Deemania since 56

Yep, 'Hibbs has been a very useful player but is starting to slow a little and his kicking is just a bit short of that previous penetrating/target-bound skillset. He has much to teach. inspire and influence our junior players, including evidence of how to play 'tall' against bigger forwards (perhaps at Casey) at this stage of his 'second' career since joining the Dees from Essendrug. He is a vocal and committed driver at training sessions, highly motivating and courageous. It might be time come next season to replace his noted drive in the AFL team should the sunset in his skills be at hand.

Be great to have him onboard with the Mighty Dees - his presence would heal any rift that may have existed with his Dad on departure - more importantly, he may be a really good footballer (from all accounts) just like his old man, Shane, and we could do with some more of that, surely? As an absolute last resort, he'd be a terrific chewy-packet opener for quarter and three-quarter time breaks within the huddle.

It would be good to see Daw have an intrepid fling into promising contention for a couple of slots in the AFL team.

At the time, both 'slip-aways' to the Saints instead of the Demons were great reliefs. We got the chocolates, as a consequence; and, it was pretty obvious that the Sainter recruiters had virtually no idea with player selections or assessments.

Smith and his recruitment to the Demons - had it occurred - would have been a retrograde step into ' ... wonder if he'll perform this week for four quarters ...' territory.

Tough as nails. Imagine what his effects on a game might be without being bashed every five minutes with umpires not intervening. Same for Big Max.

That is confirmed; a sure way to prevent nasty ball drops.

Tim Lane for me, with assistance from Drew Morphett.

There shall be no rest for most minor transgressions to be re-lived, reviewed, re-rehearsed, re-visited and recompensed with more practice, practice and practice to absolutely iron-out such unrewarding efforts. We shall achieve a GF demolition job next season as occasional mediocrity is inexcuseable. Such 'misses' are evidence that there was something wrong with our linkages at these moments; someone can always be in a better position, maximising (forgive the pun) the certainty of a 6-pointer. Still, across the game, the effort and earned benefits were pretty damn good!

Yes, Danny did it, as well later in the fixtures.

Agreed. Gus, once was - and it was not too long ago - a great shot at goal (on the run) but his GF effort(s) was terrific. As for BT's comments, we are left wondering why we bother to listen to his commentary, at all. Yes, he was a good forward; I still remember his sprint at Rodney the Grinter with the intent of flattening him. Grinter merely bent down and tossed him over the top of a neck hold, flat on his back onto the ground. Embarassing for BT and he had a very quiet day as a cosequence. That is the kind of onfield judgment (and less-than-desirable input to commentary these days) that BT exhibits. Anyway, Gus is a champ, a cool dude, a clever footballer and it's great to see him 'coming back' albeit 'out-of-position'' (coz he's one of the few with the talent to so do. Carna Dees.

Yep, they would still be firing, taking the un-takeables, splitting the big sticks with everything they aimed at, no matter the distance.

Bruce and Green - what a combination - what great footballers!

Yep, kicking for goal just is not good enough and a myriad of ills are being attached to the process - it is important but it neednot be a psychological challenge. A shot at goal - either in haste or more properly set up - is the confirmation of the right to be able to score from good play in those and from those seconds to get the ball inside goal range. There simply cannot be adequate time and focus on goal-kicking practices. Think back in our own footy histories. If we had a problem with accuracy, we did something about it, working on a selection of techniques to effect improved accuracy and reliability. We discarded that which did not work and practised and practised those techniques that worked for us. Professional footballers owe it to their supporters, instead of leaving scoring opportunities and consistencies to the fates of the moment, Here endeth the diatribe.

Provided that we can select a player with good footy skills and a head for the game that we play, I really don't see any pick under the 30th selection being a poor one - given that our coaching panel is now the best in the AFL - and importantly, has the brains and talents of both Yze and Chocko, plus the development arm at Casey, to call the shots on player development and up-skilling.

Nicely written, succinct and thoughtful.

Thanks for that. I feel up-dated now.

Bogdan is a wiz, as well. Knew him well as a young man, very capable as his record states. If he was the new bloke, we'd be on the correct track, without doubt.

Yze was a very, very clever player for the Dees in his onfield days. Having sucked the life out of footballing ingenuity at Hawthorn as an assistant coach, it was time he came back home. He learned heaps with the Hawks in that role and combined those parameters with his own innovative ways (as a player) - the '...Bang. Bang, bang, bang...' stirred my memories of the Yze brilliance; there is no doubt in my mind that he was behind our incredible finals performances and he was highly successful in relaying that methodology across the GFteam of the Century.

This level of skill cannot be overlooked. I rate Sparrow highly - and he will only get better. It is rather easy to find fault with younger players but Sparrow somehow gets into so much across the ground and in a GF, for heaven's sake, he produced in a very pleasing way, to exceptional effect when the decision-making was his own. This kid is going to be something very special - he is already better than 70% of the youth that we have played across the last 5 years.

There does seem to be an issue of 'release' away from the MFC in regards to MAndrew ... the investment from the MFC is far more than dollars alone; it is time that these efforts (considerable) are AFL acknowledged and 'system' rules with drafting should be revised accordingly. Otherwise, there is no point to 'Academy' involvement and early focus. Instead, the nurturing AFL team is once again disadvantaged by the AFL systems that lack quality, reliability and force such issues into oversights and disregard. Another example of the AFL itself not fully considering its myriad attempts at innovation.

Not particularly interested in footy for women and related associations. Always regarded it as too physically demanding and perilous. However, since hearing more of Daisy's commentry and her very apt interpretations of what is occurring on the field of play, I have changed 180 degrees - Daisy is an authority on football matters. I look forward to her astute contributions alongside insights into the Mighty Dees / MFC.

I learnt this - as an interpretation of possible evidence - from Gus and Bowey during the Grand Final. I can recall yelling out to 'she who must be obeyed' the exact same words at that time from the telecast. Nearly spilled my beer on the sofa!

Displayed by both Gus and Bowey in that split second - that's the kind of stuff that wins premierships.

That is turning the clock back; still, they may improve but other than two or three players, they just don't have the weaponry - and have enjoyed too many games against too many other teams ( the Dees, included ) affected by the decisions and charity of the umpires.