whatwhat say what

For what it's worth, I've heard Howe wants to stay as he is good mates with Garland, who is staying, and he had dropped asking price by some $200k. Seems the club and the player are pretty unimpressed by the manager statements heard throughout 2015. The hot rumour is O'Meara is the Sun we are chasing.

i said to my tigers supporting mate that he might be an option for them - but the thing is they really need a gorilla defender, not another third tall. chaplin and batchelor already play that role in some respects. if we get a second round compo pick i'm happy for him to walk, and just like rivers i'll wish him well, as with the likes of dunn, tmac, omac, lumumba, white, et al we have a plethora of medium-tall defender types. garland is a good footballer, not a great one.

paddy dangerfield does the same thing.

crazy to think he's yet to hit the 50 game mark. for mine, he is the equivalent of our joel selwood - he's fierce at the contest, determined, brave, and has the neversaydie attitude that you just pray for in your prime-mover midfielders. he belies his height too by competing in the air against bigger blokes and we all know how strong he is at ground level. he's a gem.

epic understatement there al. i thought his rebounding abilities as a half-back were extremely ordinary as he's a terrible kick, he doesn't get the ball near often enough to play as a wingman, and he doesn't drift forward enough to have any impact on the scoreboard. i didn't see much leadership out there either; he regularly seemed to drop his bundle. scarily, varcoe looks the best of the three involved in this swap of players btw us, geelong and collingwood. i am really hoping we only signed him on a two-year deal, but i've heard it might actually be four? seems crazy to me. he looked old and very, very tired by the time the season finished - i doubt he will be in my preferred ostensible 'best 22' come middle of 2016, let alone end of 2017 / start of 2018.

Really hope it's not true and we are still moving for Bennell.

All but signed at gc17 apparently. Is best mates with Howe, fwiw.

I loathe Vickery. He's a selfish footballer. Wouldn't go near him.

Emma Quayle says our ratings were McCartin, Heeney, Petracca, Brayshaw and Lever.

He looks shot - I would not be surprised if he retires at the end of his current contract. His body simply doesn't seem cut out to hold together at afl level. I'm one of few supporters who rates his work rate and effort, but even that didn't seem to be all that great for the majority of the year.

clearly has talent, but doesn't look like an afl level player. panics with the ball in possession which leads to making a litany of errors, lacks defensive intensity, looks to have zero pace whatsoever, and looks like a massive fail as a top pick, which is particularly galling as the immediate three players selected after him look set to go on to be genuine stars.

if we have the pick (which i kinda hope we don't; i want it traded for a true mid who can come in and impose straight away), i reckon milera is looking a strong possibility. we're unlikely to go for collins given the mcdonalds, frost, garland and dunn of our backline world, and i would expect mathieson to be favoured over tucker anyway. but milera is getting hot at exactly the right time of the year. if his agility and arcane testing stuff is as good as his performances have been for centrals, he'll zoom up the charts.

it is funny that we have never had a 100 goal full forward in our history, yet fred fanning holds the record for most in a game with 18. i was very pleased dunstall never equalled it. i really can't see a 100 goal full forward happening again.

Agreed - just said the same to a mate on messenger. They're good enough for finals but that's about it.

amazing that he was able to do what he did this year with a debilitating neck injury that requires surgery and will require him to miss virtually the entire 2016 preseason. it will be interesting to see what effect thatr has on his year next year. personally i doubt it'll make a difference, as this bloke is just a legendary fighter.

the comparison with hodge makes perfect sense and not just because of the way that he plays but also in that he's struggling with his body in his first couple of seasons. we need him to have a good run with injury. i still think half-back moving into the midfield - a la hodge - is his best and most likely position. let him start behind the ball and control the play, and then move into the middle as the play dictates requirements.

i think he's quite possibly the best young player i haver ever seen in my thirty years of supporting the mfc. the way he controls the forward 50 is extraordinary for a 20 year old first-year player. $15m over the next 10 years. make it happen.

clearly he's one of the most naturally talented players on the list. clearly he doesn't make the most of those skills. he's trade bait; the question is more what would other clubs pay for him? i expect a second round draft pick at best; more likely it'll be a third rounder from a strong club, which is really the equivalent of a fourth rounder, and in this year's weak draft, perhaps the equivalent of a fifth rounder in a strong draft. he's fallen a long, long way. quite frankly, if the deal was watts for melksham i wouldn't be surprised. both players have spots on them.

North have been chasing a 'star' even longer than us. I for one desperately want Bennell in our side in 2016.

Jarrad Grant reminds me a lot of Watts - a good player, but lacks the body strength and sheer intestinal fortitude to ever be anything other than a fringe contributor.

Bulldogs are so exciting to watch.

murky, murky waters. his manager is colin young fwiw.

Great news for us.

if we can somehow miraculously extract bennell and prestia for 'just' our first rounder this year, our second rounder next year, and howe, i am likely to do cartwheels through the streets. gc17 would be getting reamed big time on that sort of deal.

Even Venom Denham reckons we are a shot for him, with Howe going to GC17 as part of the deal. Get. It. DONE.