Lord Travis

LOL at Polec being dropped after Round 8... where he received Brownlow votes!

Correct. We need to stop holding onto depth players and players who aren’t up to the grade hoping they’ll come good for so long.

Result of mask. I suffer the same fate. It gets pressed flat on your chin, but remains full under the jaw. Very annoying!

Neale a mile in front. Doubt anyone will catch him, though he won’t poll much through the back end of the season.

Wouldn’t read into Trac being asked to stay in QLD. Haven’t all favorites been asked to stay in/travel to QLD for the event? Got mentioned on some footy show today that Boak is flying up to QLD today. Tipping Trac to finish 4th. Had a great season but Neale was a level above.

[censored] or not, I’d rather a genuine champion of the game (Brownlow medalist, MVP, players association leader etc) cap off his resume with a premiership than some plodder like Jason Castagna win a third one.

Good effort by Geelong. Deserve to be in the grand final. Beat Brisbane in Brisbane. I’ll be barracking hard for Geelong. [censored] Richmond!

Cats have wasted opportunities and should be further in front. Interesting second half coming up! Even half a step slower these days, Ablett is still dangerous and just such a smart footballer. Still contributing at his age. Superstar!

To be fair, Oscar and Frost were the two defensive pillars of our team that finished fourth in 2018. Neither are great players, but they’re both capable of playing their role. I wish Oscar all the best. Copped it from fans for not being a superstar and he always put in and got the best out of himself. He’s achieved more than most players drafted at pick 53.

Worst possible result tonight. Richmond are just a horribly unlikeable group of tossers, lead by that whinging coach who personally attacks people. I’ll be supporting whoever they are playing against next weekend.

Shows up for 5 minutes a game. Big impact player, but overrated. Hate the way the commentators and media froth over him whenever he is near the ball, despite rarely getting involved. Jonas, Rozee and Wines all having good games for Port. No one of note from Richmond. Hard to fathom how they’re in front right now!

Cmon Port. Big second half coming up.

Good footballer but no chance of joining us.

We were keen on him in his draft year, but he rose up the draft board late in the year and we wound up with Spargo instead. I rate him too, right blend of speed, tenacity and skill. Would love to get him across but doubt Lions would let him go for less than a first round pick though unfortunately.

The bit about the BnF finish is silly, but the bit about wanting to play finals is a legitimate issue. If we continue to miss finals, we will lose talents like Oliver who play the game to win. For far too long we have had players who seem happy to just be an AFL footballer, and lack to desire to be the best and win at all costs. Oliver is one of the competitive types who wants to win, and if we continue to lose he will want out. It's not as if he's lazy and coasting, he leads the league in contested ball, so he is putting his body on the line to win. Some will argue that Oliver should get better and then we'll win more. That's partly true, he has potential to become even better than he is already, and therefore push us to more wins. However, he can only do so much, and if you're a competitive type stuck in a losing environment, you'll want out.

Is Narkle from Geelong a cheap option? If he got his body right he could be a very handy player. Shown he's capable both inside and outside through the midfield. If he was a cheap option looking for a fresh start and new medical team then I'd chase him.

If Daniher winds up at the Lions, would that squeeze McStay out? He could be a good cheap KPF target...

Would take Scharenberg as a cheap option. He's decent depth and could be tried up forward too.

Has the right skills and attributes, but just goes missing for too long in games. His body seems to let him down and not allow him to build any consistency. We can afford to lose him, but he could still become a decent player if he can get his body right. Not surprised the Doggies are keen on him as a cheap option. They would've seen a lot of him as he came from their VFL environment and we pinched him.

Agreed. Jackson was better than expected. He looked way off the pace in pre-season, and though he still wasn't great at AFL level, he held up better than expected for an 18 year old tall. I still think he's much better in the ruck than up forward, as he struggles with contested marking situations and doesn't have good leading patterns. He is very mobile though and looked better in the ruck and around the ball. He'll likely develop as a tall forward/2nd ruck for the next 2 years or so, then start taking the number 1 ruck mantle from Gawn once he hits his early 30s IMO. Pickett was average. I wasn't a huge fan at underage level, and he showed more of the same at AFL level. He struggles to get involved in the game. He doesn't find enough ball. He doesn't lay enough tackles. He lacks composure and rushes shots on goal (7 goals, 13 behinds, 4 OOF is poor conversion). He needs to build fitness so he can get to more contests and crumb. He showed clean hands collecting groundballs and using speed and agility to get out of trouble and setup play. We just don't see it enough, and that was the problem at underage level too. I have doubts he'll ever be anything more than an inconsistent flashy player, when what we need is a consistent small forward. Rivers was great. I was ecstatic when we drafted him and through the back-end of the season he showed why he'll have a long career. He's the perfect running half back flank replacement for Hibberd as he winds up. Rivers definitely shanked a few kicks, but he also showed good hardness and composure. His drive off half back and willingness to work hard to cover teammates showed he's got the right attitude and mindset too. He'll have a long career and I just hope he stays at the club long term and doesn't return home to WA.

Seems I'm in the minority, but I see him as a depth option and then delist in 1-2 years. He has decent speed, which we are are crying out for, but I'm not convinced he's smart enough or fit enough to become a good long term AFL player. You need to be fit and smart to play on the wing, and while he can build fitness, I don't think he's shown the smarts. I'd like to be proven wrong, as we need another good wingman and he could be it, but I wouldn't persist much longer. The Baker/Wagner/Spargo types are the ones we always hold onto for too long IMO. Depth players are important, but you don't hold onto them for more than say 4 years unless they're a great role player and happy to have a career in and out of a team. Perhaps getting Isaac Smith across to teach him and drive him would be beneficial for his development.

Unless he becomes our CEO, then whatever role we could offer him would be a step down. He's highly regarded as a sports administrator and leader, but not sure we'll see him back at the club. Interesting timing though and he was considered heavily for a role at the club in the past few years.

Read back earlier in this thread. North and Brown had a falling out over off-field issues. They were not empathetic to his situation when he lost one of his babies. The club is fractured at all levels. They'll have a new coach next year, likely new board, likely 15+ list changes over off-season. They're a complete mess and shot themselves in the foot with Brown. Whoever gets Brown will be getting a bargain.

100% this. Brown and Weid as legit key forwards who provide a contest and hit the scoreboard. Jacko as a roaming mobile third tall whose time is split between forward line and ruck. Give him license to roam up the ground as a marking option along the wing and work back inside 50. Would be a great setup and 100% can work with the right players. Wouldn’t work with say a Pruess roaming instead of Jacko.

Get it done!