titan_uranus

That is not a reason to start a thread about trading him. And it's not what you initially said either. Your position on Fritsch, like your position on most things, is untenable when you think it through even for a second.

I agree with those who suggest we won't just do a massive cull. However, if the list shrinks by 2 and we want to draft 3 kids, that's already five spots before we get to any FA/trade decisions or additional draft picks. Based off @Lucifer's Hero's list, I'd start with Jones, Bedford and J Wagner. If Jones wants to play another year we have a very difficult conversation on our hands but I just cannot see a best 22 for us in 2021 that features Jones consistently. I don't think we should be keeping all three of OMac, Hore and Smith. I think one has to go and IMO it should be OMac: he's had plenty of time on our list to develop but just has not fixed his weaknesses. That's four, and I suspect there will be one or two more, which starts to put pressure on Hore (although I like him and would prefer him to Smith), Hannan (how many times was he dropped this year?) and then Jordon and Nietschke. Hard to know if it's fair to keep them when they've not had the chance, but the flipside is that we can't hold onto speculative players indefinitely just to see if they can crack a game in 2021. Rookie wise I'd keep both Brown and Lockhart, both of whom should probably be on our senior list. Subject to knowing the full story and context to the Bennell issue, I'd keep him as I think he could make a big difference in 2021. I'd otherwise move on from Chandler, Dunkley, C Wagner and Bradtke. I don't know how retirements affect the salary cap but the writing is on the wall for Jetta and KK (for different reasons) and I'm not sure either will be getting much game time in 2021.

Nope. The Dogs have a far stronger list than us and the real truth is that the Dogs should be a top 4 side, not barely scraping into the 8. The Dogs have Bontempelli, Macrae, Hunter, Libba, B Smith, Dunkley, Wood, Johannisen, Naughton, Wallis and Daniel. Those 11 players are not just the equal of our top 11, they're significantly better IMO. Their midfield depth is enormous, allowing them to run Hunter off a wing and having Bont/Dunkley rotating forward. We might shade them down the spine (Weid, Brown, Gawn, Lever, May vs Naughton, Bruce, English, Gardner and Keath) but it's not like their spine is uncompetitive. King's fast becoming an irrelevant sensationalist. To suggest we've made no progress at all, coming off a 2019 season record of 5-17 with a percentage of 78.6% to a 9-8 record with a percentage of 107.8%, is stupid. There have been a number of signs this year that we've developed our gameplan to be capable of producing wins without needing to rely solely on clearances, CPs and inside 50s (look at our four most recent wins over Essendon, GWS, St Kilda and Collingwood and you'll see we didn't win games like we were doing in 2018). That doesn't mean our 2020 is a success, by the way. Making progress and failing are not mutually exclusive. Both happened in 2020.

Isn't that the precise same selling point we have right now? It's never easy attracting talent when you're one of the smaller clubs, let alone one which never plays finals, but we've done it before and we should be able to do it again.

2004. Not sure if that's as long as you thought. There were good things about this year, that's for sure. So good on you for highlighting them on a day I'm sure the majority of us feel, for the umpteenth time in our MFC supporting years, down in the dumps.

You're more generous than I am, dazzle.

Langdon in 2019, May in 2018, Lever in 2017. We've been doing OK for attracting talent.

I think it's four, those three plus a key forward. I'm not sure Jackson/Weid is the right combination. Petty might help. I don't think Brown is a long-term fit. 2018 TMac is precisely what we need, but 2018 TMac may well be nothing but a memory. I'd have Zac Williams on your list, same deal as Saad: if the price is right, pull the trigger.

Pretty decent statement from Pert: https://www.melbournefc.com.au/news/816897/club-statement-harley-bennell

@Jaded - props to you for sharing your story. I suppose it's too much to expect@Elegt to respond.

It's important we wait to hear what really happened. But if he started drinking, I'm concerned. Not because drinking is a sin. But because I recall him saying he was off alcohol because of what it had done to him in the past. Am I wrong in thinking that? I might be. Whatever happened, it's a truly disappointing end to a disappointing year. Personally I want to see him stay. I think he's one of a handful of missing links that could make us much better.

It's a different situation to Richmond's. It's still stupid. But that's not the issue. The issue is whether Hunt and Petracca were properly listening to Goodwin or just mucking around.

Would love to see the stats on his metres covered. I feel like the last two weeks he's been running up the ground more, both applying pressure in the forward half but going beyond and getting back to help the mids defend. Then using his pace to make an option on transition.

Mate. No. I love Jackson but you can't drop Brown after that game. I would 100% be up for Harmes replacing Melksham but if Goodwin didn't drop Melksham through the home and away season given the rubbish form he produced, it's not happening if we make the finals. I'd keep Baker over Sparrow for structure. I'd drop Smith for Lockhart but keep Tomlinson whose workrate and spread is important to our transition.

Agree. I've heard he carried an injury through the patch of games from Collingwood-Fremantle but not sure if that's true. Either way, he has the capability to be an elite half-back/outside midfielder. But we don't get it every single week. Today was exceptional.

I usually agree with you @A F but not on this. I thought Smith was hopeless at every turn. He's continually out of position on transition, which means he doesn't read the play and/or gets sucked too far up the ground. He gets beaten in one-on-ones. He had 5 touches and 1 mark, so he wasn't giving us drive or intercept marks (by comparison - Lever had 10, Hibberd 10, May 7, Tomlinson 7, Salem 6). And he's not damaging with the ball, and indeed his one handpass for the day was straight to a Bomber. It was, as far as I'm concerned, a shocking game. As to your other post, I'm not sold on Goodwin either, but I'm not sure you can put the fourth quarter down to Goodwin. I'm far more confident putting it down to our players going conservative, thinking that if we slowed the game down we'd take the heat out of it. We started playing to protect our lead rather than to score. Maybe part of that's Goodwin's responsibility but I'm more confident putting it at the feet of the players.

Yeah that really got me. I'm sure he'd fume if a commentator made some joke about Collingwood supporters not having teeth or something. He's also a rubbish commentator, made me yearn for Dwayne Russell getting the mic.

Why would anyone post that? He wasn't on Daniher. He gave up 3 goals to Stewart. And gave up a shocking handball turnover in the middle of the ground, and otherwise gave us nothing. Was just a bad game from someone who shouldn't be playing IMO.

If we make the 8, we deserve to play finals. If we miss, we don't. Why do the Dogs deserve it any more than we do if they lose to Fremantle and finish the season with a worse record than us? Carlton finished 9th in 2013 and still beat Richmond who finished 5th. Then nearly won the semi final the following week. You never know.

6 - Gawn 5 - Langdon 4 - Salem 3 - Hunt 2 - Fritsch 1 - Oliver

Well, we won. Only played one good quarter but, to be fair, it was a good quarter. As bad as the fourth quarter was, our core players stood up in the final 5 minutes to get the last two steadying goals. Really impressed with Hunt's game, 4 goals a good reward. Gawn, Oliver, Salem, Petracca and Langdon all played really well. Weideman's stats won't show it but I thought his workrate was good and he created opportunities for us. No idea what Melksham adds to the side. Smith was towelled up by Stewart, he's just not a defender but he gets by because of May, Lever, Salem and Hibberd.

Terrible quarter, the only reason we didn't lose it by a handful of goals is they are just so bad. How Melksham made it through the entire season without being dropped is just dumbfounding. Would be classic Melbourne if we lost from here, against a genuinely awful side playing bottom 2 football.

Last week did a good job on Haynes. Today beating an AA candidate in Ridley. This isn't a poor player whose goalkicking is the icing on the [censored] cake, he's just goalkicking away from being a B+ to A grader.

I wouldn't be getting too excited just yet. We should be far more than 28 points up. They are absolutely atrocious. But they are a confidence team and despite their defensive pressure being terrible they're still generating inside 50s and getting some looks. If they get an early goal or two, or worse, if Daniher gets his hands on the ball, we know we can concede goals. Fritsch's goal kicking is getting worse. Gawn, Oliver, Petracca, Langdon, Salem and ANB all playing really well. If this is our last game, Hunt, Brown and ANB are giving the club something to think about.

In terms of next year's fixture, double up games aren't the big issue. They rarely are. The big issues are prime time games, travel, shortness of breaks and venues played at.