Wiseblood

Not really mate, and I didn't mean to single your post out as plenty of others have done it before you. But this site is terrific with off hand comments like 'I hear this and that' and then everybody is all over it and expecting the player to make the switch. There has been nothing about Prestia and, with the impending departures of Dixon and Bennell, it makes no sense for GC to let him go, and the unsafe workplace clause is a huge stretch. Don't get me wrong - I'd love to get him in our midfield, and Melbourne supporters love to pine after current players who supported us as kids, but Prestia becoming a Demon this year is not something I'd get my hopes up for. * As a side note, I'd be stoked to be proven wrong.

Yep, signed a 3 year deal a few weeks back.

This Prestia rumour is gaining plenty of traction without much to back it up really. Plenty of 'I hear' and 'I was told'... it's all pointing to a free agency period where we don't get Prestia and everyone cracks it after they were convinced based on not much.

Agree, although he strikes me as someone who will try and find his way to Geelong, particularly if they miss out on Dangerfield.

To be fair here Adam, and I don't want to belabor the point as it's off topic, I compared some of Steve's posting to how a 50 year old woman reacts in a staff meeting - something I sit through on an all too regular basis and, therefore, something I relate to. That's just the way it is. And if you don't think following all the players' instagram accounts is acting just like a 13 year old girl, something they do much more than 13 year old boys, then that's up to you. It's not looking at females being lesser than males or vice versa, it was two simple comparisons I made. Nothing more, nothing less.

Oh please. I made two comparisons that happened to be about women. Well done on drawing the longest bow possible about someone you don't know. I hope it made you feel better Adam, keep fighting the e-fight about absolutely nothing.

You sometimes remind me of a 50 year old woman at a staff meeting Steve - puts forth her opinion loudly, and when someone questions it or has a differing view they get all poopy and quickly side with anyone who agrees with them as if it vindicates their view. If Garland is such a big problem then what is your solution? Who do we have to fill his role? He is no world beater, far from it, but you can have a team of world beaters. He plays his role well and as far as I am concerned we don't have any better options to fill his position. We might be able to draft a young key position player but they take time - just look at the younger McDonald. He will take time. We can rebuild again, and unless there is someone to replace Garland with, we stick with a bloke who gives his all and frankly doesn't do much wrong. Frost MAY be a solution, but we don't know that yet. The kid has good pace and the size but is a questionable kick at best and a young kid who is unproven at AFL level. We don't have the freedom to be too risky with how we go about our list management at the moment.

We have probably front loaded many of the contracts to fill the cap. Then over the next few years when we are paying them less we have more cap room. If Dawes was on 2 million over 4 years what we need to remember is that he isn't necessarily paid 500k every year - it might be 800k one year, 300k in the next and so forth. It just needs to add up to 2 million at the end of it.

That game shows just how far he has to go as a player. That's no disrespect to Fitzy, but if you plonk down that sort of money on a bloke you would expect him to do far better than that on a bloke who only just started playing in defence this year. Plenty of water to go under the bridge but you would hope, for the clubs sake, it works out. I would be comfortable giving good money to Hogan as he has shown he can play very, very well at AFL level. Boyd has yet to do that.

Time will tell on that one, but it's a HUGE risk. Their desperation for a key forward meant they had to grossly overpay and they will be hoping like crazy he comes on and turns in to the dominant forward they expect him to. If not... well... that's a lot of money tied to an average player.

You would do well to treat every rumour in here as just that - rumour. There are too many in here who post stuff as if they truly know what's going on behind closed doors. They don't. The sooner you take it with a grain of salt the better off you'll be.

Not a bad way to think about it. But first and foremost we need excellent facilities and coaching staff to develop the list. If we have that in place we can always bring in other players, draft in some kids etc. to continually support these marquee players. If a middle of the road player wants too much money then we can feel safe in the knowledge that we have players waiting in the wings to replace them. The way we got Vince is a perfect example of this. Sylvia wants out so we get proactive and get Vince to replace him. We are instantly a better side. With FA there will always be players out there who we can get and we just need to make sure we stay proactive and not clog the salary cap with long term deals that leave us with little room to move.

It just reminds me of the NBA. Smaller market teams offering huge deals to lure players who don't end up working out, and then they are stuck with a contract that no one else wants to take on. And when they do find a suitor they are given well below market value for the player. I'm not against long term deals for marquee players, but a club has to also be realistic. You don't want to be lumped with too many of those types of deals otherwise it can leave much of your list short on talent in too many areas.

And which club will be the first to offer a long term deal like this and see it backfire when the player is underwhelming or goes down with regular injuries? I hope we don't do the same, although FA puts plenty of pressure on clubs to lock up players for long periods of time. It's a risky business.

Didn't say at any stage that I believed it. This whole thread is full of rumour and assumptions. Just putting forward what he had to say last night.

Let's assume for a moment that we can nab just ONE of the players mentioned - Day, Dixon, Gorringe and O'Meara. I won't put Prestia or Bennell in as it hasn't been explicitly said they want out or will be traded out. Which of the 4 do you take? Do you nab O'Meara for the midfield, or do we get either Day or Dixon as a second forward for Hogan?

The word from Purple is that he is looking at property in Melbourne. If players leave en masse GC are in deep poop. We would hope that he is at any rate, but we still need to win a few more games to convince someone like him we are worth playing for.

Purple brought up 4 names from GC who are looking to move on at season's end - Charlie Dixon, Daniel Gorringe, Sam Day and the surprising one was Jaeger O'Meara. O'Meara is contracted for next year but there are rumblings that he is looking at his options. Apart from Gorringe I'd been keen to have a look at all three of those for obvious reasons. Day and Dixon as a second foil to Hogan and O'Meara to be an excellent addition to the midfield. There is obviously plenty of water to go under the bridge with GC this year and what happens with their list come season's end, but there is certainly a chance that we can poach someone that will really improve the list.

The Bombers are being dudded big time unless there are picks involved in that deal.

I agree, in that too many mention those names above as potential delistings, yet they are still contracted for another year. Technically they can be traded IF there is a taker, which for those 3 I doubt there would be, but there is still that option. It does boggle the mind a little that Terlich and M. Jones got the contracts they did however.

It is about delisting AND trading... so while it's relevant it also doesn't mean it dictates what we can try to do in the off season

That's it mate, move the goal posts. What next? Not happy with a comparison because they wear different coloured boots? Different breakfast cereals? Face facts - your idea that we should 'give them something to think about' is way off the mark, as what we would need to give to do that would be way above what anyone here would be happy with. Macrae isn't going anywhere.

You're clutching at straws now. If the Hogan comparison doesn't do it for you, then liken him to Brayshaw. We wouldn't consider any offers. Neither would they. They aren't trading away a kid who has shown plenty and only spent a few years in the system.

Such as? Would take more than our first rounder to get close.

Won't happen. No chance in hell the Dogs trade him.