Leaderboard

What an amazing effort from an an amazing servant of the club. This guy bleeds red and blue. He carried the team on his shoulders for so many years during some dark times. As loyal as the come. Congratulations Nathan Jones. ❤️??

Is anyone else being driven mad by the constant barrage of deafening music being played at the footy? It is played right up until the bounce starting each quarter and is so loud, you can't even hear the person next to you speak. People are screaming at each other and it is destroying the experience for me. If I want to go to a concert I will go to one, but this is footy, so at least turn it off 5 minutes before the bounce, so we can soak in the atmosphere of the game. It is a disgrace!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thought I’d give a little update on Dec for anyone interested This season he is playing at our home town of Moe as a development coach/player Back into his true position as a key defender and has killed it in the first 2 games On Saturday they played Maffra in Maffra and won 69-26. Moe haven’t beat Maffra away in over a decade He was dominating so much they sent a defensive forward on him but it didn’t work, he took a huge number of defensive and intercept marks and was a big reason Maffra only kicked 3 goals for the game Moe picked up a few good players this year including ex Giants and Carlton player Kristian Jaksch. Should have a good crack at the premiership this year He has floated the idea of possibly returning to Casey in the VFL next season so I will keep you updated Carn the Dee’s!

I think Jackson suffers from the fact that he looks so much less like a young ruck/forward than most young ruck/forwards do. He moves so smoothly and with so much coordination that he gets judged like he's a 25 year old. He actually looks too good for his age so people can get fooled into judging his forward play like he's a mature player like Tom McDonald. But he's 19. He's a ruck forward. What he's doing is remarkable. He was beating Ben McEvoy, a 31 year old premiership ruckman comfortably in the ruck and then spreading like a midfielder. He's beaten or halved against every mature AFL ruckman he's played this year. He's a viable forward target against mature AFL key defenders. And he's 19. He has more contested marks this season than any player his age or younger. He gets his hands to more than others because he's much, much better than others. He's 19. McEvoy didn't have as many hitouts as Jackson had yesterday until he was nearly 22 in his 4th season. Lycett was nearly 22. Nankervis didn't even play until he was 22. Jordan Roughead was 24. Max Bailey was nearly 23. Mike Pyke was 25. Brad Ottens was 19. Darren Jolly was 21. That's all of the premiership number 1 rucks for the last 11 years, and they all first got 22+ hitouts when they were playing as a solo/leading ruck, not as a key forward who gave the number 1 a chop out when he was tired. I feel a bit sorry for those who can't appreciate what Jackson is doing. This should be a time of wonder and enjoyment at a kid who is doing phenomenal things at this stage of his career. Sit back and enjoy it.

Bear with me, it's time for another Little Goffy wall of text. I spent a bit of time last week doing some digging of old Nathan Jones threads and it was quite rewarding so I bookmarked them to share later. I'll try to share in chronological order. I hope this bring a few moments of poignancy for others as it did for me.

Ty Mr Jones (also posted in another thread).... Bottom line.... there are certain 'Special' players that define a club and set the standards for all to follow. Both ON and OFF the track and on game day. They DON'T grow on trees. And they set these standards week after week. Month after month. Year after year. Regardless of how the rest of the team might be coping/playing. They are there bringing a level of acceptable, and in many cases higher, standards for others to follow and mark themselves by. Chunk was (still is!) the fire, the guts, the blood, sweat and tears that kept the spirit and flame of the club burning through some very dark years. IMHO the darkest i've witnessed in my short 50 years following this club. The Jones boy has earned his moment. This week, on this stage, many times over and over and over! The impact he will have on all those around on the night you cannot put into words, nor can it be measured or easily defined. Spirit, guts and great loyalty. It might even help get us over the line on the night. Go get em Jones Boy! What a role model for this club. Love ya son!

Some thoughts on the game, for those not able to get there or view... Toby Bedford - started extremely well and one of Casey's best in the first half, was quicksilver, skilful, efficient and pressured well. Not as prominent as the game petered out but if he can continue this sort of form he will pushing for a senior spot and a contract extension sooner rather than later. Appeared too good for the level, but there is obviously a momentous jump from a very depleted Hawthorn seconds to the big time! Jake Bowey - he was pretty good without wanting to shout his name from the rooftops. His lack of size was to his detriment in a few contested situations, but his ball use was generally solid from half back - again without wanting to rave about it excessively. Solid start all the same. Fraser Rosman - first time I'd seen him play a full game and he did some good things, including taking a terrific defensive mark, but was one of the quieter MFC listed players. Has a lot of filling out to do but looking at his performance through the prism of him being a project-type player, there were a few promising signs. All the same, he is mound of development clay, rather than a footballer at this stage. Probably worth noting that the game tended to bypass both our wingers and that probably hasn't helped him in the final analysis. Aaron VandenBerg - exactly the sort of game you would excpect from Vanders at this level. Was strong at the contest, won plenty of the football but was frequently wasteful with it. Still, one of the better players on the day over four quarters and would be applying desirable pressure to Jones, Jordon, Sparrow and co. Sam Weideman - ended up kicking seven goals and wrestling BOG honours away from the clutches of some his team-mates in the second half. The best thing about his game was that he conjured goals from multiple methods - guilesome one-on-one victories, pack marks, one from from a ruck throw-in and one from some ground-level work and a subsequent snap. He was excellent all day and has applied serious heat to selectors, the only caveat being the moderate opposition, both from team and individuals against contexts. Majak Daw - unfortunately for Majak, the returns of Brown and Weideman relegated him away from where he has been firing for Casey through the pre-season and into a first ruck role where he probably wasn't able to push for selection in the same way. I thought he was a solid contributer and did some good things without wanting to rave about the performance. It should be noted that if you were looking at Box Hill's team pre-game, their ruck stocks was certainly going to be their biggest strength, with Ceglar and 208cm Hawthorn-listed Reeves representing that division. Daw neutralised their impact well, but Brown and Weideman being in the side hurts his chances to make a more significant impact, especially on the scoreboard. Oskar Baker - thought the game bypassed him and we was quiet for the most part. Did on occasion use his speed to work in and out of traffic to elongate possession chains and he didn't do much wrong. But that said, his standing amongst his fellow senior selection wannabes will have deteriorated after this game, unless there is an at-all-costs specific need for his specific skillset/type or if he fits bets as a medical sub option. Deakyn Smith - slight back pocket rookie was a good contributer. The big knock on him through his junior days was his ball use, but he was tidy in this match and has definitely improved in that area and it has been an obvious development focus. That said, he was mostly conservative and safe with his distribution. One prominent feature was his aggressive tackling game, which was impressive, even though he was on the receiving end of some very marginal free kicks against. A promising first game and most likely will continue to be groomed into a close-checking back pocket. The big issue for him will be whether he will be able to put on the size to compete one on one? And will he ever be able to use the ball well enough to be anything other than a negative style player at the next level? Given how important and deadly AFL small forwards are becoming, that might not necessarily hold him back, but as much as possible you want well-rounded players filling out the smaller roles in your back six. Kade Chandler - the ying to Bedford's yang, Chandler was good but in a different way to his indigenous comrade. He is tough, has good forward craft and was just extremely solid in his interpretation of the small forward role. Kicked 1.2 but his performance was far better than that scoring output implies - he cracked in when necessary, marked the ball well under pressure, tackled with vigour and was generally crisp with most his work. Would we lose anything if he was called up to senior level? Hard to say! A good little player! Neville Jetta - thought he was extremely good. Given the freedom to play a more expansive role away from the gloom of his usual back pocket terrain, he won a lot of the ball, used it well and was consistently constructive. It was a shame that he missed a shot at goal after taking a flying mark during a rare rampage forward. Ready to be called upon again if necessary on the back of this effort, was in good touch and one of Casey's best in my opinion. Jay Lockhart - Lockhart was very industrious but, if anything, slightly down on my expectations, with a few uncharastic skill errors and other mistakes creeping into his game. That might be a shade harsh, but I have a fairly big opinion of him, particularly at this level, and just felt he was 10% off his usual quality. Still he was a solid four quarter contributer and no doubt in a week or two will be back to his best and ready to press for senior selection on the ballsack injury comeback trail. Joel Smith - sad to hear that Smith has injured a knee and maybe out for a period of time, because as a rebounding tall defender, I though he was superb for much of the day. His ball use and link-up play was excellent and he repeatedly had Casey moving the ball quickly and dangerously from defence. This attacking/rebounding style surprisingly outshone his defensive work, where he was occasionally loose defensive to his side's detriment. Was competing for BOG honours before injury all the same. Austin Bradtke - Luke Jackson-lite? I think we can put a line through Bradtke as an AFL first ruckman at any stage, he just isn't going to be big enough to do that well enough at the highest level. What was exciting was the way he moved and just a couple of contests where he looked really promising and was able to take a few good marks. I liked his hands in close at times as well. The issue is this is Bradtke's third season on the list. If you look at his performance through the lens of a young rookie, it was a promising, effort, similar to Rosman's display. The other view is he is probably not doing enough for someone in this third year at the club. I lean to the positivie at the moment and that there is something here to persist with. Ben Brown - Good contribution from Brown, took some clever marks and finished well for the main part. There was something stilted about his movement which worried me a touch to the eye, but there is no doubting the threat he provides. Even if he is not kicking goals, he will draw free kicks, cause panic amongst defenders and cause positive outnumbers at ground level. Kozzie Pickett will love playing with him. Kicked three but probably a week or two away. BEST: Weideman, J.Smith, Jetta, Bedford, VandenBerg, Chandler. The Casey representatives were by and large solid without any suggesting they could be future AFL draftees. George Grey has some X-factor and may be the most likely as a small forward, but thats at a real stretch.. Luca Goonan was serviceable as an inside mid but needs to add an enormous amount of nuance to his game to be considered. Zac Foot is quick but not clean enough in traffic, Sparkes a bit vanilla, though kicked a terrific snap goal. Munro, Freeman, White and Hutchins we know about. Sparkes was a late inclusion for Aidan Quigley. It has to be understood that Box Hill were incredibly depleted. As mentioned, their rucks on paper looked super strong but were easily handled. Other than that they had few Hawthorn listed players of note and only really long-time VFL star Damien Mascitti and ex-Bulldog Fergus Greene caused any real threat, but only fleetingly. Hard to take the game too seriously, other than to say a large volume of Dees are in form and played well.

Waited for the last quarter with frustration and trepidation. From what I observed at the ground, Melbourne had been playing better than Hawthorn, but just couldn't score! Trepidation because I worried the mental doubts would creep into the players' minds like so many times before and Hawthorn would pounce. After Mitch Brown's second goal I got an SMS from a mad Demons supporter - "It's effing happening!!" Yes my friend, it was. Last week it rained. This week it was raining goals. Sitting behind the Melbourne Cheer Squad is the best place to be when the ball comes sailing through the middle of the posts. The roar, the joy, the chants. The love. Someone behind us was yelling out "I love you Trent!" " I love you Hibbo!" "I love you Kozzie!" Love all around. Children were smiling and jumping up and down. They have probably never seen so many goals in a quarter. They were so excited. Max is a giant among men. When he was resting in the goal square the Cheer Squad members were bowing in his presence. We cheered his every move. Give us a wink Max! We all love you! The whole quarter went by in a blur. Everyone played like a champion. I shall have to watch the replay to convince myself what I witnessed was real. It was magnificent.

I was on the fence about him playing against Richmond. I dont believe he is in great form. When you point out how significant 300 games is and the likely effect it will have on him and his teamates then I understand why it is better to played against the tigers. From this perspective I conceed I was wrong. Im sure it will fire the boys up and especially Chunk. It actually could provide the extra motivation we need. Best of Luck. One thing for sure he does deserve to play out 300. Hope its 6 zip for him and he gets amongst the votes.

If he keeps playing the way he is, he will absolutely be part of our future. He had a great game on the weekend and I’d be totally shocked and disappointed if he’s dropped this weekend. I’m incredibly proud of Tommy and the way he’s got his body right and fought back from a tough year or two, and going up for trade. He deserves some success. Bloody impressive turnaround so far!

This week Gus will also play his 100th game for the red and blue. Obviously it will be overshadowed by Jonsey's 300th but congrats to Angus. He has battled many injuries and a lot of serious concussions. But he has come back and played some good footy so far.

For a decade Melbourne supporters would drag themselves to games knowing we would lose. They would also drag themselves to games knowing that our captain would be giving his all. Nathan Jones is a warrior. A player who has carried himself with quiet dignity through years of working in a toxic, negative and more often than not losing environment. He withstood board meltdowns, countless coaches, and multiple trashings, and he did it all while putting his body on the line every week, getting every inch of skills out of his body, and leading a revolving door of players. In an environment that is often marked by a lack of loyalty, money chasing, and easy premiership grabbing, Jones has stood out as a beacon of a team first player. A player who puts his teammates, his club and the jumper above all else. We are so lucky to have found Jones, to have had him at our lowest moments as our shinning light in endless darkness. What a deserving milestone to play 300 games for a club you fought so hard for, for so long, and to now be playing in a winning side that you helped to nurture. Congratulations Jonesy on 300 wonderful games. Nobody is more deserving of this accolade than you.

Talk about the heart and soul of a club. Was chased by other teams when we were one of the worst sides in the games history, and didn't budge. He is the definition of loyalty. Don't let him down boys.

I thought Hawthorn's outnumber at the stoppage and our extra behind the ball hurt us early in the game. I'm looking forward to watching the replay to see if we changed things up after half time, but I'm pretty sure we kept the status quo there. Really impressed that we put them away like that in the last. Max's goal kicking gives me the [censored], but that was a beautiful kick from outside 50, but around the ground he was simply superb. His contested marking was absolutely elite and McEvoy just couldn't go with him. I've been saying all year that our poor kicking for goal is going to cost us. We should have been 4 or 5 goals up by half time and certainly by three quarter time. We kick like that next week and we're no chance against Richmond. We must nail those regulation shots from straight in front. The pleasing thing is that we're generating so many of these shots and our poor kicking for goal has only cost us percentage so far. Felt our forward half pressure was absent in at least the first quarter, but we slowly lifted our work rate after that. Petty took a while to gel with Tommo, Lever and Hibbo back there, but after a really good spoil and then an excellent contested mark, he mostly held his own. Needs to be stronger in the 1v1s, but didn't look too vulnerable up the ground against a lead. I worry about Riewoldt or Lynch's smarts on him next week though. I don't think it's fair to say we only played a quarter. We failed to capitalise on our dominance in the second and third quarters, but did just enough. I did wonder at quarter time where our goals were going to come from, but we seem to be able to generate big scores simply on slingshot, with run and carry. Max and Jackson are important for this as when we have nothing short, those two at least halve the contest inside 50 and give us a look at a score or a stoppage. Langdon, Hunt, Hibbo, Gus and even Jordon really give us good spread from the contest and dynamism with their willingness to take on the game. Another solid performance from Hunt, which is noticeable. Jordon got a bit more of it this week and Hibbo gave us really good run early when we were struggling to work hard enough to provide options for the switch - he'd simply break the lines. Salem's disposal by hand and foot was dreadful for most of the day. He's got to do better given these are uncontested possessions he's getting. ANB struggled too. His position might be in trouble from Bedford. That said, he did have 7 inside 50s (equal second most on the ground), so maybe not. Brown and Melksham mostly did their jobs, but Weideman or BB will make way for Mitch. I would give Tom McDonald the three votes today, just narrowly edging out Max. He may not be hitting the scoreboard as much as he did in 2018, but his work rate, willingness to get to contests, impact them and often take the mark is vital for the way we're playing. He really deserves huge kudos for the professional way he's approaching 2021. Well done, Tom. I thought you were gone. Keep playing like this and you're a keeper. Selection next week will be fascinating. And brilliant to be going in 5-0 to ANZAC Day Eve on the big stage. Cannot wait. Don't hold much hope for victory, but if Petty can play with more assurance and we nail all our gettable shots on goal I give us a chance. Edit. Also, the AFL app says Petty is injured. Any news there?

The match statistics Oskar Baker 5 kicks 2 handballs 7 disposals 3 marks 1 tackle 32 dream team points Toby Bedford 2 goals 10 kicks 5 handballs 15 disposals 1 mark 7 tackles 79 dream team points Jake Bowey 16 kicks 6 handballs 22 disposals 4 marks 1 tackle 76 dream team points Aaron Bradtke 2 behinds 5 kicks 5 handballs 10 disposals 2 marks 8 hit outs 36 dream team points Ben Brown 3 goals 1 behind 14 kicks 4 handballs 18 disposals 6 marks 1 hit out 90 dream team points Kade Chandler 1 goal 2 behinds 14 kicks 10 handballs 24 disposals 10 marks 3 tackles 112 dream team points Majak Daw 6 kicks 6 handballs 12 disposals 1 mark 2 tackles 23 hit outs 62 dream team points Zac Foot 8 kicks 5 handballs13 disposals 4 marks 1 tackle 48 dream team points Tom Freeman 10 kicks 3 handballs 13 disposals 6 marks 54 dream team points Luca Goonan 1 behind 10 kicks 7 handballs 17 disposals 6 marks 3 tackles 72 dream team points George Grey 1 behind 6 kicks 6 handballs 12 disposals 4 marks 3 tackles 53 dream team points Jack Hutchins 5 kicks 3 handballs 8 disposals 4 marks 1 tackle 35 dream team points Neville Jetta 1 behind 19 kicks 6 handballs 25 disposals 7 marks 5 tackles 113 dream team points Jay Lockhart 20 kicks 3 handballs 23 disposals 9 marks 2 tackles 99 dream team points James Munro 6 kicks 8 handballs 14 disposals 3 marks 8 tackles 74 dream team points Fraser Rosman 2 goals 8 kicks 8 disposals 3 marks 1 tackle 49 dream team points Deakyn Smith 14 kicks 5 handballs 19 disposals 7 marks 4 tackles 78 dream team points Joel Smith 11 kicks 7 handballs 18 disposals 5 marks 62 dream team points Ryan Sparkes 1 goal 1 behind 10 kicks 0 handballs 16 disposals 4 marks 2 tackles 69 dream team points Aaron vandenBerg 1 goal 16 kicks 9 handballs 25 disposals 7 marks 5 tackles 113 dream team points Sam Weideman 7 goals 2 behinds 12 kicks 4 handballs 16 disposals 7 marks 2 hit outs 110 dream team points Mitch White 2 behinds 12 kicks 4 handballs 16 disposals 8 marks 5 tackles 91 dream team points

People need to watch Spargo closely. His challenge in the air against opponents almost always twice his size cannot be understated. He works so hard. And when he does get the ball he uses it well. He may not be the future but he plays a role that is above and beyond his capability and he does it well. Big test against for him against the Tigers. But he is a rich man's Simon Godfrey.

Ha.. Simon Goodwin was nothing but praise for McDonald in his post match conference. Tough calls is not dropping a bloke who had 22 disposals 10 marks and kicked 2.2. He won't be dropped and Goodwin will agree with me on this one.

I love Chunk. He's been a really good, durable player and the sort of player and role model that we're been lucky to have had. Started as an outside runner with an inside midfield's body and he worked hard early in the VFL to change his game to suit what he'd need to be at AFL level. Some players are coach-proof. They don't complain, don't wallow, and just work so hard that they can succeed in any system. Nathan Jones is one of those players. He won B&F's in terrible teams because he just kept turning up and doing the work when others didn't. The journey of an older football is an interesting one, where you initially lose some athleticism to see yourself return to the pack, then eventually lose enough that you are clinging on just to compete. It's a slow, frustrating journey for players who can't play the way they know they can/could but some players can move past that to the point where they see the development and success of younger players as being part of their own success, which becomes very satisfying. I think Nathan Jones is at that point now, and he's playing a very selfless role to help those players achieve that. He's a former captain, former B&F (multiple times) and must take enormous personal satisfaction in his part of turning a woeful, dysfunctional team into a genuinely good one at the end of his career. He may not ever win an AFL flag, but we wouldn't have been able to navigate the way out of the mud without him setting standards and getting the job done, becoming the standard setter that new recruits could aspire to. If we achieve success it will be built on the hard work he did when a lesser person would have given up. Well done. 300 games is no less than you deserve.

Jonesy plays his 300th, Dusty his 250th and Brayshaw and Rioli both will play their 100th, don't know if there's ever been a game with more than 750 games in combined milestones before? All happening on Anzac Eve, which could be the biggest crowd for years. Huge occasion for the club and all involved, very fitting for Jones!

Thank God you are not a selector Tmac out, TMac was in the best three yesterday.

??? Literally hit the ground running and kept that standard all day.

Bloody great words mate!!!! Jones will go down as one of our all time greats and deserves every accolade that comes his way this week. Get around the great man!

Thommo is incredibly underrated. He isn’t flashy but geez he does the basics well. Solid. Very very solid

Bring noise cancelling headphones with a microphone, for all family members and have a zoom phone group chat between yourselves

If we go in unchanged, we are kidding ourselves. Our connection up forward today was non existent for 3/4. I was there live and could see it and having watched the replay, my thoughts were confirmed by the commentary team. Richmond have fair more accomplished tall backs, who will eat Mitch Brown alive. Whether it’s BBB or Weed, I don’t mind, but when you’ve got quality key forwards at your disposal, who have found form, you don’t leave them in the reserves.

How unMelbourne is this? Debating about which in-form player should make way.

No dilemma- he plays

Yes

The words 'star' and 'superstar' are thrown around now like colourful confetti. But like confetti, it does not last. The word for Jones is 'champion'. Champion player, champion person. Congratulations Nathan.

There were two brilliant passages of play. That first chase and tackle on CJ was perfect on the back flank. One minute later, his repeated scrambles for the ball against two hawthorn opponents resulted in a goal to Kysaiah. The forward pressure he brings is one of the main reasons for our turnaround this year.it was missing early on yesterday but once we started locking it in our forward line, the flood gates opened. This kid is a pure joy to watch.

Old man yells at other old man because neither can hear the other over the damn noise!

Oh, and I should say, there isn't a team I enjoy beating more than Hawthorn. You should have heard the arrogance of their supporters prior to the game, and you probably did. Meanwhile, the wife was at home with the 5-zip boy waiting for an opportunity to turn him to her Hawks and we gave her nothing. You beauty.

Langdon's disposal count may have been down a tad but his 3 goals were valuable.

Yes ... but at least when he did notice Goody, he was seeing two of him.

Just watched the Nate Jones press conference at the G for his 300th. The whole club playing list were there in support. It's the little things we're absolutely smashing at the moment. Being there for each other. F'ing awesome.

I love watching Jackson play and develop, and it makes my heart soar hearing that it's down to Gawn on when Jackson goes into that are as I feel that Gawn is not just being a captain, but a mentor/on-field ruck coach. I've got no doubt that Max can read when things are a bit tighter and they need his experience in there, but allowing Jackson to have more ruck time (and there's no doubt he's getting it) is just absolutely brilliant. That all said, Jackson keeps being inches away from the big breakout game. That isn't a shot at his because he's only 19, but it's almost excruciating at seeing the hands have good purchase on the ball but not hold the grab, or his rove his on taps and it doesn't quite get the clean possession. It will happen this year, I would just about take that to the bank. In the meantime I'll enjoy the moments that Max allows him to take more responsibility in the ruck. @Dr.D it's hard to work out whether you're a troll or just dim. His role as a forward on paper is largely structural, have a look at his heatmap. He's being played more as a ruck/wing/onballer, his actual time deep as a forward is relatively minimal. Where he's being named on the teamsheet is largely irrelevant.

Coaches votes: 10 Max Gawn (MELB) 7 Christian Salem (MELB) 4 Tom McDonald (MELB) 3 Christian Petracca (MELB) 3 Clayton Oliver (MELB) 2 Jaeger O'Meara (HAW) 1 Jake Lever (MELB) Coach Spli 5/5 Gawn 4/0 McDonald 4/3 Salem 3/0 or 2/1 Petracca and Oliver 2/0 O'Meara 1/0 Lever Agreement for the first Gawn and Salem not so on the others. This is three weeks running that coaches have agreed the top 2 but little if any agreement on the others. Leader Board 32 Max Gawn MELB 28 David Mundy FRE 28 Taylor Walker ADEL 25 Jack Macrae WB 23 Dustin Martin RICH 23 Clayton Oliver MELB 21 Ollie Wines PORT 19 Toby Greene GWS 18 Travis Boak PORT 18 Marcus Bontempelli WB 18 Josh Dunkley WB 18 Rory Laird ADEL 18 Christian Petracca MELB 18 Christian Salem MELB Max is the clear leader! What a champion 4 Demons in the top 15! Edit: Based on votes rather than the alphabetical list portrayed, Oliver is equal 4th on 23 votes and Petracca and Salem are equal 7th! on 18 votes.

Goodwin's Presser indicated that May could be available if fit.

He just doesn't stop. I wouldn't be surprised if he's still running up and down the wing now. What a pick up, not many would have predicted his impact. So happy with him.

I have contacted the AFL and will see if anything happens.

He's a universal cog, he fits wherever we need him. In 5 rounds He's spent time at half forward, in the centre, on the wing, and behind the ball. Chunk is basically an on field coach. No offence to the potential replacements bit I think they're a long way off on field coach. He had an average first half but a solid second. Had he kicked that goal his game would have been perfectly fine. Throughout the year Chunk will get his fair share of sub starts. Harmes will likely be the one to take his spot, but he's not fit. I like Sparrow and Jordan, and hopefully Chandler and Bedford get their chances soon. But anyone who thinks that a young fringe player is going to have a bigger influence than Chunk this week is crazy. Just his presence Saturday will have a huge influence. He plays, end of story. Call it a gift if it makes you feel better. But even if it is, No-one deserves it more.

Goody mentioned that Max makes the call when they switch. Felt like LJ played bigger minutes in the middle than he has in the first 4 rounds. Max recognising his backup is having a good day and letting him take the reigns in the middle is great leadership. Jackson giving us that luxury is fantastic. Having 2 ruckman both in the top handful of players on the ground is unheard of.

Spargo is more than 'just a player' at the moment. May not have stared yesterday, but still contributed and his year to date has been excellent. Just wish he'd start nailing a few more goals. People on this site seem to have some strange expectations at times. No team can have a list chock full of A graders, but premiership teams have sides chock full of compedent players committed and capable of playing their role for the team and I think guys like Spargo and ANB, Hunt and Tomlinson are doing that to a tea at the moment. We've also got enough genuine A graders to get the job done as well.

Yep he brings such a level of excitement when he gets near it. That’s often why teams struggle to get it cleanly out of our defence. They are constantly in fear of being run down by our smalls and rush a kick which gets cut off

I am contacting the AFL over this. Maybe the threat of litigation for impaired hearing and voice boxes will get some action.

I don't get all the criticism of Gus. I think he's been great the last two weeks pushing back to assist our defenders.

Wrong. He put in some really strong defensive efforts today (something he has not always done in the past) reckon he got a rev up about this prior to the game and with our new and improved coaching staff probably told they needed to lift to keep a place. big improvement this week - he was very important for us today

Wasn’t that a typical Frost game? I mean that in a light-hearted banter way, not a bagging way. It had everything, his desperate best and... the rest. I actually felt a bit bad when he kicked the clanger straight to TMac, but I also 100% expected it. Completely to script. Contrast that with Lever’s game. Just wow. Hard to fathom how far we’ve come in defence.

Just wanted to say I'm now down zip 5 betting against us. Thanks Dees for continuing to take my money. Willing to put up a large sum for a victory next week.