Lil_red_fire_engine

I will not be surprised if Lever is omitted for TMac for this game. If not I will be very surprised if Lever is in our best 23 after 6-8 rounds. I just don't think his strengths are suited to the new defensive and offensive requirements of our defensive 7. If there is ever a week to play the 2 Max combo this is the one. After the load Gawn carried round 1, 6 day break, WA trip, Jackson + Darcy or Cox as well as harder to shift Petty away of of their 3 key talls. Even if we could Petty vs Jackson/Darcy/Cox is a very different equation to Petty v Keeler.

Assuming he gets back second half of the year our kids will be starting to tire and the grounds will be getting heavier. That assumes we have full mid complement at that point and no injuries. He'll slot straight into Sparrow's spot or they'll add him to the rotation to lessen the load in the middle on some of the younger mids who may start to tire.

I would do exactly the same. Selection will be interesting. I think King will show a more horses for courses approach than Goodwins old approach of backing his team in.

Ross Lyon what a [censored]. I agree Hall was their best player but giving him more votes than Roo or Gawn is childish.

Send him to half forward to harass Jordan Clark.

Don’t disagree but if we choose to bring in Heath to combat the taller Fremantle (which we should) it would be Sparrow that comes out for mine.

Not saying the coaching group did not have input but it's King who would have given such a vital move the final tick on the day and the commitment to it all day. It would have been King explaining it in a press conference if we lost.

What a ballsy move by a new coach to send the 20 game much maligned Kolt to Nas in your first game as coach. He doesn’t want us to play safe and he lived the mantra himself. Loved the press conference during the week where he copped it for saying we would back our system against Nas when he had Kolt planned for him for nearly a month. Nas may have kicked 3 but they really missed his connection and carry up field and Kolt hurt him with getting involved in scores back the other way. Highlights for me. Trelly goal obviously. JVRs clean marks and accurate kicks. Gawn playing Immortal. Sharps hard nosed touches in the last. Concerns to address. What to do with Lever. Sparrow inability to find the pill. Langford’s lack of chase. How easily we were carved through the middle at times. Tough task next, 6 day break, travel, talent and taller structure but cant wait to see how we approach it.

What a ballsy move by a new coach to send the 20 game much maligned Kolt to Nas in your first game as coach. He doesn’t want us to play safe and he lived the mantra himself. Loved the press conference during the week where he copped it for saying we would back our system against Nas when he had Kolt planned for him for nearly a month. Nas may have kicked 3 but they really missed his connection and carry up field and Kolt hurt him with getting involved in scores back the other way. Highlights for me. Trelly goal obviously. JVRs clean marks and accurate kicks. Gawn playing Immortal. Sharps hard nosed touches in the last. Concerns to address. What to do with Lever. Sparrow inability to find the pill. Langford’s lack of chase. How easily we were carved through the middle at time. Tough task next, 6 day break, travel, talent and taller structure but cant wait to see how we approach it. NB: sorry was meant to put this in the post game thread

Whilst I would love to say no change. We need to combat Jackson and Darcy in the ruck as well as Treacy, Voss, Amiss forward. However today should be about basking in the job done not the job to do.

6 JVR 5 Gawn 4 Windsor 3 Koz 2 Kolt 1 Petty

Fantastic. This is what we want. Old man Milkshake putting pressure on best 23 spots. Anyone know what role he is playing? I assume deep forward? Would love to hear how some of our kids are looking from anyone there.

It's great that Baker has scrapped his way to 50 games including 15 in the last 2 seasons. He had 5 years with us and played a total of 6 games in his last 3 seasons including zero in his final season. Yet we should have re-signed him? Unsure which of Langdon, Langford, Culley, Windsor etc... you think he would be playing on a wing ahead of today? Scraping the bottom of the barrel of list management errors with this one Franky.

I just want to see instinctive, in-your-face footy. Run hard both ways. Play for the team and the win. There will be ups and downs and twists and turns but it certainly wont be boring to watch. Best of luck to Salem in his 200th and to Latrelle, Steele, Mihocek, CJ and King on their red and blue debuts.

But he cant run anymore.

I don't like the music after every goal but I am conscious I am not the target demo and a bit of a traditionalist. Now that it's agreed at least to start the season I do accept what I will like less is not hearing enough of it. Also some of the song choices are not exactly in the spirit of what I think it's trying to achieve. Max Gawn case in point.

I would take in a bench of Tholstrup, Culley, Pickett, Rivers and TMac. TMac for me brings us flexibility in forward and back rotations and plan B options as well as a ruck chop out for Max at low minutes. In saying that I feel Melksham will somehow slide in ahead of TMac or Kolt.

But our future is better, I don't think it's harsh at all. The departure has created quality picks, salary cap space, on ground midfield opportunity and by all reports a more connected group. Its supported by the fact that they have both admitted that they needed change as well. Is it better for the immediate who knows is it better for our future finals and flag potential yes.

So using the unavailable lists from AFL.com In the mix article for the round we start the season with 10 teams having an equivalent size or longer list of unavailable players than us. Granted we don't appear to have many returning shortly on ours and would much prefer to be the Pies with Howe a week away then only McInnes missing. However still not as bad as some to start the season and only two of those walk up starts for our best 23.

Agree, on a 3-year deal but these seem to be the ones where we extend further to retain, and we know how they generally work for us. Quality game breaker who, on limited evidence, appears to have found a new energy in 2026. Pay him fair overs for the market on a 3-year deal with a performance trigger for a 4th. If his manager holds us over a barrel for 4+ year commitment, then we need to let him walk.

Pretty close I reckon. TMac vs Petty and which two of Sharp, Laurie, Kolt play I think are the only maybes. I think the rest pretty much picks its self.

Agree pity Luker injured but after watching round 0 and particularly now no Marshall I cant see any world where we play two rucks. We will definitely need the extra runner and we will find a way to work the 5 minutes a quarter Max needs a chop out.

Pre game the Fox Footy producers agree a handful of storylines for commentators to potentially focus in on during broadcast if the way the game plays out allows. Clarry was always going to be one, even more so after Christian's performance the previous night. Flukey left foot goal aside, Olivers stats were remarkably similar to his last 4 games in the red n blue. To my observation his game impact was no real difference.

I had the same problem at the same point on my iPad. Was staying at a hotel so assumed it might have been their wifi but had been perfect to that point. Turned the game off and went to bed and resumed watching the next morning without knowing outcome. Not a great start for them for the 2026 season.

Thought the Saints were very unimpressive and if we also had a game under our belt would be confident at the G. Match fitness makes a massive difference and I would suggest even moreso with our new aggressive take what the game gives you style. No Marshall now means we must 100% play an extra runner on the bench over a tall. I would be setting Rivers for the job to counter Nas, like Perryman did where-ever he goes (mid or forward) and add a bit more niggle and physical pressure on him.