Rodney (Balls) Grinter

I'm cool with Collingwood and Geelong playing home games over in WA, so long as any gate takings/profit end up in a big pool to share around the whole league. These are probably two of the clubs that least need finacial assistance. Similar for the other interstate sides where crowds are allowed.

I can see the MFC ending up at the Qld hub sooner or later. If so, they should try to comendeer the Maroochydore facilities and accomodation that we normally use, so at least it feels a little less foreign. Wouldn't mind us playing the Lyons and Suns up North - at least I might get to see us play live once this year.

Could set an awful precedent. ...and don't the AFL have a 1000 year agreement with the MCC/MCG trust that the grand final is always played at the G?

I think this is the key point. It's also been suggested that given the lack of junior development league competitions this year to evaluate players, it would be a good oppertunity to raise the draft age, along the lines of what Roos has been saying for years.

Agree that, we let our selves down in general play, let them get on top and that their kicking let them down to a fair extent as well. However 1 goal, 4 behinds is a shocking return from a player we are looking to be a top line forward. If Bailey kicks another one or two of those very gettable goals, it would have helped us put score board pressure back them and shift the momentum of the game a fair bit. If we are to become a good side we need forwards kicking at much better than 20% accuracy. I do feel that Bailey had somewhat of a bad game accuracy wise and that on other occasions he might have kicked 5 goals straight. But we do need better consistency from Bailey and others in the team like Melk, Trac and even Max in this respects, just can't cough up gettable goals.

Also interesting to see Hunt feature heavily in the intra club goals highlight. Thought he was good against Carlton, as he was up forward for a lot of last year as well. Really like the attributes of Hunt as a forward - he leads up well, kicks for goal well and runs himself into good positions to crumb and/or receive easy opportunitist goals, which is exactly what you would want from a player of his attributes to be getting into good spots to capitalize on the easy, high percentage goals that are there for the taking rather than having to battle for every goal. I do think his hardness and willingness to chase and harass and put on forward pressure are pretty good too. Will be interesting to see what he can produce in a forward line packed with other talented small-mid sized players like Kosi, Bennell, Freitch and Hannan.

From the looks of the pictures on the club web site, it looks like the boys spent some time doing goal kicking practice out on the MCG. Hoping that pays off. In particular Freitch needs to improve on his Rd.2 output in this area. We could have comfortably taken care of Carlton if he had kicked for goal more reliably.

So that it can be like a bowling green every week? I remember a time when a bit of mud and a few puddles here and there was considered quite acceptable on a footy ground.

The other key thing which should be investigated is if Essendon knew about his breaches before he was selected and/or trained with his teammates on the Friday or whatever.

It's being speculated that this bloke McKenna will receive a substantial suspension. Well that had better be served after he tests negative to COVID 19, otherwise it would be a pretty pathetic faux penalty. Seems like this guy didn't really care about playing footy that much in the first place, so I recon a more fitting penalty would be to apply the maximum finacial penalty possible.

Particularly since the MFC did the right thing and self reported players that breached the rules, without them testing positive.

Is the game plan flawed or is it that the execution of the game plan is flawed or maybe a bit of both? 2018 everyone said we were too much about attack, but leaked goals. Have we over correct in that respect personal wise? Maybe, but then we went to the draft and picked up Kosi and Jackson. We also dominated contested ball, but lacked outside finish - hence Langdon, Tomlinson and to some extent Kosi and Bennell. Until we win the flag, its always a work in progress. The way I see it is that 2020 is a chance for us to get the systems, personal and ballance right going forward. To truely develop something which stacks up, we need to be playing against real opposition, which is one of the reasons I'm so [censored] about us not playing the Bombers today. But that said, there are probably also some advantages to in playing a game against yourself in terms of being able to teach and manipulate the game more, so I just hope we make the best of what we have been left with.

Feel so cheated by this season. We finally get a full uninjured and super fit team team out on the park and then the season turns to total ssshiiit like this around us. It wasn't like I thought we were a certainty for the flag, but was keen that we at least put on a good show, somewhat atoned for last season and got the team back on track. Just really hope that we make the most of this as some kind of development year to set-up in the best was possible for next year, something like what Collingwood did in 2017. Doesn't need to be pretty every week, so long as it is all building to something.

Asterisk - more like a big red line though it.

Essendon's game next week could be in serious doubt though, particularly if another of their players were to test positive to either corona ... or peptides.

I've had that feeling ever since the season was disrupted, shortened games etc. I know other have said a flags a flag, but even if we somehow stumbled over the line and won the premiership, it would feel like a hollow rubbish one.

Ah, yeah, no. Unless you call an intraclub match where your seniors beat your reserves 'a win'. Not a win.

Part of me finds these "what they are saying over at ...." threads cringe worthy, but another part of me finds it somewhat interesting and amusing. The underlined comment is a pretty generous statement I feel. Would be interested in how they are dealing with the pre-game loss of Dyson Heppell. To me I've never really thought of him as being a particularly damaging player, so I'd be surprised if they are having kittens about it. I'd have to qualify that I haven't watched many non MFC games or paid much attention to other teams at all lately, so I'm probably waffling crap. Conversely people from either side could also make the case that Viney isn't particularly damaging, yet on his day he can be and if he were a withdrawal, he would leave something of a hole in our intensity around the ball.

If he doesn't get picked against Essendon, we have a big problem. My take from what could be seen from pre-season games is that Weid did everything that could have been asked/expected of him as an undersized, stand-in ruckman. If he was left our to build confidence in his ability, then kicking 5 goals in a practice match should achieve that. Conversely being left out of the side for a barely performing raw 18 yo would destroy it. I also don't buy him cracking the sads and not wanting to perform unless traded or even telling the club that he wants to be. It's not exactly a sellers market right now as a player and it's hardly like Weid has established much trade value to go by at this point. If he did want somewhere else, then he'd probably be better shutting up about it and showing that he can be a player deserving to be sought after.

I'd have zero problems with Norwood joining and playing in a blue jumper with red V as it would align perfectly with my story of becoming a MFC supporter in the first place. My grandmother's family saw the light and migrated from Adelaide to Melbourne during the great depression and following Norwood in the SANFL, naturally migrated their allegiance over the mighty MFC. A very wise move considering the successful era the club had during the 50s and 60s. If Norwood were to have joined the comp instead od say the Crows wanted to wear the red and blue, I would have been all for it, adopted them as a second team and would have actually celebrated a flag in my lifetime! Another reminder of the link to push Eddie's buttons: https://www.change.org/p/allow-port-adelaide-to-wear-its-black-and-white-prison-bar-guernsey-in-afl-showdowns

Nah, I think they should just wear it whenever they want. In fact, the next time Port plays Collingwood in Victoria, I think they should run out onto the ground in their prison bars jumper, just to make Eddie have a brain hemerage. ...Just a reminder again, below is the link to push Eddie's buttons: https://www.change.org/p/allow-port-adelaide-to-wear-its-black-and-white-prison-bar-guernsey-in-afl-showdowns

Whether it was a legal contract or not, I think the AFL broke their contract with existing clubs when they let Freo change the principles that guide their jumper design which permitted their entry into the competition. Other clubs like the MFC were forced to wear poxy white clash jumpers as a result, whilst Collingwood have never really had to do this. The fact that Edddie has such a contract between Port and/or the AFL is yet another example of Collingwood and the power clubs getting favorable treatment. Eddie can go shove his contact where the sun don't shine as far as I care.

Eddie McMcGuire getting on his high horse again about Port Wearing their black and white 'prison bar's' jumper. https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/afl-2020-port-adelaide-prison-bar-jumper-eddie-mcguire-vs-david-koch-threatens-legal-action/news-story/4ffdf921338d0f5e03bd1feeac2f6433 Whilst personally having some affection for the prison bars jumper since I played for a local side that wore it, I think basically anyone who isn't a Collingwood supporter should be getting in behind port and signing their petition below: https://www.change.org/p/allow-port-adelaide-to-wear-its-traditional-prison-bar-guernsey-in-afl-showdowns Would be great to get this petition up to a few hundred thousand or more. Whilst Collingwood may be a big powerful club with lot's of members, there are more people that loath Collingwood than probably any other team and is should be quite possible to mass those numbers against them. Personally, I see this as a bit of an oppertunity to take down one of the power clubs of the competition and show them they can't have it their way an bully the smaller teams around all the time. Personally I have zero sympathy for Eddie and the pies on this jumper issue and hardly think it as if other precedents haven't been set in terms of softening the stance on jumper colours other teams that have reciently entered the comp. When Freo first came in, they were forced to have a jumper with loads of green such that it didn't clash with other teams. They have since been allowed to wear a jumper predominantly deep purple, nearly navey blue, with a white V that is a lot more similar to the mighty MFC's jumper.

Huge respect for Ricciuto the player. But wow what a muppet of a football administrator. His public comments on these matters reek of sore looser in much the same was as Tex Walker's dummy spit after some of these players like Lever left. Wouldn't take much for him to use a bit of diplomacy and just play a straight bat to some of these questions and assertions, along the lines of "We were comfortable and stand by the decisions we made regarding the particular circumstances of each player" and then just leave it at that. A wise local footy coach I knew had a wise philosophy of not paying out on any players that left the club, because if they departed on good terms, they may often come back at some stage. I think it works slightly differently in the AFL, but I can't see many players being attracted to a club with senior officials that carry on like that. I read that poor old Ricciuto also had a bit of a public spat with Crows club legend Andrew McCleod who is also currently employed by the Crow over public critisisms that McLeod had made about cultural problems with the club. All this airing if dirty laundry just doesn't really reflect well on the Crows as all - perhaps they have taken the new mantle as basket case cub of the AFL?

I don't think it's an absurd or stupid comparison at all and you are missing the point I'm trying to make, which is that both Gawn and Trac have provided a number of years of good/great service since having knee reconstructions (several in Gawn's case), so it's not like a club should steer totally clear of any player that has had a knee reconstruction in the past. To be honest, I wasn't a supporter of the Lever trade. Having not really paid any particular attention to Lever at Adelaide, I was fairly neutral on it at the time. There were plenty on this forum who were a huge rap for him though and suggested it was an absolute coupe that the MFC landed him. 2019 was a stinker all around and I think it is fair to state that both Lever and May haven't really provided value for money returns just yet, but I still think there is plenty of oppertunity for both these players to make really solid contributions to the team that could justify the coin we spent on them.