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That wasn't "off" - we have got plenty of recent experience with "off"... Those two quarters were impotent - full of dumb forward play, entries, and movement. We had about 27 I50s in those two quarters... GWS spent a number of tickets slingshotting from their halfback during that time too. Games ebb and flow and it certainly did flow for us in the last. I would read nothing more than impotence into those two quarters.

For this week: CL I50 UPs CPs Score QW Rd 1: GWS -6 6 -1 -4 2 2 Overall, a good start against a really good midfield that bats deeper than ours. We kept up in uncontested possies (233), which allowed us to get 4 goals in 5 minutes of hard running at the start of the last.

Well, your excel sheet was wrong... It's not like you work in IT or anything... Fixed in the OP. 2015 looks much better.

Garland did his job. And we had around 27 Inside 50s in the 2nd and 3rd quarters but couldn't deliver into a flooded forward line, especially with a selfish forward (Pedersen) and a dumb forward (Frost/Gawn). Plus our mids have little polish. But we won, with all that, we won. Against a good team. From behind.

Attn: MFC Selection Committee Pick one of Frost or Pedersen - both are not required. Don't give a flying which one, just make sure they take their bloke away from Hogan. Oscar. Was. Not. Ready. OUT: O McDonald, Frost/Pedersen IN: Dunn/Lumumba, Brayshaw

He has recruited footy players. What a novel idea. And more for what they are doing now, then what the Football World (c) thinks they will do in 5 years time... Case in point - Oliver. We would not have picked this kid in previous years, we would have waxed lyrical about 'ceilings,' 'class,' and the 'need to look at the player who is best 5 years from now.' I was guilty of it too, but for every Watts I get right(ish), there are half a dozen that don't come on. Extrapolation of teenage talent is fraught and I am thankful we no longer search for that 'light at the end of the tunnel' - because it is a freight train.

Being dropped is not the end of a career. And at some point we have got to get to the point where talented kids earn their spot and are not afforded the opportunity to 'play themselves back into form in the seniors.' Roos has brought an emotionless honesty to this club. Tyson better pull his finger out, there is too much talent on this list to coast.

He was at his worst today, but he still contributed. He needs to get on top of his pretentious attitude toward handballing; some supremely talented players think themselves unworthy of practising such a mundane skill but he needs to work on that basic ability - because he is firetrucking terrible at it.

Such an impressive last quarter - that is what Roos has brought - confidence and belief. Negatives before positives: - Tyson first 3 qtrs were sloppy and 'bad TJ-like' - Oscar isn't ready. And they should have played an underdone Dunn or Lumumba. - Frost playing near Jesse is like trying to fit a Porsche and a Hyundai into a narrow garage, I'm nervous every time, just let the Porsche have the effing space - the above was the main reason for our impotence, that and Pedersen/Gawn clogging too - Bernie getting used to his role resting across half back will take two months I reckon Positives - Oliver. Christ! - Watts plays like this 5 times a season, if he can double that stat, he will be top 6 in the bluey -Hogan's last term cements him as a star. He's a game winner - Viney first half was immense - McDonald was very McDonald; he is a great CHB. Loved the finish. Jones finally has a team with as much heart as him.

Worked his way into it, well done to the coaches with getting him up the ground, really needs the forward line to himself though. Frost and Pedersen don't help Jesse at all.

Only Dees fans can think it is a problem when good players find it hard to get a game... The return to relevance will mean more of this.

Er, I am worried about Oscar too but who will he be shown up by? No Patton, Cameron, McCarthy. It all comes back to our midfield and how they compete and run. Win the contested footy, get 250 touches in space, put it forward 55 times, and win by 5 goals. Oscar McDonald won't be a good enough excuse if the reverse happens.

So we are on approx. the same number that we were on April 28 last year when we ended with 36k members. Reaching targets 36 days ahead of last year... That's impressive. I think we will just hit 40k. Beat GWS and Ess and two of NM, Coll and Richmond and we will be mid 40k members...

I have a table I update so I don't know whether I trust my excel sheet or footywire... I will have a look later.

Good spot. Fixed.

I hear they can feel it when the other is having a moan about something...

Ok, so those that have been here a while know I don't mind looking at the stats and that I also trail off when the stats start to get too depressing to continue capturing but here we go... I think Clearances, Inside 50s, Uncontested Possies, Contested Possies, Score, and Quarters Won are tried and tested measurements of any team at any level. Below is a table that shows our average in all those categories from the last 3 years and also the differential between us and our opponent. For example, in the Clearances column we can see that we averaged 37.6 clearances last year - an increase of 3.3 - but our differential only went down 0.3 so our opponents averaged 3 more clearances than they did in 2014. CL I50 Ups CPs Score QW 2015 Differential -3.1 -9.0 -12.0 -0.9 -21.4 35 2015 Melbourne Ave 37.6 44.5 203.5 135.2 71.5 2014 Differential -4.8 -11.6 -6.5 -1.5 -28.1 30 2014 Melbourne Ave 34.3 40.5 218.4 130.2 60.7 2013 Differential -9.7 -18.0 -56.7 -23.5 -56.2 20 2013 Melbourne Ave 32.5 40.0 191.7 123.7 66.1 I will do this tracking for 2016 and for your benefit here is the NAB Challenge:We are tracking well (still mediocre but better) in Clearances, Inside 50s, Contested Possies, and Score with a drop off in uncontested possies. However, when I took out the 4 games we had against Freo, Syd, and Haw we tracked 11 UPs better off (and yes, I took out the commensurate games against those teams from 2014 to measure against). NAB Ch. Opp Diff 5.3 9.3 27.3 15.0 18.3 7 NAB Ch. Melb Ave 37.3 50.3 210.0 135.3 91.3 All categories are either holding steady at good levels or have improved out of sight. Too bad it doesn't mean anything... Let's hope we see some similar numbers when the proper stuff starts on Saturday.

I was using 'back in the box' as a euphemism for The Head Coach. If Roos didn't give Goodwin 'the reigns' in the NAB Challenge and we still played the way we did - would anyone be calling for the change to Goodwin to be hastened?

When the Swans won the flag under Roos in 05 it was with Ross Lyon in charge of the ball movement and the game plan. Hence the bringing of the same plan to the Saints in 07. I happen to know that Nathan Bassett was in charge of ball movement at the bombers in 2014/2015. I am sure there are similar arrangements at most clubs. Goodwin driving the evolution to a more attacking style of play isn't antithetical to being an 'assistant coach' and it isn't a submission of the head coach. The Game Plan (c) doesn't change on a whim, and it won't change when Roos gets back in the box. Goodwin gets another year to learn under one of the calmest and most even coaches in modern times - a trait that is only becoming more important in today's game. Great! Now let's get on with it.

Matt Jones or Lumumba for Frost. I get what they want to do with Frost - I just don't think we should force it. I don't think he is 'there' yet as a forward and Hogan, Watts, and Pedersen/Gawn are enough tall options to kick a winning score.

Vince will play half back because it will mean he won't have to rotate to the bench to get a breather. I think that all teams will leak goals as more mids are asked to play foreign roles across half back. I am quite excited to see how this season starts, I am sure coaches will mitigate the issues but I expect to see some higher scores.

Couldn't think of anything more stupid than for this city to have both football stadiums right next to each other. What do you do when they are used at the same time, or one after each other? Having Etihad on the other side of the city makes it much easier to handle.

Most of all teams improvement will come from younger players getting better, more comfortable, more consistent, etc. I think we are ripe for rapid improvement with the talent and the age bracket that talent is in. I just don't know when it will ignite.

...and you love them both?