Nasher

Playing Oliver last week when he clearly could have been in the Melbourne side was a strong sign that Melbourne intend on allowing players to play Casey finals this year. A shot at a flag would be a great reward for the players who have been busting a gut there all year, just to remain on the far fringe on the main side. Especially for those who won't be in the AFL system next year.

He got lucky 41 out of 62 times? k.

He did come close again - the next week week he kicked 4.0. His career tally is 41.21, which suggests that the kicking issues are overplayed. He's probably just not good enough in general. I feel a bit sorry for him for some reason. It would be hard to spend your junior years dominating and being pumped up, only to learn the hard way that it doesn't translate at senior level and you don't have it. I put Toumpas in the same boat (despite the impact it had on us).

You don't have to look very far back in to our history to see any actual evidence anyway. Shannon Byrnes and David Rodan were the types of players we were picking up not very long ago.

You saw that Gary Moorcroft mark video kicking around on social media too, huh? I was surprised to see he's still playing. Had one very forgettable season on our list too.

If Thompson had been here this year under Roos, would he have taken the spot of Bugg, or (say) Oliver? Bit of a philosophical question I suppose, as I know what you'd do if you were selecting. I'd share your view if I could be sure that Thompson was taking the spot of a lesser player, but I'd be concerned that his place in the side would be at the expense of junior players we need to continue the development of; a similar dilemma Brad Scott alluded to in his conference re: Brent Harvey. This needs to be balanced up against our young midfielders needing senior players to aid their development, but I don't think Thompson is this player. He'd be here probably for a year only. I love Thompson as a player, but I'm leaning towards no, reluctantly.

And therefore one less year he has to work for the average worker's salary after footy. These are the sorts of things professional football players would have to think about if they've got any sense. The extra 70k would make stuff all difference to their existing lifestyle, but has massive future implications. That's why I'm hesitant to ever refer to footballers who seek good salaries "greedy".

Line development coach seems to be the entry point these days, like Brad Miller was doing (not sure who's in there this year). A rookie senior coach with rookie line coaches scares the juice out of me. Bailey had Josh Mahoney and Neeld had Leigh Brown, both players fresh out of the game held in high esteem for their demonstrated potential in coaching and mentoring, but were given far too much responsibility too early. I'd hate to see Dawes go down the same path. Going off topic now but I'm hopeful the (experienced) assistant coaches Roos brought with him - McPherson, Allison, Mathews etc all stay to work under Goodwin.

Can he realistically expect that to happen? He was sacked after three years, and even wrote this article on why he thought he got the sack. It's tough at top and only a very small number of these opportunities come along, I expect once you've crapped in the nest once, you're pretty unlikely to get invited back in to it again.

He wouldn't go to Brisbane because they were such a shambles, so he went to... Melbourne. I think you might have started to forget, Colin.

"One good game and 28 average ones" is a very generous definition of "facts".

Thanks for the advice. My view has nothing to do with my "little power base", whatever that is.

So much chest beating in this thread. VP has nailed it I reckon.

Wouldn't go as far as "deserves success". Nathan Jones deserves success. I agree that it's pretty hard to hold anything against Fitzy though. He's no better a player now than he was with us, but he's found himself in the right place at the right time, as can happen sometimes. Good luck to him.

Gets an additional (hopefully) four weeks of game time now thanks to this excellent selection decision. This will be far more beneficial for his development than a few extra weeks of holidays. Well done MFC. What do you reckon about that picket?

Not even a backhanded one this time, just an every day compliment. Good to see you're coming around.

Just watching the replay now. Our jumpers are more black and yellow than I thought and we're a lot further behind than I remember, but the play is practically as I recall.

Use the post match discussion thread.

Is this the last round of the VFL H&A?

Not a fan of the "we're not worthy" attitude at all. Anyway, thanks Paul. It's a shame we part on a sour note, but like others have said, you have put the building blocks in place to at least give us a shot again. We owe you plenty.

Definitely picked the right game to watch today KC! Sounds like it's been good.

What a bitterly disappointing way to finish the season. Gutted. I'm not losing perspective on what was obviously a big step forward season, and this game is clearly not reflective of what we have achieved. I need to stew for a bit longer before I can take consolation in that, though.

Pretty sure you were the only one to interpret my post as blaming the supporters for the way the team was playing. Honestly if that's the inference you drew, nothing else I say is going to help.

Salem our best player today.

Debating, belzebub style: open the post with a line that is a complete misquote and a woeful misextrapolation of what I said, then spend the rest of the post arguing against the assertion *you* made. On ya.