Deespicable

I am a little surprised we haven't signed Jayden already and imagine that our initial offer was lowball. He certainly deserves a semi-decent two year deal and given his late start from a footy perspective, there's definitely still upside. What I like about him most now is his close-down speed and also his ability to take the game on with his run - he's the complete opposite to most of our players and game plan in this regard and as such is even more important. Obviously it would be nice if he accumulated more disposals, but he's never been an accumulator and the argument could be that he doesn't make himself available enough for the short kicks down the line. The other argument to that is that maybe our defensive distributors - May, Salem and Brayshaw (up until rd 18) don't look for him enough. He still lacks a little strength in the one-on-ones but his game on Shai Bolton was huge and he takes a lot of pressure off our slower defenders because it means they don't cop the mega-fast match up. I get that one or two here resent the fact that Bowey wasn't getting a game, but there are other spots available down back and I think Bowey's all round game means he probably could play pretty much anywhere - i'd like to see Bowser get arun in the middle for example, and he'd be more attacking on a wing than JJ.

Like most DLers I can only see one change with Salem returning for Bowey. But the sub selection is pretty interesting. To me it's a toss up between Bowey (the unlucky omission) and Smith (the versatile one). Given the height of the Swans and the fact that we are playing one tall short up forward, I'd probably go Smith. Imagine the structural issues if one of our bigs goes down early and has to be subbed. Smith can cover big and short and if we lost a midfielder early, we have plenty of options of adding players into the rotation. As to our back seven match-ups, here my stab at them. May on Franklin, Petty on Reid, Lever on McDonald - I am confident we have the edge with those three. Then it's Hibberd on Heaney when he plays near goalsquare and Hunt on Papley, but if Papley plays more from the goalsquare then the switch needs to be made so that Hunt isn't isolated like last time. Rivers gets Hayward, who has been great for them in recent weeks. Salem will be tagged/closely marked by Clarke, who is a negater forward. Up the other end the Swans have to decide who to play Fox and Blakey on with one having to take Kozzie. McCartin on Brown, McCartin 2 on Jackson/Gawn, Rampe on Fritsch, Fox on Melksham, Blakey on Kozzie??, Lloyd on Spargo and Florent on ANB.

Point of clarification also. Apologies also to list manager Tim Lamb. I had him up higher in my spiel, but then when I re-edited it I forgot to reinstate him with Richo and Taylor as the three men of infuence in these dealings. Lamb is very much the man who will decide the strategy, Richo would rubber stamp and guide and Taylor would explain the draft ramifications of any dealings that Lamb may do. My main concern is that I hope we are ready to go with trying to obtain something a little extra than just Freo's first rounder and next year's first rounder for Jackson. Apart from the depth and quality of their current defenders they have fringe players such as Darcy Tucker who if we felt added something could be part of the deal. If Grundy opted for Geelong (which I reckon he won't), we also could request that they throw in Josh Treacy or Lloyd Meek with the deal to give us some ruck/forward back-up.

Nah, actually we had Jackson at 3 and then divided our second first round pick from the Roos, which was going to be about 8-9 (depending on bids for Tom Green and Liam Henry) and a pick which would have got us Young if we hadn't wanted for a downgrade to pick 12 (Kossie) and pick 32 (Rivers). I am not complaining about this downgrade at all, we needed Kossie's pace and X-factor more than another defender, and Rivers has been good and still may become very good - just need the club to sort out if they want him to be a running defender or a defensive fourth tall lockdown defender.

It is always a tricky time of year for any club to determine whether to stick with players on the fringe or bring in fresh blood, or in our case (and many other clubs case) freeing up some room in the salary cap for potential trades by delisting mid-tier players. Given that we are in the window, and have just signed up our key midfielders to long-term deals, finding salary room for possible acquisitions becomes problematic. It could be argued that the only way you can keep your core 25-30 players happy with somewhat comparable wages and stay under the cap is to pay close to the bare minimum on the additional 10-15 players on your list - thereby creating a bit of a divide. In the past two years we have minimised our delistings, because let's face it we have a very good list and our performance of fringe players at Casey is clearly the stuff of envy. Hopefully Casey finally gets the rewards of almost seven years of being highly competitive and wins the flag but I am sure the club is also hoping that some of our fringe players play so well in the VFL finals that other clubs come offering late-order picks for their services, along with taking their salary off our books. At present there are 10 unsigned players on our list for next year and below is my assessment on what we should do with them, but before I get there, it is also appropriate to factor in the impending departure of Luke Jackson to Freo which colours much of my thinking and doubtless yours. To me there’s two scenarios likely to be at play with Jacko’s move, which I think we all get is going to happen. Firstly we have to get something productive back for him from Freo that lessens the loss. The Dockers doubtless will offer their first rounder (currently pick 14) and will try and throw in next year’s one as well (which based on this year’s form will also be in the 12-18 ballpark). But to me that’s not quite enough. If we took that offer, we would then have to offload pick 14 to Collingwood for Grundy and most likely try and include a sweetener - Tomlinson, Bedford and Weid have been mentioned as options -although after this year the Pies may just want another pick. But under this scenario we end up the losers because Jacko is 21 and our list needs that age group more than a 28yo who will be contracted for another five seasons and who uses up at least 750K of salary cap space and that assumes the Pies offer to pay $250K of it for at least a couple of years. In fact given that the Pies are desperate to get Taranto and keep deGoey, they will be even more inclined to say yes to our dealings if we reduce or even completely drop their financial contribution. To me, there is a second option for us though and I just hope we are trying it. What we have to do is get Freo to combine their first rounder (or their future first rounder) with one of their young talented defenders for Jackson. I have always been a huge fan of Dandenong’s Hayden Young and was shocked when we didn’t get him that draft - preferring the Pickett/Rivers option, which certainly has been mega rewarding as well. But a Jacko for Young and a high pick would seem to be fairly equitable and keeps both clubs exchanging the same age demo and also returns both picks home. In our case Young, who is contracted, would be ideal as a replacement for Hibbo. Young’s form this year was superb, so the Dockers won’t give him up without a fight, but the Dockers have a plethora of good defenders - Ryan, Cox, Pearce, Chapman is a star, Walker a huge talent and Clark to name a few, so they may ultimately be persuaded into letting him go if that is the key to getting the deal done. Obviously after three years of great weather and shark-infested beaches, Young's desire to return may rule him out, but that’s where we may have to upgrade his five-year deal, which will add even more pressure on our salary cap. But he definitely would be worth it and his kicking is sublime. But alas we could all go on for hours about potential trades and really only our Richo and Taylor have an inkling on what can and can’t be achieved. But gees it would be nice to get both Grundy and Young for next year. My final point on all this is that we need to hold off on re-signing some players at this stage, because we need to keep enough room in the salary cap available for Grundy and potentially a Hayden Young. Hunt, Smith, Hibberd and Melksham are all in the $250K-$400K a year bracket and in my view only Hunt is mega essential for next year and beyond. By not signing the other trio, at least until we get confirmation on Grundy and a young Freo defender, then we keep around $750K up our sleeve in case. As to what I started out to do, here’s my prognosis on our out-of-contract set. Jayden Hunt - age 27 - MUST SIGN Heaps of Demonlanders have been critical of Hunt over the past few years but for two years now he's really made sure that he's looking at short and long kicking options and he has hit as many targets as any of our defenders. In the past two games he's been a major offensive factor with his run and the variety he provides in what has become quite a stagnant and stable defence. Hunt is the only one who regularly tries to break lines so his value can't and shouldn't be understated. Yes his one-on-one aerial skills sometimes are found lacking but his pace allows him to close down on opponents. His game on Shai Bolton was huge and it wasn't his fault that the club opted to play him on the last line of defence against Sydney (in Rd 12) and he was beaten on crucial plays by Papley and Heaney. Hunt did five weeks VFL penance for that game, I just hope the defensive coach who assigned him for the last line goalsquare role also had to do time of sorts. Since he's been back and further up the field off half-back he's been a point of difference that all sides need. Joel Smith - age 26 - should sign, but wait for a bit Ok, it's been another injury-decimated season for Joel, but I just hope the club hasn't forgotten the value down back he provided in our first seven games before injury hit and he was back running his usual red-vest laps at training. When fit, he now has a body that allows him to play on bigs and smalls and with his athleticism he also gives our backline pace and pressure which at times since his injury we have shown we don't have. He's been trialled as a forward at VFL level now because T-Mac got injured, but it's probably time to just send him down back again. I'd also argue that even with his penchant for accumulating injuries, that he's the ideal sub in the AFL this series because of his versatility. If Hibberd retires, then Joel is probably our only viable lock-down last line defender option (outside of May of course), so he’s worth holding on to, unless of course another club offered a second rounder for him. Michael Hibberd - age 32- let him retire after the final series Great bloke and just so adept at putting a timely bump on opponents, but I reckon it's time. I still love recalling his first few games for us and the run off half-back he provided - his dash and goal against Richmond on debut for us in 2017 was just huge and he deservedly got an AA gig that year, despite missing the first four or five games. But he's now unable to provide that dash off half-back and significantly now his best role is as a lockdown defender - how good was he on Charlie Cameron the other week. I reckon the club will probably sign him up again, because let's face he's still in our best 22, but like Melky, freeing up the salary cap space is a smarter move if we are to trying to lure a young Freo defender and keep our window open longer. Further to this, how many have noted that Geelong kept both Higgins and Dahlhaus on for another year after 2021 - do you reckon the club looks back and goes yeh, we should have made the hard call on them back then. Finishing up is not easy for player and club alike. Hibberd has been a great servant and his efforts on JJ in our GF win should not be forgotten. God, he was good in that first quarter when we were under seige. Jake Melksham - age 31- let him retire after the final series How good has it been to have Melky back in the side for a late-season cameo playing T-Mac's role, despite being four inches shorter than him. As with Hibberd, he uses his body just so well and that's why I hope the club finds a way to make both he and Hibbo assistants - sounds like we may need a few new ones with Yze and Chocco in demand anyway. Melky's best year was 2018 when he showed our squad that if you kick long and quickly, you create chaos for opponents. He's too slow to play half-forward or midfield now, but he's been so good as a tall forward the past few weeks. Does that mean we sign him up again? My view is no as we really need to play Van Rooyen next season, alongside Fritter and big Ben. The salary cap room his departure creates should allow us to nail a quality Freo defender in our trade for Jackson. But if we are less assertive at the trade table, Melky may agree to play on at a reduced rate. Oskar Baker - age 24 - delist, or if interest, trade He'll probably win our VFL best-and-fairest this year and has always been an everyready goer at VFL level with precious few chances at AFL level - 15 games in four seasons. This year he's played quite a bit in defence and there's no doubt in any other era, outside of our current successful one, he'd get games in the seniors, but alas it's probably time for the 24yo to move on. Gold Coast or Brisbane might rookie him, otherwise he'll be a great recruit for Southport. Toby Bedford - age 22 - trade He's been our medical sub on several occasions and technically he's listed as having played 16 games this season, although he's probably only started in about four. He's shown a bit of toe in several games and kicked nine goals as well and a couple of rippers on the run. There's been talk of clubs such as the Giants, Bombers and Pies being interested in him and given our plethora of small forwards, he deserves another shot at making the big time. Hopefully we can do a deal for an exchange of late-order picks. Fraser Rosman - age 20 - delist and re-rookie Tubby Taylor took a bit of a punt on the Wesley boy with great athleticsm and a lovely left foot after missing out on another athlete - Max Holmes - who went way earlier than expected. The club was hoping Rosman would be our left-side wingman but he's been unable to really impact at VFL level and was even sent to defence to find more footy. So far it hasn't happened, although he did show a few promising signs for Casey against Sydney. Maybe the club might decide to delsit him and then re-rookie him. Rookies Kade Chandler - age 22 - trade As with Toby, he's in the queue behind Kossie, Spargs and ANB and it's hard to realistically see that altering in 2023. Kade has quite a bit of poise with a lovely left foot so it would be interesting to see how he would go at a club that can give him a genuine shot. Given Adelaide will have Rankine along with Rachele, it might be wise for him to see if Port would be willing to swap a late pick for him. Mitch Brown - age 32 - delist What a talent. He’s just so smooth and reliable with his movements and has been a delightful back up for us, but unfortunately at 32 and after two seasons in the role, it’s time to move on and I suspect he’s probably got plenty of life after footy plans in place from being on the edge for about seven seasons. If he’d been a tad quicker he’d have been a star at AFL level because he’s such a reliable kick and presents so well, albeit without a great leap. Deakin Smith - age 20 - delist or re-rookie He’s a very clean Nev Jetta-style defender who as yet hasn’t been able to justify his rise to the seniors. He probably needs to take the game on more to warrant the next step and I’d reckon the club will be watching closely how he copes with VFL finals pressure as they would be with Fraser Rosman before making a decision for next year. Majak Daw - age 31- retired mid-season A very handy VFL-level ruckman/forward and as with Mitch Brown, the chances just didn't eventuate at top level. Finally it’s important to note that VFL stars Luke Dunstan, Sam Weideman and Adam Tomlinson all have another year to run on their contracts and can again serve as valuable back-ups. That’s in addition to Van Rooyen who must be given plenty of AFL chances next season and Laurie who we need to see what he possesses at the next level, while Turner is another who is ready to challenge and would allow us to send Petty or May forward on occasions. And we should get a better idea on Howes and Woewodin’s capabilities next year.

So where do you think Bailey is going to play Demon3 or do you have inside knowledge that he's injured? And your choice of Hunt on Cameron is logical based on pace, but against that is the fact that Cameron plays largely from the goalsquare and the last time we thrust Hunt into that position (against Sydney's Papley and Heeney if you have forgotten) he spent the next six weeks in the VFL because he was blamed for losing pivotal contests. The person who lost the pivotal contest was the fella who nominated to play him in that role and there has been no suggestion anywhere of that nuff-nuff losing some of his coaching salary. Hunt showed on Saturday his value as a running defender - he was the only one who didn't go down the left side like Goody's zombies and the result was that our forwards got a decent chance to score when he got it. Hunt will most likely play on Bailey who is mega quick as well, but plays more half-forward than goalsquare like Charlie. Daniher and Hipwood are the two major dangers so May and Petty will get them, Lever will get McStay or when he's off Rayner. That leaves Salem on McCarthy and Rivers on Rayner. Poor old Hibbo will have to get Cameron which ain't ideal but Hibbo is such a great user of his body in one-on-one contests around the goalsquare that it has to be him. What should happen is that Rivers should be dropped and that Brayshaw goes back to defence and is told to try and switch the ball on occasions rather than just going down the line to a contest like zombies that we do. Harmes would then come into the midfield rotation. What should also happen is that Joel Smith should be the sub, so that he can cover almost any injury scenario for us, including playing on Charlie if Hibbo does his hammy. But that won't happen because Goody doesn't like changing a side and will stick with a small forward as sub (or Harmes if he doesn't get a recall). When you are premiers your coach can do nothing and have an immediate justification - we are premiers after all, what do you know. The fact that we've lost six of our past 11 games and everyone has figured us out as one-trick ponies is irrelevant - because we are premiers and it is almost heresy to suggest change. Our only hope is that our middle quartet get enough decent centre bounce clearances to provide a winning score, because we sure as hell ain't going to win by simply playing the left side ... again and again and again.

Agree this is quite the morbid post, but tend to agree, but here's a few reasons IMO. 1) Other sides have worked out that we like to go down left side and are ready for us. And because we rarely switch there's no chance to expose other players or other entries. To alter that line of attack in three weeks is not possible. 2) James Jordon worked as hard, if not harder than anyone on Friday and was in our best handful. But how many times did he do anything but normal link work. He hasn't got the speed to break lines. Ideally he should be in the middle playing as big-bodied mid. We have to find a right-side wingman who the players like going through - this ties in with our failure to switch right. Jackson isn't a long-term option as a wingman, but I'd be playing him there for the rest of the season to try and convince May and Salem and Hibberd to risk going long to him. He ain't going to be outmarked. Sadly it's too late in the season to try such a radical change. 3) We no longer take risks. When we go down the left side (as we do 95% of the time), rarely do the players risk sending a long bomb over to a player on the other side. Langdon took a clever mark and goaled in one of our few switches like this in the 2nd term. We are so ingrained in trying to beat sides down the wing, that we restrict our options and when we turn it over, sides like Collingwood take us on through the middle as our zone defence reorganises itself. We ultimately need another tall target to allow this to happen. 4) The tall target may well be JVR, but Goody doesn't like changing his setup (we are still the reigning premiers after all), but after another loss (our sixth in 10 weeks) he should consider it. But he won't now, it's too late in the season. Goody, this season, also has underrated (or forgotten) the excitement that comes with having a first or second gamer getting a chance. We all know they don't play the percentages or do the customary but that sometimes leads to a spark. But JVR won't play this year. 5) Clearly we aren't as fit this year as last year. Losing Burgess has been costly and I suspect the new fitness guy allowed a few of our senior players (now premiership players) to get away with not doing quite as much hard work. It's too late now to turn this around, but a stiff session that finishes with 8x200m reps this Tuesday or Wednesday will help. You don't need to sack the fitness manager, but hopefully he learns for next year that nice guys finish ... without a flag. 6) Speaking of nice guys, clearly Trac has won plaudits this year in this area. His profile has gone through the roof with ads, and post-match TV interviews and he's just so nice. Earlier in the year he even started picking up opponents off the ground after tackles. Sorry Trac, you are a great bloke, but we want you to be a great, hard footballer. You can't have both. Nice guys finish ... without an All Australian. And he can't change his nice guy DNA around in three weeks. 7) When it comes to taking the game on we got a lesson from a 19 year old last night in Nick Daicos. He has the confidence to run and switch and he tackles. Unfortunately we haven't had that player down back, with the exception of Angus anywhere near that. I still think Rivers could become a great running defender but he just hasn't embraced that role like we needed yet. His effort when he failed to spoil McCreery on the wing was enough to tell me he need to go back to the school of hard knocks. He might yet become an absolute star, but it won't be this year. 8) Our search for a running defender isn't just a Trent Rivers issue. Jayden Hunt can also cop a bit of the blame, but you can tell he's playing really close to his opponent and he just hasn't quite been able to launch on the counter attack. But to be honest he's closer to reaching that role than Rivers at the moment. But Hunt will most likely be dropped this week. Finding a running defender won't be this year but at least Angus should be back in the sweeper role next week after being tagged out of it after half time against the Pies. And Bowser needs another go there as well. 9) ANB has been playing our high half-forward through the middle all year and he presents and keeps moving as well as any player in the game. It's an incredibly tough role, requires courage and awareness and is a bit like the job of a No.10 in soccer - it's that crucial. It's just that ANB hasn't been able to break free this year because sides are on to him - I haven't got the stat but I reckon he'd be our most tackled player all year by far. There are only two players who could do this role this year instead of him - Petracca and Viney. Will Goody switch either out of their midfield positions to do so. Not likely this year. 10) I mentioned earlier we don't have the fitness but based on how we looked against the Pies we also don't have the athleticism - or at least the confidence and speed that taking the game on brings. The classic example is Olly who continually handballs when he is by far our best runner. He seemed to have gotten over that fear last year and for much of this year but I suspect he's gone back to looking at his SuperCoach points since he hurt his thumb and a safe handball is worth more than an errant kick that almost wins a game. He's the best player in the side with Trac and he just has to show the confidence (and arrogance). 11) Given that we lost so badly to the Pies run and also struggled in that department against Geelong a few weeks back, there's no doubt Joel Smith's athleticism is needed at the minute. If we don't go JVR, and I suspect we won't, he's the obvious swingman to provide a spark up forward and gives is the flexibility of having someone who can be sent back in case of injury. He's not the messiah, but he showed enough early in the season before his 15th injury, that he can cope with AFL level at last. 12) We all get that in general our central midfield is the best in the league, but at finals (and we are pretty much there now) you have to shut down players as well and Harmes has his flaws but at least he works his butt off and niggles. We need him to be assigned a player each week in the middle - Walsh followed by McCluggage etc. He will still need a break and that's where having a raging bull like Viney should come in as well with the pair waxing on the poor star who is chosen. But that won't happen this year. 13) Finally Goody and the coaches are so caught up in their three-group (forwards, mids and defender) training method these days that the old ability to switch players mid-game on to dangerous players no longer exists. Changing players can mentally make it harder for opponents to keep their flow. It used to be a tactic that all the great coaches from Barassi through to Hafey employed. But it doesn't happen any more because coaches don't like taking risks. So just in case anybody doubts my message, here it is again. We are premiers and we are playing safe and our coaches and players aren't taking risks and that's understandable to a large degree because we are premiers. But ultimately that's why we won't be going back-to-back this year. Next year is another story.

In: Harmes (to tag Walsh), Joel Smith, Bowey, JVR Out: Melky, Rivers, Hibberd, ANB B: Bowey May Petty HB: Brayshaw Lever Salem C: Jackson (to provide an outlet from down back for May when we kick towards Richmond station) Oliver Langdon High HF: Trac to play the ANB role and to be used all the time going forward through the middle HF: Van Rooyen Sparrow F: Pickett Fritsch Brown Ru: Gawn Harmes Viney Int: Hunt, Spargo, J.Smith, Jordon

Ultimately the Pies were quicker and fitter and desperate in the tackles and their strong men Maynard and De Goey proved too ballistic for us in the final term. Can we turn things around pre-finals - probably not but here's a few suggestions: 1) Obviously our fitness guy has been too soft on our egos and all season we have failed to close out games after half time like we did with Burgess - we have an eight-day break, so we have one last chance on Tuesday or Wednesday to give our guys some really solid 200m reps. But ultimately it's too late in the season to turn your fitness completely around. As a result you have to turn to the players that are naturally fit and hence Joel Smith is in and Harmes is also in because he provides run. 2) Our tackling wasn't anywhere near as strong as the Pies - we have a big bodied player like Trac and I get that he's a pin player given a licence but he's not doing enough grunt work. As to his decision to not go forward on the members wing and handball backwards to an under pressure Olly, it was criminal and shows his lack of confidence in his own game and in his forwards. A decision on whether Trac gets his licence to do his own thing is needed. I think we have to still give it to him, but ask him to be more accountable at the same time. And he is a AA midfielder, not an AA forward. So we have to play him there and wear the consequences. Watching De Goey and Crisp charging into the packs with a full head of steam was disheartening. It's a risky policy but it kept paying off for them, whereas we just tried to handball it out of the pack and they were on to us before we had time to be precise. If Trac came charging through, I'd get out of his way I know that. Maybe he needs to take that risk at some stoppages. 3) At halftime Angus was our best player as a midfielder, but he was marked more closely in the second half and was basically ineffectual from then on. I do like him playing in the middle, but it has to be a shock tactic. We need him down back for his precise kicking. That's where he has to go. Harmes comes back into the midfield rotation because he's a worker. Yes he butchers it on occasions, but he ain't alone there. 4) Our forward set up isn't working. Both Fritter and Brown were good in patches and presented as did Gawny (who was everywhere but whose kicking was appaling) but we got nothing out of Jackson as a forward. Our third tall Melksham was brilliant in the first term but couldn't impact from then on. He's just too small for the role and can't provide the tackle pressure. Hence we have to go to Joel Smith who is an X-factor player. It's now too late in the season to try Van Rooyen, but I'd be comfortable with that as an option as well, but I think Joel Smith can provide the forward tackles and pressure better than VR. 5) Others have commented on this, but can we keep playing three small forwards in the same team. ANB's role is crucial through the middle, but I lost count of the number of times he got tackled by the Pies. Could his role go to someone else this late in the season?

Given that we have really struggled to find long marking options up forward and that we have gone back to our pre-2021 set up of just two tall forwards, we certainly need his less choreographed aerial work. And if we were to play him as the third tall marking option, then it also gives us more flexibility down back if we get an injury. There is a seperate argument is that JVR is also worth a try as the third tall forward But either way we need a spark up there and Joel has the aerial ability to provide it.

Brown for Weideman is a lock for almost all of us. Harmes also should play, it's just who goes out. Tricky, especially given Brayshaw looked so good in the middle last week and both Rivers and Hunt (especially early) were super. Then there's the fact that we need a third tall up forward and as insurance - Melky has done a great job in the T.Mac role so far. I also like the prospect of Joel Smith playing. But I reckon given the stakes, we should just make him the sub. That way he can come on if needed at either end. He's perfect for that role.

As much as I am sure we will play like a home side tonight (it was our finals home ground after all), I am still concerned that we have not picked a side to beat Freo. Since our loss to the Pies we have scrapped our three talls down back, three talls up forward set up and Freo have a plethora of solid high-marking talls (Darcy, Cox, Pearce, Ryan, Lobb, Taberner and Logue) - that's one more than us. They also have back-up three-quarter talls in Young and Chapman. So it had better be wet or slushie. If not we better have a late change on the horizon. We also named eight defenders this week. Is one a late withdrawal or is Brayshaw going to go into the middle to tag his brother - not a bad idea I reckon, except I doubt it will happen because our guys train in their three clusters and Goody and selectors never seem to switch roles, unless catastrophic injuries occur. Is Rivers going to take Frederick again. This was the match up that cost us big time at the MCG and it looks to me like it is on the cards again. Let's hope redemption comes for our boy. Where will Jayden play. We lost Harmes from our midfield/forward rotation and replaced him with an extra defender - is he going to play as a forward or provide run and carry from down back sadly missing in recent weeks. Or could James Jordon be sent into the middle to tag Brayshaw, allowing Jayden to play his wing. Ultimately our big advantage is that we have a player who loves the hard stuff - Viney - and even if Oliver is tagged by Aish (and he will be), he can be the difference and the reason we get first use of it. And hopefully Trac lifts. If he doesn't it's hard to see us taking control of the game. And if it is a hurried, harassed first use by Viney, Trac and Olly, then Freo's tall defence will gobble it up. Excited? Yes! Worried about our planning? Not if we win!

I am pretty confident we will put in a strong showing against Freo on our favourite away ground, but I am still mega worried that our conservative set-up out of defence will continue, enabling Freo to chop us off. The Dockers have plenty of strong marks, as we saw at the MCG in May, and we can't just continue to go left, left and left again. The issue is huge because the Cats and Doggies exploited our tactic and what's worse, it generally is Langdon's side and his value is his run, not his marking ability. Ideally what we need to do is to be switching to his wing because that's his strength, not going out to his side from kick-ins. Clearly we have a problem of confidence in our right-side and as good as James Jordon has been in terms of work rate, he is not providing line-breaking runs or marking safety marking intercepts. Given he also has an injury and is 50-50, it is time to trial a new player on the wing. To me their is only one strong-marking tall that has the speed and tackling ability to shock the Dockers - Luke Jackson. Yes it means Gawn has to ruck for longer, but his tapping ability in the last term against the Dogs was phenomenal and we need his presence against Darcy and Lobb. Our other options is to bring in pace on the near-side wing, but to me, getting Jackson more involved and using his height-advantage will present problems for the Dockers and give us a viable right-side aerial outlet. The counter-argument is that it's too late in the season to make changes, but that's been our policy all season - our only fundamental difference to last season has been changing Angus to defence which was brought on by injuries pre-season. Playing Jackson on the wing allows us to include Ben Brown without having to drop the Weid. Lever's returns most likely means Tomlinson misses. The other issue is that Rivers has had two games back and is yet to provide heaps of run. I am sure he can play, but unfortunatelt this is his growth year via the VFL. He has to either learn to be the third tall defender or be given clear instructions to take the game on and become a weapon like a Bailey Dale. Neither seems to have happened as yet. One of Bowey or Hunt has to come back in for Rivers and I think Bowey's game in the VFL was exceptional, so i'd err towards him and make Hunt the sub, so that he can provide value down back or up front if called into that role. The final change is tricky - Chandler has to play. He's been close so many times but he deserves his shot in the big league more than any other player and it can't be as sub - he has to play. As a result a hard call has to be made on Spargo, ANB, Harmes or Melky - all of whom had their moments against the Dogs. If it's wet I'd leave out Melky, but I'd pencil him back in for the game against the Pies. I also think we have to better utilise Harmes, who had a shocker against the Dogs, highlighted by his appalling kick to Melky in the second term. To me Harmes provides run in the middle and we have to use him more in there and a hard-tag on Brayshaw will suit him. That means Trac has to spend more time forward. but that's what happens when you aren't quite doing the superstar stuff in the middle of the park. So for me, it's time to get bigger and less predictable. In: Lever, B.Brown, Bowey, Chandler and Hunt as sub Out: Jordon (inj), Tomlinson, Rivers, Melky

Sydney Demon: Why do posters keep talking about moving Petty forward? We have the best defence in the league with Petty in the side in defence. So you keep Tomlinson in the side and push Petty forwards? That weakens our defence and Petty hasn't been training in attack so why experiment? If you want to go tall you bring a forward in from Casey, not play a backman in attack! Petty played up front in 2019 and looked quite capable before injury and we all know he has a little more mobility than Ben Brown and Weid, so is an enticing prospect as our lead-up forward. Given our reluctance to play Weid, the youth of JVR and T-Mac's injury, there is sound logic in the move - although whether Tomlinson has the pace to replace him down back on a permanent basis is the big question. That is why when Joel Smith comes back, the option becomes a little more appealing and in the event of injury to a big during a game, reverting to the three-tall forward option enables us the flexibility of sending Petty back just as we had to with T-Mac a couple of times last year. It's a discussion Demonlanders are all having and I'm sure our selectors are also pondering.

It does sound like losing Jacko is becoming a real prospect. If that's the case then I just hope we are circling the right Docker trade options. Hayden Young is clearly our best option - being the left-foot defender that would replace Hibbo next year and May's kick-in duties down the track. Ironically Young was our expected early pick when we went with Jackson and Pickett in the 2019 draft and is a Dandenong lad who went with pick 8 or 9. I'd reckon their first pick (around 15-18) and Young would be fair compensation and I'd be happy if we went with Lobb in lieu of pick 15-18, although I suspect Lobb has already priced himself out of the market and his haircut doesn't help either! The side bonus with losing Jackson is that it should enable us to re-sign Angus.

Melky played well last week and did what we have all been critical of him - tackle. If he continues to do that then he can play the T.Mac third tall role, because like T.Mac, he is smart and generally a good kick and set shot. But Marvel is a fast circuit so he will need to be on his game to survive. Ultimately I suspect we will need a third tall option. We dispensed with this role after our loss to the Pies I think, but I imagine that against the better sides we will need to go back to having another option down the line - to me the role is probably best served by Petty, although May is also an attractive option at CHF, the issue being that it leaves our defence more suspect. The return of Joel Smith will add pace to our back seven, but that's at least two weeks away. Note the emergencies this week - Weid ready in case Brown is too sore, Tomlinson ready in case Lever too sore, Dunstan or Bedford the sub.

I was rapt that we seemed to inact the switch at least five times from down back against Port, whereas the week before against the Cats we went left, left and left again. Part of that comes down to the inclusion of Tomlinson and Rivers - both of whom are good kicks, although hardly stars. Part of it doubtless was a relook at the Cats game by our coaches and May and others were clearly reminded that there were two sides of the ground. This week the selectors have to decide whether to continue with just two talls up front - I reckon the Dogs are quicker and will make the switch harder, which means we will go up the line more which in turn means you need the third tall up front. Both Petty or May would be great options at CHF, but Goody and his team don't like switching the magnets around, so I reckon they will be too scared to make the switch and given that Melky played well, he will likely stay in. If Melky keeps working that hard, then his right-foot lethal weapon makes him very useful and almost undroppable. Bedford is the obvious out (very surprised that he played in Alice ahead of Laurie and Chandler) and Oliver comes back with Sparrow spending more time up forward again in Bedord's role. Assuming Petty is right, then Tomlinson is the unlucky out, although as stated, I wish we had the balls to try May or Petty up forward, thereby keeping Tomlinson in. But we'll go small again. Rivers needs to do more, but provides good balance down back with Salem and Hibberd, so Hunt and Bowey will have to wait. Spargo has to do more as well, and with Laurie and Chandler in form, a change should be made - but it won't be.

Laurie is definitely in, Van Rooyen may be in. But my question is whether it is time to invoke the positional switch which was first mooted by the club three years ago and has yet to be trialled in any game. That being playing Jackson as a ruck rover alongside Gawn. If Clarrie is out, then it's the perfect week to go with it, but even if Clarrie plays, there are some benefits as port plays a heavy stoppage game and having another hard body who loves to tackle in there won't hurt. The other positional switch Goody should consider is this. Does anyone have confidence in our key forwards to mark the ball and go bang to either a lead-up, long give or shot from 50m. There is one player who can do all that and he may well be our best forward - Steven May. One advantage of sending him forward is that it stops him continually going left from defence - which was way too predictable against the Cats.

Goody said the audit would come and hopefully with a 10-day break both he and the selectors do some tinkering. The first and biggest decision is deciding if they can continue to just attack via the left-hand side. I know we have three left footers down back but it was embarrassing watching our lack of variety and inability to switch play. If we are sticking with that line of attack, then you have to go back to another big up front to present down that line. The obvious fix to this is to either use a right-footer such as Brayshaw on kick-ins or to provide a fun incentive reward for May to switch to the right at least once a quarter. We looked slow against the Cats and we also did against the Pies in Rd 13. We altered our mix after Rd 13 to have an extra small forward to solve the pace problem - Bedford was added - but unfortunately in a pressure-cooker game (and they all will be from here) it didn't work and we just looked small and ineffectual. So the first thing is that it's back to three small forwards (not four). The other thing is that we looked slow in our ball movement from down back and at the same time didn't have enough bodies (extras) around the stoppages. At least one of Rivers or Hunt must return to our back seven because we have to have more drive from the back. If that means Bowey has to sit out for a few weeks, then so be it. The thing with Hunt is that he cannot be left on last line in a one-on-one contest because he's not that sort of player as we saw against Sydney. Hibberd or Salem or Brayshaw have to take whichever small forward is playing close to goals. I'll be interested to see if the hunger has returned with Rivers after a few weeks out and we will know after tonight's VFL game I suspect. As to stoppages, Harmes has to be in the middle more often. Yes he's not as classy as Trac and Olly, but we need his grunt work more than ever in the lead-up to the finals and together with Viney they can provide shutdown roles as well. Finally, we need a bit of excitement among the group and that invariably comes with a first-gamer. Hopefully either Lawrie or Van Rooyen plays well enough in the VFL tonight to warrant a debut. I am also hopeful that we are spending a bit more than two nights in the Alice as right now our young guys need to have a break from what is an incredibly cold winter. Sure the guys with kids may prefer to stay put with their families, but this is a great chance to get some endurance training in along with some team-bonding with peripheral players. In: (subject to decent games in VFL) Weid or (Van Rooyen), Hunt or Rivers (maybe even both), Lawrie (if he has a good game in VFL). Out: Bedford or Spargo (you cannot drop Kossie for the Alice Springs game), Olly (if thumb broken) or Sparrow (if Lawrie plays well in VFL), Bowey and possibly Hibberd (if Rivers plays a blinder in VFL).

Sorry but my votes are quite a bit different to most of you. 6 Brayshaw - the only Dee that was clean by hand and foot all night, even if he slipped into just going down the left-hand side like his teammates after half time. 5 Harmes - our only midfielder who took the game on, or at least was permitted to take it on, and significantly it was when he was on the ball it coincided with our best chances. As hard and tough as Viney and Oliver were, they weren't able to get any run or clearances going for much of the night. 4 Petty - did a commendable job mainly on Cameron, who has been their best forward this year. 3 Neal-Bullen - our only small forward to touch it more than six times and to lay more than a couple of tackles. 2 Oliver - after a slow start had a super second term, but shouldn't have been allowed to come back on after his thumb injury. 1 Viney - another gutsy display but aside from his lovely pass to Fritter early, didn't really provide the link-up play. Unlucky Trac - yes clearly was dangerous with his three goals, but not enough bullocking or tackling work done by him and part of our beaten midfield clearance group, even though he spent chunks of game down forward.

The five-day break should mean that both sides are more cautious on players who were sore. For us that should mean that Hibbo, who is also our oldest player and had some tightness on Saturday, sits out this one. I assume Rivers gets the gig to play mainly on Close leaving May (Hawkins), Lever/Petty (Cameron, Stanley, Blicavs or their fresh big), Brayshaw (Danger), Salem (Stengle), Bowey (Narkle). The other decision is whether to go back to the three bigs plus Fritsch forward set up that was so successful until our Freo game, or stick with the smaller, quicker line up that we have used in our past two wins. Ultimately I feel playing the Cats, you have to be big and strong so I'd prefer one of Kossie, Spargo or Bedford to be given the sub vest this week - whoever is the sorest. The advantage of going big should mean that the Cats send Blicavs back to play alongside Henry and Rohan (now playing back). Certainly I'd select the side that way and if conditions look poor for bigs, then it's easy to switch out a big and stick with the fourth small. Gawn and Jacko should both be fresh and for me I'd leave out whoever is the sorest out of Weid, M.Brown or B.Brown - I would say Mitch Brown but given he knows the ground so well, sometimes that can assist. So maybe it's time to give big Benny boy a rest.

Wow, hard to believe that we are back to the old days of ringing the changes but certainly there has to be a rethink based on injuries, not to mention the brand being trashed. In terms of playing style, we have to get back to last year's mix of long and short forward entries - Trac's pass to ANB in second term on MCG was the only short one I can remember. We also have to work on our centre clearances because we won't be getting the silver service for the next few weeks without Gawny. I did think getting Hibberd back last week solved our problems with one-on-one work a bit, and May should help this even more. The tricky bit is that finding a match up for Charlie Cameron will not be easy - J.Smith will still be out. I think I'd go Hibbo and just accept that he may get a couple of sly ones over the top. But to me Rivers is the only other option - is two weeks of VFL enough for him to have understood the need for more responsibility? Yep I'd give him the job and let him sink or swim a bit. I''d also use Tomlinson in the ruck a bit with Jackson. Tommo has a great tank - so I'd prefer him over Mitch Brown. Finally I also reckon we need to get a spark from someone and Kozzy's the man (as we have to get more out of him) - I'd send him into the middle and rotate up forward with Trac. In terms of outs, I'm afraid it may be time to let Bowey and Sparrow go back and dominate the VFL for a bit. The Sparrow spot opens the door for either Bedford or Lawrie (if we want to give a newcomer a go). Perhaps Lawrie the sub this week. Finally I think we have to use the tag on their two primary ball winners and users - Viney on Neale and Harmes on McCluggage - for big chunks of the game - not both at same time though as we need our own drive. Out: Gawn, Turner (inj) Bowey M.Brown Sparrow in: Weid, Rivers, Tomlinson, May, Bedford B: Rivers (Cameron) May (Daniher) A.Brayshaw (Bailey) HB: Lever Petty (Hipwood) Salem (McCarthy) C: Langdon Pickett Jordon HF: Trac Weideman ANB F: Spargo Fritsch B.Brown Ru: Jackson Oliver Viney Int: Bedford, Tomlinson, Harmes, Hibberd

The issue is finding players to cover the last line of defence for the one-on-one ply that comes in quick and with May out it was again a big problem. Sadly Hunt blew his two key plays against Papley (2nd term) and Heeney (final term) and unfortunately that might spell the end for him at this level. Hibberd is the obvious inclusion for this role, especially as Rivers needs at least another week in the VFL developing in this area. I suspect Hibberd will get Ginnivan quite a bit. Tomlinson also blew some key last line plays on Reid but with May out we don't have options. I don't imagine Petty will come up and if he doesn't then we'll need another tall to combat the Mihocek, Cox, Henry combo - I think McInnes will be out injured. I reckon it would be a big call to use Turner on Henry but it's definitely possible. The alternative is to send Mitch Brown or Reid back there and use Lever on Henry. The other decision is up forward and whether we want to keep going with our three talls plus Fritter structure, or whether Ben Brown's lack of impact will make us consider sending Trac down there for a bit and just going with two talls - Jackson and Weid or Jackson and Mitch Brown - whichever one isn't sent down back to cover for Petty and May's absence. Ultimately I think our guys all sensed the urgency against the Swans and it just didn't quite come off with the Goulden free huge. But if we have fixed up our forward set up and Tomlinson adjusts better to the tempo, then it should be happy days on Monday.

Been a while since I've been interested in posting a comment - such has been our regular winning scenario, but alas all good things come to and end and the selection microscope is now upon us. First point I'll make is the surprise at the number of people who don't seem to yet fully understand that five outs and five ins doesn't really add up if you include the sub as one of your outs - ie: Dunstan. I think we all get that, if they pass their fitness test, there will be five ins with Tomlinson replacing May and the fab four - Langdon, Harmes, T.Mac and Salem all back. Melksham is clearly going to be out and sadly a couple of hard calls on premiership players have to be made. The first is Rivers, who unless you have forgotten, was on Freo's matchwinner Frederick in the second half. Rivers has been solid all year, but never great and never in our best five or six. He needs to go back to the magoos and he needs the club to decide if he is a swingman who can play on the bigs or a swingman who can just play on the smalls. Effectively his spot has been taken by Angus this year. Rivers needs to dominate for Casey and if he does, he will come back a better player. He is young and I still think he has some Corey Enright type qualities, but he has to realise he can do even more. Steve Waugh was eventually dropped and it was the making of him. The second is Tom Sparrow, who was ineffectual against Freo's mids and when playing as a high half-forward barely sighted. We all know Tom works his butt off and he's been pretty handy in heaps of games, how can anyone forget his game against Richmond. But like Rivers he needs to go back and dominate the VFL, so that he takes that dominate attitude into the AFL. He is also young and now is the time to make him earn his spot. Some of you have tipped Hunt to be dropped instead of Rivers but he is exactly the player to match up on Papley, as he has been on Bolton and other lively small forwards that play near the goalsquare this season and has played heaps tighter than in the past. The argument would be that Salem can play on Papley, but I just don't reckon Salem needs that added pressure in his first game back and he will more than have his hands full with others anyway - most likely Hayward who was the Swans best against Richmond. That leaves Bowey on Wicks (who might yet be dropped for Stephens) and Angus on Heeney. With Franklin out (barring the AFL intervening), they will bring in Amartey to go with Reid and McDonald. Petty (if fit), Tomlinson and Lever will mark them. The tricky decision for our selectors is which of Ben Brown and the Weid is omitted for T.Mac. It's a tough choice because McCartin has been terrific as a marking interceptor and Brown has been out of form in recent weeks and Weid quiet but he showed some smarts in defence in a couple of key plays when sent back last week. Keeping Bedford ahead of Sparrow also alters our balance a tad, but I reckon we have to send Sparrow and Rivers back to the VFL for a few weeks for their development and having each other down there will be an added spur. I also would have liked to see Laurie play, but he had a quiet one against the Frangers last week and Van Rooyen was injured/ill. Anyway for me it's: In: Salem, Langdon, Harmes, T.Macdonald, Tomlinson Out: May (inj), Sparrow, Rivers, Melksham, Weid plus Dunstan, last week's sub. And given we are already playing an extra small with Toby, I'd make Weid the sub.

I always felt Todd Viney was more of a ruck rover and & Jack given his size is more a rover in traditional sense, although I did wax and wane on Nathan Jones being the rover as well. Ultimately they are all midfielders and to me interchange is the same as starting in the modern era. But I reckon the role of wing has gone up a notch this year with Lingers and Brayshaw with Smith and Hunter the only two ahead of them as tandem. But they are all not a patch on Robbie!