Demonated

I’m still optimistic about the future. Some of our handballs in the first half were the worst I’ve ever seen. Oliver and Harmes were ok. VDB tried, and Tmac was our only decent player early. We we will become better from here. Petracca needs to decide if he wants to be a gun or coast on talent. Maxxy was exhausted so I can’t fault him. Brayshaw and a few others couldn’t handle the ball but with experience that should change.

He has been our best player over our 2 finals games. It’s strange because he isn’t as talented as Petracca or Brayshaw, isn’t as consistently brilliant (and talented) as Gawn and Oliver. However, he is made for this. He played about 2/3s of the game and did more than everyone. For some reason I thought we were putting a cooked Viney in our team for finals hoping that he would be better than a fringe player. Turns out he is almost in career form while playing limited game time. The bloke is a machine.

I’m going to share quite a boring story with you all. I was too young to actually appreciate the ox in his prime but when you’re young you are impressionable. A family friend absolutely revered the bloke so I jumped on board as a young fella. I’ve since watched tapes of him and highlights online and realised he was on to something. He was poetry in motion, big, strong but graceful. That goal he kicked after doing the blind spin is one of the greatest plays I’ve seen. To see a player that I never got to fully appreciate still feel what I do now, particularly after the struggles he has been through and we have been through as a club is a heartwarming moment. Thanks for sharing and best of luck to us (and him & his family). We’ve got something real brewing here, enjoy the ride.

It will probably be at least 850,000 a year so a mil isn’t unreasonable. Someone will offer him that for sure. he is only scratching the surface with some of his abilities such as pace, marking and kicking. Every chance to be the games best mid in 2/3 years. Gawn, Hogan and Oliver are who we look to keep at all costs. Even if it means losing Petracca or Brayshaw in time which I hope isn’t the case. Viney isn’t going anywhere and we have Tmac and Lever locked down. That’s our nucleus.

What a game that was. Even contribution across the field. Viney was pretty ineffective but will be much better for the run. For those saying that Hogan didn’t impact the game, I must insist that you look at our goals again. He must have directly assisted 4-5 which is a ridiculous number. He has become a supreme team player this year. Last year really transformed his from a boy to a man. Our best player wth Max so far this year. We have momentum now. It’s a 50/50 game against Adelaide next week, win and we really set ourselves up for a good year.

What I remember reading was that Sylvia was taking the [censored] out of him a bit for being so outspoken so early. Laughing and carrying on, etc.

We got smashed by Port in his first game but yeah he was probably our best that game. I also believe it may have been that day he was being vocal and trying to get his teammates up and Sylvia mocked him for it as it was his debut. It’s no shock to anyone which one is now our captain and which one is out of the league and accused of stalking his ex I guess.

Just a few passing thoughts- Gawn was absolutely dominant. I know him and the midfield haven’t been in sync in our losses but he has been absolutely huge this year so far. Hannan, Fritsch and Spargo gave a different sort of energy, liked it a lot. Melksham is getting form back. One of our best kicks into the 50 and for goals. Omac is having some sort of season. He is raw, lacks visible coordination but he has done the job most weeks. Coming along nicely. Brayshaw was really encouraging in the centre square. Let him be part of the rotation and give Salem a more ‘loose’ role. Suits both of them. I’d also like to give credit to one of our best players so far this year in Hogan. He had a bad ankle, bad knee but still flew for his marks today and created a contest. His (new found) mental toughness allowed him to not be a liability despite his physical limitations today. Has really became a team player this year and is levels above where he has previously been despite it maybe not showing up on the stat sheet.

I will say this on the decision. Viney is a dominant personality while Jones is a little reserved. He has developed as a leader but isn't someone who is naturally one. Viney will have to be mindful of how he approaches his captaincy and ensuring he doesn't start diminishing Jones' role. He is an all or nothing type of person and will have to be aware of how he conducts himself. I have no problem with the decision. It's not what I would have done but the club made an informed decision based on what the know, which is far more than we ever will.

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.

I know it's not as exciting but Gawn's marking when pushing back in defence was every bit as important as him going forward and stretching other defences. I don't want to lose that.

I can give a perspective of someone who has lived in Adelaide his whole life if it adds to the conversation. Goody was always an amazing player but at the same time unassuming. He would never really tear a game to shreads nor did he have the talent of a Roo/McLeod. What he did do was mix what talent he had with genuine intelligence and hard work. He shouldn't be remembered as a superstar because he never was, but he was like a utility version of a Corey Enright. Maybe not as good as Enright but nearly as effective off a half back or a wing. Had this awkward style that just got the job done. What really encourages me is that he has always had a reputation as a great people person. His teammates loved him, his coaches loved him, his supporters loved him, his superiors when he was an assistant loved him. I believe with his people skills, knowledge of the game and ability to bring people together, he could very well be a more game savvy version of Daniher with a more talented list. I'm even more confident now with our coach than I was when Roos took over and he ended up doing exactly what he promised. I know people who are friends or acquantices with him and I'm very confident that we are in good hands.

A few small things are different. Watts is dropping the ball from lower with his right hand being straight down by his waist which is always a good thing. He also has a more stable core in his kicking action than Hogan. I'd imagine a front-on photo would also show Watts to be more straight and balanced. In saying that, nobody in our team has as good a technique and him so it's hard to compare Hogan to him.

This is an extremely important part to us progressing as a team IMO. For too long our best players have gone missing with the team. Players who keep going when the chips are down are really worth their weight in gold. Viney is somewhat capable of doing this but we need more than just him and as you said, Hunt did so in the awful game. Hunt took me by surprise last year. Hogan, Petracca, Viney et al were all touted as guns. It's great to pick one up from left field. IMO the quickest player I've seen at the club, even moreso than young Davey (maybe).

I love Viney but his kicking action is way too far gone. I'm confident in saying that he will never be a consistently damaging kick, especially over 40m. He could well improve his short kicking but his disposal by foot is easily the biggest weakness in his game. Doesn't mean he isn't a gun though.

Actually, I've always thought that this is a massive skill gap amongst AFL players. They often don't put players on their non-preferred when it's the obvious defensive strategy. I think it's literally no better at AFL than at amateur level. If I was on an opponent when I played I would be mindful after the first time, particularly for a left footer. The amount of times opposition allow obviously one-sided players like Franklin, Gaff, etc. onto their preferred foot is baffling at times. Even the best players/teams do it on a regular basis.

I loved watching that last year. It happened in the first game of the year against GC where Watts brought Hogan into the game in the last quarter and they both got us the win. Watts is as good as kick to a leading forward as there is in a game. I rewatched the final 10 minutes vs Hawthorn last week, Watts' kicking to a leading forward is near on perfect. Low, fast and cuts the angles beautifully. He also allows the forward to come meet the ball which a lot of AFL players haven't mastered and makes it much harder for defenders to intercept the ball. Hogan can also drag a defender out of the space when they both find themselves deep to allow Watts a mismatch as he often finds himself on smaller opponents for minutes at a time. Great dynamic between the 2.

Said it in the best 22 thread and will say it again. Stretch is an automatic starter for me. Salem will be with a decent run at it. AVB should be if he can find some form and consistency too. All the others besides maybe Harmes will have to fight to get a spot in the 22 and may have to wait for injuries that occur throughout the season. ANB and Wagner have players ahead of them in the roles they play. Especially with Hibberd and Lewis coming in, they have been pushed down in the order IMO.

I'm a little shocked at the lack of Stretch in a lot of the teams posted here. Besides Hunt he is our most direct attacking player and is good on the spread. There is almost zero chance that Salem gets first shot at a wing over Stretch, who made the position his own this season. If Salem is looking at moving onto a wing he either has to play the other one or overtake Stretch who for various reasons is ahead of him right now. Barring injury Billy plays round 1. The way we started to play last season makes his style even more important to our game plan, he provides a point of difference from Vince, Tyson, Oliver, Jones and other mids.

I agree somewhat with the captain part. He is more level headed and seemingly more intelligent that Viney. Not sure how much that counts towards prospective captains but it is somewhat of a factor. Brayshaw and Viney are the 2 obvious ones going forward but Viney will almost certainly be captain after Jones. Brayshaw is a 'pure' mid as is Viney, Jones, Tyson and Oliver. It's up to them to add other facets to their game so they can contribute away from the contest. I think Viney and Oliver may struggle to develop much of an outside game due to playing style so Brayshaw will be one of the mids that will need to spend time forward, back, etc. Brayshaw could try and emulate a Bartel who could move between roles within games to best serve the team.

Actually thought his return was really encouraging and showed some good signs. After having extended time off he won his fair share of the ball and was one of very few who tried in the last round. He will be one of our main improvers in 2017.

Living in SA I get to see more of Crows/Port than Melbourne unfortunately. I can say with complete confidence that we really shouldn't go after Hartlett, especially with the contract he would be on. He has talent and a booming kick, but even his kicking is only good over long distances, not great with vision or weighing passes. Even with a consistent run of good health he is inconsistent and prone to go missing. If we want good kicks, which we do, we should also make damn sure they can play with consistency and break lines. Isaac Smih from Hawks isn't as good a kick but is a much better fit for example. Obviously he isn't available but we need the 'type'. Hartlett epitomises what we have struggled with for years- goes missing too often and teases with talent. I'd be disappointed if we were pursuing him.

Watching Mills it's so hard to go past him. He is already so dependable for the flag favourites while having 2 years less than Hunt and 1 less than Daniel on an AFL list. I'd back Hunt to be as good as Daniel but Mills will be a star of the comp. Has top 5/10 player in the league potential and his stats would be much, much higher in a weaker team. He is playing back out of necessity, not because it's his preferred position. As another poster said above, it's strange that we have all these nominees but our most consistent eligible player hasn't gotten one. Hunt improves from one week to the next, it's crazy.