Cheap Seats

I agree, SWYL but we've gone from a rabble in that time to now being a destination club according to Jon Ralph of all people We have a ripping young exciting team. Will they disappoint this year? Yes they will. But I hope and believe they will pull out a few big wins as well and may just push for finals for the first time in 10 years.

Nah Embiid and Saric Im unsure about Okafor and we still need a good pg. Still they're very exciting and have had some good wins this yr.

Very harsh imo Let's not get distracted too.much by the past. What exactly has he done wrong so far? His game in the jlt was quite solid. Or do you just look at the end result?

Haha you clearly dont follow that closely DA While philly dont have the wins on the board in 16/17. Philly has a very exciting young list with 2 potential ROTYs

Hey guys Just read the HS article about Macca down at the Dees. A little bit of a puff piece but none the less a good read for us long suffering I know Macca has been discussed and praised on the site but quotes like these really excite me for 2017 and the future. “In the really good teams that I have been associated with, the midfield training is often more intense than a game. “And when you have to start yelling at them to stop absolutely pounding each other, seriously, that is when you know you are on your way. “We have to stop training and say, ‘Hey boys, that’s enough, the intensity is there, save it for the weekend’.” Oliver, McCartney admits, is a favourite. “It is rare to find, but some players get faster the closer they get to the ball, and I love that about ‘Clarry’,” he said. I still think 2017 is going to be a bumpy ride, but it's going to be a good ride, starting Rd 1. What the Administration of this club has been able to achieve in 4 - 5 years after Neelds departure is downright amazing. Just spot on recruitment in all areas of the club which has changed the club on and off field for the better. Jackson, Roos, Macca, Mahoney, T VIney, Goody, Taylor etc etc just to name the obvious ones. It also can't be ignored that some of these appointments were from the so called failed administrations and while we all get frustrated it's a good time to reflect and acknowledge the hard work done by all for our club. Sorry I got a little distracted, but this article reaffirms for me that the club is going places. Trust the Process. I am really excited to hear some inside goss on Clarry and our Mids. Thanks again Macca and bring on 2017. Go you bloody Dees

I'm a huge Nev Jetta fan. He has been sensational for the club on and off field. But like Watts and a few others I am willing to let Goody do his thing....... Trust the process. I just care if we're winning not whos playing in those sides. As long as players are given a chance and there is pressure for spots and we're winning - IDGAF

I don't believe Garland has done anything wrong But I agree with general consensus that J Smith has been good this offseason - would like to see more

Spot on Same happened against WCE, Carlton and Bummers in 2016 as well. We won the ball and then had a bad habit of turning it over allowing those team to counter attack on the break and score. The teams who pressure for turnovers and rebound killed us in 2016. If they allow us to run and gun we win. As we saw against WCE in the JLT the turnovers haven't just magically disappeared out of our game. I don't think there is a Plan B nor do I expect there to be one (wihat i mean is we should make moves in game but the coaches won't substantially change the game plan) We'll beat the Saints if we can execute, if we can start executing consistently we are in for a big year. Like I've said previously though I don't think we will elminate the turnovers overnight. It takes years of games in to the kids and experience. I think we are still a little young and in experienced. Soft excuse I know but it should be a fun ride in 2017.

Yep that's what he was saying He was saying dees r a destination club and needed to land an established stat like hawks and cats back in the 0's to become a serious contender I actually found myself agrreinf with him for once

Couldn't agree more The only thing I'll add is i don't care whos in thr team as long as we're winning. No player in theory should be automatic best 22. Games need to be earned. Players not performing dropped etc... I dont think we cant win rd 1, i just dont think we will. Happy to be proven wrong

Who was the one captain that didn't think gws would nake the final 8

Fair call But there are still a few other glaring weaknesses (all related to each other) Ball movement Experience Lack of kpp depth I think it's a little harsh to pick solely on the defenders who do rely a lot on up the ground for assistance. I do acknowledge your point though

Fair enough I'll be honest I haven't been that impressed with Oscar after some wraps in the offseason. Long year and he's still bloody young so we'll see how he goes. But you're right it is a bit of Russian roulette. Hopefully the Mac boys learn to give the easy safe kicks to Hibbo, Vince, Melksham etc more often then not

I 100% agree with your comments... re Pavs comment about waiting... i think that comes fown to experience as well. Just watch Lewis he does it so well. Also in defence players getting sucked in to contests and not trusting team mates

Regardless of the criticism on here of Oscar. He is generally a reliable kick. Well s lot better then his brother anyway

But it was still better then not watching footy But you're spot on, there isn't a lot you can take from JLT

I hadn't been paying close attention re Jetta - very interesting What we also don't know and can only guess - what strategies were employed in the JLT? Were we trying things - Eg - Spencer & Gawn. (who by the way I thought Spencer did ok in the ruck - He is limited around the ground though especially on the bigger or faster grounds that 2nd ruck really gets exposed), or will this be how we line up in rd 1. I can't wait until Thursday week and then Saturday, it's going to be very interesting.

My round 1 team consideration I am a little worried how easily we were exposed against the Egirls this week. The Saint play a very similar style as the Egirls and at Ethiad which is a flat track like Subi JLT 3 could look like round 1. Less stoppages, more running and open play My thoughts are we need to play small to match it with the Saints lineup. Some issues from the JLT for me are Skill errors (stating the bleeding obvious here) but those bad turnovers led to easy Egirls goals because we couldn't lock the ball in to our F50 as we gave it away too easily. Our zone/press won't work effectively on these longer grounds with such poor turnovers (Etihad and Subi as prime examples) if we continue to turn the ball over like that, the good teams will run it out and score over the back on most occasions. I expect during the season the press will employed and if it's failing due to whatever reason we will change to a more man on man or put players back. I don't know I purely speculating here. Forwards - It's been poor timing for some blokes to be injured or under controversy. Kent, Jay KH, Watts, Garlett even AVB to an extent. I personally think our small forwards are lacking a bit of class at the moment. Yes there is Petracca and Garlett, Kent, but all are prone to fade out in games (See JTL 3 - petracca was ineffective most of the game along with poor disposal and decision making at times under pressure) We really lack some dimensions at the moment up forward IMO, so do we go small and play the extra mid to play through the middle (my personal preference, but they need to be quick). I also think these guys can play but their form has been inconsistent for mine. Some not taking their chances for multiple games in the JLT. I'll pick on Weeds for this example - vs the Blues (needs to finish off the hard work and kick GOALS. - O Mac, Harmes, Neal Bullen, Weed The JLT - especially our 3rd game because it didn't gloss over easy mistakes highlighted for me some of our players (not just the young ones) lack that clean polish under pressure and while we still may make the 8, I don't think we are a serious threat this year. I hope I'm wrong here but under pressure not enough players were clean with hand or foot and some of the disposal errors were deplorable. Standouts for me were - Jones, Oliver, Lewis, Hunt? (off the top of my head I am sure there were a couple more) Some who I rate as best 22 that probably won't make the rd 1 squad but I expect to play a big part in 2017 - Hibberd, Frost, Wagner, JKH, Kent, So in saying all that some of the issues will correct themselves - like disposal. As more games are played by the team as a whole I expect that to improve. Ending my rant Rd 1 v the Saints I believe a small team will be the answer with a couple of underdone seasoned players Jetta Garland O Mac Hunt T Mac Vince Salem Viney Jones Lewis Watts Kent Garlett Hogan Petracca Gawn Tyson Oliver Melksham, Brayshaw Bugg Stretch Other possibilities I but probs won't play due to various reasons Smith for O Mac Frost for Garland Hibberd for O Mac Spencer as second ruck Wager as a rebounder Sorry I could go on and on but chose the best healthy and fit 22

Anyone have news on Frosty. Like him as a player

Correct... but feom what i saw once the ball got turned over deep in our forward line the eagles easily beat our press whixh reaulted in a lot of easy egirl goals. They rebounded superbly against us. We just butchered the ball going forward too often. Too many players were not clean. Now theae aren't season ending issues they can be fixed. My only concern is i think this trend of wasting the ball will be taken in to the season and we will struggle again against those flood defence and rebounding teams. Dont get me wrong the boys were good enough to break even in the stats and be in the game until the last 5 mins. But skill errors and poor execution cost badly and i expect that trend to continue

There were 2 really frustrating points from yesterday. Our poor skills which butchered our scoring opportunities which then lead to the eagles running and overlapping which lead to their easy scoring shots I was excited about this game because it is a great preview for us to round 1. Sadly i think the saints domination will continue. But im not jumping off us just stating the obvious. We need to find balance between attack and defencem im happy we have Lewis on board to help.... I've got a feeling we're going to disappoint in a few games this year but overall it still should be quiet exciting

Theres no nice way to say it.. they [censored] up a lot of opportunities tonight. But they were good enough to create them and if it wasnt for poor execution we were a chanve to hit the fornt or at least be a kick in it with 5 mins lefr. Composure with the ball needs work. But until they get the skills and compaure right its going to be a roller-coaster again in 2017. We made wce look good from our turnovers. Our backs got exposed and if they scored 15 goals at least 10 were from our basic f ups

They have to learn to execute And cut out the soft efforts and errors if we want to make finals. Full stop

Spencer around the ground has been a liability but surprsingly good up forward. Kicked 2. A few fringe players... scrap that a few players need to clean up disposal. E girls rebound is killing us. Really apart from wasting thr ball and being caught out on the rebound they're doing pretty welll . This standard wont be good enough to beat saints though Interdting 2nd half ahead

I know there is some.long overdue hype around us at the moment but those are some surprising odds. Is put my hard earned every day on the saints over the dees at etihad until the dees can prove otherwise.