Gawndy the Great

Need to realise that this game plan is dead. There are more than half dozen teams that have leg speed off half back that break us down. We have no counter punch. Nothing. Top 4 is a pipe dream and we will be fighting of the 8.

This feels like a our biggest loss coming up.

Nope.

Outside the first 10 mins, Lions dominating. We are playing a different style and our poorer skills and decision making is laid bare. Need to get the lead and lock the game down.

They are scoring with ease off half back . With those handball receives. We are just not switched in

This is a bad sign.

I reckon he’ll get subbed off. It was a clear ground hit and mcclugge should get suspended. Should have been a free and yet they pay the cheap one to the Lions 5 seconds later which results in a goal.

Really poor stoppage there from Melbourne.

I think I’m dreaming.

I think you forget how they beat us last time with only one ruck. Grundy was beasted by OMac and Fort.

I get annoyed when I see this thread trending to the top.

It was only a matter of time before the spotlight came on him in the media. Im curious to see what he is really made of and how he reacts to this as no doubt he has been made aware of it.

Its a hard call for sure, but im starting to think that using two picks for Reid - particularly when it could be GCS first pick (#5) and Freos fist pick (#6) - may not be the smartest move. McKercher is exactly the type of player we need. Has speed, great kick, inside / outside balance. Then you could potentially take a Duursma, Curtain or O'Sullivan with our 2nd pick and Brown as F/S.

Reid will go number 1. But im starting to agree, we probably dont need him as he sounds a bit like a Petracca type player, which is great, but you probably dont need two of them. If WC take him at 1, I think Norf will taken Curtain / Read at 2 (as they need KPD), Swans probably will be forced to bid on Cleary or use their 1st pick (4 - but i doubt they'll end up in this position). Not sure what Hawks will do - maybe they take Watson as they need a bit of crumbing class down forward but they may stock up on mids too. Either way, i think we'll have plenty of options with our first pick and hopefully we can secure a pick swap with GCS that'll give us a crack at 2 genuine guns that'll hopefully be able to slot straight into our side in 2024.

Yep their goto is looking at disgruntled, high profile non performing players that they look to rejuvenate through their club culture and administration. Usually relies heavily on the senior players to pedal the culture forward...they have some great leaders in Smith, Hawkins, Steward and Danger... most of these guys don't have long left though, so will be keen to see who picks up the slack or has Humpty Dumpty experienced firsthand, "it all came tumbling down".

BBB and JVR are not exactly super athletes. I dont think you can have more than 1 of these individuals in the same side (couple with Gawndy). That doesn't mean they don't compete in the contest but what they both lack is athleticism - BBB more so than JVR. J.Smith is both an aerial threat and is very athletic, but unfortunately lacks a bit of skill and intelligence. Think of J.Cameron, Curnow. Not saying we need to have someone that talented (wouldnt hurt), but playing that role is what we are in desperate need of. TMac in his prime would play this role extremely well, which consequently helped us win a flag. He was competitive on the wings, provided a target to kick to and was reasonably smart with i50 delivery. We are trying to get one of Gawn / BBB to now play that role and they just lack in too many of the areas. IMV J.Smith is better suited to that role. The only way BBB and JVR play in the same forward line is when there is no Gawndy.

You know this is the MFC right? They know no other way.

Was thinking the exact same thing, just takes the pressure off everyone. To go from 1-2 weeks and avoiding the 1 more week type of scenario, give it 3-4 and he’ll be back when he is ready.

We were at 90%..now at 50%? By this rate, Oliver will need a hamstring implant in 2 weeks time.

I dont buy into this. Just look at Fly with the Pies or Hinkley and Port. The fact of the matter is players these days respond better to a coach who is more personable rather than the 'boss' days of old. We oldies dont get it, but it is what it is.

Put yourself in GC shoes and i reckon they'd want their current pick + the academies as a starting point so Pick 6 for 15,24 (even though they benefit in points) will be a hard sell, but it is the most logical. Taking 5,6 for 1,19 puts WC at a negative points wise. They'd do it for pick 1 alone, but we'd need to offer up another pick (34 wont cut it) for pick 19 coming back. The only spanner in the works is if they get pick 4 from Sydney for Barass. This can play both ways - if they get Pick 4 ( i personally dont think Barass is worth it), we lose all leverage and cant use Curtain as a negotiating tactic - assuming he is available at 5 as Norf are now lacking serious defensive KPD with McKay on the way out and Logue out for 2024 with an ACL. Will WC be happy with 1,4 (potentially getting Reid and Curtain) or will they be better placed going for 4,5,6 (still getting Curtain but possibly two other guns). Its easy for us to say the latter as they'll get an extra gun and we get Reid. For me they cant go wrong with either, but an extra player probably helps them rebound sooner. If we dont get Reid but end up with 5,6 all is not lost either. I just have a feeling that Reid will take the path of Rowell as opposed to Daicos so going all in for Reid is a bit risky. But what do i know.

What has happened to our pressure game. The one where we hunt and create turnovers across the entire ground? Lions are slow with ball in hand but make up for it with excellent kicking. Apply pressure on the ball carrier and we will maul them on turnover. But I just haven’t seen this intensity for quite some time. It’s time to find it and hold onto it for the rest of the year.

We were lucky against the Saints that they went down with 3 injuries in the first to key players. This only really becomes an issue in the 4th where we only outscored them by 6 points. We lost the CP count marginally and i50 count reasonably. The fatigue from the hitout in Alice was no doubt a factor in our performance as others have pointed out and so this win was even more satisfying. Still our overall cohesion, ball movement and skills is still worrying. Everyone is waiting for us to click in the forward half, but im afraid with every game played im losing hope. Our defensive game is the only thing that is keeping us in it atm. The Lions will beat us on Friday as i think we will really struggle to score and will rob Peter to pay Paul (Move Trac to Forward Line) to stand a chance, which will expose a lonely Viney to a Neal, Dunkley midfield combination. I also think the Crows will have us covered with their ball movement and general skills around the ball and in the front half. They were terrific against the Pies and if they bring that game, you cannot just pencil in a W. We should then have the Tigers and Norf covered so i expect a worst case 2-2 over the next 4 weeks.

This is a big test. Lions are in good nick but struggle at the G. Not sure if Dunkley comes back this week but he is an amazing defensive midfielder which causes us big problems. I want to see some urgency and pressure from the first bounce. Too often we come in over relaxed and and get the pressure put on us. Also Trac needs to stay forward more but it’ll be pointless if we can’t win territory.

So why did they play so darn well against us. They have a huge variation in best and worst performances. I think they’ll beat the swans , Eagles and Hawks on their run home. Not sure whether that gets us a top 5 pick. The Swans game will be crucial. If they lose that then we should get a top 5 pick. If the Hawks also bring their A game as that they’ll also beat them and we could get into 3-4 range.