Red But Mostly Blue

So it's looking like INs - JJ, Tommo, Grundy/Schache and a possible sub swap as I don't think Laurie will get more minutes.

Salem up forward is a very good idea. Gets him involved in that last kick, and if it goes south we can defend it, rather than things going south at HB. With a bit of luck, and confidence, he'll rediscover that left foot!

Same! Thanks for the link, was a good listen. Hard to disagree with much of what he said really. Even gave me a little more confidence! When we step back a bit, it's easy to be apprehensive about tomorrow's game, but we should have won last week (even without Gus) - and just need to make some tweaks. JJ will be a perfectly adequate swap and didn't mind the Salem idea, would shake up a few things. Give the Blues something to think about.

With the AFL's confirmation that it won't appeal the Maynard decision, we need to: - Care for Gus. Make sure he is OK. This is #1, for me anyway. - FOCUS ON WINNING OUR GAME AGAINST THE BLUES. No other noise. No fugazi, whatever. Our sole and best form of avenging this BS will be to beat the Blues, the Lions... then ANNIHALATE the Pies. Simple. 3 games. 3 winnable games. Every game is winnable, which is a positive and negative. We can't let our guard down, even for a minute - the other teams are looking to do the exact same thing as us. We need 12 quarters from here. That's it, then the boys can put up their feet, many of them with 2 premiership titles to their name. I know this moment, and probably the last week will have galvanised the group - but I really hope it has not been too much of a distraction. We, by rights, even with a non-existent forward line, should beat the Blues, but it won't be easy. They are buoyed by the momentum of the last few months and the excitement of returning to dreaming of a premiership after 20+ years in the wilderness. We can do this, I just hope we see the right Dees (there have been a few versions of us this year) from the first bounce on Friday.

The AFL has confirmed it won't appeal the decision, which means we: - Care for Gus. Make sure he is OK. This is #1, for me anyway. - Work with the AFL (to the extent they want to, or care) to ensure this never happens again, or at least does not happen again without punishment. - FOCUS ON WINNING OUR GAME AGAINST THE BLUES. No other noise. No fugazi, whatever. Our sole and best form of avenging this BS will be to beat the Blues, the Lions... then ANNIHALATE the Pies. Simple.

Completely agree with you. I should have noted my belief that we’re a better team and will win if we come out executing the basics, taking our chances etc. What I meant by fired up is from the first bounce, like what the pies did to us. We did not wake up until it was too late. If we get a head start on the Blues, we win. Something like this and last year’s disappointment can help with the fuel.

Any potential appeal aside, if we don’t come out and steamroll the Blues (on the scoreboard, of course, because we won’t get any favours at the tribunal) on Friday so we can then have a chance to play the Pies in the GF then we’ll never have enough motivation because even last year’s straight sets exit wasn’t enough to come out breathing fire on Thursday. We have to do this. Only way we get any justice is we make it to the GF and smash the pies. And Gus is there, holding up the cup, and grinning from ear to ear, right at the Collingwood army.

I feel so sorry for Gus. He was totalled by a thug and he’ll get no justice.

Not all heads are sacrosanct 🤷‍♂️🤦‍♂️😡

THAT DIRTY DOG HAS BEEN CLEARED!!

Robbo is an instinctual di*khead.

While we’re waiting, this is that strange place where satire and (almost) reality meet…

That’s what you and I and a bunch of other normal, reasonable people think, but then again we’re not a rabbid bunch of ignorant, soulless hooligans who think it’s ok to chant their team’s name as a supposedly respected oppo player is concussed, then carried off the ground.

Lots of Pies also not understanding that the biomechanist didn't really help their case. While he said Maynard would not have had any time to react and became an airborne frisbee with legs - it leaves the conclusion, then, that he willingly put himself in a position for which he had no ability to correct, despite the risk of harm to the oncoming Gus (who despite Maynard's Neanderthal grunts indicating he didn't see Gus - which is weird from a guy who admits he was trying to smother a ball leaving Gus' boot)... ... which IS CARELESS

The Pies lemmings are in full force on twitter, saying the biomechanist is 'cooking'. These guys are drongos. Wouldn't have read a damn thing of any educational value in any of their graceless, sad sack lives. abut all of a sudden, an 'expert' fitting into their agenda is 'cooking'. They are all for science now (unless it concerns concussion). Righto.

I don't understand, if Maynard didn't know Gus was 'there' - who was he smothering???

I know it's been mentioned/discussed already, but holy hell the comments on David Zita's Twitter are obscene. The Magpie army have well and truly disgraced themselves. Not that they would know what that means, or likely care. They would probably wear the label as a badge of honour. It's actually pretty deflating stuff to know there are such inconsiderate human beings out there. They're parents, educators, your co-workers etc. Gross.

The thing about witnesses and lawyers, is that ultimately the evidence, no matter if it is/isn't coached, ultimately it still needs to be delivered by the witness. I don't want to be mean, but Maynard is not a very smart man. Counsel would know they're pushing up hill with his testimony. I say the more he talks, the better - let him talk :-)

Excellent. Can't wait to blow that corporate dream into red and blue confetti.

We need somewhere to put our darkest thoughts and relieve some stress! haha

I love a lot of this! in Fact off the top of my head I can't even think of something I would like to disagree with, even for the sake of disagreement (and I am a lawyer, so I have form). MAYBE Kozzie in the midfield as I have enjoyed seeing him there to get involved. But you're right, if we ground him, he is fantastic at picking up the stuff probably no other guy on the ground will get to. Smarts and skills off the chart. We have the ingredients to make something delicious here, but are we going to be brave enough to use the right ones, and use them in the right way? The idea that some have put forward Schache/Jefferson instead of Grundy is wild. But I get it. We lost SOME of those games and arguably had better results with just Max, but as he has said himself, Max was in an ordinary form for a while. People are understandably spooked by bringing Grundy back. It can't hurt though. He's a more reliable prospect than Schache and certainly Jefferson. It'll mean Max has to sacrifice a bit, but he's the captain, he may understand we need to do things differently to get the win which is more important. Because if we don't, we won't get to plan for next week, we'll be talking about *gulp* learnings. The alternative is to try untested/unreliables, and do what we did last week. Which may work, but it might not unless we mysteriously get better at i50 delivery. Our accuracy is likely to be better, but there's no guarantee. Very interested to see how this unfolds. We are on the cusp of straight sets #2 - I'd love to see some cojones and of course the boys coming out from the first bounce with fire in the belly and a destroy Carlton attitude (which should come naturally to everyone anyway).

Posted elsewhere, but realised it probably sits better here... I have been bummed for a few days but right now, I'm feeling OK. There are really only one of two ways the first bounce goes this Friday. Either we breathe FIRE from the first second - because the reality is we entered the finals better than last year (aside from the decimation of our forward line - but we were finding ways to score, and our defence is solid) - and the boys will know that and will not let the blues take this from us. They may have a few obviously solid guns, but we are a better team, even without a forward line (with a forward line we destroy the Pies, and GWS/Port en route to the GF... ), in our last game they played out of their skins, we were average and we only lost due to arc madness. With everything on the line, I think the Blues are tiring and we have a statement to make. It's overdue now. OR we come out the same way against the Pies. Sleepy, late, sloppy, bombing balls into the 50 with no learnings at all, having to chase, in which case we likely lose, because the Blues will bank on that, and will probably expect it. Then we have to deep dive over summer because skills aside, there's a mental issue - 2 straight sets with our list is v bad. BUT - I think it's the former. We come out and raise hell for 4 quarters and give the Lions something to think about. (I think we beat the Lions, we just have to get there)

Love your positivity as always! I'm usually pretty upbeat about opportunities, and this one bummed me out a bit more than normal, mostly because we lost it, rather than got beaten, and the path for the Pies is now much easier than ours. BUT - right now (maybe it's the coffee I am drinking), I'm feeling OK. There are really only one of two ways the first bounce goes this Friday. Either we breathe FIRE from the first second - because the reality is we entered the finals better than last year (aside from the decimation of our forward line - but we were finding ways to score, and our defence is solid) - and the boys will know that and will not let the blues take this from us. They may have a few obviously solid guns, but we are a better team, even without a forward line (with a forward line we destroy the Pies, and GWS/Port en route to the GF... ), in our last game they played out of their skins, we were average and we only lost due to arc madness. With everything on the line, I think the Blues are tiring and we have a statement to make. It's overdue now. OR we come out the same way against the Pies. Sleepy, late, sloppy, bombing balls into the 50 with no learnings at all, having to chase, in which case we likely lose, because the Blues will bank on that, and will probably expect it. Then we have to deep dive over summer because skills aside, there's a mental issue - 2 straight sets with our list is v bad. BUT - I think it's the former. We come out and raise hell for 4 quarters and give the Lions something to think about. (I think we beat the Lions, we just have to get there)

I hope you’re right!! Makes sense to me. It would feel so good sending the baggers home, then giving us a crack at the lions up there. One step at a time…

I hope so, although I wish they did it for Gus against the Pies since it was one of them who knocked him out. And now it’s a much harder run when it didn’t have to be.