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Apart from the fact that he is woeful kick for goal. In all seriousness we should not be drafting or trading in any player who is not an elite kick. Not one.

I'm going to the GF for 2 reasons only 1) to boo Maynard 2) to take a seat that otherwise could have gone to a pies supporter that was chanting Collingwood when Brayshaw was unconcious

He has the audacity to ask in that story ‘why journalists aren’t held to account’ for reporting what happened at Gus’ house the next day. He’s a dumb as the come. It’s the journalists that got you off you thick piece of [censored]. You should be sending them flowers.

Collingwood have a deal with Grundy not Melbourne

8cm in height and 30kgs in weight are fairly substantial differences. Love the Juddster but he aint a replacement for May

It’s a no from Melbourne on Sparrow or Petty. Likely a 3rd round pick for McAdams

The footy world knows what we've got: https://www.melbournefc.com.au/news/1440929/williams-honoured-by-coaches-association

It’s so weird that in that footage of him having a kick with kids in the park he doesn’t once jump past the ball and ram his shoulder into the head of one of the children rendering him unconscious for 2 minutes. Absolute dog act, sanctioned by the AFL.

I get the sentiment but as @Axis of Bob says, some of the needs on our list are very unlikely going to be filled by elite kicks. That's largely because, as much as we need better kicking, the competition isn't flush with elite kicks and certainly not in the ruck or key forward positions. If Naughton were available he'd make us significantly better instantly, and that's assuming his kicking for goal remains as it is now.

Who was Dean Cox before Gardiner did his PCL. Cameron back up at Sydney couldn’t get a game Mumford back up at Cats behind King and Blake Jolly behind White Biggs was a nobody 6 months ago and Hickey got Sydney to the GF last year at his 4th club. You just need to pick up a back up journeyman to give Max a chop out

I read that as ‘experienced and strong’

Also Melbourne won't sign off on a trade until they have an answer on this and simply there is no benefit in paying him to play for another premiership contender. if dees have to pay for him, keep him as backup for Gawn

He’s already signed a million a year 7 year deal with North recently. He can’t tear that up for an inferior contract. We’d have to take that contract on, which we’d gladly do if it was an option. It’s not. Larkey is staying put. Even if he suddenly wanted out after signing a huge deal recently, North wouldn’t let him walk and would demand every pick we have plus more. It’s fantasy and we need to chase realistic options.

This right here is everything that is wrong with the AFL and our society. Victim blaming and celebrating of thuggery. No wonder that 2 in every 5 Australians have experienced domestic or sexual assault in their lifetime, when the biggest sport in this country constantly perpetuates this type of aggressive behaviour as peak masculinity.

We’d take Naughton in a heartbeat

My ire was raised after the siren of the GWS prelim - Maytard walked around celebrating the win by adopting an uberaggressive body builder closed fisted pose complete with a full baring of the teeth when he crossed paths with some of his mates (ie Cameron) in what appeared to be a well rehearsed gesture. The guy is a moron who seems to have no insight into the legacy he is creating and that the game has moved on ......Do hope the Fitzroy fwds kick an absolute swag on him.

Of the 20-odd C'wood players about whom they might choose to write a puff piece this week, they choose a thug. Says it all.

This is absolutely disgusting Angus is the villain F off

We have apparently spoken to McQ. I assume they have also reached out to Dew. I reckon either would be good

Feels like we're all agreeing here but not in exactly the same ways. Facts: we have contested midfield bulls that win their own ball and fall into the trap of bombing the ball forward Goody places the highest value on contest, defence and time in forward half in 2021 we had two experienced, smart big forwards who were mobile enough, drew serious defenders and took their chances when kicking for goal (McDonald 33 goals, 22 behinds, Brown 25 goals, 13 behinds) This year we started and ended the season with zero big targets forward for the ball capable of holding the fort for a whole season Facts: Brown started well but was troubled with injury after only a few rounds and barely fired a shot after (for MFC or Casey) McDonald never got going and unfortunatley it seems the game has gone past him we lucked in with Petty being more than capable only to be struck down by injury we found JVR to be suitable, a real competitor but he is 19, doesn't have the experience and was always going to fatigue Gawn and Grundy just aren't forwards Without those targets (& Fritsch) Goody had no choice but to try and piece a forward line together and win games with 10 - 12 goals, and the players executed that goal. No doubt we have ordinary kicks in our midfield but they were being instructed to kick the ball to a pack inside 50 so it can be brought to ground and held in our forward line. Even if they were better kicks they would have fallen into this team rule (which they no doubt found comfort in). In reality only Melkshams stellar form kept us winning games in the back half of the season. Take him out and we don't finish top 4. My take; this year every game, bar 1, that we lost we could've won with minutes remaining on the clock largely, the game plan suits our strengths and keeps us in games, no need for whoesale change fix the glaring gaps; find a forward target or 2 who can draw defenders and hit the scoreboard with 6s, not 1s use point 1 to give Gawn a rest and keep him outside F50 (better for his mental health) once we have point 1 instruct players to be smarter going inside F50. Real forward targets will create chances for the others and take their own when they come Re: point 1, we actually have 2 already who are pretty good kicks at goal (Petty & JVR), we just need another that can ruck

The Rookie Me Central Power rankings for September - AFL Draft Power Rankings: September 2023

It was quoting Sammy Edmund. I listened to the segment and thought he meant to say West Coast, but said Melbourne. He might have just had Melbourne on his mind, because he also suggested Dees could still have a go at Pick 1. That said, if Roos would still like to take Sanders, they could probably split pick 2 (or a band 1 compensation pick for McKay) with us and still be pretty certain of getting him with our pick from Freo (would be independent of whether they land pick 4).

He is an absolute workaholic and will have a break out next season

No SA homecoming for Dees Melbourne will rebuff Adelaide’s attempts to secure star duo Harry Petty or Tom Sparrow in the Shane McAdam deal. The Crows are keen on a ready-made quality player in return for McAdam, who turned his back on a fresh deal at Adelaide to join Melbourne in the exchange period. But the Demons will likely offer the Crows a third-round pick or low-round pick swap in the McAdam deal. Melbourne’s top priority is to secure adequate compensation in the trade for Brodie Grundy to Sydney, such as a second-round pick.

His mother is the source of the dodgy rumours. It's all a load of Ma Larkey.

@goodwindees strikes again https://7news.com.au/sport/afl/sydney-swans-co-captain-callum-mills-suffers-bad-off-season-injury-as-mad-monday-celebrations-go-horribly-wrong-c-12023911

I do hope Zorko runs through him on Saturday.

You would take Naughton in a heart beat

I'm tall, ill play forward I mean, I'm 40 and 25kgs overweight but I'll lead up at the ball Have any of the players on our list kicked 3 in a mid gippy 2s game? No they havent. I rest my case.

Ex Sandgroper here. Have seen a few of these boys play over the years- Good read on the game. ZZ - amazing also in that he only started playing AFL seriously 2? years ago. BOG for sure. Livingstone would have made a difference for Perth though, can kick goals too - considering they kicked 1.5 in the last quarter he would have got them over the line IMO. I also liked Cachard and Keene for Perth - both underrated? Thought Bailey Banfield was a key playmaker for Claremont. Not sure if he’s on the radar for Father/Son with WCE ? Hine-Bastion wasn’t on Angove for the 1st half which is why he went to town. They moved OHB back on him for the second half which is why he didn’t figure at all. They wanted more of an attacking role for OHB. Jake Watson - had a great day out apart from a muffed 50m penalty that would have been a sure thing. Like this kid. Claremont dropped some good talent for this game, I’d be watching Hugh Boxshall for next year. Cooper Moore - underager for Perth definitely on the radar too. Tough nut, has pace and train on for 18s this year. Davis - dangerous small forward. Underager - more leap and power than you’d think.

Had a nearly day, took a few marks, brought the footy to ground hitting contest hard but just couldn’t impact the scoreboard. Having said that showed a lot of JVRs good traits with his workrate and second efforts at ground level to have some big score assists/involvements. That’s what has improved in the business end of the season which won’t go unnoticed by recruiters

Brayden "the Thug" Maynard should be booed for the rest of his football career by Melbourne supporters. His vile dog act will NEVER be forgiven or forgotten!!! 🤬🤬🤬🤬

Big game this Thursday for Kate Hore and her Demon Queens. I know there is a ‘AFL Womens League’ board but I don’t want to talk about that - I want to talk about the Melbourne Demons on the Melbourne Demons board. The dominant, amazing, and humble team that deserves eternal hellfire and idol devotion. Also, no one goes to that board and there wasn’t even a match thread…

Paul Connors says it is a deal between Coll and Grundy for the life of the deal. Coll won’t agitate and risk pissing off Connors. He’s one of the most powerful people in football.

OMG! I had no idea that was part of mad monday.

I hope his goggles fog up and he trips over himself, falls flat on his face, breaks his nose and never plays again.

Look at is this way as I am. What's worse than missing a GF.? Playing in a losing GF. Maynard will get his karma on Saturday.

Stupid hypothetical because I'm bored. With the talk of essendon and saints manipulating free agency compo, perhaps we can do the same with the swans. Grundy and Jordon are strongly linked there with the media consensus being a 2nd round pick will get it done with Swans taking on the remainder of his wage. Jordon will likely net us a 3rd round pick (in the 50s). Here's my dumb proposal. 1. Trade Grundy to Swans for pick 31. 2. Offer to pay 500k per year for the remainder of his contract. Swans therefore only paying 150k for him. 3. Get Swans to pay over the top for Jordon, 800k over 3years, triggering band 1 compensation (pick 14 to dees). Grundy and Jordon to Sydney with the swans paying 950k for two players (close to average AFL wage). Melbourne lose Grundy and Jordon but gain pick 14 and 31. 500k for 5 years the downside however we will be freeing up approx; - 500k with a potential harmes move. - 150k for Jordon - 400k for Hibberd and Melksham Tomlinson, Brown and T-Mac off this list next year will save close to a million, we shouldn't be tight for cap space. Melbourne then has 13 and 14 which is superior to the Bulldogs offer for Pick 4. Out: Grundy, Jordon, 500k x 5yrs In: Pick 4 and 31 Dumb, I know.

It’s a real awkward situation for them, however they clearly have no influence because anyone with a brain cell could have told B. Maynard to keep his mouth shut and concentrate on his footy. It is bordering on making their position untenable in our club through no fault of their own.

The more obvious the injustice the more excessive and repetitive the lie must be reaffirmed.

Lets just hope he's in tears on Saturday having lost another GF

I didn't realise McQaulter had spent 10 years at Richmond.. I'm sold.

I reckon McQualter had quite a bit to do with Richmonds success and would be an asset.

100%. Our 2021 game style and success points to this exactly. Brown and TMac were not superstars but they were smart (generally more smart than their opponents), knew their limitations and took their chance when they came

Maybe the clubs could learn how to do a properly Mad Monday by copying the Xavier school boys. 🫣

Replacing Yze could be more complicated than we think. It was mentioned in an earlier post and confirmed by Yze that he was the match day coach in the coaches box and Goody was the counsellor down on the boundary. This suggests to me that Goody is aware of his tactical match day short comings and acknowledges that is Yze's strength. If so that is more than a line coach role but almost senior coach material. It also begs the question whether Goody has been vilified unfairly and the coach upstairs should be held more responsible for the match day gaff's. I believe Goody is a very good club coach, man manager game plan development. The replacement should complement these traits and have a skill set to complement and cover the deficiencies

My suggestions are multi-faceted. I think that Goodwin instructs us to play a style and a method that suits our list's skill set predominantly which lends itself to issues like ball movement, use and efficiency. He puts a premium on playing forward-half football which also plays to our defensive strength given our elite intercept players. This is all well and good if you're turning that forward half, contest dominance into scoreboard dominance. But how many losses would you say come from an inability to turn that dominance into a score? And for how long has it been costing us? It's just not working, no matter how many times you hear his tiresome "we need to get better/we need to connect better forward of centre" post match talk. I actually don't think it matters what kind of key forward we have if we continue to play the way we do. Which is why I'm concerned about throwing the farm at a big name forward if we continue to play the way we are. All that is important to Goody with this plan is an ability to contest in the air and bring ball to ground. Because we don't put a premium on hitting leads and it seems we don't even like leading up. When I watch our ball movement in free play the majority of the time, we are completely conditioned to move the ball in a way that gives us the best chance to keep the ball locked in our forward half at the cost of actually getting a real look at goal. To keep defensive structural integrity yeh yeh. Fritsch leads toward goal to often, Melksham does and T Mac does. Deep entries to lock it in yeh? But I ask again, at what cost? At the cost of losing big games and big moments it seems. No longer can you lot use the 21' flag as proof of our impenetrable game-plan. Because as I've said so many times, our losses during h/a season 21 were all replicas of the losses last year and this year. Yes we're hard to play against. But top teams know how to beat us. Yes we have a lot going for us. But Goodwin has been too stubborn and put all his eggs in. I disagree with the notion that we've made significant change. Even if the likes of DeeSpencer brings his reasons. It clearly hasn't been meaningful or significant given the way we lose games is identical to that of three years ago. Areas of change need to be first personnel and then plan. 1 x midfield addition (draft/positional) 1 x half forward addition (be that a positional change or trade/draft) 1x specialist forward pocket The midfielders that consistently kill us are the ones we're missing. Kelly, Gulden, Walsh, Merret, Daicos. We just don't possess an outside midfielder who has the capacity to break lines, hold space at a contest and consistently use the ball. Langdon is not that because he is a poor kick. Another double-edged sword. He is great for maintaining defensive structural integrity. But he also contributes to the ball flying back the other way due to his turnover rate. For me, McKertcher is a must from this draft for reasons I've already outline. He would free up one of Salem or Bowey to make a move forward of centre and play a Daicos quarter back role in his first year with some pinch hitting midfield minutes. Salem needs the pre-season of his life and he could be utelised in a number of ways at half forward but his biggest asset coming to us was his leg. And we need it forward of centre. I'd get Watson in who is simply a finisher and class user. And given the way we play, you can never have enough class finishes. He can play half forward or pocket and it also would allow picket to play further midfield minutes which I think is also a must next year given his creativity in congestion, vision, ball use. Maybe I went overboard with the key forward comment. I just don't see it as a pressing need given the way Goody likes to play. I think there's just got to be a few additions to this side in the right spots including a new move for Salem and a bit more licence for those with the footskills to work angles and go for their kicks. Goodwin needs to release the shackles a bit for those players who thrive with ball in hand. That is not Oliver, Viney and even Petracca. They need to know their limitations but also get better at kicking to the advantage of a forward. That needs to be drilled into them in the off-season. Kick to the advantage of. They're never going to be consistently hitting targets, it's just not them. We're not far off. It just does my absolute nut in that we haven't addressed this.

Yep I've got Luke Jackson and Sam Weidemen ones lined up to, hearing whispers...

I think the media has stolen a few that would be good, (apart from Buckley), I wouldn’t mind Joey or Johnson, of all the windsocks on the tube, they seem to be the least involved in group think. Daniel Cross I would like to have seen coach, from the few training sessions I ever saw with him seemed serious, but is maybe more of a fitness guy than strategy. (He has been playing up in Albury). I would hope that because we are a big and stable club, that we don’t need the comfort of a ‘name‘ and actually go and find someone who deserves a go on merit. As much as I respect the man, Ratten, seems cooked. Also I don’t feel we need a ‘Melbourne’ player, Bruce not so sure, he always seemed more instinct than insight. Carr and Newman both seem to have a clue, and while he probably wouldn’t come back, I thought Jennings was the brains of Roo’s operation and that we lost a step when he left, I would love him back as what he could do with our crew who are now so well drilled could be devastating to the comp. I would like to see some game day modifications, I don’t think we are the best at switching from pockets to corridor and I don’t think we take the best advantage of kick-ins with the players we have. Our playing group is now at a very advanced stage of cohesion and discipline, I love them for it. I don’t think it would hurt to risk a bit more flicking of switches, the players have earned the trust. And really please don’t feed trolls, it clogs up the thread, at best they are clueless and loveable supporters who love the same club, but some of the dross about Goody belongs on big footy, is nauseating, and just simply troll behaviour. I get we are all hurting I am so frustrated it I can barely watch the footy without wanting to rant. But we were moments from winning, and while we had no luck, I would argue that the games shouldn’t have even been close, with a reasonable return both games were done like 2021, we had the pressure and effort, just merde out of luck. Goody has done great things as part of a team, better than Northey, Balme and Daniher, people talking about him like he is Neeld is pathetic.