DeeSpencer

Unless it's a really good training program adding more weight would only slow him down and decrease his endurance, neither of which are strong points already. Even if he's thin and a little underweight at 23 he should have the core strength to hold tackles and hold position against most opponents. He might get pushed off against a genuine powerful player but not by the average AFL player. It looks to me like he just isn't up to the pace of the game. Won't be the first or last good VFL player to have that problem. The good news is there's plenty who have struggled with their first game or even season then been up to it once they get comfortable. Nathan Broad from the Tigers is a good example. He looked like the worst player I've ever seen in his first few games, before becoming a very handy addition for the Tigers over the last two years.

I like Petty and he'd be my first choice but one of Weid or Keilty might have to be on stand bye as a defender as well. Frost really turned his year around last year after a horrible start. Oscar can also go back to the VFL and dominate games and learn to be more physical, more involved and more proactive. Right now I wouldn't bring Preuss in. But I'd have all the talls on notice that things can change quickly. It's unacceptable to be dominated in the air by this Port team. Really it's a joke.

He does what they ask by positioning in the right spots at set plays and usually not turning the ball over but golly that's all he does. He's shown signs of something more at times in 2016/2017 in games he took a few grabs or got plenty of the ball but it's hard to imagine a footballer with less interest in getting involved in the game than Oscar since about mid year last year.

We appear slow because we throw numbers at the contest and therefore guys on the outside over lap and run away from us. Up forward it's because our crumbers don't get to the right spots, down back it's because every goes up for the mark and in the middle it's because everyone piles in for the ball. Port were also just fitter and healthier than us right now. That said - we need another outside runner through the midfield, we need either Hunt to be fixed and keep improving or at least KK from half back and we need a quick zippy forward. Backs will look quicker if May gives them an anchor to spread around. Mids will look quicker with more fitness and an outside runner. Forwards will look quicker if the delivery is better and we can get out the back.

Spargo has some limitations but along with Melk he's probably our best forward at creating space by getting to the right spots. Went for a bit too much with some kicks and had a bad dropped mark, plus the obvious size issues but there's still only a small number of players in our team who go to the right spots. Be silly to drop him. We have to see if Chandler, Lockhart or Bedford do anything at Casey - my guess is the first 2 do a fair bit - but in the mean time we aren't dropping any of the smalls. If we are then it would be one of Wagner or ANB. They are the guys who don't have any much physicality or footy smarts. Wagner wasn't bad today, but he's very limited unless he starts to take the ball cleanly and read the play better. Midfield pressure and defenders incapable of winning easy contests were probably more of an issue than the forward pressure. It's very hard to generate forward pressure when there's free running midfielders and half forwards open for easy passes. Plus we weren't even getting it deep forward to begin with.

If Big Juicy Preussy is going to play then maybe we chuck Weideman to CHB and get some education in to him. He can take a grab, is a keen tackler, has good hands and a nice boot. I can't see the Tommy Mc/Weid/Preuss forward line being anything but a disaster.

Oscar had 1 intercept possession today. You could literally stand still at CHB and at least manage 3. Plus he wasn't running freely by the end of the game. Whatever was wrong with his hip that needed surgery I'm not convinced it's suddenly right. He played on Schoenmakers and Jack Henry in the finals last year and as soon as he took on a half decent opponent he was crap. I'm struggling to remember a tall defender who has no strength, no speed and no ability to take a mark. Nor does he counter attack and run the ball out. Frost did a good job on Hawkins in the elimination final but he was awful today. The thing about Frost is he just has no football intelligence at all. None.Plus a poor tank. As the season goes on and he builds his match fitness and gets in the rhythm of playing games he can be more useful but every time the season starts again he's all at sea. These guys are both dreadful and we worry about which is worse instead of moving them both on and bringing in someone with upside.

FB: Jetta May Hibberd HB: Hunt Petty Salem C; Jones Oliver Fritsch HF: Spargo T Mc Petracca FF: Melksham Weid Lockhart Foll: Gawn Oliver Harmes Int: J. Wagner, C. Wagner, Viney, Sparrow Out: Oscar, Frost, Hore, ANB In: May, Petty, J Wagner, Lockhart The 3 taller defenders were all absolute witches hats. Get rid of them. Hopeless. I don't want to bring in J Wagner but he has to be better than Hore and I don't think KK is ready. Not too much to be done with the midfield except hope they improve. Viney should find match fitness. Jones was actually playing ok until his awful last quarter. Maybe KK comes in here or maybe Oskar Baker but for now leave as is. Forward line: tempted to overhaul with Keilty or Preuss for Weid as well as making multiple changes to the smalls. But I'd back Weid in rather than go with an underdone Preuss. ANB has to go though, complete liability who doesn't want to win the ball. C. Wagner and Sparrow both looked equally effective (or ineffective) as pressure forwards, keep them in and try either Lockhart or Chandler. Someone with some skill and craft.

A decent debut overshadow by the crappy team. Had a dip, used it better than I expected and worked hard. Goes for the ball and then actively looks where to use it. Against teams with more pressure than Port he might get caught a bit but he has the right approach.

FB: Jetta Oscar Hibberd HB: Salem Frost Lewis C; Fritsch Oliver Jones HF: ANB T Mc Petracca FF: Melksham Weid Spargo Foll: Gawn Brayshaw Viney Int: Hore, Harmes, Stretch, Hunt That's what I expect gets named tomorrow. Don't love Hore down back but I can see why they'll give him first crack at it. Stretch, Hunt and ANB all make me concerned but they are fit and have experience in the side. Keen to see if Goody has a surprise pick instead.

They did a drill today that was one weighted kick to a player cutting on a 45 backwards lead from half back to the wing, then a long flat 40m kick to a leading forward 40m from goal. That's a different approach. The reality is the best way to score is to go quick from half back, get the ball forward and either score or lock it in and create those repeat entries. Going slow from half back/midfield when you get a chance gets you no where. Even the precision Hawks were bombing it last year because speed of entry meant more than precision. As for our overall kicking skills: -The first choice back 7 are all above average kicks. - The hope surely is Gus, Harmes, Tracc, Oliver all improve and if they keep finding the ball they should. Harmes took a step forward last year and Brayshaw is the main one who gets the ball on the outside and needs to stop butchering it. No more left foot heaves when running in open space, save them from where they are useful in congestion. - Fritsch, Kolodjasnij, Spargo are 3 efforts to bring in more skills to the inside 50's. Get them the ball on the wing and half forward and good things will happen - Baker is more speed than precision kicking but line breaking run creates the same inside 50 benefit that good skills do. Jordon is a lovely kick who could play half forward or wing if not half back. Hannan can hit targets. Chandler and Lockhart have potential from what I've seen as nice kicks. I'd like to improve the kicking but a good crumbing forward would make the messy forward entries better and getting back on topic a good crumber would pair really well with Weid. Getting more run and spread to open space from a contest will help the inside 50's too. Throwing numbers at the contest against the good teams really hurt us last year.

Clearly they overloaded Vanders though!

Harmes had a red hat on for the match sim. Viney had a lovely orange hat on. They still took Jack out of several drills so I'm not 100% that he'll play. Or 100% that he should play. Oscar, Frost, Hibberd, Hore, Lewis, Jetta, Salem, Petty, JWagner, Jordon with the defenders so take your pick of 7 there. Lockhart with the forwards which I don't really like. I know he's undersized but not every defender has to be 6 foot+. Liked what I saw with some of his kicking though. I guess the thinking is get the competition for spots in the pressure forwards right because if they play well my concerns about lack of pace from the backline/midfield isn't such a worry. They had CWagner, ANB, Lockhart and Hunt all on the probables team for match simulation so no real guide for which way they are going. Steve May doing a lot of interval running and not looking overly pleased to be doing so. Wish he was playing but maybe the week off will do him good. Focus the mind and make sure his body has a bit more preparation for the season.

I imagine he was our first option but we waited until the deadline to see how the list was shaping up and if there was someone who suddenly appeared on the radar by having a drastic preseason overhaul or dominating the NTFL. You'd have to do something pretty special between Nov and March to really standout as suddenly being a draft option. The Hawks added a developmental ruckman, the Swans a young tall, Gold Coast a young kid who missed out in the drafts and the Saints added Sam Rowe from retirement and Jono Marsh to fill specific key defensive needs. There wasn't a splash signing in any of that lot. The only thing I might've done differently is either had Lockhart or another kid train with the team over summer - although I assume there's a cost issue as well as tipping our hand. I think the Tigers were smarter than the other teams by getting Sydney Stack to train with them before committing to him. I'd be on the lookout for similar players in future years.

Gives 100% but underdeveloped physically is the reason for lack of genuine physicality. He isn't a good tackler, particularly as a forward or defender where tackling involves closing space and anticipation. He wasn't always reliable over a loose ball as a defender either. He made a number of defensive errors against the Hawks (and a few against the Cats), it really wasn't his position which wasn't a surprise given he'd never played there before. I expect very good things on the wing without going over the top. And I agree with AF that his tank will be important. Running all day is the easiest path for him to become a superb wingman. I hope we can spare him to play full forward for 5 minutes a quarter as well (and not to full back as the loose man).

General Molasses. He sometimes does well at half back because that's the position where his footy brain is most likely to out smart faster opponents, the half forward line is the opposite where you need speed, physicality and/or relentless run to separate from or close down and pressure opponents.

Just give us your best that you've shown some time in the last few years: Gawn, Viney, Harmes, Melksham, Jetta, Hibberd, T-Mac Don't drop off: Lewis, Jones Is there another gear?: Oliver, Brayshaw Definitely still have more: Salem, Petracca Yet to see it at MFC: May, Lever If not injured: Vanders In terms of big improvers: Prove me wrong: ANB, Oscar, Frost - all 3 have played a lot of AFL footy but can they really stand up under pressure? Can improve: Fritsch, Weideman - both set the bar high with some of their games the last couple of years, consistency will be important Hoping he's good: KK Watch and see: J Smith, C Wagner, Hore, Lockhart, T Smith, Preuss, Stretch, Hunt, Keilty Not a lot of confidence: J Wagner, JKH, Maynard, Garlett Everyone else is pretty young and might have some up and downs. Spargo should play a bit but I'd expect a standard 2nd season where he's a bit up and down. Petty and Baker both have a chance to play based on their VFL form last year. Chandler maybe the most likely of the 18 year olds this year. The watch and see group are really our depth players. Every week some in that group will probably have to play. I think the club were hoping J Smith and Hunt had great preseasons and that Hore was a ready made AFL player. I'm not so convinced of any of that. If I had to pick 2 guys to make a difference out of that group I'd probably go Lockhart and T Smith. A couple of deep on the list finds would be wonderful, although maybe the best thing might be Oliver and Brayshaw going up another level and Salem and Petracca showing their full range of talents. Throw in Fritsch and KK settling in to positions and demonstrating their skills because I'm greedy!

Remember 2017 when Max missed a huge chunk of the year and we were fine? Preuss and Keilty are important depth but our mids should be good enough to adapt to playing without a dominant ruck. Max's most important role last year was providing the backline with aerial support. I'd imagine that will be vital against Port as well. When May gets back and then up to speed the backline should be able to hold it's own far better.

Are you sure? I though teams could open up a list spot with a long term injury, and we already have one in Nietschke. Would contending teams in Sydney and Hawthorn add long term tall prospects without the possibility of another mid season pick up?

What’s the odds of Gawn and Preuss both being injured before the mid season draft? And if that does happen early enough that Keilty couldn’t do the job for a couple of weeks. I’d like to add another 22 year old ruck who can be the 3rd option but I’m happy to risk that until mid year and longer if the big guys are both healthy. We desperately lack outside run and skill. It was clear in both our JLT games. We needed a Hunt at both ends of the ground and he might not be good at either. With JKH, Garlett and Hannan all out and maybe Joel Smith as well run was a desperate need.

Similar to a Jayden Short from the Tigers but more a 55m kick than 60+. A poor mans Jake Lloyd maybe

Im a big fan. A small but combative back flanker with legit run and kicking ability. Absolutly what we need. Was excellent at Casey on a back flank and not too bad as a mid who rested forward when needed in the second half of last year. Potentially could replace Lewis or free up Salem

Young guys have a hard time adapting to AFL without ever knowing the stress of a full time job, uni, family etc. But it sure isn't easier for a guy like Cam who was trying to juggle a lot. The look at the person is revealing. Reads like when he signed a lucrative contract with Melbourne it was his first taste of financial freedom for his family, good for him. It didn't look all that positive when his fitness was less than ideal and his play was ordinary but he knuckled down and gave his best. A few heated arguments over the years about him but it's nice to know he had time for the fans and the fans returned that to him. I reckon if he was half a yard quicker or more agile he could've had a very long career at either end of the ground given his skills and game sense were certainly up to the standard.

Far out the incompetency of not keeping a hold over emergency 24th man for a preseason game. One of the Wagners or Tommy Sparrow had to play VFL and couldn't have been kept around for the 2nd half? Both of these guys should've been on ice immediately. Smith sounds like very little chance of playing round 1 now.

There's continuum between bracing for contact when you're about to get run over by a guy with momentum and lining up a guy and dropping him and May is certainly somewhere between the 2. I'd argue Berry draws him before handballing and May realises contact is his best option and instead of absorbing Berry hitting him he does make an active movement to get low and put his momentum through Berry. He's pretty much delivered a strong moving basketball screen. It's saying if you want contact I'm going to put some force in to it to protect himself as much as to clean the guy up. If his intentions were to clean him up he would've turned side on and ran in to him not stayed mostly front on and held his ground. I think the club will take his side that his intentions were genuine and not malicious. Coach him up to do even better in staying low and avoiding force. If I were a coach I'd want May making contact and stopping the guy getting to the next contest and I'd want May on the winning side of that contact. I'd be annoyed he was reported but it would be more a focus on technique than a dressing down. That said it's irrelevant how valid his actions were to him getting off. That comes down to was it high and how heavy was the impact? We need to win 1 or both of those arguments.