Demons3031

Re Baker-I disagree Roost it. I respect where you are coming from butmaybe at another club he might have developed and come on sooner...but to me he has had limited opportunities and in a side that has been struggling. I.agree with Deemania. To me he is a "Keep and develop." He has attributes- maybe Yze could be part of developing him into a complete player and an integral part of the plan and the team. I reckon he has a good, keen attitude and attack on the ball and can find opportunities in crowded space and elsewhere....A bit of thoughtful work with him could pay dividends in my view.

Good on you Billy and Mono. Yes there is a world of difference between objective, informed critiquing and denigration.

I agree with you Deanox. Well said.

Yep-agreed.

Billy T also should get a mention!

Can anyone else remember another time when Hassa got us into the finals. If my memory serves me correctly it was at The MCG and he took a diving mark and kicked a goal that got us into the finals?

Maybe the word "stakeholders" might hit the mark.

Yes John Townsend N0 16. Great rover and goal kicker. Same he hurt his knoee on t at overseas trip. A great roving combination with Ken Emselle. No 10. I think I also remember Hassa getting shirtfronted at the old South Melbourne Lakeside oval.

Good post Dee-Nee. What a great player. Could play centre, half forward or as a rover-great captain. Yes I remember that goal-did he actually mark that ball? I seem to remember it was a line ball decision and the umpire might not have had a good view? It was great kick though.

Hi Undeeterred. Yes I "Let it go" a long time ago. That doesn't say at times when you think back that there are still no painful memories. As I said, RDB had every right to leave the way he was treated. But as a 14 year old then it hurt- so I understand and accept that a part of me still feels a bit of pain-but I still love the guy and would love to have sit down coffee and chat with him before or after I pass through the pearly gates.

Of on a tangent here but speaking of retiring players- Brian Dixon-legendary No 9 wingman. Retired at the end of 1968. I have memories of being in the Cheer Squad at the time and we took up a collection for him passing the hat around-and presented it to him at the end of the Round 14 match at South Melbourne, He was good enough to come out of the change rooms and talk to us. I'm a bit confused as to why we made that presentation at the end of Round 14 when his last match was against Richmond 4 rounds later. Maybe he had made the announcement that he was going to retire. Oh well-still a good memory and glad I was part of his send off. What a great player..and it was his flat punt kick that ended up going over Barassi's head and bouncing off the pack for Neil Crompton to have his date with history!

Hi SWYL I hear where you are coming from on this. Barassi leaving still hurts me a lot. But I'm still grateful for what he gave us and respect him a lot. Being born in 1950 I'm among a few of the older folk on here who have gone through the pain for each of those 56 years. I think I care enough. And I still think its the right thing to do to congratulate a player on a fine career-even if they end up elsewhere. But I can relate to your feelings about loyalty.

I think the Queen would have added "WE are not amused!" LOL Just as an aside Neil, do you remember Froggy wearing Number 12 before he got the number 5? Would I be wrong in thinking he might have started his career as a rover for a few games at least before going to the back pocket?

Like others I was disappointed in him leaving. But I still think he deserves acknowledgment for what he did now he is retiring. Though I'm not comparing him to Ronald Dale, I think we learned to move on and admire No 31 despite our shock and disappointment. when he left. As a youngster I was shattered when Barass left..he had only just sent me a signed photo the week before the news broke. But it was only in later years when I heard the full story. I don't blame him for leaving. The behaviour and attitude of club officials and the way they treated him and Norm Smith was appalling. I think James was in a different category to some players who really owed the club for their effort and patience-and you all can think of some names there. Players have other responsibilities to family and future and other things we are not aware of. Footy is only one part of life much as it is important to us all. So good luck Chip and thanks for what you gave the club. I was ruddy annoyed when you went but you served the club well whilst you were there- we should always remember that. Hopefully another Frawley will be in red and blue in a few years.

FWIW My preference would be to keep Preuss and use him as first ruck. Gawn has a lot to offer in both attack and defence - depending on how the game is going. He has saved us with his marking interceptions on many occasions and is so hard for the Opposition to match up on in the forward line ....and he can take on ruck duties in the forward line as Weeds and T Mac do now. I feel we leave ourselves very exposed if Gawn gets injured seriously. But its not just the insurance factor - I feel we need to instill more fear and frustration into Oppositions and make them sweat more. As others have suggested, Gawn's great ruck work is often not capitalised on so it wouldn't necessarily be a great loss in that department ...though we could always swing him back there during a game if we felt it needed that. I feel we don't really create that fear in Opposition' where they panic - have seen it only rare occasions such as Geelong in the 2018 final. Gawn as a weapon in defence and attack might make us more unpredictable too and create confusion in Opposition decision making. I think that partly explains why every now and then I go back and replay those last half goals in that 2018 final! :)

Might take some pressure off Gawn. He gets targeted and sometimes his great ruck work nullified by strong Opposition onballers. At times I feel he is overworked and depended on too much. Now that Brayshaw Oliver and Petracca are lifting maybe he could be more flexible? Some of his best work is when he drifts down back and intercepts or up forward to take a strong mark that opposition find hard to stop.(Just needs to nail some of those close in shots!) A bit more time down back and up forward wouldn't hurt methinks-though depends a lot on team balance and how the game is being played.) I'm open to others thoughts on this. Is having two big men on at the same too much? Could they be used through interchange as well?

Many think Preuss should go out when Gawn comes back. I'm not so sure.

Thx for the update Kent. A shame-he has a bit to offer in an area where we need his skills.

Does any one have the current injury list? Its been nagging me as to who we might be missing most up forward - Harrison Petty came to mind. I also think Smith has a bit to offer there too to charge things up a bit mark and goal kicker wise. With Bennell, Lochhart and Pickett at their feet and Hunt too.

I agree Mel Bourne.

What a great effort by Harry to bring the excitement to us on radio. Thx Rob Mac.

Wonderful Supermercado! Thanks.:)

Great post Robbie. I always liked Ken Jungwirth..full forwards who kick goals were few and far between but he only played for such a short time. Not sure why he didn't stay for long. I thought he did well with limited opportunities. Went to Prahran I think after a game or two at Carlton. Just google checked..only 4 senior games at The Dees. At 79 kg's he did well..might have bulked up with a couple of seasons under his belt. Have been thrilled by the great responses to this topic. You all have some great meaningful memories and I have enjoyed the sharing of these.

Blair Campbell and Earl Spalding bring back any memories? I remember Blair playing against Melbourne in a night match at Lakeside oval once. Remarkable kick for goal. A shame his knee limited his career.

I guess with TV these days we get to see the live action and in radio days we filled in the picture in our minds based on commentators wonderful descriptions. I wonder if my mind would have distinguished between "He's nailed it" "He's drilled it" or" He's slotted it" or even "He's snagged it"?