Good Times Grimes

A more interesting bet might be if he kicks more than 50 BA gets 2 slabs; if he kicks less than 30, BA gives 2 slabs. Not that I'm a betting man...

The bet's already been agreed upon; I'm just giving my two cents!

Bombay, I don't like your odds, given that he's already facing an uphill battle to be fit for the first few rounds of 2016. Keep in mind that only 28 players kicked 40 or more goals in 2015, with only three of those players playing fewer than 20 matches for the season. I don't think Howe has it in him.

He'll definitely have his opportunities. He'll be playing his natural position in a forward line with a target that will most often be double-teamed and a lot of creative players around him in Garlett, Kent and Petracca. This is his chance to prove himself.

I predict he'll average less than 15 disposals/game and finish the season with ~20 goals and a disappointed group of toothless supporters.

I think Pittsburgh is the big dark horse. Crosby is on fire, Kessel has finally found a linemate who he can produce with (Hagelin), Letang is playing the best hockey of his career and Malkin is still to come back into the lineup. On another note, the Leafs finally offloaded Phaneuf by trading him to the Senators. Biggest win for the Leafs in a decade! We're currently on a West coast road trip, and have left Lupul, Bozak and Matthias in Toronto to recover from injuries, while van Riemsdyk is still on the IR. Last night's team was one of the worst lineups I have ever seen...ever. Now it looks like Kadri will be missing a few games after making a visible threat to Giordano, and Bernier set to start the next game, so things are only going to get worse. Last place, here we come!

It looks like all is forgiven between Jack and Tom

Not that I'm losing any sleep over this incident, but playing a bit of cricket in the backyard is different than playing in an organized competition when you're on a modified program with the PROFESSIONAL football team that you play for. Many athletes have clauses in their contracts that prevent them from playing other organized sports, and I would assume that would be the case with the majority of AFL footballers. I know that Patty Mills (NBA) was all dressed and ready to take the field for a game in the USAFL when his agent got him on the phone and said something along the lines of "What the F&(^ do you think you're doing?"

Surely you can't deny the boost it will give the club if he can get back on the field. We talk about building culture and changing attitudes at the MFC under Roos/Jackson/Goodwin, and Trengove is the embodiment of this discussion. His determination to get back on the field is something that every player should aim to replicate in their preparation and on game day. Him getting back on the field will further enforce that to the playing group, who are already behind him every step of the way.

I believe it was an organized competition rather than just a backyard match, which is something that I'm sure is frowned upon by all clubs. Compound that with the fact that he wasn't yet in full training due to injury issues and you can understand why he shouldn't have been playing.

Poor wording, but if you highlight that entire sentence you'll get a better idea of what I mean. "Supporting Trengove as he clears each hurdle and tries to get back onto the field" is essentially the point of this thread, though I suppose you could replace the word "supporting" with "updating supporters about". Either way, it's not about going on and on incessantly about how he almost became a Tiger, something that everybody already knows.

WYL, it seems that you've forgotten the promise that you made the other day: We get it. Trengove was once on the trade table and almost went to Richmond. He didn't. He's worked hard to get himself into the position that he's in today WITH THE MFC, and if he can get back on the field there is no doubt that he will give the club a lift that few others could. This thread is about supporting Trengove as he clears each hurdle and tries to get back onto the field. He's a young player who has given everything that he can to this club, and it finally seems that he's in a position to get back to business after a very serious injury that it would have taken an incredible amount of resilience to recover from. If he does get back to full fitness, I can assure you that he will leave no stone unturned to ensure that he gets the best out of himself in the remainder of his career; he's just that type of character.

Couldn't have said it better myself.

I don't think anyone would have believed you if you'd said that by 2016 there would only be three of those players left on our list and six of them no longer in the AFL.

That incident is right up there with the worst things I've ever seen on a footy field. That being said, how good is the Ox's retaliation, including his bodyslam of Hird?

I'm one of Dawes's biggest critics, but I would never wish for someone to have their career impacted by injuries the way his has been. I hope that he's able to recover quickly and prove his value to the team before his contract is up. By all accounts he's a great clubman and leader, and I hope that if his playing days have reached the end of the road then he'll be offered a role in coaching or mentoring the new young forward brigade.

Here's another report from the AFL site. They seem to have been particularly impressed with Gawn.

The AFL Global Pass broadcasts them. Definitely worth investing in if you're abroad for a while

I think he might've played before.

I doubt they're telling McCarthy he'll be second fiddle to Hogan, a player who still has two seasons to run on his contract. If he wanted to play second fiddle to Hogan that badly, he'd come to the Dees. The reason he wants to go to Fremantle it to go home and to play at the club he grew up supporting. I don't think Hogan has or will have anything to do with his decision. That would be like us finding out that we'd recruited Jeff Garlett with the promise that he'd be playing alongside Dion Prestia in 2017.

I like the NAB Challenge for the chance to look at the new recruits. It's hard to read into the result too much, but it gives you a decent idea as to whether the youngsters are up to it or whether they need some time at Casey. I'm hoping to get a look at Oliver, Hulett, Wagner and Weideman. Not sure if we'll see Petracca or not.

That's just the AFL reporters being AFL reporters and not knowing their facts. He had neck surgery which he has since recovered fully from.

I agree with you, but I also believe that Essendon don't deserve any top up players either. It's the principle of the thing. Essendon was the club that had this program in place, yet they are the only ones allowed to replace their players? Doesn't seem very fair to me, though that shouldn't come as a surprise.

The scandal hadn't broken yet when they were traded, so Port and the Bulldogs didn't realize how big of a risk they were taking.