Pates

Melksham showed intelligence then above anyone else then, he kicked to the space rather than bombing to the square.

Melksham showing why he got picked over Chandler.

Rivers!!!! I loved seeing him back himself then!

TMac front and centre!

So what should have been a shot on goal for us ended up being a goal to the crows.

Harmes poor kick to Weid then.

First and foremost respect the opposition. Being our intensity from the start, I’d like to see us start a match well for a change. I want to see Petracca at his best today, he’s having a good year but I still feel like we haven’t seen him hit his peak. I want a match that puts the competition on notice. I also want to see us get our clearance numbers back up, we have one of the best ruckman in the comp and we have plenty of capable ball winners. There’s no reason why we shouldn’t be seeing dominance in that area. Finally I also want to see Weid have a good game, multiple goals and strong marking. Mark your territory Sam, demand that Brown have to put in a damn good performance at Casey to take back the spot.

I thought his late hit (which the commentators were a little too quick for my liking to dismiss) was a very dirty and sniping hit, the way his forearm clattered into the Lions player and then his other hand very deliberately came down on the guys face tells me he's someone that doesn't respond well to the team losing. I could definitely see him lining someone up for 10 meters away to "take him out of the game".

The game in the NT is going to be a genuine top 4 battle. Surely the biggest game hosted at either Alice Springs or Darwin. Tigers, you never want to count them out and they always seem to peak at the end of the year, but they just don't seem to have the same air about them.

Well the thing about it was it was a double tap, he copped a hard (deliberate) forearm, and then he came through with the other hand across the face. I think it will end up being a fine, but it's typical dirty tactics from these thugs.

Probably a stupid question but what are the AFL instructing the umpires to do? 3 tackles in the lead up to that Brisbane goal were stone cold holding the ball/incorrect disposal! If you have prior opportunity and incorrectly dispose of it, it doesn't matter if you make an attempt! If the umpires are being instructed to do this, it's a disgrace. If they aren't, then the umpires are disgracefully enforcing (or not enforcing) the rules of the game.

Nibbler is one of those bottom 6 players that benefit when the team collective is doing well, it allows him to keep his role in the team simple and isn’t expected to do too much. He’s having a really good year (I think his 2018 currently is still better but there’s still over half the season to go). He’s not flashy, he just does his job.

This weekend could well be the tie-breaker to decide this. I think I’m biased because I really like Sam and I think seeing him develop in front of our eyes makes me want it more for him. Sam needs to find a way to create goals when he isn’t even playing well, that seems to be what Brown is able to do. I really hope Sam fires through 3+ goals and takes a bunch of contested marks. This has to be his time to take the role by the scruff.

He was the player that I first came to initially as he has changed the way we play by bringing his run and carry to the team. It has singlehandedly allowed us to become the team we are, and interestingly I think the other beneficiary has been Hunt. It has allowed Hunt to use his speed as before there wasn’t anyone else that could keep up with him. Oliver would be the other one I’d be curious to see how we went if we missed him for a week or two. I think a lot of his good work goes under the Demonland radar, but the coaches as one of the most valuable players almost every week. Thankfully we survived with him having a quiet night vs Giants.

Different players and different situations. You can argue that Browns two goals vs North were lucky but he took the #1 defender and provided a focal point to allow Fritta to kick his bag. It was clearly a pass mark for an experienced player playing his first game for the club as he contributed positively. Chandler did not, I’d argue it is still harsh to drop him so quickly but the form grades don’t even compare. Brown also vindicated his selection by playing better against the Swans. This is an opportunity for Weid, Brown will be back.

Yep fair enough, Brown’s reputation and body of work from winning multiple Coleman medals is definitely something he has going for him. It was what got him picked over Sam when between the two of them Weid clearly had better form. I don’t think people should get too hung up on Weid being in this week, this is an opportunity he’s been given for the work he’s put in at Casey. Brown will be back and I’m locking it in right now he will absolutely destroy a team this year (talking 7+ goals).

It’s interesting that you’ve used the word trust as I would say Brown has yet to earn much trust from me. Brown’s had some solid moments as a Demon (in his short time) but Weid was close to a match winner for us in a final. I think they’re about even in the trust scales for me, the only thing Brown brings that’s different to Weid is his reputation demands the best defender. Whereas a coach could look at either TMac or Weid for choice of best defender.

I get the feeling that the FD has seen an opportunity to trial a few things without giving much up in terms of quality. Yes Brown was decent first two games but he does still lack the mobility to be able to get back towards the goal square when we’re bursting out from the backline. This is Sam a genuine chance to show that he has something the BBB doesn’t. Given our luxurious (and completely foreign to us fans) position, I don’t think we should be necessarily seeing changes as this guy is dropped because he was bad or this guy is playing because he’s better. I think this is about trying to discover our best mix for the year. Melksham getting promoted is a little baffling but it’s a tricky one being the sub, you’re stuck in no mans land so I can only surmise that he put in a good week on the track.

Haha didn’t the Casey area (years ago) have a big issue with a nearby garbage dump letting off toxic fumes? But I do agree, being in suburbia would surely be better for the lungs than constant traffic.

If you changed it to no prior what you would find is a lot more players not take possession, so they would dribble it by tapping with the hand and foot until in space. You’d also get players feigning to take the ball so they get holding the man. It actually very simple, umpires aren’t rewarding good tackles. There’s too many play-ons from “legitimate attempt to get rid of it” from missed kicks and handballs. If the ball isn’t disposed of using a kick or handball with prior then reward the tackle.

****. I wonder whether that was an increase in load to try to get him right for this week.

Am I right in saying this was from like 50+ metres out requiring a torpedo? I don’t actually remember it at all. I remember Weid and Gawn missing easy set shots with practically no time left.

I’m a little worried about QB this year, after all it’s going to be their Grand Final. ?

Risky, also definitely weather dependent. It has to be a very dry track and we’d need to have a good hard think about the zones each operate in. Also if we were to do this Max has to move back to being the floating player behind the ball. Worst case we could push TMac into the wing position to try to open the space up. If Weid gets dropped I just don’t see how he has a future with us.

That’s not my opinion of what we should be doing, it’s what the club has been doing and continues to push. I happen to agree that we have had multiple opportunities at looking elsewhere outside of the G precinct as a permanent base but the club is staying steadfast that roots should be around the MCG. I’m not entirely sure Casey would be where I’d want us to lay down permanent roots as our base but we could do a hell of a lot worse. Sounds like our captain likes it!