DV8

Wagner was fairly good 2 years back. he was a dasher who needed to work on his game. (a little like hunts dash in 2017) Last year was almost a right off for Wagner, in terms of AFL games. I wondered what had happened to him, was concerning, but our defence was pretty reasonable with Hibbo, Jetta & Hunt. In hindsight the lessons Wagner would have learned thru last year, including resilience, would have been valuable ones. Now we are taking the gamestyle further toward an attacking style with quicker ball movement. Wagners mobility is back in vogue. And he is currently picking up the pieces from where he was back in 2016. Next Hunty to learn top play wing properly. and maybe, eventually, he'll learn half forward ????? one day?

See the highlighted sections top quote ? the highlighted sections, of your post, is what I was referring to, Re jetta-esque Not so long ago most here were putting Jetta down as a lost cause. I always liked Jetta's game style, but it hadn't suited the gamestyle the club was trying to instill at around the time of morton, bennell, etc. Most thought Jetta was a bust. Jetta wasn't the problem. The same might be said of Wagner.

IMO it's the midfield that we need to be controlling the airways. If we can take aerial possession in our midfield between the arcs, and stop to take in the situation, we can then move the ball with thought going toward f50. Not too much time, but a thinking process to get the pill into range. I'm not as concerned yet about not marking as much inside 50 as I am in across the centreline. Maybe Lever could help us in this situation?

That's what I've been saying, Re Frost coming back into the side, that he could play forward, on the oppo's main key defender, & spoil all high ball coming in, so our small/mediums can attack the contest... kick a goal or lock it down.

sounds almost, jetta-esque. doesn't he?

you also here of mature recruits that they have to learn the way we play at this club .........! all clubs will have they're ways. at 22yrs Lever is still just learning the caper of AFL, and his body is still growing. He may well turn into a real key tall. instead of a floater. Then he would be capable of all defender skills. And I still think he could be a mobile CHF. the type we wanted watts to be... but who had no real go in his armory when with us.

Thats what I was thinking, out of form, give him the role to quell TMitchell. ........... I have to check my schpelling.

Start lever from the wing if necessary, if he's a floating sweeper across the defence, means he plays loose & reads the play to intercept. He can do that from the wing, maybe he'll be going back a bit with the flight occasionally. He doesn't want to start deep does he?

Tag doesn't mean purely negate. We can win the ball against O'Meara and use it creatively. Maybe you'd prefer the 'runwith' term? I just mean paying them close attention keep them on the leash. And hurt them back the other way. Too many these days just run free to create whatever they can.

LoL. Devils advocate. I think he may well have been in the line of sight of selectors after his efforts. but not now. So, IMO, if I was selector, I would be looking to add a nippy player who can be defensive minded, to account for some nimble Hawks.

Did it matter, a win is a win, is a win. Back in those days, dropping Hudson was a big win for a losing side. Just a sincere pity about his knee though. But I'd love to have vision of Ray Biffen rubbing mud-toothpaste into any Hawks faces. They always looked so much better, when all muddied up.

The defensive press is a major blight on our game. The long bomb is one idea to hustle the ball into f50, before 'the press' has a chance to gather numbers. I'm all for it if it gives us back the Torp, or a Bullet 50mtr drop-punt toward space, away from any grouped defenders. And a sprint to the ball from all directions,,, from within f50, & those outside f50. The One tall Key Forward works in this case, and if the tall forward is lightning quick, all the better. Accompanied by a handful of slippery small/medium forwards.

Thats what i''m thinking Re the leash. It would mean Clarry has to play without as much freedom and creativity, with other stuff a must to focus on. I'm not sure how that would effect his game? Bernie is accustomed to the role, but maybe O'Meara is more his type of opponent? O'Meara would also have to cover Bernie, when he has the ball. Maybe the buggster is the key, to bother Mitchell ? ... would you use Angus on O'Meara? Maybe that's why they apparently used Angus to tag in the VFL... to see IF he can be a tagger? I'm not convinced Re Angus yet, for these match-ups. I'd prefer Dion in, to utilise around the Hawks smalls.

OK. I wondered if you were responding to my thoughts. He's just not inform, Yet.

We're not adopting a plan that we can already do. our forwardline is in as much transition as the rest of our lines. The truth is we aren't settled in any dept just yet. So do we play to the cattle we have currently, or do try to instill a gamestyle you want to have, even tho the current players might struggle a little with carrying it off. Are we playing for 2018 alone? Or are we playing to build a team that can win the premiership in all our near futures? Should we change our gamestyle once our young small players have all matured,,, and only then?

Who is writing off Lever? and how?

I don't mind the alternative, of Oliver going head to head with Mitchell. I'd back Oliver's tenacity, for sure. If he keeps Mitchell on a tight leash.

Yes, Or Bernie goes to O'Meara. or vica-verca with Angus, if Angus gets called on.

??? wouldn't that then have to be tangenital. Its just a bit too hard to imagine, bm'r.

And you don't even have to overuse the bloody ball when under all that pressure. But the last shepherd i saw was a very impotent shepherd. Not much conviction in stopping the approaching defender.

And there is nothing wrong with using Lever off the defensive wing situation. covering off incoming high ball into our defensive 50Mtr arc. We still keep our defensive tall setup as structured (2 talls) with the runners around, and Hunt and Lever can still play on wings. I don't really want hunt off the halfback line, ever since late last year. I prefer him starting on the wing and pushing back into our defence when the play is in there, and bringing the ball out with run. When on the wing (offensively), I'm happy for him to bomb long into our F50Mtr Arc, as a chaos ball; which should be brought to ground IF we cannot get a guaranteed mark. This should bring our quick smalls into play controlling the inside 50 play. (I wish we had Jack Higgins)...

I would have kept pick 10 2017 off the table. Future picks &/or a player. What did we get for watts his name again? So a 1st Rnd future pick (2018), plus compensation pick for Watts should have about done the job. If not the compensation pick, then a 3rd Rnd future pick (2018) should have made the deal. Our 2017 early pick should have remained tucked away in our pocket.

All that is true but mostly irrelevant to the D's. Just like some of us who shook our heads after Rnd 2. Unhappy with some of the form and mental fade-outs etc. As it has been a constant of the poor past. Things are looking better since then, with a few players starting to lift themselves, Re onfield leadership, etc. But when things are left to lay undisturbed at this club, most often things do not change; so in some ways the negative angry supporter responses on social media, can have a motivating factor for the players to lift their games. I think this has happened in our case. Now the trade/draft folded hand last season Re Lever. This is not Levrers fault nor his issue. And the posts Re the weak hand played at the trade table by us are in know way about Levers form. But just, (from me anyway) about the apparent weak effort to push the Lever trade situation to better suit us. I see it as the 2018 draft as a strong draft with a lot of top-end talent, so 2 picks in that draft should have carried a lot of weight. Re trading. If the trade didn't happen, then we would have done very well with others anyway & Jack Higgins looks like a top catch, as has PHarrison who we took later. Interesting that Harrison may become the player we wanted from Lever ? but bigger. Lever will still be a great player for us, but the issue is the way the club folded up its offer, And just bent over. Using too much of our currency doing that. .

its not the words wjd,,,, do as I say, its do as is being done around you. It Is the actions of your peers; that's is the culture the club stands buy. And you cannot buy it, a great culture. You have to grow your own, because its organic in nature. We (Mfc) are starting to learn.

did we miss our chance ?