Wiseblood

Went along for the first time with my girls and they had a great day out. Highlight of the day was, of course, the face painting. That's what my four year old says anyway. The heat was pretty oppressive but there was enough shade around when you needed a break. All the players were friendly and approachable. Waited close to an hour in the line to get Max to sign my daughters jumper, but the wait was worth it. The way he interacts with the fans, from young kids through the older generation, is first class. There is a reason why he is likely to be installed as captain. There was plenty to do and lots of freebies given out as the day went on. Overall the club did a great job with it and we'll be back next year. At one stage there was a game going on where two players were getting rolled up in bandages. As the pressure mounted I saw ANB fumble his bundle of bandages and drop them on the stage floor. Classic.

I thought he played well - he still needs to take the bull by the horns and clunk some marks for us, but when you consider the fact that he rucked most of the day, I think he had a positive influence on the game.

Jones and Jetta had minor niggles in the second half, but you would assume they would be fine for the game against the Hawks in Tassie. Other than that I think we came out unscathed.

I agree that he didn't have a great day, however, I think it is worth persisting with. He's only had one practice game down there, so you'd like to see him given a few more before abandoning the idea.

He looked good today. Played 70% of the game but still racked up 19 touches and 5 tackles. If he stays fit he'll be like a new recruit.

Easily the best, and most rounded, game he has played for us. I'm confident he can replicate it during the season. The one thing that stands out are his clean hands. He rarely, if ever, fumbles. If he is in the vicinity then he is winning the ball.

That was a good, solid hitout. There was plenty to like and some aspects that could still be considered a worry. Petracca was the clear standout. His efforts through the middle and up forward were nothing short of sublime. He has taken his game to the next level and has clear X-factor, something our side can lack at times. Of the rest, I thought Lever was good down back, Oliver got plenty of it and the 'twin towers' - McDonald and Brown - were still able to combine for six goals, even though both went missing for large parts of the game. Brown had the better first half, Tom Mac had a much better second half. Viney looks much fitter and both Langdon and Tomlinson brought something positive to the side, especially Langdon. Jones was fantastic as well until he got injured. I think there is a spot for him at half forward this season. Of the worries - our movement inside 50 is very much 'chaos' ball. When we lower the eyes we can hit targets well, but we still love to bomb it in long and it often doesn't work out. To go with this, when the ball comes out quickly, our defensive transition is still an area of worry. There were times when the Crows moved the ball way too easily and made us pay. You would hope both of the above can continue to be worked on throughout this pre-season, but it still gives us a little cause for concern. Last two points - we ran out the game superbly, showing some improved fitness, and a shout out to Tom Sparrow. I think he has a future. 16 odd touches, 7 tackles and a goal. I liked his game. Lastly - Weid had a bit of a shocker, however, he still had 20 hit outs and 18 (!) touches. When he is playing in his preferred position he can still be something good for us.

It's why we get so frustrated - we know we can be capable of that sort of footy. We just need to do it more often.

Good to see Tom McDonald turn up. It was almost as if it took him the first half to realise he was playing, and then when things clicked he was the Tom of old. Trac is a gun and, in general, our mids were on top even though we don't have a recognised ruckman. Weid not having a great day but he's being asked to ruck against a brute in Reilly O'Brien. He is out of his depth there.

Also nice of Salem to show everyone how to kick the ball inside 50.

The rumours of Jonesy's demise have been greatly exaggerated.

Trac is playing the best game from a Demon I've seen since Col Sylvia's 37 possie, 4 goal game against the Hawks.

Healy has always hated us and Dunstall is not far behind him. Not the best second term but, hey, I'd rather run out the kinks now than in Round 1. Really missing a proper ruckman, even if it was Preuss. Trac is set for a massive year.

He'll never stop doing it. Never. I wish our selectors would accept it too and not pick him.

Kossie will play Round 1. Book it in.

24 - 12 our way. Could be a bigger lead but we've kicked 3.6.

Good start. Lever and Trac the real standouts. Both look very fit and ready for big years. Brown gives us something... crafty up forward. I like it. Langdon and Tomlinson have been decent, with Langdon showing us a glimpse of what he'll bring to the team late on in that term. Kicking inside 50 still needs work but I'll reserve judgement after just one quarter for 2020.

Loving Brown early. Umps already absolute [censored]. Thought we might get a praccie game in before that happened.

Apart from our usage inside 50, which is a bit rusty and very 2019 like, I feel like we've started quite well. Trac in the guts has been sensational. Loving his work.

No replacement suggests they expected him to play, as it seems all the carry over players took part in the game yesterday. Hopefully this means it's nothing terribly serious.

True. But I pretend those supporters don't exist.

Remember kids: This match means nothing if we lose, but we are premiership favourites if we win. There is no in between.

Should have been made captain then and there.

Time will tell. May hasn't exactly covered himself in glory, but I'm more bullish about Lever's long term future with the club.

Interesting if it turns out to be true. While I'm sure most would be happy with Max as captain, going with a Lever or May as VC (or both) would be a questionable move. Again, I'm only going by the info above so it's all assumption, but it would be clear that the playing group as a whole value them as leaders even though they have struggled to get on the park. The players would know more than us on this issue, and wouldn't vote for them if they didn't rate them as leaders, but it would still be a very interesting outcome if true.