beers last weekend and Mason Wood. They will definitely be bottom 4. I thought we were missing significantly more quality than them. Viney, Tyson, Jetta, Garlett - but we looked more confident, faster, stronger, more skilled and most importantly "hungry". Hopefully it translates to round 1 and the cats match and then we can all put the nightmare of r23 behind us (and perhaps in time it will be recognised as better to have missed finals because of how hungry the players were in 2018)

Thought I'd adjust the 4 to 400 for you....

I figure someone will work out a way to get around it. A smarter app than the AFL. I’m just waiting to find it or somebody tell me.

Whilst appreciative of the availability of the Foxtel broadcasts, it is time that its commentators concentrated on the essentials of the game. Sometimes, I feel that comments are way off the mark and often, a noticeable bias and even a prejudice arises. There even seems to be an urgency to be controversially sensational, similar to placing a bet on an a roughie in the last should the nag get up. It would be interesting to review such accuracies over time.

Will be watching more games 24 hours later. I refuse to buy Foxtel. I don’t want all the other junk it’s easier to watch AFL overseas now than it is in your own home.

When I saw this (and your other posts) last night, I thought some of your comments about Stinear may have been a bit harsh. But seeing how the game played out you make some valid points. We have the most talented team in the comp. Elite players all over the field. Proven game winners (many are multiple premiership players in the VFL). Yet Stinear doesn't seem to know how to get the best out of them. Nor does he have the game plan to win against the 'blue collar' teams that get down and dirty and prevent the elite players having an impact. Collingwood shut down our engine room last right and Stinear didn't react. They were aggressive in their forward half and Stinear didn't react. Turnover after turnover scores and he didn't react. It seems he has plan A - let the talent do the work but no plan B when things don't go our way. To hear him then talk about lack of work rate after the gruelling week the players have had is really disappointing. Its a team effort and I would have liked to seem him take a more collective line than put it all on the players. It will be a tragedy if this group of elite players miss out on success because of poor management and poor coaching. I'm not suggesting Stinear should go but he needs to take a long hard look at what he is doing and work out how to get the best from this highly talented and highly motivated group. Stinear is being outcoached.

Won as a Team with no major injuries and we may have found another forward

Brayshaw has a position: on the ball. But given what he's been through and his comparative youth, he's being given the chance to find his feet and build some confidence elsewhere. It seems fairly clear that they're trying to keep him out of heavy traffic, at least for the moment.

One super impressive thing about Fritsch's game was that he had the EASIEST of chances to put his head down and kick a 4th goal, and more-or-less make it impossible to leave him out of Round 1. But he still chose to dish it off. Goodwin would have loved that.

I am of the same view Ox.... If he is fit and ready to go.

Robbie Gray?? No. ANB has a nice little stop and go move that can get him out of trouble but he doesn't have anything like Gray's vision, skills or movement. Had no problem with Hannan hanging back. We don't need 5 guys going up for a mark. One of the best things Fritsch did was read the play and snap the goal from Tracc's torp. Hannan tried the same thing, the bounce didn't get to him and so he looked a bit silly, that's fine. Calculated risk. Hannan's probably competing with Bugg for a spot and his advantage is he provided a very good run and link player when in the midfield. The competition for the last forward spot looks pretty tight. Hogan was bad for his first 3 or 4 centre clearances, mainly because he was fumbly. Half a chance he read the press about his midfield time and was nervous. But then he improved and got some clean handballs away. He's far from our worst decision maker or disposer. The midfield time will force him to tackle and compete at ground level which will improve his forward game. He's an unusual trainer - likes to coast early in the runs before finishing strong but he does most drills well. Has nothing to do with trading Watts. Either way, wait until the main season. We play North in round 3, nothing wrong with trying a few things today to make them prepare for and then not even using them in the real stuff.

Pumped for Round 1 v the Cats.

How times have changed. No early draft pick saviours that need to come in round 1 and guide us back to premiership glory. Instead a mid to late draft pick who played with our affiliate vfl team, where we develop and look after kids, could come in and play a role round 1. Good luck Bailey Fritsch you have been provided an environment where you can excel.

Have we? That's news to me. We might have thrown him in there rarely during the main season, but I don't recall us doing it 'several times'. But your opinion is totally blinded by some sort of hatred for the bloke, which is evident in your last few posts. Not sure what you have against him, but it seems as if he's personally offended you or something.

I agree with most of your analysis Dee, but this is a head scratcher. It's the JLT series and we've flagged that we want to use Jesse in the midfield a little more. It's the perfect time to trial it when there are no points up for grabs and losing a couple of centre clearances means nothing. If the experiment doesn't work, then I assume we don't do it much at all in the future. It's harmless to do it now. To suggest sticking him in there a little today makes a mockery of getting rid of Jack Watts, that he's out laziest trainer etc is one of the most bizzare things I've read on here. Seems like an outrageous over-reaction to me.

LOL @ Stringers haircut

we're calling him "the Frittata" right?

I was quite happy with that game. It was against a team of babies that are desperately positioning themselves for a tilt at a priority pick this year, but we showed a lot of depth with spare players all over the field and a multitude of scoring options. We did exactly as we should have and thrashed them.

And I can also confirm there were $5 full strength cans. And with under 2000 people there you didn't even have to line up! Pretty disappointing crowd, particularly since the weather ended up being fine.

Don't care if its only preseason. LOL @ Essendrug

He has that trait of great players, he appears unrushed and looks like he has more time than others. Looked very cool under pressure too. Flower-esque in build but being skinny didn’t do the great man any harm.

This is the best problem to have in AFL.

The same Jono that said he thinks we will finish top 4?

I've been saying this all last year and all this preseason, Fritsch will be some sort of player.

I thought he was dead

So he uses what happened last year as a basis for deciding what will happen this year? There is nothing here about what we ARE doing relative to others. "They did this, they did that, I don't trust them!". Well, Get [censored] you [censored] polisher. A quality analysis would have looked at our list, our game style, our fitness and injuries, even our draw. But no, one bad game last season. And how well did he go tipping the Tigers to win last year? He can keep licking James Hird's taint and enjoy the high he gets off that.