TeamPlayedFine39

Elite runner. A few years in the system. Emergency in a grand final team. Ticks a few boxes. There’s a knock on some of his kicking, that was the big knock on Langdon coming in too.

I too am willing to ‘take a pay cut’ if I can play for Geelong… sadly, like Oliver, it ain’t gonna happen.

I’m quietly glad Houston passed on us. Good player, but not worth Pick 5.

Welcome the the MFC! Never want to see JVR and/or Petty as a starting ruck in Gawn’s absence. Hopefully match committee not too stubborn to play him should the unthinkable happen (Gawn injury).

I’m not down on the details of how player payments work, but why is cap space useful when we have no one on comparable money to trade in..? Is the idea that we could then renegotiate other contacts so they’re front-ended and use the money another year??

The good old “I took this meeting just to laugh in your face!” trick by Oliver…

Almost as good as when you bailed up Blake Howes for 20 minutes only to later find out it was Daniel Turner…

Reminds me of the 'he gets on base' scene in Moneyball. I don't particularly like watching Owies go about his football, but he kicks goals.

In fairness, he played 16 games for the year - that suggests he's genuine depth and considered in, at least, the top 26 players on the list. By all reports he got a good character, trains well and keeps out of trouble. Definitely worth having around, especially with Casey struggling with mature talent.

Agreed - especially on the cheap part. When a player of Billings' talent is available at that price, you roll the dice; similar to Hunter the year before. Sometimes pays off, sometimes doesn't. I was very pleased when we picked him up and there is plenty of time to turn it around. He's been the scapegoat for a lot of our short comings this year and, in a team with Petracca and Oliver playing at their best, his skill set would be better utilised.

Best comeback since Lazarus! Was outstanding all year in defence.

Cheers mate. Thanks. Feeling the love.

Best Demon I have seen in my lifetime. Consistently performs to an elite standard and has carried the team in countless matches. 7 x All Australia Premiership Captain 2 x BNF AFL Coaches Player of the Year Legend of the game.

Always been a big Tomlinson fan and was shocked he wasn't picked up by another club sooner. Wish him all the best!

Have a real bitter taste in my mouth over this one. It doesn’t hurt like I thought it would… somehow none of it has come as a huge shock. He’s contracted. Sell him. He’s doing best by him, we need to do best by us.

My ‘big call’ a few years back was that he would be the best of our ‘19 Draft haul. A few bumps along the way but he has shown he has the potential to a be an a-grade midfielder on this year’s form. Seems to love the club and the fans love him too!

Best full Year McDonald has played since 2018 - he'd definitely play on for me. With that said, he'd also be a great fit for a developing team like Nth for experience, leadership and training standards. I would be very disappointed if we uprooted an 18 year old from his life in WA, relocated him to Melbourne for his chance in the AFL, then sent him home without even offering a preseason. Kentfield should be given a chance. Ben Brown, Lachie Hunter, Josh Schache, Ollie Sestan and Joel Smith, with ANB being traded IMHO.

Agreed. His brand is blowing up and he needs to clear the air one way or another. The longer this festers, the more he’s alienating himself from supporters and teammates. Until something definitive is aired, the more ‘reporters’ will feel emboldened to continue to add their own ‘colour’ to the story.

I think it’s abundantly clear that the decision was made some time ago that Jefferson would be playing out the year on the VFL. I suspect this decision was made giving equal consideration to his physical and psychological readiness. He’s undersized and, until recently, seemingly down on confidence. He’s spent time building confidence, now he needs to build himself physically before he’s a chance in ‘25. There’s a lot of JVR in this preparation.

How much are we losing by??? Sounds like a smashing!

Kings birthday, even before the Petracca diagnosis and prognosis. There was no spark or flare in the team; we had looked flat for a long time and it became clear that the will and the hunger wasn't there. Try as they might, it's a difficult thing to generate. Long term concerns were there for me midway through last year. Similar to what I've said, in 2021, the players were clearly enjoying themselves on the field and seemed to take delight in each others efforts and rewards. For a long time they've looked bored and flat out there, exacerbated by teams being able to get huge run-ons against us since mid-22. There's a touch Neil Craig's 'Crow-bots' about them. Craig was a very good coach and the players liked and respected him, but the message just stopped inspiring after a while. List and staff needs a refresh.

Losing Nibbler changes a lot; his leadership, footy smarts and onfield contribution is a huge loss which start to tip my opinion from top up to rebuild.

Hawthorn playing great football. Still think that their list is average but they are playing as a team, with full buy-in from the players. Great coaching and leadership.

We’re not seriously doing this again are we..?

He's going better than Jefferson was at the same stage - and now he's Demonland's new darling. Needs to be give more than a couple of months to prove himself.