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Please, both Steve and I aren't questioning whether he will fill out, I'm certain he will. His body does have natural tone from the few 'action' shots I've seen, and like Fyfe who was smaller it gives a good indication of potential growth. Look at Morton 07, not that we were to know, but there was no definition at all. But on topic, we were merely referring that he doesn't resemble Dan Hannebery at all. In the TAC Cup he average 1.3 clearances a game and in the Championships just below 1 a game. Salem isn't an inside mid, he's a predominate outside mid, with a defensive game mindset (tackles etc) . Let it be known I'm not complaining one bit, but the player comparison I most recently read compared him to Chad Wingard- great skills, short burst speed player, can extract, great agility but needs to find more of the footy. I think that comparison is the most apt.

Perhaps why your assumptions are so often wrong. Funnily enough, played with and against him both at club level and Oakleigh Chargers. He was drafted as a 17 year old - one of the last before the system was changed so I'll allow that to cloud your judgement given he was a year younger, however their bodies are completely different. Daniel was always bigger through the torso than everyone else, and treetrunk legs were also beyond anyone else's. He was the best on the leg press at Chargers and about 3rd best on the bench even after a minor surgery in early year 11. Salem may be an inside player but he will never be the mould of Hannebery because whilst I'm surprised about his weight only being 81 (taken with a grain of salt regardless on those club sites) just looking at Salem tells you they're built differently. It's okay, you saw a midfielder who likes tackling, left footer and put two and two together. I'll remember for next time.

He may well end up being the equal of him but it'll be as different players. The body shapes are completely opposite. Salem will fill out, but nothing close to how big Hanneburys upper body and upper legs are and that is the core reason he's become as good as what he is.

It can't be right. What happens if another team wants him? Do they have to pay the contract demands of his current contract which may be higher? He can't take a paycut he's contracted but the rookie draft benefit is they only have to pay them 60,000 so by having a contracted player in it it'd restrict too much. Nicholson is here to stay, and we won't be delisted or rookied.

Nicho won't be delisted, no way.

Strauss will be best 18.

From reading I gather he is excellent offensively but has never learnt defensive skills and has a lot of body work to do. That's great. It's nice to have a natural footballer with a late pick who they think with hard work can be someone great. At 57 our risk is nothing, we're just working against time. Good luck Jayden, you're a sick hunt.

Saints Panthers Broncos

Not Round 1 but here's what I think the team will be Round 23 2014. FB: Clisby Frawley Salem HBF: Strauss McDonald Garland C: Watts Viney Vince HFF: Toumpas Dawes Michie FF: Hogan Clark Kennedy-Harris R: Gawn Jones Tyson IC: Cross Trengove Howe Sub: Evans Well f*** me dead. That ain't a bad team.

These horrific weaknesses also seem to come up a lot more after we didn't pick them. 50% of our supporter base was up Freeman and now suddenly his awareness, kicking, and he fact he kicks little kids dogs everyone is super glad we didn't pick him and we made the right choice. Please.

I do feel like Freeman has alot more upside. If you read Quigleys mock draft and a few others, you will read that the maximum ceiling they have for Salem is to just be a good footballer. A few even said he'll be in the bottom half of a best 22 in his prime. With pick 9 I think you need to reach for higher than that. Yes Freeman, was a bit riskier but there's a reason, the reward would've been much greater. Dangerfield and Freeman were both taken pick 10 with question marks. I'll be tracking his progress for years to come.

This is great. Very happy with this! Will be like Jake Neade for Port, a few great games, but will need to develop his body too. Give him time he'll be a gem!

I'll admit I'm a little disappointed, I was in the Freeman camp, but I finally trust this department, so let's get going Salem!!

Wow. What

Blake Griffin missed the entire first year of his rookie year from a pre-existing injury and still went number 1. All I'm saying is that sometimes we don't know everything thats available, so you never know who will slide or rise.

If anyone follows the NBA here, there had been a consensus number 1 pick all year called Nerlens Noel. Not quite as certain as Tom Boyd but every expert said he'd go pick 1 bar one. The draft came Cleveland picked a complete random 1, and so it went he fell to number 6. Cal Twomey and others are glorified guestimaters as much as we are. Football clubs are as quiet in regards to the draft than at any point throughout the year. I wasted my time to read his live blog on the AFL website and he answered every question with 'I guess', 'it could', or 'most likely'. For all we know Luke Dunstan could be rated the 4th best midfielder on every clubs draft board and Nathan Freeman could be the 15th. I don't think it is the case but none of us know. One of the most important parts of the draft is the interview process, which no supporter and no journalist has any indication of. Hopefully some of us guessed right, but I'm completely expecting the top 15 to be way different to expected and the draft after that to be an absolute crapshoot.

It's completely feasible that given the players know you post and have an impact on such a public forum they would be divulge bad information to you. A rookie is never going to say this coach is a ****wit half way through the year to a source that will tell people and potentially ruin the small chance he had in making it. Supporter conversations are like media interviews, a bucket load of cliches about how this year we're training hard, the coaching is great and there is great moral. If you do have a great particularly close relationship with one like you seem to be suggesting at, you may get some accurate information from them, but the rest id take with a grain of salt. They say what they have too.

I'm sure he's a nice guy friend wise mmm'kay but I'll never get over his smug attitude. He made these ridiculous assertions about toughest team to play, and not only did he fail that we were the weakest. He threw out good players, and made poor captaincy selections. As it's come out since his dismissal he thought he was greater than the players and club with his authoritative coaching style, completely blew relations with most players. I feel bad for him, he followed Mick M too closely, but the trouble was after 3 premierships Mick demands respect from his legacy. Mark needed to earn respect and he never got the memo.

I'm very concerned when we look back in 5 years if we take Salem we'll be saying gee he's a good footballer, but Freeman is elite. Watch Patty Dangerfields TAC Cup highlights and they literally mirror Freeman's. Didn't look like he liked hard ball, and some wonky kicking. You'd say now it's his two best attributes. Playing footy myself, a bad lead can destroy any attempt of a good kick and it happens so much at this level of footy.. The intangibles are too irresistible to turn down with Freeman and I'd be devastated if he was available and we didn't take him.

That's right, I very much appreciate your training reports, with work and uni the times don't match up well for me so I never get to go, but like all things there's nothing wrong with having differing views. I like that you have a relationship with most players, I have an incredibly close relationship with a couple myself and it's better than hearing it from the Baker's wife. I have no incentive to tell anything but the truth to the forum. If we don't accept and acknowledge our past failings, it's too easy to let it occur again. In this day and age of social media, everyone gets their say. Club officials check these sites and supporter disharmony had alot to do with Mark leaving, funnily enough very rarely do club employees see the writing on the wall before the supporters! Once the supporter forums put out the concept there is a finite amount of time the coach has left and it occurs in every sport. We as a whole need to inspire the club to not settle for the number 1 pick in the draft, to not settle for below satisfactory development and not settle for the poor and absent coaching of our lesser players. Just because I love the MFC, doesn't mean I agree with the atrocious decisions to train fitness all summer with little to no ball control work. It showed all year last year. I dint agree with not meriting good performances in the VFL, and not punishing poor performances from Messrs Watts, Trengove et cetera. I love your optimism and hope it never stops but I won't be the same sucker who believed Schwabs Chinese sponsorship deal or Neelds plan to be the toughest team to play against. I've learnt my lesson.

I don't follow. There wasn't a single facet of us as a club that succeeded last year. The three we've bought in have righted the ship.. We have stability at board level for the first time in years, stability in an extended sponsorship deal which hasn't happened since LG, a component coach. This is the best we've looked off-field in nearly a decade. Now the last part is getting the on-field correct, but 15,000 before December agree with me that 'a handful of people in key positions' has done exactly that.

I've heard Stark aside, if you weren't in the best 25 at the MFC 2012/2013 you were completely deserted. No feedback from line or head coach, at one point a player went to MN asking for extra one on one training, and he was told to practice it at Casey. It's in the past, so we all move on but the cancer had spread throughout our club, and thankfully due to PJ, Glenn, us as committed supporters the ship has been righted.

It almost needs it's own thread, the whole 'boats' concept, but really, what are his alternate options? Everyone knows it's a **** scenario, in an ideal world, noone would need to escape their own country in fear of their life, but the problems are so much more than let's reach out and be good humanitarians. You're correct about his 'noble cause' bull, but I'm yet to hear a theory that see's a beneficial situation for both parties (Australia and Asylum seekers) and am very open minded to hearing one.

Thanks Hardtack! Great photos, good to see the boys happy for an individual pic Saty. I must also mention that holy sheep you look like Dumbledore from Harry Potter haha!

Whats your twitter handle Sat?