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It would help if the club had a consistent narrative around Harley: When selected to play rnd 2 Goodwin was effusive with praise and believed he was ready to play. When not selected to play rnd 4 Goodwin said its about his form and building his game but Mahoney said he had to get his body right. When not selected to play rnd 5 Goodwin says he needs to work on his defensive game and only got the rnd 2 game because Hannan, AvB and Pickett weren't available. ie gifted No wonder people are sceptical.

Kozzie has shown he is more then ready for senior footy. Fitted in seamlessly.

What a relief Spargo has been included. His speed, height, skills and long kicking are exactly what we have been missing.

I didn't mind Smith's game last week. He effected some spoils from out of position that most people just wouldn't have been able to do. He spent time on Hawkins, Ablett and Dangerfield and none of them got hold of him. We don't need all of the back 6 to run and create, that's what Salem, Hibberd, May and even Lever are for. He can blanket talls and smalls with his pace and leap, and as long as he can limit his mistakes I think there's a spot for him.

Joel Smith deserved to retain his spot. Can’t remember how he went in the second half Vs Geelong but his first half was really good. His athleticism and pace to go with his opponent was evident. A massive step up from rd 2. Infact our defence of May, Lever, Smith and Hibberd functioned very well for most of the game. All things going well, Smith could potentially be a productive and versatile staple in our defence going forward.

Melbourne is not very good this year. Dees by plenty. Our side will be jet lagged. Having Rance right now would be massive. He was a jugger naught when we were a middle of the ladder team. Melbourne's Grand final this week. I'd say Dees will bring in either Weideman or that spud from Essendon this week to try take advantage. It'd be nice if they played Preuss again. Demons to Bomb out of the finals race. They'll probably thrash our midfield. Our midfield basically has lost every battle so far this season and Melbourne's one is able to get the ball. Their issue is what they do post-clearance and heading into the forward 50, so we'll just rely on their tendency to misfire in the forward line or the midfield for the win. Reckon we match up well against the Demons. They're not overly quick like the Saints, who beat us for pace last week. Fritsch is under rated and probably their most dangerous forward. Anyone else forget the dees existed? last i heard about them was way back in the nab cup when everyone was hyping that fat bloke for playing his first good game in years. Reckon this could get ugly. Dees by 47. Tomlinson and Langdon know how to find space and the footy. Let's hope Langdon gets 30 possessions, his Disposal is Sh!te. Melbourne games in the past have been pivotal at times. The McMahon Dustin Martin Cup, The Tommy Hafey debacle. Anzac Eve 2017 and I reckon from memory we lost a last round against them to finish ninth. Sunday's got that same feel about it. I hate losing to those entitled [censored]. Always say Brayshaw is a bellwether player for Dees. When he plays well they are up and about, like in 2018, he was third in Brownlow. Melb. last year resorted to a lot of push and shove. This year since the restart they've had two close games for a win and a loss. They'll be thinking they are in form and we are off the boil.

Melksham is very lucky. I am a fan but his half efforts this year have been disgusting

They should implement a starting 6/6/6 at centre bounces. That’ll help increase scoring.

Honestly, just being able to watch the team play on TV this season is a bonus. Where the games are do not really matter.

Might just be me, but much prefer Smith on Riewoldt than Omac. Despite what's been said here, Smith has been good defensively with his closing speed on the lead and physically seems an ideal match-up for Riewoldt. Oscar doesn't have the pace for Riewoldt or the size for Lynch so can't see why they would play him.

It’s 6:05pm. Great for people with young kids. Gives you 5 minutes to have dinner.

You do realise that there is a pandemic going on at the moment preventing people from attending games and hence a potential reason for not purchasing memberships.

thankfully we have the Giants at home .Important home game for us..Not certain how often the Giants visit GWS stadium.

Throw the Channel 7 commentary team into the sea. Won't do anything for the quality of the game but it will help my ears.

Spargo

Sportsbet goes wack ...

Spargo ahead of Bennell? You've [censored] lost the plot Goodwin.

I’ll never forget that goal he kicked against west coast either ... wish him all the best , except when he plays the dees

I wouldn’t mind Spargo making the cut just for the melts, anger, sarcasm and humour around here for tonight.

So Geelong's slow ball movement was specifically a tactic to stop our forwards attacking when we got the ball? I think you're conflating two issues. Geelong tried something different to deal with our strong defensive press. I think our personnel showed how we were going to play, with one key forward and a whole bunch of (generally quick) mediums. It's no surprise. We just didn't use the ball well enough when we created that space. I think Spargo will come in to help us with this problem. Also, as an aside, the much vaunted chip kick possession style of attack resulted in the minor premiers scoring 7 goals for the game. Yes, we should have defended more aggressively to win the ball back sooner, but it was hardly an abject failure of defence. We just didn't take our opportunities well enough.

Pretty sure home games have been thrown out the window. The AFL just wants games played for $.

Agree. Hunt and AVB had about 10 possessions between them. Bennell 14 in half a game. Who would you prefer?

I hope the AFL sit down and watch last nights Storm v Roosters match. Their product is light years ahead of us and far more enjoyable to watch. They are 2 of the best defending teams for a decade and yet it was fast, attacking, entertaining and high scoring. I'm a footy tragic in my 50s but my interest is at an all time low. The spectacle is putrid right now.

We have too many romantics who were fans of Smith Snr and just like to see his young fella playing in the red and blue. No doubt Joel is an athletic guy but he’s not an AFL Footballer. Bring in OMac. https://www.footywire.com/afl/footy/ft_player_compare?playerStatus1=A&tid1=12&pid1=4160&fid1=C&playerStatus2=A&tid2=12&pid2=4024&fid2=C&type=A

The hysteria around Harley is ridiculous. The bloke has played 3 games in 3 years and has so many calf issues that he would have lost count. Let’s give him sometime to get his body right and then bring him back. Goody gave him a taste against the Blues at 50% game time and from my point of view he looked very hesitant, which is understandable. Harley has so much talent but let him get some runs on the board before they unleash him again

This is simply not possible, St Kilda have a new coach and about five new players in their side. It takes years for a new coach to get their message across and the players to gel. I look forward to 2022 when Lever and May should have chemistry.

Totes agree. Don't need Omac Look i know we recruited Lever to play a specific role - third man in, intercept marker floating 'round the back line, with other defensive bigs covering for him - but Lever is awesome one on one and is super, super strong through the core. With his combination of the ability to out mark any key forward one on one and his sheer physical strength he is an elite key position defender. He has been a revelation in this role at the dees. Week in week out he takes the best big forwards and simply out muscles them and shuts them down. Reads the ball so well in flight and just knows how to position his body to beat his man one on one. He has certainly surprised me as i always thought that he was terrible one on one and could be easily shoved aside even by medium forwards, like say a Rowan. And playing Lever as key defender against opposition bigs is just so smart as, one he is just terrific at it and two we need an intercept defender and it has allowed them to bring in Smith to play that role. And like Lever he is just a natural footballer. With his strength Lever will monster Lynch and if he plays on Jack will be way too wily one one one. Bring it on.

I don’t mind the inclusion of Spargo, we need some more bad boys in the team.

I knew this thread would start up the whole Dean Kent thing. We did nothing wrong in moving him on, and he's not playing as well as this thread suggests anyway. We don't make decisions with the benefit of hindsight, we make them at the time we make them, and at the end of 2018 moving Kent along was a completely justifiable decision, as was keeping vandenBerg. The tendency of MFC supporters to complain the moment an ex-Melbourne player kicks a goal is so incredibly frustrating.

The two players who also played the role were not ready, so Bennell got a run. They have now gone past him in fitness, and he needs to enhance his defensive efforts. Not shocking, role based.

Terry Wallace has NFI

The bloke has played 3 games in 3 years for FFS. Give him sometime to get his confidence back in his body.

No, watching a terrific series on Netflx called Dark (which i highly recommend). It is all about alternative realities.

Been drinking tonight 'bin'????

Well just bought the jumper, looks like it will be 2 min noodles for dinner next few weeks. Come on Dees put it right!

If Omac comes in and goes to Lynch or Jack and gets manhandled like a 5 year old I will spew up.

Wow. All the whiners queue up. There has been HEAPS of commentary from inside the club that, if the complainers were to listen, might give a few hints about selection. Goodwin - looking for consistency and small changes on a role by role basis. Bennell now third in the line and has to work. Plapp - Weids working on his game and Will be ready when needed. Brayshaw - the team know what goodie wants and are all aligned around delivering it. Omac best on last weekend. Spargo great in his role. Jones body nearly back to full fitness. Jetta - playing more like old Nev, but still a bit to do. Brown - kicked goals on the WE. Anyone remember Spargo at his best? Without track watchers to help us, we are further away from seeing who is in our out based upon training. If your cognitive frame is the MFCSS, then you are not gonna like it. But honestly? There are really few surprises here if you tune in to what the club have said across the week.

Spargo won't play. It will be Brown or Jackson in for possibly AVB. Goodwin spoke of continuity, so I can see us making just the one change and adding a little extra height to the side. That's fine with me. We can whinge about Spargo coming in all we like (even though he won't play), but Jones and Jetta were both way out of form and Bennell could barely get through 50% of a game while avoiding as much contact as possible. I know that's to be expected after so long out of the game, but they clearly want him to get some of that confidence back before they give him another dip at AFL level. Changes are fine by me as we're potentially adding in a tall player, which is what we need.