Fat Tony

I would consider Sam Day as a ruckman. He has a big enough leap to compete in the centre bounces and I don't value hit outs around the ground.

Like all demon supporters (even PF) I hope Toumpas makes it and I don't consider myself to be a Toumpas "basher", but he didn't have a good game on Saturday. 8 kicks and 6 handballs at 57% DE and 1 tackle is hardly setting the world on fire. IMO Toumpas lacks the pace required for such an outside player. He will never be very good on the inside due to his lack of size and strength and he panics when he gets the ball under pressure. This may be eradicated with experience and it will have to be if he is to play more than 50 games. Even in his good game against the Dogs he gave up an easy goal with a panic handball. For this week I would prefer we go with Riley, Newton and Tyson. Anyway, you are the last poster that should criticise another of bias given your open hatred of Lynden Dunn.

I watched the interview last night and I am sick of Roos pointing to the past as the reason for our losses. The list has turned over significantly in the last three years and I don’t think it helps the club going forward. (It paints the club as incurable, which it isn’t if we draft and trade well.) The answer to the question “Are your players mentally weak?” should have been: “You don’t get into the AFL system by being mentally weak, but we are certainly not as mentally strong as the better sides in the competition. Our key problem at the moment is that we lack the depth of talent through the midfield to sustain the pressure I demand from the team for the full 120 minutes.”

• I think we went too tall down back against Port and without enough run. We must choose between Dunn and Fitzpatrick. And Dunn did a great job on Cloke last year. • We need to go with extra mids to create pressure around the stoppages and so we can sustain it for longer in the game. • Frost is our best bet as first ruck because Spencer, Jamar and Gawn are offer nothing around the ground. • Toumpas lacks the athletic traits to make it IMO. Particularly given he panics. • We cannot play 2 defensive forwards (Bail and M Jones) who lack skill in the same side. (We are missing Kent a lot because he is disciplined to play a defensive role, but knows how and when to attack.) • Watts and Howe need to lift, but we lack talent and they should be retained. • Vince/Garland to Pendlebury. B Garland, T McDonald, Jetta HB Lumumba, Dunn, Grimes C Cross, Vince, Vandenberg HF Watts, Hogan, Howe F Viney, Pedersen, Garlett Fol Spencer, Tyson, N Jones Int Brayshaw, M Jones, Riley, Newton (sub) In: Tyson, Riley, Newton Out: Fitzpatrick, Toumpas, Bail

Hit outs went Freo's way 86-27. Clearences went Freo's way 52-48.

We should have waited until later in the year to make this decision IMO.

I cannot think of a top eight side from last year that Dawes would get a game in. Maybe Richmond. Pedersen is way ahead of him in the air, on the deck and in the ruck. He is a waste of salary cap space.

VanDemon has shown enough that other clubs will offer him a long-term deal on good money. We will need to offer him a spot on the main list. Sunday was his first game as a bonefide mid and he was exceptional.

B Garland, T McDonald, Jetta HB Lumumba, Fitzpatrick, Dunn C Cross, Vince, Vandenberg HF Watts, Hogan, Howe F Viney, Pedersen, Garlett Fol Spencer, Tyson, N Jones Int Brayshaw, Grimes, Newton, Toumpas (sub) In: Tyson, Viney, Jetta (assuming all now fit) Out: Bail, M Jones, Riley

I doubt we have any chance at getting a big fish (Shiel or Dangerfield). I would target: Dylan Shiel - Uncontracted gun. Bryce Gibbs - Out of form and Carlton might trade him too cheaply. Chris Yarran - Provides pace and skill which we definitely need. Johnathan Griffen - We need a ruckman and he is probably the best not getting a game. Sam Dwyer - Pace and skill. Aaron Hall - Pace. Harley Bennell - Contracted but Eade might find him too much to handle. Matthew Leuenberger - Free agent but injury prone. Andrew Moore - Victorian utility not getting a game for Port due to injury and form. Matthew Spangher - Good footballer who looks to be outside Hawthorn's 22. Daniel Gorringe - Uncontracted and looks to be behind Nicholls and Smith, with Peter Wright also on the list. Stephen Coniglio - Uncontracted and vastly improving player this season.

B Garland, T McDonald, Bail HB Lumumba, Dunn, Grimes C Vince, Cross, M Jones HF Watts, Hogan, Howe F Vandenberg, Pedersen, Garlett Fol Gawn, Tyson, N Jones Int Brayshaw, Michie, Newton, Riley (sub) In: Watts, Hogan, Newton, Riley, Gawn Out: Salem, Spencer, Toumpas, Stretch, Dawes Bail was terrible last week but survives because we lack pace and Toumpas and Stretch were worse. Nathan Jones to Bontempelli because Picken usually does a job on him. It is worth trying Gawn because Spencer has been poor and Jamar is not the future. I don't see how dropping Howe improves the side given the lack of talent. It will be interesting to see who McDonald goes to.

The smart clubs will be the ones taking a long-term approach by trading for future picks rather than topping up.

Sam Frost is the best ruckman on our list. We just don't know it yet.

Garland, Dunn and Howe are three of our most consistent players. Our problem in the future is that the midfield lacks size, pace and skill. NB: Why the obsession with Garland? He had a bad 2014 after ankle surgery and has been in pretty good form this year.

B Garland, T McDonald, Salem HB Howe, Dunn, Grimes C Vince, Cross, Lumumba HF Watts, Hogan, Bail F Vandenberg, Dawes, Garlett Fol Jamar, Tyson, N Jones Int Brayshaw, Michie, Kennedy-Harris, Newton (Sub) Grimes for Jetta Bail for Kent Definitely not two ruckman - it would make us way too slow. Matt Jones for Tyson if injured. I am a bit worried about their midfield and forward line, particularly their small forwards.

This is right (although the 'delisted free agent' option is only allowed if the club agrees).

This is exactly right. I don't think 6% is over the top provided he stays fit. He is still one of our top 5 players IMO. (Although Hogan, McDonald and Viney are rising quickly.) And has only missed one game since 2012. He ranked 5th at MFC in Supercoach points per game last year and 2nd this year. He is also ranked 86th in the AFL (and 16th in the AFL for defenders).

I rate Howe higher than most people on demonland and want him to stay. $650K is around 6% of the salary cap going forward.

Sydney will have to trade out some talent to land Callum Mills (Academy) and Josh Dunkley (F/S) if the AFL introduces the new points system. Both are rated top 5 picks.

The introduction of free agency and the ability of players to nominate their destination in trades has created a competition where the top clubs can remain at the top of the ladder indefinitely, so long as they continue to be well managed. This has made each season highly predictable and is bringing the bottom clubs to a precarious financial situation. I feel the neatest solution to on field equalisation is to rejig the draft order so that each of the 10 sides that miss the finals get two picks inside the top 20 of the draft. The top eight (finalists) would then each get two picks out of picks 21-36. The picks from 1-20 should also be decided by a lottery, which is weighted according to when clubs are eliminated from finals contention. (i.e. clubs which cannot make the finals early in the season get a higher probability of early picks in the lottery.) The draft order would be in reverse finishing order from pick 37. A proposed formula for the lottery is: Each Club’s Number of Lottery Balls = 1 + (23 - Round Eliminated from Finals Contention)^2 For example, for a club that is eliminated from finals contention in Round 18, they would receive 1 + (23-18)^2 = 26 balls in the lottery. A club eliminated from contention in Round 22 would receive 1 + (23-22)^2 = 2 balls. I would also be in favour of giving the sides outside the finals (the bottom 10) extra money in the salary cap for the next season. The finalists (top 8) should also get diminishing salary caps based on finishing position. For example, the 2015 salary caps should be: 2014 Premier (Hawthorn): $9.4m 2014 Runner Up (Sydney): $9.6m … 2014 Eighth Place (Richmond): $10.8 Clubs 9-18th: $11.0m These two measures would speed up the cycle and would help make bottom clubs more attractive to free agents. It also eliminates the tanking debate, because all clubs and players will naturally strive to play in the finals (and the benefit of finishing down the ladder from 9th is only small and has a random element). Initial player contracts should also be looked at. Clubs should be given an option contract on all drafted players for third and fourth years. The third and fourth years could be at a market salary (determined by the AFL), which means the player will still earn a fair amount.

I loved Vince's game and wish he played with that aggression every week. With Vince tackling like a demon and Viney and Brayshaw we have the capability of being the toughest team in the competition.

B Garland, T McDonald, Jetta HB Howe, Dunn, Salem C Vince, Cross, Lumumba HF Watts, Hogan, Kent F Vandenberg, Pedersen, Garlett Fol Jamar, Tyson, N Jones Int Brayshaw, Michie, Kennedy-Harris, Newton (Sub) Emg Bail, Dawes, M Jones Dawes for Pedersen. Frost for Michie. I think we look a better balanced side with one less tall. I went for Pedersen over Dawes because he holds his marks more often and because he is a better option as a second ruckman. Michie’s form in the VFL has been consistent and he deserves to come into the side.

Dawes is too slow to get separation on his man, has terrible hands and is poor once the ball hits the deck. Other than that he is ok.

If the AFL want to equalise the competition they should reorder the draft to give more picks to the bottom sides. But I don't see why grown adults should be denied the chance to play AFL footy.

This is a bad idea. Why should players have to wait? If they are old enough to go to war, they should be allowed to play footy. This is not the answer to the equalisation debate.