nutbean

All the conjecture had a huge impact on Dangerfield last year.......

okay - I can't help myself. We can have varying opinions on him staying or going. - but to dismiss Hogan with he can just be "replaced and won't win us a flag" - seriously.......

Further to this - I think I will no longer open this thread as reading at least 8 months of self flagellation is bound to bad for ones health...

The one thing I learned from the Scully debacle is I have plenty of time to get anxious/depressed/distraught if the worse case eventuates and he leaves. As I know nothing and as know one else knows little more, until there is something concrete I will assume he is staying and enjoy the ride.

just a point of order - don't all players fly around the country to play football anyway - it doesn't interfere with preparation - clubs take flying it into account when mapping out their preparations. ( and yes - it may mean that his preparation is slightly different to other players but these days players have different weekly preparations anyway and there is no longer a one size fits all)

We actually have bemoaned in the past not having a plan B but I have noticed that both Watts and Hogan spend time up the field and although Gawn has pushed forward this year he did so more than i have seen before on Saturday. That makes us unpredictable. When it does get crowded up forward and Jesse can struggle in a very closed forward line they have moved him up the ground to very good affect. I would much prefer him kicking lots of goals but against Richmond and Collingwood where he didnt really impact the scoreboard greatly he took 10 and 9 marks and thats because he went further up the ground. ( even spending the last parts of quarters as a defender) Good coaching for mine ...

I actually like him when rotates between FF and CHF as he does work very hard at CHF and moves around well - he is currently 9th in the league for marks and i would suggest that many of those have been taken further up the field.

You bxstxrd...my Dad loved that Red Datsun and to me it will always be a Ferrari

I'm a fan - I recall the Roos information vividly - you shared something that seemed most unlikely at time. I would prefer you say more but that's just me.

ok...but what position do you see the steak knives playing going forward ?

Before we get the numbnuts suggesting that we offer Terlich, Grimes and a set of steak knives for Prestia - has there been any suggestion of who would be offered up or do you have any opinion ?

You can make an early call - I prefer to keep my powder dry - today and now he is not a superstar and he is not a generational player. However at the end of the day I firmly suspect that in a couple of years I am going to be saying exactly the same thing as you are saying now. So for this reason alone, heaven and earth must be moved to keep him.

Many have commented that besides the StKilda game Hogan has had a slow start to the season. Besides the StKilda where he tore them apart I think he has been solid - he has taken the most marks for our club and he draws two defenders when he is deep every week. Whilst it is too early to go with a superstar tag or a once in a generation footballer for Hogan, early evidence is that we have something very very special and I am thoroughly uncomfortable with the thought that our number one forward for possibly the next 10 years may end up somewhere else.

Even looking over the list with this in mind - I still call meaningless list - we have Josh Hill of Eagles and Bulldogs famed rated better than Pavlich over the last 5 years ?

ahhh ! makes sense but I have just looked at the rankings for the first time - they are meaningless nonsense - James Kelly has been brilliant for all his career - he has tapered for his last year at Geelong and is now playing for $'s at Essendon. He is rated worse than Lynden Dunn. And Hogan topped our goalkicking and was high in contested marks in the league in his first season and has been ok this year yet is ranked worse than Pedersen. Whatever formula they are using for those rankings - it must have gaping holes in it. Sir..the defense rests....

I haven't looked at them but if they have Maric at 51 and Gawn at 167 and Pedersen at 266 and Hogan at 277 then they clearly are meaningless.

He may well come good but to pay big bucks for a name because you missed out on other big names is folly IMO. We do have a fair idea of the top paid players in the league - tell me that Boyd fits in with them. As another example of paying for potential - if Cripps of Carlton got into the top echelon of paid players - I would have no problem. you are paying for potential but he also has enough exposed form to warrant paying for that potential.

Whilst I will comment on the likeness of certain players and say that Franklin, Ablett and Dangerfield deserve to be paid as the marquee players in the AFL I don't get into debate of actual figures a player does get paid. I made the exception with Boyd because he is now in the top 10 best paid players in the league and it was based on pure potential. I am not saying that Boyd won't come good but to date he has shown little. As to Hogan, I won't comment on what he should be paid but surely you would agree that he has shown infinitely more than Boyd. We would be paying Hogan on his upside but we also have some insight as to what we believe he can deliver he has shown us that in some nice patches. Can you say the same about Boyd ?

$1m a season is a pretty expensive price tag for notional excitement and hope. franklin I get, danger and Ablett I get - that much for a player that could be ? Not for me thanks....

I think he has been solid without being spectacular - he will get the money irrespective,

This is exactly it - AT least Hogan has some exposed form before he gets the big bucks. Boyd had shown pretty much nothing and to date hasn't shown all that much more

Yup - the backup plan is get the best deal they can, hope that the Weed or Hulett come on and either draft or trade in a forward but to suggest that "the way the Dees are playing Hogan is not the focal point the club realises he may want to go home" ???( It is pretty much the same backup plan they have for any player - if anyone wants out - get the best deal, hope a youngster comes through or trade in). Are you seriously suggesting that they are not using him as focal point because he may want to go home ????????

whaaaaatttt ??? The way they are playing Hogan shows me that the club realises that he is a better as a centre half forward that moves around with some time deep and some time up the field than a stay at home full forward.... (btw - the non focal point has taken more marks than anyone else in the team.)

I listened to SEN for 5 minutes and heard that giant [censored] Greg Denham say we should not pay overs and used Tom Boyd as the example. So...Idiot Denham is comparing Boyd to our last seasons leading goal kicker, mark and contested mark ( i think he was top 5 in the league for contested marks last season ?) and this season Jesse has had a slower start to the season where he still our highest mark taker, second to Gawn in contested marks and second to Watts in goal kicking. I have no problem in arguing that you don't want to overpay players ( taking note that player payments are totally subjective) but comparing him to Boyd who may turn out ok but undoubtedly the bulldogs punted on him before they had any real exposed form to justify the contract they gave is comparing apples with a turd sandwich