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So rather than not winning $550, you can not win $700 instead.

The forecast said isolated drizzle, so took the morning off, it rained/drizzled/[censored] down non stop It was a hard session. compared to others I have watched, considering it is only 4 weeks from our season end Roos actually raised his voice a couple of times, I could actually hear what he was saying/shouting........there was one instance where it was and end to end drill and surprisingly we went across field and then down the line to a 1 against 3.....Roos immediately stopped it and to paraphrase "what was the point of that, that is not what we want"......another time he pulled the midfield together and 'demanded' they work together Anyway Pedersen will not play this weekend, was not at training and confirmed by Misso had a op on his schnozzle and will be missing Tapscott is probably an out as well, left training early and was limping on his right leg Other interesting bits, when the squad was split in half to do the end to end, Blease and McKenzie joined the 'Casey side', and Gawn, Michie and Barry played with the AFL side, along with Matt Jones who split his time and Cross (who confirmed afterwards he was in, Michie was hopeful).....Watts played in the back 6 and Gawn as a stay at home forward near the goal square Jesse Hogan did the full session and looks ready to go, asked him this week or next, said "we'll see", asked Misson, he said next week, it is Hogan's decision as to whether he plays or not, I think the way he attacked training it will be yes Spoke to Chip Frawley, if he has made his mind up, he is a bloody good liar, or I have lost the ability to pick it, we'll see I can never remember everything, so any questions feel free, just one more, there were about 5 separate kicking drills today

It really is amazing. Hird, "I want the truth to come out". ASADA apparently knows the truth, as Hird, the players and the club have told it the truth. Then when the truth is about to come out, go to Court to stop the truth coming out.

Unbelievable that Pedersen has to miss a few weeks and have Surgery but Merrett gets off free! Disgusting MRP!!

Looks like someone knocked off work early and went straight to the pub.

Both nasty and sticky?

I think some are reading too much into the words 'I don't care'. I expect many who voted that way just wanted to indicate they don't think ladder position matters compared to other things. eg on the one hand the improvements we have seen, on the other the randomness of another bottom team fluking a win when we didn't. Personally I'm happy for other teams and supporters to think we are the pits if they are silly enough to base that on being on the bottom of the ladder, because with a bit more skill, some new players and some luck with injuries (like not losing our main forwards all year) and luck in games, we may sneak up and surprise them soon.

Why are people saying Gawn won't be around after 2016 He will be our number 1 ruckman, and I think he will be a key part to our rise He is still young, coming back from injury riddled years, and as we know the big blokes take longer

He did everything, if that is what you mean, the whole session, so kicking, tackling, ground ball, end to end, he was moving really well, even had Salem firing kicks at head height from about 5 metres away at one point to get his reflexes up, ended up the session by competing with TomMcDonald on catching ridiculous bombs put as high as possible but only standing about 10 metres apart, Tommy Mc misjudged one in the rain, hence the decapitation mentioned above. Roos watched this 'training' and was very amused, probably more by Hogan looking ready to go

Theres a groundswell rising now out there on those Windy Hills. Not everyone's been conned, though why its taken so long for many to wake to the folly that is Essendons attempt at hoodwinking the system I'll never know. Maybe just dumb belief that those in charge actually had the well being of the players and club at heart , all that despite what grew to be the bleeding obvious that something stank to high heaven out there. Was it that some were so immersed in the lie that it became self perpetuating and some had travelld to far down the murky path to retreat. Many I have no doubt simply offered blind loyalty. Eyes are opening

I'd rather swallow than take it in the rear like we have been doing these past eight years.

If we finish bottom this year, I'll boycott all Demons finals in 2014. That's how serious I am.

we already have one Kent

There was a nice bit before training started, Barry and Jetta deep in conversation , Barry was talking about Garlett (who he soundly beat last weekend, obviously the real reasonf for the late night out) when they were lining up on the wing, Nev seemed to be instructing him on positioning. Everybody seems to forget Barry has only been taking football 'seriously' for about 4 years, he came down from Alice on a tennis scholarship, what I like is he got a taste for a couple of games, then sent back to Casey to continue his development, then put a couple of good games together doing his role perfectly and is rewarded with a spot back in the AFL team. I tip him to surprise going forward

Our problem has not been quantity of changes, but quality. Picking the right players.Using pick 85 isn't the bloody point - getting the first 5 or 6 picks right is! That's how you build a list.

I feel like it's February again. Funny how these reports can snap me out of my footy season blues. I reckon I'm the true blue sky junkie. Thanks Saty.

Told Nev Jetta that him versus Puopolo would be one thing worth watching, told me he will probably match off with all the forwards, he wouldn't mind a crack at Roughy

Bombers lose, so not all is bad with footy.

in all seriousness I reckon this is the MOST sane thread on the boards

No reason why we can't do to Hawchoke what the Aints did to Fremethtle the other week We have alot of Roos questions to answer for and the boys will come ready to cut the head off the AFL ladder like we did to Essendrugs a few years ago!! CARN THE DEES!! Lets smash them hawks tomorrow !!

Now that lackey press of the Windy Hill mob...and regrettably a sponsor are coming out with the rubbish of "Did the AFL know about Bombers probe?" wtf if they did Its a bit like asking Westpac if they know whos driving the getaway car ? Its comical. really, how desperate they ( cheaters and cohorts ) are to muddy the water as if that will actually hold any sway I hope these guys are done like a dogs dinner. I hope Work Safe go in and hold the board accountable.

Surely we can do better than any sort of McKenzie. I think Robinson is a spud as well as a flog. I'm not the nuke my membership type, but I would be greatly surprised if we were even remotely interested.

It is continually surprising to me that some posters cannot see that trying to be bottom is not the same as listing what advantages might accrue to us if that happened. Nor that those who are not very upset by finishing last still want us to try as hard as possible to win every game.

Don't howl me down but it wouldn't worry me one little bit. We can guarantee the player we get in the PSD. We could probably do a deal for a player with GWS, for not picking a certain player in the draft, thereby giving us a free player/pick. We would probably have pick 2 if Chip leaves which could be traded for a slightly lower pick and another player ala the Tyson/Salem deal. We could probably guarantee Stretch coming with a 3rd round pick as no one would probably offer a 1st round pick. No. it wouldn't worry me at all.

whats your point !!

If we beat hawthorn tommorow. I will literally forgive the club for the last 8 years

My loathing goes back a lot further - the 1961 2nd semi when (later Chief Justice if I recall correctly) John Winnikee dropped Laurie Mithen behind the play, turning the game around completely.Much as I would love us to thump them this week, I think I will buy a Tattslotto ticket and take the higher odds on winning Division 1 :-( Watching the numbers drop will probably be far more exciting than watching the game.

YEEEEEEEHHH!!!!!! ....nah.

there is a zero percent chance if you want to start getting your hopes up just focus on a loss by under 100 and call that your target I'm not even being a drama queen this is gonna be BAD

You know C and B that would probably have worked better than the 2007 to 2012 period.

Nope. Nope nope. Nope nope nope nope nope. Nope.

Haha good one...

You really do need to get facts correct, if you are going to post, entire ruck stock?, er King and Pedersen Why would we suddenly get rid of Riley after we have spent so long getting him back from a broken leg I must tell Daniel Cross you want him to retire next year, he looked superb at training yesterday, he can keep getting one year contracts for the next 5 years in my humble opinion

Just received the following from a Hawthorn supporter who got it from a Hawthorn forum. Fun facts: Of the 22 that lined up for the Fuschias last week, only Lynden Dunn has played in a winning team for Melbourne against Hawthorn. That was his third game, back in 2006. In the Clarkson era, the cumulative scoreboard reads Hawthorn 203.180 (1398) to Melbourne 134.126 (930), a Hawthorn percentage in excess of 150%. Since that 2006 loss, the figures are Hawthorn 175.159 (1209) to Melbourne 101.99 (705), a Hawthorn percentage of 171.49%. Since Melbourne won its last premiership, Hawthorn has won ten. Melbourne's current premiership drought extends to 50 years this season. Melbourne last played finals in 2006, so this year is eight years in succession that they have failed to make the top eight, far and away the longest September drought in the league. Since the end of that season, Melbourne are 38 wins, 2 draws and 132 losses. Hawthorn has 38 wins from its last 46 games. Super-mega-hyper-ultra-cyber coach Paul Roos' winning percentage with Melbourne is 22.2%. Melbourne's winning percentage in the previous seven seasons was 22.1%. You can clearly see the improvement. What a f*&^$*& rabble. I hope they fold. Whilst I enjoy the percentage builder every year, it's a travesty that this joke of an organisation is permitted to carry the name of the city that is the home of football. They should be forced to rename themselves to the Junction Oval Junkies or Casey Catastophes or the University Dropouts or something, anything but Melbourne. You're a stain on the city, you're a stain on the league, you're a stain on the sport, and you only exist because I voted to keep your 'culture' of losing, blame and a half-century of ceaseless mediocrity out of my footy club. F&^% off Melbourne, you're s*&^. Gives a pretty clear indication of what the reast of the comp thinks of us. I really hope we win but fear we will get thrashed. I a torn between wanting to g to support the boys in what will in all likelyhood be a tough day out, but dont really want to sit through another flogging surrounded by the above types and am not keen on giving my entrance money to a club I hate. Just n case your interested the following was my reply This sort of rubbish is not surprising from the Hawthorn membership. There is no supporter group I have less respect for than Hawthorns. Arrogance borne from recent success without a decent foundation seems to be the culture. True there are a few decent ones still around who have followed the team through the drought from 1873 to 1961 and remained true but the vast bulk have jumped on board since the late 70’s. These are people who bend with the wind and will naturally gravitate to whatever feeds their egos and desire to look down on others. They have no loyalty and no spine. The fundamentals of human decency and all that is true and good in this world is missing from this group who inevitably will destroy this club from the inside out. When the worm turns (and it will) the rats will desert the sinking ship, maybe not the members now but their offspring will. It’s in the genetics you see, they will not stay without success they will not face adversity with strength and stoicism, they will not display the moral courage required to be a Melbourne supporter. I am happy to read below because it confirms my belief that you are all a pack of soulless arrogant buckets of s&$t. I will be at the game on Sat without hope and in the knowledge that it will not be pleasant but if the roles were reversed I am confident that the only p^ss and s%^t at the ground will be in bowls and troughs of the MCG sewerage system.

Would be good to see the Toump, Salem and Hogan get a run before the end of the year, would much rather the kids play than blokes like Tapscott

Any talk of offloading Max Gawn is nonsensical. Our #1 ruckman is reaching the end of his career. Spencer has missed most of this year with injury and we have little else in the way of ruck stocks. I will say however, that if Max is played predominantly as a forward/ruckman against Hawthorn tomorrow then don't expect too much because the ball won't be getting down there too often.

Well and truly stamped and marked along with most of the MFC players picked in the Casey team for tomorrow. Roos has flagged that if players haven't got the basic skill sets to play at the elite level then they're going to be shipped out. I think the clean out at year's end is going to be viscious.

Stop with the stupid [censored] like 'we're going to get thrashed', I mean...what's the point of even watching the game if you don't acknowledge the possibility that we might have a chance to win or compete. I don't watch my team expecting us to lose convincingly anymore. I think on our good day, we can compete against anyone. Call it wishful thinking all you want...I prefer to be excited and optimistic as opposed to pessimistic and cynical even if my expectations might be unrealistic to some. Go the Dees!!

and that Stamp don't read "good for 2015"

Oh go on, be a sport. It's clearly good [censored].

Never thought Id say this.... No Pedersen....Bugger !!! cheers for report

AoB, I took your reference to my 'stupid' comment as disrespect. If that is not the case, I apologise for my misinterpretation. As for my 'simplistic' ideas: 1. Has any recruiter ever changed their mind about a draftee based on their 30m sprint time? I doubt it. I can't foresee a recruiter watching a player on the footy field break clearances and accelerate away from opponents to then decide they aren't quick based on the testing and thus lose interest. Or vice versa. If that is in fact the case, why bother testing it? 2. I'm not saying all stats are useless but I would hope coaches are able to see who or what is lacking in performance without them. Let's face it, a lot of people on here are pretty astute at picking deficiencies without access to any of the data to go by. That's all I was suggesting. 3. It's not a lack if understanding, I just think there's a bit of saturation with numbers as opposed to observations.

Odd if he was dropped. Has worked super hard defensively. The Tall Utility/Second Ruck role is pretty tough to master. Can't see what he has done wrong.

Agree - no way. You wouldn't delist a player like Gawn until you were absolutely dead certain he was no good; not reaching true AFL standard until he is 27 is a real possibility for a guy built like him and with his history. Peter Street spent 9 seasons in the AFL system for crying out loud. There aren't many players I'd offer almost unlimited patience to but Gawn is one of them.

Is it just a coincidence that our form has been down at the same time as Satyr's training reports appeared to have dried up?

Blease, Tappy - well that could be there last AFL games ever - McKenzie is in some real trouble due to his inept disposal. I think he will be kept on the list as back up for Cross next year and then its curtains for him IMO.

Seems like Roos has now gone from nurturing "mother", to strict "father." Good. The "boys" have been cuddled, time to turn them into "men." Also, the fact Pederson can't play but the person who made it that way can, is an absolute farce.

Most players who come into the AFL can run, kick, hand pass and generally play. The key is to turn those draftees into AFL standard adult footballers, which requires more than just talent and coordination, it requires aggression and strength. What that list lacks are players who can play footy AND compete with adult footballers. Tapscott & Grimes try hard, but have their limitations. Trengove has good skills and it looks like he can be turned into a league footballer if he gets his body right. The rest are yet to understand - or never did understand - that footy is all about big blokes knocking over other big blokes. What we need are competitive animals, not nice looking footballers.

Unfortunately you have to trade your picks before the actual draft...

A younger Col would have benefited greatly from a coach like Roosy.