BDA

Hit the nail on the head. particularly pace. if he still has it then he's a good option.

Superb season. Can't speak highly enough of him and his rate of progression. He could be our Dusty and he should aim to attain Dusty's level. I reckon he has it in him.

I think clubs help players prepare for post career through study training skills development etc. The end comes at a young age irrespective of whether you were 24 - 34 when you stop playing. All players have a long post career life.

Jeez we better hurry the f up before all this money gets allocated. Mr Barlett. Mr Pert. Where are our plans?

Wretched way to end his career. Slogged his guts out to get back to AFL level for it all to fall apart at the death. I was highly critical at the time but have more sympathy knowing the full circumstances. Hope HB can find contentment in retirement. Credit to Burgess and his team for getting him back to fitness. Alas it didn’t work out but nothing ventured nothing gained. Didn’t cost us too much. The potential upside justified the punt imv.

Unless we figure out a way to free him up to play the intercept role and play to his strengths then we'll continue to get a poor return on our investment.

Give it a rest. Please.

I dislike long contracts. They make players complacent - see B Grundy Collingwood. Better to extend 2 – 3 years at a time. Keep players on their toes. Yes you’ll have to compensate for the reduced security but that’s preferable than having a dud contract like TMac’s. And I know it means the headache of more frequent renewals and the risk of losing players but at least you know they’re hunger while you have them which should lead to better, more consistent performances which should, in turn increase likelihood of success and keeping said players (I think my circular logic works).

Couldn't agree more with this. Put the money into the grassroots of the game. Much better value for money and offers genuine community benefit rather than contrived justifications I've heard from Richmond (Just listened to a snippet of Brendan Gale on SEN. Talked about how the oval was becoming smaller relatively speaking because the players were fitter. Seriously. I wonder if he had a straight face as he said it)

We’re a very insecure fan base. It’s an unattractive trait. LJ has never given the slightest impression that he was unhappy. He came across as a genuine enthusiastic big kid at the B&F. Let’s not fret about what may or may not happen and just watch this lad grow and develop over the next couple of years. He’s going to be special. Btw have we had 3 better youngsters than LJ, Rivers and Pickett? I can’t recall. Exciting times ahead imv.

Collingwood are in spin mode and are trying to dress-up an obvious salary dump as some sort of brilliant strategic move. They have to try to pacify the members somehow. They’ve loaded up on Grundy for 7 years at $1m, will extend de Goey and have other high earners. And as if they are a trustworthy entity to engage in good faith contract negotiations with prospects? Players and their managers will be very wary. I’m calling it now but I don’t think Collingwood will sign up any free agents over the next couple of trade periods.

Why were some so triggered by OMac? Of all the players to attract the ire of the supporter base he seems such an unlikely candidate to me. Limited player I agree but I always felt the effort was there. I think its best for him to be delisted and hopefully be picked up elsewhere. Give him a chance to play his footy and rebuild his career without us jumping all over him everytime he makes a mistake.

I don't what level of involvement he has in the FD but Kevin Sheedy would never allow it

Not as bad as some made him out to be but limited none the less. Not sure he’s the answer for another team but if he’s gets the opportunity then good luck to him. Thanks Oscar.

brilliant. I love the original and subsequent scenes with John Cleese as sir Lancelot

I think reduction in rotations is the obvious one to try. I’d be in favor but otherwise leave the rules as is. I can’t keep up otherwise. It’ll be interesting to see what impact the reduction in soft cap has on coaching. I wouldn’t be surprised if the game IMPROVES as a result of less coaches justifying their existence. Over coaching is the bane of many sports, AFL being no exception. Less coaches may mean less time spent on systems, zones structures etc. Just trust good players to make the right decisions on the field. I’m not saying throw out the game plan but perhaps not apply it as rigidly.

Collingwood need to familiarise themselves with the concept of moral hazard. Proper list management goes out the window if the AFL starts subsidising bad TPP decisions made by clubs. The pies chose to bring back Beams and they chose to back end their contracts. They need to live with the consequences.

I never said he was sitting on his ar*e. I had no problem with the contract given at the time. He was worth it given his output. I would have done the same in his shoes. Injuries happen. No fault of TMac. I thought it was the weight that is the issue now anyways but he seems to be working hard to get fighting fit again so kudos there. But hard work is the minimum expectation imv. I feel absolutely entitled to expect a $700k player to deliver much more that what TMac has delivered over the past 2 years. Cap is precious and we have a lot tied up in TMac. He’s not a role player getting paid accordingly. When you’re in the high pay grade expectations and levels of scrutiny are much higher so yes I will be more critical of TMac or other well paid players when their form drops away for a period of time.

Agree. the defensive coaching mindset is here to stay. Players are much fitter as well. No amount of rule changes will make any difference. Coaches will adjust and come up with new defensive strategies.

I don;t think OMcd deserves the levels of criticism he gets but he deserves a fair share of it. I think everyone wants to see TMac come back leaner and fitter and ready to fight hard for a spot in the team. But remember he's earning $700k a year. If you earn the big dollars i expect big performances and output. If you don't perform in that pay grade expect to be heavily criticised.

Huge tank and endurance. Always provided an outlet on that wing. Iffy ball use but this improved as the year wore on. Keep working on his disposal and I’d like to see him add a few goals next year. Excellent pick-up.

He seemed really stoked with his young player of the year award at the b&f as well. Definitely didn’t give the impression he was unhappy.

Particularly this year with good players slipping through to the second round due to lack of exposed form. Personally i think we should use picks 18 and 19 (or 22 and 23 if that's where we land post NGA selections) to pick up a small forward and winger rather than trading up the order.

Who uses calendars these days anyways. Time for marketing depts to come up with some new stuff.

Absolute mystery why North let him go. BB would have stayed loyal and been a great role model and leader to younger players as they went about building a new team. What a gift from North! The MFC should send them a big thank you note to show our gratitude.