Farmer

Spencer has a foot injury. The dreaded plantar fasciitis. Is running but no more. i thought frost played well but don't understand why he's doing no ruck work

I saw this. It was quite simply an awful kick by Garland. Grimes was leading to the ball but it was kicked well in front of him. Garland did this under no pressure whatever--in fact it is in this situation that He tends to bugger things up i do agree that Garland's value lies in his ability to play small or tall but if he continues to waste the ball he might be struggling

What bloody rubbish! Didnt get it as much as he usually does, but u run the tape and watch dispassionately and you will see that he didn't miss a target and many were incredibly good including a precise left foot kick to a running forward 40m away. i didn't see the first half originally but was interested to see a suggestion that he had squibbed it in the second quarter. When I saw the replay it was plain that this was nonsense--it was a poor kick to him and was behind him as he tried to mark it. He never lacks courage. And as others have said, he can play wing or HBF .The poisonous quality of his critics was demonstrated 18 months ago. We played PA in Adelaide and nearly beat them. He buggered up one kick near the end, and it is true that it was at a critical time. But he had played all day on M White who was outstanding for PA that year and who was benched 5 minutes into the last quarter having had 3 disposals! By far his worst game, yet on this site Grimes is only remembered for the errant kick. His disposal is a darned sight better than Viney's

Since posting this item a friend has suggested they may be reluctant to play Frost in the ruck because of last year's foot injury

I think you are too hard. interesting question--he is a rookie isn't he? Which of the rookies will be elevated? At this stage I would prefer Wagner

the game is being replayed at 12 today. i suggest those able to watch, concentrate on Max's second half. Whereas in the first half he really was dominant, in the 2nd he was not. His very inexperienced opponent often won the ruck duels. I'm not certain if Max actually took a mark after half time. he really must be treated carefully. As I've said before I just don't understand the non-use of Frost in the ruck. What happens incidentally if Pedersen is suspended. He pinch hits, quite effectively but Max can't be required to ruck more than two thirds of the time. It's my greatest concern after the NAB matches

It seems that the youngsters who may have been ordinary early, played pretty well as the game went on salem played a great 2nd half, and Wagner looked v assured the further it went. Although he is making mistakes at present I also believe that O Mac will make it--he can get the ball in the second half I saw a couple of disposal howlers by T Mac, Garland and Viney, but overall the kicking was pretty good. cant understand why Frost is not doing more work in the ruck, unless they are still concerned about his foot injury

I've been watching since half time. In the second half Salem and Wagner have been very good! And I think O McDonald has a future. Just remember what T McD was like originally. Back to today Vince improved, Jetta excellent. And did anyone else comment on the left foot pass from Grimes under pressure. Just perfect! i just can't understand why Frost was not given more time in the ruck, tho Pedersen did play well. Without Kennedy and Bugg add a great deal of grunt and some class.

Look, settle down. It was a practice match. I suspect McDonald has been working on his kicking over the summer. These are the situations in which he needs to test himself. As it turned out it was hot and blustery and many players on both sides stuffed up. If he plays v St K, let him test himself again. If it is still bad, then he knows, as an intelligent player, that once we get into R1 it has to be safety first, either a decent hand pass. , or a long kick along the lines senior players have to try things in matches such as these or the opportunity is wasted

Well do you not give Spencer a game before R1? or what about giving Frost, Pedersen and perhaps King, some exposure to see which of them can handle the ruck work when required? Sorry but the policy of picking the best team in every NAB match is not one being followed by any other club so far as I can see

I'm inclined to agree about resting Gawn. I'm uneasy about a hot day on a dry ground. And I agree that our other ruckmen must be given some exposure. If Spencer is ok I'm more relaxed, but is he? I rate him as a knock ruckman. But what happens if both Gawn and Spencer are unavailable? Is King ready for a senior gig? the other bloke I'd be inclined to rest is Viney. It is interesting to ask the question--who, of the 26? who played on Saturday, will not be picked in R1? Assume Jones and Vince come in and we had to cull 4 anyway, I think I'm right in saying that 6 will miss out. I assume that Petracca and Lumumba will not play R1. there are a few obvious candidates. Hunt and O McDonald were not great, tho I think the latter will turn out to be very good. Is Wagner going to be promoted from rookie? Somehow,I would try to play both Pedersen and Frost but this may be unrealistic. Will Stretch play? Harmes? ( I thought he was pretty good) And I agree--I would like to see ANB in action it all adds up to much ( lovely) speculation. I do think the last NAB match is more important than the next

I agree, he played quite well. Took a couple of the best marks I've seen him take i wish he would back his kicking more. He had several chances near the 50m mark but short passed each time, sometimes into the pocket. If the opposition knew this bloke might kick long goals, it would help our cause a lot

And I suppose you'd say he played badly? He played bloody well

I like your approach to this i think there are many other possible " big improvers". What about Harmes and ANB? Both had good exposure last year.both showed plenty. And for some reason, no-one is referring to Dom Tyson whose season was destroyed by his leg injury. He offers genuine class when fit. Ditto Frost from whom we had almost nothing last year, but who was highly rated if 3 or 4 of last year's second tier could create permanent positions for themselves, it would be great. By mid season could Hogan, Gawne and Tom McDonald be pressing for All Australian? if these guys don't kick on then-----!

Well you had better move quickly! Dee's were 11/1 for the 8 6 weeks ago. ive had a sizable wager at 10s. No doubt that has forced down the odds

I would like to see us consider another option. i know he kicked badly v Essendon but I thought Tom McDonald looked good on the forward line. If he played CHF the ball would be retained on the forward line. Of course Watts should be able to achieve this but he will always be peripheral. McDonald could do some ruck work on the forward line, in much the same manner as Shwarz did very successfully. if Frost us a natural backman,isn't this worth considering? And do remember, our best win last year occurred when both Spencer and Gawne played--and caused great grief to the Cats

I think both have been poorly treated. Both have at least been able to get the ball whereas we have played a number who cant get it at all

I am interested in the " best 22 " selected by Parkin and also many on this site. Essentially most selections involve all those who would be expected to be picked. I have watched again the great game v Gerlong in 2015. In my view the key to Melbourne 16 lies in a number of players who don't feature on anyone's best 22. apart from the usual picks we tried many kids last year. I will forget some, but in my thinking I include Harmes, Stretch, Neil-Bullen, Mc Donald (jun) White, Frost. In my view, our best side will hopefully, by R12 , include 3 of the above, and at least 2 will feature in our B and F. We are happy about the first years of Brayshaw and Hogan and Vandenberg but if it really was a great year for first years, some of the above need to come through. I suspect at least a couple will. If they do, we can challenge for the 8 one final point. Many on this site deplore that we have Matt Jones on the list. Watch a replay of the Geelong match and think again! Even in a v good side there is a role for a Matt Jones

I think you raise a fair point . I do not write them off as many do . Terlich is a fearless attacking defender who marks well. He is not afraid to run with the ball and has pace. He makes kicking errors. I think he was B o G in a SANFL GF jones may find it harder to get a game as an on baller playing a defensive role on the forward line as he did several times this year. Again, he is prone to kicking errors. But he never throws in the towel and gives it his absolute best shot. I do think Terlich has more natural ability to suggest that these two are hopeless is inane nonsense. They are very useful backups in a young squad

Well, it it? There seems to be little reference to the structure of our team. We know Big Max can not ruck all day, all over the ground. We had some very good years with Jeff White rucking around the ground and David Schwarz doing the ruck work in the forward line. Schwarz was not very tall but was extremely effective. It concerns me that we don't seem to have an answer. Do we have to include a second fall in Spencef? No-one seems to suggest that Hogan will pinch hit in the ruck, and Weideman must be years away from doing so. For this reason I am interested in the suggestion that Weideman could play CHB, because there is one bloke on our list who could do the ruck work on the forward line, and that is Tom McDonald. I was impressed by his efforts at CHF last year. Until Tommy Mac can be freed up to play forward, there is a need for Dawes, who SHOULD be able to do the ruck work around the forward line, tho I concede he is not great at it!

Could you please reproduce this article. I don't subscribe to the Herald Sun

No-one has mentioned his elbows. His grandfather's were very prominent, and he used them to devastating effect!

One of the clips shows Francis playing as a mid, getting the ball a lot and going forward and kicking 4 goals, one from 50m. To classify him just as a third defender is absurd. Salem's best position is in defence at present but who thinks he will end up there? I like what we know of his character, and I agree with someone who likened him to Brendon Goddard. He would be a great marking midfielder in a couple of years. We have no-one of that kind whereas we do have many small mids. Don't forget that Petracca ( presumably) commences this year.

I think you are dead right, Francis will be a beauty and if someone else takes him I will be livid. Tell me please--are any of the other top choices able to kick a set shot goal from 50m like Francis can?

Come on WJ! Francis is better than Parish.he is also much bigger and more versatile. Whilst he may play back or forward initially, he will end up a dominant midfielder. He marks better than almost all midfielders in the competition. We have a platoon of small mids but with the exception of Vince, who only has another year or two in him, we have no-one who offers what Francis does. He also kicks goals from 50m. How many mids do we have who do that? No more little kids for the time being!