DeeSpencer

He was stronger at the contest and escaped tackles better this week. Couldn’t lay a tackle himself. And his kicking penetration remains dreadful and costly. Maybe the tv doesn’t capture how he has short or long options but invariably goes with slow 35m up and unders that consistently get spoiled. The decline in his kicking and seemingly in his confidence to flatten his kicks from preseason to the real stuff is is drastic as I can remember

Gus is better behind the ball but he plays half back as an intercepting tall not as an aggressive two way flanker. It’s the combination of him and Lever in the same role that I don’t like. Some of Gus’ best footy of his career was when Lever was out last year. When they both played together it’s fantastic against bad sides but gets silly against dangerous teams. Of course if we do get to full health with mids and flankers we can consider Gus to a wing where he gets the benefit of playing as a spare back and a mid at the same time.

Carlton’s pressure was very solid early but we stuck to attacking guns and switched it more tonight than in the last month. Even some corridor kick ins! What I also loved is the backline mostly came forward and defended far higher and grew in confidence. Far less sitting back. Then Carlton got stuck in the turnover cycle, butchering it more and more so less and less unable to pressure.

Collingwood - Johnson, Mihocek, Cox. None are great but we might be better off putting Hibberd (if healthy) on Johnson and Lever on Cox rather than going too tall and getting burnt be their speed and pressure. Brisbane - Daniher, Hipwood, Gunston are all dangerous. Lever has generally taken Hipwood Geelong - Hawkins, Cameron, Henry/Rohan. Usually the Cats play a small through Lever and attempt to get him turned around by Miers/Stengle at ground level.

The issue is what do we do when we don’t come up against a side with Silvagni, bog ordinary smalls or Lewis Young as the perfect 3rd tall for Lever to zone off. If Lever has to play on a dangerous opponent no matter what size then it’s hard to say we need a 3rd tall. We also looked much better without Gus playing loose down back too. Salo, Riv, Bowey played great 2 way flanker footy. Next week we probably need Gus and he only knows how to be an interceptor down back. If Lever and Gus both naturally zone off smart teams will find match ups to abuse that. There’s no doubt in Lever’s best role but I’m hardly convinced we always have to right talent alongside him to allow him to play it week in week out.

If he isn’t he should be, but I can’t see him playing every week in the VFL whilst doing a preseason. He should have a month off and some German calves blood to be any chance.

For the love of god can we ban loading on this website. The players have played 12 weeks without a break, we need the bye. All teams do. Apart from that we are slow in the midfield. We need Oliver, we could do with a second winger who could out run his shadow and a forward/mid burner and we need some more cohesive ball use. But a freshen up that doesn’t involve punching each other would be a good result for the next 2 weeks.

6. Petracca 5. Salem 4. Lever 3. May 2. Viney 1. Fritsch Backline excellent. Riv, McVee and Bowey could’ve had votes too. Fritsch found some touch after a rough start. Great to see him up the ground and involved more. JVR good. Spargo good. Chandler almost good. Wingers had nearly games against ordinary opponents.

He’s signed a nearly unprecedented deal for a first year kid. Their culture is consistently getting abused by player managers. Worth it for the Bear but not for most deals they sign.

The free kick was rubbish but to get done 5 times inside 50 isn’t good. A couple were on hard leads with kicks that hit Harry right in the hands which are nearly impossible to stop. He also did very little with the ball which is a shame because he has the tank and skills to contribute as a rebounder. But really he was picked to lose the battle but hope we won the war. Poor guy was sacrificed for the greater good.

Everything was pretty good except the ball movement in the front half and finishing inside 50. Set shots aren’t always going to go your way and we were on a crazy hot streak before this last fortnight. But the forward structure is just hot garbage and the midfield have suddenly lost their ability to link up to create the scores too. At our best we could move the ball somewhat cohesively from arc to arc before things got hard inside 50. Oliver’s a big loss but we should have enough talent to look somewhat fluent.

First Nations has been used in the report/reporting several times, it's my understanding that one of the couples may be from a non Australian First Nations background. Not sure it's wise to really emphasise that because surely the conduct matters more, but there you go.

Verrall showed plenty in preseason, he’ll still need time but he has the talent if they can fix his core for good and get him out there. Obviously a worry that they nursed him through all summer and then he broke down pretty much immediately. Sestan started the VFL season far better than I imagined given his background. If Casey get back in form I’m expecting a break out game soon. Pretty keen to see how much he can improve after a full preseason.

I’d play him back alongside May and Lever, he’s a lovely field kick and got plenty of the ball in his stint back. Then I’d probably swap him forward and send Petty back when May is done. Our 2m+ forward is probably a second ruck. I doubt we’ll have the best combination of financial and chance to win offer. So I doubt we’ll get him anyway but his versatility means he’ll fit somewhere

We should challenge, ask them to extend it to 11 weeks and there's our midseason draft pick sorted.

So you want to replace our entire forward line with what? Casey’s forward line, so you can then complain about them? Seems unlikely to be a successful decision.

Cap space. Not nothing, but we better spend it on something good soon

They all are B or even C graders, but there’s pace and/or a physical robustness about those players that has them equal if not better than the Melbourne counterparts.

He looked good his first few VFL games but as the Casey forward line has got taller and taller and the midfield less stocked he’s dropped right off. It’s a worry he’s getting progressively less output and the bye hasn’t helped.

Who? None of their backs are, that’s for sure, they play 7 very solid players who all complement Moore, a little undersized with Markov in for Howe but he’s not terrible. I don’t think their mids are. We’d love Josh Daicos on a wing or even WHE so we had a 3rd wing/forward. Their forward line aren’t big names but Cox is a forward/ruck when we have 2 rucks. Mihocek and Ash Johnson (in place of McStay) are better than our talls. Elliot >>>> Fritsch because he defends. 3 smalls - Bobby Hill, McCreery and sometimes Ginnivan all are better than Spargo and Chandler. Taylor Adams plays the ANB defensive forward role. They’ve got more run, more mid/forward and backline versatility (Crisp and Daicos can swap) and better more functional talls. The only advantages we have on them is 2 rucks - which we can’t leverage, and 2 superstar on ballers - which we struggle to leverage. If Petty plays back we have a height advantage with 3 tall backs but we need run from the backline and a CHF so that’s no advantage either. Don’t make the mistake Langdon did thinking the Pies are some coaching/game plan miracle. It’s not true, they’re a very talented and well balanced team that play to their strengths.

If you don’t think our handballing doesn’t need work I don’t think you’ve watched the last two weeks! Attacking handballing to get out of trouble allows a player running free to then balance up and kick to a target. Not saying kicking isn’t an issue too but handballing drives our scoring chains, the same for most sides

I know the 21 day hamstring isn’t a thing any more but I wouldn’t want to be the coach or medical staff telling him he can’t play King’s Birthday if he ticks off all the clinical indicators.

2 of those 3 are true. Carlton have been moving the ball like they’re drunk. Due to lack of half back skill and midfield pace they have no tempo. Much like us at times. Their midfield injuries actually open up a chance for Fisher and Dow to come in and be a completely different mix.

We’re all a bit sensitive today aren’t we. BBB is a premiership hero and a great person but he’s over 30 with a chronic degenerative knee issue. The poor guy can barely break out of a jog any more. Kane Lambert is a Richmond hero who had a bung hip and couldn’t run to his previous levels. He was 30 last year when Richmond - in finals contention - wound him up prior to the midseason draft. He’s now their midfield coach. BBB could be in the coaches box helping Stafford get the best out of forwards and letting Jefferson have a more prominent role at Casey. I’m not saying boot him from the club. But it really looks like time for him as a player

Riv mid. Riv mid. I know he’s been mostly good down back but Gus can roll back with Hunter in. It’s time to unleash Rivers on ball. FB: Hibberd May McVee HB: Salem Lever Brayshaw C; Hunter Petracca Langdon HF: Spargo T Mc ANB FF: Pickett JVR Fritsch Foll: Gawn Rivers Viney Int: Grundy Bowey JJ Sparrow s: Chandler