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Thanks for the inside perspective there Do26.

I donated on the DD site the other night but might just have to do it again after that read.

To be debt free could change the whole psyche of the club. We are being very positive and moving forward but there couldn't be any better signal of progress than getting the debt monkey off our back - although a flag would (will) be good too.

Good to hear that another player is getting a taste of senior footy prior to the pre-season. I am not sure what to expect from Bail but I always look forward to seeing new players and discovering their own personal attributes as footy players.

Our club is in good hands, this I am sure of.

Here's what was discussed on FC.

Footy Classified 03/08/2009

more Footy Classified 03/08/2009

I was surprised at how rational Hutchy was about the situation.

what is the point of delisting a player, why not put them up for trade? if no one takes them then you delist, isnt getting something better than nothing?????

It depends how much space you want to make for draftees including the rookie draft (and PSD for players coming back like Cousins - not that we are in that boat) but in general your point is valid.

DB does well with the media IMO. Nothing profound or negative, he's just a level headed footy coach and that's all he needs to be. I have the utmost confidence in him to do great things for the club and team.

Having gone through a hard season and being generally outplayed with only 4 games left, now is not the time to start querying rules or practices. The footy world would absolutely laugh at us if we missed the PP given where we are at right now. As others have said, shut up, smile, take the pick/s and back out of the room quietly.

How do you define 'danger game'? If that means probably, likely or 'even money chance' then sure, we disagree.

Without being too scientific and keeping it as a casual chat I guess a danger game (to me) is one where a team is generally not expected to win but you (personally) are not surprised if they get up. Every now and then you get games where for no other reason than a gut feeling you are not surprised. I told a doggies supporter friend of mine late in 2007 that the Dees were a danger game to them - I wouldn't have tipped us or anything but we did end up winning for some reason.

Anyway it doesn't really matter, your rationale makes sense.

My 'angle' is that they have won more than triple the amount of games than we have for a reason - they're a far better side than us.

Sure, we could beat Carlton. We could beat St. Kilda. You could buy a lotto ticket and hit the jackpot.

Is it probable that any of those things will occur? No.

I've already pointed out that I expect Carlton to win.

Without this going around in circles lets just agree to disagree that this could be a danger game to Carlton if we give ourselves the best possible chance of winning.

Let us be realistic - it was a loss, like every game bar three have been this season.

It was also the Bulldogs who are currently higher on the ladder than Carlton (which seems to be your angle here). Hey, I'm expecting the Blues to beat us as they should but then again who'd have thought we'd get within 7 of the Dogs? It can be a funny old game some times. List management could possibly be the difference.

Have they been playing Melbourne?

Carlton are far above us on the ladder for a reason.

North is a bona fide danger game though.

It is unlikely perhaps but our 7 point loss to the Bulldogs was an eye opener. Our "list management" will probably be the final factor anyway.

lol perhaps we were very hard to match up on yesterday with all our moves.

...but on a serious note, I AGREE, Richmond are pathetic and are going nowhere.

For the past few weeks....

Carlton had wanted to play finals and have wanted a top 4 spot but......

Crocker has been pushing for a win and his side cant deliver ......

Stay tuned...

I agree, to those who are hanging on them, those two losses are not in the bag yet. Having said that, the North game is at TD which will suit them more than us.

We definitely need to be looking at the big picture with McLean if there in fact is one. He is clearly struggling in most facets of the game atm. Playing him out for the rest of the season I doubt would help him or the team other than from a morale point of view for him. He obviously wants to do his best for his team but he is just not in the game. No power in the legs, no speed, no strength in kicking, can't hold his ground body on body. If there is a debilitation there then we may as well rest him and throw a few others in the middle. The Blease injury is all the more annoying.

Cheney has some pretty good attributes. He is competing in an area where there is almost a surplus of rising talent (and Garland hasn't even come back yet). I think his hardness will benefit the players around him though over time. A keeper for a while yet and the way he attacks marking contests front on should make him very useful across half back and possibly elsewhere depending on development.

Even though we will have improved facilities as of next year, our biggest priority (IMO) besides more talented players in the middle and up forward is a bigger football department at the club. I still think that too much is being left to too few.

Has anyone noticed that Ch10 still use the previous Demon logo for their graphics?

Our use of Davey was smart and effective in the early stages of this season and he still is useful as a go to man. The problem is that the longer we keep doing this the more of an easy way out it is for our players when they get the ball. I think we have turned a genuine edge that we had into a crutch and the development of our players coming out of defence may suffer. Sure, if the player carrying the ball is an absoulute liability then give it to Davey (where possible) but I don't like how quickly we are to dish off to him or the frequency - we need to get more players to use the ball better themselves. Only 10 games to go, let's get as much out of them as possible.

As far as the OP is concerned I noticed this a fair bit and it is quite a worthy observation to raise IMO. Our players need to attack the ball more when it is in flight and as a result we may end up having more players kick to space to the running team mate rather than being under the pump to do a pin point pass. Geelong didn't dominate their game against Freo yesterday but their kicking to space was simple and effective either a lace out pass in front of their team mate or a lateral pass with their team mate running with the flight. Something we definitely need to work on but I suspect we aren't quite up to condition to do this well over 4 quarters.

Moloney just isn't smart enough for mine. Still makes over zealous tackles, still makes up and under kicks and goes for passes he doesn't have the skill for. He has had a reasonable season by his standards but that is not enough. Other players will streak past him in prominence, potency and leadership in the next few years. Moloney will still be a useful list player for us for the long term though as we don't have much of a midfield brigade.

Why do we need Hardwick when we already have Wellman?

Ive seen him play 4 games and the majority of his goals come from a mark and set shot. Come to think of it I cant remember any coming from general play but I'm sure there has been a few. He seems to be a very smart footballer, always leads to space and his ball use Is first class. He has excellent evasive skills with great vision. Has a knack of getting the ball In traffic and before you know it he's got a few meters of space.

To answer you question I'm not sure what he's like kicking around his body.

I guess I did waffle a bit but the kicking around the body aspect is what I was talking about as you mention. Good to hear about his ability to create space though and on top of his natural flair if he is a great set shot then there is a lot to like about him.

I am not sure it is something to worry about.

Peter Daicos when asked this question says he always straightened his shoulders to face the goals, no matter what was coming or what the angle. His highlights prove this, although he is accused of kicking them from "all angles".

Although sometimes it is necessary, it is not encouraged. All coaches encourage you to square your shoulders and run in a straight line towards goal.

I guess you have a bit of a point with Daicos but I suppose being a faster modern game it is important to have the ability to kick around the body. I am not saying Jurrah can't as I don't know, it was more an observation that he seemed to prefer the straight line (almost run up) shot at goal in general play which is not necessarily a bad thing anyway if you have the chance. I definitely can't wait to see him play.

I haven't had the opportunity to see Jurah play this year. I have seen clips of him here and there. Can someone (who has seen enough of him) inform me of how good Jurah is at kicking at goal when not straight in line. IE his snapp kick ability either stationary or on the run. From the clips I saw of Jurrah he seemed to prefer to take the extra time to get square (directly face goal) prior to kicking which is great if you have time but time is not abundant at AFL level. Like I say I have only seen clips, not enough to get an idea of how he plays or his kicking ability when not facing goal.

When they implemented the Debt Demolition website last year it stated (and still does) "We will continue with our debt demolition campaign for as long as it takes to get rid of all of our debt." From that point of view it is no surprise that they are having a new launch for this year and the intentions of the club were clearly stipulated. I for one am quite happy with this as a supporter/member. At the end of the day only those who wish to donate will and if there is a significant chunk taken out of our debt each year such that the overall debt reduces greatly then I will continue to make donations online as a supporter/member. If we can be completely debt free or there abouts by the end of 2010 then that would be absolutely awesome for the club and it makes sense to push it as much as possible now as some others have said. The club is in a situation that it is trying to get out of for the long term so now is not the time to have reservations that (or be embarrased by the fact) the club is still asking for money - if you can spare a few dollars then great, if you can't then no worries.

After watching the game I came in here just to see whether or not someone would be silly enough to start a thread like this, and lo and behold, what do I find? "Is Naitanui better than Watts?"

Ridiculous thread.

There's always one isn't there.

TBH I hope Naitanui has a great career, how he goes as a player makes no difference to what our priorities were and our decision making process. We went one way with a forward and the Eagles went a different way with a ruck. Exciting kids in the league is what it is all about.