demoniac

Crikey so I should only have music by genuine working class types cause only they can be authentic. Sheesh..off to throw out CDs by Gram Parsons, Townes VanZandt, The GoBetweens and the Triffids to name a few... Kudos to Nick Cave & Tim Rogers for never selling out and consistently making good rock n roll. I'd be up for a fan trade with North. Our noted talk back caller Chris from Camberwell goes to North in a straight swap for North's Tim Rogers. North get much needed SEN tallback presence and we get additional music cred to add to the likes of David Bridie and Ella Hooper.

thats a quality source...

Tex and Chris from Camberwell need their own radio show. Now!

having caught on to the fan interest in 'trade week' the Hun is using it to drive traffic to its site with whatever gossip it can think up or find when trawling bigfooty/fan sites.

Thats not 'Buy In'!

....good to see that my 2012 Overseas Travel Partner has signed up for another year. What will Chris from Camberwell make of this development?

At a guess Essendon. Shurely the players have no faith in their conditioning.

what if trading Gysberts secured us a talented player? he is under contract for 2013 so we are not going to give him away. his challenge is to build a frame that can stand up to the rigours of AFL footy. He is defintely more footballer than athlete.

I work with a few Kiwis in their early 20s. They played Aussie Rules in NZ. One has played Aussie Rules on the ground that is going to be used for the Saint's games. They are Hawthorn fans by the way due to the Hawks work in NZ, went to the Hawks v Pies last Friday. Know their AFL. One is winning the tipping at his previous workplace. Yep AFL is not going to challenge the dominance of Union. It does not have to be a success. We might get a few players out of it. Much like Queensland we might get a disproportinate number of 195cm plus talls who don't feel like packing down in a union scrum and are too tall for league. Or slight kids who get knocked about by much bigger kids in league and choose AFL and stay with it as they mature and fill out. Who knows..in 30 years time there might even be a NZ based team in the AFL. Smart move by AFL to include an ANZAC Match. They'll get more than 5000 for that as well as a sizable prime time audience back in OZ.

Only GWS and GC can force us to use Pick 3 on Viney. The team that nominates a father son selection has to use its next pick in the draft after the pick bid by another club. From what I've read GWS and GC are unlikely to do so.

From what you read this year the penny has dropped for Watts and he is now doing the work required to allow him to make the most of his talents.

Great post. Its surprising how many Melbourne fans dont understand the significance of Misson's recruitment. Has an outstanding record of conditioning players to play tough hard footy at the Swans from 2001 - 2007 and the Saints from 2008 - 2011. With Buttifant regarded as one of the best in the business. An AFL player can confidently place their trust in Misson knowing that he will put the through a pre season that will have them in the best condition possible to make the most of their talent. As a contrast imagine you are an Essendon player right now...

Collingwood tanked to get Pendlebury AND Thomas in the one draft. However they had the facilities and footy spend to develop talent. We only reached that point as of the 2012 post season. I am happy with the standards that are being set by Neeld, Craig and Misson.

The 'VFL' clubs play in the AFL. 'VFA' clubs play in the 'VFL'. The modern day VFL is run by the AFL. You may think that by calling the merger of the VFA and the AFL Reserves the VFL trashes the VFL brand but the reality is that that the AFL and all the Victorian clubs regard it as a development league. Why do Collingwood and Geelong have their own teams. Why are Essendon and Richmondabout to do the same. Why have Carlton and Hawthorn taken full control of Preston and Box Hill? And the simple answer is that they believe that fully controlling the development of their players is essential to on field success.

You are correct in stating that it did not used to be this way. VFL clubs had their own Reserves and Under 19 and even 4ths teams which they fully controlled and used to develop players. The VFA was a viable and proud competition if increasingly inferior competition. I supported the Camberwell Cobras. Of the 'old VFA' sides the reaility is that only Port and possibly Williamstown and Sandringham are viable as stand alone clubs. You may be right in your view that the AFL should turn back the clock to how the game was administered and played to some time in the past but that ain't going to happen. The MFC has to adopt best practice as it is in 2012. That is not negotiable.

I went with my Hawthorn supoorting older brother...

No i was stating the obvious that current AFL best practice is a fully controlled development team.

Victoria: AFL Clubs with standalone VFL teams: Collingwood, Geelong AFL Clubs committed to introducing standalone VFL teams: Essendon, Richmond AFL Clubs with 100% controlled VFL Alignments: Hawthorn, Carlton AFL Clubs with VFL alignment partnerships: Melbourne, North Melbourne, St Kilda, Western Bulldogs (v shaky with Willy looking enviously at standalone arch enemies Port) Interstate AFL clubs with standalone NEAFL teams: Sydney, Greater Western Sydney, Brisbane, Gold Coast SA/WA AFL Clubs who want standalone teams in SANFL/WAFL: Adelaide, Port Adelaide, West Coast, Fremantle. Nup having a standalone team that allows you to fully control the development of your players is not really that important...

Maggies have yet to replace Leigh Brown and his crucial sub era Utulity Tall/Relieving Ruck role. They have had to rely on Chris Dawes to relieve Jolly in the ruck and that has not worked. If they want to be challenge for a flag they need a better option for that role who can also carry the ruck if the ageing Jolly is injured. Wood is a tried and failed option and the other options are young and inexperienced rucks. There will be alot of pressure at Pieland to resolve this issue in trade period.

The VFL is essentially a development league. While Casey is aligned with the Dees their role is to develop Dees listed players and to provide VFL opportunities to talented young players from the outer south east of Melbourne. I doubt Casey can survive as a stand alone VFL team. Their only viable future is as Dees and aligned VFL team with all footy appointments and recruiting decisions approved by the Dees. If there is resistance to that by people involved with Casey then we have to bite the bullet and fund our own standalone VFL team. And Casey can chance their arm as a standalone team. We cannot compromise the development of our young players.

I concur. Do the Pies want to go into 2013 with Dawes in the Leigh Brown Role. Martin is contracted for 2013 and we ain't going to give him away cheaply. His value lies in his athleticism and flexibilty in the age of the sub. Indeed Neeld may decide that playing Martin and Clark up forward with Jamar in the ruck/resting on bench is advantageous. One thing is certain is that if they don't make the granny then there will be some interesting times at the Pies and one of the first items looked at will be forward/relieving ruck position.

No doubt his hammies are anxious to escape The Weapon. Turns 26 in January. Don't see him as a dangerous small forward. More mid sized marking forward. Presume Neeld and Misson are sure he has tank to rotate through midfield. No doubt there is a vacancy for a mid sized marking forward in our 22. If he does come to the Dees hopefully Neeld and co can get him to play a tad harder than he has for the Bombers. AND NO DIVING! Reasonably confident that Tim 'Regularise Player Payments' Harrington would not authorise an excessive offer coin wise.

I'll play. Dave Misson has an impeccable record at the Swans (2001 - 2007) and Saints (2008 - 2011) of conditioning players to play tough hard footy and to keep running from the first bounce to the final siren. A player who comes to the Dees knows that if they are prepared to do the work Misson will ensure they are in the best possible physical condition possible. And that s a pretty important box to tick for a player looking to get the best out of themselves. Misson ranks with Buttifant at the Pies for sustained excellence in preparing players to elite levels of fitness. As a contrast imagine Essendon trying to sell a player on the merits of 'The Weapon'...

Files thread under "MFC Messiah Complex"

how can you make that judgement until you see who leaves and who arrives?