sylvinator

In: Mclean, Buckley Out: Bode, Frawley (inj) Keep playing the youth! id consider putting in Garland... holland vs rocca Carrol vs cloke bell vs Didak Brown vs leon davis forwards: Sylvia Newton Green Davey Neitz Robbo

YM we would take that in less than a second. i doubt fremantale would agree to this tho unfortunately. Bruce may (just) be worth pick 6, but no club would give pick 6, plus more (Ryan Murphey>>>>>>C.Johnson) I would settle for Bruce+C.Johnson for pick 6 definitely. i like the thought process tho. My trade: 1) Byrnes for pick 19

we need players with good footskills. if you want to build a team to win premiership, good kicking skills is vital. Thats why in all this talk about trading a high profile player like Green, Johnstone or Bruce, id much rather keep green and johnstone bc they have good skills. Bruce is a great player, but is an ordinary kick. it makes him more dispensible than a johnstone imo

Newton's tackling was a feature. in general his second efforts were much improved (thought twice he didnt make the second effort because he came up proppy as if injured). im happy with his development. he played a good game. as did newton and sylvia i dont understand why ppl are critical of their games tonight. both showed they are quality

read the notes at the end of the post if reasoning is unclear

Now that we've had 4 weeks under Riley playing all our fringe/young players to prepare for 2008, i reckon it's time to make decisions about what our team will look like round 1 2008. Everyone fully fit: Bartram Carrol Frawley Wheatley Rivers Bell Johnstone Mclean Sylvia Robertson Bate Green Davey Neitz Newton White Bruce Jones Int: McDonald, Moloney, Pettard, P.Johnson Emerg: Whelan, Dunn, Buckley, C.Johnson Depth: k.p.p: Holland, Ferguson flankers: Yze, D.Ward Midfielders: Godfrey Developing: Garland, Neaves, Weetra, Bode Delisted/forced retired/Traded from 2007 list: Pickett, Bizzel, Brown, Neville, Warnock, Jamar, Miller NB: not included are 5 draftees + 1 Preseason draft pick (no trades taken into consideration) - I see Sylvia, Mclean, Jones, Moloney, McDonald, Bruce and Johnstone to form the crux of the midfield. Sylvia has developed well this season and with a full preseason he'll be able to play midfield. people forget he's playing half-forward because he had no preseason - it seems that we lack 2 pacy/skillful midfielder and i believe we can draft this kind of player (Cotchin=perfect fit) - the likes of Holland, Ward, Yze and other oldish players (Ferguson, Godfrey) should be used as depth only in case of injury - i'd hope to see Dunn and Buckley (hopefully CJ also) firm as starting 18 players by end of 2008 - i placed Whelan on emergency because i am not sure if he is still able to produce his best. at his best he is starting 18. - Mcdonald on the bench despite clearly being in our best 18 because despite being a remarkable workhorse, wear and tear process is beginning and he should be protected abit. He will still have a big part to play, but should no longer be given the responsbility to carry the midfield This is the best mix of young/experience we can have imo. Thoughts?

ill be watching Richmond vs Essendon very closely. toigs a real chance

Everyone has been speaking about our Round 22 clash with Carlton as being a tanking farce. However, the truth is that the result of the match makes little difference to our draft position outcome. Round 22 is really only important to Carlton because they gain Pick 1 if they lose. If Melbourne win (and don't overtake the Blues on percentage): Carlton PP 1, Richmond 2, Melbourne 3, Carlton 4 ... Richmond PP 18, Melbourne PP 19, Richmond 20, Melbourne 21 Carlton 22 If Carlton win: Richmond 1, Melbourne 2, Carlton 3 ... Richmond PP 17, Melbourne PP 18, Richmond 19, Melbourne 20, Carlton 21. So the truth is that round 22 does not have such a big impact on his. People must take into consideration that this year's draft has Kreuzer ... daylight ... and then about six players who could all go Pick 2. So Pick2 or Pick 3 does not make a huge difference. Morton, Masten, Grimes, Henderson, McEvoy, Ebert, Cotchin (despite his poor championships) will all be ripper picks for us whoever we pick. My point is: If you are interested in Melbourne's draft position at year's end, you shouldn't really worry too much about whether Carlton wins another game, but start hoping that Richmond wins another game. If they win again then they overtake us and we get Pick 1 Kruezer, and our ruck problems are fixed for the next 10 years.

our priority pick (pick 18 most likely) will no doubt be bantered around for trade possbilities at years end. it will be a useful pick as it would be very attractive for clubs in luring fringe youngsters we have our eye on. i would definitely be willing to trade this pick if the right player came along. Miller or Jamar as 2 genuine trade baits we can use as sweeteners to any deal. options: Ryan Murphey (freo) Cameron Wood (briss) Brent Prissmal (geelong) Byrnes (geelong) all these would be worth about pick18 plus a jamar/miller/3rd round swap of draft picks

he really hasnt been playing many youngsters in truth. you cant call bate, mclean, sylvia, jones playing the youngsters because they are in our best 22 regardless. the only players he's developing are frawley and newton really. both who look extremely promising. however he still continues to play the likes of pickett, brown, holland, ward (until this week) and keeps the likes of Dunn, CJ, PJ, Garland, Buckley and others rotting away at sandringham when they culd be gaining valuable senior expereience they would never get if we were vying for the top 8. this has greatly disappointed me and his selfishness has meant that we havnt prepared our list for next season as well as we could have.

if MFC keep pickett then we are an absolute disgrace. he is 30 and no longer capable of brilliance like he used to be. the best he does is get 10 possies and a couple of goals. he has stuffed the club around, consistently turning up unfit and fat. he does not deserve a place on our list. anyone who has any idea about our list will see 9 players +30yrs old and will immediately see that the club will look to decrease this worrying figure by ATLEAST 3-4 players at seasons end. The reality is that we are the oldest team in the afl, and it does not bode well for our future. if ppl want us to have a future then theyd join me in demanding that Pickett, Ward, Brown, Holland and Bizzel NOT take precedence over our developing players who are the real future of our club. obviously a couple of these guyz (ward and holland for mine) will stay on the list next season for depth, but atleast 3 of this group should be gawn and they certainly shouldnt be playing now that our season is over. for those who want guyz like pickett in the team this time of year are basically saying theyd prefer Dunn to rot away in the ressies while he misses out on a rare opportunity a club gets to put serious game-time into developing youngsters to fast-track their development

"Melbourne wins less clearances from stoppages than any side. Only 36 per cent of stoppages are cleared by the Demons – the lowest such percentage in the league. They average five fewer clearances per game than their opposition; a stat for which they are also ranked last." afl.com.au This is definitely a major reason why we are losing games so convincingly. What frustrates me is that we've recruited in past seasons to try and rectify this problem, yet we still cant work it out. is it our ruckman? White gets huge number of tapouts but not many to advantage. is it because we havnt got good set plays? are our players maybe just not hard enough at the ball? at the end of the day, if the opposition is taking the ball away from stoppages 64% of the time how can u expect to win? how can we improve this? Our best midfield IMO: McLean, Jones, Moloney, Sylvia, Bruce, McDonald, Johnstone, Green, Bartram. This looks good on paper however we still get crushed in the stoppages? What is going wrong? I know we havn't had our best midfield on the park most of the year, but our injuries really have no affected our midfield that much at all. not to the extent that we are annihilated at stoppages each week. This is definitely an area the new coach must address! how can we fix it? I dont think its the ruckman fault, because some team lose hitouts yet their midfielders are able to read the stoppages and still win clearences.

i agree. i also think that the fact that the kangas are playing above themselves and are overachieving considering the players they have at their disposal is also similar to melbourne. i wouldnt be surprised to see them lose to WCE this week and start a slow movement down the ladder. not premiership contenders

Brown, Bizzel and Pickett won't be on the list next season i guerentee it...we have 9 30yr olds which is clearly too many, and atleast 3 of them will be forced retired, i wouldnt be surprised if Ward or Yze werent with us either because they are not our future and are starting to be pushed out by younger versions. next season our only veterans should be Neitz, Mcdonald and White (who are pretty much the first 3 players picked in our team each week), plus Holland and maybe Ward and Yze as depth.we dont need 30 somethings clogging up our list and stopping the development of youngsters. we should be aiming at rebuilding our list. therefore, if they arent gonna be there next year then dont play them. plus nobody can say that the likes of brown, ward, holland etc havnt had enough games to prove if theyre worth it. buckley, dunn, PJ, CJ and garland ned gametime as senior level.

Bate was injured against Sydney first quater...not sure bout godders

surely bwell is maximum 14 years old with his crude immature comments, petty insults and agressiveness... guyz don't get too worked up by a kid who is clearly just trying to be a stirer

atleast Riley has made a little step towards the type of team he should be selecting... if i was selector i would have also made extra changes... In: L.Dunn, CJ, PJ Out: Pickett, Brown, Jamar plus, i'd like to see Bate back is asap, buckley should still be in the team, and i'd like to see Garland given a go for atleast a couple more games... remember guyz, we are supposed to be developing our list for next season. how is playing brown and pickett developing for next year when CJ, PJ, Dunn, Buckley, Garland and others are in the ressies. Injuries just arent an excuse, bc our youngsters are rotting at sandy

i would love to see buckley out there doing his thing. terrific player. i dont think he will make a difference to the outcome

Occo, all your critisisms of Bell were valid 12 months ago, but it seems you have not watched this season at all. in rpevious years he was consistently being beaten having goals kicked on him, he rarely made the correct decision, and often got run down. this season however, he has been outstanding defensively (our best defender this season imo), his ability to get a punch in is outstanding, his pace has improved (thought he is still strong), he rarely gets run down anymore, AND his decision making has improved out of sight. your critisism of bell is out-of -date and unwarranted. Bell is one of our most exciting future prospects and has firmed as a definite starting 22. he was going guns blazing before he got injured a few weeks ago. he is 22 and it has taken this long for him to develop fully. to trade him for a pick around 30 would just be plain stupidity. 90% likely we will get a player as good or worse than him who will take 3 years to develop into a starting 18 just as bell has. some people just dont think before they type

because riley is a [censored] jockey. every person is the afl can see we should be playing our developing players ahead of guyz like ward, brown, holland, bizzel, pickett and godfrey. the only person who cant see it is our selfish [censored] of a coach who is trying to be more competative by playing 30yr olds... hey riley, how's that working out for u? we lose each week by 60 points and we cant even hang our hats on youngsters developing

if someone can explain to me how trading bell (i assume for around a 2nd round pick) will improve our list. Bell is 22 yrs old, a highly rated first round pick from 4 years ago who has finally had his break out year. his body is now fully developed and he is ready to take on the afl by playing quality and consistent football. he is definitely one of our best young players and has shown this year he can be quality. people want to trade him for, lets say, pick 28ish. we pick up a guy who might come good, might not. he takes 4 years to get to bells development anyways. some poeple on this board are simply dense headed. you DO NOT trade the likes of sylvia, bell or davey who are 21-22 yrs old and just showing they are quality youngsters for 2nd round picks. The only trades worth considering are for our 27 yr olds (green, bruce and jonno) who have already shown exactly what output they are capable of, have dissapointed yet still have market value.

If you look at the trade wood: for: miller and pick 18 you will notice it is not simply miller for wood. there is a 1st round draft pick attached (priority) most people on this board seem to think that bruce and johnstone isnt worth a 1st rounder. im proposing we offer a 1st rounder PLUS a homegrown qlder who is only 24, 194cm, 95kg with 70 games experience who has alot of potential to be improved by a new coach and a new envt. it actually seems like quite a reasonable trade to me. read to full post before commented idiot

Bizzel was dropped because he is not our future! why cant people see we have to move past our old fringe players and move onto our youngsters

In: Bode, Dunn, Frawley, Garland, PJ, CJ, Johnstone Out: Ward, Brown, Pickett, Ferguson, Jamar, Miller, Bate (injured) The time has come to shove our young fringe players ahead of our fringe old players. the 'INS' are our future and will be on our list next season. 4-5 of the 'OUTS' will retire or be delisted at years end. To me (and Paul Roos) it seems a simple choice. Only Riley seems to find it difficult. We are losing anyways, why not develop our young players? its almost as if he is trying not to get appointed next year. what is wrong with this guy? Can caretaker coaches be sacked?

Surely, oh surely, Riley must now realize that if we are going to lose by 60 points every week (largely due to our debilitating injury list) we might as we lose with our young future players gaining experience at AFL level. In this week: (I dont care that N. Brown will contribute more. He won't be on our list next year and that is all that matters!) Ins: Bode Dunn Garland C Johnson P Johnson Frawley and Johnstone Outs: Bate (injured) Brown Pickett Ward Jamar Ferguson Miller ... Why are our fringe old players being picked ahead of our young players who are fringe now, but have a future at MFC and may become starting 18 players in the future? If someone can give me a reasonable answer then I'd be shocked. Even Paul Roos was shocked at Riley's refrusal to play youngsters ahead of N. Brown, D. Ward, B. Pickett...etc. Thanx for the review. It just frustrates me to see Dunn, PJ, CJ, Garland etc rotting in the ressies while other oldies consistently play for the seniors