rpfc

I didn’t really notice anyone particularly different other than JVR and May had slimmed down a lot.

He looked very fit and determined when I went to training last week. Trained through an ankle roll which is ‘resilience’ and all that.

They have a mini drill that demands a hard lead on a 45 degree angle or if the two defenders are cheating, a lead behind. I don’t mind it but his issue is leading patterns and instincts in a game setting. I hope Mihocek is fit for him to learn off, for JVR to take the second defender, and crucially, to manipulate the defenders and the spaces to allow JVR to more easily find his spots to lead into and out of.

He has been worked out so he needs to develop a more dynamic movement based game to get the pill. He is worth the effort right now with only Kentfield as a viable alternative at this point.

On 30/01/2026 at 16:35, waynewussell said:

Steven May will play on the best oppo forward for much of the season

At Casey?

3 hours ago, dazzledavey36 said:

I see his 2nd year trajectory similar to how Finn Callaghan was for instance.

Another solid year of just building and developing.with the big spike coming around the 3rd or 4th year.

Perhaps. But he might be our second best mid in 2026 and Kozzie will be hard to ‘run with’ and disrupt in a football sense. Whereas Langford is a kid that would be susceptible to oppo homework.

More and more I am thinking similarly to you for 2026.

Late start for key senior players, best players are young, seeming role players being exposed to more responsibility, question marks on number of players…

40 minutes ago, DeeZone said:

We now have some great kicks rpfc so that is definitely a great sign, I really rate Steele.

DZ - I love you as much as one anonymous niche sport fan forum poster on the internet that’s probably not a bot as much as the next but we don’t have ‘some great kicks’ in the team…

We didn’t think that was important and now it is more important than ever.

When I went down last week - Steele looked like the best kick in the team.

Either a good sign

OR A REALLY BAD SIGN

Well some are convinced of the successes of the club on hope and trust (re: training base in Caulfield) so why shouldn’t we provide our opinion on this ‘strategic’ move.

I tried to find the font dripping in acidic cynicism but they ran out at Bunnings.

1 hour ago, bing181 said:

The latter.

Reading between the lines, to make sure the Board, Admin and FD are all singing from the same hymn sheet.

how about they just all shut up for a bit?

10 minutes ago, george_on_the_outer said:

..hope not. That role is for the Board and CEO.

No idea what this is about….still can’t work out what Richardson is doing if this role is needed???

This was the role that we were baiting Bartel with that seemingly had all the fun stuff a Footy Dept Head has without the pastoral care or ‘people stuff’…

So Richo does that until he leaves once his contract is up.

I have to say I am not a fan of this role; strategy and driving to a North Star should be of shared understanding and goal and not the responsibility of one person.

46 minutes ago, bluey said:

Shafted by the board, great acting CEO, and we wouldn’t have had to bring someone in to teach him the job, outrageous.

The club is a lessor place.

27 minutes ago, Little Goffy said:

I've never heard his name before.

Quintessential COO on that count!

He was looked over for the CEO position so I assume the timing is to do with that.

4 hours ago, Ghostwriter said:

Sorry PF but I never ask Kingy about any player. He and I were talking and Luker just happened to walk in our line of sight and I told him about when I first met Luker after he’d come to the club under unusual circumstances. Kingy was interested to hear about it, then he gave me his thoughts.

Did he get dropped off on the porch or something?

Great little player. Hope his 2026 is not too impacted by his injury. Great to keep him into his RFA

1 hour ago, whatwhat say what said:

yes and no - i mean, obviously ever senior exec / ceo i've had the (mis)fortune to deal with has had some sort of mentor / consultant that they have used as a leadership guide etc. etc.

but it's still hard to disagree with what you have written

they kind of HAVE shut up about it tho

"nothing to announce, hopefully more soon... now, moving on to our next item of business..."

‘Better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than open your mouth and remove all doubt.’

They don’t have to talk about the fact that they may be able to soon talk about things that might be happening possibly in a future timeline in this universe or a parallel universe at some point in the future.

Just ACTUALLY shut up.

And I don’t want to hear from any trainees on things they apparently don’t know much about.

1 hour ago, Redleg said:

Yep, sort of like Goody’s role Coaching Dean Cox and far lesser tennis players coaching the best players in the world like Nadal, Federer and Djokovic.

No, actually it would be more like getting someone from outside the industry to be mentored by someone from inside the industry.

Say if you got Djokovic to play world football and got Loinel Messi to teach him how to kick a football…

Probably should have got someone who can kick.

May as well just get Messi in there

They should all just shut up until they have something to announce.

They are just the most naive when it comes to messaging and their own image with their stakeholders.

Nearly every time each one of them talk - I cringe. For I know ‘that was not what they meant to say’ or ‘they can’t say more than that’ or they are ‘not across it entirely yet.’

SAD!

6 hours ago, dazzledavey36 said:

Do we put any substance into the reason why we have brought Brian Cook in to help mentor Guerra..?

I put some sadness in it.

What a place to be in; high paid CEO who requires development and training in THE INDUSTRY HE WAS HIRED FOR.

It’s laughable really.

6 minutes ago, bluey said:

Our wonderful board, hand picked by their mates, everyone else is excluded, couldn’t arrange a plate of sand witches.

Organising sand witches is famously difficult for anyone

Glad that’s settled

What is going on here? This thread will be bumped when one of you doesn’t get the ratchet set you wanted for Xmas.

Just let it die. It’s like the living embodiment of the Paul Bettany character from The DaVinci Code. Flagellating and whipping himself all silly to get himself to the big O for his supposed god

8 hours ago, Pirlo said:

Of course we are likely to fall. We just sacked a Premiership winning coach and cleared out our two best midfielders in the past 30 years. We have also brought in some mature talent to help hold the fort for a year or two, and added even more quality young players to go with those already playing good footy. The point was to bleed a bit now to avoid falling into a pit.

Exactly right and while I am not as high as DD36 - I can see intent.

What I won’t do is live in an alternative reality where we take these ‘hits’ and don’t bleed in 2026.

These happy warriors whistling into the void are (most likely) going to get a rude shock.

42 minutes ago, The Taciturn Demon said:

December 2025: Eight teams should make it at least to a Prelim.

October 2026: Oh my god! Only four teams made it to a Prelim. Here's why those who failed to make it should now merge or be relocated...

Well an argument can be made for the Pies…

2 hours ago, Timothy Reddan-A'Blew said:

Hmmm...

We exited a player who wanted to continue playing midfield but we told him he mightn't be, and we got a player because he was told he mightn't be playing midfield and we wanted him to.

I'm OK with the former and happy with the latter, btw. But curious, innit? Kinda confirms there was a lot more to both moves, particularly the former.

Does anyone with half a brain think there wasn’t more to the moves?

Not trying to be rude - but a mate of mine saw Oliver out just after the season doing ‘the same old thing he’s been doing’ so it’s addition by subtraction.

And Steele is required because of the massive gap we now have in our ‘older than 20 midfield brigade’

It’s not a straight swap in any other sense than the play similar positions.

For the people new to Riley who wish to make ANOTHER OnleyFans joke. It is over. This is you:

She is only a Melbourne Premiership player, and she should remain that way.

Great to be able to continue to watch her play in red and blue.

2 hours ago, monoccular said:

So true, My Lord.

I used to pride myself on my pedantry but I now realise that I am a mere beginner.

One does not simply misuse the Boromir meme. It is folly.

Now that’s pedantry!