Matsuo Basho

A 200cm forward/ruck who has kicked nearly 300 goals going at 2 a game over a 7 year career. Name anyone comparable we’ve had at Melbourne in 20 years. He’s not Wayne Carey but to intimate he can’t play is laughable JR.

Having listened to all 18 coaches speak or give interviews on multiple occasions it has struck me that some are obviously blessed with greater oratory skills and depth and breadth of intelligence than others. I’m not talking about mere footy industry lingo intelligence (which is a given) but real world intelligence and an ability to really engage and surprise in the way they communicate. Whether through humour, anecdote, analysis or reflection, they just show a lateral mindedness which fascinates beyond the mere regurgitation of stats, KPI’s and let’s call it “whiteboard word play”. I’m wondering if other ‘Landers would agree or disagree with me on this, or with my AFL Coach IQ Index below which ranks the eighteen coaches as I view them on my personal gut feel estimation of their combined general/football/emotional/‘street’ intelligence. The obvious question following on from this of course is - “does it really matter in that coach/clubs’s quest for a premiership and if so why or why not?”. Here’s my index: 1. Collingwood - Nathan Buckley 2. Hawthorn - Alistair Clarkson 3. Geelong - Chris Scott 4. Fremantle - Ross Lyon 5. Port Adelaide - Ken Hinkley 6. West Coast - Adam Simpson 7. Richmond - Damian Hardwick 8. Sydney - John Longmire 9. Western Bulldogs - Luke Beveridge 10. Brisbane Lions - Chris Fagan 11. Essendon - John Worsfold 12. Adelaide - Don Pyke 13. GWS - Leon Cameron 14. Melbourne - Simon Goodwin 15. St Kilda - Alan Richardson 16. Gold Coast - Stewart Dew Carlton, North - N/A

Jenkins is a good player and has proven ability over multiple years. Clever body on body, sound kicking action even from long range. He’s a true gorilla at 200cm. Torched us and burned Richmond last night. We could do a lot worse if he’s keen for a move.

It’s almost as if our forwards are kicking for goal like they’re backmen. Now why might that be??

Would anyone be surprised to hear that I was a prolific goal kicker in my day and deadly accurate to boot. Could launch a decent barrel from outside 50, too. Cheers.

DLand please ask Neita his opinion about the quality or lack there of set shot goal kicking in the AFL today. Particularly at the Dees!! He was a beautifully straight and long kick for goal.

Suns and Blues big chances this weekend. If both get up the Dees will be 18th by Saturday night.

Hore is a quality recruit. I think he keeps Jetta out of the first choice back six. Quicker and better in the air. Love Nev but Marty is an upgrade moving forward. Baker looks very promising. Has the speed and evasive movement needed to play in wide positions at AFL level. Really like his change of pace and can find the footy, too. With more confidence there's a place in the side there for the taking for him. Could become a 150-gamer or a bust but the upside is significant. Lockhart looks promising and needs to be given chances ahead of Garlett now that finals are out of the equations. Boy you've got to be good if you're a small guy at this level. So let's see. Sparrow I can't form an opinion on yet based on what we've seen. Certainly looks to have solid physical attributes and the courage necessary. Skill in close and ball winning we don't really know yet. We need another inside mid to come on with Jones reaching the end. Keilty I've seen a number of times for Casey and am not convinced he'll be anything more than a VFL player.

Stewart, Kelly and Blicavs are out and out guns. Menegola, Kolodjashnij and Guthrie more than solid first 22 citizens, Miers and Esava very promising as we have seen. Who are Jason Taylor’s equivalents on our current list? OMac, Harmes, Frost, Hannan, Hunt, ANB, Fritsch, Hore. I mean it’s okay but there too many NQR’s in there and where are the stars? Harmes is about as close as you’ll get. Wells has got him well covered I’m afraid. Agree that we need more experience in key areas. We can start by making Ben Brown a big big offer to leave North.

Out: TMac Spargo J.Wagner Garlett Frost (inj) In: Preuss Lockhart C.Wagner Lewis Petty Shuffling deckchairs but TMac has got to go and Preuss at least gives bash n crash (plus has better goal returns). Lockhart > Spargo

Players Geelong drafted between 2013 - 2018 on the Cats’ current list: Parfitt, Stewart, Kelly, Menegola, Kolodjashnij, Ratugolea, Miers, Blicavs, Guthrie. It’s development too of course but ol’ Wellsy is still braining it looking at those names. MFC has to get that good if we’re serious about winning silverware.

It is not a "couple" of defeats. It is 9 in 12 games from a top four fancy. The buck doesn't stop with the players. At least that much you must acknowledge.

Essentially what you are saying then is our players aren't coping with pressure, while players from other clubs are. I would agree.

Except for Guthrie they are R1 picks. Not great though I agree but you would need to do a more comprehensive spreadsheet of the six clubs I mentioned, listing all players selected after R1 (including rookie and CatB etc) from 2013-2017. Then you'll have the data to make an assessment. Cam Guthrie is good solid player with 150 games at Geelong to his name. He's a non-R1 draftee and will be in the plus column for them.

Pressure level on set shot kicking has not altered in the 35 years I've been watching and I assume the 35 years prior to that.

It's true that a much deeper analysis than I've done could be carried out. All I did was establish a prima facie case, the evidence being our ladder position, %age and extraordinary lack of depth. And the fact that we keep having to pay overs for talent, robbing our recruiting system of opportunities to replenish from the draft at healthy intervals. I would bank on the BIG 6 (Pies, WC, Geel, GWS, Rich, Crows) having a better track record at post-R1 recruiting than us. But I'm not going to spend hours doing the study and am okay with being proven wrong.

Actually “Froggy” if I may be so bold, ‘constructive’ does not always come in the form of positive spin doctoring. Papering over cracks does not help in the long run. Gawn, TMac and Frost were not Taylor recruits for starters, so cross them off your list. Harmes is a beauty no doubt and Fritsch and Hore look very likely long termers, but Hannan, Vanders and White? Jury’s still well and truly convening. None you could say have stamped themselves as bonafide locks in a first 22. Go back again and look at the list I compiled of non-R1 draft and rookie draft picks Taylor selected from 2013-2017 in particular. Discount 2018 by all means. It ‘ain’t good enough. Nowhere near from your head of recruiting. Maybe for a lower to middling side. But not for a club with genuine premiership aspirations. If an outside entity was conducting a thorough review of the FD it’s one of the first areas that would start beeping on their radar. Don’t mistake constructive criticism for thoughtless negativity. And if you’re going to use examples to support your counter argument, it’s best to be accurate with names, dates and so on.

Relevance? Out at West Buggaranong they use the same shaped ball, the grass is flat and the two sticks stand upright the same distance apart as they do on the MCG. If anything the pristine conditions of AFL/VFL grounds should make it easier to convert set shots.

Okay well while you’re at training studiously watching drills take a moment to scroll through the AFL app and check the current standings. We are 16th on the ladder battling Carlton and GCSuns for a wooden spoon. Percentage 76%. Given preseason expectations MFC line coaches would have the least job security of any coaching assistants in the competition.

I saw that. Head in the palm of his hands with a big scowl on his face. Wasn’t a good look. I love what Jack V. brings to the table but a leader and a communicator he ain’t. Lever speaks very well I agree. And is very courageous. That flying mark going back with the flight in the first was seriously brave coming from a bloke returning from an ACL.

Lever is the most natural leader IMO. And has shown great fortitude to comeback in such a fashion after that injury. If he's burning it up over pre-season I would seriously consider him for C or VC.

It’s not just the delivery. It’s the quality of the forwards and the lack of a quality gorilla FF to provide structure and opportunity for others. Good forwards gobble up their share of half chances and are able to water into wine. Exhibit A - DeGoey and Stephenson yesterday. We desperately need to recruit another KPF, a big bodied KPF proven at the level, to straighten up the side. TMac was a one season wonder and Weid will remain a project for a while yet.

We could get a pick between 10 - 20 for Petracca. Probably about the same for Angus if we’re brutally honest. I would seriously look at trading out Petracca if it means we can lure a Ben Brown or Jon Patton to the club. You’ve got to give to get. I would trade the Petracca pick and our 2020 first rounder for Brown. Change the whole complexion of our side.

That’s not the only question. The other one is - with the season effectively over at round 12 and the opportunity to blood youngsters coming more sharply into focus, how relevant is Jones anymore? Harsh reality but there it is.

We (Demonland) have had this discussion before in the Pert thread. Any new person at the head of a chain of command, whether in sport, politics, business, military - wherever, can have an immediate impact on the mood, energy and morale of those around them. This impact can be for the better, for the worse, or somewhere in between. Has Pert’s presence been a positive or a negative so far it’s hard to say. What we do know however is his arrival put some noses out of joint at the time, including the outgoing CEO’s who was reportedly staggered that he was shut out of the hiring process by President Glen Bartlett. Josh Mahoney was passed over for a job he was apparently groomed by Jackson for. There was just something a bit stinky about that whole affair for mine.