Vipercrunch

... and forum posting.

I actually think the outside football world would be surprised if we chose anyone else but Bruce. His reputation is very good from what I here from other supporters and the media. It is a choice out of him or Green for mine. They are the only ones who seem to deserve it and have shown they can succeed in that position. No one else has done enough to earn it. Maclean has potential for sure, but I think needs to be concentrating on his own body and form. Leave the added pressure and work that a captain does to those who have shown they can play through a full season maintaining solid form.

I know nothing more than what I have read or heard about this years draft, but I will say that our picks 17 and 19 are massively important. We really need to get one, if not both of these right. The chances of getting a champion are very small, but we can't afford to get duds. I think the midfeild needs to be the target area and if both these picks are used on genuine, fast and skillful midfeilders then I will be very happy and will then sit back patiently and hope they develop into very good AFL footballers.

Unless there is a out of contract player that has yet to be named here or in the media I would be dissapointed is we said anything more than "pass" in PSD day.

I heard on the news earlier today that he has signed on as an assistant coach with the Crows. Like many I was hopeful he could find he was back to us but I guess the timing wasn't right for us. Our coaching group probably deserves a second year together.

Most people keep saying Garland is a straight up defender, but I think he could be even more valuable as a forward. I am pretty sure his brother said as much when he spoke about Garland on these boards. IF Rivers can stand up, Martin continues to improve after what can only be described as an awesome start to footy, Warnock continues to learn and develop and Frawley turns into what some people think he can, why does Garland need to stay a backman? How many tall backmen do you need? A backline consisting of Rivers, Martin, Frawley, Warnock and 2 smalls seems strong and well balanced and frees Garland to play in a area of much greater need (the forwardline).

If that was Sylvia's best game for the season, then we may as well forget it. He was looked totally disinterested and lazy in the first quarter. His lack of effort to chase and lead was disgusting. He must of got a blast at quarter time becuse he improved somewhat (only sightly mind you) in the rest of the game, but if that was his best...... We needed him to work really hard today as our number one forward, but he failed to step up to the task. We looked so stagnant in the first quarter because he refused to work hard to provide a target. It was only when we had the resting ruckman and Green and Morton willing to work hard across half forward that we had any real flow.

The endless bagging of Newton never ceases to amaze me. He will be a very fine AFL player, and I am glad the MFC have secured his sevices for us.

I was thinking the other day that we can't get rid of all our old players at once and thought Macca would be a good one to keep on the list.

As long as a good proportion of our playing lists goes too, then I would jump aboard no probs. The colours, the name, the home ground... all means very little to me really. It's the group of players that I like to follow and watch evolve, so I would follow a relocated Melbourne side in a heartbeat. On top of that, I truly believe a Tasmanian side is well overdue. If tiny back waters towns in USA can have NFL sides, then Tassie can have a AFL side. If their government is behind it and it can gather statewide support (not Hobart vs. Launceston) then it should flourish. Hopefully the issue is a dead one any way, and the new administration can see us get back some long term financial security.

Morton has creative vision, a unteachable and invaluable gift in todays game. On top of that he can run. Will be Top 5 in next years B&F if he has an injury free year.

You would think Martin will get at least 2 more games as per the pattern we have seen all year with young players, unless of course some clear things for him to work on back at Sandy have been identified. I can't see DB having any of our young guys changing to and fro all that much. I can't see Bode given another game, especially if Pettard and/or Jnr are ready to go. Perhaps Bode will be given some key areas to improve on back at Sandy now, giving him a chance to return later in the season. White and Newton probably have to do more than they reportedly did with Sandy to get in. With the improved output of Sylvia and Miller and the feeling you get that Jamar will be given at least 2 weeks as No. 1 ruckman, I think White and Newton need to pull out a big game or two in the coming weeks to force their way back in. Out: Bode In Pettard/Jnr

Given the amount of talk about this in the media and on footy forums, it would take a world of beating I suspect. Check out the thread on BigFooty about our win to see how yesterdays win impressed and gave enjoyment to nuetral supporters. PJ's run-down was THE highlight of the game imo.

High Tower has made 158 posts in one week - he is therefore tired and failed to detect the obvious sarcasm. :D

Check out The Age website for a very well done slideshow of our win yesterday with audio of the team singing the song and an interview with one of the players (Green perhaps?). Slideshow Demons pip Lions

People need to start checking the times for Sunday games - only one of the three Sunday games will be a traditional 2pm start. There will pretty much always be a game starting 1pm and 4pm EST to be shown on Foxtel, and given our current standing in the scheme of things, we are more than likely to be one of those timeslots.

Hat's off to you Vanlo for your prediction here. CJ may have just arrived.

Kudos to CJ for a great game. I was one that thought he had been given enough chances and had blown them, but credit to DB for getting the improvement out of him. He was very much a significant part of our win yesterday. The next step for him and all our developing players is to keep performing and keep improving.

PJ is fast becoming a favourite of mine and if he stays injury free and continues to improve will be extrememly valuable. The run down was fate - as soon as the chase started I reckon most of us knew the result. The passage of play was so up and down though - from ecstacy to dispair as the ball is turned over straight away with a terrible fumble. Despite the win, I hope some attention is given to the person who caused turnover - PJ put it on the line and deserved better than that. I kept mumbling "Bloody M....... B...!!!". And Aussie should have run into the square before he kicked what should have been a certain goal. The supporters around me couldn't belive he kicked the ball so early. Still, the guy is a absolute gem and my 5 year old wears his MFC jumper with No. 39 on the back to Auskick with pride. I always feel so much more excited seeing a guy from late in the draft or a rookie "make" it. Touching moment after the game when Stynes escorted Aussies father on the ground to celebrate with his son - special moment for the family and the club. Edit: The Aussie incident I was refering to was the snap from the pocket when he tried to bend it back. I thought he could have run much closer and made it a certainty. The one right at the end was perfectly understandable and he did very well.

It's pretty simple isn't it? White isn't part of the future. His influence has dropped off so much that there is no way he will play in another final for Melbourne. Everyone knows that. Jamar on the ther hand may be part of the future and will probably be given several week as No. 1 ruck to show if he is or not. If he shows enough then he stays next year. If not, it's goodbye and we recruit more candidates. Very good decision by DB and the selection commitee. Keep playing the kids and experienting with positions. Find out as much as we can about the entire list so we can go into draft and trade time knowing exactly where everyone is and what part they play in our future.

Yeah, surely the promoted rookie system works so that Valenti can stay on given we have other LTI candidates. It does remain to be seen if Valenti will be given any more games though. The coaches haven't persisted with him like they have guys like Bode. Hopefully for him his time will come later.

He did play quite well and got plenty of kudos from the commentators. He stood out playing across half forward with his mobility and willingness to work really hard. He is definetely showing a lot of promise away from the ruck and hopefully stays uninjured for the rest of the season so we get to see if he can do it consistently.

Brisbane wouldn't be all that tight in the cap would they? No Voss, plenty of veterans to ease things up. They have a pretty young list also. I doubt they are under much pressure at all. I would say no to Brown if it meant we lost 1st pick in the draft. At any other price I would probably go fo it, but its a very unlikely scenario.

I think we can call him a crook becuase he has already been found guilty and fined for the price fixing. The new case is because he lied about it to the ACCC. I do find it strange though that he got fined for the price fixing; fined a very insignificant amount for him in what effectively was the theft of a enourmous amount of money from the the Australian public. And now he faces 4 years jail for lying to a hearing about it. Does that men that lying is a far, far, far more naughty thing than stealing???

Although plugging holes in the list is very important, surely any pick in the Top 20 must be used on the best available. How stupid would we look if we chose to overlook Natanui because we decided we were looking real solid for Ruckmenfor him to turn into the franchise superstar some believe he has the potential to be. The best available must be the draft strategy early in the draft. Use draft picks later on when it is very hard to determine "best" to try and plug holes IMO.