DeeSpencer

Wouldn't be completely against it because he would probably be best 22 but I've always thought he was more of an up and back half forward flanker than a dangerous small forward. If he's just competing with ANB, Lockhart, C. Wagner, Sparrow, Hannan, Hunt, Chandler etc and maybe one of pick 3/8 then even if he's the best option of those players we aren't noticeably improving. We've committed to so much depth in that role I'd rather use a list spot on a guy with more upside to really make the number 1 small forward job their own.

Good teams need backline generals who can see the game unfolding and have the time and space to direct play. It’s vital to have at least 1 and ideally more players who can provide structure and we have May and Lever. Midfielders and forwards have to get their stoppages and starting points right but after that they have to dictate play and the game moves so quickly outside of stoppages I’m not sure how much field marshaling is achievable. Viney has to be smarter with the ball but we need most of our mids and forwards to do the same and to be well coached. The off field leadership sets the tone of the club and Richmond and GWS were both great examples - as were WCE and Coll - that a positive well led club goes a long way to onfield success. Sparrow, Spargo and Petty - a random 3 guys who put their names up? Or 3 players on the fringe of the 22 who could all be important players if they make a leap?

It's wrong to rewrite history without even any of the internal knowledge and Misson is a particular victim of that. We forget he did some very good work over the years. But pushing out a doctor with 20 years experience and full qualifications for a guy who wasn't even qualified in the field was almost certainly a mistake. If it was done to achieve a certain power structure - which may or may not be true - then that's a particularly poor mistake.

This may be wrong or even offensive but I feel we made a huge mistake when Misson came on board and our experienced doctors left and apparently went to Richmond. IIRC reports at the time said they weren’t happy with the power structure. We then hired Dr Z as our main doctor who at that stage had very little sports medicine experience and wasn’t even a Sports med registrar yet alone an experience clinician. Dr Z seems quite popular and I have nothing against the guy but he’s far more experienced now than when he first got the gig. If Burgess is either willing to work with or requires an experienced doctor to work alongside then that’s a huge show of competence to me. Good people recognise their strengths and weaknesses and work well with other experienced and quality colleagues.

As far as it matters to us it seems he can write a big fat number in year 1 and then lesser numbers in years 2 and there after. I'm not sure we could even pay his average asking price in year 1, yet alone if that number is bumped up towards 7 figures.

Not according to this. https://nabafldraftnom.com.au/images/form/booklet_mens.pdf

Draft tampering isn't really a thing. Experienced players have a right to meet with whoever they want and to set whatever contract they like. If Melbourne and Carlton were the other way around we'd be doing the same thing.

My main concern is the reward probably wouldn't be enormous. There's plenty of other speedy back flankers with dodgy kicks in the draft, pick up one of them up at 18 and put years of skill development in to them. We could've traded a 4th round pick for Richo's favourite Dan McKenzie or asked Richmond for Oleg Markov. That's about the level of footballer I see Murray as now that he's missed 18 months.

Would be a big call trading a future pick (that could be very high) and 2 other picks to pick a ruckman who - all things going to plan - won't play meaningful ruck minutes any time soon. Then might end up too short to be a starter anyway, or at least be somewhat limited by height. Tim English is a super talent and he's just starting to impact some games now in year 3 at age 22 and still has games where he gets smashed. I certainly see the talent though. Interesting.

This should all be moved to the Murray thread but anyway....I know I'm being hypocritical because Gawn has a hipster beard, Harmes has crap tatts and Bugg dated and mixed with influencers, but I just don't like the vibe at all. If you got busted for drugs and wanted to get away from that scene would you immerse yourself with an influencer/fashion/sneakers friendship group? When I think of people who don't mix drugs it's not the crowd I'm think of. Dusty has been at Richmond since he was 18 and football - being damn good at it - and the Tigers are part of him, he's shown he can play AFL footy and do what he does in his spare time. Marlion Pickett's been back on the right path for years and has a family to take care of. Similarly someone like Sydney Stack can be drafted at 18 and put on the right path. Can you play AFL footy and be acting like this - absolutely. But I'd want to see some serious proof of dedication because it doesn't even look like you're trying to impress clubs.

The awful tattoos, the outfits, the friendships with Bugg’s mate who runs the influencer business, the entire look of the bloke is off. Edit: talking Murray not Martin if there’s confusion

Check his instagram

San Fran New England New Orleans

Well we can still draft Dylan Stephens, because he might’ve played for SA but I believe he’s from Red Cliffs/Mildura in Victoria. Doubt there’s a go home factor there. I think it’s important not to overate accumulating stats in the SANFL form. Players do seem to rack up stats, but they also lacked the athleticism to play well at AFL level. If Stephens has the fitness, speed and contested ball ability there’s no reason not to take him.

44 list spots plus Cat B. If it were up to me I'd always have plenty of young talls making their way through. If they succeed you can fill gaps cheaply or trade them away for value. A 3rd ruckman alone might be a waste of a spot but another 200cm versatile tall project would be a worthwhile investment. The 30 best players should be able to cover most spots with some kids getting games as well, so there's about 10 spots plus cat B that should be used on developmental prospects. To get the next Gawn or next Stef Martin then you have to have a variety of prospects coming through.

I was going to say that. I don’t even know if it’s allowed. The only way would be to approach one particularly friendly manager who has multiple Melbourne players and an interest in screwing Carlton. Maybe you bump all the salaries for backending the deals and the manger therefore makes extra commission. Anyway, the point is we aren’t going to have a desperate public campaign to sign Martin. If he’s not immediately interested then it has to be done quietly.

The NGA's have 2 parts: Indigenous and Multicultural. Indigenous talent was previously not assigned in Darwin. Multicultural talent in Darwin was split between the 5 teams with zones in other parts of NT. I'm not sure if that multicultural split still remains with the clubs and how it works if players are both Indigenous and Multicultural. What a farce.

We have 2 ways to land Martin. 1) Convice him that we are a great fit for him, playing midfield as the handball receiver and swapping forward with Tracc. Then he structures his contract in a way we can sign him. 2) Back all interest off and hope his manager and Carlton get complacent and don’t overly front load his contract. Then we quietly restructure existing players before pouncing on draft night. I think we’ve tried option 1. Now it’s time for option 2. It’s going to require stealth and precision and still might not be possible.

I’d argue for Charlie Curnow and Darcy Moore as absolute blue chippers. But my stronger argument is that there’s no blue chippers left at pick 3 so what we really need is to get a classy player. 2016 draft. Pick 11: Oli Florent. Pick 12: Jy Simpkin. If you could lock in a player of that quality at pick 6 then I’d do the deal immediately. It’s the Salem for Billings style decision, but this time there’s no Josh Kelly and if there’s a Bont I can’t see it.

This. And pick 7 is a great pick!

If you're worrying about deficiencies too much then you're missing out on some seriously good highlights as well. - Quick and super accurate hands, releases team mates perfectly with both hands - Nice baulk and fakes to set up hands - Lovely footwork to create room around a stoppage, he doesn't get caught in at the contest - Excellent reading of the play both at stoppages and as a forward There's a craftiness that from our list only Salem, Oliver, Jetta, maybe Fritsch/Petracca and at his best Nath Jones have. I'd like to see more linebreaking and he does kick across his body a bit and slice the ball low (which honestly isn't always a bad thing). And yes the lack of size is a worry too. But there's a really high level of footy smarts on display.

Where's the evidence of this? I thought it was 44 players max on the senior and Cat A list. 38/6, 39/5 or 40/4. Then up to 3 cat B rookies. You can add more rookies as the season goes on if you place guys on the long term injury/retired inactive lists. But to start the season it's 44.

Fat, slow, injured. And looked about 5 years older than he was. Put a string of decent games together and seemingly had the skills but not the athleticism.

Yep sign him up and draft the kick who punched him in the head as well, that's old school defending.

Wylie Buzza just got delisted. He could be our Tim Smith somewhat ok key forward depth option.