binman

Defensive: Bartram, Garland, Macdonald, Bail, Rivers, Grimes Guts: Jamar, Scully, Trengove, Davey, Moloney, Sylvia Forwards: Howe, Bate, Dunn, Green, Jurrah, Maric Pine: Petterd, Jones, Jetta, Benell Sub: gysberts/strauss I wonder if teams might go with an extra runner than semi big man as their sub. A risk if your ruck is injured but might be able to keep up the rotations with the runner. in our case i reckon dunn can give Jamar the chop out and after all he played the whole year without much support and made all australian

We need to ensure those playing at senior level have the required intensity (ie the one percenters, the tackling, the sheer desire to get the ball etc) that is non negotiable in todays AFL. The outside player is, almost, a thing of the past -particulalry 93kg forwards. Future development does not need to come at the cost of winning, but playing young players in the seniors is only one aspect of player development. If a player was not playing with the required intensity would their (and the teams) development be better served playing at Casey? We want Watts to develop as a KPF yet we are playing him as a high half forward (and we have a surfeit of this type of forward). Would 6 games at Casey playing CHF help his development? If they do drop Watts they could replace him with Howe who is 22 and has played 3 years of senior football. Is there not an argument to say his development would be better served playing in the AFL? If there is who would he come in for? As i have been at pains to say the issue is not Watt's potential talent but his current level of intensity. If another 18, 19 or 22 year old player had played with the required intensity over summer (and playing in the ones would aid his development) then sure why not bring him in. Why should those players development play second fiddle to JW?

I read Matt Burgans live feed on the night and there wasn't much mention of watts. He did make note of of some good early tackles by Green and Watts and that tackling seems to have been a focus (no surprise there). However from the feed it certainly didn't sound like the sort of response to a rocket you'd hope for. No goals and not in best according to the dees website. Intersting that Bailey (who "was disappointed with his team’s lack of intensity after the main break" in Tassie) made a comment that ("fierce tackler")Jetta had a good pre season and noted that they missed his tackling against the Hawks. Again the theme is intensity. I suggest the first 5 games of this season are crucial, for a whole range of reasons - our chances of making the finals not least among them. Given this i believe they will pick the side they believe will maximise their chances of winning as opposed to having a focus on future player development.

Fascinating that the focus of this thread has gone to the question of "will watts make it" rather than the initial post which was a suggestion Watts had been told that without an improvement in his form he was a chance of not being selected in round 1. My view on that issue remains the same as it was a few days ago. I don't think he should be selected if his intensity is not at AFL level and nor should any player. I respect the alternative view that he needs to be in the seniors to develop that aspect (and other componenets) of his game, though i feel his development could be assited in this regard by not being a lay down misere for selection I also repsect the view some have that Watts does indeed show the required intensity, so i'm happy to agree to disagree on that front. All that said i won't be surprised if he is not selected round 1 as i think there is question mark on his intensity level and the club has made some recent references to the need for the forwards to improve their defensive pressure Does anyone know how Watts played last Friday. How was his intensity? How was his tackling? The reports i have read have been very thin and i can't find any stats, nor is there any player review on the melbourne site.

And when he does select him in the seniors

Bingo! This what the coaching staff expect from our forwards,including JW. If they don't apply it they won't be in the team (and nor should they)

Me too, give him all the time he needs. But whilst last year you could justify playing him when his form didn't warrant it, in order to further his development, that time has passed. He should now only be selected if his form and level of intensity warrant it. If it doesn't then he should play with Casey (or the dees mgoos if/when they come along) until it does

I won't if those four goasl are from soft free kicks, he only picks up those four possesssions and flounces around the pack making theatrical attempts to get at the ball and/or man (look at me coach i'm going in hard!) This thread was intially about Watts apparently being told he was a chance of missing round 1 selection because of form, not "will he become a champion". On form he would not be picked if Round 1 was today. If he doesn't perfom today don't pick him. As noted by another poster it won't be the end of the world, in fact who knows it it might even help him (as well as sending a strong message to the rest of the team that only those 100% commited will play). Bailey has made a point of saying recently that this year is about improvement (in his parlance winning more quarters) as has Jimmy (winnig more games). To do this they need to, from round 1 , pick the team who gives us the best chance of winning as opposed to the development teams of the last few seasons. If JW is not in the best 22 don't pick him. Period

On current form he should miss round one. They've told him that, one presumes to make it clear he needs to perform tommorow (his last chance to before the season) and as i have previously suggested my feeling is the coach wants to see more intensity at the ball and greater defensive pressure. I will be really interested in how he goes tommorow. In a way his response will tell us alot about his chances of going up a level and alot about Jack. From my understanding, despite appearing somewhat laconic at times, he is very competitive and i expect he will come out all guns blazing. I also suspect that even if he does not have a great game but shows significantly increased intensity he will be selected for round 1. However without that increase in intensity even 2 or 3 goals may not be enough for him to be selected. Good work Steamin'

From the Melbourne football club website. http://www.melbournefc.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/7415/newsid/108839/default.aspx Intersting article today in the age with Bailey emphasising the importance of forwards creating pressure and having to have good defensive skills (ie tackiling, physical pressure etc)

Ah isn't it great to have thread about Jack again, rather than the TSS! His age may be relevant in terms of his ability to take marks, hold his ground in marking contests etc etc but his age is completely irrelevant to the issue of intensity at the ball and man. To be clear my view is Jack has the talent to be a top player, but (and it is a big but) at the moment he doesn't go in hard enough. I reiterate that Tom Scully is as young, much smaller in frame (probably what 12 kgs lighter?) and is ferocious in his attack on the ball. What's stopping Jack following suit - certainly not his age.

Melbourne statisticss v Brisbane Lions 26 disposals - Brent Moloney 22 - Nathan Jones 19 - Rohan Bail 18 - Neville Jetta 16 - Michael Evans 15 - Mark Jamar 14 - Colin Sylvia 14 - Luke Tapscott 13 - Lynden Dunn 13 - Daniel Nicholson 12 - Matthew Warnock 12 - Ricky Petterd 12 - Jared Rivers 12 - Joel Macdonald 12 - Tom Scully 9 - Stef Martin 9 - Jordan Gysberts 9 - Jeremy Howe 8 - Matthew Bate 8 - Jamie Bennell 8 - Tom McDonald 7 - Addam Maric 7 - James Strauss 4 - Jack Watts 3 - Lucas Cook 2 - Jake Spencer Playing predominately as a high half forward (and on the ground for much of the match) and only having four possesions is not good enough, practice match or no practice match. People have sunk the boots into Bate and Martin (with some justification) but they had 8 & 9 possessions respectively. Petterd had 12, Dunn 13, Howe had 9 and Lucas Cook who was only on the ground for 20 mins almost had as many as Watts. If the club has put Watts on notice then well played i reckon.

In the 5 games i have seen thus far this year (the intra club game, Adelaide etc, Essendon and Brisbane) the thing that had stood out for me in regard to Watts has been his lack of intensity at the ball and/or man. I would not be surprised if the footy department have given him a rocket and told him he needs to fire up and perhaps this is the issue they have, not his form as such (though he only had 4 possessions against Brisbane). His size (ie still to fully bulk up) is no excuse for not being fierce at the ball. In the game against Brisbane Scully, who is still remarkably slight, went full throttle at a contest (at the half backline)and hip and shouldered a far bigger opponent. The ball jarred free and was taken into our forward line for a goal. One of ther only highlights of the day and all because of one (little) fellas desire for the ball. This is what Watts needs to bring to his game and if he can't/won't he will struggle in AFL, little lone become the champion we are yearning for

Super mercado, i'm super impressed. Had not seen the site until this thread popped up a couple of days ago. Got myself lost in following links on Demon Wiki. Ended up watching Alan jarrot winnig the Handball comp on WOS. Terrific stuff

The most common response to Sculls interview today was how mature, professional and level headed he is. Terrific stuff from a young fella. I have to say this maturity is in complete contrast to the hysterical comment/vibe that has permeated most (but not all thankfully) of the posts on Demonland to do with the TSS (Tom Scully Saga). Please demonlanders get a grip, lets focus on the year ahead and take a leaf from the young mans' book and focus on the task at hand. TS will come out tommorow and go about his business and start the build towards another season of footy. Lets do the same and start focusing on the team not the individual

I second, third, fourth ........ that emotion. At the moment on this site there is one degree of seperation between any thread topic and The Tom Scully Saga (TTSS). It is tedious. Keep the powder dry for hopefully the one thread tommorow (What Tom Said at his Press Conference)

Premiers for '11: Collingwood Wooden Spoon: Gold Coast (by a margin) Most Goals for Demons: Jurrah - 66 (i hink he's averaging about 3 a game, get on him for the Coleman) Leading Goalkicker in AFL: as above Brownlow: Sylvia (vote winner, get on him) Final Ladder position: 8th Wins: 12 Most tackles: Jordie McKenzie Most marks: Sylvia Most handballs: Tom Scully Most kicks: Tom Scully Most 1%'s: Jones Best first year player: Lucas Cook Bluey: Col Sylvia Biggest crowd: 88,000 - QB Worst Journo: a crowded field, too tough to pick. Phelan an early contender Best Journo: Gerard Healy Biggest news story: Ongoing GWS trade rumour palaver Quote of the season: "Winning the Coleman is nice but i play for team success and look forward to winning a flag with this mob." Liam Jurrah

Yep i agree. Balanced, fair and right on the money

Yep i'm with you on that. Refreshing actually as there is so little of this sort of analysis. The politics of football (and the odd soap opera) dominate footy writing these days. I rember Charles Happell (i think) used to have a weekly article in the Sunday Age (i think) about tactics etc but there hasn't been anything similar in either the Hun or the Age since except for the odd article. Interstingly Healy's old teammate Gary Lyon has written some good artilces about tactics etc. I really wish the previews of upcoming games and reviews of games played were more sophisticated. So much rubbish written and usually within a dull, same old, same old template. A computer program could spit them out with the right inputs. While i'm at it bring back the Winners! As for the article he makes some excellent points and has some valid criticisms. I think an area Bailey has struggled with is the speed he tactically responds to obvious issues in games. This was indeed evident against the Bombers. Also as another poster notes he has placed great emphasis on using speed of ball movement to beat zones, which can work great on the "g when we're "on" (eg last years game against the Swans) but not nearly so well in the confines of Crocklands, or against sides who really love to bottle it up (eg the first game against North last year) or when we are not switched on (eg against Wet Toast last year). Without reviving the no b plan palaver i have always had a concern that Bailey doesn't seem to respond very effectively when the preferred approach isn't working.

I prefer hip hop and bling to R&B

I will never forget the game Farmer mentioned by WJ where he kicked 9.1 (so close to perfection) in the second half against the maggies. One of my all time favourite footy watching moments, perhaps even my fav I was sitting at the top of the Ponsford Stand (city end)and there was a magpie fan in front of me who in the first half was absolutely giving it to Farmer. All half he was bagging hi whenever he went near it. His vitriol tipped over into mindless racist drivel. I think he must have thought himself quite witty as his insults were along the lines of "typical, always looking for a handout", "hoping for easy welfare" and other such rubbish. The fella was absolutely relentless and as Farmer barely got a kick in that first half he had plenty of opportunities to have a go at him. What made it worse was he was with his son, who was probably no older than about 9 or so. It was for this reason that i elected not to say anything (and a sense that it would have been pointless and perhaps he was trying to provoke something), as there would have been some sort of confrontation an more than likely violence. That said i really i struggled throughout the first half not to say anything to him and with the tension of thinking i should. Well Farmer answered such rubbish in the best possible way. 9 goals in a half of footy and it could have easily have been 10. Awesome. With each goal i was able to go wild for the Wiz and was able to "respond" to the dill without ever having to do so directly. I yelled out stuff like "that's it Jeff, do it all youself, go hard", "you don't need any easy frees or handouts from the umps" etc etc. As the Whiz lined up for his 9th at about the 15 min mark of the last this fella (having barely said a word, little lone an insult, since about half way through the 3rd quarter) slinked off, leaving his son with a mate of his (who funnily enough had not at any stage yelled out any abuse). He was a beaten man. The Whiz had seen to that. There had beee no violence and perhaps his son had learnt a lesson. A great day and a great talent.

A question for the moderators. Is it possible to report an entire thread?

As i said there is absolutely no way the AFL did not forsee this possibility. Footy fans are the key stakeholders in this business an we deserve transparent leadership from the AFL. Lets say for the sake of the argument that they are incompetent and did not see this coming. Given they are bankrolling the whole shebang they could still put (private) pressure on GWS not to sign Scully. Yes of course this would be retstraint etc but none the less they could do so. Or they could come out publicaly and say they didn't see it coming, don't support clubs losing high draft picks in say a window of 4 years since being drafted and commit to addressing this loophole before the next period GWS can secretly approach uncontracted players (between this upcomming season and the next). But they won't and this will expose their agenda completely. Without trying to scare the horses (or create another posting firestorm) Trengove comes out of contract at the end of next season and hypothetically GWS could sign him. In the very unlikely event they do sign Scully and also Trengove, Melbourne would have lost our number 1&2 draft picks from 2009, one of which being a priority pick for poor perforemce over seasons. This would be a clear distortion of the draft system and run contrary to the purpose of the draft and notions of equity and a level playing field

"There's been a lot of comment about the absurdity of the AFL giving the Demons a priority draft pick one year only to effectively take it back two years later. To be fair to Demon sympathisers, it is a strange one and probably not a situation AFL lawmakers saw coming when they formulated the list-building rules for the new clubs." This to me is a key point. How much is the AFL worth, the next TV rights may be a billion dollars, they are expanding the league into new territories and they didn't see it coming? That's just a joke. They are a huge business. I mean lets get serious if they didn't think through all the ramifications of the 2 new clubs entering, including exactly such a sceanrio (ie the draft system they created being distorted) that would be be amatur hour. Of course it "was a situation they saw coming", please. They have alot at stake with the 2 new clubs, particularly GWS which is a massive gamble (and one that has a big chance of failing)and they will give them what ever assitance they can get away with

My source re Schwabby leaking false was the girlfriend of the brother of Schawaby's dentist. Nah just having a laugh, however so much of this topic is absurd that nothing would surprise me. If he does in fact re-sign it would be a great boost - perhaps enough to tip us over 40, 000 memebers