Leaderboard

Sorry, I can't take away the tanking drama. He may well have been the pawn of those who had political aims against individuals on the board or the board itself or he may not. Whatever the case, the effect of his stupidity caused untold damage to the club and I for one, would not like to see him near the place again.

Still cant believe they traded us pick 11 for him Also cant believe we used it on jordy gysberts Also cant believe he was so bad

Ash...heres the thing that grates on most; it's the adoption of the 'victim' stance and that ASADA are the big bad meanies. They're not. They are the ones charged with policing the adherence to the code locally . Someone steps out of line, or across it they will be brought to task. Other athletes in other sports seemed to be in NO confusion as to what's allowed etc but supposedly Footballers are special ? These same said footballers who undergo hours upon hours of information and awareness regarding their responsibilities. The same footballers who invariably grew up in an age of Info tech...These same footballers who are playing dumb ?? There are the Drugs specifically mentioned on the Prohibitive List ( updated regularly ) and those that automatically fall under their S.O categories. whereby any drug not approved for human use automatically is covered by the S.O Please , they are not the VICTIMS as is the want of your club ( irony to the nth) or the AFLPA would have them be, they are transgressors. The Victims would in essence be the other athletes , those that do the right thing and observe the rules , should they seemingly be treated differently by happenstance if the Footballers get any leniency....any !! Whatever 'happens' to Essendon was actually brought upon the club itself, by ...itself. I think you'll find most people aren't cheerleaders for ASADA per se they are cheerleaders for Fairness and equal treatment.. ASADA is merely the messenger. This cant be seen as some sort of aberration within an otherwise safe and above-board practice. it was a long drawn out systemic approach to rorting. Then to make matters worse the club , especially its icons , take the stance of 'oh woe is us". How dare anyone seek to call us to account. Even now the club doesnt get it ( or maybe it DOES ) by continuing to counsel and advise the players and basically co-opt them further by paying and overseeing their 'defense". The players can only be stupid to still provide themselves as cannon fodder in all of this. The only ones I have the slightest semblance of sympathy for are the likes of yourself, but even that ends if you can't see what's been wrong in it's entirety. The Club (yours ) and Specifically Hird were reminded of the legalities and banned use of various peptides by the AFL. They choose to be above all of that and still choose to concoct a ridiculous stance against being found out. I truly hope Hird rots somewhere and is never allowed near a sporting venue , let alone organisation ever again. If the players can't wake up to the continued ruse then they are their own worst enemies.

Well, I really liked him as a footballer and personally believe MFC stuffed up what could have been a great career. Yes he was slow and the game got past him, but his grunt and awareness were a pleasure to watch and he loved being part of the club. He left because the club was going down the path of "the benefits of losing" and when he was asked, he answered. Could he have been smarter when interviewed?- oh yes, he really is not the sharpest tool in the shed - but I have absolutely no axe to grind with him. I find the whole thing bloody sad and the whole 2007 - 2013 period a blight on our club and our great game.

I have nothing but respect for Brock McLean now the dust has settled. We all followed blindly when we shouldn't have, and he stood up for himself. Brock McLean isn't to blame for the tanking sanctions, the halfwits in charge at the time are.

Not the smartest guy around and I doubt there would be too many Dee supporters who would feel the slight sadness for him after his performance OTC. Get stuffed Brock.

I would've been pretty annoyed if the club traded Howe. He is loyal, he is talented, he is super fit, he is apparently very coachable, he is a favourite around the joint, the kids love him, and he has 'X factor'. Trading him for pick 6 would've been a very bad decision. But some here think this is all a game - like dungeons and dragons or some carp like that where you're continually trading stuff with other teenagers. Whereas I see this as building/maintaining a footy club. And, in that context, Howe is absolutely a required player for this club.

Round 20, 1991. Mark Brayshaw played full back on Allen Jakovich for a lot of the day. That's all you need to know.

Jesse Hogan's followed up his story with this great YouTube package that takes in Schwarz's three next-to-last games before doing his knee - when he was at the absolute height of his powers.

Had a laugh during tonight's Four Corners. The report was about drugs and in particular ice, meth and assorted amphetamines. The show went to one house where the whole family were meth heads and crack fiends and there in the background hanging over a rail was an Essendon scarf.

Pelchen signed the letter inviting me down to Hawthorn as 16 year old back in 91 - can't have been too good of a recruiter..... Although I did last a until the under 17s and 19s were disbanded...that year! They got to find out I was too short, too skinny, couldn't kick over a jam tin but was ok as an inside type. however was up against a few blokes who turned out ok ( 3 are now senior coaches! - and a few premierships at various clubs came out of that batch.) He got some very right but then again recruited little old me.

Blind Freddy could see this spud would be delisted

Jeremy Howe down forward in 2015. Lamumba takes the tall HBF spot. Howe showed in 2013 he is a very dangerous forward and can play the Gunston role alongside some tall timber. We NEED more goalkickers.

For anyone who is concerned with Petracca not being able to match it against men as heavy and as thick as him at AFL level, remind yourselves of what Ollie Wines has been able to achieve in his first two years at Port. They're almost identical in body shape. And they both play hard, contested footy. Petracca and Brayshaw are the players we need. Lever if Petracca isn't available.

I've seen him play at sandy dragons. He looks better live than on these highlights.

Always felt it hypocritical that he said all he did when playing for Carlton who were the most blatant tankers of all time. Had very selective vision did Brock. Admired his support of Gay footballers though.

The Saints are in lose / lose situation . if they don't take Petracca they will slaughtered as he is bound to have an impact next year , if they don't one of the 2 tall options and they hit there straps in 1-2 years when Riewolt is all but finished they will be slayed for not picking the right one for nothing - I love it

...about as long as Gunston's dad was trying to get his son to Essendon. The kid will have a mind of his own.

It's ok, I laughed.

I thought Roos had a 'no dhead' policy? Sorry, you walked into it...

Saw this list posted on FB, so I thought I would share: It was the Whitlam Government that:- 1. ended Conscription, 2. withdrew Australian troops from Vietnam, 3. implemented Equal Pay for Women, 4. launched an Inquiry into Education and the Funding of Government and Non-government Schools on a Needs Basis, 5. established a separate ministry responsible for Aboriginal Affairs, 6. established the single Department of Defence, 7. withdrew support for apartheid–South Africa, 8. granted independence to Papua New Guinea, 9. abolished Tertiary Education Fees, 10. established the Tertiary Education Assistance Scheme (TEAS), 11. increased pensions, 12. established Medibank (medicare today), 13. established controls on Foreign Ownership of Australian resources, 14. passed the Family Law Act establishing No-Fault Divorce, 15. passed a series of laws banning Racial and Sexual Discrimination, 16. extended Maternity Leave and Benefits for Single Mothers, 17. introduced One-Vote-One-Value to democratize the electoral system, 18. implemented wide-ranging reforms of the ALP's organization, 19. initiated Australia's first Federal Legislation on Human Rights, the Environment and Heritage, 20. established the Legal Aid Office, 21. established the National Film and Television School, 22. launched construction of National Gallery of Australia, 23. established the Australian Development Assistance Agency, 24. reopened the Australian Embassy in Peking after 24 years, 25. established the Prices Justification Tribunal, 26. revalued the Australian Dollar, 27. cut tariffs across the board, 28. established the Trade Practices Commission, 29. established the Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service, 30. established the Law Reform Commission, 31. established the Australian Film Commission, 32. established the Australia Council, 33. established the Australian Heritage Commission, 34. established the Consumer Affairs Commission, 35. established the Technical and Further Education Commission, 36. implemented a national employment and training program, 37. created Telecom and Australia Post to replace the Postmaster-General's Department, 38. devised the Order of Australia Honors System to replace the British Honors system, 39. abolished appeals to the Privy Council, 40. changed the National Anthem to 'Advance Australia Fair' (confirmed at 1977 Referendum), 41. instituted Aboriginal Land Rights, and 42. sewered most of Sydney. All in three and a bit years. Building, nurturing, protecting, not cutting, slashing and burning.

The big problem is that we’re only ever drafting kids based on a very small snapshot of their career. Some 4-5 years before their expected to be at the peak of their ability. How much they will grow? How well will they adapt to senior footy and playing consistently against men? How much can their game develop? These are all speculative questions, that recruiters have to make on quite limited data. Even the game and conditions can be quite different (TAC Cup rules vs AFL rules inside 50), and aren’t necessarily a straight like for like in terms of junior and senior footy. Even NBA & MLB players are drafted (by and large) at an older age, so theoretically top picks in these sports are more exposed and a closer approximation of what the end product is likely to be when they are drafted.

If we improve to the point where we are challenging for a flag then I agree, Howe will look top notch.He has a really good set of attributes and he'll look a lot better and a class above as our team improves and as we climb the ladder. Howe at Hawthorn would be as dangerous and as effective as Jack Gunston in my view. once we get our engine room firing, Howe will be an extremely dangerous player.

WADA/ASADA can appeal, but my understanding is that it would be to the Court of Arbitration in sport, an internationally based sporting body. There is very little room for local politics to influence them. On these issues, if you look at the history, both here and internationally, WADA should be described as "activist" in these matters. Very little escapes their attention if they believe local,bodies are being lenient for any reason. I believe anything less than two year bans on Essendon, given their consistently obstructionist behaviour, would be seen by WADA IMHO as lenient. Little, hird, Thompson will not escape. The players will get penalties, so will the officials, it might just come in a different form. It is very interesting to follow the utterances of John Fahey, ex premier of NSW and immediate past global president of WADA. He I think could, or should, be seen as the unofficial spokesperson for WADA in Australia. He has been very consistent in insisting that the law should take its course and Essendon will attract harsh penalties because of the systematic nature of their drug abuse, and their subsequent obstructionist behaviour after they were found out (neither of which applied to Cronulla). Essendon and Hird won't escape with soft penalties, of that I am extremely confident

MY MAIL: Heard this from a very good friend of mine whose client has been told several times by Mcartin's brother (who his client is friends with) that St. Kilda have assured Paddy that they will be taking him Pick 1. This client of his has been told on more than one occasion by Paddy's brother, that this is what St. Kilda has said. Whether this is still the case after all the media hype etc. on Petracca, who knows. No riddles, no definite truth. Just what i was told. Take it as you will.

I think it would be best for young Roos to go to a club where his dad isn't the head coach

Good choice of career, a prerequisite is you have to be a bit of a [censored]

Ash, it's not clear yet what WADA's position is over McDevitt's decision not to go down the AOD9604 path. Since there's been no listing of players on the register of findings, no infraction notices and no deals to be ratified yet, we really don't know how WADA will react to the AOD9604 thing. Whilst it didn't object or appeal over the NRL deals, there is no certainty that it won't take the AOD9604 matter to CAS if there is evidence available that the drug was administered to players. In any event, I wouldn't be hanging my hat on that supposed "chink" because it's what probably broke the case against Essendon in the first place. Dank was too smart by half and thought he had found a way around the WADA Code by his querying of the status of AOD9604. He would have gotten away with TB4 as well but he stuffed it up by not understanding that TB4 is S2 and not S0. In the eyes of most people, the smugness of Jobe's admission of the ingestion of an S0 peptide ain't a good look and will possibly not help his cause in the long run. Nor will, I suspect, the current argy bargy about the players' lawyers advising them not to even consider making deals at this stage. They really can't have their cakes and eat them and by that I mean that if they're prepared to have the cases tested in the appropriate tribunal (which is their right) they can't turn around much later and try to claim discounts because they supposedly co-operated or, in view of Job's boasts about ingesting an S0 peptide that's banned; how on earth can the no significant fault line be seriously argued? I suspect the players are in WADA's gunsights. They need to very well-advised as to the steps they take next.

Next he will be referred to as victoria's dreyfus - lol

I remember back in the day i.e 2008, he had some huge wraps on him as a key forward. He kicked a bag in the AGS/APS game and there were some even comparing him favourably to Jack Watts. I remember thinking back then how great it would be to draft both of them and get the twin tall towers thing operating. I don't think that way any more.

Doesn't matter if he gets the third or fourth defender, when he's closely physically attended, he hardly gets near the ball. His talents are there when there is space around him and when he has a CLEAR run at the leap and mark. His one on one physicality is very poor, and up to this stage, he can just be physically negated up forward. Which is why his best footy this year was intercept marking (space)or helping out as the second person of a double team. The long bomb speccy scenario, whilst it would be great, is not in JH's kit bag.

If Petracca is taken I would seriously consider Laverde at 3. Pies are all over him so he must be very good for them to want to take him at 5.

Why? Every year we have the best 3-5 18 year olds and we are told that these are the best and to pick anyone else is a reach. And every year, the best player(s) come from outside those players and from the following half a dozen picks. I don't like the way the 'consensus' ruins this club's drafting. The consensus on the 'consensus' should be that it is almost always wrong.

MAYBE ...... c'mon...who hasn't been wondering ??

maybe if saints take Mccartin, we take Brayshaw & Lever, leaving the Petracca to GWS, & next year we grab one of their Mids. they can't play all their players in one team of 22 rebound drafting

Well, when any other player at the club can win three Blueys on the trot, maybe they can qualify for the same offer.

1994 60 goals 15 Brownlow votes 3rd in the B&F

The Essendon players' legal team is being paid by Essendon ~ Lawyers to meet players over ASADA show cause notices If he who pays the piper calls the tune I think it might be time for the players to decide to change their musical tastes very quickly. That's not a suggestion of impropriety on the part of the current legal team but this is a situation that calls for complete independence of the legal teams. For the players' sake one would hope their chances of receiving the best deal possible haven't been compromised already by the current relationship. Edit: Chip Le Grand of the Australian seems to have close connections to Essendon and if this article accurately reflects the advice being given to the players, it strengthens my opinion that they need to get independent advice and do it quickly - Essendon players told not to rush into any deals over ASADA letters

1994 Schwarz is comfotably the best player I have ever seen play in the red and blue and that piece of play at 11:25 is the most incredible thing I have seen on a football field just about.

Yes but its nice to relive the memories. 20 years ago! Wow! We had great forwards but don't forget the backline! Prymke killed Kernahan that day

What a side, what a player, what a waste the last 8 years have been.

Proof these guys will never learn

Panos - big bodied midfielder that dominated the SANFL????

Pay the man what he wants!

More interested in our 2015 finals fixture

Howe is only 78 games into his career, 24 years old. Reads the ball in the air at an elite level, runs, intercepts, and has a crack. He is the least of our worries, is progressing well and can now play almost any position on the ground. As melbourne improve, he will become elite in my opinion

JH,spent most of the year learning how to switch. Also learnt how to run both ways. Coaching staff waiting to see if hard work has paid off. Revisit this players value after another 35-40 games.

I haven't looked at any of highlight packages. Mostly because that is what they are, highlights. I have watched a lot of u/18s for about 15 odd years when a friend became an assistant coach at one club and another the coach of another. My nephews also played a few years each and a close family friend played for vic metro. I do not think I'm am expert on who will go where but I have a good idea on the players. The ones mentioned in this thread I think I can comment on. I have seen them all play more than a handful of times Lever in my opinion would have been the first pick if he didn't do his knee. He didn't play in the midfield as a 17 year old but a lot of 17 year olds don't really get that chance because the coaching can be based around 18 year olds trying to get drafted. He may well have played there on occasion this year if he had played if not more permanently. Not really different to petracca who also didn't play mid last year. Lever has however done a lot of training with the mids in his rehab. I think I would pick him at 3 but a serious knee injury has me second guessing. McCartin is very competitive and likes to bash and crash. He is strong and I'm not in the corner where people say he is so much bigger than the backs. Stronger yes, size maybe a bit, but guys like Boyd, daniher, Patton, even wright are/were much bigger than their opponents, mostly because of height. He had a lot of niggly injuries this year which prevented him from showing his best. A recruiting friend of mine told me just after the national carnival that the doggies rate him as a 10 year player and would pick him at 1. He has great hands and is quite quick off the mark so he can create distance and hold marks. He is strong like frawley was strong at the same age. I think he will play some games next year, like hogan would have played this year minus injury and Boyd playing some games for gws. It's not like we have some gun forwards keeping him out and Dawes will miss a few (just basing this on what might happen) and hogan won't play 22 games (I don't believe anyway). Brayshaw is a certainty. He is the best pure midfielder available. (Heeney goes ok). He works hard from start to finish and doesn't give up. He grinds his opponents if they try to go with him. He played on petracca late in the season and in my opinion got the better of him. Great tackler as he goes with his whole body instead of just his arms. He also is a goal kicking mid and we need those desparately. I don't believe stkilda will pick him at 1 but he could go 1. Petracca played midfield this year after playing as a forward last year. Watching him play he seems to go to the right places but I've been told he has worked very hard at this. Has good vision and always seems to get his hands free when tackled. Another mid who knows were the goals are. I think he will go at 1 but I'm hoping we get the petracca, Brayshaw double as we need mids. Laverde I have seen probably the most. He has tricks upon tricks and pace to burn. My issue with him at 3 for us is that I haven't seen him play as a pure mid. Wing, halfback,halfforward are the places I've seen him most. The kid can do anything though. This year watching him play he really reminded me of Sicily who was drafted by the hawks last year from the same club. Wright is big and can kick it a long way. I'm not sold on him for us. He doesn't go as hard at it as McCartin. He is an ok mark but that might not be the case at afl level against guys as big as you (Not saying it still wont be the case). He does have the ability to influence the game from the forward line and if its not working for him he can go in the ruck and influence the game around the ground. I'm not anti picking him if we do. My preference is petracca, Brayshaw the same as everyone I guess but I don't believe it will work out that way. Having watched recruiting from up close I believe we will get the best result we can on the information that is known now. I've had dealings with our recruiters in the past and I believe we have the right people as compared to the past.

I know that Lyon was outstanding the day we beat the Dogs in that '94 semi-final (yep, he kicked 10), but the undoubted highlight was Schwarz. I don't think I've seen any Melbourne player at CHF carve up an opposition like that. It was bloody spectacular.

Was forced into being a bomber as a kid. Then I saw The Ox at the G and I walked out a demon. Thanks Ox. I Think.