Ron Burgundy

Scully was the highest paid player at GWS and they seemed to have retained much of their required talent. If true, this just needs to be managed well internally. Lever is an obvious player for a club like ours to break the budget on. I suspect the players understand this. Howe and Lumumba trades aside, our list management and recruitment strategy seems extremely good these days.

And that's exactly why he might be traded, particularly if (out of left field) we may be able to snare Menzel for less than a sheep station.

The one thing we have over Adelaide in this is that we are not based in Adelaide.

Which seems to suggest that we've convinced Lever, but that's only 3/4 of the battle. We now need to get it over the line with the Crows on terms that are palatable to both clubs. That's where the rubber can really hit the road.

Lewis has been a fantastic pick up for us. Simple.

This thread really sucks.

Shows how things have turned. In every year gone past for the past decade, the trade rumour thread is the most exciting thing to read at this time of year. But not this year. Not yet at least. Our heart is still beating. Almost can't believe it.

Lever seems to be the target and I'm super happy about that. Kelly would be great, obviously - but it seems to be absolutely unrealistic to think we could land both without putting a major step back in some other area of our list (ie, giving required players away) and our list is shaping up nicely now. I hope the club continues to focus on landing Lever. This Kelly rumour seems to be just wish-thinking and noise.

I thought second rounds picks were absolute bargains for each of Vince, Melksham and Hibberd. I was completely on the money. That said, I also thought Lumumba would be a great pick up for us. ? We were apparently going to select Melksham with pick 11 in 2009. The Dons selected him with pick 10, and we then suprised the industry by picking Gysberts at 11 (overlooking Talia). At least we've been able to make amends.

Carlton might want Pedo now.

If the footy department could even be bothered to read this stuff, they'd laugh and shrug their shoulders. It just doesn't reflect reality. He's an on field coach and leader out there. Such a viewpoint is simply ludicrous in the context of where this team's at and what it needs, especially in close games and, fingers crossed, finals. Everyone knows this, surely.

I was a big fan of his recruitment. Thought he was a bargain. Hibberd too. I was right. I'm Ron Burgundy. Stay classy Demonland.

I agree - Tyson is Scott Thompson mk 2. We won't be losing that player to the Crows (again). That said, we need to get Lever. And that won't be free of some pain.

Or Clarkson, for those whose sensibilities may be offended by any reference to Sheedy.

Agree. It was absolutely the right decision, even though I too didn't agree with it at the time. Goodwin. He is going to be our Sheedy.

The narrow losses that we absolutely should've won earlier this season are the games that still haunt me, eg, Freo. Beating a team by 70 instead of, say, 40 is perhaps frustrating, but it's not remotely on the same page as dropping 4 points, particularly in a tight season.

Every credible observer in the AFL would agree with you, as would Goodwin and his entire coaching team, and all of the players on the list. To suggest that Lewis has been anything but a great pick up for this club is simply pig-headed.

He did say at the end of the interview that he 'trusted' ... 'the club' etc. He was slightly equivocal but I'm not sure you could say he's leaving on the strength of that interview - he seemed to be putting his scent out there a little though. Fingers crossed, I would absolutely love to land this guy - might be the fill-up we need to avoid the inevitable Premiership hangover we may otherwise suffer next year.

Plenty!

I would absolutely love to land Lever. I suspect we have zero chance of getting him though. There's no way the Crows will let him go. The 2014 draft was our chance. In fairness to Paul Roos and the recruiting team, we were well aware of this and it seems we tried pretty hard to get him.

I feel bad for asking this because I really rate Brayshaw as a player and as a clubman (I like him wearing the red and the blue), but who would you take at pick 3 now: Brayshaw or Lever? Lever was apparently seriously considered by the MFC for this pick at the time.

Get Lever and our spine is absolutely elite. And it will be for a very long time. Roos loved this guy - despite being a great head coach, I've always thought he would've been a great recruiter. Getting this bloke is a no brainer - it's a pity we couldn't get the pick from Richmond that would've landed Lever at the club in his draft year. That the Crows apparently want to sign him for another 5 years says it all really.

And, for much of the season, playing in a midfield as the clearance guy with no dedicated ruckman.

He will. Took balls of steel to overlook him for Oliver at the time. Absolutely correct decision though. Superb judgement call by JT.

Jason Taylor has really earnt his pay cheque on this one. Parish was a lock for us at pick 4 in that draft. His credentials were superb.