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Ok - hopefully this appears somewhere on this thread. 1. Hogan - It was a toss up for BOG for me between Hogan, Salem, and Viney. He was so dominant. I thought Dunn was outstanding today and Hogan was just too strong, too smart. I really cannot express how lucky we are to have this boy. 3. Salem - The contested marking was outstanding, but the highlight was breaking a number of tackles and weaving his way through traffic. Bold prediction - he will be top 3 B&F this year. The boys want the ball in his hands. 4. Watts - A really good game. Probably in the best dozen. Thought he played the lead up role well and when he was in the Blue team (the better one) he looked all class as the delivery to him was much better and then he was delivering it really well to Hogan et al. He will play round 1 in the forward line. 7. Viney - His tackle on Wagner was amazing. He grabs him by the hips, lifts him above his head and then just holds him and squats. He was prolific and hard at it. Lock him in for the Bluey this year. 10. Brayshaw - He just seemed a class above with Salem and Viney than anyone else in the midfield. Oliver was having his own way and then went on to Brayshaw in the last quarter and Brayshaw just killed him. It really felt like no one was on Brayshaw all day, just had time and space. 11. Gawn - Dominant, and really didnt have any competition. I was impressed at how he took that and really looked to have an impact around the ground. The forward line work was quite good. 12. Tyson - I know the reports had him as good, must have done most of his work in close as I didnt see a lot of him. When I did he was Tyson, strong at the contest but not as polished as others. Maybe as I'm not noticing him means he is in and under each time? 13. Oliver - Cannot believe what I saw. After the first half I had him locked for round 1. Played a different role in the second half where he struggled to impact the game. Tackling machine (maybe 8-10 for the day?) and loved the hard ball. I really noticed in the first half the time he had on his hands. It really felt like people decided not to touch him when he had it in the first quarter. Could be something really special. He is seriously big. At one stage he was taking on a player in close and came off second (due to height) and I thought ah well, Vanders is strong, until who I thought was Vanders turned around and it was Frost. He looked similar size to Frost. He is a seriously big boy. 14. Dunn - Is still the best one-on-one defender on our list. Great all day, just Hogan was better. 15. Stretch - he was on the opposite wing to the fans so we didnt see a lot. When we did we saw pace and a really good boot. I dont know if I have him in the 22 after today but he is close. 16. Kent - the hardness and the speed were great. Although he didn't do much, he was dangerous and will be a good weapon for us this year. 17. Frost - Will be our second forward as he presented, rucked, went for the hard ball. Yes he was dropping some marks and his kicking was a little off at times, but the ingredients are there. He showed enough for me to be happy with him in there as the others develop. 20. Garland - Great roost for a rushed behind. Played a really good linkage game up back. Thought his skill level was up and comfortably beat whoever he was on. 21. Pedersen - Had a good moment in the 4th but wasn't really in the game. He needed to impact this pre-season and I didn't see anything that would make me pick him in our best 25 22. Michie - Some really nice things but on the other side of the oval a lot of the time. Enough to show why we gave him a rookie spot. 25. McDonald of the Tom Variety - Played as a midfielder/wing/half back at times. I cant remember him having a one-on-one in the second half. He was really working on being a bull at the gate and pushing through. Really interesting to see where he plays this year. 26. Weiderman - still has a football sized hole in his chest from a bullet from Dunn. Not strong enough yet but he has the skills (marking, kicking, leading, IQ) to be a serious player in the forward line. I thought he was the 4th best forward today behind Hogan, Watts, Frost. 28. McDonald O - this boy will play. His battles with Weiderman were outstanding. It was great seeing these two go at it. Oscar is really impacting contests and he seems as if he has good knowledge of where the ball is going and can peel off his man. Weiderman and McDonald will be better as they will grow together as serious competitors and players. 29. Hunt - Blow me down and call me Betsy. Where did this come from. Seriously, when did this boy become a player? He was in the top 10 for the day and if today (and previous reports) are anything to go by, he will play round 1. He 'hunts' the ball and is just hard at it for an outside type. I dont even know if he is an outside type. He just saw ball, got ball, run away with ball. 30. ANB - On the wing on Grimes most of the day. Ran all day, disposed of the football ok, tackled well, competed well. He is just a footballer's footballer and if I said to you, he was ANB, you can imagine his game. I really like him and think that we are a better team with him here, but he is just going to be a Brad Sewell, not a Luke Hodge. 31. Grimes - Slow first quarter where he struggled with the pace (ANB wore him like a glove). Second quarter he was probably BOG for the quarter. Second half again some really great things and then some times where you just want him to do something special. I think again like ANB, he does his job and he is good at it. He is a good AFL player and will be in the round 1 team as he is in our best 22. A star, no, but a really honest footballer that we all want to do well. 32. Bugg - In it a fair bit, on the wing as well. We saw what weve been told, scrappy and up for a fight. There were some nice passages from him, but these were more tackles and handballs in close rather than game breaking plays. 33. Spencer - was hurt but mostly hurt by the gap between him and Gawn. Was good in drills but in the game just seemed small. 34. Mitchell King - I really liked his game. He presented well, competed well against Gawn and Frost. Project player and am looking forward to see how he goes in the future. 35. Ben Kennedy - Locked in the dreamteam now. He should have had a beautiful running goal but shanked it. Really loved the way he went about extracting the ball today. Was one of the best in the first half, petered off as the game went on. 36. Garlett - Good forward pressure and dangerous. Lock him in for another 30-40 goals this year. 37. Vanders - this boy is special. He just seems to be in everything and is just so strong. There are so many like Vanders on our list now and we are better for it. There was a great bit of play that went Salem - Brayshaw - Watts - Vanders - Hogan and it felt like 5 first rounders marking and disposing of the ball. I'm very happy with his development. 39. Jetta - I am sorry that I ever doubted that you would line up in Round 1. Enjoy another season of killing small forwards across the league. Tenacious and great rebounding. 42. Wagner - Much better than I thought he would be. Was busy early and was in the play a lot. Can run with the maul and got into good positions. Interesting to see how he goes this year. 43. Harmes - thought was good but wasn't blow away with him. He did what he could do and you can see the talent difference between him and our 'top' rounders. He competes hard and hope he has another good season. 44. Smith - not much to say. Really don't remember him in the game other than Dunn coaching him into position. Good skills early on in the drills, but project player. 45. Matt Jones - Listen, I know that people were saying he was having a great pre-season but I didn't see it in the game. He was in and out of the game at the best of times and doesnt look like he belongs. Thank you for your service, I appreciate it. All the best with your future career.

First time post, I didn't want to mis anything so just made some quick notes that may be slighlty out of order; Weideman good hands and nice field kicking to position - already bigger than I thought he was, gawn as others had mentioned is looking super fit, hogan standing five meters from a trainer who's kicking low hard balls at him and his hands are phenomenal doesn't drop one and they are coming in quick and they just stick, first goal long ball to the goal square jesse nearly takes the mark between two spoilers Kennedy stays down and gets the crumb and goal for the blue team, watts 55m out takes a mark in space acts like he's having a shot drills a beautiful low ball to someone in space who's set shot hits the post white team, garlett boundary line poster blue, hunt great kick to gawn 45 m miss to left just behind blue, tom mac spoil behind white, anb second nice delivery from in traffic to someone in space, Kennedy to hogan to harmes good set shot 40 meters out bit of an angle goal blue, anb good tackle in front of us, mongrel kick forward weideman good chest mark 45 out beautiful action another poster white team, oliver two nice strong tackles, gawn dominant early in the rick, watts chasing hard two good tackles, oscar bad turnover in space to the opposition, pedo dropped chest mark, clayton oliver nice turn on traffic long ball in to the forward fifty, Viv michie nice goal ran around one 45 out. Kent nice run and carry to quick for viney, best passage of the day so far, Vanders stron mark instant dish to running grimes who spots up hogan in space in the middle to garlett back to Vanders who kept running courageous diving spoil from Dunn just stopped what would of been a super passage of play. Kent 80m run down that just missed, Vanders again strong, grimes good tackle should been ball umpires pretty laxed, clarry again strong in the contest nearly breaking free when he should of had no chance to do so, even when tackled by two still kept his feet, Weidman nice pick up turn and handball from a bouncing ball, tyson to Vanders 45 out slight angle to the left one behind blue, anb had a bit of it and using it well, grimes had it a lot and also using it well and running hard, Kent good spoil watts another good tackle just misses Kent inside fwd 50 and out of bounds, anb snap in traffic around body spoiled through for a behind white, again good ball movement from blue salem, Vanders and a few others involved in a nice chain from back line that ended with an uncharacteristic dropped mark from tyson 40 m out directly in front. Nev jetta and Dunn good first half, grimes again good handball under pressure keeps running to space inside fifty should of been his shot at goal poor kick to him jusssst out of reach, salem beautiful pick up, run an lace out pace to watts on the lead good mark 45 out on front poster blue, second half what's fwd, goal white team non melbourne player, awesome contest mark salem quick inside ball that opens up the play kick to watts who nudges his opponent out pick up kicks to Vanders on the fifty quick kick to hogan on the boundary 35 out set shot goal. Another white goal from a turnover to a casey player, salem ball use amazing, tyson catches someone holding the ball centre handball to tom mac holding the ball, nev beautiful kick fwd to pedo hands to clayton 50 out just misses crowd thought it was a goal, another nice piece of play, intercept mark salem from jetta kick, salem to Vanders mid field to a hard running jesse to a hard running grimes on the goal line goal blue, clearance viney clean tap to brayshaw who recovers a poor viney handball, to vander behind from 55, Kennedy good spoil runs to goal chase down hunt misses everything, Kent out the back to hogan in the goal square good attempts to spoil by Dunn but mark and goal hogan blue, viney getting his hands on it a bit and using it well, watts the same, salem has been best on ground another good contested mark and beautiful kick, Kent pushing up to the wing, Tom mac good intercept mark handball to garlo 70 bomb to the goal line touched through, good mark inside 50 pedo slight angle pushed to the right behind white team, watts marks 60 out spots up frost on the lead 40 in front bad miss left behind blue, jesse good intercept mark handball to frost check side goal to blue 30 m out, spencer off since first quarter boots off, clayton good acceleration then turn over, anb good clearance, salem again involved twice and sets up a running viney to someone who goes long to jesse good contested mark in the goal square, kicks his 3rd goal blue, salem is on fire and the crowd are loving his work, blue ball movement been really good all day another chain and quick switch from full back to jesse free kick from Dunn push near the boundary 30 out goal for blue, jesses 4th, harmes been spending a bit of time in middle, great tommy mac link up after spoil three touches that leads to out bounds fwd fifty, watts again in space marks and just misses Kent, gawn a couple of nearly marks near goal today in big packs, viney goal from clearance inside 50, gawn nice tap to brayshaw to viney to grimes another nice pass to a diving lead mark. Clayton holds the ball up and releases cleverly, player kicks to the leading weid, good mark on the lead turn kick to dangerous spot stretch gathers and goals, watts again to salem another good kick, good tackle hunt, Wagner turnover, after training. Some running, grimes viney Vanders and tommy mac leading the way, grimes really really impressed me today. Salem was unbelievable and was getting everyone very excited, gawn won the ruck contests handsomely and the only thing that stopped him havig a really dominant day was a missed goal that was kickable and two or three nearly big pack marks where the odds were against him, Kent didn't have a lot of it but was very very good, fast and precise with his kicking, was chasing hard and tackling well too, Vanders was excellent he was really running hard to space and getting in good positions and linking up his running seems to have gone to another level, Neville jetta was excellent, garlo and Dunn too, tommy mac got in to it the new the game went and viney had a big second half. Tyson was in it a lot, anb also had his share of it today and was good, oscar mac didn't have a big influence and was involve in a bad turnover under little o no pressure, michie kicked a really nice goal from just inside 50 after running around a player, watts was excellent today and was definitely in the best few out there today. Kennedy did a few good things he intercepted a ball and went charging in to the open fifty and hunt swallowed up the ground enough to pressure him as make him miss everything from an angle, hunt really impressed me today too, I hadn't seen much of him and I can really see why others have been talking up his ability he's got a really nice kick and his speed is awesome; I can see him playing more games than not this year,

Many thanks Deeznutz for a comprehensive first post. I have taken the liberty of editing my quote of your post it so it is a bit easier to read

You just want to drive off being clearer on a few things after an intra like this. I won't go into detail of the match, although I reckon they still need to move the ball quicker, but will mention individual players. For me Salem was a easily best on ground. Pure class off half back. Beautiful distributor Hogan is a tad rusty with his timing in marking contests, but still finished with 9 marks and 4 goals in 80 minutes of footy (20 minutes each quarter with no time on) The more I see Harmes the more I like him. He's not out of place in the midfield and is a very smart lead when he takes a stint in the forward 50. He's best 22 for me It's a make or break year for Watts, but I liked his game today and really like him as the third tall forward. Missed a couple he'd normally kick Oscar made the odd mistake, but he's coming on really well. Will play plenty of senior footy and has better skills than his Brother (who was horrible today) Gawn is going to have a great year, but like a lot of talls at this time of year, dropped a few marks he'll be taking in 6 weeks Gus does everything well, although wasn't prolific Viney will go to another level in 2016. Looking better than last year I like Josh Wagner. He's a good size, is composed and a lovely left foot kick. He also competes well Billy got a fair bit of it, but made a few uncharacteristic mistakes today I love Tyson. I know he occasionally hangs on to it a bit long, but he's also a very smart and clean footballer. Will keep getting better and looks bigger Jetta was very good Hunt is relishing the switch to a half-back flank and getting more touches. His speed stood out and he generally uses it ok, but can torch the odd one Weideman is a mile off. He's just not strong enough to even get in the right position to compete in marking contests. Needs plenty of time and I don't see many games at all in 2016 vandenberg was busy. I love Vanders, my only query is his kicking, but he generally uses it well I'll finish with number 13. Oliver is a fantastic competitor and has a tonne of footy smarts. He's great in congestion and makes really good decisions quickly with his hands. He's got a magnificent physique and is already looking bigger than 3 months ago (particularly his legs). I thought Oliver was a fair way off the best 22 with the way they've been managing him, and he may miss the first few games, but trust me he won't be out of the team for long. And like Brayshaw, when he gets in he won't be coming out. He is going to be a fantastic midfielder for the MFC. He was quieter when he went to the half-forward flank (manned by Hunt 187cm, who he was noticeably taller than – has grown – at least 188cm now) Three things we need to move up the ladder (including no major injuries): We really need the second tall forward to stand up and kick 20+ goals (whether that be Frost, Pedersen, or Dawes) We need the midfield to take the next step through the likes of Viney, vandenBerg, Tyson, and Brayshaw We need the game-plan to gel, i.e. quicker ball movement, more inside 50's, start attacks closer to our goal, press harder, etc

I went down, just my quick opinions- Harmes in everything, tough clean and creative in the midfield Watts linking up high, a lot of long leads and delivering to the deep Fwds. This role suits his game Salem superstar, deadset gun across half back, use was top quality Kennedy looks sharp, fast, and cracks in.didn't get heaps of it, but would be a contributor OMac is a player, he will get games this year. Kent Gun, involved in everything. Damaging left, tough and racked up possessions through middle and fwd Tmac holding the ball 3 times, but was good Grimes was good, he is best 22 I saw hogan kick 4 Tyson gets a lot of contested ball, didn't use it real well though If Gawn goes down were buggered, he got a lot of ball and dominated taps but had no competition

Made the 45minute trip down to Casey although was five minutes late because I was trying to figure out if exit 24 or 25 was Clyde Rd - what is wrong with having the road name as well as the No. Ditto it would have been nice to have the names of the Casey boys on their backs today. Name and number is the go. Contest was a bit like Carlton v Hawthorn last night. Apart from Dunn, Kent and Watts playing for the magoos - it was almost our first team versus our second team, so it just took a little bit of time for the extra class to bear fruit (a la Hawthorn). In fact you could even say that once Watts and Kent moved to the seniors forward line at half time, the seniors got on top. Up until then the greasy early conditions meant that there were plenty of skill errors. The two shining beacons in the first half were Dunny - who was absolutely brilliant caralling Hoges and at the same time instructing his young defence. His kicking was precise etc, etc. the fact that he played all game in the twos was clearly to make sure that Jesse was fair dinkum and anyone suggesting he is on the outer is a nuffer. The other clear talent was Salem, who, after quarter-time just dominated everything and his precise kicking was only matched by Watts (after half time) and T-Mac (yes, I kid you not). Harmes scored the first goal that I saw and teams up well with his buddy Hogan, but it was a bit of a point-fest until a brilliant evasive goal by Michie off a Kent outlay. Eventually once Spencer went off at half time and any sense of ruck equilibrium ended, the weight of ball told as Gawn was able to just palm it down to Viney, Tyson or VB. By then Bugg had been sent back up to the seniors, which also meant that poor old Neal-Bullen and Stretch were left to try and dismantle the seniors. As a result Hoges got on the end of a few after half time - I had him down for four goals and Casey's No.8 did likewise on a couple of counters by the magoos. Observations on players: The surprise (to some) non-players today were the skipper, Mitch White (I never read what kept him out last week from training but clearly it's not minor - back-related from lifting too big a weight is my guess), Terlich (ankle didn't come up) and Hulett. Trenners, Vince, Dawes, Harry O did not play as expected. Clearly Roosy/Goody is unclear yet on which are the better forward link men to go with Hoges, Frost and Garlett. Harmes and Kennedy were lively in the first half but ultimately just one goal doesn't read well. I'm sure both will be in the 26-man squad to play Port though, but I though Watts and Kent clearly won on points when they got their chance in the second half. You have to assume that both Stretch and Neal-B will have to work their way into this team and are down the queue. Hunt was given a really good go as the running defender in the seniors and you could tell he's in vogue with coaches at the moment as he chased hard Ben Kennedy and forced him to miss when a goal on the run was begging. Hunt's kicking still lack the quality of Salem, or even Jetta, but I suspect he'll get a really good go in the pre-season comp and you have to think he could be a Rd 1 prospect. The other blondie Wagner is a bit better in the air and could be a chance down the track if Harry O can't get his ankle right. For once when I've attended Oliver was playing and his attack on the ball is superb (No Jimmy T here) and part of the reason why the magoos were competitive, but he still has a bit of work to do on his disposal. He might get a game off the bench in the pre-season comp, but barring injury to our main group, won't be playing AFL Rd 1 - IMO. The Weed was quiet today which is not unexpected - he was playing in the magoos - as delivery was never going to be precise to him. Wanted a cheap kick on the wing a couple of times, so still very much a project player with learning to do. Matt Jones got his chance ahead of Stretch today before being swapped back to twos in second half and was lively at times, but didn't do enough. Bugg probably didn't get many disposals either but it seemed like every time there was a congestion and a tackle - he was involved. Will play v Port and probably Rd 1. Grimes played wing early and then went forward so you can forget him being used in the Crossy type role. His smarts saw him involved quite a bit but I suspect Roosy wants him as back-up, as clearly VB and Brayshaw are ahead of him as the high half-forwards. O-Mac got the gig as full-back in the seniors (because Dunny was required on Hoges) and his kicking is still a little suss - he has however improved massively from last year. Col was more attacking this week, even almost kicked a supergoal from 70m out. Lock him in for Port and most likely Rd 1. Dom T turned it over at times , but on other occasions was exceptional. He just reminds me so much of Hodgey. He has an amazing ability to win the ball from the scrums, it's just whether he can make the right choice to release. The same could be said of VB. He likes to go inboard and his kicking is just not always flat and hard enough - the case in point was when he sent a hospital pass to Salem, who was crushed but got up to set up a Hoges goal. The only other comment is that I don't quite get what is going on with T_Macs shoulder. Sporting the No.5, he at times looked like a young Schwarter charging like a bull out of defence and his kicking was ultra impressive. But then he gets pinged, as he did by Harmesy in the second-half, and calls for the play to stop like a prima donna. I'm assuming he's got an Ablett-style stinger that is causing him a few issues, but only of a minor nature.

Thanks for the post. Can I suggest you locate the return/paragraph key on your keyboard,. That will make it a lot easier to read

I’ll try not to repeat what has already been mentioned, reports from tappysquads, deeznutz (my eyes thank you for the edit binman!), Deespicable, Dee-licious, et al have summed it up really well. A few other observations: I actually love Christian Salem, for someone who gets as much footy as he does, and under pressure, his disposal is sublime. And he’s an excellent mark for his size. I’ve read the thread on bigfooty as well, and Grimes was certainly not as bad as what has been suggested. He did exactly what Roos said and moved between wing and half-forward, and on today’s effort he was better than Stretch, ANB, M. Jones and even Kent (who did a couple of good things but was reasonably quiet). He wore no. 27 after halftime and was the one who kicked a goal by getting on the end of some good ball movement (as far as I could tell Hulett didn’t play). Tyson had a dog of a first half. Sometimes he tries to look for the second or third option when he just doesn’t have the time. To his credit he kept at it and was much better after half-time. I’m not sure how he is regarded within the inner sanctum of the club, but based on what happens on-field, VDB is my sneaky for the leadership group. He is very vocal around the ground, particularly at stoppages, and you can tell that he has played a lot more ‘senior’ footy than many of his younger teammates. In my opinion, his willingness to work both ways and actually make a physical impact when the ball is in his vicinity is why he will be one of the first picked every week. Jack Watts was ok as the link man/third tall forward. His disposal moving the ball forward was impressive as usual. He took one mark today (granted it was on the opposite wing to where I was standing so I didn’t have the best view) that was exactly how I’m trying to teach my son not to mark the ball. It was like one of those really casual chest marks where you catch it on your hands away from your body- the sort that you don’t see in a game situation because if you drop it you look like a dill. As I said, I was a long way away from it so maybe I’m overstating how poor it looked. Garland was good as the most experienced backman on the a-team. He was also very vocal working to position blokes like Hunt and Oliver when setting up the zone and at stoppages. He did get caught out on a couple of ‘fast breaks’, but his disposal was good and he was able to make some effective spoils to stop the other team moving the ball forward. Although Gawn did win the majority of the hit-outs, not too many were to his teammates’ direct advantage- this may have been because N. Jones and Bernie were missing. Despite what happened last year against St Kilda, he still loves that tap over his head, and at one point it was interesting to hear VDB and Max having a decent ‘discussion’ about positioning. The best bit of ruckwork today was actually a centre tap from Frost to Viney that I think led to a goal. That being said, Pedersen seemed to generally have the better of Frost in the ruck when they were opposed to each other. There was not much shirking going on- there were quite a few loud thwacks where players met head-on, as Joel Smith can attest. All in all, it was a good hit-out and it is obvious to see that the skill level and decision making of the players has developed and is still improving. To go with the work that has been done on contested ball and defensive positioning over the last two years, I am tentatively optimistic about the season.

I think you need to put yourself to bed and have a good rest...

Roos just interviewed now on SEN: - no injuries today...one small niggle but I didn't catch who it was. - Gawn terrific today. - Salem in best 3 today (maybe BOG) along with VanD and Tyson. - Kennedy and Bugg played well today and performance have spiked since Christmas. They are both 'competitors' - Oliver was fantastic around the ball. Weidman was very smart in the forward line...(I think he meant he has good footy IQ). - Casey players did well...Plapp doing a great job and they got our game plan really well. - Need to temper Melb supporter fans' expectations of Hogan...it is only his second year and needs to be a team effort. - Consistency of mids to improve for us to be more dangerous.

My dad is thinking of heading along, he'll probably be wearing flares too.

When Jesse was interviewed on MMM late last year he even made a point of saying how much Jack "loves the club". Viney is the last one I'm worried about.

Can we just turn this into a thread where we make Barrett memes?

Pretty sure the club went on a HFLC diet, not paleo. Pat yourself on the back if you like though.

My boy Oliver (I'm claiming him) having a real decent crack already!! From MFC Twitter: "Clayton Oliver loves the contested footy! Been very busy in the last few minutes."

This is genuinely the dumbest rumour I have ever heard.

That is Wagner up in the air.

I can't vouch for this but it could be a secret ploy by the tech heads at Demonland to put opposition club scouts off the scent.

I don't think Kennedy Harris played either. I went along, the first game of footy I've been to since the Swans Demons Final in '87. There were too many turnovers for my liking. The skill levels improved after half time. I saw Petracca after the game: he is a beast of a lad. Hope he can make it, we need some beastliness in the side. I was very impressed with Hunt, Jetta, Vandenberg, Kent, Salem, Gartlett, Dunn and Hogan after half Time. Tommy Mac got caught way too often, Gawn didn't hold one mark and I liked Grimes's game. Viney is an absolute gun. I also liked the vibe of the players. They're committed to each other. So good signs, a fair way to go but the addition of Heritier, Dawes, N Jones, Petracca, Trengrove and Vince they should make us more competitive this year.

And Mark Jamar's wife Dulcie gave birth to a baby boy this week so the production line of father/son ruckmen continues!

This is what Jack said in his interview today. Viney said he was hellbent on helping Melbourne transform into “a successful footy team” long term. Doesn't sound like his leaving to me?

Again with the 'high standards' at Port. Really. I know it's lip service this newclub but I'd say the standards at the Dees would be the same. Maybe little Jimmy just didn't know it. Fmd I'm tired of players blaming anyone but themselves. I don't see Trengove pointing the finger. No, he just took same said finger,extracted it,worked his arse off to get back amongst it. It's all in your head Toumpas. Enjoy Adelaide, playing state league. It's all your cut for I feel. About your standard Jimmy

Thanks. I basically went on this diet, (calling it Paleo) after I read about Shane Watson and the Cricket Team Dr going on it and raving about it and then reading about the team going on it. I lost about 10kg's and it made a hell of a difference to my stamina on the bike. Don't know if that was because of the diet or not having to push the extra 10kg's up the hills. I thought it was both. A neighbour up the road went on the Paleo diet 3 yrs ago and has been on it every since. He lost 15kg's and has kept it off. Also had bad arthritis in his hands which is gone plus was on high level blood pressure tablets long term and is now off them completely. As I understand it, it is a matter of actual fact that Jack Fitzpatrick's life was changed going on this diet at the Club. It completely transformed his diabetes to the point that he only had to take insulin once a day at the end of the day instead of having to do blood tests constantly throughout the day including during games. He's not a mouse so seems to have worked ok for him. If he was a mouse maybe the Uni study would be accurate. My wife complains about not losing weight while she goes to dieticians and takes weight loss pills etc and sits there looking at me doing paleo and losing 10kg's. But she knocks it and says its bad. Proof is in the pudding. My friend up the road who lost 15kg's has a wife who has done the same thing. Hangs it on him for doing a fad diet and she is way over weight taking all sorts of ridiculous weight loss supplements etc that cost a fortune and then just puts it all back on. The only people knocking the LCHF or Paleo diets seem to be the ones that never try it. I've never heard anyone going on them knocking them.

Is anyone else having issues reading this thread?

Got a txt from a friend that Clayton Oliver is putting on an impressive show.

Jimmy and his family are not very complimentary about MFC, and made particular mention to my contact, of Roosy being "not very approachable" and of their boy not getting enough support (Im paraphrasing here as i cant remember the exact words used). Some other stuff i heard make me very comfortable with the decision to trade him. Not much lost i feel.

Nah she's working

Is anyone flying their drone to the game?

am or pm? I have organised flares.

Grimes was ok, haters gonna hate, Anyone who wears Hassa Mann's number always gets a free pass from me. Having said that, this was the first time I have seen Hunt live. I was pleasantly surprised, I expect that he will get a few NAB games, and we will see how he goes from there. Viney, vandenBerg and Tyson were a cut above. Tyson's disposal is a bit of a worry though. Salem just oozes class. Harmes and Kent swapped teams in the second half. I would not be surprised to find it was because the coaching staff wanted Hogan to do something other than kicking it to Harmes evey time he got it. Gawn was very good. Spencer was ok up to the time he went off. Dunny will be very glad that he doesn't have to play on Hogan too often. I didn't know who #35 was; I have since found out it was Kennedy - good hit out. It was all a bit scrappy, but early days.

You must have a pretty high opinion of Viney.

When I saw the thread title I panicked, thinking maybe he'd picked up a serious injury today. Mods should change thread title and/or delete because no sane person would choose to believe this drivel.

Its quite scary that an 18 year old is already bigger then a 5th year season AFL midfielder.. Could see him filling out into a Josh Kennedy type body when he gets more Pre Seasons into him.

Fitzpatrick was Fitzpatrick. We know he's quick and sometimes the marks stick and sometime they don't. His skills are horrible and if one sails through it's more by luck than design. And no, he didn't take "a few nice grabs", he took one and nearly made a mess of a straight forward mark. Frost is a better player than Fitzpatrick. Max King is a better talent than Fitzpatrick. Oscar McDonald has better skills for a defender. But yeah, there will always be those on here who decry ordinary footballers being given their marching orders. We spent years not turning the lsit over and when we do there will be unhappy supporters. Like Hightower, Addam Maric, Cheney, Gysberts, Morton, Blease, Chris Johnson, McLean, and others I've missed, I don't believe Fitzpatrick will come back to haunt us. BUT even if it did, it wouldn't worry me. I'd rather one mistake than a warehouse of list cloggers.

I was lucky enough to have the day off and get down to Casey this morning.A few thoughts on what I saw: Hogan was slow in the first quarter,he was dominated by Dunn in the first half.In the second quarter Hogan started getting frustrated and his curses could easily be heard from the sidelines.In the second half Hogan got out of first gear and and played great kicking a couple of goals each quarter Viney;best on ground The new guys;a lot to look forward to in the future Watts played okay but still needs to back himself with his set shots vanders is looking like a souped up version of his 2015 self The best I've ever seen Jetta play Dunn had an intimidating presence commanding his defenders into position,telling them to man up and giving them feedback Despite the positives there were still the usual skill errors and bad decisions.We are better than last year but there is still work to do.After today I still have a question mark about this years season but if we are competitive and consistent,then we should continue to climb the ladder.

Correct and I don't think it was hard core LCHF either. My missus is a Dietician and has tried the LCHF 'lifestyle' since the start of the year to satisfy her own curiosity. She now says that she feels ripped off by her degree and can totally see the benefits of this eating lifestyle - one of which has been 8 kg weight loss.

Melbourne FC ‏@melbournefc 1h1 hour ago A nice passage of play: Kennedy runs down the wing and finds Hogan. He quickly turns and pops the ball to Harmes. Harmes slots the set shot. Given the bro love between Hogan and Harmes both would have enjoyed that piece of play! MFC twitter feed indicates that Watts did some really good things: lead well, good link-up work which ended in a few goals etc. Maybe Watts' forward role will be more like the forward/link-up for which we tried to get Crows' Tom Lynch.

Melbourne FC ‏@melbournefc 10m10 minutes ago Clayton Oliver loves the contested footy! Been very busy in the last few minutes. makes me a little exicted Jones, Brayshaw and viney all crashing packs!!

Love this!

Been really impressed with Kennedy so far. And Oliver is in everything. Viney has the choice to end Wagners life in a tackle but chose not to (think undertaker). Dunn has been great as well, Gawn number 1 ruck on the ground

I read somewhere that Collingwood live streamed their intra-club online. Would have been an excellent way to spend Friday at the desk @ work.

It's not lip service - it's mandatory upon arrival - [Insert new arrivals name] said "I have been really impressed with standards set by the group and this is the hardest preseason I have ever participated in (because I really didn't work hard enough at the club that traded me)."

Since the day Jack punched his way out of his mother's uterus.

My general observations of the game were that link play & movement of the ball forward seemed a lot more free flowing especially from the blue team in patches. There wasn't as much of the stop & start to kick down the line we are used to seeing. Players did seem to be running hard to get into space to receive a handpass from behind or ahead of the player with the ball. There seemed to be a deliberate attempt at kicking flatter or lower/harder to leading players. Areas of weakness that could be improved were skill errors such as short handballs going to ground as well as short kicks going to ground instead of hitting targets. This should be an area of the game the coaches really crack down upon as it can be the difference between a goal or a turnover/stoppage at times. Kicking at goal from set shots wasn't great, I think there were definitely more points scored than Goals. Forward 50 entries at times were a lot better than I have seen in the past, however I thought the leading patterns of the forwards could be a lot better. Again kicking into leading forwards could improve as well. Overall I think there has been improvement especially in the speed of ball movement, some of the passages of play were quite free flowing. Some of the link up play through the middle of the ground & wings was good to watch. There needs to be a bit more attention to detail on execution of skills & making sure the ball gets to where it is intended. Simple skill errors will be costly when it comes to the real stuff. It's good to see that the style of play has switched to be more attacking & I found the hit out positive/encouraging.

Bottom line Is we shouldn't have drafted him Number 4 with dodgy hips & Jimmy didn't work hard enough at MFC or Casey blaming the club in any way is a cheap shot such a waste...

I did it last year and lost 10 KGs in 10 weeks. I've since kept 8 of those off. It helped me. ( mind you, dropping out the Neapolitan ice cream and curry pies was probably a factor too )

I would think so. In a similar role Tom Lynch hovers forward of the defensive 50 so doesn't do too much 'forward pressure' work but had a terrific 2015 - from afc website: 'He kicked 32 goals for the season but also worked hard to bring his teammates into the game. Lynch led the League for goal assists (30) and was equal-fifth for total score involvements (159)'. Given we went so hard to get Lynch it seems that forward/link-up player is seen as a key role and it looks like Watts is being groomed for that. If so, it is a lot easier understand how so many tall forwards Hogan, Frost, Watts, Pedo/Dawes/Weideman and resting ruckman can fit in the forward line. Also, the link-up role is essential if we are to be more offensive in our game plan and that seems a perfect role for Watts, his skill set and footy IQ. Can't think of a better person for the job!

Told you all the paleo diet was a joke when the MFC announced they were using it. Believe I was shouted down by a few posters. Just another useless fad diet created by someone looking for a quick buck.

Something weird going on, these posts are staying at the bottom, new posts are being inserted before them?

Well, As always I'd love to go along. Looking forward to the reports from those who don't have to work.