praha

You'd need to offer more than that to keep a home sick Victorian on the GC. From what I've heard, the Vics especially that have played up there have struggled from a livelihood point of view. Regardless tho the GC is a shithole.

Among the most healthy teams in 2017 and couldn't get close to a top 8 side. We destroyed them and should have won by 10+ goals but gave them a sniff which was very Melbourne in 2017. Hinkley is a one-trick poney. They'll go on a run but they've added depth and still have Toumpas as their midfield depth. Watts and Motlop are easily blanketed. Rockliff is unpredictable but consistent enough to be a good addition. I think they'll be top 4 but like Geelong they'll be blown over by a rampaging team with more answers. I hope it's us.

good on him. I don't think he'll crack the side, might be given a chance, but I guess he was destined for SA anyway to play in the SANFL and Port thought it would be better to fill their cap with an establish guy of character and skill than a nobody. I suspect this is more of a coaching gig than anything.

Maybe he could help us buy a flag.

I know I'm taking the [censored].

Well, he did make our 150 Heroes back in 2008. No Jakovich. But Hopgood made the cut

No Paul Hopgood?

What we traded to get him is.

Yeah of course. I like that he's at the club but the whole thing is reliant more on us performing well more than it is Adelaide drafting well with those picks.

This trade is essentially backing in the current group of players and coaching team. If we finish lower than 4th we've absolutely gifted Adelaide two good young players for one. This is the epitome of the club drinking its own bathwater. I don't mind it, and good to see the club backing itself in. But gee, it's an immense risk.

Eh. How many super drafts have Sydney, Hawthorn and Geelong not been part of the past decade? We have a core group of youngsters set. It's about filling in the pieces now which Lever helps do.

If we could trade pick 10 and somehow end up with, say, two picks in the 16-18 range, then fair deal. But if we throw in 10 and another first-round pick, it's major overs. If it's pick 10 then a pick in the early-mid 20s will get it done. And if Adelaide baulk at that, then we can point to Dangerfield, Eddie, and Scottie Thompson.

Why wouldn't he? I know he has to agree with it, but Watts ain't no Dangerfield or Buddy. His weight in this instance is limited exclusively to that very clause: he has to agree with it, and it would be a professional courtesy to agree to it considering the 10 years we've put into him. Players rarely say no to say trades. The ramifications are huge, and why would you want to stay at a team that is packaging you? Even Trengove agreed to go to Richmond. IMO we're likely going to have to part ways with Watts or Salem to get Lever. And I doubt either of them is going to hold off the negotiations just because they don't want to go to Carlton. Watts might have the right to say no, but at the same time, he doesn't.

We'll need to trade to secure a second pick. Adelaide want two first-round picks, which is fairly reasonable because they have good luck at the draft like the Eagles. If it goes in that direction, we'll trade one of Watts or Salem for a pick in the 12-15 range, and then package pick 10, new pick, and maybe a player of the Kent variety for Lever and their first round pick. This could all also be part of the Gibbs trade, which might see: Adelaide: Gain - Gibbs, Pick 10 Lose - Lever (to Melbourne), Pick 17 (Carlton) Melbourne: Gain - Lever, Adelaide player filler (who is a reasonable option in this scenario?) Lose - Pick 10 (Adelaide), Watts/Salem (Carlton) Carlton Gain - Watts/Salem, Pick 17 Lose - Gibbs End of the day we're either trading for another first-round pick, or we're giving up players in the Watts/Salem area. Such a trade would probably include packaged players as fillers for Melbourne seeing as both Carlton and Adelaide have high second round picks that probably won't satisfy us. IMO this direction seems most likely. Not sure Carlton would go for this, although Salem would be another fine piece to add to what is already a good backline, and they're crying out for some forward line coherence but Watts is more of a "cherry on top" and not someone you draft to improve your forward wares.

Verbally committed means absolutely nothing in the context of a legal transfer. Anyway, I'd dump Watts, Frost, and a second round pick for Lever and a first rounder.

Joel Macdonald retired years ago...

Thomastown Bears.

He'll play 300 games for North and might guide them to a flag.

And 1997 I believe was Round 1, North were hot favourites, we came out raring to go and beat them. The following week we lost to Collingwood by 100 points.

That is truly amazing. Can't think of any other team having such a bizarre statistic. For another Melbourne-based team, it fits firmly in the "embarrassing record" basket.

McGovern

Nice one. I remember that Charles goal against WC like it was yesterday. '93 I think it was? They were flag favourites and we were struggling but we smashed them that day. Beat the Bombers as well that year...but lost to Sydney lol Typical Melbourne!

IMO it wasn't even that good a moment, hardly representative of what made the wiz the wiz. It was a free kick in front of goal...hardly "Wiz" material. I get that it was against his former side which gave it preference, but still. He had a number of really great games at Freo, pity that was the one they those to use.

Very much this. I hope we are never factored into these "*club* is throwing millions at *player*" news reports. Essendon is throwing a million at Dusty because they're desperate. I don't believe for a second that they're finals-worthy or have the depth that their fans seem to think they have. They're going to start feeling the pinch of last year for a number of years yet. They need to recruit and draft very aggressively. Their current list can't cut it. North seems to be putting all of its eggs in one basket. It knows it can't afford to crash and draft slowly so it's going for the big guns. Richmond will be regretting having thrown so much at Prestia and Caddy. They will lose Dusty. No chance he stays if they can't get to at least within 80% of the best offer.

Except for Essendon and Richmond