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1. Harrison Petty - showed some lovely signs when he was moved forward toward the end of the season. At 197cm and a great mark of the footy, he could be the KPF we have been craving. Too bad he missed the last few games, I feel a bag of 4 or 5 goals was looming 2,. Christian Petracca - after a very solid second half of 2019, Petracca goes into the preseason with his confidence up. Under the guidance of fitness guru Darren Burgess, Trac should (and I stress SHOULD) have a breakout season 3. Bayley Fritsch - could be on the verge of becoming a star. Has what it takes to kick 50+ goals and provide plenty of highlights along the way. Will be a very hard matchup for any defender. Thank god the coaches moved him back to the forward line where he belongs. Now please lave him there 4. Jay Lockhart - missed out on an AFL preseason, yet had some fine moments and kicked some crafty goals. I would give him first crack at the crumbing forward role depending how the preseason shakes out. 5. Jack Viney - after a subpar year, Jack will want to bounce back hard. He has another level to go to, and the new fitness regime will hopefully get his body right so he can fulfill his potential Feel free to list your players to watch

1. Angus Brayshaw How will he respond? What role will he predominantly get? If he's deployed as a tagger again then I see his MFC career at the crossroads in 2020. Has SO much ability & talent, and by all reports a ripper fella, but from an outsider's perspective he doesn't seem to have the right attitude just yet. 2. Steven May All eyes on his offseason I guess. Think the whole fitness thing was a bit oversold, and time trials won't tell us much, but his ability to stay on the park in 2020 will be of massive importance to us. Will provide that "at all costs" type of leadership that is always handy for us. 3. Jake Lever Gone under the radar a bit (externally) as far as expectations go. Some of it is just luck, but also needs to find a way to become less pure interceptor and get a bit more key defender about him for us to progress IMO. 4. Tom McDonald A bit like the club in general, needs to show that 2018 is the benchmark and not just a fluke. Backing him in to come out firing but the foot/feet are still a concern given the lack of mature key forward backup for him. 5. Sam Weideman Has the attitude and tools, lacks the confidence. I like a lot about him and the sight of his face after the Adelaide loss has stuck in my mind this year. He's one bloke I would love to see set loose a bit and told to go out and enjoy his footy. Special mention - Joel Smith, vandenBerg, Kolodjashnij, Jetta. How will their injury luck pan out in 2020?

It's held so late because of school exams.

Looking forward to seeing Fritsch next year too. It only took the coaches about 18 rounds to work out that he is a natural forward.

Can we please get another Townsend on the list. I remember the last one we had being a pretty decent player.

Is there any guaranteed way of getting banned from this site until November 27? I can’t take another 6 weeks of this discussion. @olisik can you offer me any advice?

One of my very rare posts. At the B&F my table was beside one that contained a number of MFC dignitaries (ex-players) one of them I have I know quite well. He was a talent spotter for the MFC for a number of years until we told him his services were no longer needed. Strangely (not) another AFL club enlisted his services in the same role (probably the most succesfull Melbourne based club in the past 10 years) he is still doing the job to this day but did tell me this is his last year. Getting a bit old to get up and drive all over the place to watch TAC and APS games. His comments, bottom line first two that GCS will take are head and shoulders, next five or six any bodies guess. Young good value, asked about Kemp, his comment was would, you be prepared to use pick three on a kid with a suspect knee. At that point in time we did not have pick eight for me, Young & Kemp

Grew very tired of the ANB bashing that went on here, this year. He’s obviously not an elite player by any stretch, but he tries his guts out on the field and his running stats back that up. If a player who is putting in as much as possible still frustrates supporters, then it’s an issue to take up with our recruiters, not the unfortunate punching-bag of a player. Anyway, let’s hope he finds some form and this is all a moot point by the end of 2020.

His posts read like Trump tweets.

You really are Demonland's answer to 'old man shouts at clouds'. Also, you're wrong. Again.

I dare say that Gawn had a worse knee before and after coming onto our list, yet he's turned out to be a half decent pick up. Seriously @olisik a little optimism may do you the world of good.

Can you rephrase this for me? I'm not sure I get your drift.

Young & Jackson.....that has a certain ring to it. Could become iconic for Melbourne!

A bit like picking Oliver at 3

1. Fritsch - Snuck under the radar and was experimented with for much of 2019 but despite all that his numbers bear out what watching him would also tell you - he is inside the best 5 drafted in his year (2017). When finally settled forward he managed two goals a game in the final seven rounds. That's no small achievement in a team that was breaking down so badly inside 50. Also to his credit is great consistency, especially considering how much he was moved around. A smart player with at least 'good' in every area of skill and attitude. 2. Petracca - The potential beast. Game ripper. His best is as good as any you care to name. Developed some more of that all-important consistency with no real 'dud' games in the second half of the season. to my mind the word lacking from our midfield players for many years has been 'dangerous' - Good Version Petracca makes things happen, kicks goals and creates goals and demands attention at a whole strategic level from opposition coaches. If Petracca is 'on' and you don't have a plan for it, you're in trouble. 3. Tom McDonald - Like Petracca, when Tom McDonald is at his finest he is a top-level player in his position. How much it ws something about his body or something going on between his ears we can't be sure. But in our five wins this season McDonald kicked 14 goals while barely troubling the scorers the rest of the time. Body right and confidence restored he is just priceless, contribution effectively in every way (even tackles inside 50!) with a huge workrate. His best changes the team. 4. Angus Brayshaw - "You're better than that, Angus" could sum up his 2019. How many times have we each thought it? (except for those who have written him off) Seeing Brayshaw blindly dink kicks around or thoughtlessly run into trouble, handball to someone in no better position or call for it when he was in no better position, or simply fail to run to anywhere useful at crucial moments - it all hurts because many of us remember him being a smart and accountable player who built his game on being pretty good at everything and pretty alert all game. On the theme of 'pretty good at everything', a comparison of his 2019 to 2018 quickly shows that in 2019 he was a bit worse in every aspect. No single stat suddenly collapses, it was simply that in every area he fell away a bit, from 'generally excellent' to 'yeah alright'. The exception to this also tells the story - his "meters gained" stat dropped away massively in 2019, confirming for everyone what we saw with our own eyes - his disposal just wasn't getting as much done in 2019 as it had in 2018. Bring back smart, confident Brayshaw and it changes our midfield and is a pleasure to watch as well. 5. Jake Melksham - The king of goal assists, topping the AFL for goal assists per game for two years running. And that depsite our forward line getting lost down a mine in 2019. Even so, he was short of his best - or simply short of opportunities to play his role as someone who rewards the efforts of others. He never stopped taking on the game even as all around became more and more negative. That made him look like an idiot sometimes, but it was after all the fear of looking like an idiot that spooked the minds of so many of our players. If 2020 comes to look like 2018 reloaded with the bonus of some extra contributors on the wings, Melksham will be rolling the dice many many times and it will be fun to watch and potent for the team. I'm not saying he will improve dramatically in 2020 - I'm saying if the team lifts then his efforts will be dramatically better rewarded. Fair mention to the host of 'out to injury' and 'mysterious form slump' types, like Jetta, Lever, May, Hibberd, Vandenberg, Smith, and of course Viney.

Nope, prefer to keep 3 & 8 and use on Young and Kemp/Ash

He might have the worst nicknames in the AFL, but on no planet and no AFL team for that mater is Milkshake a 'depth' player. OMG, one rubbish season and Demonland had gone bananas.

On what planet is Melksham depth? He is one of the classiest ball users and goal kickers in the side and we bitterly missed him for those 10 or so games.

Melksham??? Depth Miles in front of Hunt for example The remaining list shows how shallow we are. Jones and possibly Sparrow aside none of the remainder have shown signs of pushing for a best 22 spot short of injuries. Time for a good look at how MFC players are being developed at Casey. It's not just about winning games because you have some strong Casey listed players.

1. Bailey Fritsch - could be the surprise of the year, has a 40 goal season in him, can create, draw opponents, play tall and small. Everything Jack Martin is and half the price. 2. Jake Lever - Another sub par year will cement his recruitment as a bust. Is a terrific leader and really hope he gets a good run at it. 3. Jack Viney - People forgot very quickly about Jack, they started to concentrate on what he cant do, rather than what he can do. The calls to trade him on this site were hard to fathom, but truly believe he can be the player he was a couple years ago. 4. Angus Brayshaw - Which year was the anomaly? he has mirrored the MFC in the last 2 years. Needs to care more about using the footy and get back to that team first mentality. 5.Joel Smith - what is he? who is he? can he play? if he can its a bonus and could be the swingman we need.

Salem > Hibberd now.

Hibberd looks finished to many of us. He's near the end anyway so he is who would be replaced, not Salem.

Is there anyone supporters don't want? At this rate we'll need to delist another 10 players to fit everyone in.

We should be sniffing too. We lost Tim Smith who if not always injured would be getting a semi-regular gig in the seniors and he hasn't been replaced by a big body.

I had a dream last night we got Young at 3 and Kemp at 8 (would be happy with that).

Ball always travels faster through the air. This bloke will speed our transition up faster than any amazing sprints off HB or around the wings. His decision making will also assist here. It's lightning quick and tends to pick the right options most of the time. Short, medium, low long rakers....this bloke is a kicking guru. We've been screaming out for his type for years.. "Frosty has speed....can't kick". Frosty has great pace...but a massive turnover king". ANB great runner between the arcs...but murders the ball". Well here's a bloke who is elite with the ball... ready for the plucking.

I think best to not to attempt to out goowindees Moonie. He's already pushing too close to the line because posters can't be bothered to determine credibility for themselves and demand to know every ingredient of the secret sauce.

I reckon we will have Jaguar for another year and beyond this will depend on our membership, on-field performance and to a lesser extent how many of our members buy a new Jag. When we consider AHG it was always about them building some brand awareness. Infiniti was the result of them exiting the Australian market. Jaguar and Melbourne Football Club are a good marriage, we just need to make sure 2019 is an aberration and that they see us as a side that will regularly feature in September while building into a powerhouse club.

I can think of 5 players but don't want to name them as I will put the moz on them.

Of course there is an element of risk in taking Kemp - but that is why he may be available at pick 8 instead of going well inside the top 5. FWIW, I would take a player following a knee reco over a player who had torn cartilage in his hips. Completely different injuries and players.

His problems started in the first quarter of the first game of the year when he missed 2 set shots for goal against Port which would have given us a 4 goal lead on both occasions. That set the tone of the entire year, and some of his errors and skill level was pathetic for an established AFL player. Strange because he was one of the rare players that had a full pre-season. Still, he kicked 25 odd goals in 2018 and jagged a 3 brownlow vote game, so I can see why he was retained. Would be very border line for round 1 if we're full strength though.

The problem with ANB is that his skills are very shaky under any sort of pressure. He also needs more aggression and physical pressure in his makeup. Plus he just has to kick those 50/50 goal opportunities that present to him.

Yes and only 16 goals for the rest of his 8 year career.

Fits the MFC mantra of hard at it (with questionable skills). Will it delay the progress of one of our youngsters? Probably, but it will show them what’s required to get to premiership levels. If dirt cheap why not.

Do not want, Hoping another small forward from SA that got a low ball offer registers as DFA. Better value IMO.

Just my opinion so put away any arrows, bullets and darts. These are options. small forward option - Ben Keays (x Lions) 22yo had a ripping NEAFL year but couldn’t crack the Lions midfield. tall forward option - Callum Moore (x Tigers) was behind Lynch and Riewoldt but is a good mark and handy backup key forward. (also still like Buzzzzzzza for the fans screaming out his name ) running midfielder - Connor Menadue (x Tigers) is a skilled quick wingman who delivers the footy and kicks goals. Again behind a few quality players in the Tigers middle. Whilst not delisted (could still be by thevSaints) Jack Newnes is out of contract and presents the best option as a strong running mid. Not sure on Nick Robertson. Good lockdown tagger type to play tough unsociable footy. Could be handy to stop others key midfielders. Im not a Sam Murray fan as his pace is good but ball delivery is poor. We apparently got rid of Frost for this.

Kemp will be an option for Crows and Swans. Agree Swans may see the huge upside in waiting 12 months and get a potential superstar quality type. Without too much pressure, this kid is a potential serious A grader.

Young at 3, then Adelaide or Sydney bid on Green, making GWS match it if they want him and then Kemp has a better chance of slipping to 8.He is out most of next year but we don't have a 2020 1st [yet] but he will suffice.

Tend to agree. I know GWS want to move up to pick 3, but I see no reason to trade it away unless the deal is massive overs. Because Young is the exact type of player we are screaming out for. We need more class, its why Salem stands out like a beacon in our side - because he is classy amongst many (majority) who aren't. Young would add class when we desperately need it. We could do with adding class for our next pick as well, if we could find a classy player with speed then even better. Two things our side lacks and needs is class and pace. We have so much grunt. Our midfield is practically set and elite, it just needs versatility on the outside.

Jimmy Toumpas came to us with two crook hips. Massive MASSIVE risk! NO!

I’ve heard more an attitude issue than on field. Belief he will do well at Hawks but attitude didn’t fit model and wasn’t good for the young group coming through. not sure what to make of it.

#3,574

Agreed. At the same time, its not as if a key forward suddenly became a realistic trade option. Sure there were some forwards but arguably no available forwards that would have been a great get. No point bringing in players who may get a game but are not going to be an asset.

Frost struggled to hit targets by foot when he was on the run. Dashing like a headless chook and then delivering poorly (assuming he wasn't tackled) was a 'hold your breath' moment most weeks. Having said that, he did chip kick around more this season, which shows he's learning his own limitations. He was fun to watch, but IMO he would've been overtaken by May and Lever in 2020. Petty, Omac and Hore will play their roles and supply support where required. I'm much more concerned with our forward line than backs.

Lamumba was a risk. Volatile at Pies due to his ego and we took him. Lever for two 1st rounders was a risk. Mitch Clark was another risk. We do take risks.

You probably couldn’t see him as he was surrounded by 4 other demon players all flying for the same mark.

To force them to use their first pick on him. If he's not nominated before their first pick then they grab another talented kid and then pay for him later in the draft.

Yesterday I had breakfast with a mate that has been part of an AFL club’s recruitment team for 10 years and due to him passing me info prior to the actual Draft, I would rather keep the Club confidential, however, let me assure you that this is one hell of a successful club. My mate’s role is purely Victorian based and focuses totally on the TAC, no other league. The bottom line is that he told me this Club had a major meeting last Saturday whereby all the TAC watchers met for a full day and compiled a mock Draft of Victorian TAC players. Whilst having to be a little guarded at this time of year, my mate told me that at Saturday’s meeting, Hayden Young was the almost totally unanimous choice as number 3 from the TAC. In fact, my mate scoffed at the thought of overlooking Young at 3 even after the interstate kids were factored in He was very strong in his praise of Kemp but didn’t want to elaborate too much about other players in the 5 to 10 range as this is where his Club would be selecting. He did however say that neither he or any of his other TAC watchers had Weightman in the first 12 and said he’d be highly surprised if any Club took him in the Top 10 after the interstaters were added in. Thought you might be interested.

They lost actually. Straight down the other end for a goal. But you are not wrong. I downloaded the NAB League App and they have an excellent highlights section on most players which shows individual game involvements. Young isn't afraid of a contested posession. He positions himself well for the receive handball. That freak kick inside wasn't a one off, he regularly looks to make long passes into space. He consistently makes the right decision.Of course there are times where he stuffs it up, but they are few and far between. He is the captain of the Stingrays. I couldn't be more impressed by the highlights I watched. The other I went looking for was Weigtman and I was really not impressed at all.