I think we can win 5 or 6, which worries me. I love my Demons and I go every week, but I've been going every week for the last 15 or so years and it's time for success. Success is very very achievable if we gain #1 and #2 picks in next years national draft. The greater question should be: If Round 22 comes around and we're in a winning position at three quarter time, Watts has bagged 5 (oh, I dream;)) and we've won 4 games for the season, is there any point in winning that last game? Should we do what Carlton did a few years back and take off certain players or manage the list in a certain way? Personally, I think we should. Because if we can get another key position Watts type player (potentially John Butcher) and a Judd-esque midfield type like Tom Scully, in 3 or 4 years we'll be lifting a trophy.
I know it sounds terrible, but with the Gold Coast and potentially Western Sydney draft concessions over the next 5 years, we won't have a chance to continue our re build phase. At the moment, I still think we lack another key position tall; a forward and a pacy midfielder and have thought so since before last year.
Now that we have Watts, we have a chance to build a power team. Watts isn't going to win us a premiership by himself, he'll need others. The Mortons, Jones', Moloney's and the McLean's will support someone like Scully with their grit and determination and Davey, Buckley and Bartram etc can provide the pace from the back.
We have an extremely promising backline with key talls Col Garland, Matty Warnock, Jared Rivers, James Frawley, Stef Martin supporting pacey smalls like Matty Wheels, Jamie Bennell and (by the way, isn't Sean Wellman doing a terrific job with the backhalf?). We're finally building depth at the back, that has barely ever been there in my life time (21 years).
Another thing about the new Demons and reasons to be positive for the future, is that finally we seem to know exactly who we want to draft and we seem to be getting it right. I loved Daniher but for years during his era, we seemed to consistently draft the wrong types of players. Granted, a lot of that is to do with the incredibly overrated Craig Cameron, but Dean Bailey and Barry seem to know the right attributes our new players need. We needed a pace injection and what did we get this year? Pace and a key forward, which we clearly needed.
Anywho, sorry about that. I went off into a fantastical ramble. I'll try to contain that from now on.