Demonstone

Tom Browne reporting that Oscar will miss around three months with a bone stress issue in his lower back. Tough luck for the bloke, I hope he gets through it OK.

I guess that's the great unknown at this stage. They would have that prerogative. edit: Clarification sought - is Merrett a RFA or UFA?

He's a free agent. Essendon would get a compensation pick as determined by the AFL. No trading involved.

Not sure about that. Lots of posters on here have nominated him as trade bait but I'm not aware of any rumours of that actually happening. I'd rather keep him and also pick up Merrett as the free agent that he will become at year's end.

In the 1980s vs Collingwood we had Lyon opposed to Christian with the result the same as in Roman times.

I'm in favour of Option C: No bye the week before or during finals. Hate that dull week of no footy at all.

I can't for the life of me understand the calls for Majak Daw to be included for this match. He is very much a "break glass in case of emergency" type player that is well down the pecking order in this team and still not AFL match fit. If we see him in the senior side at all this year, it will only be because we have a plethora of injuries to our tall brigade.

Col!! You been on the Weed, man? Or too many Jackson cokes?

I'm sure that if the roles were reversed and it was Hawkins who was injured, Demonlanders would be adamant that it was an accident and that May had no case to answer.

* Jordon

Double negative. Brown not ready yet and Petty a long way ahead of Majak.

More probable that we beat them IMO.

* Jordon

Sparrow's the sub today.

Taken too soon.

Just missed out on the telegram from his missus.

The only name I can't see is Melksham, which would indicate he is either an inclusion in the senior side or will be sub.

I agree Wheels, he looks the goods at this early stage. Do you remember his father Daryl who played 13 games for us in 1984-86?

It's not unheard of.

I think it's human nature that, when confronted with an idea that's new and radical, to have a knee jerk reaction of looking for possible faults/negatives and automatically rejecting the concept. Having given this proposal some thought, I believe is is not without merit. My two cents.

Who do posters think might be our and other sides' natural "rival"? Traditionally for us it was Collingwood, but a lot of other clubs would probably think the same. I could see the interstate teams playing each other, maybe Hawthorn v Geelong and North v Bulldogs but as for the rest?

You'd think they'd be naturals at the sux-sux-sux starting formation.

Not many people would know that, apart from his football achievements, Checker also inspired Johnny Rotten to write that famous chorus "No fuchsias, no fuchsias, no fuchsias for me".

This won't please members of The Flat Earth Society. They have members all around the globe, you know.

I heard him described as "the rock under which the spiders were hiding".