CHF

It would seem that the whispers I heard a few days ago were correct with regard to the situation within Freo. I had not heard, however, just how badly they were handling the possible trade. If as I heard, they were not 100% committed to making the deal, they should have walked away without making a silly offer that was never going to be accepted. It has done their reputation no good what so ever. From the statement Bell made, the only reason they made the offer was so they could say "well we tried and Melbourne wanted too much". In the broader football world, all the other clubs understand what has transpired. I think Melbourne has been very transparent with the way they have handled the situation. Hogan wanted to explore his options and the club, with a clear understanding of what he has been through over the last few years, agreed to allow him to look around. that agreement came with a clear indication that if he wanted to move, we would need to get fair compensation. This is out in the public forum. What was never stated in public by Hogan or his management is that Hogan wanted to be traded to Freo at this time. I believe that this is significant. Melbourne has come out of this with it's reputation enhanced and this will stand us in good stead in the future, not only with other clubs but also with players. I do not think there will be any further discussion on a possible move to Freo this trade period. It will be very interesting to see what the response is from the club and Hogan in the medium term with regard to a possible contract extension. Do not be surprised if the club gets the May deal done.

This has become very messy but I believe that the fundamentals have not changed. I understand that Hogan is 50/50 about leaving or staying. Freo is 50/50 about making a fair offer or not and MFC is a bit sidelined waiting to see what reasonable offer comes from Freo. The first offer made by them is so far off the mark that I think we may be looking at leaving the table and keeping Hogan for next season. I would have no problem with that. I think in these days there is an expectation from the player that they want the club to act professionally and there is a reciprocal expectation that the club has of the player. It would make for an interesting season to see what comes out of the woodwork by way of a contract extension or possible clubs willing to deal. If no deal is done it may be that Hogan in fed up with the seasonal speculation about his return to Perth and the distraction it provides. it might just push him into making a longer term commitment. It would be good to see what he could produce without this happening each trade season.

If this news is correct, it gels with what I heard. It was Jesse that was not 100%sold on Freo. Game plan, coaching and the immediate future of playing once again for a bottom quarter club.

I am hesitant to post this as it is very different from what has already been posted. I have heard, from half a world away a couple of very interesting whispers with regard to Freo, MFC and Hogan. _ Melbourne prepared to deal if Hogan is happy moving and if they get the asking price. _ Hogan is not 100% sold on Freo. Not confident posting what I heard as it may get this place in trouble. _ Hogan and Freo both feel this is the last best chance to get him to move clubs but there is uncertainty both ways between Freo and Hogan. _ MFC sitting quietly waiting to see what they need to do but will not sit without a decision any longer that tomorrow. There are too many other things that nee to get done. My take on what I have heard, assuming it is correct, is that I am leaning towards Hogan staying another year and looking at another 1 year extension. I do not believe player or either club wants to go through this again next year.

What exactly is entailed in "a tour of their facilities"? Walk in the door.... Shake hands.... Listen to the welcome speech/sales pitch.... Smile at the receptionist..... Look at the different rooms while the real estate salesman tells you what you are looking at..... Shake hands with more smiling people.... Have a coffee and a chat about the decor..... Smile at the receptionist on the way out ... Shake hands..... Out into the sunshine for a quick smoke..... There has to be more to it than that.......

I get the feeling that there is a lot in play for the club this trade/draft season. We must have had some pretty solid commitments from players or clubs that they will trade with us if we have opened up so many spaces on our list and are willing to look at possible trades for Hogan, Tyson, Kent and VDB. After all, we do not have any early picks in the draft at present. I do not see much in the way of free agents looking at us.

Had a chat with a mate of mine that is close to the club and this whole situation is very fluid. Club will support whatever direction Hogan will decide upon as long as they get fair compo if he is open to a move. Current thinking is that Hogan will also support the club getting fair compo if that is the case. It is far from certain that he will be open to a trade this season. Possible outcomes: Open to a trade as long as there is fair compo. Stays put and extends contract till RFA.

as noted in my post....."looks like a done deal to the Tiges"

Let me see, a good outcome for the trade/draft period, given our present list situation for me would be the following: Delist/retired - Vince Balic Pedersen King McKenna Bugg Filipovic Free agency – in - Gaff - would also like to have a crack at Lynch but that looks like a done deal to the Tiges Trade in – May and KK for a top 10 pick and a pick 2nd/3rd round (Note: if we do not land May do we look at Shiel and Finlayson from GWS to use our early draft position from the move of Hogan?) Preuss – 2nd/3rd round? Trade out – Hogan - Get back two top 10 picks and cap space to accommodate Gaff and possibly one other ‘name’ recruit Kent – Get back a 2nd/3rd round AVB – not sure he will go but may get a 2nd/3rd round So, already 7 out the door with 3 more (Hogan, Kent & AVB) possible. That is 10 spaces on the list that can be sorted out between the senior list and the rookie list as required. 4 coming back via the trades above but I suspect one more in addition to the above. That would leave 6 spaces with us holding a first round and a few 2nd and 3rd round selection. This is going to be a very interesting draft/trade period for the Dees. Will be interesting to see the washup come the end of it all.

I would have liked to see him on the park more in the last couple of seasons. When he is fit he has the ability to play very good footy. The club obviously see value in him as he was not delisted. Their task now is to see what value he has in a trade to the Saints and to maximize it. We have had two retirements in Vince and Balic, and we have delisted 5 out of contract players, with the exit of Kent that will leave 8 spaces open on the senior and rookie list. Around 20% turnover of the list after a successful season seems like a large turnover to me. It will be an interesting trade draft period. There must be some very clear planning in place for the next month or so that the club is keeping very tight lipped about.

Mr. Selwood meet brick wall No.2

Mr. Selwood, meet brick wall No.1.

Now let me dream a little....... pies win tomorrow and we march to the flag with wins against cats, hawks, pies an tigers all on the MCG. hmmmmmmmm nice

Well, that was very, very satisfying. Now for a,drink.

I am in the camp that says to give him more time to develop before pointing him to the door. I think he has the potential to become a handy player for us. it is great that he has the opportunity to develop at the proper pace rather than be thrown into a 'sink or swim' situation. The context I put his situation into is to look at the development of Gawn. He was drafted 6 years before Wied and is 6 year older. it is not until 2 1/2 years ago in mid season 2015 that it clicked for him that he may have the game to be something above average. I could see the same sort of development profile for someone like Sam Wiedeman. To me he just looks like a person that is going to take longer to mature.

From the highlights package this kids looks to move really well. Seems to have plenty of time to get to the right places and knows what to do when he gets there. Will be interesting to see how he develops. If we get a good run with injuries I can see us running deep into finals in both seniors and Casey.

Maybe Gil can get the Fat Lady to perform as the half time entertainment

One problem I foresee is that if he is seriously injured in a tackle where he has dropped his knees and the tackler ended up going high it will be the tackler that is vilified and not the ducker.

I believe there needs to be something done about this otherwise we will either have 30 or 40 of these 'high tackle' decisions given a game or there will be no tackling at all. If this becomes the SOP of the man with the ball I will stop watching and supporting.

Ahhh..... The French.... they have a word for everything