Lord Travis

That’s true, if you don’t play by the teams rules then you’re gone. It just happens that in this case the rule appears to be a hinderence against quality opposition. Surely there has to be some logic applied to when to pull the trigger. I guess I’m just frustrated, like many, that we seem to waste opportunities by being too cute. And I’m frustrated that talented players like Petracca are yet to impose themselves when opportunity has been presented. Here’s hoping Weid takes his chances today and helps us over the line.

Completely understand this and agree with it all in theory. We showed in the first half of the season that we were the number one team for scoring goals within 15 meters of goal, thus meaning our accuracy was highest. This only came against poor teams however. Against any opposition of substance it hasn’t worked and it’s been an embarrassing shambles. If a player takes a mark 40 meters out from goal, they should take the responsibility of having a set shot and not looking to pass amongst a clogged up area in slow play. I want to see guys like Petracca step up and actually take some responsibility to try to and win games.

He's not alone. Whenever any of our players get the ball 40 out they still look to pass it. None of them will stand up and take responsibility for the shot. It's either team direction from above to always look for a better option, or they're all sh*t scared. I'd say it's the later.

I’m just waiting for Weid to start sticking his marks. He is our most aggressive and component tall forward in the air, he just needs to start clunking them. He just launches at the ball so well, a really good leap, it would be a shame if they never stick. The coaching staff are really bullish about him becoming an aerial threat in the future. Part of it is fitness and concentration for Weid. He’s one of the most aggressive tacklers on the list, but once he get what tired he stops sticking them. Hopefully he continues to build fitness, as the aggression and technique are already there. Here’s hoping this weekend it starts to come together more consistently.

In 2017 Pedo was competitive and had a good season. In 2018 at AFL level he has been rubbish. Up forward he has been useless, kicked less than a goal a game and got in others way with poor leads. He was tried down back as a last resort to revive his career and on the weekends showing that move is a bust. He was probably our worst player against the Swans. Only Hunt and Jetta has less impact, andthat was because they both missed part of the game injured and concussed. At 32 years old next season, he’ll be lucky to get a one year contract purely as a last resort to cover injury. As an AFL player he is finished. Disappointing performance his year considering he was competitive last year. The end has come quickly for him and a few others it seems.

Is this post sarcasm or genuine? Have no sympathy for Stevens or most journalists. The quality of journalism, especially in Australia, is utterly rubbish. The stories and things they post do far more harm than what Gaff did. If Gaff deserves 12 weeks, then Stevens should be behind bars. You get more factual information from anonymous posts on internet forums than what the so called journalists serve up these days. They spread absolute rubbish and are not held to account. Pathetic scum. I'd welcome Gaff to the club with open arms. Hopefully this incident has knocked a few hundred thousand off the contract for us

Congrats to him on 150 games! I was one of the few on here who defended him in his early days at the club. He's always had talent to burn, but for some reason people always seem to sink the boot in and use him as a whipping boy. Might be due to having a bit of a punchable head He just needed a bit of time to settle into a new environment and to be played in a suitable position. It's been good to watch him flourish up forward. He played his best footy at Essendon on the half forward flank rotating through the midfield, so it was strange to see him rotting away in the back pocket for a bit there where his strengths weren't being utilised. I'm glad the coaches shifted him, as we've now seen what he's capable of. Those long flat kicks are a delight to watch then he strikes them. Hopefully he becomes a bit more selfish and launches a few more of those 50 metre goals the next few weeks! He's become a barometer and leader out there for us, and if we're to head into September I feel he will be a big part of that.

I opened this thread expecting news he had re-signed. I am disappoint. Sign on Gus!

41 disposals and 2 goals, including an important one to seal the win. Gun. Lets hope we can afford him!

He was best on ground again last night. Absolutely brilliant young player. In recent memory, only Joel Selwood and Chris Judd have had similar impact in their first 50 games, but I’d wager Clarry bests them both statistically. Oliver is a rare talent. If he starts hitting the scoreboard more regularly he’ll quickly become a top 5 in the league player. Very happy he’s in red and blue!

Hanners is cooked. He’s a shadow of the player he was and has struggled for coming up on two years now. His body is letting him down and he’s never been a good kick as it is. Big pass. Ollie Florent looks a gun and the perfect target for us. But again, we have no currency to trade so will have to give up a quality player (eg. Brayshaw, Petracca, Oliver etc) to get him. Risky thing to entertain and he’s less proven at this stage.

He’s dropped off big time in the past 1-2 years. Whether that’s the poor environment he’s stuck in or him as player losing struggling I’m not sure. Not sure he’s the best target for us now, despite our inexperienced key defensive depth.

If we had Gaff instead of Tyson or ANB today we would’ve won. Must get.

37 disposals, 7 score involvements, 7 tackles, 1 goal. Probably BOG again. On 2018 form he'd be our best midfielder at present. If we can afford him, we'd be mental not to go hard for him. Exactly what we need!

He's had more disposals and laid more tackles than anyone on his team thus far tonight. He's no longer a purely outside player, and is winning his own ball in a team getting smashed. Not having a great game by any stretch, but he works so hard and would give us something we sorely lack through our midfield.

If they’re willing to offer that, he’s staying an Eagle. It basically means they will match our deal and we’ll have to trade for him. We have nothing of value in terms of picks we can trade, and I doubt we’d be willing to trade any of our guns to acquire him, so game over.

This season he’s basically doing what we expected Petracca to do. He’s kicked bags of goals when playing forward (5+6 goal games), and dominated in the midfield on both the inside and outside. We don’t have picks to get him, so pipe dream. Hopefully Petracca gets a rocket and follows De Goeys lead as he should be the better of the two.

He had 14 touches and a goal in the first quarter when the game was still hot. Either you're biased or blind.

Billings is a talented player. He was great in 2017 despite his inaccurate goal kicking and put up similar numbers to Petracca. If he wanted out and it didn't cost much, we'd be mental not to have a crack. He's clearly lacking confidence at the moment and is playing in a sh*t team where it's hard to build momentum. With a fresh start and some confidence I have no doubt he could be a seriously handy player. Any player who can crack a 30 touch 5 goal game at AFL level has to have some talent and skill!

His intensity is just b*llshit. Opposition players are legitimately scared of him! Not only was his intensity back today, so we his agility and burst pace. His sidestepping is top shelf, and if it doesn't work he just bulldozes through them anyway! So great to have him back out there. Gawn, Viney, Oliver, Jones/Brayshaw is currently the best centre square midfield in the league.

Pick 5 behind Petracca and Brayshaw in 2014, has just hit 50 games. We have no first round pick this year and cannot trade next years, so unless we're wiling to trade one of our own young guns (Trac, Oliver, Hogan, Brayshaw) then we cannot get him or Wines or anyone. On the basis, can't see it happening and prefer our youngsters to him.

Doubt he will leave the Dees, but both his younger brothers play for the WA clubs, so if he leaves there's a fair chance it'd be to WA? Brayshaw is a more rounded midfielder than Petracca, but Petracca has the x-factor that not many do. Great to have them both!

Wasn't clean with the ball in the first quarter, but was still cracking in get amongst it when some other Dees hadn't switched on yet. He got better as the game wore on and his kicking on both sides was on show. Oliver had more ball, but I reckon Brayshaw was BOG. He kicked well, made good decisions and got back to help out when needed. On top of winning a decent amount inside ball, he was a really good link player coming out of defensive 50 today. He just needs consistent games now to build consistency after a good few weeks. He was drafted as a well balanced gun midfielder, and he's starting to show why. Potential gun at AFL level. Keep it up Gus!

Gaff is exactly what we need. At 25, he's the perfect age bracket for us. All Australian, lead the league for total kicks and inside 50s for a number of years, experienced, played in lots of finals including a grand final, but still has plenty of footy ahead of him. He's an elite runner, very durable and consistent, good outside midfielder, exactly what we need. Doesn't mean anything, but he was a Dees supporter growing up and comes from a mad demon family who were still members and involved at the club after he started playing for West Coast. While Sloane is a good player, he's 29, struggles with injury and a tag, and is very similar to what we already have. I wouldn't bother chasing him.

Agreed. Absolute dog act and I'll always dislike Rance due to these sorts of acts. He's raked the eyes of a few players and given cheap shots to the back of the head multiple times throughout his career. He's a dirty player. As a defender he's also seriously suspect one-on-one. This year alone he got destroyed by Jenkins, then got beaten by Melksham. Teams need to play through his man and make him accountable, because one-on-one he's average and when isolated he repeatedly loses. Because the media love him, he never gets pulled up for all the negative aspects of his game and personality though. After we played them and Melksham kicked 4 on him and repeatedly beat him in one-on-one contests, Mooney interviewed him and kept saying he was "excellent", and even Rance was confused and replying "don't think I was great..." each time. As for Oscar, he really has been good this year. He's yet to be beaten badly, and has improved dramatically in one-on-ones with opposition number 1 key forwards. Don't think he'll be All-Australian this year, but he's developing well and is now a reliable rock down at full back. Anyone denying that is judging him off 12-18 months ago when he was weaker in body and mind.