The Albino Warrior

A far better option, but is he interested in leaving? Bradshaw won't stand in his way for much longer. But at 23, he's probably approaching the best days of his footballing life.

That's the beauty of not being hell-bent on the Premiership just yet. You don't lose quite as much by trying a kid and finding they're not quite ready. Or by experimenting with a bloke in a new position and finding they're not suited. Or by conceding that you've got a gap and deciding not to fill it in the short term because the circumstances don't suit.

Sounds like the door might be closed on Clark. If it's even slightly ajar, I'd be asking Brisbane what would get the deal across the line. No need to do anything silly, but negotiate with an open mind.

I haven't watched him closely, but the thought has always been that his kicking's not up to scratch. Is that true? And when you require three shoulder reconstructions it points less to bad luck than it does to bad genes.

Meaningless to those who realise it's a very malleable concept.

Hear hear.

Does that make me Sharon Stone?

Josh Hill wants to go to Hawthorn according to Chris Pelchen.

Me neither. If he has asked to be traded, they should do their best. He's been a great servant during several of our toughest years and just happens to have been overtaken by two very good young footballers. The fact that Warnock played a fair bit of VFL at the end of the season means we can't go in to negotiations pretending he's our most precious commodity, but at the same time tall, dependable backmen are scarce in the AFL. Do Geary and Eddy quite cut it?

Yeah, had a Raph Clarke in that first one. Just trying to work out what gap on the list these two would fill if the rumour turns out to be true? Warnock clearly isn't starting 22 anymore, but extremely handy should injuries strike Garland, Frawley or Rivers.

My post wasn't about someone commenting on my comment. (I enjoy it when my opinion gets questioned.) It was about the general idea that robust discussion equates to some kind of anti-FD sentiment. I don't think we're in a lather at all. We're really interested in how Melbourne intends to complement its list and David Hale is clearly their number one target at the moment. I'm not surprised the thread has reached 17 pages and I'm not sure it's been particularly difficult to pass over the sillier posts and get straight back to the considered, intelligent ones. There've been heaps.

What? Self-righteous? Have you got a good handle on the definition of that word? I just said I prefer more perspectives, not less. The vast majority of posts have tooed and froed about what Hale offers, what he might be worth and whether he's worth having at the Demons. Very very few have talked about the FD as incompetent, and several have praised how they've performed in the last few years.

Where does this idea that a discussion on the merits of recruiting David Hale translates to a lack of faith in the football department come from? We're merely talking about what our observations of the player are, whether he's suitable for a Demon team about to move back into the top eight and what we think he's worth. I don't think anyone has said "I know better than the people in charge." Personally, I enjoy reading multiple opinions based on multiple perspectives. Yes, some people are frothing at their virtual mouth, but I think it's mostly been 17 pages of pretty good debate rather than "lather". I guess the other alternative is to close down football forums entirely because "the club knows what they're doing" mandatorily trumps every single other opinion.

Don't think they'd bite at that unless the player was better than solid, but I would certainly ask what they wanted. Perfect for the Demons.

By "whatever it takes" I mean, you don't stop upping the offer until you've got your man.

Of course, but you need to have a point where you walk away from the negotiations. Or do you think Melbourne should go with a "whatever it takes" approach to Hale?

Massive sigh of relief. Sounded way over the odds.

Stunning if true.

People also need to remember that Daniher was there for nearly a decade so the list limitations well and truly became his responsibility towards the latter half of his reign.

Not at all. If he becomes a more valuable player than he has been over the last couple of years and does it in the red and blue, I'd be ecstatic. Apart from anything else, it'll let Jurrah, Watts, Petterd and others become even more dangerous. It would surprise me, but I'll be hoping it happens.

They must feel that the overall lack of ruckmen will have much more of a bearing on how clubs approach this trade than facts like Hale having played just 12 AFL games this year and having failed to kick a goal after Round 8. If they can get a pick in the 20s I can only applaud them. It would be daylight robbery.

Who's the bloke on twitter, if you don't mind me asking?

And if that sways the FD to pay over the odds for Hale, so be it. If Hale comes to the Demons and can break even in the ruck, and create a genuine contest up forward, I'll be stoked. I just doubt his ability to do either consistently, let alone both on the same day.

I'm strongly behind the idea of recruiting a strong-bodied forward who likes to stay mostly inside fifty. If they're capable in the ruck, as well, all the better. I just worry that Hale is that "type" in name only. For what it's worth, I reckon I saw most of Hale's 12 AFL games this year, admittedly probably only three at the ground. I saw a lot more of him in 2009 and 2008.

No matter what I say - I'm actually a forward scout; a good mate barracks for North and I see them whenever they're not playing at the same time as the Demons; I watch as much footy as I can; or I once took a glance at his Dream team stats - someone will consider me ill-equipped to rate him. For the last time, I'm not here to say I know better than others - certainly not the FD. I'm here to discuss footy and the last time I looked there was more than one side to just about every argument. So far the arguments for going pretty hard at Hale during the trade period haven't convinced me. But that's only my opinion. Not the gospel truth, not an objective fact, not a slight on the Melbourne Football Club... nothing but one perspective in a discussion.