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Jon Ralph had the audacity to say tonight that Collingwood must be wondering ‘why them who has to be the test case for accidental collisions?’ No Jon. The person asking why them is Angus Brayshaw. There’s only one innocent party in this whole thing. He’s worked his entire career to be playing right now and he’s not able to play through no fault of his own. The handling of this has really shone a light on the horrific pandering the football media does to the bigger clubs. Ratings doesn’t equal truth, no matter how they try and sell it.

I understand some of the arguments for not suspending him in terms of being a 'football act' and that he was jumping to smother. This is yet another grey area the AFL could have predicted and mitigated by making the rule clear - for example: 'in the scenario a player jumps to smother and contact is unavoidable (for example spinning out of the way is not possible) it is that players duty to take due care to avoid hitting the player with the ball in the head, for example by continuing chest on and arms stretched wide. If they exercise such care and contact is made to the head it will be deemed accidental they will not be reported. However if they choose to turn their body or brace in such a way that increases the likelihood and force of head contact and head contact is made they will be reported' For for me its clear, Maynard had an option other than hitting him shoulder to head. He could have continued chest on, but he instead chose to turn his body and hit him flush in the head, at great velocity, with his shoulder. That decision is on him. The idea that he had a right to do that in order to protect himself is ludicrous because what risk was their to HIS wellbeing? He was running full tilt and jumped 2 feet in the air - if he landed chest on Gus still would have been hurt, but perhaps not knocked out cold but how would Maynard have been hurt? I'm gutted we didn't win of course I actually feel ok about the game in terms of how we played. So unlike say post last years Swans finals loss, i'm happy to listen to the media and the footy shows about the game. Except i can't because the idea of listening to ex footballers cheer leading and leading the full throated charge to get Maynard off makes me sick to he stomach. Seriously, and i'm not joking here, some such media people are very likely to have some form of diminished cognitive capacity BECAUSE of head knocks. Listen to BT - he frequently cant do basic score calculations - and again i'm not kidding. And don't get me started on Channel 7's shameless decision to interview maynard on the ground after the game. Or the AFL's weakness not to send a clear message tot he broadcaster that under no circumstances are you to choose Maynard for any post match interviews (they had a whole match to reach that obvious conclusion and make the call to 7). It's one thing saying we need the broadcaster's dollars to grow the game, pay the players etc etc. It's quite another to sell the soul of the sport to the highest bidder. The symbiotic, parasitic relationship between 7, Fox and SEN is at the heart of the rot in the sport. But you know what, i don't really care what happens to Maynard. I just care what happens to Gus I felt sick at the ground and felt off for the whole game. I still feel sick for Gus. Worried sick for him. Positive thoughts and much love Gus.

Exactly. Attempting to smother is football act. Since when is it a football act to turn a smother into a head high bump? If that was 'a football act'. then logic says there would be many such incidents and examples. Football acts happen all the time. When was the last time a player was seriously injured in a smother attempt, let alone being knocked out cold with a head shot. And besides a bump is a football act, one that happens hundreds of times every round. It is still reportable conduct if you make a mistake and hit an opponent in the head with your shoulder when you have other options.

I wonder if there is truth to the whispers that Gus may not play again, if Laura intervened for fear of additional litigation against the AFL. Brayshaw and Frawley are powerful footy names and given Anita is currently in active litigation with the AFL, this can’t be good for their case. If Maynard is allowed to play because his is deemed a reasonable action, and Gus has to retire as a result of repeated head injuries, it only further weakens the position of the AFL in their ongoing legal battles. Gus did not put himself in a situation where brutal force could have been expected such as throw himself into a pack or run backwards for a mark. He was running with the ball in open space trying to kick it away. He has every right to expect to walk away from that without a severe head injury. Whether you think what Maynard did was intentional or just a footy action gone wrong, there is no doubt the consequences of his action could well be catastrophic. The AFL cannot just simply turn a blind eye or succumb to the pressure of the feral Magpie Army. There are far bigger chess pieces in play here.

Under pressure from finishing top 4, 3 years straight and winning a Premiership. Mate please

Hey everybody, Rollinson 65 saw lots worse than this in his playing days, so there’s nothing left to discuss and we should close the thread before we make him feel further ashamed! “What would Maynard's coach and fellow players have said if he had shrunk from the contest?“ Just a question that might be worth you pondering: What contest?

We played half a season without Oliver and finished top 4. Brayshaw covered Oliver, now Oliver covers Brayshaw. We go back to basically the same midfield we've had for half a season. Our key forwards have been non existent all season - other than a very brief cameo from Petty. Still most weeks we've found a way. Wholesale change and panic moves at this time of the year almost never work. Our best bet is to play McDonald and Smith along with Fritsch, Petracca and the smalls - Pickett, ANB and Chandler/Spargo and then have Gawn and Grundy moving through there in short bursts each quarter - probably when McDonald comes off. Nothing too radical - the catastophizing can come after the game if it needs to. I still believe our best is more than good enough to beat everyone left in it. And after tonight, everyone is down to their last chance, including Collingwood.

Someone like Ray Chamberlain would be fantastic in the role. Completely impartial, fair and a well balanced person with zero bias In fact, more of the umpires need to be kept on within the AFL ... and we need more women involved especially on the Commission The boys club element and favouritism that goes on needs to be halted Up until this bold and correct move by Laura Kane, the MRO has been a complete joke and a farce

If I have to read one more post where people imply they know more because they once played football I’ll vomit. Just because I drew a map when I was 8 doesn’t make me a master cartographer. Making comparisons is embarrassing, and honestly, a little sad.

A related aspect to Maynards cowardly assault on Gus is the impact it had on us winning that final, and the impact it may have on us in this finals series. Both detrimental. So if the AFL is serious about stamping this out, they should be considering a "sin-bin" rule where if a player is concussed in a manner that is reportable then the reported player is removed from the playing field (subbed out) for as long as the injured player is... After that hit, Maynard should not have been able to continue to play in that game. The fact he did, while Gus didn't, was impactful on the team (Melbourne) that didn't break the rules (and spirit) of the game. Still fuming. Go Dees

I've identified midfield depth as a concern for us. But with North potentially getting an extra 1st round for compo this will push us back down a peg. With saying that, unfortunately I believe that means we'll miss out on Duursma, Sanders and McKercher. I think our next best option to at least improve our forward half is pocket rocket Nick Watson. He's a 170cm small forward but don't be put off his height. The kid has some serious X factor and star factor. Last year he was pigeon-holed as a small forward, so recruiters wanted to see what his midfield capabilities were like. Didn't take him long until the Coates League round 3 against Northern Knights where he announced himself quickly that he's got the tools to step up and play midfield. He had 34 disposals and kicked 2.3 in a complete dominant display. His numbers this year play as a high half forward/midfield have been incredibly strong. There has been comparisons to Nick Daicos when he's playing around the midfield with his ability to hit pin point passes and also weave his way in and out of traffic. Not counting his championship games where he once again dominated especially his game against WA where he had 13 disposals and kicked 5 goals playing purely as a forward pocket and then another 4 goals against Vic Country. His ability to play at a high level throughout his junior level and consistency is elite. If we were to pick him I can easily see a round 1 debut. X factor, speed, tackling pressure and ability to hit the scoreboard. The kozzie/Wizard combo would generate some genuine excitement within fans and he's got that real strut and arrogance (in a good way) in the same way as a Tom Papley and Hayden Ballantyne which I think we've genuinely lacked over the years.

If you want to flip it around, Replace Brayshaw with one of the Daicos boys, and Maynard with Tom Sparrow. Collingwood and the whole AFL media would be baying for a public execution. To say otherwise is just bull and you know it.

A bit unreal to see people defending Maynard. He had other choices while still attempting the smother, which is why he'll face the tribunal. As a side note, umpires paid a downfield free, which isn't going to help the "football act" defence.

I think an interesting adjunct to this story is Christian’s position. If it’s true he was disinclined to refer Maynard to the tribunal, or had some difficulty coming to that decision - compelling Kane to step in -when taken alongside the broader context of the current litigation against the AFL, Christian’s position appears untenable. He’s either hopelessly conflicted, or hopelessly incompetent, because this is a prima facie case for a lengthy on the spot sanction. Either way, he must go. A legal, ethical and PR nightmare. It’ll be interesting to see what happens there. If I’m Kane, I’m removing him at season’s end and reviewing the MRO.

So it's Gus' fault for daring to kick a ball with the wrong foot. FMD. Explain why players don't frequently get cleaned up like that in front-on spoil attempts. The answer is: because almost all the time their aim is to smother, not annihilate.

It's partly wearing thin because every time we find a forward they get injured. Frisch out for many games, Petty out just as he shows he's a forward after coming back from injury, Melksham just as he shows he still a forward to be reckoned with. And to top it off our two old blokes, Brown and Tmac, who maybe just had a bit more in them ended up injured for most of the year. And now JVR out. How much of this is Goodwin's fault? You need a lot of things to win a premiership. Luck is one of them.

We are one of six left after today. It feels like the whole AFL landscape is against us, going all the way from here would be the sweetest thing ever. Our boys just don’t roll over no matter how many players we lose. Neither should we as supporters.

I suspect this finals season has been the tipping point for a lot of people and their relationship with AFL broadcasting. I love going to the footy, but I can’t stand it on the TV. For me Thursday nights TV was the pinnacle. Angus Brayshaw lay motionless in the middle of the MCG for an off the ball incident that will control the AFL media landscape for the next 2 weeks - but the broadcaster was showing us De Goey limping because he rolled his ankle. Their pandering isn’t helping anyone, and least of all the game. If Kayo had the option to just watch the game with crowd noise I’m guessing 80% of the audience would watch it.

Just go for the point. If we kicked a point for every entry inside 50 - we would have won by more than a goal.

Having listened to all of the various arguments over the last day or two I'm probably in the camp that favours novichok poisoning. Happy to be dissuaded though.

I wouldn’t feel sorry for Maynard if he was playing for us: just like I didn’t feel sorry for Kozzie, when he collected Bailey Smith: stupid act and deserved his ban. I feel sorry for Gus, who has not only missed out on Finals but probably has to weigh up whether or not he takes the risk to play again - ever. I also feel sorry for Gus’s teammates who had to play without one of their key contributors in a QF, because of a stupid decision by an opponent. F Maynard and eff his effing club and their effing supporters. (I’m still salty, obvs 😉)

How fair is it that Gus might miss not just finals but the rest of his career? Maynard has form. Is a thug from a long way back. Not two minutes after he smashed Gus he head-butted Viney. Ffs he made a decision to go the man. He has to live with those consequences. Consequences FAR less severe than the consequences Gus will now have to deal with it. I am in disbelief that you are actually feeling sad and sorry for Maynard and comparing his suspension to players who got injured in legitimate footy accidents and missed finals. Jesus wept.

I believe all of them except Richmond 2020 defeated their QF opponent in the GF which would be oh so sweet.

I bet on each of those occasions supporters were absolutely wrist slitting too. 5 times in 20 years. So this means 25% of flag winners in the last 20 years have taken this route. I'll take those odds.

Richmond 2020, Hawks 2015, WCE 06, Syd 05? Bris 03? It's happened but it's not the preferred route, obviously.

So Carlton with the same winning margin as our losing margin. We played a much better team on a ground that doesn’t advantage one side over the other (unlike Carlton playing the G versus an interstate club). Like the Pies, Carlton got lucky that the Swans butchered multiple shots at goal late. I think Carlton play very good high quality football. Are they better than Collingwood tho? No they aren’t. They don’t have the experience nor the foot skills or speed of the Pies. The only thing that will stop us from winning is us. We need to find a way to score at least 12 goals to win.

Thanks for that, really helps my mood

Turner played forward and dominated, 31 marks, 15 goals 2 behinds, 17 tackles, 133 pressure acts, 41 goal assists and 2 smothers. Grundy had 128 hit outs, 98 to advantage and kicked 2 with 33 disposals and 14 marks. JJ had 56 disposals, 45 contested, 2200m gained and kicked 3.

Well that will be the Pies argument. And maybe it will be a winning argument. I would argue he had other choices to protect himself (and gus) - Kozzie spinning in the air to avoid hitting Hoskin Elliot is once such example. And as i said how would have Maynard be hurt if he hit gus chest on (his chest would have hit Gus's head) with arms spread wide? And since when do you instinctively turn your shoulder when falling to the ground to protect yourself from the impact of hitting the ground? Instinct is you put your hands and arms out to brace a fall and protect yourself from being hurt not turn your body and slam into the ground shoulder first.

A woman doing things outside of the kitchen. How dare she! Footy is a men’s game. Man good. Woman bad.

That’s because he is. 💕 Ben does so many good things off-field without making it known. He’s kind and caring, totally selfless and he’s the nicest person you could ever hope to meet. He listens and is genuinely interested in whatever’s being discussed and he remembers stuff you’ve told him. I can’t sing his praises enough. He’s a very special person.

I’d be very embarrassed.

That wasn’t a football action. Maynard wanted to make a physical statement early, just like he did against Langdon last year. He stuffed it up, and he will be dealt accordingly. He never once watches the ball. If a Melbourne player did that I’d be so disappointed in them, just like I am with JVR’s action this week.

Time for a kip then Old. We lost the game rather than the Pies beating us, IMO. We had our chance and stuffed it up. I hope that’s not being too optimistic??

If you want to help your mood, why would you come onto Demonland. I don’t think you’d find a bigger collection of wrist slashers on any other page

Did Brayden Maynard ring Tom Morris to tell him about it or let the club make that call. If it meant anything he would have said keep it out of the press.

"Thanks mate, that'll be great for my headaches." "No worries - Wait…is that Tom Morris hiding between your couch cushions?"

He deliberately took Gus out ,jumped and hit head high.Remember Hunter got booked for standing still while some squib ran into him ,hunter didnt jump or run at the squib.So maynard must get 6 weeks at least

If Maynard gets off i’m going to protest outside AFL house im still [censored] furious about the hit!

Even worse to think his uncle was there sitting with those jerks (7 commentators) and he didn't defend his nephew.

Unfortunately I just can't see us kicking a winning score. Weitering, Kemp and Matchbank are 3 solid defenders who have held their defence up really well. Fritsch was the only one who looked dangerous for us at times whilst McDonald is simply cooked. Unfortunately the loss of Melksham and Petty is taking a toll and it's caught up to us.

We had 23 shots to 15 on Thursday against the flag favourite. We just need average efficiency in front of goal to fix our game.

Laurie played a great game against the Sawns but now the villain and declared a spud after playing a final in his 5th game. Get a grip.

I don't think it can be one. It will be either 3+ or nothing.

Ray Chamberlain would be great. Huge ego, massive interest in the game but no actual bias. Perfect for a role like this.

Michael Christian has more than overstayed his welcome as MRO. The system is terrible with one person effectively making the decisions and only reviewing things that are brought to his attention anyway. He is a boofhead whose sole credentials are that he played for Collingwood and was a commentator post-career.

We need a forward line of actual forwards, in their prime, in all structural positions. We are making do with resting mids (CP5), out of position defensive runners (ANB, Spargo), youth (Chandler, Pickett, JVR), and injured talls (TMac, Brown). And before anyone tells at me for ANB - he is playing a box to box role that is inherently played away from the forward line… So Fritsch is a bit lonely as a forward who is actually a forward, in his prime, and (relatively) healthy. We are just so easily bottled up.

If Fritsch converts the shots he usually does are we even talking about this? The loss was bloody infuriating but things are never as bad as they seem. You can guarantee we will be focussing on f50 entries this week and lowering the eyes. Should be another belter of a game.

What's all this about Hibbo? After the first quarter he was right on top of Elliott, who is a VERY good player!!