dee-tox

Should have gone in 2013 following the King Kong comments. Incredible that he was able to survive as president and continue to have multiple roles in the media following it. The Goodes documentary was last year shown on the BBC meaning it was shown throughout most of Europe. The reaction from most people was of disbelief. The fact that Maguire kept his job confirmed to many that racism was not just condoned but the norm in Australia.

Thanks for your well considered rebuttal!

Great to hear Spargo and Petty are travelling well. Robbie Gray and Tom Jonas clones! Love it.

I'm sorry but I don't want Baker anywhere near the team. Apart from two flukey goals against GWS I've seen nothing that convinces me he can play anywhere near the level. His fitness is appalling and has no tricks. I'm also worried about those selecting TMac on a wing. He has the turning circle of the Queen Mary and the reflexes of 55 year old fielding in slip. Fritsch maybe an option for the second wing spot, but he is a natural forward and there are doubts over his two-way running.

Fairy normal right to have major knee surgery (last year) and have lingering issues soon after... As usual the sky hasn't fallen in and it's not strawberry fields. It's somewhere in the middle. We'll have a better idea where he is at come round four. In the meantime Jackson, the Weed and possibly TMac need to cover for BB.

Some of these from the players' own teammates. The nickname of 'Storm Boy' given to Sean Charles a case in point.

As unpopular as this may sound, Harmes doesn't deserve a starting gig based on last season's form. For me, he and Melksham were the biggest disappointments. Rather see Sparrow, Jordon or one of the newbies...

Generally, comparisons are odious. Lewis is an accomplished media performer and knows how to sell hope at this time of the year. Last season Kozzie showed glimpses but nothing more. I understand the need to play him, but for many games last year he was bog ordinary. Tackles didn't stick, sitters were missed and he often found himself out of the action. Has a long, long way to go.

Demonland has suddenly become readable again! Thanks for the reports.

I'm not convinced by this. We saw last season how poor the depth was when we had a few outs. Even when we we had a full team we couldn't get near Richmond, Port or West Coast. Sure we have seven or eight players that are good (Petracca, Oliver, Gawn, May, Langdon, Viney, Lever and Salem). But we easily have more strugglers than the current top four. I doubt any improvement will come from the likes Jetta, Hibberd, Jones, Tomlinson, VDB, M Brown, Melksham or ANB. The hope is the three recruits from 2018 and 2019 come on but I don't think it is enough.

Bewick! Berwick was a nice village in the south east of Melbourne that has now been overrun by urban sprawl!

Don't be so sure DS it is the club. With the draft and the trade period, most stories/leaks come via the managers. They have a very cosy, back scratching relationship. I know that having worked in the field for 20 years. It is very frustrating each year to have our picks revealed a day or two before the draft. With that said, Cal Twomey does his homework and has great sources. It is difficult sometimes to keep your preferences away from prying eyes.

The people that put together these videos and all draft highlights videos should be banned from accompanying them with any form of muzak! Horrible!

Not so sure about that Demi. The need for outside run and kicking skills has seemed pretty obvious for years. We used our high draft picks to recruit inside bulls while our better flanker types, except for Salem, have been recruited (Melksham, Hibberd, KK, Langdon, etc).

Speed and six foot four! Exciting combination although football credentials not as strong as others...

Well played!

Think a good decision. Thirteen years at one place is a good innings. Change is a part of any healthy organisation. Fresh insights, fresh motivation and new faces often bring a spike in performance. Just my opinion, but no senior manager should be their position for more than five years!

Feel a little for Gawn. Has a 20-minute radio interview (mainly on bike riding) and answers one question on Melb's prospects. Answers in a positive way and gets labelled a Tommy Talk It Up. If he plays it down he would have also been criticised for not being ambitious enough.

Bringing in Jetta (or any other 30+ year old) would be a classic case of short-termism, a Goodwin specialty. The list in 2021 will have Jones (33), Brown (31), Hibberd (31), Jetta (31), Melksham (30), Gawn (29), VandenBerg (29), May (29), TMac (29) and Tomlinson (28). At least three of these guys (Jones, TMac and Nev) were cooked in 2020. Our list profile has gone backwards since Roos.

Not sure he played a game this year where he was among the top 20 players on the ground. Most possessions these days are uncontested handballs. He was done after 2019.

Fair enough and good points raised but even 200 k can make a difference in overall salary cap. We need to keep Oliver, Petracca, etc next year... M. Brown is maybe on 300k? In tMac's case he is reported to be on 700k. There is money to be saved. It all adds up.

Yep, George I get this but from a list management postion we have M Brown, B Brown, tMac, Weed, Jackson and Petty as tall forwards. You can probably only play two at a time in this day and age, even though TMac and Petty can be tall back reserves and Jackson can ruck for short periods. How many tall forward reserves can stay before it starts impacting your list? We need flankers with skills. I'd rather take the punt with a diamond in the rough and lessen your salary cap than keep six guys fighting for two spots...

Agree with this. We are anything but ruthless when it comes to list management. One of M. Brown or TMac should have gone when we knew B. Brown was coming.

Played a crucial role in that 2018 game in Perth by knocking Jack Darling out in a tackle. Not sure how it happened but Darling was in great form at the time.

You're true to you're name Angry, I'll give you that. Labelling someone as lazy and pathetic because they don't agree with you tells me all I need to know.