Maldonboy38

This statement is so far off the mark. I have also watched Cook on a few occasions this year and I reckon his workrate, his one-grab marking and his ability tup around half-forward has been relly impressive. No, he hasn't kicked many goals but he has done a lot of work as a lead up player through the 50m arc. As of yet he has not shrivelled on the vine and Ireckon we will all be suprised during the NAB cup in 2013. This boy will make it as a forward - I am quietly confident.

I am also losing track of the constant ins and outs due to injury etc... A stable base 18 would be great, wioth changes due to match-ups. Oh well, I can only dream... OUT: Howe. Stupid thing to do if he did it. J MacDonald One of Petterd or Bail. I would prefer them both to stay in. IN from - Gysberts, Tapscott, McKenzie, Watts, Sellar CONSIDERATIONS We need to play Dunn down back, freeing Rivers to be third man up over Petrie. Frawley is a great body player (look how he deals with J Reiwoldt) and will not allow Petrie the kind of run at the ball that the Tiges did. But they may go straight for Sellar who has done a reasonable job in this role at times this year. North are super tough in close so we need Magner, Couch, Jones, McKenzie to match them at stoppages. We need Grimes, Blease, Trengove, and Watts to get plenty of the ball in hand spreading away from the stoppages. A lot is made of Harvey, but it is Wells we have to tag, and tag heavily. Bail is probably the only one on our list with the pace and grunt to go with him. Who do we play as our main target inside 50m? Stef Martin? Watts? This is the area in which we will lose the game, if we lose. It is likely that we will match them in inside 50s and score less due to poor hitting up of leading players, or poor forward play by non-natural forwards.

This era does feel very similar to the late 70's and early 80's with one exception - there was no draft then and we were stuck for a very long time. But I still reckon the footy I saw Melbourne play in the late 70's is the worst I have seen. I saw the Bomber beat the Dees at VFL park in about 78 or 79 and it just wasn't VFL standard - the top VFA sides would have beaten us that year I reckon. This year is so poor because we have enough talent to be at least 9th - 12th, not languishing down the bottom. Our skill level is the worst in the AFL and I am watching less footy now than ever in the past 30 years.

I have held my tongue most of the year about Neeld, preferring to see what he could produce. The only point I have made about him so far is that when we are in a run of really poor form - and we have been for most of this year - it is his job to lead, inspire and challenge us out of that form. To date he has not been able to do this. I see him teaching, coaching in a very general sense but I don't see him inspiring our players to greater feats. I disagree with many posters about our list. I reckon the players we have is basically OK with the exception of one highly-skilled, pacy midfielder. Our player development under Bailey has proven to be rubbish and we are 2 years behind where we should be. Our list problem is that the we have formed a habit of keping people on our list who are middle-of-the-road players and never rise above this. I would also point out that injuries have been horrible this year. The heat will defeinietly be on Neeld next year because he will have had 2 preseasons for fitness and game-plan development. He will have had 2 drafts - and this year's is a beauty - to recruit and exchange players. The choices he has made about a new leadership group and co-captains will have had almost 2 years to bear fruit. Whether we make the finals on 2013 is one thing, but we need to see tough, consistent football with the following corrections: A much higher disposal efficiency Matching if not winning contested possession in most matches The upside of players like Trengove, Blease, Strauss, Jurrah, Bail, Tynan, Gysberts The heat is on Neeld in 2013 for these things, and it is right that he be held accountable for them. However, he should be given his full contract to see if he can produce the goods. A yet, we have seen little eveidence. Having said that, he is beginning to win me over and I am emjoying tyhe way it appears he is leading us so far.

I have seen some B-grade Melbourne teams listed over the past 5 years, and some absolute shockers in the early 80's, but this 22 has to rate as one of our weakest. Neeld must be twitching like crazy to get this seasons over with. Good to see Jetta back but I can't really see him making an impact this year. He is quick and aggressive but every opposition team is is filled with quick, aggressive players so he will have to do something exceptional to stand out. For the life of me, I can't understand what is happening with Gysberts. For Jetta to jump straight past him Neeld must have a poor view of Gyberts in fitness, body size or some other team core value we are not privvy to. You would think Bate is gone from here. Can I get any more depressed about the Dees this year???!!!???

We need to step back a bit and try and and understand what happens when going for the ball - the issue of timing is vital in this discussion. When any sportsperson jumps - high jump, AFL, long jump, basketball - it is important to understand that it takes three steps to jump properly. If jumping off the left foot it is left, right left. Usually, the 1st step has is to set a strong foundation, the 2nd step is the one that gets underneath the jump and produces power, and the 3rd step is the launch. The basic result of their launch is knowable by the 2nd step. It is from here there is no return. Players like Wellingham, Zeibel etc.. would have to know their challenge is going to be late by that 2nd step - biomechanics demands this. This is well prior to any impact and this is where the savagery of these incidents lies. Add to this that both these players also had time in mid-air to turn their body to protect themselves from impact but also produce the biggest impact. All this adds up to shows an intention that is way outside the spirit of our game. No-one wants the grunt and the physical taken from our game - but I for one am sick of people taking cheap, unexpected shots and then claiming that it was incidental, not deliberate etc... Absolute rubbish. They know before they jump what is going to happen and they decide to go through with it. If that means they have to stop - then stop and just guard the mark or apply a tackle but don't take another player out with a cheap shot and then cry "I couldn't hep it".

Cam Bruce - the good, the bad and the ugly. GOOD His long loping running style that was the same at the start of the game and the end. Extraordinary aerobic capacity. Hard work, professionalism to get from where he began, into a 200+ game player. Footy smarts. He knew where people were. Concentration. Very rarley made brain fades late in games. If playing a defensive role he was outstanding - see Hird comments. 2000 final against Carlton. Wow! BAD He didn't like the inside stuff and his body never really developed to the stage where he could take it. The way he left the Dees. Just so unlike him and so unnecessary. ( Having said that, the MFC had a horrible record of finalising the careers of great players during the Bailey era and they didn't do the Cam Bruce one any better than many others) Seeing him in a Hawks jumper when they beat us in 2011 on that bad, bad evening game at the G. UGLY Ward 7 handpasses that led to team-mates getting smashed. Helicopter punts. This was more late in his career. Trying to hide a receding hair line by making the top bit higher. Ugghh! After a year or two out of the game I hope he is welcomed back into the club by all, and given the respect his service deserves.

Fairly surprised by some of the selctions this week. I cannot believe that Bennell held his spot and that is without considering any other factors except l ast week'sgame itself. Add in the game Gysberts played for Casey and Bennell is a very lucky young man. It looks like Bennell has this coach's favour which in my opinion is totally undeserved. I feel for Moloney. Unlike many others I thought his work as a sub was OK. It appears there is more to this story from inside the club but I really feel for this bloke. Great to see Couch in. Petterd hasn't earned his place back and I reckon it has more to do with other injuries than his form. Boy our forward line looks weak.

I thought I would have a go at listing our best and worst kicks, trying to sort the wheat from the chaff. I won't list all players just those who go clearly into one of the categories. GOOD KICKS: Watts. Best kick in the team on both sides of his body. When he makes a blunder it is usually a real shocker but he is our best Davey. Smooth, silky and accurate but often gets caught on his right foot. This year though he has used his right foot well on a few occasions. He is not as penetrating as he once was. Dunn. This bloke is a good kick long or short but makes some decision errors at times. Best long kick in the squad. Bate. Right up next to Clark for goal kicking ability. Long, penetrating field kick also. Absolutely no right foot. Clark. Great technique and very reliable, especially considering our poor forward play means he takes most shots for goal from the boundary. Is a great pass when mobile. Green. Elite kick but no right foot. Jones. A strong reliable, penetrating kick. Moloney. A great kick but often bombs away without thinking. Morton. A really good kick but like Watts makes noticeable shockers that often turn into opposition goals. Sylvia. A great kick, and one who can kick well at full pace. POOR KICKS Bail. On the run he is a horrible kick, at full pace even worse. If he can ever get a full season without injury it might improve but... Nicholson. Has patches where he uses it well but is a constant butcherer of 25m passes, usually over the head of the lead up player straight into the hands of the opposition player chasing him. T MacDonald. When switching the play, often misses targets by a big margin. Seems to be OK hitting a leadup player. Frawley was this bad once. J McDonald. Just misses easy targets, especially short ones. His action looks OK and it spins properly but just goes int the wrong direction. Bartram. Has improved a lot this year but I still have a sense of the Ben Hollands about Barty, and by this I mean I put my hands over my eyes and say to myself "please handball, please don't kick it!" Fitzpatrick. Horrible technique - drops the ball with both hands and is very unco. Spencer. Worst kick on our list, and that is a title no player wants! Grimes. Has been a whole heap better this year but still misses eeasy targets coming off half-back. Rarely kicks more than 30 metres. Howe. Set shots are a nightmare for him which is surprising because his field kicking is really good. Petterd. I reckon Steve Kernahan taught him to kick. Helicopter punts are his kick of choice. Trengove. His kicking this year has been embarrassing for the poor kid. In 2011 he was one of our better kicks and I do not know what happened. POTENTIAL Cook. Great technique and can kick from outside 50. Haven't seen him use his left. Strauss. He was recruited for his kicking and is displaying it more and more often at Casey. Tapscott. Also one of the reasons he was recruited. Hasn't shown it much in 2012 but can kick on the run like Beamer. Hope he can produce it. Jetta. A really good kick at full pace but can't kick 50 metres.

I'm not too sure how old he is but he a great contested mark. He is one of those one-grab clunk players who rarely juggles a mark. If he is 26 or under I would consider him. My only question would be "why hasn't he been drafted before?"

It won't be easy to try and decide the ins and outs this week. I don't know the Freo team too well. I was at the Casey game today and a handfull of players could easily be called up. We need some forwards who are natural forwards and we need to match up on players like Pavlich, Mayne and De Boer who are all in good form. I am unsure of Jamar will be fit. If yes he comes straight back in for Spencer. Fitzpatrick was great at Casey but both Jamar and Spencer are currently ahead of him. POSSIBLE OUTS: Bennell, one of Bail or Nicholson, Spencer, Magner, possibly Frawley (concussion) POSSIBLE INS: Green, Couch, Gysberts, Cook. If Frawley is out, Fitzpatrick gets considered. Rivers has to go back this week to help handle Pavlich.

Absolutely time for Cook. His form has been very good for a number of weeks and although he didn't get a goal today his gut running, lead-up marking, and kicking inside 50 was of a high standard in a high standard game of footy. Considering our forward 50 currently, Cook is a natural forward needs to get some time to show it.

Decision making was poor on occasion (McKenzie handballing to Frawley who was then hit high in that incident. This was not the fault of Richmond but McKenzie's decision making) but our skills turn free running ball into the need for gritty, tough decisions. Our kicking when not under pressure was inexcusable.

I went to the game today and it was easily the highest standard VFL game I seen in a long while. Really good skills, both sides with some serious marking power, genuine pace all over the ground and some serious body contact. I love local footy and this was a gem. Port are serious big bodies and very strong over the ball but I was impressed with the coaching by Scorpions' line coaches and main coach Brett Lovett. Fitzpatrick. What a great game. His ruckwork was really good as was his run around the ground. Has serious pace and his skills looked sharper (at last). Green. Wow. Marking and kicking was highest class. The Casey boys' nickname for him is "fossil" that was pretty funny. Davey. Boy, did he show his class and pace at times. Not a 10/10 game but showed genuine courage on a few occasions. Morton. Did some good things but should not have been listed in the best. Couch. It is time for him to move up. A great game of team football that demonstrates skill, endeavour and footy smarts. He was also one of the few Casey players able to match the Port boys for body size and strength over the ball. Cook. I watched him closely today and was super impressed. His leading up through the 50 metre arc and then turning to deliver inside 50 was excellent. Also, if one lead was ignored he was leading 2 or 3 times. And importantly he led into the right spaces at the right time. And his defensive running to cover for team mates out of position was good. No goals but a seriously good team game. He took 6 lead up marks through half forward and each time delivered well. Jetta. Looked like he is still a few runs short of AFL fitness but he looked good when he had the ball. Williams. At times looked exciting but it seemed Port were very consious of him and were paying him special attention. Strauss. To be fair, both teams had a bit of difficulty holding the ball inside 50 so neither defences could rack up possessions. He was just OK today. Gysberts. He is so unassuming that it is difficult to see him getting possessions but the run-and-carry players were constantly thanking him nad patting him on the back so he was obviously doing some good work in and under. He releases the ball from a stoppage really well and considering how bad the Dees are 2nd movement away from a stoppage he is must for next week. Gysberts, Davey, Green, Couch and Cook did enough to be considered for next week. Fitzpatrick also but I reckon that Spencer has his foot in the door at the moment. You should have heard the crowd once the siren went. It was fantastic to see how much they valued beating Port. By the way, if you reckon Richmond and Saints supporters are feral, go to the next Casey v Port game and watch the Port crowd. Most had more eyes than teeth and the collective IQ of a sandwich. Wild but very entertaining.

This was a thrashing camouflaged as a close game because the Tiges disposal was as poor as ours. Spencer and Martin were both OK today, and their 2nd efforts in particualr were encouraging. We cannot defend the middle of the ground against pace. Ball winning in close is not our problem. Our players and set-up 5-7 metres away from he stoppage are slow, poor decision makers and have sub-standard skills. Our kicking was embarrassing. Bail, Nicholson, Dunn, about 5 shockers from Watts, Howe, McKenzie, ... the list goes on. Do we know how to forward spread? I always thought running/sprinting/gut running was a part of our game but very few of the Dees players know how or where to run when we have the ball. I will keep supporting, and Demonlanding etc.. but the butchering of the ball is so constant week by week that it robs me of passion, and saps me of interest. I am astounded at how often we turn the ball over. I am hoping some time in the next decade I can read aDees injury list and see 3, 4, or 5 not half the @%$#&*$ team as it has been for about 3 years now.

I agree with some of the above. I am hugely disappointed in Ro Bail. There is a side to his game that is at time breathtaking but he has had a lot of games in two years and he still can't kick. His kicking today when there was no pressure was embarrassing to him and to the supporters. Dunn will be kept because he plays a role and has a red hot go. He was OK today. Magner is interesting. He needs a rest but not delisting. Nev Jetta is a keeper. Let him get fit and have a decent preseason and see what he can do. Keep Spencer. At times today his 2nd efforts were great. He is learning.

6. Jones 5. Sylvia 4. McKenzie 3. Martin 2. Spencer 1. Nicholson (his kicking was woeful today)

This is all soooooo sweet. I was a Melbourne supporter in the old Carlton zone through the 70's and 80's and suffered loads of rubbish from every Carlton supporter. To see them like this makes me feel very nice inside. If they can't get Waite up and fit by round 15, it is even possible that we will end up with more wins than them. How good would that be?

I have had a total gutful of Madman McGuire. His egotism, bullying, ranting and red-faced narcissistic psychosis is an embrrassment to anyone who likes to talk, comment and interact with footy. As Gina Reinhart is to publishing Eddie is to footy - a total [censored] and the industry is embarrassed by him. He spoils my enjoyment of reading articles, listening to SEN and all the other footy stuff I enjoy. Eddie - no one gives a rats tossbag about your war-chest, your "big club here at Collingwood", your attack on Fremantle, or any other load of loud mouth carp you wish to vent. Just go away and leave us all alone, we are sick to death of you.

If we want potential that we look at young kids in the draft. At this stage Boak remains potential - he has yet to really light up midfield footy - and so I question his worth to us. Can anyone tell me if Boak is an in-and-under midfielder, an outside runner, strong over the ball or whatever other cliche we might use to describe his basic footy attributes? Does he have explosive pace or an excellent kick? At the moment he is not in the same park as Dane Beams. We have the $ and should pursue him. Having said all that I thought Mitch Clark was potential only and, well...

I have mentioned in another post that I have been a critic of Nicho because of his disposal, but his kicking, and in particular his short passing - was first class on Sunday. I hope he can continue this improvement because no-one can criticise his endeavour or gut-running. I have to keep in mind that his good disposal was against GWS who provided little pressure at times. How does he go against Swans, Bombers, WCE, or Pies? These are the real tests of his improvement.

OUT: Clark Moloney IN: Cook Tapscott A bit rough on Stef Martin who played a big, strong game for Casey but his decision making and awareness will be a real worry against Brisbane's definite pace. Sellar can pinch hit in the ruck to give Jamar a rest. Cook's workrate and nouse was really good for Casey. His pace might be a worry against Brisbane but we need a sure pair of hands to replace Clark and I trust Cook more then Martin when looking over the past 3 matches at Casey. Tapscott is inmproving every game and he is beginning to use his great long kicking. I would like to have Gysberts, Bail and Strauss in but it just doesn't suit this week. Perhaps replace Joel McDonald with Strauss or Gysberts but that would be unfair because he played his best game in a long while.

Just another young potential forward who has kicked some nice goals. History is full of them. And classicly, this guy has no right foot at all which will rob his athleticism of efficiency. Prefer to develop Lucas Cook. Is not as athletic as Cameron but is a great mark and a good set shot for goal. And by next season will have 3 preseasons behind him. And for those who continue to suggest trading Watts - if by 2014 he is still the player he is today - then trade him. He is not the pack-crashing forward we thought but this is not as necessary now that Clark is excelling. But Watts skills on both sides set him apart in the Dees squad and we have no player like him.

Gysberts and Strauss to get 5 - 8 games each. Lucas Cook if Jurrah can't get fit Troy Davis has already earned a callup and I can't understand why he hasn't got a run yet.

Yes, that was an absolute cracker. Dunn showed a bit today.