Dappa Dan

How can there be a second "Tom Lynch" in the league... Aussies not a very imaginative bunch. Then again I guess Steele Sidebottom isn't bad.

Couldn't agree more. I think that actually might be why I'm not enjoying the finals. The fact they're favourites. Last year I was dead-set certain they weren't winning a flag. This year I'm concerned. I'll take any of the other six over the Pies. Freo can get stuffed, but the other four would be good to see. Love the Dogs or Saints to get there, but I love Geelong's footy, so I'd take that too. And if Sydney win a flag, that, by association, means we're awesome... Of course. But we won't SEE it til next season. And there's new recruits every season.

Great OP. I reckon when we get to the point that we hold all the cards, we'll see trades, and we'll see them leaning more towards our advantage. It won't be like the Daniher days where we were trading for risky options (Pickett), trading for mediocrity (Heffernan) or just being downright desperate (Moorcroft). That said, it will all depend on what ratio of success we see with our drafting. If we have recruited a few each of mids, backs and forwards in each height range, and 1 or 2 from each category end up good players, then great, we'll sit back and do little in trade week. What I think is more likely is that we do amazingly well in one category (KP defenders) and not so well in another (small defenders). That adjustment will take us from the bottom half of the eight to the top half. Phase one is nearly complete, phase two will likely be the most fascinating of this generation.

I never knew Mark Twain said that...

Aaah demonland...

Yeah. Might have been a bit harsh there. But you're just not right about Bate and Dunn. Both players have their pluses and minuses. Dunn's kicking technique is probably better in set shots. Bate's doesn't look pretty by foot but I'd prefer the ball to be in his hands while on the run than Dunn's. And if there's one thing Bate is not, it's slow. The guy is a jet in straight lines. It's his turning circle and general agility that lets him down. I reckon this might be the biggest difference between the two. Dunn's actually not too bad when crumbing at times. For Bate, it's not exactly what you'd call a strength. Honestly though. Go back over the tapes. Bate deserves more respect than you've shown.

HA! One of the worst posts I've ever read.

That video Dazzler. Infantile, puerile, childish, garbage... Loved it. :D :D :D

Yeah. I enjoyed last off-season because we weren't even close, and we had a lot to look forward to in a couple of months. This year, not so much.

Yeah. I re-read the OP properly just now. 3 months til back to normal doesn't preclude him from training. I'd just about hope that, of those two things, it's his shoulder. I have it on pretty good authority that his hip injury is the culprit behind his loss of confidence and effectiveness in his kicking,.

So 3 months out. That would be end of November, start of December. When does Pre-season start? By the way dazzle... What is the above? Twitter? Pirated SMS conversation?

Hadn't thought of that. In his defence, I reckon over half those games he was tagging, which means vote-wise he might as well have not been playing. Thing is, he's actually not that great as a tagger, and is still getting better at the role.

Reminds me of the talk last year around this time that Carlton were going to try to prove Scully's Dad was an old Blues player. :D This kid could be the cream on the top of the cake that finishes the recipe. Our Joel Selwood. People think our recruiting is finished... but we still need two or three more big names.... or at least names that have the capacity to become big. And let's not forget that in two years when he's available, we'll likely be in the top 8. The other clubs will DEFINITELY bid us up to the point that we use our first rounder... Let's say we get pick 10-12... If it doesn't end up being Jack, it will still be a very handy player.

Scully 8th in his first year. Lift your game son. That'll be the lowest he ever goes in one of these for the rest of his career, injury aside. Very positive night. And you'd have to say, however they structured the votes worked beautifully. That's a pretty damn accurate top 10 for the year from the list. Sylvia maybe a spot or two high. Jmac could have gone a few spots higher, Bruce I thought deserved a top 5 spot. But otherwise pretty much dead on.

35/35 say keep the mo... HA!

As long as he's kicking bags, who cares... I reckon there'll be a few bigfooty thread on "who has the most hittable head in the AFL" with Lynden leading the charge.

Poor comparison. Brock's body is falling apart. That's the only reason he's not still putting distance between himself and Col. It's looking increasingly unlikely as the weeks and months roll by without him playing, but if he got himself right for half a season he'd remind us what he's capable of. Again, I can't go with you there. Dunn's early season form, while busy, was frustrating and marginally sub-par. It's only the second half of the year that he's broken out. And even then, probably from the Dons game onwards. If whatever niggle Bate's dealing with clears up, and both start on even footing in their bodies next year, I'd expect Bate to go well past Dunn again. He already is a LONG way ahead of him. Yeah. I reckon there's actually room for both. We have those five big names to fit in. Jurrah, Petterd, Dunn, Bate and Watts. Petterd and Jurrah play pretty close to goal, but watching Dunn last weekend, I have a sneaking suspicion he's finally gaining some confidence in his overhead marking and contesting. Bate isn't a Full Forward's toenail clippings, but he's a great lead-up HF. If Dunn can go deeper, there's room for both. Given Petterd and Jurrah play small AND tall, I reckon you could go with... FF Jurrah Dunn Petterd HF Watts Bate Wonna That's assuming a lot, of course. And it probably wouldn't happen that way. But I can dream. Oh... and Bennell on the bench.

Heeeyyy. I thought I was on my own. For the record though, I think you have to reward form, and if there was a round 23, Dunn would be easily preferred over Bate. I agree that he's done more and his best is probably a touch more dominant that Dunn (despite the 5 goal bag), but Dunn's earned his spot, and it's his to lose. Going into 2011 though, both guys start over. Pre-season will show us where both are at. As much as I've loved Watts getting games, I hope they play next season with all KP forwards on a clean slate. Play Petterd, Dunn, Bate, Watts and Jurrah on exposed form and let the chips fall where they may.

Both players will have better second seasons than Hannebery's...Good as he is.

Could happen. He and Bate fit the "got to give something to get something" mould.

I don't understand. Is Jurrah a star for the MFC? Of course he is. He's in our best 22 and has kicked bags. Aside from Green, Frawley and Jamar who've had AA years... He is going to be one of the most recognisable faces in footy next year. If you rephrased the question to "Is Jurrah a star who plays for Melbourne" or "Is Jurrah a star of the AFL..." Then yeah, you might find some discussion. And going on the fact he's universally adored by opposition supporters, commentators etc, and the fact that he'd easily get onto any list in the AFL... Yeah. He's a star already.

So after 22 rounds Frawley is our most likely, with Jamar the next... and Green the most vulnerable what with the panel's habit of picking midfielders as HFs.

Only thing absurd about it is this post. He's a supporter who is applauding his club for having a clean slate in the public eye. Giving off the image of a united front, with a team of leaders. There's nothing wrong with that...

HA! The reason I love footy. So many had him absolutely an unbackable favourite. What a great evener. Hanneberry for mine from Rockliff. Trengove should be third based on his early season work, but Scully might get him with his end of season form. Fourth? Maybe Basti...

If being a bit naughty with the fairer sex is the worst he gets up to I can live with that. If it's drugs, over-doing it on the [censored] or an attitude problem with authority/training... then no thanks. I think you'll find he might. I remember Sellar was behind Gibbs a few years ago. Then he had a terrible last season of juniors, and he dropped to 15. Darling had a shocker too.