Dappa Dan

Is it worth suggesting that having a bit of time on that ground will benefit us this season? Or will there be no difference at all. Better than nothing I 'spose.

Whoa whoa whoa! Robbo? I can see it with Ooze and Davey, but what's wrong with Robbo? Is it his knack of hitting the deck at every opportunity? Lack of forward-line pressure? No-one's perfect Old. I've always admired his attitude, but I'm sure you have a good explanation. Have at it. Look at Chooper squeezing out his guns in your new Avatar. Subtle as a sledgehammer.

I was just thinking that. Good to see a player who's yet to debut has fans. Even if it is his Mum, or himself.

(whispers) ... lucky son of a *****...

Depends on what you call a key back. I agree he's far less a KPP than Carroll, but he's been given jobs on the likes of Reiwoldt before.

Thread of the off-season so far. Finally some indicators of how some have trained, albeit only for a short time and only in a soft hit-out. Thanks to all who've contributed here.

Thanks for that CTD.

Rivers? Perhaps not a key back, perhaps too early to tell? I reckon Jared's already our most important defender, perhaps with the exception of wrecker. Interesting.

Yes you do. Brock does it regularly. Back on topic, if what you're asking is who needs to lift their game, then it's kind of like saying who's going to be the smoky that's going to come out of no-where and surprise everyone, because effectively it's the same thing. For mine what I want to see is, yes, a few young guys cement places and start doing some of the less appreciated work with good solid consistent seasons (Bate, Bell, Jones), and yes, one or two surprises (Bizzell, Yze, Buckley, Neaves) and yes, a couple of returns from injury or poor form (Robbo, Beamer, PJ) but most of all, there are a few individuals (more than I'm comfortable with, actually) that hold it all together in a number of ways. If any of them have sudden, dramatic and permanent form slumps, or are badly injured, then we've got big problems. These guys are: Neitz - we need his 60+ goals and presence. I'm not so certain he can be banked on like he used to be. I back him in as always, but every year he's a year older... White - It's not going to get better for him, only worse or exactly the same. If anything should go drastically wrong, I have little or no confidence in Jamar and PJ as full-timers. Carroll/Rivers - though an ever improving tall defence, we're still one major injury away from being torn asunder. We could afford injuries to the Biz, Ferg and Big Al in 2006, because, let's face it, they were never going to come out and tear the competition apart. It's their backups that don't fill me with confidence. That and the fact that the two of these guys worked so hard last year. Any one of Trav/McLean/Bruce/Green/JMac. These guys are just about the only ones who I haven't yet mentioned that are matchwinners through the midfield. We need 30+ possession players, and if you're not one, you'd better be like Trav who can do as much damage with 20. Once again I worry when their backups are either young, or basically crap. Like everyone says we have no stars, but a lot of players that share the load that a star would need to bear. Just like a team who loses a star, if we lose one of these fundamental parts of our setup, I fear for us. Or at least our chances for a flag.

Jeez that makes me angry. We left Wrecker at home despite the fact that he's been training, why not do the same with the flash? He's too important. The worst thing is he'll probably play against the Hawks in 2 weeks. If he's got an ankle, rest him until the Saints match I say. We had a number of players do things like this last year where they had complaints, but looked to recover and keep getting up week after week. Lo and behold at the end of an indifferent year (or worse) it's discovered that player X injured himself in pre-season training or in some exhibition, or even in the early rounds. If Aaron shows any signs of being hindered in a fortnight, I'm gonna be [censored].

Back on topic, my computer doesn't seem to want to load that article. Is there any mention in there of Miller's fiance? I know she's from another country, perhaps one where Spanish is one of the preferred languages? Speaking of his fiance, if I could have an avatar of her I would. Impossibly stunning young lady.

90+ kgs? That's not too bad, though you wouldn't know it. If that's right (and why wouldn't it be?) then that's encouraging.

I reckon this will be THE hot topic for 2007 on ology and land, for the purists. My only hope in this regard is that the board don't make a decision after round 11 or 12. By then we will only really have a rough idea of how we're travelling as we'd have only had a few matches away from Victoria, and the G. I think it would be reasonable for ND to expect the board to see some food on their plate regarding late season fade-outs. ie, when we get to the mid season break, I'd imagine the board would want to see what happens in the second half and ND would not be surprised given the team's form in recent years. The same can expected if the situation is reversed. What if we're only 6-6 by mid-season? Neale would hope for the opportunity to prove his worth in the second half, and should get it. You can never know, and my feeling is the board may play it week by week, but you'd suggest post round 22 would be the ideal time. If things are too hectic, then perhaps a couple of rounds before the end of the season, and if Neale resists because of coacing restraints, post finals. It's a hairy thing to consider though, if the board were forced to wait until then, another club may pounce. At least he realises he's been in the job a long time and still has a fw points to prove.

I'm not so sure yet about Adelaide being goners. Midway through last year they were so far ahead everyone was worried about how to beat them. While they have a lot of players in the older bracket many og them are only just in their 30s. It's not like they're in the Buckley/Hird/Archer category where they're limping on for one more season. Look at Neita. He had one of his finest seasons at the age of 31. Add to that the fact that some of them are greats of the game, like McLeod and Ricciuto. I'd suggest that they're in a little bit of trouble as far as their next few years go, and even this year still appears a bit risky. They're still not favourites for the flag. But I reckon many are too quick to write them off. I'm with fan on this one. 2007 or bust for the crows.

It's funny. As poorly as we rate the guy, he'd probably play 22 for Carlton if it weren't for Thornton. Actually, if Thornton had been traded maybe we could have looked to move him to Carlton. Regardless of that though, the only role I can see him taking is that of someone like Benny. Not the gorilla defender role, but the floating-in-and-out-of-the-22 role. We've always had a somewhat dodgy defence, and with the young up and comers that ooze class, we only really need one or two backup KP defenders. He fills that role nicely. Depth for Ferg in 2007.

Not true DDave. Last year I asked to sign up for foxtel one day, and the price and contract they offered was too steep for too long an amount of time. I ummed and aaahed, but in the end I couldn't afford it, so I bailed. They rang back a week later and offered me a six month contract, again I bailed. A week later again and they offered me a month-by-month package that was free installation, a REALLY cheap deal for one month (a try-out deal from memory), and then after that I was free to cancel without any fear of paying any penalty from prematurely cancelling a contract. So the upshot was that I was left with a super-cheap deal for ALL the channels for one month, and then after that month I was to select which channels I could live without, ring them up, and cancel away. From what I can glean, all they want to do is get you hooked. I'm certain they have some sort of overwhelming statistic whereby the amount of people who "try" the full package can never do without it once they're connected. In my case I was able to resist the temptation of paying the odd extra $15 for some of the more fun channels (comedy, movies), but I'd be lying if I told you I didn't desperately want my crappy films and "Who's Line is it Anyway" back. One of the ways they keep you hooked is by leaving all the channels on the IQ menu just so you can see in clear blue and white what you're missing out on. Once I went without, and lived with normal tele for a while, I kind of shook my head clear of that foxtel-induced haze and realised that even for a lover of screen in all its forms, I was addicted. But I digress. My point is that if you're stubborn enough, they'll budge before you. As long as you make them understand that they can have your money YOUR way, or not at all. Within reason of course. For the record, I'm not sure how it'll work being just before the footy season. I signed up a couple of rounds in. Also, I'm not sure how the different states work. I was living in Sydney at the time, perhaps that has some impact on how relaxed they are with rules.

I'm not sure where you live, but to make matters worse you'd suggest that when games clash the usual will happen and demons matches will get bumped to foxtel. It may be speculation, but I reckon we'll cop more of the foxtel commentators than most clubs.

Oh dear. Surely you'd know me well enough by now? Of course!

Like I said. There is so far one person (outside of MFC) who claims we're a powerhouse, and if you ask me the word of a toothless filth fan means little if anything at all. This thread was intended only really as a joke. Simply because Joffa makes me laugh, mostly because of how ridiculous he and his celebrity are. I'm certain that what people "think" about us, and what their "perception" is will change when we see some REAL change for the better. Change being winning a flag, or at least threatening to. But I see what you're saying. If you take a long hard look (a very long hard look), you'll see that many of the most Jaded demonlanders actually do more to spruik the club on here than your good self. Those of us who come on here claiming we're the next big thing will only end up with egg on their faces IF we come up short. Now I, as much as the next man, have more faith in the current list than I've had in my life with the possible exception of one period of time. But the sad fact is the club's had a number of good players come and go and done little about it. Are we changing our soft image? Yes. Are we winning more games? Yes. Are we winning finals? Yes. Are we building? Yes. Are we there yet? No. Will we get there? and this is the important one... maybe. It's the best I can do Toad. Call me a fence-sitter, but I reckon there are a number of current sides out there who are MUCH stronger than us in 2007. Unless we beat all comers and win the premiership while we have the chance I'm afraid your "powerhouse" feelings are all for nought. By gee I hope you're right though.

That reminds me, I've seen Jeff White at my gym a few times. I remember a few years ago when there was some talk of him being traded to St Kilda (or maybe Collingwood) I mentioned as I walked past "thank god they didn't trade you." After the initial shock, he [censored] himself. Nice guy, and very quiet, almost shy for a man his size. Though he's a midget as far as ruckmen go, he's just enormous to any normal person. HUGE shoulders and jaw (particularly after 2005).

Aaah, I see. I'm not sure where BBP got $13 from. If you go on their site it says the minimum is 36.95, with an extra 15.95 for the sports package. Fair enough occo. The Fox commentators (with the exception of Grybas) make me nautious. Oh jeez, just thinking about them makes me want to puke. And also, I can totally understand the financial strain. Especially for certain sections of society, notably the elderly, unemployed, students etc. etc. Yeah, not for everyone obviously. But if you feel you're missing too much live viewing of footy, it's conceivable that you can sacrifice other money you've put aside for entertainment, since it takes the place of certain pastimes, like going to the cinema. BTW, for those who are worried one way or the other, there are sites where you can download whole football matches to your hard-drive, with the assigned commentaries and no ads. Usually with a fair amount of post-match gubbins as well. You should be aware that most matches take 24-48 hours to become available, so it's obviously not as good as the real thing, though it's HEAPS better than the bigpond version. One of the better versions of this is aussietorrents.com. Unfortunately I think you might have to be a member. If you're not you have to be invited. If anyone wants an invite, I think I have a few invitations I haven't used. PM me if you're interested.

Huh?

Just to further emphasise BBP's point, I had foxtel last year in Sydney and for about a month before I moved back, I had it cancelled. While I had it connected, during the footy season or otherwise, I thought perhaps it was a bit steep. But once it was gone I started spending money on movies at the cinema that I otherwise wouldn't have spent, as well as on other forms of entertainment I needed to get me out of the house. As anti-social as it may seem, foxtel actually saved me money in the long-run. 1 night at the cinema = $13 ticket, + $13 for girlfriend + $20 worth of crap you don't even want to eat + dinner if necessary $?. That's $46 or more. 1 whole month of standard foxtel and a variety of movies that are pretty recent, plus sports package = $36.95 for standard package + $15.95 for sports + $15.95 for movies = $68.85. As a cinema buff I usually go to the movies each weekend, and with the IQ box I found I could tape ANYTHING and watch it whenever I wanted, not to mention games I'd want to review, be they demons or otherwise. In NSW last year, demons games were hardly ever shown on FTA. Foxtel was my life. Having said that, I was living in a foreign place, in an area where you wouldn't just go walking the streets. Socialising was at a minimum, so I don't know whether or not it'd be such a money-saver in Melbourne as it was up north. Also, without footy, it's just an indulgence. With footy, it makes a LOT of sense.

DD36, I like your style. Subtle as a sledgehammer.

Robbo in defence?! That's new. Actually that's up there with the last things I thought I'd ever hear. I'll have to think about that one, but I'm sceptical JJC.