JV7

Would take a proper pre season & good conditioning/fitness ?

Went looking for the odds with betting agencies absolutely staggered to see most have the odds around the mark or Swans $1.75 to Dees $2.10. I was hoping for some $3 plus value on us. My feelings before each game has come to fruition this year but I’m confident of a win this week... Maybe more hoping because I’ll be up there

100%. Throw him to Parker this week & the oppositions best mid for the next month. We are lacking a defensive mind set in the middle, he’s done run with roles in the past (back in 2014 when Roos started) if he can’t or doesn’t want to follow then the writing is on the wall.

People calling for Maynard ? Seriously. If there is one issue we have it is having all our mids as ball winners, lacking spread. Exactly what Maynard is, only way this bloke will ever get a game is if Oliver/Brayshaw/Viney is out... He is exactly the player we don’t need in the side on top of the above mentioned players. I’ve read none of the Casey reports nor watched the game but Stretch would be one player I’d like to hit form & get in the side for his outside game

I was thinking the same thing Friday night, he’s form has been well below his 2017 season. The down fall of having a breakout year as he did in 2017 is that sides find ways to shut your strengths down, Hibberds is his ball use & over lap run. I think sides have worked out to corral his left side as he has no right foot. You wouldn’t think this would be the cause of such a dramatic form lose but couple this with our defence been all at sea, you look at his 2017 stats and is a stark reminder how good he can be. Don’t think he can play forward, just got to hope he can turn it around. Problem is he hasn’t played great footy for over 12 months.

You'd like to think we did & the club just thought they could turn around his fitness base or May just didn't understand the condition he had to return in between end of season & start of pre season. My contact said usually every player shows up in peak condition to a new club which has happened in the past at Melbourne. It was a combination of May not understanding the level required & coming from GC where they are a little behind in their programming

That is actually the most dangerous kick in footy, if you don't mark that ball or lock it in you open yourself right up to be counter attacked. I'm of the opposite, if your going to bomb it inside 50 do it long & deep and try to create repeat stoppages inside 50. At the moment our ground ball work inside 50 is deplorable, we bomb it in, dont mark & then let opposition sides run it out.

I know there has been a lot of talk about the condition Steven May arrived at the club and I am probably only repeating what has been said but I have a contact at the club who told me today the state May showed up in was nowhere near AFL standard. The club was staggered at the state he was in, he was overweight & unfit. The club had to literally halve his workload to the rest of the playing group because he's body couldn't cope with the program. Apprently the current situation is they are having to start from scratch and rebuild & condition his body before he can play again which could be 5 weeks away

What's the alternative ? Keitly ? Petty ? You've got to be realistic if Petty is a long term prospect as a 3rd you can't throw him to wolves without Lever & May, may do long term damage. We clearly have the answers but both are out injured *** TBH I've had it with both of them but our hands are tied while May & Lever are injured

100% miss his leadership, on field coaching & foot skills in the back half

Who honestly gives a flying f$#k

Season is absolutely gone. I wish I could say I'm done with this mob but I'm off to Sydney next week, what a waste of time, money & effort. So [censored] off.

What is worse than 1 Wagner... 2 Wagners ? It is funny how we suddenly have no depth. Lewis, Hannan, VDB, Lever & May are all best 22 for mine. J.Smith not too far off it but we couple this with losing Tyson & Kent who were good depth. I’d much prefer Kent on HFF then Lockhart or C.Wagner & Tyson would almost certainly be going through the midfield atm. It wasn’t until I saw the side on paper round 1 & thought “really ? Is that best we have at this stage” Honestly feels like 5 years ago where we shuffled deck chairs & felt no matter who came in it wouldn’t make a difference

I am really torn as to how I feel about tomorrow night. The new part of me who believed in this side for the last 6 weeks of the 2018 season says: “it’ll all be ok, we’ll get miles into the legs, we had 100 tackles last week, we had so many inside 50s, the tide has to turn.” Old & torched me: “we are gone, won’t beat Essendon & it’s season over, why bother even going tomorrow night” This club has turned me into some sort of psychopath with a split personality. I must admit we were slow out of the blocks last year; Round 1 - should have won but Geelong weren’t that great last year Round 2 - jumped out against lowly Brisbane before they reeled us back, didn’t look overly convincing Round 3 - Slow start, jumped by North & won comfortably but didn’t look all that great Round 4 - Flogged by Hawthorn Round 5 - Flogged by Richmond So there is still life (I must be in the new me personality this morning). We must simply win this week or it’s curtains & I’m going to Sydney next week so I don’t fancy the trip with the season basically gone. Cmon Dees

Have I been transported back to 2012-13 where we would look for anyone on the list to give us a spark or some glimmer of hope ? 3 debutants already... Not ideal **Wagner not debutant but close enough

What has me most annoyed is... All I wanted was to start the season well. Chances are we weren't going to win the flag, obviously only 1 team can but I just wanted us to start the season well & believe we can win it, after 7 or 8 rounds be 6-1 or 7-1 & feel like we can win it even if we don't. Now it feels like unless something drastically happens we won't be contenders this year, season that promised so much is shot down in 2 rounds

Really don't want us to drop to 0-2. As silly as it sounds having such a big game in round 2 but this side feeds off confidence, if we go 0-2 & the next month isn't exactly easy the group could drop their bundle & we could be 1-4 after 5. I'm interested to see how Goodwin & the playing group respond. Obviously it's seriously tough to win down there but the conditions actually may favour us, turn it into a contested slog. If we get our brand of footy going we'll be tough to beat it's just which Melbourne shows up.

Very bizarre, I’ve hated Collingwood for my entire life. Could not stand Buckley as a player but I love him as a coach, wore the brunt of constant criticism & turned he’s side around. Every time he speaks he is levelled headed & speaks sense (if only the feral supporters followed suit). His coaching performance last night was brilliant, It feels odd but I have a new found liking & respect for the pies & bucks since about mid way through last season. Hats off to them. They’ll be flag favourites off the back of that performance but Richmond allowed Collingwood to get the game on their terms, it was a well coached & executed game plan but Richmond will learn a lot from last night.

Because he's speed was so damaging in that passage of play in the last qrt where he burst through the middle, had no idea what to do then got pinged holding the ball & stupidly booted it away & gave away 50

I'm not filled with confidence... Unless he's improved his fitness drastically in 7 days

Was nervous this time last week when the sides were announced. Am so again this week, Frost lucky to keep his spot. Rushing KK in after 1 VFL practice match (sounds familiar) another debutant after getting a spot on the list 2 weeks ago ? Screams desperation

We were 0-3 in 2006 & made the semi final... I am suprised with such a low % of 0-2 don’t make the 8. 0-2 isn’t exactly panic stations

I’m sure people will tell me to shut up because I keep banging on about the same thing every time our lack of leg speed is bought up but as long as people keep bringing it up I will put my 2 cents in. I believe speed in AFL is completely overrated, the fastest way you can play football is by quick ball movement. Clean disposal by foot & quick chains of handballs. Our lack of speed is bought up every single time we have a bad loss or loss for that matter, we have been beaten in those games because we have not been aloud to play our style of football. Look at the total possession count from the weekend, we couldn’t get the footy off Port. I’d have a guess if you look at most of our “bad” losses over the past 2 years it would be we have been well beaten in the possession count, we just couldn’t get the ball of Port & control the game in any way. Another point on the speed factor, take frost or hunt for example. They take off a million miles an hour, burst away, kick long & turn it over, that footy is sling shot back inside our defence 50 by FOOT, not legs, I repeat GOOD foot skills not speed before Frost or Hunt could even turn around to defend. Agree we are not the fastest side in the comp, but we are playing football not racing a 100m sprint. Good ball use particularly by foot is what makes sides fast.

I think we all acknowledge that we are slightly underdone at the moment, lots of post season surgeries, limited pre seasons, underdone players. My biggest disappointment is that we lost to Port at the G, that game is played in July I'd say we win it. For all we know Port may well be a better side than last year but unlikely, losing 4 points to an interstate side at the G is what is causing me angst... If we were Collingwood & lost to a Geelong, so be it. But Port at home, that stings

Apart from the first 20 minutes we were nowhere. We looked short of a gallop, it felt like I was watching a practice match. It was a weird game of footy, in the end playing Jones & Viney off the back of one VFL practice match wasn't the right call, having said that Melksham was good so take the good with the bad I guess. What had me worried was when the side was announced Thursday the fact the likes of Hore & Wagner were named with Hunt & Spargo whos JLT form was only meh, we suddenly didn't look great on paper. Add it Jones & Viney underdone we've got 6 players with a big question mark. The usual consistent lot of Gawn, Oliver & Brayshaw were off... We just looked like the season had come to soon, I don't think we are a good enough side yet to be able to get away with not playing our best & scrapping a win. It's frustrating because a loss to a mid range interstate side at home should be 4 points. Big 3 weeks ahead, we have to go 2-2.