DeeSpencer

Nah mate, you're calling on behalf of iSelect. I understand why the club has done this but it's a pain. Especially since iSelect surely didn't pay that much for the women's team sponsors. AHG can call me all day long. Any other company can fork out the coin to sponsor the back of the jumper or get stuffed.

Kreuzer looked solid in preseason and very good in round 1. He does enough against most rucks in the hit outs and follows up his taps really well so Max better be on his game, and he runs around the ground as well as any ruck. He's one of the least likely guys you'd want to face if you have a sore back. The thing about Carlton is they are full of kids and role players but on their day those role players can play well and same with the kids. They aren't completely terrible they just have a really low floor when things go badly. We need Gawny firing because Gibbs, Cripps and Murphy have got us before. If you don't nullify those guys and break even in the middle then their forwards and backs can be ok. It's like the Saints game, winning in the midfield is the difference between us looking very good and very ordinary.

Any love for Patty McKenna on a half back flank? He's a lovely kick. Doesn't seem to have any huge deficiencies in his game, probably lacks a standout attribute but that's ok if he's just coming in to do a role. Anyone know if he's done much at Casey?

I reckon he's way faster and more skilled than he gets credit for. His decision making can be a bit questionable but overall he's got good balance to his game. I think the damage he did on Saturday with impact touches is due to a couple of important factors: 1. Not having to crash in for a full game giving him more run. Oliver, Viney, Lewis etc shared the load. 2. Doing a full preseason after neck surgery last year and carrying the neck injury in 2015.

2 completely different issues: Frost, Wagner, J Smith and Garland are injured. Pedersen hasn't played key back in years and is underdone coming off a shoulder. Keilty is being trained as a ruck/forward because we need depth in that spot. With Watts playing ok he might go back to the backline now. If we had better options Oscar would be under the pump. It's not exactly rocket science. His long term ability is promising, his current form against the Eagles and Saints is not. Let's all hope he cuts out the glaring errors in his game. Most of the commentary around Jetta came from the coaches leaving him out of the 2nd and 3rd JLT games and comments from the coaches (McCartney's season previews) and from Jetta himself (via Saty) that he needed to keep improving to hold his spot. Namely in that his fitness and 2 way run had to be up and going. I don't think I ever saw a single post on here that suggested Jetta wasn't a great role player, very good one on one or solid with the ball in his hands. If Hibberd or Wagner were fit he might've been left out of the side due to the way we are trying to play and I say that being a huge fan of Jetta and very appreciative of his efforts.

Lewis and Salem spending more time there might be a blessing in disguise as they'll give us composure but if Tyson and Bugg come in to the midfield then we've lost a bit of class in there. Harmes as a like for like Bernie replacement - hard runner, pacey, variable kicking - might be the option instead of Bugg. Or we might try something a little more creative like Brayshaw to half back and Kent at half forward.

Yep. Vince is playing like the coach is his mate at the moment. Needs a lesson sent. Better hope it doesn't cost his team mates.

Kent's good at that kind of catch up pressure, but it shows how far off it the forward line was last year, particularly due to the defensive efforts of Hogan and Watts being rather poor and Garlett having some really down weeks. What we really want is as soon as the other team gets the ball that all forwards number off straight on to their opponents (not direct opponents but 1 for 1) and then the team doesn't have an outlet. ANB's fitness meant he jumped straight on to Savage, Webster or Roberton or whomever was going to be loose. Jeffy was on his game. Hannan and Petracca have that fast twitch movement to grab a guy and Watts and Hogan have clearly been told to keep on their man. Kent's great at chasing someone down but he has to change directions and keep digging in for those first few quick steps to make sure he's on the ball. As a midfielder I think ANB Is faster at recognising play and changing from attacking to defending because that's what midfielders do at stoppages all the time. A bit of time on ball at Casey would probably be good for Kent's development. So many teams now use a midfielder (or multiple mids) at half forward - Kieran Jack, Toby Greene, any number of Bulldogs players etc not just as a rotation spot but in a designated spot due to their ball finding and defensive skills.

Footy toughness. The ability to put your body on the line and win a loose ball or hold a tough mark. No doubt he's great in the ring but as Barry Hall showed that doesn't really help you if you ever use it on the field.

They are competing right now are they not? Kent's had a scratch match and 2 other VFL hit outs. I'm not saying he holds the spot long term but in reply to ArtificialWisdom who was happy to make the swap right now I was saying ANB holds it for this week at least.

Of course, but when Jones, Viney or Oliver etc get a little aggressive it probably works because when it's their turn to go they'll go. If players want to waste their time trying to rough those guys up then good luck to them. Watch the faces of the players Melksham tries to niggle. They're usually laughing because they know on a footy field his bark is bigger than his bite. Melksham could be an important player because he has good size for a flanker, good aerial ability, really nice speed/endurance combination and length and penetration to his kicking. If that's what we got him for he might work. If Goodwin or anyone else is a fan of his tough guy shtick or decision making under pressure then good luck to them, I'm not buying it. The Hawks dominated because of their anti social footy - Hodge, Lewis, Mitchell, Franklin, Rioli etc were intimidating players. Look at what happened when North tried to copy it with the likes of Lindsay Thomas, Scott Thompson etc. They got found out against the big boys in finals.

Even in peak fitness Kent hasn't shown he has the tank for repeated defensive efforts like ANB. There's no way if ANB is playing well with the ball that Kent takes his spot unless he's on fire in the VFL. I agree at times you just have to pick the more talented guy but when the preseason focus has been on defensive pressure it certainly won't be this week. Our ability to pressure and spread was what really shifted the game in our favour and it was why we won at Etihad for the 2nd time in ages, because at the G we get away with less of both. ANB was crucial to that.

He's the fake tough guy champion of the league, taking the crown from Lynden Dunn who is now the VFL champ after his Lin Jong efforts in the VFL grand final. $1.01 he drops a mark or fumbles a ground ball under pressure in the coming weeks.

O Mac was undoubtedly bad, there's no defending his bad stuff, of course I'm willing to credit the good work he does with a high motor and ability to find the ball. Melksham was up and down, I'm just surprised he exceeded anyone's expectations. Vince was down then way way up once he got going but I want him to cut out the crap because he's a quality experienced player and a leader. It is possible for guys to play badly in a good team game and it's possible to ask for senior players to do more! St Kilda missed a boat load of easy shots on goal as well. Let's not pretend we completely walked all over them. They kick a couple of shots in the 2nd or 3rd during our run of goals and it makes the final quarter far more of a contest.

You must've set the bar low for Melksham then. He's wasn't Oscar level diabolical but he had some bad moments. That holding the ball in the last was revolting and some of his decisions and kicks were pretty awful. He looked a lot like the player Essendon fans warned us about and not like a player who had fixed their flaws over preseason.

There was nothing fantastic about: - Possibly getting himself suspended - Been beaten to the ball/not taking the body on the goal line against a kid in Gresham - Crazy first quarter decisions with and without the ball He lifted after quarter time and played a very good game, I'm not arguing against that, I'm just saying he is far from the consummate professional. He plays footy like it's a bit of fun in the backyard and a lot of the time it works but I wish that one of our leaders and the leader of the backline could raise his standards when it comes to mental application.

Early rounds are all about run and fitness so I'd have Bugg first in line to come back in unless Tyson or Kent are 100%. So I'd go Bugg for Smith. Then probably Tyson for Vince if needed. Salem and Lewis would have to play half back and possibly even Jones and Stretch just to balance the rotations if we have extra mids. Hopefully Hibberd, Frost and Wagner are available soon so we can add a 3rd tall defender and think about mixing up the 2nd tall as well. Maybe even get rid of Milkshake.

It was a classic Bernie performance but not at all professional. Ill disciplined throughout. Baffling decision making early. Routinely trying to stir up drama. I'll take a game like he had on the weekend but I'd prefer if he stepped up a bit and could play with good energy and also some composure.

There's your mistake, valuing a player by their supercoach. He works hard to get the ball both intercepting and rebounding which is an admirable trait but when you're coughing up 6 goals a game you'd want to rebound pretty well. There are a number of issues with his game: Evasive skills when under pressure - poor to non existent, hence why he flubs handballs to no one Kicking off one step - repeatedly does this Speed on a lead - when he tries to watch the ball and his man at the same time he runs at a snails pace Defensive positioning. The zone is fine, but there has to be times to put an arm across and feel for an opponent. Simple back/forward leads leave him flat footed. Flat footed is really how I'd describe him overall. When he has to think about what to do he's just got nothing in the legs and I'm not sure that is a trait that gets fixed by more time at the level. He'll get fitter and stronger as his career continues and that probably allows him to defend and rebound better but players without instincts on how to defend and evade are hard work to build up. The worry with Oscar is that after 80 games he makes the same errors because he just doesn't process quick enough.

People voting for Vince right at the top realise how bad his first quarter and other moments were yeah? Glad he turned it around but he stunk early. 6. Jones - he turned the tide in the 2nd quarter. Amazing effort to run and bustle and compete and get us moving the ball again. For that alone he gets the max. 5. Oliver - prolific 4. Hogan - 21 touches, 8 marks, 3 goals, pack grabs. Geez we take him for granted. Superb. 3. Gawn - same as Hogan. 50 hitouts. Big moments. 2. Hannan - the spark 1. Tom Mc - should be higher, fantastic desire to get back in to the game. But butchered it and got turned around a few too many times still Apologies to: Petracca, Brayshaw, Vince, Lewis, Stretch, ANB, Jetta

I've been spruiking Hannan from the glimpses I've seen of him in training and for the Dogs and I thought he was the right risk to pick over an underdone Tyson/Kent or Harmes at half forward. That said, I never could imagine he was going to play that kind of debut game. Crumbing goals, lead up marks, really good inside 50 kicks, tackles. It was the full deal. One or two ground ball fumbles and a couple of occasions where he and team mates weren't on the same page was all that stopped it being perfect. You want to see new players be up to the speed of the game. Hannan was in front of it.

Melksham won't get injured, because the bloke is sinewy like a mongrel dog. Hibberd has a long injury history and has to be managed through preseasons and seasons. As Misson alluded to he's been up and down this preseason so he doesn't have the fitness base to go straight back in to the side after a couple weeks off for a trodden on heel. The hope will be once he gets right he stays right for a long stretch and at the business end of the year.

Pretty sure it's what she said. There's been a bit of mail floating around that some of our players are ahead of themselves and the Saints and Dees players might run in to each other a bit given a lot probably line in the inner bayside area. Aside from the overpriced boardshorts salesman I think most of our players have put in a decent preseason so I'm not too worried about it.

Jones didn't exactly send the text himself. Doubt he even cares about what the product is. The club are very judicious with their marketing and promotion and rarely send direct texts. If I got 1 a week I'd be a bit annoyed but happy to get one every now and then.

Would've loved a $20 wing ticket but I'll call a $15 cheersquad ticket a win. Thanks guys. Who's going to sell me a $2 raffle ticket for first goal kicker?