Johnny Karate

I agree with the gist of your post. I was probably over the top. Definitely, journos would have better sources than myself. That said, there have been plenty of journalists dressing their opinions as fact, particularly during trade period. Particularly on trade radio there are presenters who show stunning ignorance when it comes to footballers, their attributes and trade value.

I’m quite certain Tom Morris was doing the club podcast until he was booted. He’s from Fox Footy, dresses like a trust fund baby and doesn’t shave. Tom Browne is the lump of wood from Channel 7 who has the presentation warmth of Professor Snape. Not sure if Browne supports Melbourne.

What has Tom Browne’s record been like in the past? Has he got a legitimate source or are these just his opinions dressed as fact?

Jackson did a wonderful job in turning the club around. He, Paul Roos and Glenn Bartlett deserve a hell of a lot of credit. PJ was the catalyst for our turnaround in my opinion. We weren’t an AFL standard club by any tangible measure when he walked through the door.

Not strictly trading but have heard whispers that the latest exodus from GC17 is mainly down to Dew Neelding up the joint.

I’ve posted previously that McClure on trade radio is essentially baiting and trolling for a reaction. I would be tempted to call up and suggest that we look at trading Bugg + T Smith + Tyson + Garlett to Carlton for Cripps and a second rounder for a taste of his own medicine.

Definitely understand your points as well. Time will tell. I feel like we’ll get a net gain. Taylor, Mahoney and co haven’t let us down yet.

Is he looking up an online news article from 2016?

So this is what will have to happen: Hogan requests trade (fait accompli) Freo trades Neale (likely done) for BL pick 4 (soon to be 5 because of T Lynch compo) + something else Port gets North’s first rounder (likely pick 11) this year for Polec (????) Freo negotiates one of picks 5 or 6 plus whatever else is required for both of Ports 10 & 11, or alternatively both of Adelaide’s first rounders (????) Melbourne agrees to trade Hogan for 5 or 6 + whatever else Freo is willing to offer. (????) GC17 agrees to trade May for pick 5 or 6 rather than potentially getting band 1 FA compo in 2019 (????) Simply put, Hogan likely wants out and Freo likely want him but there are plenty of variables that could scupper this deal.

Apart from Hogan I don’t see any of the players you mentioned as a huge loss. Pedersen was pretty awful in every game he played this year and I wouldn’t expect improvement in 2019 at age 31-32. T Smith can cover Pedo easily. Vince was similarly finished this year and lost his place in the team because we couldn’t carry both he and Lewis. I liked the physicality that vandenBerg brought late in the season but he can butcher it and with any form drop off he could easily be playing VFL (he’s in the bottom 6 or so players in the team). Tyson got pushed out of his natural inside role because we have players with more tricks and versatility. I like Kent but he is made of sticky tape and the fact he is so inconsistent is another reason he couldn’t find a regular spot in the 22. TL:DR - I’d like to keep Hogan but we will be compensated. Pedo and Vince were past it at AFL level. vandenBerg, Tyson and Kent will likely leave for personal reasons or opportunities we can not afford them. As nice as it would be to have a VFL team full of AFL standard players. Players won’t stay if they can get an AFL gig elsewhere. I’ll back Taylor, Mahoney and co to get us the best net outcome. I also like the fact that we’re not satisfied with finishing fourth in an even year and seem willing to turnover the list to maximise our window.

I’d say that this is about dollars, personal issues/preferences and the fact that Melbourne are not begging him to stay. Jesse has been through a lot of [censored] over the past couple of years which may have changed his outlook on life and footy in general. I think all things being equal the club would like him to stay but the MFC has now transcended begging and cajoling certain individuals to commit. In short our window just opened and we can’t afford to [censored] around.

I think more simply they are looking to create content by baiting and throwing up red herrings. They have 12 hours less ads to fill & the frigging trade period doesn’t start for a week. Their station is the equivalent of a 140+ page internet thread.

I would also be disappointed. However, our moves in the off-season of late have been very pragmatic. As another poster stated our FD tends to look at the trade period wholistically (I.e. net gain/loss) rather than ‘winning’ individual deals

Maybe it’s simply a case of him saying I’d like to be traded back to Perth if a trade can be done. If not I will look at my options again at the end of 2019.

I expect we will get May + a first round pick or a player upon losing Hogan. If we get more, great. If it’s less I’ll back the FD in and try not to let my natural nuffy disappointment get the better of me.

Agreed. If anything St Kilda was really our only loss to a poor club this year which points to improvement. In 2017 losses to Collingwood, Fremantle, Hawthorn and North x2 were far more costly. Unless you’re a very special team at least one game for the season will be a write off. The challenge in 2019 is to win some more close games and win ugly (when we’re not playing well).

Just an absolute stinker. The result and margin were not necessarily a surprise but the way it turned out was. Pre match I was nervous and felt we needed a hell of a lot to go right to win. The likely scenario was always a thumping if the Eagles could take away our CP and clearance strength. That said, it was shocking how quickly it was all over - West Coast weren’t even that good in first but we almost insisted on giving the ball back to them. The game was played on their terms from the outset in reality the game was over when we couldn’t kick at least a goal when there were a couple of opportunities in the first. Score a goal then even if we were being bossed and we’re about even or only a goal down and the whole team can lift. We just never established any foothold in the game and ended a really good season with a devastating loss.

I don’t have an issue with discussing events of the past. Without shared history good and bad we aren’t really a club. Clearly if we lose on Friday it’s because we sacked Norm Smith.

Not that any of this matters now but I was a Neeld apologist at the time. I felt the club needed a cultural reset and he was doing the hard work while dealing with some very unfortunate distractions: EnergyWatch, Jurrah, Stynes death and later the tanking investigation. I was wrong. We were a dysfunctional club from the management down. Instead of engaging, educating and protecting his players he took a divide and conquer approach, causing a litany of wrecked careers including his own. That he got another AFL gig afterwards speaks to the big fat boys club that is clubland admin.

Intentional. High Impact. 3 weeks with an early guilty plea.

I don’t doubt McCarteney had issues at the Bulldogs. However I know somebody who worked for them and felt that Cooney wasn’t professional or a good influence on the group. McCartney was highly regarded at Geelong before the gig at the Dogs.

Silly post regarding O Mac. Matthew Scarlett would struggle with some of the delivery opposition teams seem to get inside 50 against us. It’s a team defence/structure/O Mac’s age, size and experience that hinders team. JKH is done. Really enjoyed his efforts in 2014 but he hasn’t really developed any further.

I won’t be surprised if we do. We’re similarly placed. Essendon, Saints, Suns and Carlton need to win 3 out of 4 at least.

The response now interests me more than the game. Can we set up effectively behind the ball? Can we use it better going forward? Can we not get sucked in to too many contests leaving our opponents free to mop up and spread on the outside? Can this loss inspire us to play better rather than suck the confidence out of us and derail our season? If we manage to beat Richmond can we take it our stride rather than let it go to our heads?

Agree. I’ve been disappointed so far but am still a be-Lever.