Wiseblood

The comment from Goodwin was that, if the Melbourne footy club was in Perth, then he would have stayed. Going by what we've seen and heard, it sounded as though Jesse wanted to go back to Perth if a trade could be done, and we were happy to facilitate it now to get something out of it.

Roos does bring that up in the article. I think he is getting at the fact that some should have come back in better nick, while others weren't in a position to come back fit.

We could almost have WERRIDEE making a 'BEST 22 PLAYERS WHO ARE INJURED' list right now.

Don't buy one then and move on. In fact, I'll buy an extra one next year to make up for it.

Has they May setback been confirmed? The club has obviously put out an article on Jetta, but apart from some speculation, I haven't seen any confirmation on May.

In that same article, Goodwin makes a point of saying that they also took plenty away from the Grand Final and reviewed how West Coast went about it. They knew what they had to get better at and they used the Eagles as an example of what they needed to do to improve. Sure, they didn't do their normal review, but I think Goodwin and the coaches felt at the time they understood where it went wrong. A horror pre-season and players out of form has meant that we haven't had a real crack at it yet, but I acknowledge the fact that other teams have adapted to our game style and we haven't figured out a way to counteract that as yet. Fitter players, less injuries and a little less 'drinking of the bathwater' would go along way to helping fix those issues. And a few tweaks to the gameplan itself wouldn't go astray either.

I'll call it a failure when, in three to four years time, we don't have a flag or gotten close to one, and May hasn't provided us with much output on or off the field. Until then I'll be disappointed with his actions over pre-season, but I'm far, far away from calling it a failure yet.

I can't really argue that point, dazzle. I'm not necessarily trying to really. Be annoyed, angry, frustrated etc at the bloke because of the above, but I think we should hold off on being against the trade at all. Time will tell on that one.

Get well soon, Nev. We'll miss you. On the flip side, I'm excited to see how this pans out for some players. Are we about to find out if Josh Wagner has any chance of making it as an AFL player? Can he step into that role and really give us something? Do we give Lockhart a run down there instead? He is a little smaller, but he's a tough bugger who is a decent user of the footy and you'll know that he'll have a dip all day. What I'm getting at is that, with the probability of a flag this season pretty damn low, it's time to see if a few fringe players can actually make it. I firmly believe that we have plenty of talent on the list that is capable of getting us to the holy grail, but we need foot soldiers as well, and we are about to find out if we have any of those on the list who can step into a role when needed.

Be prepared for this comment re: his recruitment to be littered throughout the thread. While May was unprofessional with the way in which he approached pre-season, and I'm willing to give him a little leeway as he came from the worst club in the comp, we can't judge this deal until he retires. Moaning about the deal just because it's hit a roadblock early in the piece isn't solving anything. We know the bloke can play. If he is part of a premiership side, with Lever right beside him, then I'll be a happy man. I'm judging it on that.

Also, [censored] happens. If I were Goody I'd be looking, firstly, at bringing Petty into the side. If May is out long term, and Lever isn't due back for 5-6 at least, then it's time to see if this kid is up to it. His form hasn't been too bad and he can't do any worse than Oscar has. Josh Wagner might also get an extended run, while we know Jay Lockhart can play down there as well. I'm annoyed, but I'd rather look at what we can get out of it than moaning about it.

This is going to go down well.

Of course I realise that. What difference does it make? He had every right to do it, seeing as though we made a Prelim. At that point there was no need to make a change. BUT... obviously what we have mapped out and planned hasn't exactly gone the way they would have expected, and therefore he can begin to think about a few of those aspects.

I reckon you might be right on Tom Mac. Wouldn't surprise me to see him out of the side. Jones will stay, as I think there are plenty of others to drop first, and I hope they stick Lewis on a back flank where he belongs.

I agree with that. I do think we need a bit of a change outside of Goody. While I don't like to pot anyone who works for the club, I do think Misson moving on is a good thing. He is highly regarded and we don't really know what goes on, but we do see plenty of injuries to players each year, so I think a fresh change there will be a positive.

They didn't do a regular 'play by play' of that game, but Goody has said they still reviewed it, and packaged it up with the first two games as well. Here is what he said on it: “I tried to parcel our finals up into three. We had two really great experiences and one poor one. I certainly didn’t dwell too much on the way we played because it was nothing like the way the Melbourne team plays. But you do reflect on the things in our program we keep addressing and learning from,” he said. So, to me, this idea he didn't review the game is totally false, and a myth being run by a variety of people here. Clearly they didn't do their normal review, but did they ignore that game and the outcome entirely? No.

Yep. How many successful coaches over the years have had some rough periods? Clarkson, Bomber Thompson, Malthouse, Sheedy etc have all gone through tough patches that many thought they wouldn't survive. Sometimes those periods came well into their coaching career as well. Goody is still 'young' and the club knows what he is capable of. This is his first, true test of how he can respond to a major challenge, and while it may take a little time, I think he needs the backing of the supporters to help him see it through. He got a three year deal because he is the first coach in almost two decades to get us to a Prelim, and his ability to bond with the players and unite the team is to applauded. Supporters can be too reactionary at times, which is why we are that - supporters. I guess that's part of the role. But the club will back him entirely to turn things around, and we should try to do the same.

Amen to that, DZ. I actually wonder how many changes we will make - to me, it is the first time I've seen Goody look pretty angry about the result and the efforts of our players, so it wouldn't surprise me to see 3-4 changes at least for this game. You would think the forward half needs the most work, and is probably the area we can change the most. Jeffy, Keilty and Lockhart are probably three we might look at bringing in. Tom Mac might miss this one with an 'injury', while others like Spargo and Corey Wagner may miss out. Stretch is another one who might come in as well. I think Garlett and Lockhart can bring some real pressure, and we know that Jeffy is able to hit the scoreboard. I mean, what do we have to lose at this point? If Riewoldt plays then possibly Oscar has to come back in to play down there as we can't afford to just go with Frost. Josh Wagner might be the one to go there. Going by that, the changes may be: In: Oscar Mac, Garlett, Stretch, Keilty Out: Tom Mac, C Wagner, J Wagner, Spargo I know I mentioned Lockhart might get a look in above, but I can't seem to find room for him, and Garlett is a better option. Also, is Steven May possibly ready for this one? Or does he need more time? I'm backing us in to have a better crack at it on Wednesday night, but not sure we have the confidence to do it for long enough to win the game.

I don't think GCS or Brisbane have. Freo had a ripping win against the Giants, no doubt about it, but have also struggled at times this season. I firmly believe that teams haven't gone past us. We are just in a horrible, horrible funk that we need to find our way out of.

You would love to know the reasoning, though. Clearly Goody has something in mind, only we don't know what that is. I can't see someone, who is clearly an intelligent coach, just sticking an old fella on a wing and hoping for the best. I know that is what it looks like, but deep down we know that just isn't the case. On the flip side, I think it's pretty evident that, whatever the plan was, they got it wrong and Lewis had absolutely no impact on the game whatsoever. I'd be very, very surprised to see him line up on a wing on Wednesday night.

You stick him on a wing after missing a month of footy, you get your just desserts. It was madness sticking him there in the first place. In the twilight of his career, we should have known better. We needed him across half back. Plus, they should have dropped Spargo, not Stretch. He was the perfect player for us, at the moment, who can provide at least a little more pace and stamina running up and down the MCG wings.

It's my turn to rant now!!! /rant over. Happy Easter everyone. ?

I only listen to them when it suits my argument. For example, when they said we have the best ranked midfield - you little ripper! When they say we missed Oscar on the weekend - they're a bunch of cretins who don't know what they're talking about.

Consider this: When was the last time he respectfully engaged in proper football discussion with anyone on this forum? It's almost been as long since our last flag.

Haven't we had enough long winded posts over the last 24 hours? And don't say I'm right in some scary way. The footy Gods will hear you and punish you for it. But we did make a mistake in only going for one tall defender and around four mid size ones.