binman

I'm not sure if it matters if it is the first bounce or latter bounces in the first half (first quarter?) there is little doubt Presuss has been brought in to give Gawn some relief. I doubt he will play every game but will play - about 75% i reckon. And definitely against those sides with two rucks. As you rightly say teams definitely physically tried to work Gawny over to limit his impact - understandable given how crucial is to our chances of winning. I thought the Hawks took it to another level in the semi. They were brutal. Smashed him at every opportunity. i was surprised he got up from one collision at the Punt road end when the hawks were pushing. Didn't help them much (though it wasn't his best game it has to be said) but it certainly helped the Eagles. At the ground you could see how stuffed gawny was from the first bounce. He was fully spent halfway through the first quarter. Preuss might repay some of those hits with interest. He has rugby background i think so should be well used to using his strength and size to hit hard. I pity the fools.

[censored] hippy

No. We can call him Sky.

Agree dazzler. i think salem has scope for improvement, particularly as unlike previous year, last year and so far this year he has had uninterrupted pre season. He is also now entering that key stage of a players career - 70+ AFL games - where all the parts start to come together. Plus i suspect the mid filed experiment is dead and buried and he will play out his career off the HB - which gives him some nice continuity. Its interesting what you said about his right foot kicking. Ii don't recall him kicking on his right much in games. If he starts to do so that can become a weapon off HB as it opens up space with opposition players covering his left side

God, i hope that's not true. if so, poor bugger

Good with binmum. Not so great with binman snr.

It is my birth name.

As in a cut from a blade?

You're not alone Chook. Never has your avatar been more appropriate for a thread.

Don't you mean Steven May?

Agree. Add to the above that we are a high scoring side and he takes his chances. Should be favorite but won't be. So will be good value.

If it ain’t broke, why fix it? Please. What about the dees can't afford for it to break in the first instance. Losing Gawn to injury (god forbid), even for short periods is the single biggest risk for us in term of our chances of going deep into the finals. I would say no single player in the league is more important to their team. I know he is referencing the idea of Preuss and Gawn playing in the same side but i have no doubt they will, not all season, but strategically through the season. Sometimes because of match ups but other times just to lessen the incredible load Max carries and give him some well earned chop outs - particularly mid season. I can even see the Dees resting Gawn mid season around the bye period (perhaps an interstate game?) to give him a chance to rest. And of course if Max does get injured we have some insurance. And on his choice to come to the dees, why wouldn't Preuss want to got to genuine premiership contender?

Good idea. Credit largely goes to 7 though it would seem.

Is that what he is doin? If so defenders get away with that all the time

Doesn't look like a free under the rule change (which is really a return to a previous rule) where player can use their hands to hold an opponent under the ball. As long as they dont push them forward. And even if, in that shot petty did push it would be sideways, which would likely be ok. Will be a very tricky free to call I would have thought. Great for tmac, who uses his hands a lot to grapple and push in marking contests.

Maybe. Stars like Danger do have some traction with kids under 12 i guess but i reckon lots of little kids would interested in the show than who plays. Particularly if the stars are only going through the motions and doing their best to avoid contact (not very super heroish).

Yes. Good points, well made

I can't work out how to provide a link but i heard Kate Roffey being interviewed on RSN this morning. Kate is the director of the Western Melbourne soccer team bid that was successful (which is awesome as i live in the west and my daughter plays soccer so clubs in the area will def benefit. I will def adopt them as my team). Impressive. Fascinating interview, which covers a lot of ground. One element relevant to the discussion of a meeting space for fans is the bids focus n building their own stadium and 'activating' it as part of the strategy to build their fan base and create meaningful connection with their team. Well worth a listen and the dees yarra park plans get a mention. Link to website is here and you the stream is on the right hand side of the landing page: https://www.rsn.net.au/

Not 100% sure that is true. The BBL is referenced a bit in relation to the aflx. In particular in that is focused on entertainment and a young audience. A young non discerning audience who, understandably, love color, slogs, fire, mascots, bright uniforms and electric bails. But truth be known the BBL is a feeble replica of the IPL. The standard is poor and few top 50 cricketers in the world are involved. Each team has multiple club level players who can't make state sides. And a couple of blokes retired from international cricket who are passed their use by date (hogg played until he was mid 40s iirc) Yet it grows every year. Because its target audience are kids and few of them are cricket purists. The AFLX could use young players (maybe the best under 21s not yet drafted), the best of the state leagues and a handful of recently retired afl players (make one the captain). Money and the incentive to show their wares might make games competitive and serve the purpose of introducing potential players to a wider audience.

He mentioned East Melbourne cricket club. Not quite sure if that is existing club or an extinct one he thought we could help revive.

The AFL's plan for AFLX?

When i was kid we were so far away from a premiership that i measured success in how many state players we had. It was form of positive affirmation that despite spending most seasons closer to the spoon than a flag we were ok. I loved watching Robbie play for the Big V and loved how well he always played and the effort he put in. In those days, with few replays, let alone live telecasts, of the dees i reveled in the fact that the fans of other clubs could actually see for themselves how damn good he was. On replays i have fond(ish) memories of the fake/canned crowd noise used when one camera highlights were shown when a game that had not been telecast/replayed (which was all bar one or two) was being reviewed on WOS (and the Winners on the ABC?).

I tied hard last year to support the concept and look for positives. Am finding it much harder to to so this year. Much harder. Happy for it to go a head. With no dees players in sight. All washing their hair that day.

Leather poisoning

Or get Saty to stand the mark