binman

For reasons i've outlined before i can't see Hogan wanting to return to WA (mainly related to the burden of travel, but as private fella i can't see him enjoying the fish bowl in a two team provincial town) but for the sake of argument lets say he is considering a move back home. As a competitive beast Hogan, like most players, priority will be playing in and winning finals. If he honors his contrast with the dees then any move would be for the 2018 season. I reckon Freos premiership window will be closed by then and more than likely they will be back in the rebuild phase. I can't see him wanting to be part of a rebuild again, particularity if the club he has been laying at is reaping the reward of its rebuild (on the current trajectory we should be a top 4 side in 2018 - i hope!). WC might still be a realistic chance of a flag then but would need to keep building and not go backwards. They do have Kennedy but of course would take Hogan if available. So i can't see him at Freo, leaving only one WA club for him to do a deal with. But as i say i can't see him returning to WA and we will be in a position to match almost any offer.

Ahh i was under the impression that this function was blocked with AFL live pass to protect Fox and 7. Are you 100% sure it works?

Found these comments under the article funny. I could have been reading DL! Christian4 hours ago It's 1 game - relax FlagShare 1LikeReply Benjamin4 hours ago @Christian Here Here Christian. Watts has many rounds left to disappoint as I know he can do.

I like how they have been discounted already.

I agree. It is definitely something that has changed this year. Players seemingly have more confidence in him and are looking for him more. I think that it is virtuous cycle as this confidence helps Jack.

What? I thought his game on Saturday was his first and only decent game of AFL football!

Well to be fair, until the last 2-3 years we have been!

Talk about damming him with faint praise. That kick was brilliant - he was practically on the boundary line.

Well that would mean one of the players would have to be dropped. Another veiled criticism?

Didn't know where to put this so here will do. It bemuses me that Roos not getting much credit for the win, here on DL or in the media. As i have said his value as a game day coach in terms of communication is his capacity to motivate the players. It seems he did a brilliant job of that. Four goals down against a pretty good side and we had the belief to come out and roll them. Also he made some excellent positional decisions and moves, something he has been criticised here on DL for not doing. Jeffy to the wing an on ball, swapping Nat Jones and Vince, moving Hogan on to the ball to get him going, Oliver starting in the centre in the last (gutsy move) and Pederson down back. All moves that work. No doubt his assistants including Goodwin, came up with some of those idea but he still has to sift through ideas and pull the right rein. Would love to hear David King give credit where credit is due. Who knows we might have lost thsi game if Goodwin was in charge.

And gee can he handball! There was one i think in the last but could be wrong (the second perhaps) that showed both vision and smarts. He collected the pill in traffic, in the center corridor, held it for just a brief second and gave a long handball to a player in space streaming through the middle. What was really impressive was that he deliberately put it in front of the player, who not only did not have to break stride, even had to stretch for it. It was almost as if he was directing the receiver where to run to. Vision, smarts and technical skill equals a good package.

A terrific game from Watts. Lots of positive comments on this thread which is terrific. Three really resonated with me: His intensity after kicking his goal in the last was terrific - you could see he was willing his teammates to win. As noted this is leadership and was great to see. Incidentally it was a terrific mark - he read the ball beautifully. One of 10 he took for the day, at least 3 of which being contested. This sort of game is the benchmark and should be his touchstone. He has played better games for the dees and as someone pointed out it is a myth that he needs a break out game (as if his 100 games have all been nothing but a rehearsal for his coming of age). But - and it is a big but - this is one of the few times he has imposed himself on the game and as the OP suggests through his effort dragged us over the line for a win Webber's comments about the different rate players develop was salient in terms of Watts development. One thing i'd add is that that many players say they don't feel they are really developed until they have hit the 100 game mark. The next 3-4 years are likely to be Watts' best A few other observations/comments: I would love for him to get his average possession up to 20 (he may well have made that number if not for the bad cork he got) as he brings his teamamtes into the game with both his kicks and handballs Such was his impact in the last i was really surprised he only had 5 touches in the last. Four of them were score involvements. Two of those score involvements showed his skill. His spin and handball to VB was sublime but it was his kick to a leading Hogan that really caught my eye. He had to kick it quickly but was close to the man on the mark so had little space. Off half a step he kicked across his body and popped it into the hole for Hogan to run to. Looked simple - and i guess most players should be able to execute such a kick - but still had to deliver. And did. Watts brought Hogan into the game. As someone noted there is growing chemistry between the two (i liked Hogans'comment about his eyes lighting up when Watts has the ball) I love that Watts is taking players on and really backing himself. In my view not always doing so has been one of his key issues holding him back and has, in part, fueled the perception he is soft. There were at least 3 examples of him really taking the tackler on and using his skills. I wonder if Macca is a factor with this

Yes. Great way to finish my weekend. Top job dees

That's the second longest link I've seen this week....

Really surprised with this call and I was way wrong with my dismissal of the idea of omac ahead of dunn. On deetv roos implied it was to do with injury and not playing all nab. But given he is an emergency - and the fact he was vc and isn't even in the lg this year - it feels as if they're sending him a message.

Away with the family over easter so will miss the game sadly. Even more sadly the same goes next weekend. File under what was I thinking? (Marital harmony probably) Will go complete media blackout and watch it 'as live' on Monday (along with the races). Go dees

Comedian?

Moderators please close and delete this thread ASAP. I recall talk last year about how good our injury list looked before it all went to hell in a hand basket. I blame DL posters for this. Let's not make the same mistake this year. Or perhaps we go all reverse psychology - wow our injury list is sooo bad. It's not how many are injured it's who is injured.Dawes and Newton are both critical players for the dees - without them we will struggle, particularly Dawes. I mean who else will compete manfully and bring the ball to ground?

I liked this quote from Jones today: Jones: I've seen a real shift in the mentality of the players and the coaching staff - from top to bottom we're all on the same page.

Totally agree on all points. For me it just reinforces how simplistic the views of so many footy commentators are. Hutchy rabbited on about the Roos defense mantra last night on FC, basically saying it was not possible for him to adapt. Roos had a strategy (ugly football as Demitriou famously called it) that as about maximizing the chances of winning a grand final. He won one and nearly won another. It was a strategy in a time and place and other clubs used a variation of it. It is an insult to Roos to suggest he is not capable of adapting his approach. As you say Roos is a thinker, he'll recognise what needs to be done to win. In fact this exactly what he has done. He recognised the need for us to score more but was also aware the dees first needed to stop leaking goals. Winning is his priority not defense. Interestingly in the HUN article yesterday Roos made the point that all the MFC coaches had aggression at the ball carrier and strong defense as cornerstones of their coaching philosophies. Attcak built on defense. In essence he was saying they were all on the same page.

Yep, fair call. I meant more coincidental that we were talking about it on Demonland, not that the Roos interview followed Kings comments (thought of course we were talking about because of King).

Yes, good point. Apologies. I must of confused myself by mentioning a King.

Given the recent discussion in this thread, and in particular the suggestion by King that Goodwin should take the reigns from Roos, the timing of this article was coincidental. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/paul-roos-sets-the-record-straight-on-whos-coaching-melbourne/news-story/2c3a157c1214896d427d29f660dcafb9 I couldn't get past the pay wall but it is in the hard copy today. Roos pretty much addresses all the points raised in this thread. This quote caught my attention: 'Roos says the Goodwin as messiah groundswell is simplistic. Not only does it not give credit to the coaching team, it ignores two years of hard work building a game plan big on aggression and quick ball movement'

Absolutely. Very shrewd i reckon. Best way to banish talk of the past is to focus on a positive future. Fits with the winning focused messages that have been coming from everyone at the dees (PJ, coaches, players, footy department staff etc) all pre season.

Alright Bob, i'll also have one more go and call it quits. My point was there is no change in the communicator. The players will continue getting exactly the same message they have been getting for the last 18 months. There is complete consistency in the message. To think otherwise suggests a somewhat limited and unsophisticated view on what is occurring at the MFC. I think King has this view - i wouldn't have thought you would share this perspective but i guess i could be wrong on that.