demoncat

I actually don’t mind Simpkin as a player and he could definitely play a role for us But no way would you want to give up a decent pick and that much coin for him

5th!? What a joke Put him in a finals team and he’d be 1 or 2

Link Donksi? Have seen a couple of allusions here and there but not the direct source

It’s about time we had a coach who was proactive in this space (and not just sending a half hearted text to Joe Daniher 🙄) Hawthorn is reaping the rewards of Mitchell doing this - no reason we shouldn’t do the same

Buckley’s chance of going ahead? 👀

100% At the end of the day, being a well run club will give you the best chance at premiership success, and no amount of player movement will ever change that

I watch a lot of American sports and would argue the NFL and NBA have had a wider range of teams genuinely competing for championships over the last few years than in the AFL, and I think part of this is that there are less barriers to teams improving their rosters via trade For example, teams have significantly more cap space in these leagues, meaning smaller teams/teams with less highly paid players have significantly more money to offer prospective players Compare that to the AFL where, other than TDK recently, the monetary difference between joining a smaller/less successful club and a big/successful club isn’t enough to sway most players - i.e. there is really no incentive for a good player to go to a North compared to a Collingwood when their earning ability is largely the same Granted that is more to do with player payments - which I think should be far higher - but it’s one example Another is teams having more rights to trade players/contracts without consent of players. This is obviously a far more contentious issue, but in my opinion the AFL needs to give more control to clubs to trade their players. The relative lack of player movement combined with players only wanting to move to successful clubs, doesn’t give smaller/less successful clubs many levers to improve their list. Again, I’m not arguing for players not having consent, but it’s an area I think the league needs to push the balance back towards the clubs. Then there are a range of other smaller measures like being able to trade players a team has drafted on draft night, further future trading of draft picks, more malleable contracts that give players and clubs more opportunities to trade throughout the life of the deal etc. Don’t get me wrong, the AFL does a lot of things much better than international sporting codes, and I know our clubs not being private will limit a lot of the contract issues I raised, but I don’t think the league is pulling all the levers it can to give all clubs a genuine shot at success

Ditto this point @BLWNBA and I personally think it’s a big reason why equalisation in the AFL is failing I think the AFL and AFL fans need to be far less parochial when it comes to player movement, and we need to move to a more modern trade and free agency system in keeping with international sports And ironically I think this would actually feed more engagement with the AFL (which AFL HQ wants) and allow clubs to more easily improve via trade and free agency (which all fans want for their own club) We don’t need to become the NBA where players are shipped across the country at will, but we’re certainly behind the times when it comes a range of player movement issues, both as an industry and as fans

What do we reckon - will he be a box or boundary man?

I’d be telling Trac’s management that we’ll facilitate a deal if you get us two quality first round picks (i.e. at least top 10 this year) or a player and a first round pick (potentially with something coming back from us) To me Gold Coast seems the ideal trading partner as they have three first rounders as well as Flanders who we’ve expressed interest in, but who knows if they’d be keen on him or not

Mitch Cleary confirming tonight that we’re chasing Flanders Wants more midfield time and is expected to meet with a few clubs

I’d leave the decision up to King If King thinks Trac is going to play a key role in how we play next year, keep him to his contract and try to get the best out of him If he thinks he won’t contribute to that method in a significant way - or think we need to plug other areas with potential picks or players coming back the other way - then get the trade done while he still has currency Trac will forever be remembered as a Premiership hero, but I’m a big believer in making tough decisions to better the whole of your list (see Hawthorn as the recent example) - we’ll see what King and co think

You’d prefer Goody’s no tie look? 😬

Honestly he struck me as someone Goody brought in simply because they’re mates His work with our defence this year probably underscores that too

Has anyone told King? 😅 In all seriousness, King has indicated that he wants to revitalise our senior players and has already reached out to Trac Not sure he’s going to want to see him leave unless we’re improving with what comes back the other way

If you score over 100 points each week you’re going to win 95% of the matches you play Sounds like a pretty good plan to me 🤣

I have to say I’ve been very impressed with Guerra’s media appearances And yes I know there will be many other metrics by which we’ll judge his performance, but it can’t be understated how important it is to have a CEO who articulate the club’s vision and decision making processes with confidence and clarity A big step up from he who shall not be named…

If he nominates us we are Otherwise not sure we’d have the draft capital to compete with other Vic clubs

High half forward is where midfielders go to die You need a particular type of player to play that role - it was why Nibbler was so valuable for us

Players being offered plots of land out Cranbourne way, you’re hearing it more and more

Time to break another 50+ year drought

Ahh yes, now it all makes sense Welcome to the Dees Sammy

Good chance to be a Premiership assistant this year too 👀

I had come round to Buckley in a big way, but if he wasn’t ready to commit to the club this late into the process then he wasn’t the right choice Congratulations to King, who has done a great apprenticeship under some of the best coaches of the modern era Hope he can follow the recent trend of guys like McCrae and Kingsley who can come in and make an impact early

Maybe, but Buckley being non committal this late in the process would have been a major red flag I’ll take them at their word that King was the preferred candidate And one thing is for sure, we know he wants it