P-man

That would be a pity. He's shown a lot of promise when he's been able to get on the park.

It would reduce my stress levels immeasurably. T Mac frustrates me like no other player before him. Including a certain J Watts. Still wouldn't trade him though. What would we even get for him? Not enough to make it worthwhile.

He’s been woeful this year. 43 goals sounds okay but his selfishness has gone up a notch, he’s slow as treacle, and while he’s never been a great contested player that part of his game is just embarrassing now. The only thing that hasn’t dropped off is his field kicking which is still elite. He should just retire to be honest. His best days are well behind him. It’s an emphatic no by the way.

No room for May? ?

I agree it would be a dramatic move. Unless the picture behind the scenes is even worse than what we are aware of. Comparatively speaking though, Trac requesting a trade wouldn’t leave me staggered based on what we know of his personality and ambition. Oliver requesting a trade, yes, I’d be staggered.

Really? I wouldn’t be. Of all the big(ger) name players on our list to request a trade, Petracca would surprise me the least. He won’t tolerate seeing his career pan out the same as Jonesy’s. Let’s also not forget his parents having reservations about him being drafted to Melbourne in the first place. I have little doubt there would be people in his ear telling him to get out now. Hopefully he stays though. It would be a real kick in the teeth for him to leave right on the verge of becoming the player we hoped for. Surely when you’ve invested this much into something, it’s worth giving it more of a chance than one failed season.

I’ve seen enough of Lockhart to be convinced he’s the real deal. Moreso than Baker and Chandler. That’s not to say they couldn’t cement a spot but Lockhart would be a lock in my 22 to let him continue to develop at AFL level (same as has been the case with the young talent at Port and Geelong).

Top post Steve. In my observations there are far worse offenders than you in the [censored] stirring/insufferable [censored] stakes. I’ve always enjoyed your contributions. But kudos for putting your hand up all the same. I think we have all been guilty at some point of letting our frustrations get the better of us. The psyche of Melbourne supporters would make for an interesting thesis. There are common threads but in certain ways we all react differently. At one end of the spectrum you have those who actively seek out the positive, all but turning a blind eye to the negative, and always looking to the future to save themselves from drowning in the present. At the other end of the spectrum you have those who shroud themselves in the negative and refuse to acknowledge the positive after such a dismal performance. And you have the majority who fall somewhere in between. To an extent, both sides of the spectrum are understandable. Similarly, both sides are open to criticism. The eternally optimistic can be accused of being too forgiving and therefore not holding the club and its leadership accountable. Case in point were those who insisted, to the very end, that the Neeld ship would turn. The eternally pessimistic are the poster children for the “veil of negativity” which I personally believe is a real thing and does have an impact on a club’s fortunes (which you also alluded to). By the same token, can you really blame the supporters for feeling that way after decades of bitter disappointment? I don’t. But that doesn’t mean it’s not a real thing. It’s all about finding that right balance between being a valuable supporter and providing a kick up the [censored] where needed. I think most would agree that continuing to be a paid member is the minimum requirement. The club is bigger than the individual. Be critical. Hold them accountable. But continue to support and try to, in your weaker moments, find a positive mindset.

+ Ed Langdon ?

Maclure reckons Gawn hasn’t been as good this year as previous years. Meanwhile he’s had career high numbers in marks, disposals, contested possessions, clearances and inside 50s and still averaging 40 hitouts a game.

He’s in. Awesome. Throughly deserved.

Was legit my favourite player for a while there. Will always have a soft spot for him. I’ve said a few times, he brought a swagger to our side when we were completely devoid of it. He got in opposition faces. He did the mercurial when no one else was even remotely capable. He was more than just a footnote. He will be remembered. By me at least. Cheers Jeffy. And thanks.

Roos slammed the idea of an external review of a football club, going so far as to say that you should just fire the coach and CEO if you feel there is a requirement for a third party review. He went on to say a review of operations is the weekly, monthly and yearly job of those inside the club, and they are the ones who should be tasked with conducting any review. I’ll side with Roosy on this one.

His famed kicking went down the gurgler in the back end of the year. Repeatedly missed easy targets. Overall though I think the season was a step forward for him. Which we can’t say about too many. All the individual positives have been mentioned. I’ll put in another mention for Lockhart. I really like what I see in the kid. If his body holds up he has a long AFL career ahead of him.

Roos left Gawn out of his 22. Brown said it was justified because the team finished 17th...so uh, yeah, okay. I’m not liking the rhetoric around Max. It will be outrageous if he misses out on selection. He’s had an All Australian year, comfortably.

Aside from the obvious in having (touch wood) an uninterrupted pre season and players being ready to hit the ground running, what are you clinging to when looking towards 2020 with any optimism? There is the old adage of “we couldn’t possibly be as bad”. But the fact is, we could be. For me, I keep returning to the first three quarters against West Coast, in particular the middle two quarters where we had all but total control of the game. We were scoring from chains starting in our defensive 50. We were winning clearances and scoring from forward half stoppages. We were taking contested marks, winning contested possession, tackling inside 50 and dominating inside 50s. It is that last measure that was a continuation of a theme particularly in the early part of the season; dominating the inside 50 count but not capitalising upon it. We generated 25 shots from 62 inside 50s (40%) and scored 9 goals. That obviously isn’t good enough. But the other indicators were all very positive. Of course ee fell apart in the final quarter which was the more accurate representation of the year we have had. But in terms of looking forward, it’s hard not to take heart from performing in that fashion for the bulk of the game against the reigning premier and likely Grand Finalist for this year. Is it fool’s gold? Am I being desperate? Maybe. But we all need a life raft at this stage. What’s yours?

I’m going to look at the upside because what the hell. Surely this will serve as a huge lesson for the players to be diligent and professional in how they conduct and prepare themselves in the off season. Surely the extent of the embarrassment they have brought upon themselves and the club will make them want to avoid it next year at all costs. Surely this would be the ultimate motivation for a professional athlete. Surely. SURELY.

I can’t help but laugh that the “After the siren” address to the fans this week is just snippets from the post match presser. I mean I get that it’s awkward and uncomfortable to stare down the barrel of the camera week after week to try and provide hope to the fans after the latest inept performance for which you are largely responsible. I’m sure Goodwin regrets ever agreeing to do it. But surely the very LEAST you can do under these circumstances is to see it through to the end. Two weeks to go and they’ve decided a few edits from the post match presser will do. This club is just laughably pissweak.

You could see it on their faces when they ran out onto the ground. Petracca looked utterly disinterested.

“Another tough night tonight guys. There are parts of our game that are slowly coming together but there’s still lots to improve upon. We’re frustrated. You’re frustrated. But we are working really, really hard, and we’ll be doing everything we can to get a win for you to finish the season.”

I’d be happy to see the back of him in the off season tbh.

What on earth has happened to Brayshaw?

That smattering of applause.to our first goal of the game says everything about the year we’ve had.

I agreed at the start of the year to go to the game at Manuka tonight with a Hawks mate. If I don’t make it back, I love you all.