rpfc

Hawthorn seem to be thriving under their relationship with Tasmania. And their membership in Victoria is growing.

He's not revealing state secrets... If you'd have come to me and told me that we were dysfunctional, factional, and bad place to be in 2011... I would be all like:

I was being facetious about any ideas to get 75k people to a MFC v PA game at the G... Unless we are going into these migrant communities and kidnapping 50k of them to come to the G for a PA game or a BL (or a Freo, GC, GWS et al) then we can't keep that game in Melbourne. I appreciate you are busy, and congrats on the kid, but perhaps if you don't have time to 'wipe your arse' then you haven't had time to properly reflect on the Darwin Initiative?

There is no ROI for us. We do the maths every few years apparently, and call-ins, match day, and push calling just are not affected by TV ads.

Consultants - they love you and leave you.

Love him or loathe him, he certainly plays a unique role at our footy club. It surrounds us and penetrates us; it binds our galaxy together.

We are never going to agree on the role that Garry plays at our club, 55, but that is all truth. You can think that he is apart of what he is talking about and that it is a lack of self-reflection or you can think that he saw what the club had dissolved to in 2011 and knows what he speaks of. It's really up to each individual.

What creative ideas will get people to Etihad? What hard work is going to get 75k people to go see MFC v PA? Because that is the profit margin we are looking at here. Stop kidding yourself. This market is tapped. We cannot sustain 11 home games at the G, we have to play PA, GC, GWS, NM, Freo, WCE, Adel, and to a lesser extent Sydney and BL at home from time to time and taking two of those games a year to Darwin makes it easier to keep the other 9 at the G. Plus some reciprocal rights games against the other 8 Melbourne teams that play at the G. Take your sarcasm and show me something. Don't howl at the moon, tell me the alternative and give me something concrete - not vague notions of hard work and creativity.

Look, it sucks when we have a split round like this but I am happy to keep it as is. Screw it, we all have emergencies.

That's not the reason I have become numb to him. You gotta pay somebody. I have moved past the point of being harsh but when I was it was because he promised so much with his talent but has continual false dawns that make his lack of professionalism so galling.

Lineup lockout deadlineIn the leadup to each AFL round you can move players around your lineup as much as you like. Once the AFL round commences however players will become locked into position, the timing of which depends on your leagues Lineup Lockout setting. To allow you to choose your preferred rules Ultimate Footy provides the following lineup changes lockout options: First Saturday Game Of The Round (default): No changes can be made after the first Saturday game of the round has commenced. Players who play prior to the first Saturday game are locked once their game commences. This setting is used by all public leagues. Note that in Round 1 where AFL games are played over two weeks, lockout will actually take place on the second Saturday of the round (1:40pm Saturday March 30th). First Game Of The Round: No lineup changes can be made after the first AFL game of the round has commenced. Individual Game Time (a.k.a Rolling Lockout): Coaches can move players between bench and starting positions as long as both players being moved are yet to have their team play. Is there a chance to change it?

That's fine, but I wouldn't call it depth. We have drafted experienced players to hold down integral roles to lessen the pressure on the kids. I see Rodan, Byrnes, M Jones, Magner, Dawes, Clark, Terlich, and Pedersen were recruited with an eye to them seeing a lot of minutes in the AFL in roles that would otherwise go to kids not ready for the exposure.

With that said - there is merit in the line above. We cannot continue to harbour potential talent is spades. We have jettisoned projects like Martin, Morton, Bennell, and Gysberts because we have young talent ahead of them in all positions and they were too much work for too little reward. Exmaple: Gawn is worth the time and resources to develop over Martin because he is 4 inches taller and is 5 years younger. The other three were all trying to fit into a midfield or backline that didn't need them or had many other young talents ahead of them.

The core of your post seems to be: We Have Depth! Depth is a peripheral benefit, needless to the terrible, a glove to a hooved creature. We need very good players. Depth can never replace them, whether they are injured or in our case not in existence. We don't need to dwell on the luxury of depth, we need to hope for talent fulfilled, and pull that some join Jones and Grimes as players of decent talent putting together seasons defining that talent. That is what will make us relevant.

When it comes to Colin Sylvia:

FFS. Read between the lines (or the actual lines) they are just saying that they feel a focus on winning Rd 1. A priority over and above the normal feeling of wanting to win every game.

Interesting. Makes the draft a bit dull but I would like to have a go at that kind of league. Would be more akin to managing a team.

I can see it happening but the 6 I mentioned would all be deeply entrenched in the best 22 in my view. And they all need some form and match practice.

Dominic Barry, Mitchell Clisby, Jack Fitzpatrick, Dean Kent, Nathan Stark, James Strauss, Rory Taggert, and Josh Tynan are all 'Casey' players (fringe players developing at Casey). Sam Blease, Mitch Clark, Tom McDonald, Jordie McKenzie, Jack Trengove, and Jack Viney are all in the mix for Round 1 and they all missed the true hitout of the 'best 22' against the Saints at Casey a fortnight ago. It would be difficult to quantify how Blease, McKenzie, Trengove, and Viney do to our midfield that lost to the Saints but it will no doubt be better for those four in time.

Without knowing your score breakdown I can't say much except for the fact that you have a very potent forward line... Drop Sylvia for Garlett though.

I would prefer that half the crowd be locals to that area. If this club wants to ensure (note that I said ensure) that Casey works as a lucrative second home for sponsors and members then getting a couple of games there will do that.

The sentimaent in this post is different to the original. You say you watch all games but that they are meaningless to a Demons supporter. I don't really see a difference to that stance in the thread that 45 started. The alternative is that you spend 24 hours every weekend meaninglessly watching sport with a neutral look of apathy in your dead eyes, watered from an emotionless and unblinking experience.

At some point, a nod to the past is just that, and not some grand reveal of a distracted club reaching back to past glories at the expense of the future of the club.

I think you are being realistic. Our midfield is what you say it is. But we all know that coming into the season. We should be pessimistic if we think we can make finals, we shoudln't be if we simply want to improve. I also don't think it is helpful to compare to other teams. No other team is in our boat. We have a unique vessel and it needs its own critique and solutions. Jones, Grimes, McKenzie, Viney, Toumpas, Blease, Magner, Matt Jones, Bail, Rodan, Sylvia, Trengove, Tapscott, Tynan, Taggert, Barry, Byrnes, Evans, Howe, Nicholson and Kent is what we have got for 2013. Who we will have for 2014 and beyond is irrelevant to this year - the way it is, is the way it is. I just want that motley crew to show some heart and some fight.

It's the NAB Cup, OD. Do you think I took the win over Collingwood seriously in 2012? We also 'beat' NM if you accept that Supergoals don't exist in actual footy. It is so meaningless. I know we have a third world midfield, OD, but save judgements for when the real stuff starts.