DeeSpencer

There's some irony that Eddie was protected by the boys club when he truly did stuff up a number of times over the years and should've received a greater punishment then. But now he's been hounded by a select group of boys and girls after commissioning a report in an attempt to help his footy club. Calling on Nike and Emirates to pressure the Pies, really? Those bastions of ethical business getting up on their high horses. Taking the bloke to task because he committed the great error of being positive and 'proud' of his football club and tried to push the message that they were working on reforms. I don't have a lot of sympathy for Eddie who should've given the gig up years ago but I do wonder where we're going as a society when the answer is to gang up and take someone down just to feel important. It's nonsense.

My takeaways were Tim Lamb loves Laurie, and his highlight package is pure class so it's hard not to see the appeal there. Lots of clubs wanted him in the draft so hopefully that's a good sign. There might be some reluctance on just where and what they do with Bowey. His kicking and vision is supreme but I expect he'll take time to settle in to a role. Half back is a sensible starting point because you want him getting 10+ kicks a game but it might just take a while. Taylor's enthusiasm for Rosman was a big positive. There's some chance that we've overrated him due to a potential needs fit but it sounds like they weren't just drafting him because they need a wingman. If JT says a guy could explode they've clearly envisioning some big upside. Let's hope it happens.

You hope the whole thing is staged. The strategy of taking the best 2 kicks, that's nonsense. If that's how it falls then great, but you take the best 2 players. A panicked meeting about the 3rd selection when you've had months to get an order finalised and run scenarios based on the earlier picks. Come on now. Goody hasn't been as involved with the draft (every year but no doubt more so this year) and so isn't as enthusiastic to play up for the camera. That's what I hope that is.

“I don't think we can carry 3 talls in our forward line with the poor crumbers that we have. We can't rely on pickett or Spargo to even find the footy, let alone kick goals“ “how bloody slow are Tomlinson, Melksham, Brayshaw, Spargo, OMac, etc. I could have all of them coming at me at once and I reckon I could sidestep all of them” For the record can we assume you were hacked when these posts were made from your account?

I’m probably more worried about his comments about Hodge in this. They took the easy road on that one. 17 other clubs would’ve too. But probably don’t bring it up as a triumph

I’m a believer that AFL footballers make a lot of money for being good at footy. That doesn’t mean they should just be open season from the press no matter how well they are paid. They have to uphold good community standards but still be treated as humans when they do stuff up. Patton likely has punishments coming to him in various forms and fair enough. But a lot of the media coverage was way out of line with the allegations IMO. What should be reported factually and clinically took out a nasty tabloid angle which isn’t good for anyone involved. Clarko’s right to support his player until all the facts are on the table. That doesn’t mean he’s covering it up or minimizing it

Professional performance. Need to fix the starts. Forward pressure still lacking. I’m not a Petrevski fan so there’s an chance to add a different pacy option or two. More quick and crazy Irish women if possible! Maddi Guy hurry back we need that big body and long kick in the midfield too. Beautiful ball movement between the arcs. The wind makes it tough but still a lot of inside 50 opportunities to fix up.

Baker no tricks? He can hit the scoreboard, break lines with pace and has a penetrating (if not always accurate) kick. His issue is he's poor at the fundamentals like pressure, tackling and aerial contesting. Plus the fitness concerns - that surely have to be somewhat improved after this summer. I still have some hope for him but I wouldn't have him in at the start of the year. I think Tommy Mc if in the side will be a forward rotating through the wing not a primary wingman. If Jackson/Brown or Jackson/Weid are the key forwards Tom will be on the wing, then go forward once Jackson rucks or the other key forward rests on the bench. Fritsch might be used the same way. The longer quarters this year will mean more rest for tall forwards and for Gawn (ruck) and Langdon (wing), so a 3rd tall forward who can spend a bit of time on the wing allows you to always have 2 tall forwards without ever being stuck with 3 and no tackle pressure. My guess for the starting wing job at this stage would be Melksham to get him a permanent position, and failing that Harmes who can do the fundamental two way running and contested work. Rosman a long shot but will get his chance in preseason games, even if his skills and smarts are a long way off the physical package is too attractive.

I’m not talking about infringements, I’m saying the way a CHF used to take a mark and the CHB would go stand right on the spot of the mark. Until recently that’s what used to happen. Then teams worked out that a midfielder dropping back could take the mark and the CHB could drop in to the hole. And that midfielder manning the mark would also move 5m laterally to cover the corridor.

I agree with that, but I also don't think Champion Data's publicity arm does them any service. You can't be a stats company and then just break down players in to categories based on being in the x best players at a position in the last year. If you're going to make an elite category then have it as the elite players weighted over a longer period of time and don't make it so position focused. Weight it based on who really is making the elite impact on games. Or do it another way. Release the data and let educated fans make their own analysis. There's an army of smart people out there desperate to cut up the Champion Data numbers as they see fit and they'll produce great content from it.

Some of the protected area stuff could be 25 whilst any professional free kick as well as blatant encroaches and late hits could stay 50, but that's too hard to officiate. Better to stay at 50, train the players up but also make sure the umps aren't too trigger happy on inconsequential actions. Usually there's a period of outrage before the players adapt (and/or the umps forget). Our chinese checkers game plan of short angled kicks through the corridor that worked well at times leading up to 2018 could make a comeback with more space to kick in to. Salem, Rivers and maybe Bowey feeding the ball in to Tracc, Oliver and possibly Melksham to then play on and hit up the forwards.

The do a poor job clarifying the system. Elite for them means in the top x percent at a position. I’d have Tom Lynch as elite and much higher but otherwise the key forwards drop away quickly after the top 5 or so. Champion Data punishes players for missing goals. Harshly. Bad kicking is bad footy so it makes sense to an extent. Cox rarely gets the ball but he rarely misses either. They don’t care if he gets 5 touches a game if he nails his 2 shots and doesn’t get out marked. I’m not saying Cox is elite but it’s something well worth considering in what actually matters for a key forward. Halve contests, don’t get out marked, nail your shots and do your job defensively matter more than taking 8 marks and having 15 touches.

I’m doubtful on Cox too but those two players aren’t elite either.

I have my doubts but for 100 years the player on the mark stood the mark. It's only in the last 10-20 years that players have been handing over the man on the mark, creeping the mark and guarding the corridor. The new rule has the potential to make manning the mark similar to how it was for a very long time. Umpires have already been super hot on players moving off their line (apart from Buddy kicking for goal). Sometimes players get called to play on when they look one way or the other without even moving. Anyone moving off their line will get told to play on.

https://www.geelongcats.com.au/news/726383/johnson-undergoes-surgery Stevie J had knee surgery on March 26 in 2013, literally in the middle of the first round in the split fixture days. He played in round 3. If they have Brown not running for 4 weeks then that’s more conservative and probably a little more going on but it doesn’t have to be curtains for the year

I think the list is in the healthiest space since 2018. It’s not perfect, no list ever is, but at least we have options in a lot of positions. I’m not convinced by the authors faith in Langdon and Tomlinson meaning we can play an ultra fit style of footy. Our on ballers aren’t great runners and we’re youthful in the flanks. Work rate and physicality are the backbone of competing in afl games and we should be able to do that. But winning is about coordinating pressure and coordinating and executing skills under pressure. I’m doubtful adding a few talented young players and a key forward alone will resolve the skills and cohesion problems.

There will be some cartilage floating around causing the swelling, they'll remove it, give it a wash out and chuck in some cortisone to stop it. The problem is if he'll have any cartilage left behind. Need to send him over to Germany for the special injections.

He's not white, and has managed to overcome the ball and chain, broken glass, hurdles and uneven surface.

He's shifted his focus from Collingwood the whole of the AFL which is apparently riddled with racism. And rewritten history to make it sound like every non white player has to climb Everest just to get a game. Cyril Rioli and Jason Johannisen won Norm Smith's when he played and Dusty x 3 since he retired. Goodes and Dusty won Brownlow's. Buddy 4 Coleman medals. He loves exaggerating to the extent that it becomes difficult to believe him. Enough team mates have collaborated the appalling nickname and he doesn't have to ever settle for anything if he wants to fight that injustice. But he does seem to enjoy being on the outside

I had only read the ABC article carefully, I've since read most the full report. The academics didn't recommend sacking Eddie but it's no surprise he announced he's stepping down days after the report arrived. They may be independent but they aren't dumb enough to blatantly call for the resignation of the person who commissioned them. They did it very clear that it was the board who needed to change and included the phrase 'the very top'. The idea that footy clubs are huge behemoths these days just isn't right. The members do what they are told. The board and executives at most clubs are really only a select group of people. It's why someone like Peter Jackson can come in and shape Melbourne up pretty quickly. They really aren't huge businesses either. Replace Ed with someone more progressive and add a few diverse people in different roles and Collingwood will be in line with every other footy club, most of which haven't had any issues with racism for a long time. A lot of the broader systemic issues the authors want changed aren't about getting the club in line with what most people expect but going many many steps beyond that. It's pushing their agendas and mostly nonsense but good luck to them and you if that's the standard you want. I'm fine with footy clubs being inclusive and not tolerating racism, I don't need KPI's and an anti-racism taskforce.

So largely very positive with the club and even with Eddie apart from the awful handling of the Goodes comments and Lumumba stuff. Once Eddie goes they'll be in line with probably most other clubs and then it's about how many of the measures to stop the chances of further problems they need vs how much they can just rely on people doing the right thing in the future - as most clubs have for probably 20 years or longer. Personally I'd change the systems that led to an omnipotent leader before I'd try to meet all sorts of diversity targets and extra processes. A normal President would've got the sack with the Goodes comment and put an end to that issue immediately.

I have to assume you’ve also got access to the best surgeons, physios, doctors, a renowned strength and conditioning coach and 40 hours a week full time to rehab? Definitely the same situation. It wasn’t just a precautionary job on Brown’s knee either, they clearly had the who medial side supported. You might do that to get a guy through a finals series, not trainings in January.

There's decades between the events of Vic Park and the Collingwood of the Lumumba years and now. I don't think it's anything like the same club. Vic Park might've been the worst but it was hardly the only one and society has take huge leaps forward since those days. Eddie's a huge problem and the Lumumba issue is a big problem too, I'm not denying or lessening those. I said that with those 2 things it's impossible to claim the systemic issues don't also feature individuals and overt acts of racism. I'm just saying the authors might've found something similar at Melbourne 5 years ago or even now. We've got a few things going for us in Jetta, May, Matty Whelan in his job, an Alice game and the Reconciliation plan. But I don't think there's been any significant concerns about Melbourne for a long time and yet the same systemic racism might've been found in the way we draft, hire, promote, develop people and so on. Not a single individual racist incident or person but the same systemic issues. We don't have an Indigenous board member, or coaches and who knows how many formal processes for reporting racism or similar we have. There's a disconnect that people think 'systemic racism' means it's really widespread, like the place is like the KKK or a southern country club. I don't think Wells, Varcoe, Krakouer, Leon Davis and plenty of others would think it was anything like that. Jewish Vice President, Indigenous woman on the board. They've certainly got some changes to make but the systemic racism part of the problem doesn't have to involve racist individuals. It's a comment of systems not individuals and most of the measures put forward were more about prevention of further issues than fixing current problems.

The list looks in great condition, that's Burgo's job. Managing injuries is mostly up to the doctors and physios. We've been better under Burgo at getting guys in to see the surgeons and being proactive rather than the old process where we've stuffed around for months before fixing a problem.

Why? They've stuffed around with Brown having fluid on his knee for months and then decided in February to have the surgeon take a look at it. He'll have a scope and miss 4 weeks then they'll rush him back for the start of the season underdone Jay Lockhart's spent the better part of 2 years with huge tape over one or both knees and has over looked hobbled. Obviously half the side were in the same boat for the start of 2019. If it takes half a roll of tape to get you through a January training session then something isn't right.