Lefty

Usually practice matches are a chance to play players in different roles or play players not in the 22 to see how they perform under match conditions against another team. No team ever plays their best 22 in a practice match. Do we have a practice match this week or is the OP referring to the Preseason Comp?

I'm not saying he can't play or won't develop into something but I just wouldn't be getting too excited about the prospect. Sure the idea of a favourite sons son coming to play for us is romantic.

Hopefully we can snag an inside mid to add to the set.

Would the club be interest in framed signed guernseys? I have multiple ones that I've made over the years. The only problem is that none of them have certificates of authentication as I've been the one to collect the signatures and have organised for them to be framed. They are all legit and I have players from the 80s and 90s. They are all just in my garage and they probably deserve to be displayed somewhere.

I hope Mahoney's not phoning it in for his last trade period with the club. If we can't bring in outside pace because of poor list management then that is on him.

General question: What benefit is it for a player to publicly nominate a particular club? Assume the answer is they only want to play for that club and want to make their intentions clear to their current club and any other potential suitors. If that is the case why haven't we been nominated? Either he's still contemplating other offers or perhaps an in principle deal or dealings between us and North are already in place and there isn't a need to publicly nominate.

It was his doubling down that has now cost @Dr evil all credibility with any future mail that he purports to have. He was arrogantly adamant that Smith would be a Demon in 2021 that people were led to believe that a contract had been signed and the club was just waiting for the perfect media cycle window to roll him out. I absolutely love whispers at this time of year but I've lost all confidence in his inside word. He pushed this one too hard and now has to live with the consequences that he is tarnished goods now. RIP sweet prince.

I think I’ll be relieved if he chooses the cats. I’d love him at the Dees for a year. Maximum two. Couple years ago it would have been a no brainer. Let the Cats have him.

The way he’s been talking it should be know. @Dr evilstatements were very definitive that Smith would be a Demon. Can see a back pedal coming now. sorry doc but you’ve doubled down pretty hard on this one.

3, 2 or even 1 year ago I would have jumped for joy at a 3 year contract. Now I'd be a bit skittish. I understand that we probably need to offer 3 to get the deal over the line but I fear that might be too many. Would prefer 2 with a trigger but I get that the player is just trying to milk the best deal.

Brown is a definite upgrade on TMac. If we can unload TMac and can bring in Brown for the price being bandied about I'd do it in a heartbeat. If Brown is at the Demons in 2021 what forward setup do you guys envision we'll go with? In 2020 we tried 1 tall, 2 talls and 3 talls with the 2 talls of Weid & Jackson being the most successful. I still like a 3 tall scenario (obviously not all games and opponent depending) that has Jackson playing a more mobile roll given he'll have another full preseason under his belt.

I can't say I'm disappointed by this. Will be forever thankful for that goal in kicked on the run in the elimination final. One of the best highlights for me in the past decade. I could watch that over and over in my mind until we win a flag. He is a great mark for his height, has a nice kick, however, Mitch was too inconsistent. He often went missing for large chunks of games. He was very injury prone and didn't get great runs at having a full preseason under his belt. I guess he falls into the category of being a great second tier player that can show glimpses but his loss isn't going to hurt us. I wish him all the best at the Doggies (except of course against us).

Can't see Rohan playing in a team with Hawkings and Cameron. Cats made a huge mistake not playing Dangerfield on the Ball. By all means rest him up forward as he can be very dangerous but for [censored] sake you've got to play one of your best mids in the guts. I'll add that I thought Geelong got a lot of soft free particularly in front of goals and conversely Richmond didn't get some obvious frees around the ground. Usually I'm very one eyed watching Dees games and can't tell if the umpires are really giving us a tough run but the last night I had no skin in the game and I noticed the uneveness of the adjudication.

Perhaps the biggest takeaway the Demons can take from this game is what Dimma and Richmond did after halftime to not only "stem the flow" but turn the tide and then crush their opponent. The Tigers couldn't get their A game going in the first half. The Cats were not giving them an inch and perhaps they shot themselves in the foot by not being further up. What did the Tigers do after half-time? Dimma didn't make wholesale changes after half time. He trusted in the plan, a plan that the Tiges can execute very well. They are well drilled and it's very successful. We are often critical of Goody not having a plan B when our plan A simply either isn't working or is being negated. I'm certainly guilty of this. Goody trusts in the process that our gameplan will work and we lambast him when no changes are made and plan A continues to fail. Do we need to change tactics? Is there a disconnect between the plan and the execution of the plan? How can we stem the flow. Sorry for the ramblings. Just feeling flat watching a team that a couple of years ago I thought were a bigger basketcase than us and now they have three flags and I'm whining to a computer.

Thank you to you Demonland and alll the team and all the posters (insightful & insightless). Here's to a better 2021 (on and off the field).

You can't teach what Gary has. If we're not talking about coaching ie: not the structures or game plans then he can't really impart anything. He can't transfer his skill and g.o.a.t-like qualities. Sure he can tell them to train hard and do the extra yards and yadda, yadda, yadda but they should already know that and be doing that. For that they can talk to Max 2019 preseason or Trac 2020 preseason. I get your frustration. As a club we should be doing everything in our power to be the best. Get the best people, on and off the field, get the best facilities and impart the best wisdom. If Gary can coach (and just because he was a great player doesn't mean he can coach) then he'd be a great asset but getting him in for a few token sessions isn't going to change anything. And as I've said, most of what he's got just can't be taught.

True but he still has a year on his contract and perhaps her wants to see the direction we are going before putting pen to paper.

How did this photo work out?

Are board members allowed to put boots on at training and practice goal kicking? Actually asking a genuine question here. Legally, or from an OH&S perspective, can he do this? We don't have a dedicated goal kicking coach (not counting ruck coach multitasking) and goal kicking is perhaps our second greatest weakness going forward. As to having a "footy guy" on the board I'm all for this. Welcome home Brad.

Wasn't Eagles the guy who won a reality comp to get a spot on the list?

I agree but he needs to be playing on wing or in the middle for that to occur. I can't see them playing him there and not many opportunities to kick goals off half back or in the back pocket. Yze never played in Salem's position.

I haven't been impressed with the calibre of assistant coaches at this club. I think having top notch assistants will help us be a destination club. I get that big successful names doesn't necessarily translate into them automatically being great coaches but it sure helps sell the club. The names of some of our current and past assistants doesn't inspire confidence to outsiders. Anyone got a list of all the clubs and their assistants? Yeah I could Google but hey it's a public holiday and I'm not supposed to work today.

I know we keep hearing media people say that the Dees & Oliver's manager say it's a non-story but I wish we could hear it from the horse's mouth. Not necessarily Oliver but perhaps through one of those fluff pieces the Dees have been putting out every few days about some of the players. Maybe a story about how Oliver saw Trac's dedication over the off-season and wants to take his game to the next level. Sure it's a puff piece but the club must be aware of the "rumours" and this would be one way to put an end to them. It might not satiate everyone but it's something. No matter which side of the fence you're sitting on with this I think we can all agree that next year is crucial for the Demons and if we want to retain star players we are going to need to put runs on the board. We need success to keep players and we also want to be an attractive "destination" club to opposition players. We simply can't be just a "destination" club for dollars because then you can't retain your up-and-coming stars.

Geelong, Hawkins, Dangerfield. I think I just threw up. ?

This could be a big factor. Being in close quarters to your coaches and teammates might not be the best for some people an they want out. Perhaps he saw how other teams operate (ie: Collingwood in the same resort playing finals) and wants what they have. Look at the calibre of our assistants and look at the calibre of the Pies assistants. * * I know the move is linked to Carlton but Clarry would have seen greener pastures up close and perhaps just that got him wanting better out of his career. For what it's worth I don't think he will go this year but if we don't make finals next year we will have an Essendon like exodus.