george_on_the_outer

In first quarter Petterds opponent (Shiels ) ran off him on 3 occasions which resulted in Hawthorn goals....Shiels 15 disposals to Petterd 10. Missed 2 easy set shot goals from 15 metres out....Joe Boys analysis is correct.

There is NO priority pick in the 2010 and 2011 draft. Here is the link to the GC concessions and at the bottom is the schedule for picks: http://www.afl.com.au/tabid/208/default.aspx?newsid=76855 If you finish last you get pick 4 then pick 27. HOWEVER!!! GC have already accessed the top 12 17 year olds already. So pick 4 really is pick 16. Pick 27 is really pick 39!! There is no way for a team to rebuild through the draft for 2010 and 2011, all the talent has already gone. And that is why the MFC went so hard to get the draft picks this year.

..and then while on the ground grabbed the ball and stopped it going anywhere. He is unco, but when he rucked for the whole 3rd and half the final quarter, Casey scored 10 goals straight!. He left the ground and they scored for the first time in 50 minutes of play.

Great idea. And before George Pell and his mob start revving up the crowd, perhaps they should visit Rome on Good Friday!!! Yes... the shops are open, the bars are running hot, you wouldn't know it to be any different from any other day of the week. It's an opportunity to be grabbed before Eddie decides it belongs to them exclusively.

Catch up with me anytime, and I'll replace it....can't trust those Postal workers.... Am hoping to be at Casey this weekend and I'll bring some badges along.

May be able to get to the game now......depends upon shifts at work. For others who have paid, apart from one person who hadn't included an envelope ( give it a couple of days), the rest are in the mail now.

Don't think so at this point

Telstra were given the contract years ago. Only Essendon were smart enough to work out the marketing opportunities of the web, and so control their own site. The contract specifies enormous fees payable to Telstra if anything is changed. Their vanilla product means that 15 club sites all look the same. I think Collingwood has spent a lot trying to turn theirs into something slightly different, but it cost! Telstra only allow a fixed amount of upload changes without cost. So if the club wants to put up new information, change the banner etc it can only do so within these limits. And( and this is the real problem) 14 other clubs are trying to do the same thing!! It is doubtful that Telstra provide sufficient data entry people to do the job as there is no additional income to them for this activity. So the work piles up, and the clubs have to prioritise what they need up immediately. Robbo's face has probably been at the bottom of that pile for months.

For those who have yet to receive their badges....they will be in the mail this afternoon. If you get along to the Forum match on Sunday, I hope to be there. So if you want one then catch up. I'll have a DD badge on the MFC cap!

No future for Port Adelaide either... In Adelaide ( like Collingwood in Melbourne), you either barrack for them or hate them. Do they have any supporters outside S.A.? The only followers that Port have are the old Magpie supporters. Everyone else barracks for Adelaide. On a national basis, they have too few to be financially viable. It is just a matter of time....

Chip is already there, but the average follower hasn't realised it yet. The litmus test was the Carlton game when Fevola kicked 7. Only 1 of those was when Frawley was on him and if I remember ...that was to half time. Bailey had to ensure the required result, so he took the kid off the Coleman medallist, and sacrificed McNamara. Then to the St.Kilda game....only 1 goal to Riewoldt when Chip was on him. The remainder of his score happened when Frawley was benched, again to achieve the required result. 2 of the best forwards for 2009..... Both beaten by by a 21 year old! Trouble is...not many have noticed because of the on-ground results. In 2010 when we are playing to win, then his name will be mentioned more often.......and Riewoldt and Fevola will still only kick scraps against him..

None of the previous was correct. It was in Fawkner, and fell over when we missed the submission date before the pokies cap came in.....

Not a totally accurate picture of the financial position of various clubs, being written by a journalist not an accountant. Yes our position is tenuous, but paying off debt at a time when our on-field position is at an absolute low, is remarkable. The reduction in interest payments alone will affect future profits considerably, all else being equal. It would be reasonable to think we will be debt free by the end of next year. Thankfully, we have been stabilised by the current administration, just at a time when the tide is turning. Things are "on the up" The position of North is seriously understated, no white knights appeared as Brayshaw predicted. They missed their opportunity and the AFL just waits in the wings for it all to fall over. The position of Footscray is catastrophic, when you read the notes. They nearly closed shop 12 months ago. It hasn't got much better since it seems..... Richmond has only made profits on the basis of an $8M gift from the Federal Government for "an Indigenous centre" They haven't built anything yet, but it has propped up their books for 2 years! Wait until the bills start arriving this year, when they are on the bottom of the ladder. For the second time in 15 years Collingwood have shown they cannot make investments work. Eddie will be out of a job if he has to front the members next year for the 3rd year in a row promising to fix the Hotels problem. If they don't win a Premiership to cover up the financial debacle, the blood will flow.

Exactly. And given that the game is "free" for them, more will turn up, as opposed to a normal away game. For us that means more "reimbursement" and a bigger crowd overall, especially being the first game of the season.

Don't read too much into it. How many picks do you think clubs will have in the PSD? Probably 1 or not at all in a lot of cases. So if he is lucky - 1 chance in 16 of being picked up. He has far more chance of being picked up in the ND, and can still be picked up PSD. ....and if he has heard that we have committed to someone else for the PSD ???

While strictly correct the practical reality is that donations to the R& B foundation, mean that the club do not have to purchase and maintain these facilities. Hence the club would not spend as much ....which could lead to a profit.... which can be used to reduce debt. Best part about the R&B is that money can ONLY be used for these activities rather than spent on other things. It is a way of ensuring that capital is put into the club.

As one who regularly gets to the pre-season stuff, there is really no point going until December. Post season medical attention means there is a fair contingent who aren't there. And more importantly for the die-hard fans, neither are any of the new recruits. So the "training" consists of weights, running and other individualised activity. It's only when the team finally gets together that something interesting is to be seen.... And when it does we'll be there and keep everyone in the picture......

It is it fantastic to have 9K members signed up less than a month after the GF. Not only that but the club now doesn't have to send out 9000 renewal letters with all the work and cost associated. Compared to only a couple of years ago when we couldn't get a membership renewal before Christmas...this current administration is light-years ahead.

Have spoken with Tim_ who is still very ill. He said he will try to have the joining functionality running within a week.

McGurk becomes AFL first International trade 26 September 2009 In another interesting twist to the McGurk saga, he has been linked with Kerry- the Gaelic Football Champions for 2009. With Taydh Kenneally having completed his childhood dream of an All Ireland Championship, there is speculation that he may head back to the Colonies for a further stint with Sydney. Paul Roos was very keen to offer Kerry something to entice Keneally back to the Australian shores, and McGurk could fill that role. " An Irish heritage, a slightly volatile nature, not to mention the red-hair makes him the all-round package for the Kerrymen" said Roos following his recent trip to Dublin. " Recent developments associated with young Hurley may also have some appeal to McGurk, as there is not known to be an extradition treaty between Australia and the Irish Republic. Something to do with them not wanting back any of those who they sent over here a long time ago..." he further added. All that remains now is for Sydney to come to some suitable draft arrangements with Melbourne or the Gold Coast as compensation. That and some adequate travel arrangements to Ireland- which is being handled by well known Sydney travel agent Mr.B.Trimbole.

Would not touch Butcher based on today's performance. Unless he marks it first time, there is no second effort and a lot of standing on the outside of packs waiting for someone else to do the work. Poor defensively, lost count of the times his opponent ran the ball out of defence. He looks good at this level because he is tall compared to his opponents. Will fit in well at Coburg with the Richmond seconds. Scully on the other hand won the game. Not played on the ball until the last quarter, he had 4 successive clearances which broke the opposition. Lightning fast hands and good decision making combined with relentless running will make him something special for us. We don't have anyone who handles the ball this well. 5 opponent were rotated on him during the day. He just ran them around, even if he wasn't involved in the play. Didn't leave the ground for the whole match. Pity was that it appeared the coach was following instructions to "cotton wool" him. Why wouldn't you put him in the middle for the first 3 quarters? However, when the match needed winning, he was unleashed.

" They'll never see us coming...."

One wonders if some people actually watch us play during the season before they start typing their opinions....... The FD has a lot more inside knowledge of the various abilities of our rucks, but it is astounding that people here are writing off Spencer on the basis of what? 4 games total? Or have we forgotten that he was injured for a considerable part of the season. The guy is a 203cm rookie who has yet to put on any meat on his frame. Of course he will be pushed around. Yet he has some real mongrel about him that has been missing in our rucks since O'Dwyer. Yesterday he destroyed Kruezer in the tap-outs and his second efforts and attack at the man in the middle were what was needed. Hitouts to advantage: Spencer 19% Kruezer 13% Cloke 0%. I would suggest Kruezers successful stint was when Spencer was off the ground. His kicking isn't great...granted. But is Jamar's? As Redleg pointed out to me pre-season, it it because he doesn't drop the ball, but places it onto his boot with his long arms. Yesterday for the first time I saw that he was dropping it, so it is something being worked on. Meesen has positives? I hope so, but again on the basis of what? Again 4 underwhelming games this year from someone picked in the top 10 in the draft. He is certainly not as aggressive as Spencer. I will stick with what the FD thinks, but at the moment the rookie Spencer has shown much more . Jamar and Johnson...well we all know what we get, and we all know there are deficiencies. But consider that Hawthorn has Bailey, Campbell, Taylor, Lowden and Renouf on their list. None of them are world beaters either, but perhaps they are thinking that these days you actually need to have 4+ rucks on the list........especially when they snagged a Premiership using them, however little they contributed.

The lottery ball system suggested by Calabrese Boy works and works well in the NBA,NFL. Vlad and the AFL won't introduce it because it wasn't their idea and no-one tanks in any case do they?

No .....needs to play AFL so that we can convince the Swans that they need him at FF!!!!