DeeSpencer

One thing is for certain is if the players all work much much harder than before and follow the game plan the kicking will at least appear to be improved. With more time and space and a great area to kick into its much easier to nail a good kick. You don't often complain about how bad the kicking was when you win. Another thing with us is that poor handballing has been as much our down fall as poor kicking. If we start when the contested ball and handballing to someone in space then the kicking will improve. 2 main drills the guys have done many times I've seen them has been a match simulation aiming to get the ball out of defense and and also a set up and move the ball quickly from defense. The second drill needs a couple of well placed kicks to get the ball into the corridor then out wide before attacking. I'm glad our backline has been practising something more interesting than bombing it down the line. The question is come Sunday whether we will have the runners to use those attacking plays or will have to bomb down the line due to poor work ethic.

For all my reports in this thread to be honest I can't shed too much light on that. Both moved well and kicked well in the full ground drills (2 main ones) and did the rest of the training. But then again so did Terlich. Based on training they wouldn't look out of place but really it's what they've done under pressure in games that will decide it. As I said before Nicholson just ran some laps so he might not be tracking so well. Dunn and Watts looked good.

Correction pedersen now practicing his ruck work as well. I don't mind the bomb if it gets deep to a tall but its more a rush kick to a flank is too easy to defend and counter attack from.

James sellar practicing some Ruck work late. Might be an indication they leave pedersen out and go with sellar and whatever combo of Dawes and clark

Don't know where port got the funds for this helicopter hovering over training for the last 15 minutes but they really could of just come and watched. Nice to see big maxy gawn back rucking. He's a super important player long term for us

Tom couch has finished up, maybe he has to work like all the other VFL players. Pickles, toumpas and Barry practicing getting ground balls under pressure. The others have split into positional groups. Dawes is moving well. The players doing a nice job of testing out his hammy. And now he's headed to the side line but seems ok. Our clearance midfielders seem happy with just bombing it. I'd say if they've got clear possession then a sequence of handballs and an accurate kick would be better but then again they have no other players. This drill might have been more about combining with the rucks

Jetta in white as well. I'd say this drill would be important for the small defenders. The intensity in this drill is pretty good. Don't expect too much from Barry he's still adapting to pace of training mentally. It might be a long year for him but he'll get through. Garland copped a knock on the shoulder but is fine. He's looking to re enter the drill with the orange safety vest. Seems to be like he wouldn't mind wearing it in a game.

We've split into whites and blues. Most of the starting 22 in blue, Tom McDonald and watts in white as is Strauss and terlich. Drill is about moving ball from backline for white whilst blue defends so explains teams Viney and jt kick to kicking. Viney's kicking will frustrate early in his career like a young nath jones

Nicholson just doing laps as well. Kent and mckenzie back to the rooms. Jordie might be acting as his lawyer at the tribunal tonight. We've gone into a full ground drill now. It's a bit windy. Rohan bail hit sellar lace out. There's a really cute trainer. If she's on demonland and reads this later she should pm me.

Found Matt jones and Sylvia. Training as they play they must have gone missing for a quarter. Clark, blease and trengove now having shots for goal. Obviously on reduced training but did a full warm up. Grimes, Viney, frawley, stark and couch doing kick to kick. Today's remedial kicking class?? Whilst main group practice picking ball off deck and hand balling to running player with pressure

Initial live update. Around 18 watchers here for the big day. Gary loin chop stretcher Lyon gracing us with his presence Magically mystery players not sighted in Sylvia and Matt jones. Clisby and Jonah Lomu's skinny cousin walking laps same as Fitzy and Joel too old McDonald. Mckenzie and kent doing reduced training by themselves.

I thought he was a teacher not a lawyer. But teachers are just as adept at talking BS. He'll do something to completely screw us soon (worse than the tanking stuff) and I'll hate him again but my current thoughts on Demetriou is he's started to listen to his own preaching about how the game is good and stopped stuffing with it. He's let the rules clowns out of the box again but I think now he's got the new teams up and running and a good TV deal he's mainly pushing a status quo style. It's why I prefer the devil we know than someone else. I like the Mark Evans appointment. I like that they've tackled concussion, illicit drugs, got roped into performance enhancing drugs and are at least thinking about equalisation. They are 4 issues that could derail the AFL if not dealt with promptly. We wont have much of a league if half the players are on drugs of one sort or the other, half the clubs are broke and can't win and all the players are suing the league.

But the AFL aren't that interested in narrowing the gap. What they want is to maximize profits. Which means getting a big club in the big stadium. Plus they can't really control who plays where in regard to Carlton ringing up their old CEO Steven Gough who's head of the MCC and saying lets get a deal done. I think we are right to be concerned, that's not MFCSS. The real shame of MFCSS is we see threats ahead and become pessimistic and don't actually do anything. We as supporters should buy memberships and attend all games, without fail or excuse. We have an advantage of strong MCC membership within our club that gets us leverage with regards to playing there. The MCC would certainly have a tough time pushing us out and upset a lot of members, but if we start averaging better crowds and then we take it to the next level. It's something to think about when its raining and we are struggling and you are tossing up whether to go the game. The AFL is only going to be more ruthless when Demetriou leaves and McLaughlin comes in and starts his dealmaking regime.

The thing is I bet it would be a lot easier to get Hurley to control his aggression instead of getting Watts to become aggressive enough. Oh and if you've watched Hurley play in the backline he has no problem when to attack and when not to. The guy is a freak natural defender.

Ok I'll interrupt the happy times to say Watts won't end up better than Nic Nat. Watts will solidify himself at AFL level but the things that make him good - Skill and speed for his size aren't enough to make him elite. To be elite you have to win the ball where others can't. That's what separates Watts from the rest. I just don't see how Watts will get 25 a week off half back and become an elite half back flank like Enright unless he becomes fearless. Not just not soft, but fearless. Even then he's not as much use as a dominant ruckman, gun midfielder or key forward. Potentially if he keeps filling out he could play as a CHB and that could increase his value but I'm not sure he'll ever have the physicality to be a true key position player. Nic Nat at the moment is learning from the best and progressing to be a future Dean Cox (without some of the clean skill but with extra atheleticism). The plan for Watts is for him to become Sam Fisher. I'd ask anyone if they were building a team if they'd prefer Cox or Fisher?

Heard Dean Kent got reported yesterday playing for Casey. Smiled.

The thing is we all know rivers has played very well for us under the circumstances and now he'll go to Geelong and they'll get all the credit for making him good. Geelong wouldn't of recruited him if they didn't recognize his talent. He also has flaws that keen watches will see

Tom McDonald out there?

If you wanted to increase the midfield depth you would play Rodan and rest him forward instead of playing forwards and giving them stints in the midfield.

I think they are leaning towards not playing Kent in round 1 due to experience and because he's missed time but he also deserves a shot at getting picked. Strauss I think must feature somewhere in selection after not playing early they might be trying to let him state his case ahead of Jetta and/or Terlich. McKenzie obviously for some more fitness/match practice. Then the others returning from injury. I wouldn't be surprised to see Blease or McDonald pull out like Dawes have and just played straight into round 1. Viney needs the run and Clark and Trengove have to state their case. Hopefully Casey play well and the guys get through. Did I see that this was against Port Melbourne? If so its a good test.

Settled back 6 with Thompson, Grima, Firrito, McMahon, Atley and co, midfield with a good leader in Swallow and X factor in Wells and some good foot soldiers who play the right way and then the Petrie, Tarrant and the other big spud. Throw in Harvey once he's back from suspension. North are much more experienced individually and as a team than we are which makes them a hard side to beat if you don't get on top of them. Good sides can trounce North because their talls down back can be thrashed, their forwards can be taken care off if you have individual good defenders and their midfield lose confidence as kids do if they are getting beaten physically like Hawthorn and West Coast have done to them. But they are structurally sound and have consistent players so we don't have a hope beating them until we become an even team.

Last year on average we started to improve the longer the season went even with losing Clark and throwing Rivers and Garland forward to try and find a structure. This year Neeld has assembled players he wants in the positions he wants. Now ideally we'd magically come back in 3 years time and have Trengove, Viney and Toumpas all fulfil their potential whilst keeping a really good spine and having the players having many years of proper conditioning and playing a standard game plan. Unfortunately it doesn't work like that. We've picked up pieces in Free Agency/Trade to help get the structures right and moved players down back (Watts and Dunn +/- Jetta, Terlich) and got forwards that Neeld likes (Dawes, Byrnes, Pedersen). However we really couldn't do anything to fix the midfield and we are going to have to hope for once we've picked the right guys and can develop them. Brisbane might just be setting a good example with the 3 R's and Zorko and co. Now back on topic as I said we improved towards the middle and end of last year and I think that will happen again. It's going to take time for the new blokes to pick up the game plan and for others to settle. If we beat Port we can get on to the scoreboard and some momentum and finish with 8 or so wins. If we start poorly I think we will be around 5 wins. It's just too much to ask of our midfield to win the contested ball and out work their opponents before the backline or forward line are fully functioning in the system as well. We might have to win ugly like the Essendon game last year where they were the better side but we dragged them down to our level through desperation and got over the line. If we are to win this year it won't be pretty like the Bailey days.

I liked to know KC's opinion and a bit off topic but I've found from the inner city it's quicker to get to Casey Fields by continuing on the monash then heading up Clyde road. You get the added benefit of skipping Cranbourne. Also the council must invest in at least a back exit from the fields into Clyde road and if possible a third exit as well. They should do it now before the whole joint is surrounding in housing estates. A couple of roads out will make the whole journey for experiences like the NAB cup much more tolerable. And considering how much they've pumped into the joint you wouldn't think building a quick little road out the back would be too much to ask.

Makes you feel for Liam. He gets dragged into a mess because one side of his family wants to spear another member of his family because they murdered someone from the other side. He ends up where everyone else is drunk and a fight breaks out and you'd have to think that Liam was some part of it otherwise as WJ said why would the prosecution continue this case with such little chance of a verdict based on the evidence I've heard so far. Lets be honest the damage to Basil was bad but in the scheme of NT outback disputes it was pretty low key. So now Liam still has his family fighting, his right in the middle of it and now he's seen to have gotten off soft. I hope football can save him, which might mean going to Adelaide, getting some support and playing SANFL and staying away from half his family. His AFL dream is gone as far as I see it.

FB: Garland Frawley Terlich HB: Watts McDonald Dunn C: Toumpas Jones Grimes HF: Sylvia Dawes Howe FF: Byrnes Clark Blease Foll: Jamar Rodan McKenzie Int: Pedersen Viney Jetta S: Matt Jones Emer: Sellar, Gillies, Tapscott I don't think Trengove gets up. Obvious Sellar comes in if Clark or Dawes don't get up. I've gone with the 2 big forwards and Pedersen because I think this is Neeld's preference but I wonder if we could play Clark as back up ruck with just Dawes at the end of the year. It's really difficult to predict the 6th and 7th defenders, I've gone with Terlich and with Jetta on the bench because he can play both ends. Could understand if they went with Strauss or Nicholson instead. All the forwards can rotate onto a wing or centre in Sylvia's case. I really like Kent but with Toumpas and Viney already out there I think we don't want to overload the team with young blokes. I'm really hoping Blease and McDonald are right to go. Gillies and Tapscott on standby. I don't like debuting guys as the sub but to me Matt Jones makes sense to come on fresh. Another option would be to start him and take away a bit of x factor from the forwards and bring Blease on fresh as the sub. With a good run of injuries I can see us building some depth to our forward line and backline depending on the ability of guys to take the next step (Strauss, Nicholson, Jetta, Bail, Tapscott, Gillies, Sellar are examples of guys to come in who have played some decent football). But we don't have the depth in the midfield considering I'm looking at 3 debutants (Viney, Toumpas and M. Jones) to be important players. We need to find a diamond in the rough out of Kent, Taggert, Evans or somewhere!!!