Dee Boys

Buckley wants the job. If we decide to go with another candidate (unlikely at this point despite Kelly’s incredibly impressive interviewing so far) then the club have told him he’d be welcome to announce he’s withdrawn from the process to enable him to save face. This was one of his requirements for going through the process. Agreeing to this, whilst admirable from the club, would lead to increased pressure on the successful candidate and the club itself. You can just imagine the grief we’d get from the usual suspects in the media for only getting our “second or third choice candidate” and “the club continuing to be a rabble”.

He was told on Monday.

Trent’s main issue, the one the football department are always onto him about, is his defensive work rate. Of everybody who played an AFL game this season, nobody has a higher missed tackle % than him. He’s around 45%, which is comfortably clear of the next worst player in the competition. The best two way mids are generally between 25-30%. That’s incredibly damning for a bloke who started off as a defender. Because of this he’s not getting the midfield time he wants, and the footy department are absolutely correct to demand his pressure and defensive intent improves before he’s a regular in there.

Players are generally pretty loyal. Especially if they’re playing for a big club/feel they’re close to challenging/getting paid good money. When it’s all three, like McKay, it becomes almost impossible to prise them out. This is the case for all clubs, big and small. Collingwood threw the kitchen sink at J Brown and N Riewoldt and couldn’t get either. Many, many more players choose to stay than leave every year. It often has to be an absolute perfect storm to be able to get a big name player to your club. We did all we could!

Lynch was just one. We’ve also thrown the kitchen sink at Georgiades, Morris, Waterman, Neale, Allen, McKay, Hawkins and Larkey over the last couple of years. People seem to wilfully ignore that when they say “we should’ve brought in a mature key forward”. We’ve been trying! It’s easier said than done.

Of course the Saints would do that. Windhager’s worth pick 25-30. Heath is worth a packet of chips. Why would we give up a future 2nd as well as a current 2nd?!

The fastest at the club at the moment is Kade Chandler. Windsor has said many times in interviews that Chandler comfortably has him covered.

The trajectories of Buckley and Goodwin's tenures were nothing alike. Buckley took charge of the youngest premiership list of all time, while Goodwin took over a rebuilding side that had last played finals a decade prior and last won a flag over 50 years prior. Buckley improved Collingwood's W/L record once during his tenure. One year out of ten.

Exactly. We are absolutely zero chance of another flag with a 34yo Steven May floundering and lumbering around in defence. His best is a long way behind him.

Selwyn specifically, they’ve said. I’m not just talking about vague sweeping statements of “mass change”.

Caro and others have said numerous times that he’ll be replaced in the off-season.

What’s happened? Nothing about it on any social media…

It’s not just the fact that he only took the youngest premiership side in the history of the sport into one grand final in 10 years. It’s the fact that he only managed that with all the big club advantages that Collingwood get that we don’t at Melbourne. The vastly superior facilities, the lack of interstate travel, the fact that you’re always a destination club to players. His game style was even more defensive than Goodwin’s over the journey too. In his ten years at Collingwood, they were only in the top six for scoring ONCE. That’s a damning stat and a huge red flag in this era of quick, uncontested football. Nothing about his track record as a coach would lead to anybody with a brain thinking he should be a must-hire the second time around.

I hope he stays but I’m not sure Judd has covered himself in glory throughout this. Channel your Angus Brayshaws, Jake Boweys and Ed Langdons and play where the team needs you the most son. You’ve played 60-odd games of league football after being picked up as a rookie after every other team passed on you. What gives you the right to think you can be delivering ultimatums to the footy department about where you should and should not be playing?!

That’s important re getting Kanga onside as he’d been dead against it from the start. As much as he theoretically “can’t do anything about it”, he can absolutely throw various spanners in the works. Placating him, if true, is an important little win.

I’m sorry but this is absolute nonsense. He inherited the youngest premiership team of all time. Younger even than the 93 “baby Bombers”. Despite inheriting this list, he only took the team to finals 5 out of his 10 seasons. I hope he’s learned some lessons and will be better the second time around but let’s not pretend his first stint as a senior coach was an impressive one.

It does. Not everyone out of contract is a free agent.

Kalani not named in Cal Twomey’s first phantom form guide for the year of the top 25 prospects…

Walsh’s back is cooked. They’re in big trouble Carlton with not much coming through.

Are you joking? Taylor and the scouts watch the players throughout the year and then present to the footy department before the draft. Richardson, Goodwin and the assistant coaches have their input, ask questions and give their thoughts on what kind of players we’re lacking, but have very little say on the final picks. Nobody would accept a head recruiter’s role if they don’t actually get to choose the players they want, especially at the top end.

Petracca did play predominantly forward. Oliver, Petracca and Viney didn’t attend a single centre bounce together. What game were you watching?

It’s a completely reasonable question. You don’t expect your first and second year players to come in and dominate straight away, or even show consistency throughout the season. What you do expect to see from first round picks are little moments and glimmers of class, passages of play that give you a glimpse into their futures. Not saying he won’t make it but I haven’t seen any of that yet with Tholstrup. It’s all very blue collar sort of stuff.