Whispering_Jack

No, it's Redleg wearing a Sam Newman mask and wig.

So they trained again today, did they?

Ben Newton and Matthew Dick added.

I am going to unpin the thread because people have a tendency sometimes not to look at the top of the page. If it floats down too far then somebody should bump it and in any event, I'm sure we'll be updated from time to time by Adam.

Update as a result of signing Ben Newton:- By way of adding to the above, here is a picture of where our list stands officially as of yesterday's list lodgement:- 2015 MELBOURNE LIST Primary list 1. Bail, Rohan 2. Barry, Dominic 3. Cross, Daniel 4. Dawes, Chris 5. Dunn, Lynden 6. Evans, Michael 7. Fitzpatrick, Jack 8. Frost, Sam 9. Garland, Colin 10. Garlett, Jeff 11. Gawn, Max 12. Grimes, Jack 13. Hogan, Jesse 14. Howe, Jeremy 15. Hunt, Jayden 16. Jamar, Mark 17. Jetta, Neville 18. Jones, Matt 19. Jones, Nathan 20. Kennedy-Harris, Jay 21. Kent, Dean 22. Lumumba, Heritier 23. McDonald, Tom 24. McKenzie, Jordie 25. Michie, Viv 26. Newton, Ben 27. Pedersen, Cameron 28. Riley, Aidan 29. Salem, Christian 30. Spencer, Jake 31. Stretch, Billy 32. Terlich, Dean 33. Toumpas, Jimmy 34. Trengove, Jack 35. Tyson, Dom 36. Vince, Bernie 37. Viney, Jack 38. Watts, Jack 39. National Draft Pick 2 40. National Draft Pick 3 Rookie list 41. Harmes, James 42. King, Max 43. Rookie Draft Pick 2 44. Rookie Draft Pick 20 The list might change with further list lodgement before the National Draft and possible delisted free agency inclusions but any additional draft picks can only be gained by delisting or retirement of players but note all current players are contracted.

I think it should be said that the AFL saw its responsibility was to spread the game into new and different markets and the decision to locate in Western Sydney was in accordance with that aim. The problem that I have is with the choice of location for the second Sydney team, the way in which it was conceived and then executed, particularly to the detriment of other longstanding clubs. The worst aspect from my perspective was that the AFL sanctioned the poaching of one of our players, a teenager in a way in which we were never able to even counter the ridiculous offer made to him using the league's money was repugnant and made a "mockery" of the concept of an AFL competition. I will always support the game but the sight of big crowds at Wanderers games and the success of that team will always bring me enjoyment.

The first open training session for the new season takes place tomorrow, Wednesday 5 November at Gosch's Paddock - 9.15am. The session is for players in their first to fourth seasons. All other training sessions are closed sessions. Training Times Looking forward to the first reports of season 2015 tomorrow.

Some interesting thoughts if we end up drafting McCartin. Firstly, I doubt they would line up alongside each other. McCartin would probably play deep up forward while Hogan, who has a decent tank would play further down the ground at CHF or even a flank for starters (and even possibly in defence). Secondly, there's the question of whether they would be introduced into the team immediately. I don't think that's how Roosy operates. I also don't recall when two novice KPF's were introduced to VFL/AFL in the same team on the same day.

Actually it's three 2, 3 and 40.If we take Ben Newton as a DFA it goes back to two.

Some would say the same thing about Petracca who similarly is an imposing lump of a lad at the junior level. What guarantee is there that he will make it? Others said the same about Ollie Wines. Patton? Boyd?

I did add what in legal terms is a "rider" (and let me hasten to add on this day of all days that this doesn't mean a jockey). The rider was that after the initial four players, I would be adding to the list as further DFA confirmations were announced. For those whose legal knowledge is limited, I have amended the OP to minimise the confusion among lay people who struggle with difficult legal concepts. I expect James Hird and Tanya to become constant visitors to the thread.

Forget getting rid of coaches, players, administrators and board members, we should have hired a pest exterminator to get rid of those "white ants" (not to mention the group thinkers). The club would have been much better off doing that.

I hope Bernie's unfortunate remarks don't upset Heritier.

If he's there at 40 and we have the pick, why not?

That said, we do have another young beast waiting in the wings in the form of Jesse Hogan so if we take Brayshaw and one beast, we don't miss much.

Bob, I get that the team itself was young and inexperienced under Bailey. That was a fact of life and it continued to be so under Neeld. In addition, I recall that Neeld was bagged mercilessly when he made the point about the average games played by our team was significantly less than most of our opposition. The point that I'm making is that while times changed, the style of play Bailey was promoting was becoming redundant and we were therefore doomed to not only not advance, but rather, to go backwards. Under Roos, I'm at least confident we're finally heading in the right direction, albeit too slowly for some.

What makes him an overlord and what's with bringing in stockbrokers and insurance salespeople? We need more lawyers on the board I think Howcroft was very entertaining at AGMs for a while and then things stopped being funny.

Hey s-t-i-n-g-a I know you're being facetious but you're better than that. I think Sam was basically a good kid who went through hard times to get where he was and probably lacked the proper guidance to help him understand the hard work necessary to make it. I wonder how many true role models he had a club that had very few mature leaders such as he might have had elsewhere. I wish him luck at Geelong. He'll need it and he'll need to take more responsibility on himself when he gets there because whatever he was doing over the past few seasons achieved very little for himself and his club.

Agree with the part about groupthink on Demonland - oodles of it but I must confess you got me with the bit about the "fantastic brand of running footy" because that's where I thought his greatest failing lay and to an extent, Bailey and most others at the club during and after recognised this. That style was good against the competition's lesser lights and worked against the weaker interstate clubs when we played them at home (eg Adelaide and a weakened Fremantle in 2011) but it failed miserably against the stronger teams that had real running ability in that they ran both ways and not just when going into attack. Look at our third quarter v Hawthorn and the game v West Coast and then against every team that applied the pressure blowtorch on us with the press. We simply had too many players who lacked the work ethic or the will to get to the point where they were fit enough aerobicly to go with the leading clubs in the competition and hence, the dramatic inconsistency in performance. Fact is, we were never going to get any better unless things changed dramatically and they didn't. There's no better example than the recently departed Sam Blease who was sent back to Casey more than once to improve his defensive running and three years later, he had improved marginally at it - what a waste of talent! The fact is that this one way running game was becoming obsolete early in the decade and we were never going to improve without stepping up considerably our ability to run defensively as well as in attack. Both Neeld and Roos recognised this, the former didn't have the full support of a divided team and lacked the experience, strength and the back up from the club to bring the playing group together as a cohesive group. That's water under the bridge now but it's taken Roos a full year and he has yet to overcome the deficiencies created by years of poor recruiting, poor player development and inadequate coaching by all of them to the point where the argument about who was the better coach is totally moot.

The AFL's draft assistance rules are dead and buried and no club will or should qualify given the way the AFL treated our applications over the last two seasons.

But if indeed we are only going to use picks 2 and 3 and not another selection, then it will be because our primary list is full (including Sam Frost). That does mean we gave up pick 23 for Frost which is the opportunity cost foregone to secure the player. I don't know enough about Frost and time will tell in the long run whether it's a good deal or not but I have no doubt that there is every likelihood that a midfielder of some worth and potential is thereabouts at 40. Again, time will tell.

I'm with you there, Bub. It would be inconceivable if we didn't avail ourselves of the opportunity to use pick 40 (effectively 37th because a few clubs are already committed to selections due to the bidding process) in this draft. There will definitely be some handy footballers available at this selection and it's not as if delisting and reselecting players as rookies is unique to us or a bad thing to do in these circumstances - it's not.

Dana? You mean Voldemort has not only done the sex change thing but changed his name as well? That'll make him/her completely at home at the Gat now, won't it?

Paige Cardona is the rising star of draft experts. Here she looks at the Draft Bolters and Sliders.

If that is a genuine photograph of the person who can't be named then either the GWS fitness and conditioning staff have worked wonders with him since he left Melbourne or Stephen Dank's been doing some under cover work in West Sydney.