John Demonic

Jack Viney being forced to rest:

Tom McCartin, Although he gets to take the month off

If I'm a Pies supporter, I want Melbourne in a prelim after they've lost at the GABBA and had a bruising extra time win over Carlton. I want Brisbane on the MCG in a GF, the only venue where they haven't beaten the Pies and where they're a big chance to [censored] their bed. And so I want a QF 2v3 Port matchup on the G, where they trounced them, as well as beating them on their home deck a few weeks ago just for good measure. I'm going to automatically assume Lions/Port win their r24 games. Edit: And if Melb d Brisbane at the GABBA, then as a Pies supporter you're happy to play Lions in a prelim, just to have the easiest path to get to the GF to take on the Dees. I know a club won't intentionally go out to lose, but that's the ideal path for the Pies. It serves them better to rest half the team and lose in a 'practice type' match to Essendon. There might be a bunch more 'deadrubbers' this weekend, one of which might be our game v Sydney, if they already have a home final, and we already know who we are playing in the QF. You can't say there won't be an element of self-preservation and softness with these types of fixtures, where the result doesn't matter at all. Like the result: Freo d WB r23 2016

Wonder if Collingwood will tank themselves into 2nd to play Port Adelaide at the G. And give us the Lions at the GABBA. Flirting with form withstanding, it's a pretty solid move to avoid us and have the 'easiest' of the top 4 fixturing permutations

First week of the year that the deathriders can celebrate knowing Pick 6 to 9 are off the table finally. Pick 4 or 5 Locked in! Shame it had to be Port doing the winning though

+ LDU Early premiership? They'd dominate the TAC Cup but it's going to be a fair long time until they're a premiership contender. Need a defence and another tall forward.

We ? The fans? The club? We were on a winning streak until a [censored] goal umpiring soft call in a match befitting of a prelim. Where are we getting comfortable? Save that line if we come out lazily and lose v Hawthorn please. If you mean we as in us fans, well it's a psychological defence mechanism isn't it? Trying to be positive and make the most of a difficult situation with potential interstate travel.

I have no idea if Sydney winning is good for us next week whether we beat hawthorn or not, and I'm too afraid to ask.

Geelong can Go and Get Fudged! No Dangerfield free agency to help you contend after missing finals.

Lions aren't over the line yet. Saints playing well tonight and will be playing for a home final next week and to avoid elimination by percentage at worst.

More like Good WWSW Hunting

Surely 4+ clubs is a mega deal But anyhoo, Dylan Stephens from Sydney is looking to come to Victoria, perhaps he would be in the deal?

Andy Maher barracktating is enough footy for me today 🤮

I know it's tedious to talk about, but my only fear going into the finals is not any particular club, or venue, but poor umpiring in key momentum shifting moments.

Getting Carlton into the 8 was more important than creating a handful of dead rubbers

Bunch of masochists in here

I think the gist of it is that Hoyne wants Rivers to be kicking and hitting targets inside 50. Not sure how feasible it is to get him that high up the ground on the regular, when no one else is running it out of defence like he is currently after winning it back off the opposition. Hibberd might be a key in the next month, to unleash Rivers a little more forward of centre. Though as Binman suggested on the pod, the addition of Spargo should improve our efficiency entering the 50 if he can up his disposals to 15-20 and be our Gryan Miers type of player. Although now that I think about it, wasn't it a preseason game where Rivers attended 10+ or so centre bounces? Maybe it's something up Goody's sleeve.

My red n blue goggle suspicions are not only are they doing it for self preservation, but they're tanking to get the Lions 2nd, or tanking two games to get the Lions up to 1st and giving themselves a home 2v3 QF v Port. Either way they're going to make it much harder for us. Hope it backfires considerably.

More like: Are Collingwood tanking to Brisbane

https://megaphone.link/NTETP2924955570 15:20 https://www.sen.com.au/programs/sportsday/ Anyone catch Hoynes GuessWho segment yesterday? Said Rivers was 11th ranked played on their 100X scale of players playing above expectation. And he's interested to see what we do with the "Rivers magnet" in the next two weeks and finals "No better kick in the competition in the last 6 weeks" "Kicking 20% above expectation" "We need to see if Melbourne can inject him into the game even more so, as he's having such an a significant impact. When he wins it, and when he wins it back, he's top 10 for impact" "Healy: Move him into the middle?" "Hoyne: No, but Id move him higher up the ground, get him involved a little bit more, that would be interesting." But he's also cautious about making a change late in the season

OK, but where's the rumour?

Silver lining for a Freo win next week v Port, will be us back in the top 2. If the Pies also get it done. Edit: I mean this slightly sarcastically. Massive silver lining lol

I wonder how many games LJ played as the 2nd tall? I recall it happening pre-Ben Brown, and he did not make any impact at all. So it's no wonder Grundy would be having the same sort of impact, if you ask him to play that role. Comparing 2021, JVR=TMAC, BB=Petty/____, LJ=Grundy, Fritsch=Melk I think id like us to go with a Fritsch & Melksham as mid-sized talls running around next to JVR, when Fritsch is ready. I know its late in the season to be experimenting but Fritsch comes straight back in anyway.

How many effective tall forwards do the Pies have? Plenty of ways to skin a cat. Get on board ffs. Its not our year... until we win the QF and suddenly it might just be again?