Whispering_Jack

Do you know which team he plays basketball with?

The Aussie Rules Draft Central Site has rebranded itself into Rookie Me Central Here are their 2021 Rookie Me Central Power Rankings: November 1. Jason Horne-Francis South Adelaide SA 2. Nick Daicos Oakleigh Chargers Vic Metro 3. Finn Callaghan Sandringham Dragons Vic Metro 4. Sam Darcy Oakleigh Chargers Vic Metro 5. Ben Hobbs GWV Rebels Vic Country 6. Josh Gibcus GWV Rebels/Vic Country 7. Josh Ward Northern Knights Vic Metro 8. Mac Andrew Dandenong Stingrays Vic Country 9. Neil Erasmus Subiaco WA 10. Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera Glenelg SA 11. Josh Rachele Murray Bushrangers Vic Country 12. Tyler Sonsie Eastern Ranges Vic Metro 13. Jye Amiss East Perth WA 14. Josh Sinn Sandringham Dragons Vic Metro 15. Arlo Draper South Adelaide SA 16. Matthew Johnson Subiaco WA 17. Josh Goater Calder Cannons Vic Metro 18. Campbell Chesser Sandringham Dragons Vic Country 19. Darcy Wilmot Northern Knights Vic Metro 20. Sam Butler GWV Rebels Vic Country 21. Jacob van Rooyen Claremont WA 22. Tom Brown Murray Bushrangers Vic Country 23. Mitchell Knevitt Geelong Falcons Vic Country 24. Zac Taylor Calder Cannons Vic Metro 25. Matthew Roberts South Adelaide SA 26. Josh Fahey GWS Giants Academy 27. Jesse Motlop South Fremantle WA 28. Blake Howes Sandringham Dragons Vic Metro 29. Jack Williams East Fremantle WA 30. Toby Conway Geelong Falcons Vic Country 31. Judson Clarke Dandenong Stingrays Vic Country 32. Rhett Bazzo Swan Districts WA 33. Mitch Owens Sandringham Dragons Vic Metro 34. Connor Macdonald Dandenong Stingrays Vic Country 35. Corey Warner East Fremantle WA 36. Angus Sheldrick Claremont WA 37. Marcus Windhager Sandringham Dragons Vic Metro 38. Cooper Murley Norwood SA 39. Lachlan Rankin Oakleigh Chargers Vic Metro 40. Kai Lohmann GWV Rebels Vic Country

I don’t understand why people are seething about this. The rule was changed at the end of last year and I don’t recall any protests from Melbourne or anyone else. Admittedly, Mac was a completely unknown quantity at the time and, although we know a little bit more about him now, we’re still none the wiser about how he’s going to turn out. If a couple of clubs are prepared to draft him early, that’s their prerogative. It doesn’t fuss me at all.

Thanks - so presumably, we are going to see a list come out of the players nominated as NGAs.

Got that @IvanBartul13 but I notice that Collingwood announced the other day that it has opted against nominating one of its NGA prospects Youseph Dib for priority access at the draft. Was that just to let the football world know that they could freely select him in the knowledge that their bid wouldn’t be matched?

The Melbourne Football Club has designated December 5 as the most likely date for its celebration of the 2021 Premiership at our Home and The Home of Football - the MCG. Melbourne chief executive Gary Pert announced: "This event is incredibly important to us, as it is the first chance our players, coaches and the wider club will have to thank our supporters for their amazing support and loyalty." The Grand Final team and the remainder of the playing list, coach Simon Goodwin, the coaches and football staff and the premiership cup will all be there but what would you like to see on the day? I would like to see some structure on the day rather than people randomly walking around the hallowed arena for hours. A specific event with a program including vision of season highlights, presentation of the players, speeches (but kept to a limit), special presentations to retiring players - especially Nathan Jones and Neville Jetta and tributes to Demon greats who passed away and missed our first premiership in 57 years. I have also suggested elsewhere that thought could be given to combining the evening with the club best and fairest presentation which is usually held indoors on an evening at the Crown Casino with a lavish dinner. However, it’s a night that’s limited in numbers and given Covid-19 restraints, it’s likely that a much smaller number of attendees would be admitted. And of course, children usually miss out on the best and fairest because it goes on well into the night. A video package could be put together and shown on the MCG screens with highlights of every game and the votes in say four quarters each of 10 minutes to keep us football starved fans entertained before presentation of the Bluey to the winner. And because footy’s a team game, that event could be followed by the presentation of our heroes - the 2021 AFL premiers and end with a welcome to the new members of our list including Luke Dunstan and the recently selected draftees to celebrate going forward into the future and our quest for next year’s premiership to be played at The Home of Football - the MCG. Note: in true football tradition, I’m taking things one premiership celebration at a time.😀 Over to you …

Why not have the B & F Count at the G in front of 30,000 to 40,000 fans on the big screen at the G on 5 December at the premiership celebration function?

Kevin Sheehan reveals his top NAB AFL Draft Prospects: Tall forwards/rucks There’s such a shortage of tall forwards and rucks that Shifter’s covering both categories in one article.

The two stars Demons father-son prospect models his game on

Whatever. I think it has to be done by tomorrow.

Cal Twomey's Phantom Form Guide: Top draft prospects' October ranking

Pair of clubs named as keen suitors for Demons’ “athletically amazing” NGA talent

Both. Andy Moniz-Wakefield Midfielder “Age: 26/10/2003 Weight: 73kg Height: 180cm Club: NT Thunder/Allies

I sense the Redleg campaign to get him to Melbourne is nearing an end?

Playing for Melbourne would be a “dream” for father-son prospect

Sent to me by my brother-in-law who received it from a friend who runs at that park most mornings.

Doing it for Dad: Family tragedy fuels Bazzo's AFL ambitions

This is a very engaging Mac Andrew interview on You Tube

You only need one club to nominate him in the top 20 to secure him away from Melbourne and the only club that I’ve seen being specifically mentioned with Andrew is GWS by Matt Rendell when he said he was hearing that the Giants were going to use their first pick (#2) to draft him. They also have pick 13.

I just posted the You Tube vision of the 1975 SANFL Grand Final on the Norwood Connection thread. Ross Dillon was playing for the Redlegs in his familiar # 24.

I came across this footage of Norwood’s 1975 grand final victory over Glenelg. Ross Dillon wearing #24 kicks the goal to put the Redlegs in front late in the game.

Friday in the park C58013BB-E4E7-422E-AD3F-DB193D1DCDA1.MP4

Well picked up Rumpole and Chelly on your knowledge of Richmond’s list and ruck stocks. I think I might check out the other clubs in line to select a long term project ruckman in this draft. I’m always prepared to stand corrected but my position with respect to Andrew remains unchanged. On what he’s shown to the public in his eight matches played in 2021, he’s a mid 20s draft selection. I will strongly question the competence/sanity of any recruiter who picks him in the top 10 and moreover, I question all this hype surrounding him. I see one commentator has questioned whether the noise surrounding the favourite for number 1, Jason Horne-Francis is good for him. At least he’ll be playing AFL in an early round in 2022 and not in 2 or 3 years time which is the expectation with Andrew. The pressure of something like that will be similar to that experienced by Jack Watts when he went #1. Hopefully, he lands at a good club.

I’ve always believed 2020 was a bit of an outside opportunity lost in a season dominated by Covid19. After a couple of wins in the pre-season, the Demons looked fit and primed for a good year but along came the pandemic to temporarily scupper the season only hours before our opening game in Perth. Several weeks later, when hostilities resumed and, playing 20% less game time, the Dees staved off a late rush from Carlton before their third round match was postponed due to a positive case in the opposition Bomber ranks. Some “honourable“ defeats followed at the hands of the ultimate grand finalists before we moved into our first northern hub and started seeing some signs of the forward pressure that was to become synonymous with Melbourne 2021 against the Suns and the Hawks at Giants Stadium. Then it was up to the Maroochydore hub for the rest of the season and a difficult stint against leading teams Brisbane at Metricon and Port Adelaide at the Gabba. The first of these games was a narrow defeat but there was no energy in the side after a four day break and the inevitable thumping led to an intemperate blast from the club chairman. From then on, the team won six of their last nine games to miss out on the finals by half a game. Close results in several games, some not involving the club could have made the difference but it wasn’t helped by a heavy schedule brought about by the need to navigate the “frenzy” without respite due to having to make up the lost game from Round 3. Without the bye which all other clubs (bar Essendon) had, Melbourne was forced to travel in short time from Alice Springs to Maroochydore for an early wake up, hours of travel to Cairns and a same day game in high humidity vs Sydney and then four days later vs a rested Fremantle. The decision by the AFL to send us to Cairns and to play such a schedule proved disastrous with the Demons’ pressure gauge running on almost empty in both games. We now know that it was pressure, pressure and more pressure that was synonymous with the premiership team twelve months later. It’s all water under the bridge - we have our first AFL flag and there’s no need for excuse-making. However, it’s an interesting exercise to consider the sliding doors moment had we played the Swans game at the Gabba instead of in Cairns. A different outcome could have seen us in the finals and we know that when the home and away season ends, a whole new season begins to decide the premiership team. Last year, teams in the finals had a week’s bye to refresh after a heavily packed in schedule of matches. Both grand finalists had to play through all four weeks of the finals due to them losing their qualifying final matches. How well were the Demons equipped to take on the other teams had they played in a final series in October 2020?