Rodney (Balls) Grinter

Gus has never been the lean ripped looking athlete, but asides from injury getting in the way, I think he generally knows what it takes fitness wise to play at the level and doesn't shirk the track work to get there - he's basically mr work ethic when it comes to this stuff. I'm unconcerned.

You could be right and only time will tell. Freo and Dogga could be taking a bit of a risk with his development though. He was developing reasonably well as a mobile ruck, but now they are throwing him in the deep end and asking him to do something quite different. Could argue that Jack Watts was also a unique tallent in some ways, but his early exposure to being asked to carry a key forward role with a lack of support set him back. I know Dogga is not Jack, Freo 2023 are not MFC 2008 ish and Longmiur is not Neeld by a long stretch. I don't really wish ill of Dogga (And Freo to an extent) but for our drafting purposes in 2023, I hope that he and Freo struggle to make his transition to their side work in the short term. I don't hate Freo, but they have now twice in recient history (three times if you include Farmer although he's somewhat canceled by Jeff White) acted to destabilise the season of the MFC, so I really do hope they suffer somewhat next season. Us thrashing them, the Eagles beating them and a bottom 5 finish would square up the ledger as far as I'm concerned.

If his efforts in the dying stages of the Brisbane Lions final are anything to go by, (being show how to attack the marking contest by Harry Petty) he won't like that much at all. I hardly think he's a contested marking beast. Ok on a lead and if he gets a jump at it, but I think he'll find those things much tougher as one of the main targets and he's getting double/tripple teamed and his leading corridors cut off by oppo defenses. Key forward would be a whole new learning curve for Dogga. Who knows maybe he's up to it, will really turn it on, but equally it could frustrate him, crush his confidence and development.

Same for 'Gather' Round. Really wished they'd run with a round where there was 7, 8 or 9 games on a Saturday afternoon at 2pm instead as a traditional Saturday afternoon footy Rd. Be more exciting I think, but then the TV would loose out 🙄.

I'm glad that at least we've got the Hawthorn double-up. Rd 9 when the wheels should be starting to fall off and Rd 23, when they should be in full on tank mode and we're kicking into beast mode. The MFC owes Hawthorn so much for the past 30 or so years that I'd love to see us give them an absolute thrashing both times, but knowing how Goodwin works, we'll probably just cruise and bank the 4 points with comfortable 30 point wins that leave Hawthorn supporters thinking "they're not that good, we could have won that game" ...kinda what they did to us for alot of the last 10 years when they didn't put us away properly by half time.

Clayton haircut top photo is awsome. Don't get me wrong, I don't think it's a good hair cut, in fact I'd say it's actually a very rude hair cut, but that's precisely the point. That kind of hair cut would stand out like the proverbial dogs balls on the footy feild and anoy the hell out of opposition supporters the 40 or so times a game Clarry racks up a possession. He's actually quite angsty, niggly and in your face with the constant smiling demeanor on the footy feild and that just adds to the infuriation of opposition supporters. All in all that also makes me smile.

By the sounds of it, it could have been a borderline statement with regards to it's racist and/or offensive nature or at least intent to be so. I do think it matters who and how it's said though. You can say something self deprecating and it's completely different to it being said by someone else be it either with malice or in jest, which could border on humiliation. Even when said kindly in jest as a form of endearment when it is known the individual will consider it as a playful 'in-joke', I think that only works in a really intermate relationship between the parties and that understanding is well established and respected. I think the context is that in a public forum it's going to be interpreted so many different ways, so it's probably best not to go there at all. Perhaps give the individual that said it some benifit of the doubt, given the amberguity and without persecuting them for the comment apologise for it on behalf of the station and move on. i.e. "we're not sure it was John's intent, but we realise that those remarks could be regarded as offensive and we appoloigise to anyone who was offended by those remarks". I think to be totally silent on these matters is a form of endorsement of casual racism, but I can also understand that perhaps it might take Gary, Tim and their producers some time to process and reflect on that rather than having an immediate awareness on how to respond to the issue and perhaps given time they will.

Conversely, look at Hawthorn, Adelaide, Essendon, North (and North's ave has probably been inflated by the Ex Hawthorn players that would otherwise be retired). Was a time I remember Melbourne stiiting where those teams are now in terms of both average age and ladder position. Thought at the time how all those early draft picks would translate into excellence one day - alot of them didn't and it was a long, long climb back to where we are now. I only hope that it's the same story for those four teams.

AFL can take their Brownlow and stick it. What a waste of prime TV space is all it's come to. I honestly give zero Fs about that suposed award these days. When Oliver and Gawn (and others I'm sure) can have such dominant seasons and still fall way short on that award, it's time to religate it the eyes of the football public. As if kicking more goals should make him more eligible. Gees, the guy has bright red hair, so he's ticked that Brownlow criteria 🙄. Need to rename the Brownlow for what it is 'umpires favourite player', it's hardly a league best and fairest.

Didn't forget him, but he left pre Gawn's arrival and that was mostly the context. I guess there may have been a time when we had all of Jolley, Jamar and Martin, every one of them good enough to hold down the ruck in their own right, but not so well in the same senior side.

Conversely I think our rucks were a big part of us winning a premership. Even before Luke had his 5mins of fame, Max was huge dropping back and keeping us in the game defensively. His five goals against Geelong in the prelim split that game wide open. I'd also argue that while you may not need a champion ruck, having pretty solid ones is important and I think of Richmond and Hawthorn in this respects.

Tall ruckman are always a good premium to have I recon. As they say, they don't get any shorter as the game wears on, but endurace and mobility around the ground is also a good thing in this regard, so in the end who really knows. At the end of the day, as coaches of mine also repeatedly said, "footy is players above the sholders" so knowing how to and having the confidence to consistently play your own game to the best of your ability is what sets out guys like Max from the rest.

Also forgot that Steff Martin was another future of the developmental ruck options the early Gawn era. Obviously not every hits a winner, but I think the MFC has a great recient history of developing champion ruckman. Having Greg Stafford around a ruck coach is probably another very good ingredient to have.

Well, unfortunately it didn't last season, because all three were down at once 😥. I think Daw would have got a game and done a more than serviceable job if that were not the case though. For you option 2, you forgot to add that the two development ruckman get to be mentored by and learn from the best two rucks in the game. Gawn was an understudy to Jamar when he was the games best ruck for a few years and not to forget that Gawn also says he learnt alot from sitting in the coaches box and in the stands with players while recoving from knee reconstructions. Gawn also somewhat developed on a parallel path with Spencer and Fitzpatrick for a while, so I think your second theory has much merit and hopefully there is another champion ruck in this next batch somewhere too!

Click bate headline OD - bump! 😂 Actually I think the story is old news isn't it? (I'm not going to repeat the details of the story I'm thinking it refers to).

About the most posted videos of any of our recruits as well.

All fugazi. The only way to really rank a draft is 3 or 4 years after the event.

And/or frees up Petty to play key forward at some point.

Great news. Just hope he gets a decient run of games at some point next season. Was absolutely robbed of an opertuity to have a crack at senior level last season when the AFL dubiously suspended him for accidentally falling in the back of an opposition player 🤦‍♂️🤬🤬.

I'm sure it's been bought up before, but Richmond station badley needs to be bought into the 21st century. Build a new station with better MCG access and a new training and social facility for the MFC above the railway lines like Fed Square. Throw in a few apartment blocks if you like and the pollies can go to town on creating more open public space, houses for people and most importantly a proper home for the MFC.

Few key position players are ready to go from juniors. Jesse was somewhat of an exception. A bit of a man-child. Unfortunately at times, it almost seems like he stayed that way with some of his dummy spits on the feild.

Both definitely better options than the David Schwartz post reco diet!

I'd more be face plaming that you referred to him as a defector. Yeah Weid left the MFC, but I think it was a move that all parties were comfortable with based on him getting a fresh start and likewise for us and Schache, with the Bulldogs. Weid was going nowhere at the MFC for the past 2 seasons. Hardly a defection.

Don't disagree with any of that, but Bell's claim that he'll be a great key forward isn't really utilising those tallents. If Freo do try to use him in that key forward capasity, it could actually destroy his development. I think their actual coach Justin Longmiur is smarter than that though.

Lucifer, bit of a correction required here. Springfield is only around 30mins from Brisbane CBD and 45mins from the airport in good traffic. Speaking from somewhat of a biased perspective here, having lived near the Ipswich CBD (which is closer to an hour from Brisbane), but I think the overwhelming negative commentary around this venue is a complete disservice to the opertuity it also presents for exposure of AFL in the broader Brisbane area. The Gabba is a pain to get to from Ipswich and the western side of Brisbane (hopefull this might get better once cross river rail project is complete and the Gabba gets it's own well connected railway station), so having the Brisbane Lions training facility and social club in Springfield is a real boon for AFL and growth of the game in the side Western of Brisbane. Ipswich, Sprinfield and it's surrounds are big population growth areas of Brisbane and have reasonable and growing senior and jnr partisipation for both men and women's game. Having the AFLW GF to launch the opening of the ground should be an awsome publicity for the facility that money probably couldn't buy. I don't see much of an issue with the 8,000 capasity or whatever it is. Realistically AFLW games rarely draw more than this and playing in front of a capasity crowd at this venue would be a better atmosphere than playing in a 3/4 empty Gabba, Metricon or Marvel IMHO. As an asides, to highlight the potential for AFLW to grow the game beyond it's traditional base, I have a Qld born and bread rugby mate (who coincidentally lives in Springfield), who has followed AFLW this whole season to the extent of attending many home Lions games, because his daughter is into the AFLW Lions team.