Fat Tony

The mooted changes are that all NGA players would be able to be taken by their respective club regardless of where they are drafted. This would mean that players like Mac Andrew (who was drafted inside the top 40) would be able to be matched. We could benefit IF AFL can take hold in the African communities in Dandenong because our game is clearly suited to some of the athletic traits of Africans. (The Sudanese especially seem to have the speed, height and endurance.) There is nine South Sudanese players on NBL rosters, which is incredible given the South Sudanese population in Australia is around 13,000. South Sudan made the Olympics, so they are pretty good.

Sure, but Blakey was in the Swans academy, which has different rules. The NGA academies should be for players who have not played junior football to under 15s or year 9. The idea of the NGAs should be to attract new players to the game. Basing it off non-Australian backgrounds makes no sense given 48% of the population has at least one parent born overseas. It completely screws the draft and the number of kids in each club's zone is not equal. That all said, MFC have been given Casey and Dandenong as our NGA zones. Given the young African population in Dandenong and the growth in Casey, there is a chance to get the system to work in our favour to some extent.

Is Waterman out of contract at the end of this year or next?

We should be loud in our protest against the academy systems unless (our zone is the same size as Sydney's). There is a reason they never miss the finals. And indigenous Australians should not be in the academy systems. They are not a group which is under represented in the AFL on a percentage of population basis. Players like Jamarra Ugle-Hagan started playing Australian rules before the academies existed.

I don’t think we’ve switched in game to a possession game. I think Goodwin has been reluctant to change style during the game.

The contested, long kicking game is more taxing than the kick/mark possession game plan. We should play the contested brand in the first half, when the heat is in the game, and then switch to a more possession game in the second half when the game opens up.

The AFL needs to reduce the number of rules that are open to umpire interpretation. Holding the ball will aways be a judgement call and the rules can't easily be changed to fix it. I think the recent quick whistle to ball it up has been a good change. Deliberate out of bounds is the worst rule in the game and always seems to favour the team with the most fans at the game. The rule should be changed to be that if it is a non-accidental kick and it goes over the line, it should be an automatic free against. A handball out on the full should be an automatic free against. It can still be a deliberate out of bounds free kick if it is intentionally tapped, handballed on the ground or ran over the line. (This is the interpretation part.) It should not be a free if the ball accidently hits your foot and goes out (even on the full). For touched or rushed behinds, the rule should be that it is a point and the play re-starts with a ball up at the top of the goal square rather than a kick in. This creates some incentive to keep the ball in play but takes the grey area out of it. The previous push in the back interpretation, being no hands allowed in the back, was a good one because it was black and white. I would like to see a lot more holding free kicks paid, like they do in the NFL. I would also like to see a strict taunting rule in force. The worst part about the game is when a player kicks a goal and goes at the defender and/or if they miss and the defender goes at the attacker.

We were lucky to be that close. The Lions missed some easy chances as well.

Good effort and our tactics were good. We played a more aggressive press in defence and kicked long to contests. That said, we should look to kick short and mark more in the second half as the game opens up.

We picked up Windsor, JVR and Tholstrup and have our next two first round picks in hand. I think we’ve drafted well enough to come out even.

Here is a summary for those who can’t get through the firewall: Melbourne has been "dudded" by AFL rule changes twice in recent years. First, the Next Generation Academy (NGA) rules were changed in 2020, preventing Melbourne from drafting Mac Andrew in 2021. The club had developed Andrew from age 13, but Gold Coast drafted him at No.5. It was Melbourne who moulded him into an AFL prospect, but the league pulled the rug from underneath the Demons, 12 months out from when they expected to draft him. Secondly, Melbourne missed out on drafting Harley Reid in 2023 due to limitations on trading future draft picks. The Demons made a strong offer for West Coast's No.1 pick: They put forward the most compelling offer – it trumped North Melbourne's best pitch – with picks 6, 11, 42 and this year's first-rounder (currently No.10) – on the table. However, they couldn't offer more due to rules at the time. The AFL is now set to allow trading of two years of future picks, which could have changed the outcome if implemented earlier. Melbourne recruiter Jason Taylor highly rated Reid: "If you look over the journey, players like Harley Reid are game changers," Taylor said. "We just felt that he's a really high-end talent, we love his character, the way he goes about his football." The article suggests Melbourne "definitely missed out on Andrew by one year and probably missed out n Reid by one year. Additionally, the AFL is expected to reform the bidding system for father-son and academy prospects: No longer will clubs be allowed to match bids with a pile of garbage picks. The new system may require clubs to use high-value picks to match bids for top talents, potentially including future first-round picks. Lastly, the article mentions potential changes to Melbourne's draft prospects, including father-son Kalani White, who might choose Gold Coast over Melbourne.

This sounds right, but he could have played on last Sunday as well if that’s what they were thinking.

Strange selection with Lever, May, Tomlinson, JVR, Turner, TMac and Petty in the side

I am a fan of AMW, as he plays in the VFL with AFL level intensity and pace. The big question mark on his game is his disposal and decision making, which is still developing. It will be interesting to see who he replaces in the side given one of Howes, Bowey or Salem looks most likely to be omitted as a result (or K Brown gets dropped).

At the moment, without elite speed, Oliver is an average midfielder.

I’m not convinced he will ever get back to what he was. The speed of the game has increased and I fear this year might be a glimpse into what we’ll get over the next six years. I see Oliver as an inside midfielder only due to his average kicking. And without elite speed, he is an average midfielder on big money. I can’t see us winning a flag without elite mids.

Oliver is not a good enough kick to play half back and he is not a great defender. And he has never shown himself to be a great forward. We need Oliver to win the hard ball in the midfield this season, because our midfield already lacks depth and he does not use the ball well enough to play in periphery positions.

They can only put 5 on the bench!

All the club's decisions should be made with the aim to maximise the number of premierships we win in perpetuity. Everyone agrees that Clarrie has been a superstar, but we need to make decisions going forward. Can Oliver, with his mental health issues and about to turn 27, come back to be worth the six year $1m+ contract? And will he be a good example to our younger players? Personally, I think it is a bigger risk to keep him than to trade him if we can get another club to pay his salary.

The stats sheet is diabolical reading. How can AFL listed players hardly touch the ball against a C-grade VFL side?

I would look at Jack Silvagni. I know he is coming off a knee injury but I like his versatility as a forward, midfielder and second ruck.

We will be lucky to get one second round pick and get off his whole contract.

We can win if we win the centre clearance (easier said than done against Brisbane but crucial at the GABBA) and kick straight. I think our structure would look better with Turner in defence and TMac forward. Tomlinson does not have a great match up even if Lever fails to get up.

Woewodin, Tholstrop and McAdam (sub) in for Laurie, Billings and Petracca. McAdam can also play VFL on Sunday if he does not get enough minutes. Rivers into the midfield. Langdon on the wing. Turner and Woewod in in defence. TMac and Tholstrop forward. Bowey, May, Howes Salem, Turner, McVee Langdon, Oliver, Windsor Picket, Petty, Neal-Bullen Fritsch, van Rooyen, Chandler Gawn, Rivers, Viney Woewodin, TMac, Tholstrup, Sparrow McAdam

Your point stands, but... Pickett has improved. I think you are harsh on Fritsch, Langdon and McVee, who are about the same. Salem is also about the same and has not been good since 2021. (Max is having a better year but I think the 'improvement' is due to being a solo ruck.) And Viney is actually rating more this year statistically (although I struggle to believe it). Sparrow has had much fewer centre bounce attendances but has been ordinary regardless.