Red But Mostly Blue

I know this will have been expressed here numerous times, and likely better, but this outcome has really got my goat. I appreciate Kozzy has been a little reckless from time to time - he plays at the edges etc, and honestly I think he has done well to reign it in a little. But seriously, this punishment is BS!! You can't leave the ground, fine, but now you can't legitimately engage in a bump (which is what Kozzy tried to do, no question), because the other guy may slip/fall to the ground, causing an unintended concussion?? Are we just full outcome mode (depending on player, of course - I won't go into that), regardless of intent or context, because that's what it looks like. What was Kozzy supposed to do? That move is performed dozens of times a week. A legitimate footy act. The chances of a concussion, or having regard to the possibility of a concussion while performing it, are so remote you can't possibly ask Kozzy to turn his mind to it while in the moment. Moore fell, Kozzy's legitimate bump accidentally caused injury - it's an unfortunate reality of a contact sport. If you punish this, there's nothing left. On a side note, it's bemusing that Moore/Maynard have both engaged in 'footy acts' and ended/possibly ended/impacted careers, and have received ZERO weeks COMBINED> WHAT IS GOING ON?????

Between this and the Kozzie BS (hope we appeal - we have to), I am exhausted and annoyed to all hell, and we haven't even finished this season from hell!!

This is the other half of the whole thing, lots of media numpties throwing McKay into a potential trade. Have been wondering how Harry felt about being traded against his will or knowledge 🤣

Yep. Engineered as intended. Leak what you want out in public, make zero statements, force the hand of the club who cannot let the place implode.

I RARELY agree with Buckley, but this is spot on. Petracca is an amazing player, and was obviously an integral part of our premiership. I worry about what a team might look without him, mainly because we got a look into that in the second half of this season, and it didn't look very good. Admittedly, that was with an injury/preseason-hampered Clarry and Viney not at his best, and hopefully we get the best out of them next year - but Petracca is not an easily replaceable player for obvious reasons. Even if we were to get a McKay, that would not fix the problem. I was quite confident of us having one more crack at the flat next year, but no Trac would cause doubt. That said, it doesn't matter - Trac is not bigger than the club, and we cannot allow him to derail next year before this year is even done! We have cash (a lot more if he goes), we need to plug some holes (of which he may be a giant one), so he needs to grow up and commit to the club and work together to fix the issues, or grow some balls and ask for the trade and deal with the outcome. It's not even September, and I am exhausted by all of this. I was exhausted last year with the constant media on Clarry, and now it's us, again. ENOUGH! The boys (who want to stay - being most of them, being re-signees) need to band together and commit to a big year next year, and ignoring the noise - which is in this case on one player. Sort out our training ground (one of Trac's gripes, apparently), play good, consistent footy, and stuff the rest. Seriously.

You had one job, freo… Port didn’t even need to win this (just not lose by much) 🤣 Blues in the finals, gross. Hope they get smashed by the lions.

You had one job, freo… Port didn’t even need to win this (just not lose by much) 🤣 Blues in the finals, gross. Hope they get smashed by the lions.

Never said this before and will likely never say it again… LET’S GO, FREO!!! 🔥🙏

It won’t make me feel much better about out our year, and it has come at the cost of us finishing 14th (eek), but we are very close to a final series without the blues, pies or bombers. Still the cats, but that’s a grumble for another day. It’s not a bad side quest win!! LET’S GO FREO!!!!!! 🤣🤣🤣

Lame. Not the boost we wanted to instil some confidence in 2025 but I guess we’ll just have to do with reassurances in the offseason that we’ll fix everything that need fixing and go again next year. Until then, it’s just a game…it’s just a game… it’s just a game… it’s just a game… it’s just a game… it’s just a game… (I say as I rock myself to sleep after being belted by the pies, again).

lol billings 🤷‍♂️

Lame way to end our season.

Here we go, last time for the boys to run out this year. It’s not been the year that we all wanted, but we can end on a high and bury the pies. They say dress for the job you want, not the one you have - so let’s play like the team we want to be next year. GO DEES ❤️💙

LOL That's already a lot going on for the banner! Can't wait to see it :-) Gonna miss Nibbler :-( But fam always comes first. Hope he gets picked up for a really good #pick for us haha, but importantly plays a blinder every game, even against us (as long as his team still loses lol).

Grab some fries, smoke the Pies

After 83 pages, I hereby declare Trac is not going anywhere. I can't point you to anything definitive, BUT I make this conclusion based on: - Original story was started by gutter rat tom morris. - There's still no categorical substance to this story. Silence/lack of definitive response from Trac is not necessary, and does not, of itself, prove the story. Sorry, tom. - No other viable team has the trade capital. Deal just can't get done. - On a human level, I can see Trac might have some issues. He could have died. I would think such an event makes people think and see things differently. Maybe not always perfectly. Who knows? Either way, it's quite possible it was not handled the best perhaps from everyone. These guys play footy for a living. They are not comms/relationship experts or psychologists/counsellors etc. They're fallible. They make mistakes. I am sure mistakes have been made across the ground. Trac said his piece yesterday and I trust that this will be the building blocks upon which they will build a better version of all players for next year. Trac's road to recovery/full health (physical and mental) will be a long one. Who better to assist than his band of brothers, many of whom with he won a flag. He will need their support to return to his best next year, and I am sure everyone will learn from this. - There is no outside supporting evidence of didly squat. Anyhoo, now that it's settled, I propose we call this thread... Christian Petracca tears it up for the Dees in 2025

Whether you were happy with Staff or not, and hand on heart, I think it was probably time for him to move on - and that's ok - that's not a dig - sometimes you just need change and that can be said for both parties. Our forward line/approach needs a fresh set of eyes and it's time (perhaps a little late...but again, just me) so it's a good decision and I wish him the best. To those potting the guy, it's easy to do so from the couch, but the reality is that we won a flag with him there, and very little was said about that. It should be acknowledged. Thank you. All the best, Staff!

#BringBackMac

Terrible, gut-wrenching news. Condolences to Sam's loved ones. So young, carrying out the everyday task of traveling to work - which always brings these things too close to home :-( A reminder that this is, after all, just a game. The (overlong) hoo-ha in the Tracc thread, our disappointing year, the 2000 GF, Tom Scully (*shudder*), the Neeld era, etc. - doesn't truly mean anything of substance (as much as some of that still burns). We cheer at games, united by a sense of adventure, shared adrenaline and hope for a taste of glory, we hug our loves ones, and every moment is at the whim and grace of the universe. Nothing is promised beyond now. Going to hug my better half + little ones now (I returned to my laptop to finish some work - which, also, doesn't truly matter).

Awww that's sweet. I am sure they are, you and the rest of the DA invest a lot of time each week. Treasures - all of you. Thank you :-) (I was a member of the cheer squad some moons ago. When my littlest one (18m) is a little older and I start bringing him to games - I will very much look to bring him and my eldest (5yo) into the cheer squad to take part as well. Great times with lovely people, for the best club in the world).

Can we please just have a normal end to 2024/offseason and 2025 preseason so we can focus on good footy? We were in the wilderness forever. A burnt out shell of our former glory days. Then we built a seriously good side, won a flag, worked our way back into discussions and relevance again, and rebuilding a reputation... only to now find ourselves sliding down the ladder and heading back into murky territory. A lot of this stuff is still mostly/likely rumour and like every other side, there will be stuff that needs to be resolved. But the other teams aren't being spoken about. It's us. Again. Our leadership group needs to band together and put this [censored] to bed and commit to continuing our path to a new legacy of glory in the modern era. We can either be like Geelong and Sydney, and maintain success at the top - or drop off like the Bombers etc. Whatever the basis for all of this, I'd love to see the Club stand up at the end of the year and commit to us + one another to continue what we have been building. We are coming from a long way back, so there's still a lot to do. One flag will not erase a million years of drubbings. We can still return to where we belong, or we can return to irrelevance and wait another million years for success and respect. It's our choice.

We have now lost two leaders this year, which is a big hit. I wish ANB the best. A true clubman. Played his heart out every game. Unfairly a whipping boy for many years. Always had a dip and did the 1%ers. Played his role and helped us to win a flag. He will be missed. But, this situation now provides an opportunity. Who will stand up amongst our group to fill these leadership positions? Who will be hurting in the guts that last year it got away (for some valid, and some not valid) reasons? Who is gutted that this year has been a disappointment? Who will stand up and take us into 2025 to win a flag?

Great news. Clarry has been hampered all year, and persevered despite an unideal preseason. I have never questioned his commitment or ability to return to his god-tier status on the field. And I maintain that. The problem with Clarry is everyone will judge him based on his lofty heights. It's not fair. He was good this year, and sure, maybe not what we have come to expect for various reasons. He is not alone in this respect! Our success in 2025 will require Clarry to return to his usual form. Provided we make the necessary adjustments to our midfield and overall game plan (which was a mess this year) - because it's NOT all on him as much as people want to pot him for not winning us games, that's not how it works - I am certain he will return to the Clarry we know and love. He looks happier and healthier, and with a few tweaks to his body and our game plan - boom, watch out 2025. Rest up, Clarry - you did your best this year considering all circumstances, look forward to seeing you firing in 2025. I also look forward to those asking for him to be traded/sold down the river to own their mistake next year.

I reallllyyyy don't want to spend another offseason talking about whether Trac will stay/or not, and then whether he is truly committed, or seeing out a contract, or part of it, and as a result the ensuing scrutiny of our culture. We started 2024 with a spotlight on our culture - to the point where all our losses, or 'quiet games' from Clarry, or soft response games, were put down to poor culture. We have a very limited window to capitalise on Maxy/May - it's probably just 2025. ANB leaving does not help our chances, and other teams care catching/caught up/gone past us. We are going to have to make nothing but great decisions before the first bounce in 2025 to have a chance. We need to convince the big names being talked about/on our shopping list (Houston, Callaghan etc) that we have our business together, and they will see success with us - and not be constantly harassed by the media for poor culture. It's a reality to say if those players have to decide between us (window closing, admittedly with some good junior talent - but not premiership winning, right now, junior talent), and the Hawks who are on the UP (frustratingly), with junior talent, and not a basket case, or Geelong (of course), they cannot be faulted for choosing other teams. We can't afford that. We have holes in the team that will need to be filled with plug and play stars. So if we are to be a chance next year, all of this [censored] has to stop NOW. I don't believe Morris, but it is quite possible Trac (and others, who knows?) has concerns that need to be sorted out - and it is evident, from our results and position this year, that things did not go to plan. Clearly some things were not sorted out in the 23-24 offseason (excluding the loss of Gus, of course - a big loss, and Trac later in the year). So, SORT THEM OUT NOW. Over to you, Roffey, Goody and Co. We have one chance here. We back you in, but I think there needs to be some ownership, accountability and forward thinking. GET US EXCITED!!

Pretty bummed about this. Nibbler is a leader of the club and always has a dip. Has improved over the years with plenty still to give, but understand his reason, as a father of little ones myself. But I gotta say, this, together with the Trac malarkey today (not that I believe it - although his silence is a little worrying, he doesn’t have to say anything of course but geez it would help), doesn’t give me great confidence right now, as I worry we’ll spend another offseason batting away trade rumours/ defending our culture, when we should be finding players who will plug the holes we have, and solving the issues we have so we can give our last year or two to win a flag with Maxxy and May etc a real crack. The distractions don’t help. Anyway, Nibbler will be missed - wish him all the best, hope we do right by him as he has been good for the club, but it is another hole to plug, just not sure who can do it. A very important offseason ahead. Get players/get right for 2025.