Rhino Richards

Even better if our picks before 50 did that. B)

Bruce is a much maligned player for a number of strange reasons. As a player Bruce has a wonderful tank, his ability to regularly win contested ball, the ability to play close down jobs on key opposition players (eg Hird, B Johnson) is overlooked by some posters that want to crucify him for his disposal skills which do mar his output but dont justify some of the ridiculous bile thats directed towards him. There are some that attack his slight build and label him "soft" yet his ability to win contested ball in traffic shames a number of bulked tough players. Its often from the same quarters that Brad Green gets called soft. There was unrealistic expectations earlier on him that he was MFC's Hird and that he would be elite level. He isn't. He never was. However, he is a good capable player who performs consistently and has done so particularly over the past two years. He should be congratulated over winning the Bluey. However some MFC"supporters" find it suitable to denigrate him for the achievement. He is not the best player on the MFC list nor is he the most important but I would have him in top 6-7 in each category ATM. As our younger brigade mature and hopefully flourish I would expect them to rise above Bruce in due course. He was drafted in 1999 at pick 64 from MHSOB and is a 10 year player played 184 games (on track for 200 games), kicked nearly 200 goals, vice captain and current Bluey holder. There are many that were selected before him in that year's and other year's draft that can barely scratch 10 games at AFL level. How could his selection be seen as anything but a bargain? Its pity alot of our earlier 1st round picks in other years have been clunkers.

About time CA moved on Symonds. http://www.theage.com.au/news/sport/cricke...3423210593.html Dean Jones has a better chance of selection now. While people respect the X factor Roy can bring with bat ball and in the field, he is long long way off that now. Its a pity because with the collapse of Lee, Hussey and Hayden, the backbone of last years team, we really needed Roy to step up. He didn't Roy has burnt too many bridges now. That said I hope he gets his act together off the field. Its not surprising he is in rehabilation.

Based on last years debacle I could not see any sponsor beyond a funeral parlor signing for it. If a sponsor aint going to sponsor the main jumper then they are not likely to sponsor a disregarded clash guernsey. ........so we are not going to have a new clash jumper?

Agree. Its unfortunate that a player chosen No 1 or thereabouts will have the expectations of the media, the club that selected him and supporters. However, if a No 1 or first round pick ends up either not playing senior AFL football or plays as a fringe player than cannot hold a regular spot then questions should be rightly asked about the recruitment and development of the footballer. In some cases its quite appropriate to question the attitude and commitment of the actual player. I am expecting more from a footballer like Watts than I would a player like Jurrah. If Watts becomes a star and Jurrah is better then fantastic. But if Watts ends up a clunker based on lack of performance then the Football department needs to be answerable for the poor decisions. That sort of error can damage your playing list for a decade if they get it wrong.

ATM, I would agree with you on Jamar. In regard to PJ he needs to be assessed on the same par as Jamar. He needs to be competitive as opposed to dominate which I do not think he will do. With the advent of 4 boundary umpires, the need for mobility will become important and as a follower rather than ruckman he might have a future. But he is no No 1 ruckman. Its a good point of consideration for the assessment of importance of a player (as opposed to best) if you had to consider the alternatives if that player was injured and the impact on the team.

I think you miss the point of the distinction between best and important He is important now no matter how many games he plays in 2009. He was high importance the day he was drafted. Watts needs to become a 200 game leading player and possible leader at the Club to justify the selection. He was chosen because he was deemed the best footballer in the country in his draft year. He needs to be the star we expect if we are going to be a successful side. If Watts does not succeed at the top level its a critical plank of our future success down the drain. Grimes, Strauss and Bennell are also important and if they reach the success level that we believe Watts can do then all the better for MFC. Draft picks beyond #35 are generally players with a higher degree of NQR skills and a greater probabiilty of failure. If they succceed great. If they dont then its not something that is unexpected. Jurrah is a punt nothing more with an high risk of crashing and burning. If he fails so what. And if there is a footballer that will need some significant development on and off the field, its Jurrah.

Rivers has missed two years not three but your concerns about where he is at are reasonable. Robbo has struggled with form and injury for the past three years. With the way the game has changed, Robbo is going to struggle more than ever given his lack of second effort and on the ground mobility. At best he is likely to be fit from injury near the middle of the season. You have to your fingers crossed his achilles holds up. IMO its his final year. As a result he is no where near top 5 in either the best or importance and # 23 is about right for him. Interesting about Watts. At this point in time he is probably about 22-23 (with a bullet) in ranking our best. In terms of importance, I'd rank him top 5. This is the player who if he does fulfil his potential that you build champion sides with and around him.

The taggers you talk about are players who shut down an opposition player and still win enough of the pill to be effective contributing players in the team. Dunn does not do it. He has turned out a tagger because he does not have the wits nor the capability to play a more offensive role forward or back. After 4 years he has not shown that and you rightly point out the big "If Dunn can". Well we have to see. But to date he has not shown that he can make any position his own. Bartram was pick 60 in the 2005 and plays a stoppage role with varying level of success. Dunn was pick 15 in the 2004 and struggles to be a negating player at AFL level after 4 years. To date, we have wasted a first round pick on a player who can do no more than another player who you can draft as a dime a dozen 4th round pick. Its not unreasonable to expect such an important investment in "talent" would yield a player who had greater proficiency and impact at AFL level. Its a concern we have used a valuable selection in a draft only to have a player who after 4 years has shown little likelihood of making a role his own. He needs to step up big time this year (as do a few of his teammates).

No its you who have the problem. Where did I say Bruce was not in our 22? I didnt. Shhtack, I am not sure why some of the players you mentioned would get selected before Bruce because they would not be competing for his position. No doubt you would Shhtack. I guess you would overlook LY B&F winner against a player who has been mediocre at best in the past two years. I guess you are still enjoying highlights DVD from 2006 and earlier of Davey. He aint doing much of that now. I agree Shhtack you should. You got me there Shhtack. Gee now what did he do to win the B&F??? You should watch more of Bruce and Davey and you might get a better idea as to why one is B&F and a Club leader and the other is most valuable with junior memberships. Bruce's disposal prevents him from being the very good player we hoped he would be. However he wins alot of ball and takes on, gets the hard manning jobs and often beats significant opponents in the process. I wanted to critique Davey over the past two years and injuries aside he really has had little or no impact what so ever on a game. He's struggling and needs to lift big time.

The fact that after four years, a first round draft pick is only a tagger leaves me somewhat underwhelmed with Dunn. If he cant do more than just tag then he is run of the mill playe whose a dime a dozen and whose future is at best uncertain. If there was a player that needed to make a position his own and actual perform its Dunn. He can bulk up all he likes but unless he starts actually win some good ball and using it to the teams advantage then he's a pedestrian and at risk of being overtaken by younger more capable players. And its great he can sprint fast towards the interchange. That'll hurt a few oppositions.

I would hope the rankings would be considerably different by seasons end to reflect the changing of the guard as some of our younger players rise above the existing players and a few senior players retire. The only message is from our Best to Worst is that we are not good enough against other teams. With Robbo at 8, Beamer at 11 and Dunn at 14, is further proof required. Also those who are the "best" may not necessarily be the most "important" to the side. BTW, comments on Bruce undermine any substance on the initial post. He was never elite and amazing that as our current B&F holder that he is slow, soft, can't kick and living on reputation. Still ranks him at No 6 though. MFC is in dire straits indeed.

I am measuring the standard of tennis over a longer period of time. You asked the difference between Williams/Safina and Nadal/Verdasco. I gave it. The standard of tennis and entertainment is miles ahead in mens tennis now and has been for some time. And because one Spaniard has a brain fade does not condemn the whole of men's tennis. Dokic was only entertainment for Australian audiences because of the rampant jingoism that Australia has in claiming everyone who might have the slightest connection to Australian as their own. If she had played for her country of birth then she would have been snubbed by Australians and media for not choosing Australia. Outside Australia, no one would give a stuff about a has been with a ranking of 100. Players should be rewarded according to the money they generate in an entertainment business. Its as simple as that They dont when it comes to the sources of the revenue. It should be divided based on who provides the most entertainment like all other sports. Does men's golf, soccer, basketball subsidise the women's alternatives? Surely they must because their costs are the same. Sorry I dont think so. Should all AFL footballers get the same money as each other? They all have the same costs. I dont think so Tennis gets sources of revenue through providing entertainment. The revenue should be cut on the proportional basis of the entertainment provided. And for some time, the men's tour has subsidised the women's tour.

Dont tell me we now have women playing in the AFL?

Is Katich's shoulder better? He refused the offer to bowl in the Test series.

Easy. By the observed standard of the game. Nadal/Verdasco or Nadal/Federer || || \/ daylight || || \/ Williams/Safina Tennis is all about entertainment...TV ratings etc. Now let me see what was better entertainment.... Mens semis and finals or the women semis or finals? Hmmm. The depth of talent and competition in woman's tennis has always been a concern. Tennis players on the circuit are richly rewarded for their efforts. However, the cut of the profits pie should be biased to those that bring in the dollars to the game. Costs dont come into it.

An APS school that doesn't accept people on the basis of who their father is? Lmfao

Just able to recognise a top footballer regardless of his jumper. Hate the Club but can acknowledge they have produced a couple of elite footballers during my time of hating them.

The kid is 17yo. As part of his enrolment at BGS they have first rights to him as a footballer. I dont think BGS would stop him if he were to be selected for MFC to play. However it is realistic to think that he will be playing a mixture of BGS, Casey and possibly MFC football this year. The APS season is relatively short Watts will have ample opportunity to represent MFC at whatever level is deemed appropriate. He is not the first top pick recruit to be in this position and too many people are getting their knickers in a knot about very little.

Your confusion of pre season GFs and Sept GFs is bizarre. Your blinkers to Buckleys performance and naive basis of asssessment more so. In the two GFs that actually count (read mean something), he won a NSM in one and had 24 disposals in an undermanned team that was overwhelmed by a far superior opposition. And your point on denigrating him because they did not win is just ridiculous and only reinforces the first quote about. I use the Pies Team of the Century as due recognition of Buckley's contribution and assessment by his peers as a Magpie great given Collingwood is the most successful AFL team of the 20th Century based on the number of GF appearances during that century. Now a wily and informed reader like you will no doubt say, Carlton and Essendon have won more flags. Well done. But Collingwood has won more games more consistently over the whole 20th century which indicates a higher overall playing standard of their teams day in day out. Therefore the Collingwood's team of the century is a creditable bellwether of playing capability from one side. Buckey was only half we through his career and was recognised by football experts as being one of their greatest. Clearly you have used the challenging stamping ground of pre season GFs to critically evaluate Buckley. Bravo and insightful. Read first quoted point.

I think Nadal/Federer just topped the men's semi-final. I am not interested much in tennis these days being a game of baseline power and grunt monotony. But Nadal and Federer took the game to another level last night. Nadal's temperament and physical effort over the past couple of days was phenomenal. I thought Federer was close to his best but Nadal just keeps getting better. As for the women, lets here no more tripe about parity of earnings between men and women tennis players. Chalk and cheese in entertainment, effort and skill. And women's tennis is hamstrung by the vain and narcisstic Williams sisters. Is there a more openly vain and self centred high profile sportsperson than Serena Williams? Puke.

Agreed The issue is from No1 to No6 in the batting order. Even when we have a start, the inability of the middle order to drive home the advantage is stark. There is a couple of players in the squad playing on reputation and not form.

Gee I guess the reigning B&F will probably be picked first in the position he will play. I cant see any of the above competing for his position and their selection is not necessarily impacted by Bruce's selection. I glad its not about stats Shhtack because Davey would look very ordinary like his performances over recent years. If there is a player that is living off the fat of reputation and exploits of a couple of years ago amongst supporters its Davey. He needs to really perform this year.

As usual Mo you got it wrong. All you have proved in both Brock's and Symonds case is that the leadership group did get it right and did impose harsh penalties without any episode or evidence of mates backing mates. Furthermore, CA supported the use of the leadership group (note Mo made of only one player and included Cricket department officials) and acquiescenced its opportunity to effect other punishments directly. Clearly CA were involved in the leadership groups decision in 2005 and took their own measure at the time to threaten Symonds with the sack but never acted on it. If you are looking for issues of leniency then you should be looking at CA and not the leadership.

If you re read the post I ridiculed monty's criterion not the player. And for the record, Pike was a good footballer who should count himself very very fortunate in his career to have been associated with a number of successful teams particularly when his off field behaviour was littered with a number of unsavoury and distasteful episodes. However there are been much better footballers that never enjoyed premiership success through no fault of their own.