RedFox

Any word from this magical meeting that was supposed to happen to determine his future today?

"Oliver, Stanley and Stewart discussed the prospect of a Geelong midfield in 2025 being made up of Bailey Smith – who is expected to join from the Western Bulldogs on a six-year deal – Max Holmes, Jack Bowes, Tanner Bruhn, Patrick Dangerfield and Oliver. Two sources close to Oliver said the 27-year-old left Geelong excited about the prospect of wearing the blue and white hoops in 2025, but that he accepted a trade may be complicated. More to come" Sickening. Not sure if I hate Geelong or the people running our club more at present.

One thing that is abundantly evident is that there is a significant disconnect between the back office and the football department. The idea of Pert intervening here and telling Oliver directly to look around, despite reports most key figures in the football department wants him to stay is very concerning and unprofessional. It's all getting very tiresome with all the smoke and mirrors of the club these days & hard to believe a word that anybody says.

This would be the most important signing of the off season if it happens.

This will do little to appease the players that are fed up with going to Casey. The likes of Trac will be retired by the time this is even close to being built. Still positive news!

For anybody interested in what Darren Shand might bring to the table with this review, I found the below very insightful. Feel like nothing but good can come from having somebody of his caliber cast his eyes over our operation.

It was a question of which type with pick 5, clearly we need both but what to prioritize?

Are we thinking we need inside ball winners to help with clearances or some outside class to help with our ball movement & inside 50 connection? The top 10 is stacked with both of these types so unsure what JT will have in mind.

I hope we are right into Davies-Uniacke even if it's a hail mary and he's unlikely to leave. Exactly what we need

North are into him

Ok so not enormous but not tiny. What are the early indications of his role @ VFL watchers

how tall is pup?

Sparrow's output has gone backwards this season. Watching from the stands it doesn't appear as though he has a clearly defined role, which may be a contributing factor. Bowey is one I would like to see hit his stride again. At his best he provides us plenty of drive.

Except we are now without Petracca for most likely 6-8 weeks. They were full strength

On your last point, I agree about Rivers. We now need to get our best players & decision makers in and around the ball. Rivers, Bowey, Salem - all up in the coal face. We can plug holes down back, but if we ain't doing anything to get the ball moving forward with any purpose or frequency...we're stuffed.

Petty has clearly been in the departure lounge all season long. How can the selection committee be so blissfully ignorant about something so obvious to the supporters? There was a time when this selection committee had integrity and were rewarding performance and punishing poor form. We get it, the KPF cupboard is not overflowing with options but you simply cannot continue to reward mediocrity it sends all the wrong messages to the playing group. Play a small mobile forward line if you have to. And the midfield needs a complete reboot. This will be the most important draft/trade period for MFC in quite some time.

You'd have the think ultimately it was trac's call - which in itself is alarming. Any professional doctor would have been able to identify there was some serious damage here and should have been solely responsible for deciding how to proceed.

Trac four broken ribs, lacerated spleen and punctured lung. Good god. Shocked they allowed him back out there in the second quarter.

No matter what happens between now and the remainder of the year, I plead with the supporters to continue to rock up to games. The only way we will be able to attract free agents and talent is if we consolidate the success of this generation and do not go back to the dark days of 13, 14, 15k crowds at the MCG. Let's continue to get around the group that have brought us so much happiness over the last 3 seasons, and nurture the young guys coming up.

To whoever noticed our flat body language pre game - I couldn't agree more, noticed a real lack of intensity in the warm up. One of the biggest things that is standing out at the moment is our inability to cope with any pressure on the ball carrier. This is exemplified with Clarry who at his best would drive out of stoppage, assess options, free his arms in a tackle and release. Now he just gets it and whacks it on the boot or handballs it over his head, fearing that he is about to get nailed. What has happened to our composure? Where are the one percenters, the shepherding, blocking, smothering etc. The reality is we have lost any type of cohesion has a unit and it's been building for some time now, towards this. I hope we can make a run after the bye but it ain't looking good.

Seems like we are severely lacking centre square depth ATM. Very much starting to feel the loss of gus and Jordon as depth

Maybe get Harley tagging Kolt as a learning experience 😏

Pretty good turn out for a cold thursday night, 43k - well done Dees fans. Similar observations to most around the game - we looked tired and listless for most of the night. No burst, smashed in the clearance and put our defence under enormous pressure. Clayton looks a million miles off the pace at the moment, definitely feeling the impact of his interrupted pre-season. Forward line needs to gel. Missed the X factor of Kozzie...similar to the Sydney game in that regard. Some positives to take - Windsor, this kid has got some serious courage. While everyone seemed to be treading water he was the only one to tuck the ball under the arm and go. Yes he made some errors but he's not alone. That dash through the guts and the kick he pulled at the last minute to set up Kolt was a glimpse into the future. He's 18 everyone...let that sink in. 18! Can't wait to watch his career unfold. Kolt a bit overawed but can't question his intensity, albeit in short bursts. Welcome time for the bye, chin up everyone we're well positioned.

I must say I am not a fan of the gigantic yellow hertz logo on the back. at least jaguar was not intrusive and didn't take away from our colours. But money is money eh?

Genuinely shocked by the continued downward trending of Ed Langdon. Do we all remember that long haired gut running beast that was so crucial in 2021? He would run up and down that wing, all the way to pockets and provide defensive cover and crucial link up play...where is that guy? In my opinion it isn't talked about enough, he's a shell of himself. It's so bad that I'm to the point of I'm wondering if it's even time to move on from him in favour of a Woewodin type. FWIW this isn't based on yesterday's performance, as uninspiring as it was. This has been building for the best part of a season and a half.