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Hey all. Tried my luck this morning down @ Casey. Here's what i saw. The forwards had the whole oval to themselves... not to sure where the rest of the crew were. Anyways, The forwards group included: TMac, Fritsch, Kozzy, Jackson, ANB & Hunt. Harley was there, didn't train, but he was the drill assistant for the session. Warm Up: The boys paired up for some laps around the oval; Kozzy / Hunt, ANB / Fritsch while Jackson & Tmac ran solo. There was about a 50m gap between the runners. Slow, steady laps for about 10mins. A game of soccer for 5mins & then a couple of 150m run throughs at about half pace. Jackson's a glider, Kozzy's quick & Tmac's a robot. Some kick to kick about 30m apart to round off the warm up. First drill: Player in the goal square starts us off. He kicks to a player on the corner of the 50m arc who then kicks to a player at the top of the 50 - He then gathers, plays on & kicks for goal. No real intensity about this drill, boys still moving at about half pace. Lasts for about 10mins. Nothing more to see here. Second drill: Group of 4 at the center of the ground with Justin Plapp. 2 at the goal square (1 forward, 1 defender). Plapp kicks the ball up to 1 of the group of 4, they then run a carry, disposing by handball to each player, with the last chain of the group kicking to the leading forward. The kicker is rotated at each restart. Tom, Jackson & Hunt mostly leading out from the square. Fritschs' delivery is a standout. Hunt - good hands out in front on the lead. Jackson just glides across the park - Good bounce about him. Kozzy just knows how to play the game. Tom looks stiff... but that's Tom. Third Drill: Starting player positioned about mid ground closer to the flank. He gathers a random ball from Harely (ground ball, half volley, on the full etc), who then kicks a 30m kick to a leading half forward who marks 60m from goal. Player then waits for one of the two leading forwards to present. He makes his choice & the forward marks about 35m out from goal. No shots were taken. Melk appears from nowhere! some light jogs around the oval & then some kick to kick with burgo... but then joins the boys soon after. Once again, Fritschs' delivery from 60 out to a leading forward is a class above the rest. Low penetrating darts... the others are ok, but they don't penetrate through the air like Bailey's. All drills where done at about half pace. Aaron Nietschke was doing some runs along the other oval with a couple of the medical boys. No sign of Weid. Or Brown. The weather got me outta there before they ended. Happy to answer any questions. ??

Probably still singing the song.

Meh. Pointing out the weather is a clear reportage of factual data without emotion or subjective commentary, very different to what goes on here. Facts from the weekend 1. We won. 2. Our first 1.5 quarters of play was dynamite and back to 2018 level. 3. Our next 2.5 quarters was poor with tones of 2019. 4. We don’t know what this means in terms of next weeks game. 5. Did I mention, we won... 6. This was our first competitive hit out since Round 1, not including playing ourselves. 7. We included 3 debut players and changed the team a lot from round 1 to round 2, 7 changes. 8. I was going to say “as a result...”, but will just say many players were rusty or performed below our expectations for them, several played really well... 9. So in summary, we won. Go Dees

Smith's played 11 AFL games before Saturday, missed the entire 2019 season and has just come off an 8 week break due to a pandemic. Maybe cut him a bit of a break for one really poor decision. He did chop in front of his man and intercept (with a Jetta assist) the crucial game deciding inside 50. Maybe Smith won't be smart enough, that's pretty much the decision they made with Frosty, but his basketball background does give him an understanding of zone/man defending and it's up to May and Jetta and the coaches to get him right. At this stage I'm more concerned about the gigantic holes through our midfield and forward line zone, especially when Marvel stadium should be easier to block up than the MCG. Essendon have started games very strongly getting on their bikes and running in a Richmond wave like fashion

Do you honestly believe Goodwin (or any other AFL coach) would do anything but praise a player in their first game, regardless of performance? ”Nah Lukey was disappointing to be honest, we’ll be breaking down his game and pointing out all his mistakes to him on Monday using the video footage..” C’mon...he was okay. Nothing more. I hold high hopes for him, but he’s not what we need up forward right now.

Just watched Gawn on 360 and picked up a little something that only people who are involved at the coal face and are clear about what is being coached/ instructed can talk about. Some of the more astute on here (about 3%) have noticed the change in the direction to "play on at all cost/ chaos football". This has been evident at times and is most likely the result of what many believe is the waste of our inside 50 entries by bombing it in long - The CAUSE. To address this the players have been told to slow down a little and be more measured (not exactly Max's words but near enough) - The TREATMENT In Max's comments on 360 he has alluded to the players thinking too much about the above instruction and when they were challenged by Carlton instead of adapting to the new rhythm/pace of the game they simply stuck to their instructions. - The CONSEQUENCE I think this shows we are trying to rectify our shortcoming but much like the AFL we don't always see the potential ramifications of changes. I would hope that Richardson in his role is always the one to question changes and look at what might be the potential effects of introducing those changes. In writing this I've realised we're trying to get a cohesive 22 play together and many of them have played together very little. If you look at how Richmond, Collingwood and WC play "together" I think it's more an effect of time spent out on the field. In some respect how many players we have available (many of which are new to the Club) may be compounding the problem. There is already a big question over Goody however if he is given as much time as Buckley and Hardwick some of the issues should resolve themselves. The challenge will be how quickly Goody can get everyone on the same page.

As has been posted in other threads the players love playing for Goodwin and a number have stated they came to the club because of the impression he made. But don't conclude this means he's soft. Renowned hard men Brendan McCartney, Jordan Lewis and Bernie Vince all talk him up and they don't need to. Goodwin has the necessary intensity. Supporters who complain they don't see it in post match interviews should reflect on the Mark Neeld years.

I can't believe people have suggested Hunt to be dropped. Carlton would've killed for forward to bang home 3 goals on the weekend.

In: Weid & Kozi Out: Jacko & ANB Unlucky: Vanders No need to panic. Jacko looks promising but he’s had a taste, now needs some continuity in the 2s. Bad luck for ANB but Kozi is just so dangerous that even after 1 game he needs to come back in and stay there. Melksham has so many runs on the board it’s not funny. Arguably our most important player when on form so he’s not going anywhere. Jones was poor but I’d back him to bounce back. Actually think smith had some great moments just had two shockers that resulted in goals. I reckon persist with him, could be great if he figures that role out.

I love how he also made sure Carlton hit the post twice in the last quarter, thereby ensuring we won with a last minute miss by Fritsch. Genius!

Goodwins failed game plan got us to a preliminary final and the following year we were crueld by injuries. This year we have had a mini rebuild but been struck down by corona. Some posters are so pessimistic.

Nick Riewoldt claims it shows we lack maturity. This coming from the former StKilda player who was captain when the following occured; Players slept with underage highschool girls 2 players accused of rape Reports of a drug culture problem Playing group set a dwarf on fire Players took photos of each other naked and uploaded them to the internet. Good thing they won some premierships during this time or people might think that Nick is a bit of a [censored].

In fairness to Smith Rod, he has just played his 12th game of AFL. So in a roundabout way you're right we've barely seen him in action. But he deserves time right? Like all players? To be honest I thought he actually impacted the game far more then Jake Lever. His closing speed on McKay to impact the contest and then win the footy was really exciting to see. I understand we are all impatient, but there is something to work with in Smith. He needs continuity and more game experience.

I just wanted to say that Australia have Yorkshire in trouble at Sheffield, with Yorkshire sitting at 5/85 on the second day after Aus. had declared at 8/295. Garth McKenzie has picked up two.

Serious question Saty, why do you bother posting here? Every post of yours you’re either having a dig at the forum or a fellow poster. It’s probably about time that you moved on, for the forums sake and yours.

It's the clearances and stoppages where we fell apart. As Supermercado says above when they didn't get the ball we were unstoppable. We keep being talked about as a great stoppage team, but we aren't. I think back to 2019 and round 1 this year when West Coast would just waltz away with the ball from clearances without any of our players within about five metres of them, I think Gawn is a little bit to blame as he keeps knocking the ball to the same spots, never punches it forward or makes things unpredictable. This makes the decision the move Harmes from the midfield all the more perplexing because it isn't as strong as people think. We probably should have also looked at another midfielder with pick 3 instead of Jackson (who I'm sure will be good for us), but that's another story.

if we sang the song as a team after losing it'd definitely be blown up as a bigger deal

Player / Team Score - Round 2 vs Carlton Blues (Marvel Stadium) Player Score Rank Max Gawn # 5.325 1 Christian Petracca 4.400 2 Clayton Oliver 3.775 3 Jack Viney 2.825 4 Alex N-Bullen 2.625 5 Neville Jetta 2.375 6 Angus Brayshaw 2.350 7 Christian Salem 2.350 7 Adam Tomlinson 2.325 9 Harley Bennell 2.250 10 James Harmes 2.075 11 Ed Langdon 2.000 12 Steven May 1.875 13 Tom McDonald 1.600 14 Trent Rivers 1.550 15 Jake Lever 1.500 16 Jayden Hunt 1.475 17 Nathan Jones 1.475 17 Joel Smith 1.450 19 Bayley Fritsch 1.275 20 Jake Melksham 1.050 21 Luke Jackson 0.250 22 Team Score 48.175 Top 6 21.325 Bottom 6 6.975 # Hit outs to advantage not accounted for Even without adding hit outs to advantage to Big M's stats he was, statistically at least, clearly the No.1 player on the evening for the Demons. A promising return by Harley as well, finishing in the top 10. Even more impressive given that he only spent half the match on the park. Gus the next lowest time on ground with 69%. Carrying some sort of niggle? Maybe not but if so that's a fairly low time on ground? Taking the 20% time reduction into account, this is a very marginal improvement on the 2019 average team score of 59.623. Approx a 0.8% improvement so nothing to really get excited about so far this season in a team sense (statistically).

Of course they count, it's just that old dee can't remember them. ?

Only one thing is certain... if we beat the Dons by five goals there'll be a tidal wave of comments claiming we've already got the flag in the bag.

Throw in Jimmy Jess and we'd have the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost!

It is brutal but KK is probably finished for his own sake there is a lot more to life than football.

Seems right. I think he's on very good terms with himself.

Didn't know he missed training due to niggle, so that makes more sense. On form, he would've been a lock for round 1. His ball use, pace, defensive zoning, and aggression with tackling make him a key part of our backline going forward IMO. I'd bring him straight in if he's fit. Think we might struggle to contain Essendons small running brigade without a bit of a rejig to our structure. Lockhart and Pickett should come in.

My comment was mostly in jest. But perhaps consider if this forum had run as long as some here have supported the Dees through wet and cold winters, many like myself, in my case 56 then those you say are complainers would have been correct in saying every coach was a failure except Northey and Neil and even those two ultimately failed. They would be correct in saying Board after Board was inept, facilities were second rate and the playing list was substandard. However what it does not mean is that those people who have pointed out the obvious are poor supporters. I and I am sure many others here have been at bleak games until the end, always trying to find a positive with this player or that. Now its 2020 we are a bottom side, with a coach still finding his way, a club pathetically searching for a full sized training ground and a list from which we do not even have a settled spine after a six year coaching transition period.

Buckley is in his 9th year as coach and has survived seasons where supporters and media have called for his sacking, Clarkson coached a premiership side in his 5th year and during his early years there were calls from supporters to get rid of him, Hardwicke coached Tigers to a flag in his 8th year as coach after quite a few years of the media suggesting should go and constant calls for his sacking from supporters. The point is each club had boards who were prepared to back their coaches and dismiss outside noise.

I promise you one when we win the flag. Yep you will never get one.

That could turn out to be a problem going forward, if we are going to give games to guys who are out of form, or even past it. Nev's last 2 games have been poor and he looks very slow. Not saying he is past it, but he is certainly past his best footy. But he wasn't alone on saturday, with a number of our players playing very poorly.

The number of players that come to Melbourne now because of Goody speaks volumes.

???

Lockhart should be straight in. Essendon rely on set of small/mid sized forwards. We need good small defenders to aid in shutting down their forward line. Jetta is the only one we have who can lock down, and he's not in good form as it is. Lockhart should be first player into the team and should've played round 1.

Been thinking about this.. and im not ready to hit panic button just yet. Our team consisted of 8 players who had played 20 games or less for the Demons, a backline who had Lever, May, Smith and Rivers, first game they have played together, Langdon and Tomlinsons second game wit teh team, Bennell first game for 20 years and Jackson's first match as a big bloke. It may take a while for this team to get the chemistry going. Which makes me more disapointed in some of the senior players, Jones, Melksham, Tom Mc and Nev Jetta, they didnt stand up at all. I Think Jetta was just ok, let down by coaching a bit with some match ups, but i never saw them once assert themselves. Kossie will come in you would think which will be another 2nd gamer, so experience players and "leaders" are more important than ever in this team. Its on them. Maybe Hibbered back against teh Bombers i think.

I cant' really justify my feelings here Rod, but I'm hopeful that they persist with Smith. I think he has more upside in terms of athleticism, strength and pace than Oscar does. He made some errors on the weekend, and needs to learn when it is his time to go, but what I saw of his ability to keep up with his opponent on the lead and effect a spoil was excellent and worth persisting with. I can understand totally why people want him dropped, but I think he deserves a few games to get comfortable down there.

Good question Under Goodwin's Tenure 2016 - 5 2017 - 4 2018-5 2019-7 2020-2* so far *23 over 4 and a bit seasons. So that is essentially every 5th game we will have a scoreless quarter The previous 4 seasons 2012 yielded the other 34, essentially every 2.5 games.

Can we not derail quality threads like this with politics please? Bringing this back on Topic, the more I think about the more I think there will be two changes. Weideman has to be a given, these reports suggest he did everything he is asked. I would like to keep Jackson in, but if he has to make way for Weideman then I'm still happy enough. If McDonald has another poor game then Mitch Brown will be breathing down his neck. Kossie is an automatic selection for me. Who does he come in for though?? Still want to see Vanders squeezed some how.

Good balanced article and response. I too am bullish ie half glass full rather than empty. Too be honest this R2 team was in excess of R1 in ability and that's one thing I believe our list has if not in spades but spread over the ground and even now in depth with little injuries other than Petty who I rate as top 32/33 footballers. BUT our consistently inconsistent mental ( that's what I feel are the main reasons for big very good/very bad differences ) or brain fades Costing multiple successive goals are a worry as alluded to above. This must be eradicated by strong ground leadership plus even more aggressive on field changes to give the team tweaks and positional and playing options to reassume control. Surely Alan Richardson can see this and play his part here as Goody is Star struck and motionless with tactics and personnel switches. Lets see what sort of ride we get and keep in mind that there are a big no. Of youngsters and new players to gel as early as possible which means most of the team stalwarts must stand up in this transition stage. Thank goodness for Trac who is looking a much more confident and complete player ready to start owning the fortunes of our team. His interview on our website also majorly impressed me as him being in a fantastic space and ready to inspire and lead us to some real achievement as soon as possible. Lets get behind him and the other pacemakers.

Is this one of those we’re all being too negative so I’ll post any old positive garbage threads? Carlton came out in social distance mode. I’ve rarely seen a worse quarter from any team. If anything we should’ve put 8 goals minimum on the board in the first quarter. If Goody gave Carlton their pre game rev up, then sure, great coaching. Unless we can beat teams in a shoot out, we’ll lose every week. We’re too easy to score against, and no team will ever give us a 7 goal head start again.

Essendon run with a very small forward line. I can't see a matchup for Smith unless you want play him on Stringer. We will need to shut down Tippa - he's very much their talisman. They've also got Devon Smith, Zaka & Townsend running around. Not sure if Fantasia is due back from injury. On that basis I'd recall Hibbo for Smith. If not Pig then Lockhart. Up the other end they are pretty tall. Hurley, Hooker, Ridley & Francis who plays above his height & has great hands overhead. I'd bring back Weid & retain Jackson (at this stage. I'm still mulling over this). Leave TMac in to start deep & run Hooker up & down the ground. He won't keep up. I can't find a spot for Jones. Pickett in - should be at Melksham's expense but ANB will likely make way. Which I'm ok with. Melksham has more runs on the board but the ice under him grows thinner. Gawn may well be the most influential player on the ground. Bellchambers does little outside the ruck contest so Max should easily account for him around the ground & cause some havoc with his marking. Clearances will be king. They might be fast on the outside but that doesn't help much if you haven't got the footy

I had a few too many Saturday night and regret everything that happened after the 5 minute mark of the second quarter. I apologise to everyone, even though I didn’t post.

Not sure if this has been mentioned but Troy Chaplin, the Defensive coach... just wow. How can players still be leaping for the same ball? Rivers seemed to understand when to stay down and where to guard space, but Joel Smith after how ever many years he's been on the list, still hasn't worked it out. Smith, Chaplin and Goodwin really have to take some responsibility for this decision making. It shouldn't be happening with a player in his 3rd or 4th or whatever it is, season. Structurally though, the first half was solid from a defensive POV, but we still fail to do the basics well. Worried what Essendon will do next week even though they're a pretty ordinary team themselves. What's frustrating is that there are many, many average teams in the competition. If only we got anywhere near our 2018 form, we'd easily be top 4 or 6.

When was the last time we were on top of the ladder? Drink it in Dees fans!

A good post. I would just add that I can recall very few teams which have made 7 changes, including 2 18yos and have won. I reckon the coaching staff have decided that this team rather than the team for R1 offers more for the year as a whole. There will be disappointments but from what we saw I’m not sure the coaching staff got it wrong. and one other point. Carlton are not a bad team. On paper I thought they would win. Their players have played far more together, as a team, than ours have

Mate, read what recently retired players, Lewis, Vince etc, or present assistant coaches say, notably that the players love playing for Goodwin

I had a few too many on Saturday and on rereading regret my post. I apologise BM.

Absolutely spot on, the one thing our club seems to be consistent with is taking promising players and throwing them around into different roles that don't work for them to the point they lose confidence. Playing Jackson in front of Weiderman on the back of what I'd say was a couple of good signs just smacked of the old Melbourne attitude of "he's a top 3 draft pick so we have to play him", he's raw and got talent but jeez can we just let him develop his body first? And meanwhile I can't actually think of the last time where Weids was just given a simple role as forward target, why does he have to be used in a hybrid ruck/forward role? If we swap JL out for Weids I'd like to see the match committee use TMac and Thomo as the chop out rucks.

It was all good when we didn't let Carlton get their hands on the ball. Once they did it was hot knife through butter stuff. Good teams will wallop us if we play like that.

Jesus Christ.

A lot of us have been too negative about the weekend. We were not the only team to go missing for a large patch of the game. Good start - tick Petracca in the middle - tick Using Tomlinson and Langdon effectively - tick Winning when we probably didn't deserve to (like good teams do) - tick

Nothing in it.