GS_1905

Again the media machine is at play here. Buckley is doing his due diligence and the reality is he may not like what he finds out. There is a lot on public record but there is some stuff that doesnt get out (although not too much you would think). Edmund has a right to an opinion and tbh, Buckley hasnt been totally committed in the public either (for the above reason).

I think the timing was all wrong. The key forwards we went after at the time all had unique circumstances at the time that kept them at bay. I think you'll also find that most players want to stay one club players and it takes a lot of disenchantment to leave. I think the the likes of Larkey and Waterman, just wanted to remain loyal and connected with friends. OR it could have been the $$$ who knows. There is also the distinct possibility that our reputation as a destination club is not great and player managers may in fact discourage their players to steer clear. Unlikely but something of this ilk maybe at play. With McKay and Georgiadies, i think that their respective teams were thereabouts when we tried to poach them. Had their teams been in a similar position to what they are in now when we were pursuing them, i think we could have convinced them to join. I dont think it would have made much difference to our chances. Our F50 connection has always been the problem. When our trio bulls in Oliver, Trac and Viney consistenly ranked in the top 20 worse kicks in the AFL even having Jezza wouldnt have mattered. We need to remove the butchers (which we are doing now).

i knew that face was familiar. great work.

For reference he was taken at Pick 47 in the draft. I think he is a better player than pick 47, but id want some change from Pick 23 - that is over.

We can all thank Selwood we started all this staging for head high frees years ago. He thought he was so smart doing it, unfortunately it’s become such a blight on the game. Also jumper punches, flopping all need to be stamped down on big time. 1 official warning then start with the fines . On 5th offence in any one season, move to 1 game suspension.

Maybe Oliver was sending a coded message to Adelaide earlier this week when he spoke about Burgess.

I don’t think it is overrated they have quality on all lines. When they tore us up twice last year I thought they were the real deal, then they lost silly games and failed to replicate that ball movement. It’s all in the coaches box. JL just doesn’t inspire you as a senior coach

This is a huge get if true. Our midfield will become significantly more balanced with him in there. Not sure what it’ll mean to some of our existing stocks though. Is Rivers bound to HB? Does McVee get out of defence ? What do we do with Spaz and Viney? Is Trac traded or become a permanent forward? And then there’s Clarry. Big questions but it’s good that we are mixing things up.

Today’s games were good to watch. The QFs were boring as bat [censored].

Amiss reminds me so much of Weideman.

Suns look good but no chance at a flag. Have a lot of holes. Freo need a new coach, they have good players but an awful game plan.

Wish there was a way we got him with XL and Langford.

I reckon their window is closing. Toby, Kelly, Hogan, Whitfield closing on retirement in the next 1-2 years I reckon. There defensive cover is shocking - hawks were like 80% scoring from i50 at one point.

Hard to see how Giants come back from this.

Gunston continues to defy expectations

What a goal from Jones

Hawks player runs right through protection zone … no 50

Almost game over.

It’s called being ruthless. I’d love to have that hard edge.

One more goal from free away from turning this off. Umps 100% ruining this game.

Make that 3

Hawks 2 goals from frees in first 10mins. Both from soft frees.

What a bs 50. Commentators want to call that out like last night?

And therein lies the problem. This trade does not reflect the worth of the player. The players hold way too much power as it stands and are holding clubs to ransom. Doggies put a good 4-5 years of development into Smith and just has he comes home to roost, he demands a change. He is entitled to do so, no issue on that front, but the clubs have to pay fair value. Geelong make a living out of this type of trade and they do it very very well. Normally you'd say ok, well done, but when a club makes finals 75% of the time in the last 2 decades and are in a PF every couple of years, you have to ask yourself is it an equal playing field. I was thinking the other week how fans in European football league competitions must feel when the likes of Man City, Liverpool, Arsenal, Bayern Munich, PSG, Real Madrid, Barcelona etc continue to win the league competitions year after year after year. Why would you bother supporting a mid-tier club when your chances of winning are next to zero. The AFL is fast becoming a competition that is going to resemble this if it is not careful. But we have a competition where clubs finishing in the top 4, get picks in the top 5 in the draft, or are able to get first dibbs on out-of-contract players. In my view, its a simple fix, clubs in the top 4 (or something equivalent) should be taxed for NGA, F/S and out-of-contract players. Whether it is some type of salary cap tax, trade tax - i dont know- but we cannot allow these clubs to get a leg up on the other building / struggling teams.

Im with you on this. Athletically, he is the prime example of the modern football player.