Deespicable

Very pleased to see Angus named at half back and I hope that is where he plays. As i have stated for a while, we have five or six clearance beasts already and so far Angus hasn't shown us his stuff in that area. What we know from last year is that he's a thumping kick on both feet and can stick a tackle and he's a lovely strong mark - sounds like a very good developing backman to me - he may just have to wait a couple of years for Vince and Jonesy to retire to move permanently into the midfield. Unfortunately though I don't have a lot of faith in VFL line-ups prior to the actual game - so I won't be surprised if he plays midfield with the occasional stint up forward. I'd just rather he was in the mix to replace one our back six than trying to push out one of our small/medium forwards.

It's great that this thread has almost become redundant and now those calling for a change almost look ridiculously vindictive. It just shows that we finally have a squad of 26-30, who all legitimately bring something to the table, and they are probably more reasons now for them to play than not play, but unfortunately only 22 get a gig and the incumbents generally hold sway when sides are winning. But whilst it wouldn't surprise me to see the big NO CHANGE sticker out for Saturday, I reckon there may be just one change. There are three midfield/forwards who have arguably the strongest claims on getting a gig. 1) Oliver - He was rested last week after a slightly less dominant clearance game against the Pies. The problem with resting is that the one aspect of Oliver's game that needs a little work on - his run and carry - isn't really tested by watching from the stands, although I imagine he will have picked up a few tips on what's required as he watched with the coaching staff. 2) Neal-Bullen - After three huge VFL games he was given the dreaded 23rd man role (not sure why Oliver couldn't have performed this role and still rested). Anyway the 23rd is like the death card because you can't improve your chance by the VFL and as a result seem to fall back in the queue - just ask Grimes (23rd v North), Stretch (23rd v Pies). 3) Petracca - Roosy was at the Pies game when he showed he was way too good for VFL in the first quarter and unfortunately he has had to do a longer apprenticeship than he'd like. Remember poor Tom Mitchell for the Swans - he had about four weeks of 40-plus disposal games in the NEAFL and was the subject of trade bait before finally getting a gig in the seniors and I don't think he's missed a game since. It didn't really hurt his development after all. Quite clearly it will be hard for any one of these three to get a game at the expense of others this week and as a result my feeling is that only one at most will play. I'm tipping CP5 but it could just as easily be ANB or Clarry. And then it gets really hard to figure who comes out. I don't even want to go there, because it's way too spiteful and whoever you throw up has very strong claims for remaining.

Yes it wasn't Hoges night and that's not surprising given that Rance would have been fired up to play on him after Hoges torched him last season. But the good thing was that Hoges didn't sulk, didn't stop running and worked hard even though he was pretty ineffectual. But sometimes when you have the best player on the opposition on you, you have to just accept that you have a role to play, even if that means it's not going to be your night. It's a team game after all and I don't recall Warren Tredrea dominating the 2004 grand final, even though he was Port's best player for the whole year.

6 Gawn - Set the win up with an amazing first half, before tiring a little in the second and he got done over a bit by umps again. 5 Viney - Originally was having trouble with Townsend's hard tag, but then willed himself and the team to the win in he second half. 4 Tyson - What a game by him. How many times was he caught with it this week - I think only one. And his kicking was the best it's been. 3 Vince - Sometimes you forget what a great kick he is and then you watch his left foot snap for his first and realise he's got skill and hardness covered. 2 T-Mac - Rance is the best defender in the league (and after tonight quite a few other things), but T-Mac isn't far behind him. And only one clanger kick for the night when the game was all over. 1 Kent - how many hard chases, how many unselfish hand offs before he finally snagged one himself in the last. By far his most complete game yet.

A lot of big winners out of this game and not just Gawn and Viney. The coach Roos and his assistants for implementing a faster backline that can run and switch - I stlll had a couple behind me yelling for players to just kick it blindly ahead, but thank christ that sort of mentality is left to the Neeld days for good. Tubby Taylor must be crowing tonight - another big win for his recruiting methods even without Oliver, Petrracca and VB. How good was it to have two guys in the line up that weren't in any of our sides three months ago - Hunt and Wagner, not to mention Bugg and Kennedy. Other winners that deserve mention are: Gawny - yet another game that shows he is now among the best handful of ruckman - reminded me of Sandi tonight and his first half set us up. Viney - for once copped the hard tag ahead of Jones and responded with an amazing second half to make sure we won. I've said before that he's a culture changer and when the Tiges had a crack in the third he responded with the most committed efforts you will ever see. And then by chance he happened to be on hand when Rance did his lolly at Jack beating him. And he made sure Alex knew what he thought of it in no uncertain terms. Kent - I reckon he was on his way to a lengthy stint in the VFL at halftime of the North game and even though he got out of jail, tonight was his most unselfish game he's played for us - and his best. Frost and Pedo - how many DL's have been hollering for their omission the past few weeks. I think we got an idea of their importance to the team structure - you can't just have 22 midfielders and you need role players. How many times did Frost chase hard or try and block the run of a defender. He will never be a star - but he doesn't have to be. Wattsy - another game where he was the class at the end of the line. He has finally arrived. Cotchin - I thought his game was one of the best by an opposition skipper on a losing side. Can't believe that he has critics within - but then again we are talking Richmond. Hunt and Lumumba - Hard to know if it was the Dogs style or Adelaide or West Coast that forced almost all coaches to think about attacking this year - but I think finally the Prince knockers will stop and now realise that to have a player that is desperate to take the game on is a bonus and you have to forgive the odd mistake because without these guys you are gone. T-Mac - Jack Riewoldt was pretty good, but T-Mac was unbelievably good and his kicking was again spot on - except for his last tired clearance which went directly out on the full - but when you are knackered and 35points up, does it really matter? Dunny - I think we again saw that he's become pretty slow and he may not survive the season as our full-back, but he spotted Salem in trouble at the quarter time stoush and he made a beeline to protect him. That was leadership. And the big winner was Dom Tyson. If any player was under pressure it was him because those of us who had an inkling about team selection could see that if Oliver and Petracca were about to come in next week, then a midfielder and a small forward had to make room. Dom was everywhere and his kicking was the best its been ... since ever. He was better than his 2014 season.

Yes he had a prodigious leap for a small guy and when he actually took the speccy (probably one out of every six times he flew) the crowd went wild. But the other five times the ball would spill over the back and his opponent would most likely clear it up and rebound. I think most coaches would have knocked that selfishness out of him. But he snagged a good goal occasionally.

Just wanted to thank Angry at Casey for his report from last night's game - it's always nice when someone just tells it how it is in a balanced, informative style. Hope you can attend most of our VFL games and I'll now be looking for your reports - sorry I suspect you have been doing it for a while, but I generally don't take note of who writes what unless they say something ridiculous or sensible. Because your comments were so well balanced, it's easier to feel confident that what you are saying is on the money. Quite obviously last night was not a good night to be missing so many of our key talls and yes I had noted at last week's VFL game that Mitch King has a lot of work to do if he is going to make it as a ruckman and that's even allowing for the fact that his pre-season has been so badly hindered by injury. But the good thing is that he still has a bit of time to make some headway - this time last year a lot of us had become dubious about whether Jayden Hunt would survive into 2016 and pleasingly he's got his body right and we are now getting the chance to see if his kicking is going to stand up to AFL level which will ultimately determine whether he makes it as the running defender. Regardless of tonight's result, it will be another interesting selection night next week with Oliver, Petracca and 23rd man Neal-Bullen all looking for a game in the middle. If you have time was Garland playing as a key tall, or the third tall defender. With so many out (especially the loss of Oscar from down back), I imagine Hutchins took their tallest big and Col had to play on their next biggest, which can limit the amount freedom you have to play the intercept marking role? To me, the arrival of Wagner as our third mobile tall defender along with the flexibility that H provides means that Col's best chance of getting back into the side is to replace Dunn as the second tall defender behind T-Mac.

Get ready for being a bit deflated tonight. With game being Sunday, it's almost certainly going to be a case of just three ins and we will have to wait until tomorrow at 5pm to find out who is biting the bullet for Vince and maybe CP5 and Jeffy. But the really interesting part will be who is on the extended interchange bench because that will give you a clue as to who's out of favour - I think a lot of you have forgotten that Dunny has won that title hands down this year, so I'll be very surprised if he is named in the 18. But I do agree with everyone that it's always really hard to change a winning line up. For mine there's only one player who should be out (Matt Jones), but he's been listed in the first 18 every game so far, so he obviously is in with the selection committee and really, at the end of the day, that's all that counts.

I think you have completely missed the point on what Roosy had to work with originally. In his first year he set about recruiting players who would add grunt and size to the midfield, so that we could win at the stoppages - Vince, Crossy, Tyson plus Michie were added by Taylor and whilst it could be argued that we erred in giving up our No.2 pick, it certainly isn't clear cut and many of us will say that we won because we got two players (Salem and Tyson) to add to our depth - although Kelly and Lobb is an impressive rebuff to anyone who reckons we won, not to mention that in giving up pick No.2, we also allowed Bontempelli to get away. So in year 1 of Roosy, we suddenly we had a bit more depth and hardness but had no way of counter-attacking because we were still the slowest team on the park - Hunt was just a project player then and our quicks Blease and Strauss proved abject failures in providing the run and were delisted. Then in year 2 he got Taylor to work on our speed and we drafted/traded in four mega quicks - Garlett, Lumumba, VB and Frost. We also picked up class in Brayshaw and Petracca, endurance quick smarts in Stretch and a bonus mid in Neal-Bullen and bonus tall in Oscar. But any chance Roosy had of implementing a high press and a run and carry style from defence turned pear-shaped early when he lost Kent, Frost and VB for long periods on top of Salem early in the season. So the game plan that he and Goody and others wanted just couldn't quite eventuate - yet. Finally in his third year he and Taylor went for one more inside big (Oliver) and primarily spent the rest of the draft trying to find the talls that would take the pressure off Hoges and Gawny. As yet those kids talls are all prospects, but thankfully JW has stepped up and provided the key pressure outlet for Hoges and so far Gawny hasn't needed a back up at all. So this is the first year we have had the list depth to try and play with a high press (you need quick forwards to do this) and with the WC/WB gung-ho defensive style that most clubs are at least trying to engender. The Hawks under Clarko are also onto the switch in defensive styles and got rid of Lake and Suckling who were perceived as too slow. Then there's clubs like Freo who missed the boat, although Ross the boss would reckon it's because they haven't had any high picks like us or the expansion sides or the Dogs. North are still trying the old school style and they are at this stage on top, although anyone who went down to Hobart will know that they are in danger of crumbling against the quicker sides - can't wait until Dogs, WC and GWS get hold of them. Sure you could argue our gameplan hasn't evolved as quickly as some, but don't forget the cattle he had to start with. It wouldn't surprise me if five or six more of his original Neeld squad are released at end of this season leaving only two/three regulars from the old days. That's a massive list turnover in just three years. As to Beveridge and Simmo being innovative from the start, please drop Simmo from that. WC wanted to get rid of him after the first year and it was only the injuries to key bigs (Mackenzie and Brown) that forced him to play with an attacking style smaller defence in his second year. Bevo was innovative from the start but he already had to tools at his disposal having had a clever list manager who benefitted from Silvagni's and Prendergast's [censored]-ups four years ago. But let's now see how Bevo goes without his quickest defender and his cleverest defender for the year.

Were you at the game yesterday? If so I cannot believe you didn't notice the work and options Frost gives us and the insurance if a big goes off or down. I admit he's still very much a work in progress but that was clearly his best game so far for us and you want him dropped. The selectors will have a tough time. Clearly Vince is in and Garlett will be as well if he passes his fitness test. Terlich has no chance despite his great game in twos - Hunt did well enough on debut and Salem ain't going anywhere. Grimes and Neal-Bullen again showed they deserve a chance and Billy did nothing wrong as 23rd player but all of them will have to wait for a loss or injury to get a gig. But there are two players in the magoos whom Roosy will consider. One is Petracca who dominated the first term when Roosy was there and the other is Garland, who was handy and would be a straight swap for Dunny if they decide to go down that path. As to outs, the one player who is not AFL top-tier level is Matt Jones - how many goals has he kicked or created so far this year? In which of his 60-odd games has he gained 400m plus metres as the lively running wingman he's meant to be? Vince comes in for him. The other one, and he'd be very unlucky, is Oliver, but he is a kid and does need to work on his run and carry - not just his freakish clearance ability. The Richmond night game would be a good stage for Petracca to make his debut, but if Garlett is fit, then CP5 may have to wait another week. The only other solution for both to play is to drop Dunn, who clearly is not working hard enough, despite his obvious kicking prowess. If that were to happen, and Garland did not come in, then we'd have to send Pedo back to play on Vickery. I think Wagner can cope with McBean and Lumumba could keep Lloyd in check I suspect. So for Thursday night's 25-man teams I'd just add Vince, Garlett and Petracca and then on Friday discreetly omit Oliver, Dunn and Matt Jones and have them as emergencies.

Only saw the first half, but pleasingly Roosy was here for first quarter and a bit and would have seen the early show put on by two players - one Petracca and the other Mason Cox. If Gawn shines and the Dees win today, then the Cox decision to keep him out will go down as one of the worst in history. As to Petracca, I'm looking forward to Sunday night against Richmond to watch his debut - both he and Vince are definite inclusions. Surprisingly he played mainly on the ball today - i thought he'd be used more as a forward, but it seems they want to get him fitter quicker. Billy was 23rd man today so did not play but his buddy Neal-Bullen was very prominent as was Michie and Grimes worked his way into it. But when you are watching a lower standard you really notice the players with extra skills and for mine it was CP5, closely followed by the power left foot of Mitchell White. One piece of play where he switched to Petracca who hit a target (I think Weeds) and then ran down collected the handpass and then hammered the ball home was AFL level at the highest. Garland and Terlich and Hutchins were also good down back, but the Pies did well counter attacking - hence we were trailing. Weeds moved well but had a tough match up with Frost and others to beat. But mark it down now - Petracca to debut next week.

I have seven guys whose spots will be discussed at selection table, but realistically if Jeffy's fit, it's a swap for Vince with Kennedy moving back up to wing and either Matt Jones or Bugg moving back into the defensive rotation. I can't see Brayshaw being brought back in - if you reckon a guy isn't fit and have admitted your error in playing him, why would you want to bring him in the very next week. What happens if he still doesn't look fit - do you stand down as coach for mucking up twice in two weeks. I also can't see Petracca playing, although a straight swap for Vanders is a possibility - but i reckon they'll want him to debut at our home game v Richmond. The only real in that I can see is Grimes, who was the unlucky 23rd player again - they treat him like s... and all DL's do is bag the crap out of him. He could be promoted for Billy, although Matt Jones would be my preference - see comments below. The seven who are sure to be discussed are: Vanders - Not sure what's going on with him, but maybe it's the lack of opportunity in the middle. He had a super pre-season and the thing I'm not seeing now is his amazing speed and intensity - is he nursing an injury or two or struggling with the transition. I watched him slowly hobble on to the plane back home by himself yesterday and I just wondered if he's feeling a little left out. Clearly his form in the three games has been average by last year's standards. Billy - I love his attack and run, but he did have a couple of howlers into the wind in the third. I'm hopeful he gets another go - as you'd be pretty stiff to miss after just one. Wagner - He made a terrific start to the game and was among our best in the first term, despite sitting on the bench for the first 7-8 minutes. Unfortunately Harvey got off on him a few times - which wasn't necessarily his fault because a couple of times he went to make a two on one, but ultimately if your opponents kicks six, you question whether a change is required. But like Billy, I hope he gets another chance and if Howey play - could be his match-up. Bugg - After dominating against St Kilda pre-season, he really hasn't owned it, being carved up by Scully in Rd 1 wasn't what was required. He is a bit light on for leg speed, but makes up for it with his intensity. Does he go back to stand De Goey or stay on the wing and play on Aish? Matt Jones - I'm sorry to those that love to read his stats out each week, but here's one I'd like you to recite - Who was the last wingman to play more than 50 games and only kick 10 goals? He has to do more, he's been selected to provide dash and run and that's what he's got to do because he's not a freakish talent in other area. Ultimately it's eitehr him or Billy, although this week i suspect he'll be sent back to half back like against the Dons. Frost - Yes his numbers aren't great and everybody except Paul Roos seems to know he's a backman, but he does chase hard and doesn't get in the way of Hoges and Wattsy. Until Weeds is ready, I'd keep playing him up there and use him as our back-up ruck. Dunn - His leadership with his booming voice was clearly on display against North, but he did seem a little hesitant at times and Waite proved majorly dangerous. Do they switch him after just one game for Oscar. I doubt it, especially as Cloke appears to be waiting for him.

I just got back from a really enjoyable trip to Tassie and I'm looking forward to see the reply because I want to check if they scored six or seven goals from free kicks or 50m penalties. I'm not one to complain about umpiring because I reckon it generally evens out over the course of the game, but that was the most blatant one-sided performance I've seen. The free to Goldy against Gawny for holding the ball in the first term almost brought the big fella to tears. He knew he'd had no prior and just couldn't fathom that his chance to show the AFL that he really was up to being the No.1 ruckman had gone begging via the little green maggots. Eventually they started realising that Gawny was on top in the true ruck battle and that Goldy didn't actually deserve handouts. Gawn won the battle, but sadly we lost the war. The key things to come out of the game for me were: 1) Why did we not send Hogan back to play as an extra defender from the start of the first term when the wind was at its strongest? Roosy was innovative in a lot of areas today (eg: playing N.Jones off half back to make the Jacobs tag less effective) but that was his one clear muck up and it cost seven goals. 2) Lumumba knockers need to start switching onto what he brings to the table. Sure he made a couple of poor short kicks into the wind in the first, but along with Viney and Gawn, he got us going in the second. He plays the exact same way that every side wants to play this year - attack, attack and attack. I'd love to see how many metres he gained in the second term alone - probably 400. 3) Bernie may look like a choir boy, but he's a tough hombre and with Crossy gone, has stepped up his leadership and is our best pick up from another club since Brian Wilson and he may be better than him as well. He'll have the week off next week and will be missed. 4) Hoges really respects Jack Watts and knows he will be given a chance the minute Jack gets it. The pair have developed a really good union now and finally we have a forward line with talented bigs - now all we need is the Weed and Petracca. 5) We were way quicker than North, who I suspect will fall away as the season goes along because they lack quality and are relying on 30-plus year olds remaining fit. And for the first time since 2000, we actually beat them at the clearances. In fact we played all over them after the first twenty minutes. 6) Those knocking Frost clearly weren't at the ground. Unfortunately the TV doesn't always show you who is making up yardage to pressure defenders and his athleticism is really handy to have. Sure he's still unrefined but give him a bit of time - is Darcy Moore nailing it each week? Ultimately though, he is a defender and once Weeds comes in, that's where he should play. 7) Well done to Harmes for shoring up his spot after a poor first two weeks and also to Kent, whose horror run kept going all the way until midway through the third term. Both will play next week. Not sure if Vanders is injured or just a little unhappy at not being given a run on the ball - but he's not the same spark player as last year - yet. 8) Did Billy do enough? He certainly worked hard and has a knack of getting to the contest, but as last player in this week, is he first player out to make room for Garlett? I hope he stays and that our Matt Jones experiment in trying to make him feel like he belongs at 28 ends now. Basically both can't play in the same side and I'd rather Billy's attack on the game to Matt Jones' outside accumulation anyday. If Matt was a thumping kick like Lewis Jetta then fine, but we all know he's not and he's now had over 60 games to have an impact. It ain't going to happen.

6 - Gawn - probably eclipsed his Geelong game and certainly on a much tougher opponent. Will be interesting to see who the umps give the three to. 5 - Viney - Together with Lamumba sparked the second-term comeback. And how good was his goal. Hands up all the DL's who have questioned his kicking ability. 4 - Vince - Prolific and whilst he caused a turnover by slamming ball onto boot a few times, his physical presence was there all day. 3 - Hogan - Just in case a few of us thought he'd fallen behind Daniher as the best young forward last week, he showed us why everyone rates him. Has a nice little combo with Watts going. 2 - Oliver - Tired a bit in the last term but how tough is this guy. Loved how he gave it to them after one of his goals. How can he gets his hands free so often. 1 - Lumumba - This could have gone to Salem who was more efficient, but Harry kept taking the game on. After a couple of early howlers, his second term was the spark we needed.

Are you on the selection committee or his dad? Harmes has been terrific pre-season and against St Kilda but unfortunately didn't have a cracker on Saturday and his name will be debated by the selectors as will Frost, Pedo and Oscar, especially if the latter's ankle is more ligament than sprain. One positive for him is that Roosy has shown in the past that he doesn't like changing winning sides, so there's still a chance that we could see No CHANGE. He also may feel that he deserves another chance. But Roosy is also a big fan of Angus and I'm sure he'll be keen to get him in - but will weigh up whether waiting another week will matter. Usually a VFL match against Box Hill is a tough affair although I noticed Sandy smashed the Hawks by close to 100 points, so they are sorely depleted at the moment, meaning Roosy and his colleagues will also weigh up just how much benefit Angus will get from playing VFL as opposed to at least getting back into the AFL routine. If Oscar's out, then I'd expect it to be a toss up between Lumumba and Dunny for the other spot. And given Dunn is out of favour (up to DL's to get the inside story on why), then I suspect it will be Lumumba with Col expected to play on McKernan (assuming he's not dropped) and T-Mac getting Daniher. Pedo may have to do another cameo down back, although I still don't fully understand why Frost doesn't ever get that role, although clearly they like his ability to chase down defenders and apply pressure. There is also a chance that they could just bring in Angus for Oscar (if injured) and send Pedo back on to McKernan from the outset. All will be revealed on Thursday.

6 Viney (I said way back he was our Joel Selwood) 5 T-Mac (Started just like last season) 4 Kennedy (Kept bobbing up when we need him) 3 Gawn (what was our biggest worry pre-game - Mummy) 2 Watts (brilliant first and last terms, the latter limited by a corkie). 1 Hogan (the other matchwinner with JW - just like Lethal, does nothing and then steps up and wins the game for you. Didn't even need to take out three players).

It's an interesting exercise, but I'm not sure why the best six youngsters at WB and Pies have not been considered. And that GWS six excludes some incredibly big names - Patton, Whitfield and Steele - are just the tip of the iceberg in a squad that runs about 12-deep of gun U23s. GC is already in big trouble because Prestia and O'M are leaving and Swallow is a cripple - so it's hard to see them surviving much longer - Hobart awaits. WB has the best top six of all IMO - Liberatore, Wallis, Stringer, The Bon, Hunter and Macrae. They are mostly one-year older as well. The Pies have been promoting their version as well but I see them fourth behind us, although they have more depth of bigs - Treloar, DeGoey, Adams, Moore, Aish, Witts. We can match the Pies and Dogs for depth of youngsters, but sorry GWS is a deep, deep pool - we need a few more to splash out of there next season.

Agree with your side with one hopeful exception - the last two spots to come down to M.Jones, Harmes, Oliver, Pedersen and Grimes. I know it's only semantics, but I can't imagine Bugg starting on the bench against his old side and would imagine that they would want to reduce Angus' playing time by starting him on the pine. Vince will play hbf also, so three-way swap with Lumumba (to bench - gametime safety issue as well) and Kennedy or whoever the lucky one that gets in with Pedo.

Thanks DeeSpencer and love the info on the lineup - although as you alluded, Angus and Harry were presumably on lighter duties because of Saturday game. But it begs the question as to how do they find room for Angus and VB. I think we can assume now that Grimes is out with Michie from the 24 last week and then it gets down to Lumumba for Wagner and Dunn for O-Mac. But after that finding the next two is really, really tricky. I had Matt Jones out for VB or Angus, but to my way of thinking the only other options once that is done is Pedo or Frost (prefer if both play against GWS though) or Oliver or Kennedy or Harmes - all very harsh omissions but VB was almost our best pre-season player until injured and we all know Angus is a gun. At the end of the day, I'm afraid I'd say bide your time Clayton, although I know he's an excitement machine. It's a long season, missing Rd 1 is not the end of the world that some might think and if we happen to lose or have injuries, then the Essendon game is a great game for him to debut.

I have been very bullish about the Dees this season and have money on us making the eight. But I also have GWS in the eight and despite losing Cameron for Saturday, they still are pretty much at full strength in all other areas - defender Haynes is a loss though. We have to hope that Gawn can at least match it with Mummy and not tire like Jamar did so badly in Rd 2 last year. Mummy will have Rory Lobb as back up and he looks a big improver to me. It is because Mummy is so dangerous and feeds their strong midfield that I am hoping we don't ditch Frost or Pedo, but there is a chance that will happen if VB and Angus are to come in because someone has to miss out. Providing Bugg can cope with Shiel and Viney can negate Ward, then I reckon it may come down to last-term heroics and a passionate crowd could be the difference.

You seem to have fallen hook, line and sinker for Eddie's black and white rhetoric. Etihad is not financially viable at the moment because it is not yet owned by the AFL and they cannot dictate the return to the tennant clubs. But come 2025 when the AFL assumes control for $3, it will become an important part of the real estate and perfect for North, Carlton and Doggies to use. Everyone seems to forget that it is close to trains and in the middle of winter has a retractable roof that makes it massively more pleasant than the MCG on a cold winter's night. Sure the fact that the masses have to sit upstairs in the bleaches is an issue at the moment, but if the AFL is fair dinkum about looking after fans, it will take steps to actually allow us riff-raf to use the lower tiers without having to pay squillions. I'm not a greenie by any means, but do down and look at Gosch's Paddock and watch the Dees or Storm or Victory train there, and you will realise what a disaster it will be if Melbourne has to have all it's stadiums lined up like Ducks in a row along Swan St.

Braved Melbourne's lovely morning and headed down to watch training for about 90 minutes this morning and the first thing I noticed was Clarrie (Oliver) sliding along the ground like a 5-year-old on the slippery surface. He was attempting to make a try during a warm-up game of Touch Rugby. Gawny, being a Kiwi, seemed to be enjoying it most and clearly there was a sense of happiness across the group which comes from winning and also having a cooler morning to train. Most of the fringe players and Angus, Harry, Dunny, Viv and Terlich and Oscar did not train, which was doubtless because they were busy training at Casey preparing for this weekend's VFL practice match. The younger ones - Weeds, Kingsx2, Hulet, Billy and ANB all would have been down at Casey as well I'm sure. The one surprise (to some of you) was that Hunt was with the main group at Gosch's - shows how they rate him and probably highlights that he has now had three practice games (starred in VFL apparently on weekend), so does not need another match. All those who played against the Saints trained at Gosch's, with the exception of Oscar - who if you recall did not play NAB 2. Dawes did plenty of running as did Newton, Jetta and VB - the latter of whom did plenty of kicking/breaking drills with Crossy. VB looks fit to me, although I didn't see him kicking with the left foot - can't remember which ankle he aggravated though but I imagine it was his left. I just felt for poor old Crossy - has was getting hammered, pushed and shoved by VB. VB looks like he could play this weekend, but I can only assume that because he has played 1 and a half games already, they felt there was no need to rush him. Trenners and CP5 were also with the main group - so no VFL for them this weekend as Misson has stated. Salem marked the ball only with his left hand and sat out a few things - so clearly they are being careful, but not too careful with him. Once they got into things, it was ruckwork for Gawn, Pedo and Frost as they jumped into bags. The rest practiced moving the ball quickly against the green shirts who generally numbered about half of what they were up against. Goodwin could clearly be heard calling out to move the ball on quickly on numerous occasions. It seems to me we have an English soccer set up - Goody is coach and Roosy is manager. It begs the question that next year's key appointment will be who is Goody's younger understudy - I'm tipping Nathan Van Berlo. The only other thing worth commenting on is that Hoges was sporting long white socks - not quite the same as doing a Fabulous Phil with white boots, but not far off. He was typical Hoges - quite a character who is starting to remind me more of Jack Riewoldt. I didn't stay till the end so I can't comment on how many goals he slotted or whether he was doing his Kennedy stutter impersonation.

Thanks for the stats Jackaub and the video is a cracking reminder of what an amazing find we thought we had back then. Clearly his high disposals efficiency last year shows he's one of those players that we look for and dwell on his errors these days, and those in the he's no good camp, can use the fact that Roosy and the selectors left him out regularly last season to point to his deficiencies. I reckon he lost a bit of ground a few years back when he had a shoulder injury and as a result had more difficulty shrugging tackles and in some cases landing them. Since then everyone views him as slow with his decision making yet he's one of the smartest blokes in the side and you invariably see him waiting for the right option to present before delivering. And on top of that he's often having to play on the left-hand side of the park which is a hell of a lot harder for a right-footer hugging the boundary. Our style of play this year means we are looking for a pacy runner off half-back so he won't get a gig there anymore, but the wing does suit him because he's so fit and he just keeps presenting. He'll never be a dynamic player like many of our young group, but he's still a very useful member of the team and now that he has pace around him, perfect for our side. Sadly however I think Roosy will again do the dirty on him and make him emergency for Round 1.

I can't remember a thread on DL where people talked him up - although there were plenty that were pleased he was getting a go and the fact that the club gave him a crack at half back showed they can still see some potential in him - which is great given that he was a speculative late pick in the draft. At some point we will have a few injuries and will need to try out a few fringe players and the fact that we got pre-season games into guys like Wagner, Hunt and O-Mac is a bonus. Other than the draft year, I'm not sure why you are comparing him with Harmes, who is a stronger, bigger-bodied type and looks fully-developed to me and ready to have a regular crack at AFL level. Hunt still looks more like a kid, but he's getting closer to being ready to playing with men. Can he become a regular? Who knows, his kicking may not be good enough to cut it at the elite level, but it is now clear that he is worth having on our list.

I was in Perth so only got to watch game on TV, but from what I could see, Bernie was only used at half back when Salem or Jetta or Wagner needed a rest/rotation. The rest of the time he seemed part of the midfield rotation. Can someone who was at the ground confirm if I am right in saying that?