DeeSpencer

Salem’s one of my all time favourite players but his ball use is far more focussed on efficiency (especially under heavy pressure) than it is damage. Overall his kicking is overrated and all the other aspects of his game underrated. His defensive efforts, contested ball, tackling etc are exceptional and separate him from other half back flankers far more than his kicking does.

The Williams inclusion is strange. I wonder if they lump his midfield games in to backline and so he gets bonus possessions. Saad wasn't elite last year either. But the message might be less about defending which they struggle to quantify and more about how much they value elite half back ball use. There's a number of half backs in this list and the common thread is they either kick the ball really well or are aggressive runners from the backline to take the game on.

I don’t really get the hate. They clearly state they list the elite players in each position, not overall. They’ve decided Gawn was just behind the best rucks. The likes of Darcy and Hickey don’t have back ups. Gawn does. No doubt that impacts his statistical value. Nic Nat is a clean hit out machine. That gets him huge stat points even if he does little else. Because clear centre clearances are worth gold, as we learned in the granny. Its ok to see what they do and don’t value, it can be a way to learn about the game.

They're a bit different to me. Baker has one excellent trait which is lovely burst speed. But has otherwise been too flawed with a lack of tank, suspect field kicking and poor contested ability and pressure. He's been working hard on those deficiencies though and the standout trait is still dangerous and rare. Chandler doesn't really have one standout trait. He's got a bit of a leap and burst and tackles pretty well but overall he's just got a number of solid attributes to play half forward. Pretty similar to someone like Spargo. Spargo had a bit more of a tank and smarts but really it took until last season for his clean skills at training to shine through on game day. ANB took even longer to start making quality decisions across half forward. It's the trickiest position to play especially when using the ball and finding that balance with how much you can take on is tricky.

That’s the best our hand balling has been. Starting to take quicker options and move the ball by hand. That’s our best way to score. Her kicking still needs work but Westy was great by hand. Mithen on the windy side wing was very handy, might be worth persisting with her there and using Sheriff at half forward to get more run/pace. Really liked Fitzsimon’s forward pressure too

Closing space to the ball carrier then blocking them from running on is a key part of our game and every other side. Viney doesn’t go high, the ball is nearby and Rivers has had 3 steps to gather himself post disposal so it should be considered a down field free kick. Rivers is ready for contact and comes off worse. The umpire made a mistake

Signed with Casey. Pretty normal to add Casey players to the practice games

From the highlights video a few things stood out. 1. Clarry is such a transition weapon 2. Luke Jackson isn’t done doing crazy things for a guy his size 3. Howes is getting a rude initiation to the core strength required for afl footy. Not a bad thing. 4. Weid is clearly hungry, but defenders also know they can take him on out the other way. 5. Chandler sets up 2 goals despite botching them originally. He’s got tricks to get out of trouble. Now he has to learn to stop getting in trouble so much

I don’t think Trent will want to be any closer to Viney that he already is. And regaining his spot in the first choice backline should be his immediate aim!

Matt Buntine

Petty was on crutches but not in a moon boot and was weight bearing, so hopefully whatever it was it's minor.

A higher profile for player managers is probably the last thing we need. But if they are favourable to us I guess we should take it. It would be interesting to know what made the Saints so toxic for Dunstan. Clearly the coach didn’t love his game nor guarantee him a best 22 spot but it seems there was more than just being a fringe player that upset him. Goody’s sell was surely around valuing and improving his game more than a spot in the side. We’ll soon get to see what improvements he’s made.

Back on topic. Our defensive work rate and contested ball was good against the Suns. And there was signs we started to handball more effectively. Clean crisp handballs to runners on the move is the only way our running game will come back, which in turn is our biggest weapon.

I’m willing to admit I’m not a fan of the heat but even those who love sunshine would have to have doubts about sitting or standing in 30+ degrees at grounds that often lack shade. Spring just makes so much more sense to me. With so many teams it’s also harder to keep track of the quality players, which makes watching neutral games unappealing. And I’m not a fan of tying it to existing clubs and trying to skim off 10-20% of crowds. I’d have bit the bullet with all new teams and let them grow organically. The AFL could’ve owned the comp and driven investment but largely the players and fans could control how they want the comp to run.

The gold is yuck. Selling more of the jumper to Zurich is worse. Blue with a red v without 7000 special sponsors logos would be nice

If you sack a coach for losing a prelim what do you do for the 14 coaches who don’t make it that far? Kenny’s made the prelims 3 different times, never won less than 10 games or finished lower than 10th on the ladder. He’s evolved the side with trading prime midfielders to refresh the list to sustain success. It’s certainly getting closer to the stage where you say he just can’t get it done but Port were a mess in the Primus years. There’s a strong case to stick by a coach who gets you to the penultimate weekend of the season rather than expect the grass to be greener.

If Hanks comes back with no forced outs then I’d think about Paxy to half back for Magee out. Or Paxy to half back for Heath to go forward and replace one of the struggling half forwards.

Female elite athletes often look a lot different to men. Look at someone like Serena Williams. I’d say overall the fitness levels are very good. Tex is the exception with her smarts but also I’d say there’d be only a handful of women with similar body types. None in the Dees team. None in the dogs-tigers game I’m watching now. None that I can recall in the lions. Maybe one you girl for the crows who had a lot of skills. It’s the least of the leagues problems.

Tony Lockett was making a lot more cash than Tex Perkins is now in the 90’s, in a far more professional league. Not many people dared to challenge him on his fitness. And Stewie Dew tore the 2008 grand final apart, dismantling a super team. The demons girls are close to if not 100% super fit athletes. Tex came in and did a role for us a couple of years ago. But overall our girls are incredible athlete and Eliza Mc is a machine. Her 6:59 2km time trial stands up pretty well too I think. Im sure Tex’s coaches, the fitness staff and more than anyone Tex herself would love to be fitter. But I actually find her a little inspiring that she gives it a crack even when she must struggle with her diet and preparation. The game would actually be a far better viewing product if more of the women weren’t in elite shape to chase and tackle all day and instead had the footy skills of Perko.

Last nights game was rubbish. Don’t make decisions based on one game. Right now we’re playing similar footy to the men in 2020. Seek out some of the footy the women played late last season. Or even watch the 2nd quarter against Richmond a few weeks ago. Its on tv because it’s popular. Or at least popular enough to invest in for the future. Personally Id move to the league to spring and go back to 8 teams, 14 rounds. Unaffiliated with afl clubs. 1 per state, Geelong or Ballarat, Frankston, Darebin and Western. The standard would then be condensed to elite players who have both athleticism and skills. Instead the afl have rapidly expanded to 14 teams and soon to 18 teams. Even good teams like us have an Irish woman with no idea and a basketballer with under 20 games of footy in her life. Plus 33+ year olds battling to keep up. I think we’re 20 years away from having enough talent for 14-16 teams, yet alone 18. They all get trained how to run, chase, tackle and pressure because that’s easy to do. Very few of them have natural marking, kicking and evasive skills because they get developed at an early age and we’re only seeing the first generation of proper junior development come in to the league now.

He never really made it as a forward, but if he could ruck 50:50 he could make an impact. Still think his best footy was down back and if he is at peak fitness and still got something in the tank he could make a smart pick up for a team looking for a chb next year. That would turn what’s already a great comeback up a notch. Great to see him out there and I reckon Max loves the challenge his athleticism gives him at training

There's a few teams that might have a better spread of exposed AFL talent. The Dogs are one. But I don't want to rehash the depth argument across the comp, and certainly most teams aren't flush for back ups. My point is more that we've already got all our highly drafted players from the '17, '18 and '19 drafts and Bowey in the best 23 now. Apart from Laurie who will probably push for games we aren't exactly stacked for highly rated young talent outside the best 23 in that 2-5th year age range where guys often take a big leap forward. That's not a bad problem to have given how many young players we have in a premiership side, but it's always nice to find 1 or 2 players that you weren't expecting. The guys we do have - Baker, Chandler, Bedford, Turner, Rosman, D Smith - would all be a bit of a shock to see in the side regularly. But I would've said the same thing if you told me Sparrow and JJ would play (or be sub) in just about every game last year. Those 2 were seriously hard workers who adapted early to raising the standards. If every player has now caught on and the full team is training with a far greater purpose and intensity then there might be some surprises from our lessor know group of youngsters.

I haven't been a huge wrap for our depth heading in to this year. Almost all of our top picks from recent years are were in the Premiership team and we only bought in Dunstan. Apart from Bailey Laurie and the first year kids we haven't got many top picks in reserve. Then I remembered I wasn't a huge wrap for Sparrow or JJ, and Petty had missed an entire year and had barely played. Seeing and reading the intensity with which the boys is training is starting to make me think we might have a few surprise packet players ready to come in and impress if needed.