Dr. Mubutu

Are you chasing any particular position, Big Jim?

And then there are the horrible sky blue guernseys from both Carlton and North in recent years.......

Even though I'm almost certainly gonna lose each round on HO and marks, quite happy with how it went.

Erm, the Saints went from black, red and yellow to black, red and white IIRC.......

I think he just seems to be writing about the Demons regularly recently because of LJ and Jimma. He seems to me to be not so much pro-Demons as pro-FOOTY.

You are right on that front Macca. I say, if they're gonna do that for the NAB Cup, bring back the place kick! And no interchanges!

Rewatching (yeah, yeah, masochism to the max) and another thing that is killing them ATM is the horrible OOB rule that's only in place for the NAB Cup. Since next week holds no sway, surely we can have a practice game that actually has the same rules as the season proper?

Nail, head.

By the way, thanks to everyone who quoted WJ for taking him completely out of context. O_o

This is what I was trying to say earlier. There are many reasons an individual can be held in POLICE CUSTODY. At times, it's only as a witness.....

I think you've answered your own question quite well.

If it was really serious, there's no way he'd be allowed back to Melbourne.

Here's RudeBoy's take (I assume) http://www.afl.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/208/newsid/130309/default.aspx

I would be VERRRRYYYY surprised if Liam could even wield a machete with his wrist injury, let alone cause harm with it. Maybe I'm looking through rose-coloured lenses, but I'd be surprised if he was in custody for more than questioning.

I think it's best to hold off until we know something more than 'being held in custody'. Could literally be for anything. And realistically, if he's got a wrist injury......

IMO, he gets a lot of the ball, which attracts the umpires' attention, but is far less damaging with it than any of those players mentioned. Very rarely able to change the trajectory of a game off his own back.

Looks like I'll have to chuck a sickie next Monday so I'm home by 7 for the draft! (Not to mention so I can actually get some kind of strategy)

It also helped that he had Lynch, McKinley and LeCras as the main forward targets whilst he was developing.

This. Plus see the structure hold against to a far more talented side (let's be honest), no injuries, and allow some of the rookies to get that last chance to press for elevation even though Magner, Couch and Nicholson look like locks at this stage (for the record, still not sold on Nicholson).

IMHO, the AFL expanding to these new areas could be a boon for us as well. If, as it's to be believed, we're about to enter a period of success, this can only be a good thing, as kids want to 'follow the winners'. There can also be those (like me) who follow a team to spite everyone else. I didn't follow Melbourne until my teens, (living in QLD and all,) but chose to follow Melbourne as they were playing against Essendon (who many of my friends supported) in the 2000 GF. I've been a member ever since. Either way, surely we'll find supporters in these new markets as long as we can find some sort of success on-field.

It WAS the first game under a new coaching structure, in the wet, with a very tall side. I'm willing to give until AT LEAST round 10. If they can keep up the effort we saw on Saturday night, regardless of results, I'll be overjoyed.

This is exactly it. Bear in mind, Watts is only 6 weeks older than Scully, and he, to this point, has also shown only glimpses of what he is capable of. Scully also came through the TAC cup system, whereas, as Neeld pointed out yesterday, Watts was only playing private school footy. Also, once he gets some experience as a key forward, as opposed to the 'experiments' last year where he was used on a wing or as the loose man behind the ball, (since everyone in the media seem to judge him on key forward attributes/performances) I'm sure he will improve as we all want. This is why the Clark trade is possibly the equivalent of our Judd at Carlton (but obviously not anywhere near the talent gain), taking the heat off our #1 pick, to allow him to develop without the attention of the #1 opposition defender.

Well done Muzza. Excellent stuff. If only I knew people who follow the AFL who don't support scum teams.

AFL: 1. Ablett 2. Franklin 3. Pendlebury 4. Bartel 5. Judd Dees: 1. Frawley 2. Jamar 3. Sylvia 4. Trengove 5. Moloney

Nah, Carlton won the NAB Cup in 2007, then finished 15th with 4 wins. Rubbish indicator.