Demonated

I'm not the most one-eyed supporter but have told friends that I believe Watts is the best kick to a leading forward in the game. When you say lowering the eyes are you referring to that? Watch Watts' passes vs GWS in the 4th quarter and Hawthorn in the 4th quarter from last season. More or less perfection where he drew the forward to the ball and didn't allow for any chance of an intercept while completing difficult options. Kelly is obviously better at full speed but others like Stephen Hill are his equal.

I still need to see more from him. Completely agree he is far tougher than he seems. Completely destroyed Jeremy Cameron in a one on one either last season or the one before which took me by surprise. I'm still not sold on him having star quality rather than James Kelly-level reliable contributor ability.

It's hard to say. We made the right move going for 2 quality players over a potential star because we seriously lacked AFL quality players at the time. Now that we have the foundation for a midfield we need a balance of players running through there and ironically, Kelly would be one of the best fits in the league. We are set for the next 5/10 years for inside mids, we need more run and skill. It all depends on what Salem becomes as a player. He has the talent but for a number of reasons, some beyond his own control, he hasn't contributed anything significant or consistently yet. I feel as far as Melbourne supporters go, Salem is the one we overrate the most. Someone like a Stretch or Kent is just as likely to have as good a career as him. I've seen posters claim that Salem could be our best player previously and I just don't see that ability in him. Potentially a very important cog however and I will support him and give him time to show his worth.

He complements our other mids so well. Has what we lack in very neat kicking skills and line breaking despite not being lightning quick. As soon as he kicked the ball in the 4th I knew it would be a goal, there are only 2 other players on the list (Watts, Salem) that I would have had the same confidence with right then. Has slipped under the radar a bit but has contributed just as much as our other young more fancied players. Also quite tough for such a slight player, should be very important going forward.

Seems a bit strange calling our best player and leader a [censored]. He got rubbed out by a bit of stupidity which doesn't even matter anymore. Geez we are going to struggle without him. He, Gawn, Hogan and Jetta are not replaceable in our team. I'm wishfully hoping VDB is fit enough to take some of his midfield minutes in the next month though.

After Jones, Vince, Viney and Tyson we are still looking to integrate Brayshaw and Vanderburg into The midfield more. The. We have to consider that there may very well be cameos with Petracca and Garlett. I'd be more than a little surprised if he got many midfield minutes early days unless he has a massive preseason and somehow overtakes some of those names.

I already stated I didn't really want to get Parish, this was based on my own perceptions of his highlights and profile more than any inside knowledge. For this reason alone I'm happy we looked elsewhere. I like the way Oliver seems to play. He plays like a more physical version of Dom Tyson in packs with head and ball fakes to create space for himself and his kicking seems effective. He is also a very willing tackler and good overhead, but he may take at least a year before he has the aerobic capacity to play many midfield minutes. It isn't really too important because he won't be a dashing line-breaking player at AFL level I wouldn't expect, but he is the worst bouncer of a footy I think I've ever seen in the AFL. It's almost comical how bad he looks at it, but like I said, I doubt it will be much of a factor.

I'd say he would be leading our votes per game for sure. Has been our most consistent performer this year IMO. Him coming back has been so very important to the team. You only need to look at how Vince and Jones have performed since his return to see how his defensive game and contested work frees up other midfielders. His impact on our midfield goes well beyond stats. I thought he stalled a little in his 2nd year, but he has made amazing progress this year. Roos is a perfect coach for a player like Viney.