Wiseblood

So why is the club interested in Gaff if he is nothing more than an accumulator, Saty? Seems like you know more than the club. Again.

With all due respect, we aren't turning over close to a third of our list now.. We did that in the early Roos days when we had to because our depth was non-existant and we had only a few decent players on the list. That's changed now. There is absolutely no chance we not only delist 6 players but trade six as well. It's not good for the stability of our list and we aren't going to top up with lots of kids at this stage. It just won't happen.

Bottom 4. Not big 4.

Whilst we all hold different opinions on it, I'd be hard pressed to be convinced that Gaff is someone we shouldn't be looking at it. He's got the perfect mix of inside and outside footy and is a large reason why the Eagles are on top of the ladder. He would complement our midfield perfectly.

So how is Pert going to help us win games? That's what we pay Goodwin for.

They have had some good moments, but have also spent more time on the injury list than on the field. The reason I've liked the moves for Cross, Vince, Lewis etc has been because they are durable players who are rarely (touch wood) injured. Murphy has a history of getting himself injured and I fail to see that changing at his age. I get the point you're making, especially experience, but if we want to go in that direction again I think we can find someone more durable than Marc Murphy.

You could probably make a call on a couple right now, but with half a season still to go I don't think anything is certain at the minute. If there are a few injuries (god forbid!) then someone might get a run and show themselves to be quality depth worth another year on the list. I've seen a few wanting to delist both King and Filipovic, but I doubt we will delist both. Especially if we don't recontract Pedersen, which is highly likely, at the end of the season. King has had more time on the list than Filipovic has, so you would assume that if they feel they have gotten as far as they can with King then he might be the one to the get the flick. The ones who will get a new contract are obvious. Jetta, Harmes, O Mac and Gus will get new deals and are crucial to the side going forward. The rest? That's anybodies guess right now.

Remind me not to listen to Nick Bowen any time soon.

You've got to love a bitter Mick Malthouse taking pot shots at Pert already, claiming they never really 'got along', although you would believe that Pert wouldn't be the first or the last person not to get along with angry Mick.

Amen to that, LH. Gary Pert is no Paul McNamee.

I think, on the face of it, that it's a terrific appointment. If the AFL and Peter Jackson are happy with it and endorse it, then I can't see a problem with it. The bloke knows the game, knows how to be a CEO and has a good track record of doing good things. Outside of rumours ad rumblings, which we have no idea how true they are, this seems like a great move for the club.

The Dogs are a joke at the moment. Port could theoretically be 8 goals up already if Marshall hasn't missed a few easy ones. How the hell they won a flag in 2016 is beyond me.

Yes, I should know better, but sometimes I can't help myself. It just seemed like such a random attack on a bloke who gave his all for the club. Maybe he can regale us with a 'BEST INJURY PRONE 22' to make it all better... ?

I think I'll use this as a reminder to never read your contributions again. You clearly know bugger all about football and your attack on a bloke who, before injuries and the burden of the captaincy at a young age, was destined to be an absolute star of the competition, is nothing less than a disgrace.

Gold Coast vs. St. Kilda could be one of the worst spectacles ever put on in an AFL game. Hoping for a miracle and the Doggies causing an upset but I can't see it happening.

It's the one thing that sets him apart. His field kicking is up and down (sometimes he can hit a 60 metre pass, other times miss one 20 metres away) but his tackling pressure (especially against North this year) can be good and he can provide some real pace through half forward. The FD clearly rate him as he keeps getting chances, it's just every time he gets one he gets himself injured (shoulder last year against Adelaide, hammy this year against the Tigers). I agree that I think he still has a role to play for the club, and I think he can give us more than Bugg IF he can keep himself fit. If he broke down again before the end of the year then I'd give Buggy another year instead.

If we had been struggling a little, or had more injuries, then I think he would have been in line for some game time. As it stands we've been in good form and had minimal injuries, so he's probably a little unlucky to miss out to this point. I'd like to see him get a run in the coming weeks as, from all reports, he really has something to offer up forward with his pace, skills and footy nous.

Also, he has played just 33 games over the last 3 and a half seasons, indicating that form and his run with injuries have hampered his ability to stay in the side and make an impact. As you say @Lucifer's Hero, a club in the bottom four might take a punt on him, but in the grand scheme of things I think we have more important players to retain and he may be squeezed out anyway. It's a shame as the bloke does have some talent, but he hasn't harnessed it enough or consistently enough to keep his spot in the side.

Sam Edmund in the HUN is reporting that Dean Kent may look for more opportunities elsewhere next season as he wants more midfield minutes, something he is not guaranteed to get with us. Here is a little bit of what he (Edmund) had to say about it: DEAN Kent could leave Melbourne in search of greater opportunity. Kent remains sidelined with a hamstring injury suffered in the Round 5 loss to Richmond, but is understood to want more midfield responsibility ... It's understood Kent would prefer to stay at Melbourne, but is unlikely to get a deal to his liking at the Demons and is assessing his options. Thoughts? I think he has something to offer, but he is far too injury prone and I don't think he will get the midfield minutes he desires with us.

Yes, you're correct there. My mistake. Still, I don't think they were playing just for him.

Rough week, Dee? It seems like you're clutching at as many straws as possible to be negative about Monday in as many ways as you can. Examples: - The club has always shown the speech, or at least some of it, that Daniher gives to the players. Did you complain about it last year? Probably not as we won. But now that we've lost it's a point of contention? Please. - Goodwin wasn't mocking members, he was mocking the stereotype. We all hate it, and for the slide he embraced it. I didn't realise we needed to get the fun police out for this one. - A total assumption that Collingwood played for Neale. How do you know this? Again, clutching at straws. - And we have very good defensive substance. We've seen it action plenty of times this season. The loss of our general, Jake Lever, will impact on this until we can settle again. I don't know why this game has gotten to you so much, but the only thing I agree on above is that we wilted under the pressure of a big game. It's happened a few times (and a few times we've stood up over the last 18 months) and no doubt it needs to be addressed. But the rest, in my opinion, is you acting like a petulant child and throwing your toys out of the cot.

@DeeSpencer - apologies for saying you dropped your bundle the hardest after Monday's game. We have a new winner.

Disagree on Harmes. He is up on most of his previous season averages in disposals, tackles, inside 50s and so forth. He has been pretty consistent this year. I can forgive an off game on the weekend, but he has most certainly improved to this point. Won't argue Trac, while ANB and Hannan have their ups and downs so you could argue they have tapered off somewhat. Hannan is only playing his second season though so I can forgive that.

Harmes has. ANB has in patches, the same with Hannan, although they lack a little consistency in this regard. Petracca was improving until he buggered his finger and he hasn't been the same since.

The question for me, SJ, is one I don't think any of us can answer, and that is: Is Dom doing what the coaching staff are asking of him? He may be winning plenty of the ball and looks a cut above the rest, but are they disappointed in his two way running? His spread from the contest? These are questions we don't have answers to, and I know many talked him up after last weekends game, but for him to miss the 'votes' and not get as much recognition as some expected suggests there is something else at play here. Then again, he may get a call up after the bye and make a mockery of what I just posted above, but there seems to be other things at play here.