Wiseblood

KC has been doing it for years. Who are you to dictate that, if he puts it in early, 'you're fine with that'? That's not your choice to make in my opinion. And you put a total guess side in that may not reflect the game at all. It's off putting at best.

Most of those throwing the ball decisions would have been wrongly paid against Clayton Oliver.

I'm already up to Round 4 when James McDonald kicked a ripper to put us in front, even though it looked as though it went over the post. This is my favourite of the highlight videos. If you've never seen it then stop what you're doing for the next few hours and indulge yourself.

There's a reason why I had the #9 on the back of my jumper. Absolute legend.

What does annoy me is how the media tries to build up some of the rubbish of the competition. Take Carlton for example - by not asking for a priority pick they have 'gained plenty of respect', according to Jon Anderson, and he names a heap of their young players (some who haven't even played a senior game) who have shown something for the club. This is only 8 days removed from us thumping them by 109 points. They are getting credit they absolutely don't deserve, but knocking back a potential priority pick puts all that in the shade.

Worry? I've been wearing my Dees gear to work, watching the highlights during break times, lapping up every decent article I can get my hands on and humming 'It's a Grand Old Flag' to myself every time I hop out of bed. Enjoy it, hemingway. It's not often teams, let alone ours, are able to have such a dominant period.

All this tells me is that we're one of the most even sides in the competition. Look at some of the players selected - Jimmy Webster, Kade Simpson, Michael Walters and Nat Fyfe, Mitch Robinson etc. all players who are playing lone hands at their clubs because the rest of them aren't much chop. We've got talent on every line which means we play an unselfish, hard running style of football that doesn't necessarily lend itself to a heap of standout players.

Agree with all of that, LH. Others who we need to re-sign include: James Harmes, who has had a great year to date. Tim Smith, whose last 2 games show that he can be a really handy player for us going forward. They will make a call on it later in the year, but I reckon Bernie deserves one more year at the moment. Harley Balic is probably in line for another year as, from all reports, he's doing pretty well at Casey. Beyond those above and the players you mentioned (Gus, T Mac, Oscar, Jetta), I'll be interested to see who else we re-sign. Does Buggy get another year? Do we give Pedo another year as well, or do we have enough tall cover now?

True, but we can only play who we are scheduled to play. It would be great if we could ask for the opportunity to play either of these teams to prove our worth, but obviously we can't. So we just need to keep winning, keep building the confidence and earning respect. Do that and anything is possible.

I don't think we'll ever know the reasons behind it unless Goodwin, or McCartney himself, come forward with it. We could speculate all day - perhaps they moved him there as an extra voice on the bench to encourage, support and teach the players through the game, something he has always been really good at? Either way it's been a positive move and further proof that Goodwin is happy to make changes when required.

The only thing I take out of it is that it's good to know we don't have to worry about their contracts for a few years yet. It's a good sign that they want to sign on for another year, but also great reward for what they are already doing at the club. I didn't expect Fritsch and Spargo to both have the positive impact they've had, so an extra year on their contract is fair reward for that. Petty is a key position player with promise so it's great to get him signed up for a little longer as well.

I don't often agree with him, but BT made a really good point about the improved maturity of the side this year. We aren't going over the top in our celebrations after each goal or looking to treat the opposition with disrespect. We are just going about our business like a side who knows it can blow teams off the park and we're doing it with a ruthless efficiency that is great to watch. What was not great to watch was the first minute of that video. That really hurt.

I'd do the same thing... if I had any semblance of a rig...

What do we care what the media thinks or says about us? It's not going to change the way we play or the psyche of the players. I think the club as a whole are going about this superbly - we aren't going overboard with celebrations on the field like we did in previous years, Goodwin still keeps things cool, calm and collected in his press conferences and re-inforces that we need to keep working hard to continue to achieve great things. Who gives a stuff if Terry Wallet fresh airs us, or if Carey doesn't trust us? Ignore us at your peril.

Here is the article: http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/teams/melbourne/melbournes-jake-melksham-has-become-the-afls-oneonone-king-inside-forward-50/news-story/dab7157a6984a8090831b8205849f9d3 For those that cannot get past the paywall, the crux of the article is this: Jake has won more one on one contests inside 50 (9 out of 14) than any other player in the competition. Since Round 6 we have also retained possession of the ball a ridiculous 93.3% of the time when Melksham kicks the ball inside 50. That's 20% better than anyone else. This bloke is having a stellar year and is a big reason why we've been so good since the Richmond game (where he kicked 4 goals and have Rance an absolute bath). He is continuing to prove that he is a fantastic pick up for the side and, at only 26 years of age, still has plenty to offer in the years to come.

More good news with the club signing up three of our promising youngsters! Get around them! http://www.afl.com.au/news/2018-05-28/good-news-comes-in-threes-for-dees

These are the sort of stats I'm absolutely loving about this run. I can't get enough of them!

It's out of Gawn and Grundy for me. Nic Nat can do the flash stuff but I don't feel he has the consistency or the substance of the other two. Max has the better ruckwork and the better influence on the contest, while Grundy plays almost like a midfielder and has a big influence on games through this. It's close, but at the moment you would lean towards Gawn because of his ruckwork.

We smashed them last time, and this time we're adding Gawn, Hogan, Lever, Fritsch and Spargo to the mix as well. That's scary. We shouldn't have any trouble accounting for the Dogs.

Not only is it good drafting, but they're not getting games because we have no one else. They're keeping out very experienced and capable players. It's fantastic to watch.

No change. I know it's a 6 day turn around, but we have a 9 day break after this game leading into the Queen's Birthday clash. We've won by 200 points over the last fortnight, no need to make changes unless we absolutely have to.

The biggest downhill skier and cheap goal over the back player this side of the new millenium.

Melbourne supporters - on cloud nine.

I agree. How long has it been since we smashed a side at the G? A week? Not good enough.

Also can't discount the fantastic job Bernie Vince did on Tom Lynch today. Made him a totally redundant part of their setup. His excellent form, and also that of Jordan Lewis, has continued in fine fashion.