BW511

It feels like if we can kick two in a row we could win by 30+ Fingers and toes crossed that it miraculously happens

The younger blokes have a bit of energy about them, get on board senior fellas

It’s a huge concern that teams can so easily pick their way through our zone with short kicking. Our mids rely on momentum going forward and they are burning all their matches chasing tail for 20m kick after 20m kick. We have the best ruckman of the modern era and two of the best mids in the game and our inability to manufacture clearances consistently is woeful.

I’m not sure sitting the ball on a 19 year old kids head is setting him up for success. We've gone back to kicking and hoping

Trac’s out there standing still and trying to throw everyone off him. He’s trying to do too much, again.

Not to raise the alarm but I’ve just come out the other side of the flu, 1 week properly bed ridden and then 2 weeks well below par to follow. I’m not old (37) nor am I an elite athlete but I’m fitter than most. This is the sickest I’ve ever been Hope Clarry is ok

Good example of the traditional pathways not being the be all, end all. With so many players in various comps across the country, there’s no way the AFL has the 700 odd ‘best’ players in the land. Every person on here that’s played senior footy would know of people more than capable of handling AFL but didn’t have the desire/schooling/cash etc Onto Ash the player, he’s a poor man’s Fritsch, we can’t afford to play with two of them and a couple of genuine talls. It’s a no from me

I'm not the biggest Viney fan in the world but it's absurd to think Harmes is our 3rd best mid. I'd happily argue he's not Top 5. (Viney, Jordon & Sparrow) What @Little Goffy says below is not far from my thoughts although I'm not sure we can afford to play run with roles at present as it upsets our system

Apparently fans from the first games could stay on if they like, so sellout was based on the overall number for the two matches.

I think this perfectly sums up where we are at. Since our dream start last year, we are 50/50 chance every game we enter. It sure feels that way too. We do have time on our side but if we don’t start to right the ship over the next 2-3 weeks it’s going to fade fast

Saints are trending in the opposite direction, so not for them

You’d like to think so but I can’t imagine a situation where a player manager is doing anything other than feathering their own nest.

I reckon JHF(or his advisors) probably went about it the wrong way but in a career that’s notoriously short, most humans would want to bail on North. I’m sure North went above and beyond to air his dirty laundry to escape some blame too. If given the option to return home as he did, I think 99/100 people take it. Why anyone other than North fans boo him is beyond me. I don’t mind Kane but he’s pretty selective about his opinions and very staunch in the ones that suit.

Expanding on this, I think teams are going after us knowing we are fragile. If we don’t have our leaders in the side and in form, we can simply crumble. We’ve got systems in place that are very solid, if on our terms, but it seems we keep flirting with the line of what’s sustainable. I’m not convinced we have the right balance. Do you think we can reach the point where team harmony and game plan can click for a long enough period to have a shot at this years flag?

I want the Crows to win and tipped them by 8 points. Hoping the Adelaide fans are excited enough for Gather Round to get them over the line

Given people were talking about us chasing Zane, Just pointing out there’s already a family connection with the Duursma family and Melbourne. Sorry to waste your valuable time

I played a little bit with Dean Duursma (father of Xavier and Zane). He was a real football journeyman but could play. I was 16 and he was late 30’s and he was still kicking goals. He also played U19’s at Melbourne and possibly some reserves games. Ripper bloke

The short answer is whilst the players are on the move a lot, there is a hell of a lot of time where they are stationary or barely moving. Kick ins, goals, stoppages around the ground, centre bounces, injuries, blood rules and rotations.

Distance travelled would encompass all movement within gameplay. Running 15km with jumping, pushing, bumping and tackling is a very different story to a constant jog. Also, a lot of the running is reactive too, so they have to run when they don’t want to. @Engorged Onionis on the money, Ed Langdon is not covering 15km by doing constant laps of the ‘G, he’s running up and back a 150m stretch in 60-80 metre pieces. If Ed went for a 2 hour run away from play he’d likely cover 30-35km’s Would love to see how many kicks @Jumping Jack Clennett can pick up by walking the MCG at a brisk pace on game day.

Slightly off topic, I happened to listen to a podcast with Brayden Maynard today and he credited Brodie for turning the culture around at the pies. It was a very strong endorsement. He’s a good person by the sounds of it and I’m excited to see what we can achieve over the next few years. Particularly with the way he was let go at the pies

Agree, Binman. Lever was almost a liability late last year but it wasn’t changing the result

We rolled the dice with May in ‘21 and it worked, we tried to roll the dice with a far worse hand last year and it backfired spectacularly

Watching at home, the TV replay showed Gus doing a lot of finger pointing trying to offload Buddy and not a lot of action to stop him. The bake was warranted. I’m interested in where we think Viney is at? He’s limited in where he can play and it seems like we’ve adjusted to a more dynamic approach to our side. I fully acknowledge he is built for finals and he’d be in the first couple selected if/when it comes, just interested in how everyone thinks he should be used to get him ripe for finals.

Sydney seem like a bit of a hit and miss type side, things will come off one week (or play) and then it won’t the next. When it works, they are very good. Our fresh blood (McVee, Grundy, JVR, Chandler, Hunter) have all added a new and slightly less robotic element to our game. Chandler in particular adds some a thing we didn’t have. He pops up all around the ground, hunts the ball/man and kicks goals. Super win against quality opposition and to do it in that fashion should ensure the supporters get right back on board as we are very much in this race

We’ve been well served by the new fellas today, Chandler has been in it all day and JVR has done everything you’d hope for