Sdemon53

You have gone 4 players all over 194 cms. You are obviously happy with our mids.

Yes at this stage we have Gysberts, Blease, Tapscott, Maric and Strauss putting pressure on the midfield. We could pick up a few mids in the rookie draft as we did with Jordie McKenzie.

As with all drafts it will depend how the draft falls for us. I get the feeling Tapscott was a surprise so we grabbed him. The betting was we would take a tall but with such a good player available we took 'Bamm Bamm'. Then Gawn and Fitzpatrick fell into our laps as high priority picks.

Lets wait and see what happens on the 18th.

With all due respects to Brian Royal I am not so sure if this is a good move. According to the article he replaces Sean Wellman. Does he have the same knowledge as Wellman who is a up to date defensive coach? Why did he leave StKilda after just one season?

Unfortunately this appointment maybe just to fill a gap for the 2011 season.

To be blunt I am a bit worried about how our defense will go next season.

Nice contribution. I've not seen any underage games this year so can't comment. Are your comments based on your own observations or just internet information??

I think we'll go best available with pick 12 and get a good player and then draft for needs beyond that.

Sorry just internet information. Mainly from Big Footy.

We will not go best available in the terms I think you mean. It has already been said by the footy department that they will go for the best that fits into the player group. My take on that would mean a tall forward.

Some are saying Shaun Atley may drift down to #12. Another tough inside midfielder. I would love to have Shaun at Melbourne as I know the family. But because of the needs of the club I would say we should go for a tall forward/ruck type of player.

I will say what I think Melbourne should do.

We could kill 3 birds with one draft here. I am trying to get a tall forward, ruckman and hopefully turn one into a key position in defence.

Selection #12 Melbourne is a team that could go for high risk, high reward pick here and we may well consider a Luke Mitchell 198cm, 94kg (a Jonathan Brown type of player) or a Scott Lycett 202cm, 98kg (a Matthew Kreuzer type of player) here.

Selection #32 Pick 32 Melbourne Alex Johnson Vic Metro 194cm, 80kg

Johnson’s athleticism and upside could be the answer here.

Kevin Sheehan says: Alex is a tall defender/forward with an outstanding work rate and competitive edge. He provides excellent defensive pressure when playing forward. He represented Vic Metro at the under-18 championships this year.

Which AFL player do you feel you resemble and why?

Nick Riewoldt - I believe I play a similar role to Nick as a hard-working centre half-forward who works up the ground to create opportunities for teammates.

Selection #49 Josh Walker Vic Country 195cm, 87kg

Kevin Sheehan says: Josh is a tall forward with terrific work rate and strong hands overhead. He impressed for Vic Country in the under-18 championships as a lead-up forward, where he averaged 12 disposals and five marks.

Which AFL player do you feel you resemble, and why?

Nick Riewoldt - key position forward who uses endurance to push up and down ground and take strong overhead marks.

Selection #52 Callum Sinclair Port Melbourne 199cm, 93kg DOB 23/09/89

Kevin Sheehan says: Callum is a mobile tall forward who is a strong lead and mark overhead. He reads the game very well and is reliable in front of goals.

What type of player are you?

Like to be considered a very tall (201cm) mobile key forward who is willing to ruck as required. Confident and very reliable goal kicker who becomes a hard match up when playing well.

Which AFL player do you most resemble and why?

In terms of current day player, I aspire to be a power forward and play like Justin Koschitzke at his best. In terms of days gone by, I have a base of skills and ability that is well developed for a tall player and would hope I could potentially develop with a lot of help into a player like Stephen Kernahan.

With the rookie draft we can have a mix of best available or older project players.

I could be wrong but by all indications from Bailey and Harrington we will probably go tall this draft.

Michael Newton is out injured from the North game. Paul Johnson is having or had an operation.

What happened to Michael Newton and Paul Johnson?

The idiots running the VFL should have look at the rules regarding who can play in the finals as this game is stacked in the favour of the Nothern Bullants. Why bother having a final series when it favours some teams over others because the AFL team is still playing or not.

We've got a Leigh Brown. His name is Paul Johnson. I think we have up and coming ruckmen to support Jamar. We need a forward or one more gun midfielder much more.

Spot on Choko, there is no reason why Dean Bailey could not train Paul Johnson during the pre-season to be the big body forward that we need. It would help with the development of both Jack Watts and Liam Jurrah. Also it would make it easier for Brad Green and Aussie to have an impact. Paul Johnson has the speed and ability to be even better than Brown. An added value for Paul is that he can do forward ruck work and take over from Jamar during the match of needed. Jamar is no slouch in the forward line as well and can kick goals plus provide a big body.

The important point here is that Dean Bailey and the coaches should tailor the pre-season to get added value out of both Jamar and Johnson. Paul Johnson is capable of filling the role for 2 or 3 years while Jack Watts grows into the role with experience and body strength. What Bailey needs to do is tell Paul he has to improve his forward work if he wants to stay on the list. With Miller going it will be certain that we will retain Paul Johnson for at least 1 more season.

I hope Paul Johnson does a Leigh Brown in 2011 but do it even better than the Collingwood player.

I've heard that Gysberts has a bulging disc in his spine

What does that mean to his future career as an AFL footballer. How bad is a bulging disc in the spine?

Debt demolished.

$1.18m raised.

Great result, the feeling must be of an enormous relief and now we work towards a successful future.

I thank all of those that have given their hard earned money to help a great club our club.

We all gave what we could.

Thankyou.

Yes I noticed that as well.

But here is a guess at what might be happening.

The senior game is starting at 12.10pm as the first game. The ABC1 cover the on delay at 1pm.

Also on the Casey website the reserves start at 3pm.

So therefore remembering that Casey have aleady had a home game shifted I would think the ground condition has played some part in this.

I am only speculating here on what might be the reason for the chamge in game time.

According to the Casey website the Casey Scorpions Game v Gold Coast this Saturday (7/8/2010) is starting at 12.10pm.

Is this new starting time correct?

Is the game still being covered by ABC1? If so when will the game be broadcast?

I hope KC from Casey can shed some light on what is happening.

Surely Jordie McKenzie should have a big chance for NAB Rising Star this week. With 26 disposals, 9 tackles and putting a ton of pressure on Brisbane players he is I hope recognised for his efforts.

For mine Jordie has been the find of the season. In my opinion he has been more consistent that Trengove, Scully and Watts. It would not surprise me ti hear that he is the first player picked each week.

Though it is looking good with Scully, Watts and McKenzie being in the top players with disposals.

Was anyone else impressed with Jordie against Brisbane?

Yes my thiughts as well DirtyDees.

The other factor here is what is happening with the Leighoak Club? How well is the Leighoak performing? Are we also having to invest into this facility as well.

All members of the Melbourne Football Club should be very concerned with the cost effectiveness of having these 2 Social Clubs.

After reading The Bentleigh Club Merger Discussion Paper I am not sure if such a merger would be the right move.

What worries me is the financial impact it would have on the club. We are about to wipe out debt with Debt Demolition but with this proposed merger of the MFC and The Bentleigh Club could send us back to the red zone.

I think the MFC should provide more information. It appears the location of a new site for The Bentleigh is the key to it being a financial success. Is there any suitable sites?

My gut feeling is that we may have to walk away from the Bentleigh Club. Though on the other hand we have an extra 48 gaming machines so if a better site is found then maybe it could be viable.

Lets hope the MFC and Bentleigh Club boards can workout a positive outcome for both, but protecting the viability of the MFC.

Hardest decision all year... but if Moloney and Junior are fit and ready, you certainly put them straight back into the side.

IN: McDonald (if fit... again), Moloney, Trengove

OUT: Bail, McKenzie (general soreness), Scully (general soreness)

P.S. Has Dunny turned a corner or what??? Wowza!

McKenzie will not be dropped as he is still on the Rookie List and we want him to stay with us. With the way he is playing it would not be a good move as he could walk away from the club. However I expect him to be elevated to the list with a rather healthy contract at the end of the season.

In my opinion James McDonald is not an automatic selection as I think he is not quick enough for our side. The way we played against the Swans would have sent a message to James that he can now retire knowing the team will improve without him. Depending on how we are going he will probably play his last game against North Melbourne.

We have an interesting dilemma facing the selection committee regarding players coming back into the side. Especially with James McDonald, Brent Moloney, Jack Trengove and later Jack Grimes. Then we may have Jordan Gysberts and Luke Tapscott knocking on the door before the season ends.

My inclination is to make no change for the Brisbane game and put pressure on them by saying that if they do not perform we have a number of players that can come into the team. It sounds tough but with the way the list is shaping we will have a reasonable number of players fighting for places in the side each week next season.

Just floating the thought that we're struggling at delivering the ball to about 20-40 metres out, and wondering if it's not worth throwing Watts, or even McNamara into the square where we wouldn't have to try and be so precise and could have a big unit to catch the ball? (Old school, I know)

I like Green, Sylvia, Dunn, Bate, and even occasionally Moloney from 40-50, but we're struggling to hit targets at that mid distance between there and the square. We have some big fellas in Watts, McNamara, Martin, Morton, and even Green plays above his size down there, could they be used well there?

Watts could get some much needed confidence from a few shots at close range.

Rivers could even play around half forward to utilise his marking, as he's mostly struggling down back with the modern style of short possession game.

Thoughts?

I agree with you but I would be looking at Paul Johnson. Jamar needs help and Paul is the only one at the moment worth selecting. Bailey should instruct Johnson to stay close the goal square at all times just like Mark Jackson did. For those that did not see Jackson play for us he was very successful at kicking goals because of his strength plus if he could not get it he tried to put the ball to our advantage. Result being Gerard Healy kicked 77 goals as well as Jackson getting 70 odd. While Jacko was a bit of a nutter we certainly fed off him when he played for Melbourne. Johnson could provide the target and our smaller players could feed off him if he does not get the ball. While I understand the game is a lot different to 25 years ago we could still apply the same principles. Green and Dunn could provide the leading options.

Unfortunatey I think Jack Watts has to go back to Casey and learn how to play in the forward line. Especially how to get in front of his man. In some ways Watts reminds me of David Cordner. David had big raps on him but found it hard to adapt to the tougher conditions of senior football. However with good coaching we will get Jack Watts to the required AFL level going into the 2011 season.

Both the young stars, as well as Grimes, were brilliant again tonight. It is becoming that we can't do without them.

I just worry a little about burn out with them. Jack Trengove in particular shows great fatigue late in the games. He did against the Lions, but especially tonight early in the last quarter when he miskicked three times in a row and was clearly fatigued.

When will it become time to give these guys a rest at Casey, or even a week off?

It was a wet hard slog with a 6 day turnaround, what more could you expect of young players. But it was a great effort by the youngsters. The last thing they need is a break. They are improving each week. The more they play together the better and more confident they will be with each other. I am not only talking about Scully and Trengove you include Grimes, Bennell and McKenzie.

For those who have foxtel, there is a channel called lifestyle , (not sure if Melbourne supporters are its demographics) Look up when its repeated

The was a show tonight called Relocation Downunder, a 4 part series where the host Phil( who usually works with kirsty in the regular series Location, Location and its various spin offs get people houses to look at and bid for in the Uk(auctions are really known in the UK)) was in Melbourne trying to find a house for some Uk immigrants .

In this weeks episode (3 may) Phil dropped in to the boys at training at Casey, last year Phil a Pom who is married to a Melbournian whose dad played for us in 1960 . Phil met Robbo and did the usual kicking, handball, marking stuff.

This show will either be seen in the UK or has been.

Good PR

Phil Spencer is the son in law of Len Mann 1960-64, 46 games, 192cm, 89kg ruckman. So I would assume the Spencer family are Melbourne supporters. I hope the club has signed them up as members of the club. Len was in the 1960 Premiership side.