binman

Too drunk to fight? Is that the woke version?

Personally, I'm not convinced Jacko is gone. But if he wants out, I 100% agree we should play hard ball. We owe Jackson nothing and homesickness doesn't tick the 'personal reasons' box.

I don't think that's the case. Far, from it fact.

Indeed. And, there were some unique factors that might reinforce our win being an exception to the rule: - We never played a home final as such. -three of the preliminary finalist were vic based teams all having to play interstate - covid, lockdowns etc; and the resulting impact on planning But perhaps the three most significant factors were: - in finishing top, we avoided a six day break and playing port on their home deck. Poor puddy cats had to play their home qualifying final at Adelaide oval against a home team!. Whereas, whilst our game was also at Adelaide oval, it was at least a neutral venue given we played the lions - we had the opportunity to get to Perth and set up a base, and also nab tbe best facility. We also had one more week than the dogs out of iso. - the bye before the grand final, which wasn't scheduled until after the finals commenced iirc, is a variable that is unique to 2021. Who knows what impact thst had

Yeah, you're right. Not sure why I was thinking he was a mid. Greg Wells is definitely up there as best mid - particularly given a spot has just opened up!

Brett lovett was a star. His hanballing skills were just phenomenal, as was his ability to win contests.

All roads lead to Berlin. My second favourite city behind Melbourne.

My apologies, my post was uncalled for

Fair criticism.

It's a smart move by the club I reckon. The game is geared towards athletes now, and he is super athletic. With his leap he plays tall, he's quick, he's strong and can play mutiple positions. It's a pretty rare combination of attributes, and I reckon that's why goody likes what he brings to the team so much. He's probably on a relatively low base payment, with as you suggest performance payments. So, not a huge hit there. And we've invested a lot of time and effort already, so there's a sunk cost, so to speak. On the injury front, yes he'd had some soft tissue injuries (groin), but some have been just plain bad luck. There's a good team working with him, so really there's no reason why he won't have an extended block of injury free games. A two year contract shows confidence by the club and in Joel. We need depth, and a strong Casey team - and Smith helps with both. So a good move all around.

Way too verbose

Could he also pinch hit in the ruck the way the blues use silvagni?

That fight has been so evident hasn't it. I love it. Apart from giving his game a real edge, it has no doubt improved his leadership and impact on team mates. He has always been quite demonstrative on field, and not averse to giving a team mate a mouthful. But that sort of stuff does not have cut through, from any player, if they are not walking the talk, cracking in, tackling and showing high level intensity. Melk is showing all those things now, so his teammates are more likely to take what he says on board.

All good points. Nice problem to have - it was only two to three weeks ago posters were desperate for JVR or a half fit Tmac to come back in and rescue us. Now the consensus seems to be we don't' need either player!

Yeah, you might well be right. But the two tall set up has been our preferred model for much of the last two seasons, so i'm not sure about them being overly concerned about being top heavy. And Tmac's running power in terms of endurance, and the patterns he runs (ie up and down the wing all day) mitigates against being top heavy - and his lack of football for that matter (ie because the fitness required to run the patterns is probably more important than being a bit rusty) I'm not advocating for his selection, but Goody has flagged him as an option and i'm sure they wont pick him if there is a query about his ability to come back ready to roll.

Confusing answer. Could be read two ways - the MFCSS is permanent or it is permanently in remission (im pretty sure it is the former) You are not a politician are you Andy?

The swans present an interesting challenge defensively with the two mccartin boys. Both are key to their structure, and their intercept marking is key to their defensive system. Melksham has been playing the defensive forward role brilliantly. And almost always goes to their most damaging interceptor (curiously he went to payne against the lions rather than Andrews - it's worth noting payne is taller and heavier than both mccartin boys). So melksham would be perfect on say paddy, who averaged more intercepts than his bro. Adding tmac to a forward line that has bb in it, and max or jack resting forward, would then make sure Tom McCartin would have to be accountable and would limit his ability to intercept. But tmac would also drag his opponent up the ground and out of the back line. That will mess with their defensive structure. They could hand off, but that has risks too - nor least of which being tmac clunking marks at hb or up on the wing It's that part of tmac's game we have missed the most. You only have to watch how hard bb has had to work in the last 3-4 weeks to get a sense of that. So, both tmac and melksham could work. But then a forward has to come out. No idea who though, because nibbler, spargo, fritter and kozzie are all locks. Sparrow could be the unlucky one in that scenario.

Too right. That said I'd be happy if stevic umpired all our matches - does a good job.

Cranky Franky versus faultydet? Now there's a match up I'd pay good money to watch

I don't think that's how it works. As soon as he is in red and blue he'll barely get another free for his career.

Wheely brilliant work wheelo. I am discussing the data tonight. On the above point, I think the fact you have used a ten year sample evens our some of the issues with the potential skewing of data.

Great data. The numbers jags perfectly with my prediction we would be pretty close to our optimal physical readiness for the lions game. Perhaps not fully wound up, which will terrify the other contenders, but close. As you imply, you don't need the numbers - you can see the difference between our fitness levels against the pies and blues (and of course right back o the first pies game) and the lions game with your eyes. I'm mindful some might think this is a stretch, and apologies for posting this again, but i firmly believe our obvious increased zip and energy was flagged by Goody in his presser on the day before the game with these comments: "They feel physically fresh, they feel ready to go, we feel like we have been able to build some cohesion in the way we play in the last four or five weeks."

Exactly. Anything else contradicts what Petty wants and risks causing him further distress. And in terms of a penalty, the damage to Zorko's reputation is penalty enough. Like Carmen headbutting an umpire all those years ago, people won't forget the transgression and the stain will remain forever, no matter what Zorko pursues post football.

'I prefer your disco blue away strip to the traditional darker blue of your home strip" Apparently petty hates the word strip being used instead of jumper. 'Bloody soccer term is strip' he apparently said in response to Zorko's sledge.

On it