Wiseblood

I told myself a fortnight ago that I was going to enjoy this final and put no pressure on the side. I wasn't going to be too fussed if we lost because we've made it over the finals hurdle and it's a big step in our development. But that's all gone out the window this morning. I'm as nervous as anything, can't sit still, and 7:50pm can't get here quick enough! I'm tipping a Dees win in a close one but the Cats aren't to be taken lightly. I'd love us to smash them into the turf all night but I don't see it happening. Go Dees!

Lots of big words in there, Shakespeare. Well done. Some think even reasonable discussion of trading a contracted player who has given no indication of wanting out as stupid. Yes, it can be stupid. Others, which included myself much earlier in the thread, went over the top in our defence of Jesse and our belief that this thread is stupid. As I said, plenty from both sides.

And there is the problem they need to fix first. It's not an easy one, but they need to create a better culture that supports players long term. As a new club they should have focused on this first, yet they seemingly focused on everything else but this and they are now paying for it, and they are paying for it harder than any other club has in the last few decades. When they fix the culture they'll be okay... I think.

Reasonable discussion can still be full of stupidity. There's been plenty from both sides.

He has been in the system for 6 years now and there is nothing to suggest that output will change. I'd agree otherwise, but he has been playing AFL for long enough to show more than he has. I can't see Goodwin being interested but I've been wrong before.

Smart and sensible changes. It's a strong side and one that can put the Cats to sleep for 2018 if we choose to. Can't wait for tomorrow night!

One thing that might also work against us looking at Mayes is his hardness around the contest. We know how Goody likes his players to work super hard, put pressure on, lay tackles etc. and I don't think Mayes brings this on game day. It's why Garlett can barely get a look in these days. For a quick comparison, I looked at Christian Salem's stats compared to Mayes' stats from 2017, which is the last time he played a full season and both these players spend most of their time at half back. Salem has had 78 tackles for the year. In 2017, playing across half back, Mayes had just 38. That's less than 2 a game. I know that's a very small sample size, but I just don't think Mayes really fits the profile of a player Goodwin would be interested in. I just want to stick an edit in here as I feel some might think I cherry picked a little with Salem as he is pretty tough around the contest. So I looked at Jayden Hunt as well, who in 2017 played pretty much the whole year off half back. He had 69 tackles.

True, although we are yet to see how that pans out, plus they have less options for playing talls down forward than we do. It's a little different to us getting Preuss and trying to slot him in alongside T Mac, Hogan and potentially Weideman. The Hawks don't have that issue.

Which is interesting when you consider he is only two years removed from being AA. He has some talent but clearly doesn't have the consistency at the moment.

Gold Coast is the AFL's problem. It has nothing to do with equalisation. They've been a problem since day one and have been absolute poo ever since. You can't really blame these players for wanting out. No culture, no facilities, no fans.

I've heard that if you say his name three times in a mirror he will turn up in your house to discuss the Norm Smith Curse with you and how it still affects us to this day. I wouldn't try it.

I don't think any of the current players, admins, coaches etc could care less about Neeld going on last night and I highly doubt it will have an effect on our preparation or mindset for Friday night. We're a totally different beast now, one that is ready to feast on the carcass of Geelong.

His brother (I believe it's his brother anyway) plays down at Anglesea, so I wouldn't be surprised to see Luke head to Geelong once free agency starts.

What we need to find is a ruckman who is capable enough to fill in for Max, but willing to bide their time at Casey. I don't think we can theoretically fit two ruckmen in our side going forward, and I'd be surprised if we tried. Is Preuss that person? He would be great, but at the same time he might want more minutes than we can offer him. Tom Campbell might be a better option if he doesn't get interest from elsewhere. Darcy Cameron is another who would be worth a look, but if he is dominating at reserves level, he might feel as though he is good enough to play regular AFL footy, something I don't think we can offer. Do we look to the state leagues to pluck a mature age who would be stoked to be on a list and, therefore, happy to wait down at Casey for a chance? I think we can all agree that Max needs further support, but who that turns out to be is a mystery!

We've had more articles written about us since the end of the season than we have in the past three years. Making finals is great but, technically, we haven't done anything as yet. The exposure is good but it makes me a little nervous as well.

I'd back them in too, Moonie. If they recruited him and wanted to use him off half back then I'd get behind the decision - after all, our track record of late has been terrific and, as you say, our culture and development has improved out of sight. I'd still be super surprised if we had any interest in him but if we did then I'd support the decision based on our track record from the last few seasons.

I don't think any of us would be against it - the bloke is a very handy ruckman and we've been crying out for some time for a back up to Max, not a stop gap like Pedersen or T Mac. What I'm interested in is what we have in store for him - are we guaranteeing him game time? He spent all year in the VFL and I can't see him slotting in to our side either, so I'm curious as to what discussions we are having with him that have him interested in playing for us next season.

Maybe, but prior to Melksham coming to the club he was still a best 22 player. Sam Mayes is barely a best 30 player at the Lions. That's a big difference to me. Not to mention the inside knowledge Goodwin had of Melksham before we traded for him. He knew exactly what we were getting and we are now reaping the rewards of that. We don't have the same intel or knowledge on Mayes. And it's for that reason that I can't see the club pursuing him in any manner over the off season.

You would like to think we would make minimal changes. I think we won't make anymore than 2 to keep the side as stable as possible. I feel as though the FD rate Hannan and will want to get him in the side, so with Viney also coming back, it makes selection difficult. Are Spargo and JKH the unlucky ones? If Tyson trains well today then you would expect him to play as well. While it will be harsh on a couple of players it's great to have these problems at this time of the year!

I won't be watching this. There is no need. Nothing he says can justify or change what he did to the club in his time there.

As long as it's not that tip rat Nicholls, then we'll be alright.

I would have loved to have seen how things went had Jimma not gotten so sick. He absolutely oversaw the things above, but some of those happened while he was very unwell and unable to really play the role of president to the best of his ability. He listened to others around him instead, many of whom made horrible decisions that set us back years. Again, I don't think anyone could deny that many of those things happened while he was in charge, but I think it's a little harsh considering how unwell he was during that period.

The bloke couldn't get a run with a bottom four side. Why would we look at him? I think we've moved past taking rejects that can't crack a game at their club. Lately we've generally recruited players like Lever, Melksham, Hibberd etc who were all established players, or taken punts on players (like Balic) who only had a year or two in the system. Mayes has had plenty of time in the system and not done a whole lot with it. I can't see us having any interest in him at all.

I almost went apoplectic when Selwood began to enthusiastically clap the decision. [censored].