Pates

I’m not a fan of Eddie the person or the personality, I think he’s one that hides poor comments behind the old “we were only joking”. But I have to tip my cap to him for the work he has done at Collingwood, let’s be honest if we had someone doing that for us we’d see him as a god. I don’t have any issue with him saying he’s standing down at the end of 2021, unless the there is a clear succession plan that already exists they will need to make sure that whoever they get in will be fully up to speed and there really isn’t any reason to rush. So long Eddie. ?

This I think is nailing the point, closed sessions until further notice for “COVID” reasons but I think secretly the club would not be unhappy about it being closed off to the public and opposition. Mind you how much can you learn at this stage, it’s mainly fitness until after NY.

“Sources within the AFL said the league wanted to stop the possibility of such a messy outcome occurring again. One obvious solution being considered would require both clubs to verbally indicate the exact amount being paid by each club in the future years of the traded player when the trade is finalised.“ I’d say it’s incredible this doesn’t already happen but honestly the AFL quite often chooses the messiest path. Just ridiculous that this is not one of the conditions for a trade deal being finalised.

I know nothing about them, but good luck to all three of them. Glad to see we’ve brought in players with good foot skills and a bit of x-factor.

Personally I was a fan of his, when he targeted players to get from other clubs we mostly got them over the line. He was highly regarded by Paul Roos and I think he made some good moves throughout his tenure, that said I’m not super sad for him to go. The reason behind that is that he has been in his job for quite a while, and while we have improved since he began we haven’t made enough inroads to say he’s been successful. For that reason I think a change will be good for both the club and Josh. If he was going anywhere else I’d say good luck to him but I gotta say I hope Essendon continue their downward trajectory! That said I hope it’s through no fault of his own and he’s able to continue to have a good career in footy. EDIT: is it likely we’ll promote someone internally to take on the role he’s filled for the last couple of seasons or try to bring someone in from outside?

Great pick up, he’s a very good and experienced operator. The club is putting together a good team to with with Goodwin, can’t say he’s not being provided the best people around him. Lots of experience in successful systems.

Something that always stands out when I see pics of Petracca at training is he is quite often the guy that’s laughing or smiling the most (and others around him doing the same). He’s so clearly a character and teammate that others like to get around and soak up his energy. I’m not saying he should be thrust into a leadership position next season but it’s clear his standing at the club isn’t just from his playing ability but his passion and upbeat attitude.

Given that it appears we’ll be spending more time there due to COVID precautions it’s good that the boys have access to a new facility with good equipment. Compared to all other clubs it’s probably at the bottom but better than before.

One of Melksham's attributes (at least in the past) has been his ability to one on one aerial contests with clever body positioning and good overhead abilities. I think this is one of the major things that allowed him to survive the chop, despite him deserving it IMHO. I'm not sure that Salem has that ability to affect contests in the air. Salem is a little bit of a tough cookie, I like him off half back but I'm not entirely sure if that's utilising his abilities. I'd like to see him tried potentially on the wing opposite to Langdon but I don't think he's quick enough or has a big enough tank. Half forward I'm not sure there's a place for him with a number of similar sized players already there. I'd really love to see him further up the ground but I'm not sure how it would work.

AvB and Melksham were gifted games last year, both should've been dropped several times and seemed to be played on form in previous years rather than in season form/merit.

Fair point, I wasn't a fan of how Joe was ousted from the club. He came to us when we barely escaped merging and the way he was disposed of so abruptly was unfair to him. You also make a good point that under Gabriel we got a lot worse with management, it's one of the great examples of a coup at a football club only making matters worse. I'll blame my age at the time for not quite remembering things right. For a long time we just seemed to lurch from one poor management to another.

As someone currently living overseas but looking into returning home I can tell you getting into Australia is such a pain in the [censored] the only people coming will be the competitors and minimal support staff, the only people mingling in the crowd will be people that live in Australia. All signs point to those competitors being put in a pretty strict bubble (one that will be a lot tougher than the previous quarantine hotels), if done right the risk to Australia should be quite minimal. Don't forget there will also be the lead up tournaments (which probably won't have crowds) happening quite soon which will allow for great opportunity for the competitors/staff to be separate from the general public. The greater risk will be from the regular quarantine hotels and whether the lesson's learned will be properly put in place. I know I'm talking with a different perspective but I find it amazing that with no community transmission Melbourne is still in such a strict place with its rules.

In fairness to Gabriel we were such a basket case back then that entering into something like Olympic park would've been very difficult (though not impossible with proper support from the government). That was our best opportunity to be involved in a new project right on the doorstep of the MCG though, I'm not giving him (and the club) a free pass from missing out but we had such a mountain of issues back then and number one was simply surviving. For the benefit of the club I wouldn't be against moving away from the MCG precinct as long as it wasn't far away.

I thought the Wiz was living in Perth as well, if there's an opportunity to do this are we able to get him playing for either Casey or a Victorian TAC team? If he is interested in playing for the Dees then it would be good if he could have some kind of involvement in the club. That said I'd also be mindful of putting too much pressure on the kid, for me I felt taking Jesse away from his home environment a year early was a mistake for his mental wellbeing. Hopefully he's just enjoying getting to know some of the lads.

He's calling this after one (shortened) year where we have Max as our main ruckman so Jacko played mostly as a relief ruck? He also must have been watching something very different to me, as a 19 year old first year player he held his own at ruck contests which is about the most you could expect of someone at that age in that position. Around the ground he looks like he glides through the air, to me he doesn't play like a forward, he plays more like a midfielder/winger. Incidentally, Derwayne is also one of the most annoying voices involved in footy. I would not be disappointed if Fox Footy announce said he would not be commentating for them next year.

Clarry looks like he's come back fat. Just kidding, they all look in pretty good nick.

I know so many locations have been spoken about for ages but I’ve always felt that Elwood Park is the best opportunity for an existing location that is community connected and has a large enough space for expanding and creating a high class training facility. People with more knowledge I’m sure will be able to tell me why that isn’t viable for us. The plus side to it is that while it isn’t in the MCG precinct it isn’t exactly far away. It’s also close to public transport links allowing the ability for people to come watch training easily enough. I’ve also often though Elwood park would be the perfect location for a boutique stadium if they were ever to create one.

Just a thought, Goody’s pass mark should be dependent on where the club overall rates the list and Gawn himself might’ve been one to give a little away on that. He said that he feels the team is ready for success, I would interpret that internally the senior players and the FD believe that we have a top 4 capable team that’s able to be a contender. If that’s the case then surely the club is targeting the top 4 (with being in contention) as a “success”. I would then see 5-6 as the clubs acceptable pass with a win in week one. Then, again if they are rating performance vs expectations-with-list, anything below that is considered a fail, and a cross against Goody. If we’re out of finals contention at the mid point of the year then Simon’s papers will be stamped. On the flip side the club might see things differently, with top 6 considered “success” and just making finals a pass. (I hope not, I don’t want us to be making up the numbers)

I doubt many people are arguing with the decision to move him on, but just because a top 6 wouldn’t have him doesn’t mean he isn’t of value to another club in the AFL. I think he’s a chance of getting another go, even if it’s just as depth/coverage to a team that doesn’t have a lot of defensive options. If he gets that chance can only wish him the best of luck.

I might be wrong but I think it’s also been decreasing in population, or at the very least growth is minimal.

The positive for Tom is that I think 2020 was rock bottom for him, I can imagine him being a very proud individual so no doubt the fire burns to get back to some good form. Question comes where will it be? Personally I think he’s got a better opportunity as the second tall defender. For our future (and Sam’s) he should be the first choice to be behind BBB, Mitch Brown showed plenty against Essendon, and Jacko is a fantastic talent (I’d actually like to see us try him on the opposite with to Langdon). Down back we have May and Lever as first picked defenders, but Lever would surely work better if given the license to peel off and play as an intercept defender. In the wings we have Smith and Petty developing (though I think Petty looked better as a forward).

As bad as this is from the Bombers (and it’s bloody unprofessional from them or any organisation) it’s also been born out of the AFL taking its sweet time to finalise list sizes and salary caps. I get that there must have been things to work out but it should’ve been finished soon after the Grand Final and certainly before the trade/FA period. Still, gotta love Essendon continuing their slide as an organisation. Could well imagine seeing another exodus next year if they keep treating their players this way.

When we started getting shuffled around between various different grounds for training the club should’ve tried to create their own base near the G or at least not far away. Possibly complaisant thinking they had something to plug the hole rather than getting a long term solution. Pert has said a number of times there are options being discussed but nothing seems to be materialising. If he can get it done he will go down in history at the club.

Every time the argument for Tassie gets brought up I feel a little sorry for them. 10-15 years ago there probably could’ve been a better chance for them to get a team by pointing to the additional revenue that an extra game for TV rights will bring plus the fact that there would be support for them pretty much guaranteed so you wouldn’t be scraping for fans at the ground. But the lack of growth for the game clearly trumped the decision and GWS and GC got the nod. Incredibly I think GWS has a decent potential to go into a real footy club. The Gold Coast on the other hand seems to be where sport goes to die. The AFL have thus far tried everything to get them competitive and they are still getting left behind. Perhaps the recent concessions will get them functioning (and they at least looked better this year) but I just don’t see any buy in from the locals. Despite all that the AFL seem determined to keep persevering with them. I think it really sucks for them but unless a Victorian club gets into dire circumstances financially (North seems to be the ones that’s always talked about) and is essentially forced to shift there then I don’t see how logistically they’ll get a team.

Absolutely incredible stuff. Has the potential to wreck one, or both clubs salary caps. The Pies have always looked bad in this but the dogs are looking very stupid as well, the contract should have been the first thing negotiated and terms written down. If one club is going down let it be Collingwood!