Lord Nev

Had more hitouts and was better around the ground for sure, but if he "dominated" him wouldn't we have won the clearances?

Not by much. Averages 2 goals a game as the '2nd tall'. Averages 2.16 goals a game as the '3rd tall'.

Centre clearances - 9 each (They beat us for stoppage clearances) Not sure I would say 'dominated'.

Viney played 16 games last year, had a full preseason Brown played 9 games last year, had barely any preseason.

Not sure that's true, Goodwin has talked about wanting to improve it for weeks. This is about stoppage setup, not about Max's ruck work though. It's not new that teams try to combat Gawn's ruck strengths, but what is new is how much we're getting beaten at clearances. Then it wouldn't be classed as a 'hitout to advantage'. A hitout to advantage isn't one that gains territory, it's defined as one that goes to one of our players. This is irrelevant to Max's ruck work, unless you're saying Max intentionally loses ruck contests so that we can have the ball in the hands of our defenders? If losing clearances is our strategy according to you, then: - Why the difference when Jackson rucks? - Why has Goodwin spoken of wanting to fix that? - Why would we rush Viney back in? Sorry mate, but just can't agree. It's pretty clear from both stats and observation that Gawn's ruckwork is nowhere near the level it normally would be this year. I think he's doing more than enough around the ground to still be one of our best, but all the factual evidence says he's not dominating it like he has in 2021.

I think where the split is though, is that his ruckwork seems a bit 'off' this year. His around the ground work is still absolutely unmatched for a ruckman, but his hitouts to advantage are only rated as 'average' this year. Statistically this year, only half of the hitouts he wins are going to advantage. I'm guessing that perhaps he's carrying a niggle that is affecting his ruck work, especially at centre bounces. Anecdotally he seems to protect that leg/shin/knee kinda area so I wonder if that's what it is and why it's more prevalent in the middle rather than around the ground. In a handful of games this year, usually later in games, we've gone one a run of goals (from the centre) when Max was on the bench and Jacko in the ruck, and in a couple of them the opposition has clawed back goals (form the centre) once Gawn came back on. Could be that teams have worked him out, could be he's not 100%, could be form - but I don't believe it's coincidence. He's still playing good footy overall because his contribution around the ground is amazing, but the centre ruckwork is definitely not firing like it normally would be for him.

Averaged 90.7 points per game with this kinda setup. Averaged 86.6 with the three talls.

All clear. https://www.instagram.com/p/CQM3kBXht83/

I hope our footy department thinks more holistically than that. (And I'm pretty sure they do)

Maybe the footy dept don't just look at total goals as far as what they want from a player and how their section of the ground functions? And really, all Brown had to do was kick a couple of goals at Casey to get back in and he didn't get anywhere near it. Unfortunately from him that was followed by the lockdown and no opportunities at VFL level.

Brown's first year was always going to be a bit hit and miss after his injury, he has 3 more after this one so settle. I thought Sparrow would miss this week, but I don't mind the idea of ramping up the pressure in the forward half with him and Viney both rotating through there.

IN: Viney OUT: Weid https://www.melbournefc.com.au/news/963535/round-15-team-viney-returns

But there was Paul Stewart... ;)

Centre line: The High Rise Bombers. Paul Kelly and Chris Dyson connection.

Disappointed you couldn't find a spot for: Stewart Loewe, Mark O'Connor and David Mundy

Reckon you might find that's not the case. There's a lot of education around the use of social media, but it's integral to their earning potential now. A quick look at a few of our own players and their brand ambassador roles will tell you that.

Firstly, I might have missed it, but haven't seen anyone say "that is impossible to not have social media". Seems like you've moved the goal posts a fair bit there. From what I've seen; others have pointed out how, young people especially, use social media as their primary means of staying connected with one another. Secondly, why should he have to avoid something that is such a big part of connecting people his age just because others choose to act like douches on it though? That's great you use SMS, FaceTime etc, but not everyone wants to do that, and not everyone has relationships that operate in that way. Aside from that, there's how much social media is integrated with the career of a modern sportsperson. Business and social media are intertwined in an irreversible way, not having a social media presence can have a big affect on a sportsperson's career and earning potential. Long story short, what you're saying is 'Sorry Sam, I know you use social media to stay in touch with the lives of your friends and families, keep up to date with world news and that of your industry, make potential business connections and help build your career, personal brand and earning potential, but if you could just not do all that because we want to let trolls run free that would be great....'

Just for reference, Gawn at 23 years of age played 9 games in that season, averaging 10 disposals and 14 hitouts. IMO 23/24 is still 'young' for a key position player. Some come on quick, some don't.

Making stuff up? Here's a quote from Taylor and some draft profiles... JT: “With Sam we thought we needed to bring in another key forward to partner Jesse (Hogan). We think he’s going to be a quality player in time and we can be patient with him." AFL draft 2015: Melbourne drafts Clayton Oliver, Sam Weideman "longer term prospect" 2015 AFL draft prospects: Sam Weideman " First year projection: Long-term prospect" 2015 Draft Profile: Sam Weideman

Not sure why the shock? Every year clubs draft players that they see as longer term projects.

Could be the first really tricky test at the Dees for Choco. A lot to unpack when it comes to Weid I reckon. By all acounts; Goody and Yze are fantastic with relating to players, Choco is a bit of a magician with the enigmas, Stafford I'm not totally sold on, but there's also TMac (he who has risen again), so seems like he has the right people around him to give him the best chance to make it work.

That's fair. Would definitely agree in the difference in the quality of our development programs between then and now. I think if he's not with us next year it's by his choice too. Personally, I think the pressure should shift to Ben Brown now. He's the big name recruit, peak age, but he hasn't grabbed his chance so far. Something has been 'off' with the forward line synergy when he's played as well IMO. He's the proven mature player who now needs to execute.

I agree there were definitely expectations he would be better than he's currently showing, absolutely no doubt there. Huge difference between hoping he'd be something special and thinking he's the messiah though. If you go back to all the draft profiles, and even the comments by Taylor, about him around the time he was picked up you'll see a recurring theme: "project player", "long-term project", "be patient", so perhaps the expectations some had weren't accurate? Those statements don't buy him infinite time, but at 23 he is still young for a key forward, let alone one consistently labelled in such a way. I think it's too early to call him a bust just yet, but expectations surely should have adjusted by now.

"Breakout game" might have been said a few times, but I'm yet to see one person ever say 'Weideman is the messiah' about a year where Gawn and Oliver were All-Australian. Let's not rewrite history just so we can find a new way to bash Weid.