deespicable me

I went along to Willy Oval by the sea today as I live down that way. Just a few notes on the game. Willy are a team full of "pit bulls" as Rawlings called them and they are at you all game. In broad terms they closed down the contest, got the game on their terms, then kicked about 6 goals in a row from the end of the second to the first goal of the last qtr. It was a good test for us and as of the seniors, we came up short. Lever was playing pretty well, his disposal was excellent, he was taking the kick-ins and our back line was on top when he went for a contested ball up on the far wing and looked to twist his ankle. He immediately started hobbling, came off, got his ankle strapped, did a couple of run-throughs, went to half time then came out and sat out the game with his ankle iced. I watched him a lot even when he came off before his injury and at the quarter time break and he is definitely not comfortable yet on his knee. He was very aware of it, stretching and itching it a lot. He is so skinny it will take us all a season to get used to his gangly running action but I am pretty sure he didn't re-injure the knee in any way. He will however be a good 3 to 4 weeks away from seniors footy and probably at least a couple from the Casey games. We also lost Maynard in the second qtr to a dangerous tackle (no free) and he was concussed and out for the day. So we were down two players and all of a sudden we had to shuffle the deck and they got on top. One player I really wanted to see against a strong midfield was Sparrow but he was also out (rested I hope and presume). He was part of a good winning midfield against Essendon a couple of weeks ago where he had a run with role with their best mid (number 4) and did a good job. So with Sparrow out we pushed James Jordan into the middle and he was changing with Lewis off half back and it was working well, both Lewis and Jordan getting lots of the ball and driving us forward, but they tightened up, especially on Lewis and then Maynard went off and they got control of the midfield. Preuss was okay but their ruck was six inches shorter than Preuss so they just wrestled and did all sorts of illegal things to stop his influence and the umps didn't pay one free to Preuss. If they had stopped all the illegal stuff he would have been better but they completely dulled any influence he might have on the game for the period they dominated. He got loose a bit in the last and gave some nice taps to advantage but the game was already gone. JKH was our best player. They tried to tag him but he was too clever and was the classiest player out there. He has developed his defensive game a lot in the last year and laid a lot of tackles as well. He did drift out of the game a bit at times but was pretty good for 4 qtrs and is the most likely for a step up to seniors. He played wing very well and would take Stretch's or Jones's position. If given a good run at it, I'm sure he can become top 22. And why not given we won't play finals this year. Weid was Okay. He cannot take body position well in a pack yet and may never be capable of that role. He also doesn't always run to the right spots and he got hands to, but dropped a lot of marks. But he did take a couple of lovely grabs when given a clear run at the ball. For the most part he was our number one forward today and as such was hassled out of a lot of contests but he isn't ready to come into the seniors and add much more than Smith does. A bit of a negative review I know but for those thinking theres depth down below, think again. In an ideal world we would leave Weid in the seconds for another year, get him to put on another 5-10 kilo of pure muscle, increase his strength and get him to concentrate on getting his percentages at marking contests up closer to 20% rather than the 5% he's operating at now. Hannan was okay, looked fit and well, a little rusty and maybe one more before a call-up but given such a long lay-off a very good return. Bedford had more impact than Chandler today, he played the small forward role quite well and hopefully can develop further this year. Both okay but definately not ready for any senior footy. Lewis and James Jordan. Lewis was good and did well not to get reported as they gave him plenty of stick. He was very good in the first qtr delivering off the half back-line but when we lost Maynard he had to go to the contest more and wasn't as effective. He may still get a recall as he looked fit and well and had a good attitude. James Jordan, I think this was one of the first times they used him on ball and he was good, lots of tackles and little dish outs, he should be proud of his game and he shows plenty of promise. Overall, Willy probably had the best three or four players out there today and are a pretty good side who play their home ground well and played well for each other. Their commitment was what won it and something that once again seems to have gone missing from Melbournes whole footy department.

It's not chaos. There are rules and the players have to play by them. Chaos is something very different. It is however chaotic.

This is your better post for mine. I tend to agree there is no particular bias against Melbourne other than what comes from being lowly rated in relevance. The last public outcry that the umpiring needs to be changed and was faulty was of course the Anzac game where Essendon were convinced the umpiring cost them the game. Then of course Essendon officials wanted an explanation over the Rampe decision last week "for the good of the game". The point in your post I don't accept at all is the bit where you suggest we should just "accept" the umpiring of the game is stuffed and move on. It is definitely a hard game to officiate but the AFL's and their media channels being virtually banned from commentating on umpiring when it so so so influentual on every games outcome, because it is hard to attract umpires to the sport, means there is very few avenues open to actually improve umpiring. There is no doubt in my mind the "rub of the green" was against us on Friday night. I'm all for a thread that discusses the umpires poor form. It gives solace to a loss.

The three of Frawley, Dunne and Howe were good mates and in private conversations amongst themselves I'm sure they worked out the best way to advance their careers was at another club. Good, solid, loyal players stay and work out how to improve their team or suffer for the cause. I include May in that bracket along with Lynch at Richmond and over half the Hawthorn team. Scully is the ultimate mercenary and well hated by most of the football public.

Gee, he's only been out of the side one week.

I liked the Wagner boys, Hoare and Hunt in their new roles. I would like all four to be given some time to develop synergy within the team. The Wagner boys are tough, fearless and quick. They tackle well which suits our game plan. I know they are blue collar which means they aren't always AFL standard but given time I think they can hold down positions. Hunt spent last year in the VFL developing his defensive side and is our best small forward at the moment, when you need two or even three in your team. Where that puts some of the others I'm not sure but stick with those four against smaller forward lines for me.

One of the major problems is that our two main defensive players that we spent lots of money on aren't available at the moment and the two incumbents in Frost and Oscar are looking at downgraded expectations as soon as the other two are ready, It's not a great plan to "buy into" for those two. Right guys heres the plan. You go out there and get beat up by Buddy and make sure you fill that hole and hold your ground when Buddys bearing down on you at 100 mph, then when we've got these other two guys up and running we're going to f**ck you off to Casey and then more than likely delist you at years end. Not a great working environment.

I think we need to look back,,,,,, to go forward... when honorable losses were an art form, web pages were created in honor of Richmonds Jordan McMahon and we could all look forward to juicy "priority picks" and create Messiahs out of young men who hadn't even played a game yet. Yes lets tank!!!!

I agree. It's not just Petracca. Look at Tommy Mac, Weid, ANB. Look at the scoreboard. If we don't get some system down there 25 points in 3 quarters of football won't beat anyone. The only forward playing reasonably well at the moment is Melksham. A good team with system would simplify the game for Petracca and help him become a very good player, maybe in time a gun. If we are in for a bad year, lets not eat our own.

Ommmmmm

Yeah sure, all this is accepted by most, they see the Hogan out May in scenario loud and clear. What people aren't so sure about is the trading out of a potential champion of the game, a Brereton or a Carey for a bloke who has shown his full potential and sure we can build a defence around him but he won't finish his career as a champ of the game. Also sure you have to give up something significant to get something that you need but look at Richmond getting in Lynch. We give up two first round picks for Lever, I think we just want very fair at worst compensation for Hogan, if not overs. Or don't do the bl@@dy trade!

If Hogan doesn't go this year I would think he won't go there (to freo) for quite a while. He has ummed and ahhhhed about moving home and really when you look at it I think he thought he might get on a good contract and be on easy street for the rest of his career. I reckon this is a good thing, He might just dust himself off and having come so close to the crap of off-season moves re-focus and get stuck in. If this deal doesn't go through (and I hope it doesn't) we may see clear air with Jesse, not the "will he won't he" scenario some posters are afraid of. Hold out, hold out.

Long time reader first time poster on this subject and most every twist and opinion has been canvassed. My only point I would like to add to the discussion is we should never lose sight of the fact as to how good Hogan may yet become. I think this trade is short sighted. Looking to build a side to win the flag in 2019. And that is fair enough. But if WC get Kelly from Geelong they will be the team to beat. And if we don't win the 2019 flag we could rue our decision to trade out Hogan. Remember he hasn't yet committed to the whole idea of playing professional football. If he does when he turns 26 he will be a superstar. We are being short-sighted. I really hope he stays.

Pick 1 next year is a great bargaining tool, think Kelly from GWS, so this years pick 5 and next years pick 1 would be a great trade for us if that was the scenario that played out.

Trac is still learning what he is capable of. He is very ambitious but his ability isn't quite matching his ambition. A perfect example was in the 3rd quarter against St Kilda when he got given the ball on the wing after a turn-over and looked up at an open forward line with a player free over the back. Ne was probably 70 metres away and Trac tried to kick it there but couldn't quite execute and it dropped short to the Saints player. He has good vision and wants to do the extraordinary and when he learns to match his ability with his skill level he will be a gun. A matchwinner. He's only young and still developing. Gus is a chance to become elite but he is an accumulator, more blue collar. Like Harvey from the Saints by the time both boys hit 25 they will most likely both be top 50 in the league. Great for us to watch them slowly deliver on our hopes and dreams.

I did. There was a bloke near me who barracked for the Saints and he was in a bit of pain blaming umpires and the players etc. It made me realise we are becoming a good team because I remember carrying on for the last umpteen years getting frustrated and looking to blame anything or anyone. I was very calm today. I enjoyed watching the footy. Gus was great. He has a great winning attitude. I'm very appreciative to go to the footy today and watch a game where my team was clearly superior to the Saints. We had winners all over the ground and the Saints only had one good player in Stephens. Things can change quickly and Gill will try his best to create deals that favor them but they were poor today with very few prospects. Boy I'm glad we finally look like we're out of that awful rut. Touch wood, fingers crossed.

Both Hibberd and Melksham had great games yesterday. Hibberd was sensational. Robbie Grey and Wingard hardly got a possession. He's fast, heavy and he closes space so well, then his tackles stick. Port were badly outcoached letting Hibberd roam free like that. We used him so effectively coming out of defence. I think he'll get tagged more often.

Yeah, I have. He is 22, only played 13 odd games, 7 this year, mainly because of injury and put into the right system and structure I think he would be a good addition. He beat Tommy Mac in many one on ones which was a good effort. Also he will cost half what May would. We need another tall defender. I may be wrong but I think your confidence that he is no good after only 13 games is a bit premature. I also think O'Brien is developing into an O.k player.

I preferred their player Jack Leslie, if he was available, or gettable. Probably on a lot less than May so an offer of around 500 a season would be a good deal for us I reckon.

Not surprised to read the Eagles "dossier" was suppressed by Fitzpatrick. Gee how's the game going to survive without him. What an arrogant c### he was.

I just think Hird has tried every possible angle to be viewed as "the victim" in this whole sad and sorry mess.

Well theres no way any draft picked kids are going to get gifted a game. They know right from the start they are going to have to work their butts off to get a look in. Finally this is how a good side should look and we get a good look at the kids to see if they are any good and if one is it is viewed as a bonus, rather than the spate of "saviors" of the last ten years. All good

They are drug cheats. Fact.

It's a nice idea but I just wonder if the game hasn't got so big that you'd get clubs giving out scholarships to schools in their zones etc. Those three pre-draft choices would be like gold and probably very soon exploited. Which club is in the private school belt and can offer a scholarship to Xavier, Carey etc.

I think he will leave. To me he does seem the type that wants ultimate success over money. The amount of work he's done to make himself one of the best in the comp. I don't think he's "putting it out there" for the money, he's got heaps, he's already set for life. Freo better get their act into gear if they want to keep him but I'd say he's a strong chance to leave.