demoncat

So you’re suggesting that the club is actively considering putting Clarry up for trade again? Edit: ignore, missed your other posts

He’s my pick if we keep our first rounder - although not sure if he would slide to pick 6 or 7 Sam Lalor the next cab off the rank if available

Thanks @whatwhat say what - did your mate seem to think we would trade out of the first round this year to get Houston? A big price to pay if we’re not splitting the pick or trading back in somehow

Did Jeffo just get his ‘social media post = he’s in’ moment?

As much criticism as Lamb has gotten in recent weeks (much of it deserved), one thing he has done a great job of in his tenure is signing up all of our important players (Jackson excepted, not on Lamb though) Excited to see Ed running up and down the Shane Warn wing for many more years to come!

100% worth it if he could be secured with a second rounder or two

Cal Twomey reported that he was nearing a deal a month or two back, so hopefully it’s something that just gets resolved in the next few weeks

Strong agree - as much as I rate Houston and think he would improve us, we simply need to start bringing in our next wave of midfielders and this is the perfect draft to do that If we can manufacture a way to get Houston AND a first round midfielder (even if it’s with a later pick), I’d go for it If not, we take our first rounder to the draft and dangle our 2025 first rounder to try and trade back in to the end of first round

Ruck?

Jimmy Bartel reported as leaving the GWS Giants at the end of this year Personally I would love the Dees to reach out to him to offer him a role in our footy department - he’s done a great job at GWS and has such a great understanding of the modern game Could be one to look at given some of the calls to refresh our coaching staff this offseason…

Which names HAVE you heard then? 👀

Get Blake Howes on the phone to Finn stat - they were best mates apparently

Very interesting considering multiple reputable journos have reported his keenness to come home (unlike the very unreputable ones reporting on Oliver)

Yeah pretty sure I’d take a player who is rated the second best kick in the entire comp over a bloke who can get 30 but who butchers every possession I thought people have been crying out for us to improve our kicking skills? Now we target someone who would improve us massively in that regard and we shouldn’t ask the question?

Firstly Houston is a far better player than Jacob Hopper (or Tim Taranto for that matter) Secondly our list is in a far better position to contend and far more balanced on age profile than Richmond’s was at the end of 2022 Our only top line players over 30 next year will be Max, May and Viney (TMac and Melksham too if they continue on) Meanwhile we have the likes of Trac, Oliver, Lever, Fritsch, Langdon and ANB in their prime years Not to mention a strong cohort of younger players who are starting to become stars in their own right - Kozzy, Rivers, JVR, McVee, Windsor to name a few Richmond were super top heavy with all their best players over 30 and nearing the end of their careers, with essentially no top line talent in either the middle or younger age bracket of their list (save for a couple of players like Bolton and Balta) I get that we need to balance contending with bringing in young talent from the top of the draft, but I think we’re in a far better position to do so than either Richmond or West Coast have been in recent years when they’ve traded away picks to try and keep their windows open with essentially no young talent already on their lists

This is a good point As much as it has been obvious that we are lacking midfield depth this year, bringing in Houston could help solve that in a roundabout way Best case scenario we get Oliver back to his best after a full preseason, Trac comes back into the team after a full preseason himself, Rivers continues in his midfield role and Viney stays in reasonably good form Add in stints on ball from Kozzy and potentially even the likes of McVee, then all of a sudden our midfield depth doesn’t look too dire Of course, that’s assuming all of the above goes to plan…

It should be the model, but the fact is it’s getting harder and harder to pick up genuine A graders in free agency Clubs are finding the money to retain the players they want to and are comfortable handing out long term contracts You only have to look at all of this years free agents who have signed up one by one, and even some preagents from 2025 I’d much rather pick up a Houston in free agency, but the club would be negligent not to entertain a trade for a player of his quality

Now that this is gathering steam - how much is too much for Houston? Clearly a first rounder is unders, but two first rounders seems like overs, and I’d be loathe for the club to miss out on the first round for two years in a row Plus we still need to add to our young midfield bridge - can we afford to trade our first pick and take a punt on a midfielder or two in the second round? It’s a deep draft so maybe

Another option would be to trade our first round pick for Houston but then try to trade back into the first round by putting our 2025 first rounder on the table - potentially ending up with Houston and pick 16-20 in a deep draft

There may be a bit more smoke to the Dan Houston rumours than it initially seemed…

Houston is a gun and would be worth a first rounder at minimum on the trade market But I personally don’t want to give up our first pick this year unless it is very late That’s why I’m glad we’re into Cumming - while not as highly rated he is a similar positional player who would cost us nothing as he is a FA Plus at 25 he’d fit our age profile nicely

Regardless of whether or not the rumour is legitimate, you’d be negligent not ask the question of any good key forward, especially one who might have a connection to your club I reckon a lot will depend on a) what pick we end up with and b) how confident we are in players like Rivers becoming regular midfielders You’d be loathe to pass up an opportunity to draft a top midfielder with a top 10 pick, but it would be easier to pass on say pick 12-14 if it got you an established player, not least one in a position we’ve been in need of for years And if Rivers continues to show his wares as a midfielder, our need for another midfielder might decrease Time will tell

Paging @goodwindees

He’d be a great get but the reports state that he’s keen to stay at West Coast and that it’s actually him and his management who have raised the prospect of an extension I’d be shocked if they didn’t come to an agreement by the end of the year or early next year Having said that we’d be negligent not to throw a big offer his way to at least make him think about it!