Red and Blue realist

AA full forward - just to add to his legend!

I think Bowey has to play, while we have exceptional marking backs and great rebounders, Bowey is the cleanest when it hits the ground, which is an area that Brisbane can do some great work in, with Cameron, McCarthy and Bailey. To enable this to happen I'd do 1 of 2 things, either move Salem to the wing - Trac will play more forward and Harmes/Sparrow more midfield so it'll open up this spot or drop Rivers. We have 1 surplus mid/small back with Salem, Bowey, Hunt and Rivers in the team, so unless we move Salem to the wing, and then maybe ANB is the medi sub or Melk goes out with Trac forward we'll need to have someone come out of the team.

We've previously gotten Pig off the Bombers and he goes alright, I wonder if the footy department will think the cure is Ham?

I'd be guessing they might try and get Gold Coast involved if they get pick 5 for Rankine, they might give picks 2 and 20 (before all the F/S and academy picks), for picks 5, 7 & 43 from Gold Coast, and then West Coast could give us 5 & their 2023 1st. I think that would be more valuable than just pick 2 this year. However, these dealings will take a while because Gold Coast are involved and I think they'll be trying to consolidate some of their 2nd and 3rd round picks into 1st round swaps.

Gold Coast already have 2 extra second round picks and an extra in both the 3rd and 4th rounds. So they are flush with picks, so they'll be very actively in dealing this year. Brisbane are the ones who'll really need picks, so I'd imagine they'll talk to them first but I'm sure we'll be talking with them, it's a skill we've mastered like few others.

This has some merit, although for the interstate teams they really should face the other team in their state twice. So maybe there is an allowance there - but it wouldn't mean the team who finishes 3rd gets the wooden spooner!

If Yze does go to the Giants - and good luck to him if he does, he really does deserve it! Maybe we could trade for Stevie J, I think he's got the making of an excellent coach - super footy brain, plus like Dimma and Goody, still seems to have a bit of mischief about him that the players love and relate too. I think he could work well with our forwards and mid/forward connection.

The draw always is and always will be unfair and unbalanced - nothing can help that unless we all play each other twice. However, for this particular season I've put together the table below. In short we have the second toughest run - unless the Dogs make it into the top 8, then we have had the hardest. IMO this is the way it should be the grand finalists should have the toughest run the next year. I've only looked at the top 9 teams only, as they are still in it at this stage. Clearly the top 2 have done very well with their draw this year, and all the Melbourne based teams do very well with their home games. Team Games against top 8 Top at 8 @ home Top 8 away Games against bottom 9 Cats 7 3 4 (only 1 is interstate!) 13 Swans 7 4 3 13 Demons 10 7 3 10 Lions 8 3 5 13 Magpies 9 7 3 12 Dockers 8 4 4 13 Tigers 8 7 1 13 Blues* 10 8 2 11 Dogs 11 6 5 (2 interstate) 11

Are Bedford and Chandler injured or being rested - we've got the game next week on the Friday night so I'd think a few more might come out of this team.

Not sure why some are already dismissing this, or talking down Grundy's ability. He's easily been the 2nd best pure ruckman of the last 5 years. Why I think we'd be getting him is so Max can play predominantly forward, and while his kicking hasn't been great, his leading and general forward craft has improved out of sight this year. With a full pre-season this will improve further, and instead of our outlet kicks going towards Brown or Weid, we'd have one of the best contested marks up forward, while also giving him the license to drop back for the last few minutes of a quarter or if we're under pressure. On top of this Gawn would then have the ability to play in the very high 90s of game time. Allowing our mids/explosive players to rest more on the bench, given May/Lever/Petty and Langdon already spend a lot of time on the ground. At the moment Grundy is a better player than Jackson, not sure if that will be true over time, but I think it'd be an upgrade to personal for the next season or 2 and could dramatically improve our overall structure too. Having said that, we'd want the Pies to be paying 30% or so of his contract and we wouldn't want to be over paying in a trade either! Treloar in potentially similar circumstances was traded with two 2nds and a 3rd round for a 1st round and future 2nd. If we get 2 first round picks for Jackson, I'd happily give our 1st round pick next year (not Freo's), and our 2nd this year for Grundy and one of their 3rds this year.

I know Selwood has been doing it for years, but half of his comes from the strength to lift his arm, not always dropping the knees. However, Ginnivan and Weightman for the Dogs have taken this to a whole new level, which is why I think we're seeing them get punished more. I don't think Kossie does it terribly much, he's just low to the ground at speed - very similar to why Viney got a free last week, he was low at speed, as compared to dropping the knees. Ginnivan drops at the knees and throws his head back - nearly before contact's been made. It's very hard for a tackler not to go high in those instances, some have even been no more than 60cms off the ground when they make contact but was high before the crack down! So normally lower than the waste, just made high by the actions of the player.

Anyone else hope we tackle Ginnivan like this?

Gold Coast in particular - they've also got the Pie's and Freo's 2nd rounders and the Pie's 3rd, so a heap of pick's/points to offer up. I think clubs can apply to the AFL if they have a need for extra points, so they can accumulate extra picks. The AFL just don't want to see teams passing on picks in the first 2 rounds.

Yes, the Lions, will have to match it - but with points. They will get a discount of 20%. All picks are assigned a value, so for instance if North bid pick 1, the Lions will have to come up with 2,400 points. At the moment they have picks 14 (worth 1,161 points), pick 32 (worth 582), and pick 68 (worth 59 points) of their own and also Port Adelaide's 3rd (pick 43 worth 378 points). So all up they only have 2,180 points at the moment. They can go negative next year, but they also have Fletcher coming through who might get a bid i the early 20s. So they'll be desperate to find more draft picks this year.

That'd be a 3rd party that's involved, and really the only way they'd have anything to entice Brisbane with. They could also trade future picks to get back into this years draft or trade other players, but as it stands now they've got nothing to offer Brisbane. We'd be better off sending our 2nd, 3rd and Adelaide's 3rd to Brissy for their 1st.

No, it won't help at all. Freo have already traded out their 2nd and 3rd round picks this year, it might have helped them if they had these but unless there's a 3rd party involved then I can't see Brissy's pick going anywhere near them.

Hopefully all the emergencies (including the sub - depending on use) get back in time for this game. Otherwise they'll miss 2 weeks of footy, with the bye the week after. I'd be guessing we'll be taking at least the 4 emergencies.

I'd say Gus is also using this phase to build a bigger media profile himself. Being a premiership player would open a number of doors, but players who want a media career post-footy need to build it while they play. Gawn and Trac already have a large presence, but I feel Gus is also looking at getting a foot in that door - with both his podcast and these interviews it show's him off. He'll be guided from his father and others, who I'm sure will be saying don't waste these negotiations to uplift his profile. Doesn't mean he's off at all, or that the club won't know what he's doing. But I'd say Gus is working this exactly like he and his team had planned.

You know what, I reckon the grand final has nearly wrecked the brains of most Melbourne supporters (not just the ones on here!). We all would have watched it a dozen (if not more) times each, and because, in particular from the 3rd quarter onwards it was nearly the most perfect footy you can see - you get to expect that all footy will be like that. I know during our first 10 weeks I kept saying to my BIL, who's a massive Tigers fan, that we're not playing that well. His response always was, "I wish we could play close to that - the grand final has ruined you!". And he has a point, as soon as we show were mere mortals on the footy field the pile up on here, and even in the media is WAY over the top. Any other season where 19 rounds in and we're sitting 2nd on the ladder, nearly all supporters would be bursting with anticipation and joy. We've been in every game, played some pretty decent football and have had a few close losses. It's been just a good a season as last, but we've just got to hope the ending is as good as last year!

In 2011 Carlton had the 1 and 2 with Murphy and Judd, and there's been a few times where teams have had 2 in the top 3.

He'd be the steak knives in the deal, but isn't a bad option, from what I've seen he's serviceable more than dominate - but let's face it there's only a few ruckman that are. I still be happy to take Logue, Meek and ideally they'd swap their first this year for a lower one as part of dealing Lobb, so we'd get that and next years 1st from them, if Dogga goes.

Now that English is signed for 2 years, I can't see LJ signing for anymore than that (which is what i think he will do), in 2 years time those two will be the big story again around going back west, and by then NicNat will be finished but WC might be on the up again.

I think most on here only judge him on that 10 minute period in the Grand Final! His growth has been understandable given he's a tall, but I think some want young midfield type growth - or otherwise they see him going backwards??

Freo have Lobb on very good money who from reports wants to get back to the east coast (Syd or Melb), so they would potentially have room if they back-ended his deal to absorb the Lobb money and wait out the end of Fyfe's deal. They also have Logue who's coming out of contract and could expect a reasonable deal for him (late 1st?). So Freo might have the currency and cap space, certainly of the 2 sides, I'd prefer to deal with Freo - West Coast have the better early pick but can't trade that (unless the AFL allows it) but they don't have much else. At least with Freo we could ask for a package of Logue, 1st round picks and Llyod Meek their back-up ruck (Lobb can go elsewhere - unless they pay a big part of his salary). Although, I personally feel he'll re-sign until free agency or at least 2 more years.

I think teams are playing us very differently which would account for some of the lowering of pressure. I would be guessing that if there was a stat for implied pressure we'd be no.1 by a long way. Teams seem to have be kicking shorter from their backline not wanting to give it straight to May, Lever, Petty or Max, so the long kick to a contest takes longer than against other teams. That in general makes it harder to create pressure - but I wouldn't think that'll hold up in a finals game, Geelong are probably proof of this.