DeeSpencer

Some of the marking is very good and yes I’d agree the ground balls by comparison are poor. The tackle pressure is huge. And the ball bounces around a lot because there’s a lot of hacked kicks and smothers. Apart from that I’d say there’s still a lot of basketballers and netballers used to catching a ball more than picking one up. Meanwhile even those who have come through the juniors haven’t dealt with nearly the same pressure. Men’s draftees take time to make the adjustment to the massive leap in pressure too. Hanks stands out because she has excellent ground ball technique. She goes low and hard and is comfortable evading on either side. It should improve as more natural footballers come in to the system.

Positives: - McNamara: She does a mountain of running, gets to the right spots and whilst her disposal needs work it's decent enough. AFLW Eddie Langdon in year 1 pretty much. - Hanks: I think that was her most prolific midfield display. Her footy smarts and skills are a step above and she'll find more space as the team gets more cohesive - Paxy: Yep. - Reinforcements: Downie should come back and give the backline more height and defensive ability. Anyone know what's up with Gay and Lampard? A couple more Irish girls to get in to the side as well Negatives: - We got lucky with the free kicks and 50's delivering easy scoring chances. Without them the game is closer - Over handballed around the packs especially early - Few too many are still very one sided and can only cough the ball out when tackled - Rushing inside 50's. Scott was a culprit. When they trust the forwards to win one on ones it works better - Forward pressure. Thought it was ordinary and they possibly had to swing Heath forward. 4 talls, Scott and Hore is top heavy. Petrevski got one lucky holding the ball but generally looks a step behind. - Birch had a shocker Neutrals: - Bannan and Fitzsimon both showed a bit without having great days. Bannan might take time but I can see the upside and Fitzsimon has some smarts and they trusted her to rotate on ball - I'm still not convinced by Cunningham and Parry trying to share the full forward role. Both a little one dimensional. Cunningham had her good moments but can't rely on marking it over the top as much as she wants to. Was nice to see her punch occassionally - Lil Mithen, great warrior, but needs to be less reliant on taking tackles and hacking the ball out.

Missed 3 weeks with a similar problem in 2017 after attempting to play through it. But then it threw out his foot and ankle for 2018, and then had him on a restricted preseason for 2019. So at some stage in 2017 he was in a similar predicament as this one and it cost him playing at his peak for 3 years. It's unlikely that happens again, but it can't exactly go down as nothing to worry about. I hope this is a new medical team learning from previous mistakes and getting ahead of the problem.

I wonder if it was the same foot as his previous plantar fascia troubles? Hopefully this is getting ahead of an issue and we give him time to recover for once. The difference between a healthy Viney in 2020 and the one who hadn’t done a preseason in years in 2019 was chalk and cheese.

A little too much excitement over some time trial results and a natural runner here. The wing is such an important structural position we have to see if he can get to the right spots at stoppages and when defending, that's challenge number 1 for any winger and isn't easy. After that we can't even be sure he'll be a good ball winner. Then the final step is probably how he uses the ball and thumping left foot boot means little if it's not going to a team mate. It's probably more likely at this stage that we'll see Tom McDonald at 28 on the wing rather than Rosman at 18.

The leadership group model does run in to challenges. Someone's going to be upset they missed out. Someone might not deserve to be in. Etc. We've seen Essendon with Zach Merrett run in to that kind of trouble. But a designated group of players to agree on standards and to raise issues with the coaches makes sense to me. 2 players isn't enough for that in a list of 44 of various ages and circumstances. It sounds like they had a leadership group last year with Lever, Melksham and a few others. Seems odd to not just put the group out there and have it be known.

We might only go with 4 inside mids, but if we go with 5 and rotate them either a little forward or through the 3rd wing spot then I'd say the current order for spots is probably something like: Petracca, Oliver, Viney, Harmes, Jordon with Sparrow 6th and Brayshaw still rehabbing. Harmes might not be a walk up start. And whilst I think Viney's actually got to the stage where a few people on here are very much underrating him if he doesn't play to the instructions Yze sets out he might have to go backwards to go forwards too.

I've thought our midfield ball use and backline structural soundness have been as big an issue but for those who think the forward line has been the main culprit the last two years the positive is we've now got options. Tommy Mc is giving it his all. Jackson coming on. Ben Brown on the list. Spargo's had a good preseason from what I've read, Chandler doing well, Pickett going strongly and Laurie coming in. I'd love a bit more established all round talent but that competition for spots should be better than we've had in a long time. The wing is likely in a similar situation. Probably even more doubt over the established talent but at least if we've got Melksham, Baker, Nietschke, Rosman, Vanders all fighting for a spot the competition should push them all along.

Doesn’t apply enough pressure or win enough of the ball to be a forward, we’ve got options there now. I thought they’d get him super fit and give him an extended run on the wing but half back is a similar option. Our depth is certainly lacking after Salem and Rivers it drops away. Teams have dropped defenses back and played safer with the ball. That nullifies Hunt’s run and carry. But one team in Richmond haven’t and they are the team winning flags. If we park Ben Brown inside 50 then we’ll always have a target for the break the lines and run play. And if Choc Williams can get Hunt’s kicking to a sound and reliable level that is a vital step too.

He’s had awful injury luck and skills aren’t great but I’d have Ed VW. He’s a great competitor and gives his all. We can’t trust Tomlinson, Lever or Petty to play defensively on a good opponent. We need another mid sized defender who can do a job

Burgo’s injury update had him on a modified program due to last years injury and then an illness knocking him around over summer. It’s likely he’s been in and out of drills and they’ve just told the reporter he’s coming back from groin issues. If he’s doing a decent portion of the sessions that means they aren’t too worried. Any real concern would have him back in full rehab

Gawn needs to do less media, needs to stop bagging team mates with silly jokes that aren’t funny, needs to kick the ball less - especially short, and needs to bowl a few players over rather than be the victim. He’s the right man for the job but needs to be reminded why he got the job and what it requires.

Is there any evidence for this? He could be in the rehab group for a niggle or because he’s done a lot of work and needs to be held back. Lewis says he’s tearing up the track. That doesn’t exactly correlate with remedial fitness work.

Gawn - C - needs to make huge strides but we have to stick with him May - VC - the best on field leader Viney - VC - effort is never questioned, hopefully has more levels to develop Leadership group: At least one of Oliver/Petracca/Salem - the time is now for them to be given authority, they should all have been given leadership targets over summer to reach in order to be trusted in the group. Langdon - solid role player and citizen Lever - take him on trust that his footy will stack up

That’s Pickett compared with Dan Rioli. All he has to do is find half a tackle more and 3 uncontested touches which comes from work rate and team cohesion and he’s on par statistically. Games are won largely by 22 players knowing and doing their role. If one of our big forwards stands up along with Gawn, Oliver, Petracca and May I think we’ll be fine for star power. It’s finding more consistency and skill across the 22 that holds us back.

He almost always bought it defensively and Richmond have shown those players are more and more valuable. Cyril had quiet games on the stat sheet but was also making an impact on the advanced stat sheet that measures pressure. This issue with Cyril was he enjoyed a good offseason and would often come back in poor shape. Which led to hamstring injuries and missing games. And early retirement. Plus he never reached his midfield potential which is really unfortunate as he could’ve done special things in the centre. Aaron Davey was a better field kick but otherwise a lesser player and had great midfield seasons due to doing the work and necessity at a less talented club. It’s a shame Cyril never did. Kossie can have 8 disposals, 4 effective, 1 behind but make a good impact with 4 tackles. But I’m not sure he’s on Cyril’s level of missing 10 weeks with a hammy and then turning it on. So it’s important they build his body and work ethic up the right way.

Lewis also thinks the mop of strewn road kill attached to his head is similar to human hair. Kossie might have the best defensive traits since Cyril. His anticipation, closing speed and desire for contact are all great. Time will tell if he has the class and finishing skills with the ball to be a two way star.

I’m not going to speculate on trades of contracted players, there’s too many variables. Who’s going to want T Mc, Gus or Hunt? I do think Jones, Jetta, Hibberd, Vanders and Mitch Brown all retire. If that’s the case we might have to keep a majority of the younger guys. Smith, Lockhart, Hore, Baker, Bedford, Chandler, ANB, Nietschke, Bradtke, Jordon all on one year deals. I’ll say Smith, Lockhart, Hore, Chandler, ANB, Nietschke, Bradtke stay on. Baker, Bedford, Jordon don’t.

He's defensive efforts were poor all year as was his appetite for the contest. That he captained the club for a game was frankly insulting to members, players, the jumper etc. He does have talent, especially his ability to hit up a target inside 50, but if he can't do the basics then he's not a leader.

I happened to be in South Gippsland last night so I too made it through the mist to the Casey Fields Blvd. Turned up at the same time as the Wiz and thought I'd mostly stay outside the fence, didn't want to get blasted by the crew pressure washing the building. The early reports have most of what I noted. Gus in rehab. Kozzie and Lockhart put through a fair bit of work. Lockhart had a wrist taped up. Hunt with the backs. Melksham mids. Chandler forward. (Tommy Mc forward too). After a decent run to warm up Choco started them with a point to point kicking drill and he was vocal about keeping your weight through the ball not leaning back and not kicking around corners. Then in to some backs kicking it up to half forward and then finding an inside 50. I saw a fair bit of Bowey in this one and he hits his targets comfortably. 8 on 5 or 6 (I wasn't quite sure) that was a bit of a mess. Certainly some work to be done there. The mids did a handball clearance style game and Petracca was the clear standout not surprisingly. Meanwhile the forwards and backs were working moving it inside 50. There was one piece of play where Laurie was looking inside to his right foot then casually put it on his left and hit a target down the line that impressed me. The forwards and backs rotated through a 4 on 4 top of the goal square drill that was designed to crumb a contest. Fritsch swooped on to it nicely but managed points. At one stage Brown forced a nice contest against 2 that Jacko crumbed and goaled from but the next time May bodied him and took the intercept. Meanwhile most of the group were doing a 2/3rds of the ground match sim kind of drill with a spare winger starting off the back of the stoppages. That was Rosman for a fair bit and he looked comfortable getting involved. I don't think he'll be hitting up short kicks all that often but his kicking action looked better than what I expect and he seemed to have good distance. Maybe the best piece of play was Vanders (who looks so fit he might've run home across the NSW border) getting it off the back of the ball up, hitting up one target, running for a handball receive and hitting T Mc on a lead at CHF who swung around and picked out Jacko on a lead.

Rams 13 Packers 30 Ravens 27 Bills 24 Browns 25 Chiefs 31 Bucs 24 Saints 20 Been out of the NFL thread, just far too depressing a year for my boys. Predicting a couple of upsets

The spin is always positive. And there’s always injuries as they ramp up contact, match sim and practice games. But this is January 23 2019: “Gus (Angus Brayshaw) had a back-issue pre-Christmas which has been resolved. “The shoulder guys that we had, Harmesy (James Harmes), Neville (Jetta), Jayden (Hunt) and Vanders (Aaron vandenBerg), all joined in training on Monday so they’re virtually full contact now. “They’ll all do most of the sessions from here on in.” Misson isn’t worried about too many of the players in a long-term capacity and believes the majority of the rehab group is now ready for full training. “Billy (Stretch) did 80 percent of the session on Monday – he had that toe operated on last year,” Misson said. “Oscar (McDonald) had a hip scope, so he’s been going really well in rehab. He’s back in full training now, as is Tim Smith who had an ankle scope, and Trac (Christian Petracca) who had a knee scope. “There are no major concerns long-term.” Eight players remain in the rehab group, so with the club set to head on its pre-season camp next week, Misson has provided an update on their individual progress. Oskar Baker “Oskar Baker is due to do some training on camp. He did a pretty bad hamstring injury towards the end of the VFL season. Because speed is his main weapon we’ve taken a fair bit of time with him and he’s now put together some really good fast running in rehab.” Mitch Hannan “He had a double knee scope so he’s going OK. He hasn’t started football stuff yet but he’s doing a bit of running.” Nathan Jones “He just had some back and hamstring issues before Christmas and over the Christmas period that’s been a little bit slow. Because he’s a bit older and it’s the first hamstring he’s done we’re taking it a little bit slower.” Jake Lever “Lever had a few issues pre-Christmas primarily with some nerve stuff but he’s definitely over the hump now. He’s starting to run fast, he’s doing agility and looking to start some one-on-one skill stuff next week. We’re confident now he’s over the little issue he had pre-Christmas and he’s starting to put in some really consistent training.” Jake Melksham “He’s another one who just had a little hamstring thing before Christmas which has been slow and it’s similar to an injury he had during the season last year. So we’re just taking a little bit more time with it.” Clayton Oliver “Clarry had both shoulders [operated on]. He actually joined in a drill on Monday, so he’ll be doing more and more with the group over the next couple of weeks. By the end of camp we expect he’s going to be in full training.” Jack Viney “Vines is going really well. He’s probably put together his most consistent training period. So he’ll do some training with the group on camp and then afterwards he’ll be back.” Guy Walker “Guy had an issue with his shoulder pre-Christmas just in a contact drill. He actually had a procedure during the Christmas break which is going to be a reasonably slow recovery.”

Worse than the HS, the Daily Mail have been all over this like it's watergate. Unfortunately they love that they can set headlines of bad boy AFL star to images of girls in bikinis.

It's not entirely foolproof, as long as there's a doctor who will admit you and the insurance will pay the bills private psych will gladly take patients...but in the balance of things I do very much agree. Even private psych hospitals aren't nice places to be in and it's very unlikely someone would go through that effort. I hope he makes it through this, mostly because I don't think what he's done is so bad to completely cost him his career and ruin his reputation to the stage that it's beyond repair. That's not saying it's not bad, just not so bad as to not deserve a second chance. But apart from that I hope instead of criticising AFL players or anyone else for so called playing the mental health card I'd like to see the message spread further about asking for help. Mens mental health is the biggest threat to men and women and I find it hard to believe that Patton was purely just doing the wrong thing for the thrill of it. I wish that the next guy out there thinking of doing the same thing isn't just reminded of the potential punishment but is told to get help.

Nothing new on the facilities. The board thing is the most interesting. I thought the new Directors were filling casual vacancies and there wouldn’t be an election? Now there is one? The lengthy explanation on how they recruit and approve Directors was very interesting, but also had a thou doth protest too much vibe to it. If they’ve clearly selected the right individuals why are they worried about one independent challenger?