Leaderboard

Oliver is an out and out star. Criminally underrated around here. Continually improves his game. A grade without doubt. He is 23 years old. Two years younger than Cripps, yet Cripps is rated by most commentators as a star (and rightly so), but Oliver rarely gets mentioned in the same breath and has just as much influence, if not more, on games. Get around these league wide numbers... 1st for pressure acts. 1st for contested possessions (Petracca finished 2nd, 11 behind Clarry). 1st for stoppage clearances. 1st for total clearances (9 ahead of Cripps). 3rd for ground ball gets (Petracca finished 2nd, 1 ahead of Clarry). 3rd for tackles. 4th for centre clearances. 5th for disposals. 5th for handballs. 7th for effective disposals.

Half the country is unloading their wisdom about Dan Andrews. All over the western world people are publicly protesting against the rules imposed to stop us infecting and killing each other. There's a lot of spur-of-the-moment full-head-of-steam stupidity around. How do we know what it's been feeling like for Harley Bennell? Lots of people do erratic things. So he's done similar things before? Jake Lever has dropped marks before. We've all posted rubbish at one time or another. We can hardly say that the person having the capacity or tendency to make the mistake makes it a worse mistake - it's at most just likelier. Give the guy a break! MFC is trying to put together a winning team of footballers. Harley Bennell is a bit not-dead-centre perhaps, but he can play football. How much damage has he done to anything other than PR? I cannot get my head around the reasoning, the holier-than-thou shock-horror being expressed. Football might have saved Liam Jurrah, or any one of the players who subsequently were found to be fighting depression etc. Thank goodness for football, where some lucky people have gifts that might clear them a pathway through their own demons. I hope there is wisdom at the club, and not just cringing from the public commentary, when they weigh this up.

It's painfully obvious that the TMac 'I only play with my brother' myth is utter bull. It's staggering how often it's repeated on here. Imagine how that would go down with the coaches/ playing group? It probably stems from a quote where he said something along the lines of: "Yeah it's great having my brother at the club, I'm really looking forward to running out alongside him" or similar.

I’ve never heard this and find your statement that Tom said that incredibly hard to believe.

Just goes to show much of a farce this team is and how it's picked on reputation and hype more than anything. I don't know who's on the panel but they clearly weren't watching many Melbourne games. Max Gawn - Injured for 3 games, well beaten in 2 (Port and West Coast), hurt and ineffective in another (Adelaide). That's over a third of the season he hasn't impacted. Has a high reputation. Clayton Oliver - some really good games and overall a decent season, but nowhere AA squad worthy. Plenty of games where he couldn't hit a target. Has a high reputation. Christian Petracca - no surprises there. Well done Trac. No May genuinely makes me angry. Not only does he miss playing finals yet again, but he can't get acknowledged for the Goliath year he had.

This is the post truth, Trumpian world we now live in. Some peanut says something completely ridiculous. Not once, but over and over. So often in fact that it infects webland. And eventually, rather than just being ignored as rubbish should be, it has to be refuted. And refuting, or indeed even acknowledging it, lends it some perverse credibilty. There is no more obscene example that QAnon. And no more bizarre example of the Kafaeaque world we now live in when a sitting US president given the opportunity to denounce such a completely insane and dangerous conspiracy 'theory' says "i don't know much about them, but i've heard they like me'.

There's A LOT more context to this whole thing that people here or in the media don't seem to care about. We're in a time where media, social media and forums like this tend to only bother with short and sharp judgments and comments when in reality things are way more complicated. A bunch of family issues, including his Dad's illness, are just part of a bigger picture of what Harley has been dealing with. Not making excuses for his mistake of course, and all the 'hubbed' players are struggling, but people need to try and treat this situation with a bit more patience and compassion IMO.

Anger Sadness Disappointment Frustration I feel this incident has really soured the goodwill and good news factor in Bennell getting back and playing. And how must Steven May be feeling. He backed Harley and urged the Dees to give him a chance. The players supported him to get through. I know it’s going to be a heartbreaking decision. Bennell has ultimately eroded the trust of the club and probably will pay the price. BUT WE MUST REMEMBER THE HUMAN SIDE TO THIS. MENTAL ILLNESS IS RISING AND NO MATTER THE OUTCOME, HARLEY NEEDS TO CONTINUE TO GET THE HELP NEEDED TO SUPPORT HIM.

That's complete rubbish. Our 10 best players this year are all 28 years old or younger and most of them are 24yo or younger. May 28, Gawn 28, Viney 26, Salem 25, Petracca 24, Lever 24, Langdon 24, Brayshaw 24, Oliver 23 and Fritsch 23. Weid 23, Petty 20 and Sparrow 20 are all developing and there's high hopes for Jordon 19. That doesn't even take into account Jackson, Pickett and Rivers who all showed they will be at least good AFL players.

The frustrating thing is, this reduces May down to one stat. He's so much more. So, so much more. Intercept marking. Pressure. Kick outs from defence. Leadership. Zoning. Reading the play.

Just had a quick look through AFL stats pro because I'm astounded by this decision. Vs WCE (Kennedy) - no goals Vs Carl (mix) - one goal to McGovern Vs Geel (Hawkins/Ratu) - no goals (Lever on Hawkins for his single goal) Vs Rich (mostly Lynch) - we could say 2 here (Lynch kicked 3 but one he appears to be marked by Lever, one from poor turnover in middle of the ground and no clear opponent, one from free kick against Smith when picking up loose ball - prob May on him at the time) Vs GCS (King) - one goal Vs Hawthorn (mostly Gunston) - 2 goals (one kicked on Lever) Vs Bris (Hipwood) - one goal Vs Port (Dixon) - no goals (Dixon's one goal was a free in ruck contest against Gawn) Vs Adelaide (Walker) - no goals Vs North (mix) - one goal when on Larkey Vs Coll (Reid/Cameron) - 1-2 goals (one was a high tackle free against Hibbo) Vs WB - Naughton - no goals Vs Stk (King/Marshall) - 2 goals (one each) Vs Syd (mix) - 1 goal (McLean) Vs Freo (Taberner) - no goals Vs GWS (Cameron) - 1 goal Vs Ess (mostly Daniher) - no goals So I say 13 goals from 17 games, which included playing on the best tall forwards in the league (Cameron, Lynch, Dixon, Hawkins, Kennedy etc)

I like that Oliver is recognised because I think he really grew this year. He looked to kick more, struggled at first then realised he needed to use his pace to gain space to kick (whereas handballs out of packs happen immediately). He made this change while still being one of the most prolific midfielders and best tacklers in the game. Also I think he is criminally underrated by the umpires and gets a raw deal, getting in this squad does seem to help that.

I think the takeaway here is that TMac definitely should have taken the plates off and driven illegally in an unroadworthy car to show his loyalty to the Demons.

Weideman - a major disappointment? He played a lone hand up forward and has shown enough to suggest he's going to be important part of our future once we find him a partner in crime.

Someone posted this on Facebook. Can’t do much more playing as a legit fullback than stop the big power forwards, the position is not about rebounding, s intercept marking or come across the pack and punch the ball away stuff.

Jeepers. Max is becoming overrated for mine. Max broke even with two rookies this year, missed a few games and his influence had no influence on many results. I'm sure internally Max would be demanding much higher standards of himself and should be. Was an ordinary year.

Very strange non-selection. They're on par with our match committee.

I honestly do not understand what you are trying to say. For the record, there is NO WAY that Tom McDonald has ever said he'll only play if Oscar McDonald is selected.

Who's our coin toss coach? Sack him.

Look, we've all done it.. Non issue.

Otherwise: Centre square: 1. Gawn: is not always a great centre square ruck. Doesn't jump - especially when coming back from a PCL, so often hits to one area of the clockface. Battles as well as he can to follow up but it's hard for him to chase guys far younger and quicker. Jackson hopefully starts to see some centre square time next year, he can be a real weapon in there. 2. Individually: the mids all have some issues. Brayshaw can't defend. Petracca isn't great at it either. Viney battles to give off creative handballs to free runners. And Oliver. Oliver gets sat on and then gives hot potato handballs unless he's going backwards or at best sideways, his lack of left foot or confidence in his right means he's nowhere near the centre bounce player he should be. Doesn't get any help from the umps for holding either. 3. Balance: The issues above compound each other. Brayshaw's the best link player of our mids - dishing or receiving handballs, but Goodwin doesn't trust him to defend. Viney had a period of not trusting his kicking like Oliver. All 3 of Viney, Petracca and Clarry both love diving in at the ball leaving no one to get the handball. Around the ground: 1. Team work and structure. We're often lazy to set up or not on the same page as Max. 2. Poor quality half back flankers/half forward flankers/wingers. Salem and Rivers off half back are handy stoppage players, and Vanders sure has his moments on a wing. Otherwise Langdon isn't and our half forwards are often poor unless it's Tracc playing forward and rolling up to the stoppage.

Tom Lynch and Gunstan kicked 3 goals on him in rounds 5 and 7. The rest of the games were 1 or 0. Maybe Weitering and Moore didn't have multiple goals kicked on them in any game this year? I'm absolutely flabbergasted May didn't get nominated. His games against St Kilda and GWS were near flawless for a defender, and he was dominant in other games too.

How did May not get a gig? A disgrace.

Disagree. He had a sustained run of form when the team was firing and before we started playing 3 games in a week in a tropical cyclone that was as good as any key forward in the comp not named Hawkins or Dixon. He was taking marks on gun defenders like Harris Andrews and Darcy Moore. 19 goals in 13 shortened games actually becomes 40 goals in 22 full length games. And whilst that doesn't sound much it takes a good forward to do much more than that these days. He has to make strides with his body to make sure he's durable enough to get through 22 full length games but if he does do that he'll be getting to more contests and finding more cheap ball as well. So it's a win-win.

i think Langdon is the smokey .played every game and I can only recall one poor one .

Baker - eventually showed promise Bedford - failed to impress Bennell - probably blown it Brayshaw - seemingly without commitment Brown - deserves contract extension Fritsch - important despite innacuracy Gawn - consistently high standards Hannan - inconsistency was consistent Harmes - a poor year Hibberd - outstanding when fit Hunt - position a dilemma Jackson - cause for excitement Jetta - definitely fallen away Jones - bow out gracefully Langdon - year’s best recruit Lever - regularly justified salary Lockhart - courageous but limited May - an outstanding season O. McDonald - has many limitations T. McDonald - was obviously encumbered Melksham - rarely stood out Neal-Bullen - mostly a plodder Oliver - performed as expected Petracca - joined the elite Pickett - exciting but limited Preuss - unlikely displayed enough Rivers - very impressive debut Salem - reliable and consistent Smith - tried but lacking Spargo - needs more involvement Sparrow - promising , needs development Tomlinson - improved towards end vandenBerg - tough but limited Viney - prolific but wasteful J.Wagner - played little part Weideman - a major disappointment

If that's true, good for them. They were 100% right. Look what a similar camp did for Adelaide. You don't leave a valuable commodity, your players in the charge of unqualified people.

May - proves you don't have to be dead to be stiff. I find the comments on Gawn's season interesting. Mid season he was the universal pick for AA ruck. He missed three games, scored coaches votes in the game against the Swans, one of only 2 Demons to poll, and wasn't beaten by any opponent in the run home. Was regarded by most of the media as best on in the last game. Goldstein faded badly as did Witts, and Grundy barely got going. Naitanui is great in Perth but has done little elsewhere. 11 marks for the season is a damning stat for a ruckman. I think Gawn is terribly underrated here and if he makes it, it will be well deserved. It wasn't as good a season as 2016 and 18 for him, but not terribly dissimilar to 2019. If he isn't in the best 22 players in the comp the I haven't been watching the game for the last 40 odd years. Tracc - rightfully a lock. Oliver - a good comeback after the Richmond disaster. Well done to him.

Ridiculous and insulting to exclude May from the squad. Not only was he at the absolute worst on par with Moore and Weitering, he also deserves at least a squad spot over Pendlebury (missed a month), Gawn (missed three games and was nowhere near as good as recent years), Cam Guthrie (serviceable), Maynard (WTF). Gawn shouldn't be there: love him but not good enough this year. Goldstein probably the season's second best ruck but who cares, Naitanui was so far in front of everyone else. Oliver's borderline. But if it were a choice between May and Oliver, it should have been May. Petracca should be a lock for the 22, but May should have been a lock for the squad so who knows.

May clearly very stiff. I don't think Langdon would have been an unfair selection either to be honest.

If Gawn is deemed as top 40 material, May should be an automatic starting 18. Disgraceful he is not even in the 40 man squad.

I totally agree. Weid is on the way to being a very good player. He's a smart footballer, brave in the air, a beautiful kick and contrary to popular belief he's fine at ground level and a great creative handballer on both sides which is rare. He needed a mature partner in crime and that was supposed to be TMac. Jackson helped but then at the crucial time he got injured. Brown is useful but not as a key marking target. Weid flies against 2-3 tall defenders and Fritsch reaps the benefits - if only he could convert ... Next year with Jackson and Petty to draw defenders and, assist and a year's more growth into a 23yo body he will really establish himself. I get it that the FD is saying we need more mature forward targets but I cannot see any available where cost-benefit is delivered.

Has to be a joke. Oh sorry, I forgot that the AFL is a joke.

Great post

Cameron is the most proven, but would come with a massive price tag. Brown is the next most proven. He and the club have had a falling out that is unrelated to football. His ability is still there. He struggled this year after tragically losing one of his unborn twins. That combined with a new baby and the COVID situation meant he was not mentally present. He is not happy with how North treated him, pressuring him to join a hub and potentially leave his wife to deal with losing a baby and raising a new one at the same time. He scored 60+ goals for the three years running before this season. IMO with time to heal mentally and pre-season to be in shape physically again, he's capable of 50-60 goals again for years to come. If we could get him cheap due to Norths mismanagement of him, we could get a bargain and solve our short-medium term tall forward issues. Daniher is cooked. Physically and mentally he's cooked. If we got him for nothing then sure take the punt, but I wouldn't invest heavily into him as he's unlikely to consistently deliver again. Mckay from Carlton isn't going anywhere and would cost a first rounder. Mihocek isn't the type we need. He's a decent player, but not a tall marking target to build around. Ben Brown is clearly the best realistic option.

Few insiders blv dees not pursuing Williams leads them to blv Saad is a lock... Either way, Dees need to prioritise a fwd & if Tom McDonald is being pursued by Roos then Brown surely seems logical, however for whatever reason this seems unlikely despite it marching up on first look. Could this be related to chasing another big fwd? I think so but it’s a view not something I’ve got any word on. But I think we’ve been far “too quiet” which makes me think either Cameron or Gunston are heavily on the radar, Hooker maybe even as a plan C. I predict: Saad, I Smith, Cameron & Atkins are our likely ins. 3/4 with Cameron the Outsider & one of Brown, Hooker, Gunston, Wright or Curnow to replace him should it be a pipe dream.

Regardless of what happens here on the football side, just hope Harley can (continue to?) get the support he needs. Self-destructive behaviour like this can take a lifetime to learn to manage. And even then ...

I've seen enough 'rebuilds' in my time to know we are long way off needing a rebuild. Our list has plenty of talent that is underperforming as a whole unit.

Yep gotta throw the kitchen sink at Cameron. If Richmond can regig contracts and fit Lynch in surely Melbourne can do the same. We gave up pick 6 in a super draft to bring in May. We need to maximize our chances while May is playing at his current levels or that trade is a massive blunder. Gotta go all out, all chips in. Better to try and fail then sit at 9th for the next few years.