Maldonboy38

Another one for whom it is difficult to understand how he is playing so well so early in his career. No flash in the pan either - he has been playing at his same level for 2 seasons. I thought the 1st quarter of the final against Brisbane, he was fumbly and nervous. But he was as solid as a rock after quarter time and hardly put a foot wrong for the rest of the campaign. A bit of run and carry, a bit of bravado, a wonderful kick, and as tough as old nails. How could you not love this bloke! I may even be tempted to move one of my all time favourite Dees - Brett Lovett - out of half back in my best ever Dees 22.

I find it really hard to fully understand this young fella's part in our flag. I didn't follow Casey as much as I have in other seasons so I knew very little about his qualities or form. He was a total revelation. Composure under pressure and high-efficiency, high-effectiveness kicking at 18 years old!! Unfair to be honest. I can't see his position under threat at all because he plays a role lots of players begin in - half back flank - but his kicking skills give him an edge over all other contenders. To think how rubbish we were by foot for so long, and now we have Salem, May and this bloke. Definitely see him in the midfield rotations at some point, but Sparrow and Jordon are a long way ahead of him. Probable 200 game player. One of my favourite GF moment - in the 4th quarter I think - Bowey gets chased down from behind, he gets a quick handball forward - sprints forward to retrieve his own ball leaving the lazy Bulldogs player in his wake - and delivers inside 50. Brilliant.

Yep, just missed them. My mum was a massive Dees fans and used to talk of them endlessly.

I love when friends and family say "are you watching the 3rd quarter AGAIN?" I love the gushing bulldust here on Demonland - and the smug feelings I get reading it. Loving it. I love speaking to the Blues, Pies and Bombers fans from my past, and telling them they are all [censored], and we are the champions. I have been waiting a LOOONNGG time for this. I probably shouldn't be enjoying it so much, but I really, really am. I love the time spent on the internet looking for that perfect piece of memorabilia. I love the way long-suffering past players have been welcomed back into club life with genuine warmth.

As of 2020, he is the best midfielder I have ever seen a the Dees. A huge call I know, but I am very comfortable with it now. Now his kicking is a weapon (thanks Choco) he basically has no flaw in his game. Incredible hands, runs all day, is good in the air, is at full pace around stoppages and his breaking speed is ridiculous. I remember a list of A graders being compiled a few years ago, and the Dees had none. This bloke is off the charts A+. And that moment he kicked the final goal of the 3rd quarter in the GF: "Bang... bang, bang, bang" lives as my favourite in-game Dees moment. I have watched it a gazillion times already and there a few gazillion more to go. (P.S. The lifting of the cup by Goody and Gawn is my greatest Dees moment but it was not in-game)

I thought his selection as Captain was a pop vote from the players, and was concerned at the time that everyone was confusing likability with leadership. Very happy to be very wrong. His status as a Dees legend and one of the best AFL ruckmen ever is set in concrete. Love him. He is a quirky, magnetic, leader with natural humour but a whole pile of substance beneath the larrikin exterior. He has worked so hard and now has genuine skill - in the air, on the ground, in tackling, aerobic running, and goal kicking. Once in a generation player.

From his first game he became my favourite player. Just love his approach to the game. Plays on both sides of his body, runs all day, is a true club man, and is as courageous and tough as any we have ever had. And I agree with Chook above, his role in the GF win was pivotal. Amazing that in pulling this Premiership together, the role of wingman has become celebrated again. Alves, Flower, Stretch, Tingay - and now Brayshaw and Langdon!

For decades we have been the turnover kings. His kicking to leading forwards is a joy to watch - old fashioned kick-to-a-space and make the forward run to it. And his in play positioning is so, so good. He is such a solid, reliable player who makes so few mistakes. In 2022, the pressure will be on for him to hold his spot - with Kozzie, ANB already in the 22 and Laurie breathing fire to get a game. At this stage he is a lock, but things can change quickly.

His reading of the play a split second before anyone else has him in very rare company, and I'm talking Carey, Lyon, Scarlet, Leppitsch etc...Somehow, he just KNOWs when. I agree about his kicking, a definite flaw in his game, but with his understanding of his role, he is happy to give a chip or pass to Salem or May to release it, or Langdon and Rivers to run with it. Probably one of the best non-captain leaders we have ever had at the Dees. Love him. Pay whatever he wants to stay (turn of phrase, not literal) and sign him up long term.

Our entire midfield looks stronger and plays better when Jack is at his best. At the half way point of this season I really thought he was done. But his finals campaign was immense. And on GF day, the moment he mobbed McCrae at the first bounce, I decided to pay close attention to him - his switch was turned to "attack and demolish" and he did a power of work. So glad for him and his family. He is going to be a very focused and determined man next year, probably playing "too close to the line" like Jordan Lewis, and we will hear packs split from 100 metres away.

I hardly know what to type about this bloke. There is no category for him. The closest was Dean Cox, but Cox lumbered along compared to Jackson. In 2020 he ran under the ball or had concrete hands. By the 2021 GF, he is clunking pack marks, tackling, playing as a 4th mid-fielder, winning centre and in-play ruck contests, and kicking goals from 50 metres. He could tear the competition apart in the next 5 years.

I remember his first pre-season, and how unfit he was. His potential was on display but he had so much work to do to become an AFL player. Then he did his knee and had to go to the USA for rehab. I've been watching for a long time and clearly remember the days of Alves, Ditterich and Biffin. Trac is as good as our very best, and is the best contested ball, running forward from stoppage player I have seen. Mostly, I love that he is a humble club man. When he got emotional after that first final saying he wanted to restore pride in the jumper for all the supporters who were embarrassed to show the logo - wow, just wow. And then he didn't display the Norm Smith medal so he didn't stand out. Wow, just wow again. And when he spins out of trouble!! I too used to practice it (in the paddocks around the house), tripping over trying to baulk like Robbie. Trac does it with grace, power and ease and then hits players on the chest. If he ever fixes his inconsistent on-the-run goal kicking, he moves into very rare air.

After 164 years, almost every number would have some significance. 31, 2 and 11 stand out and should be given out with due recognition, but would hate them to become a "thing" bigger than the club or the team. Just give it to one of the young players or recruits who is yet to play a game or has played just a few - I would give to it to Laurie, Chandler or someone like that and see what becomes of it.

Mitchell is a cluey bloke, and has all the attributes of a very good coach, but something feels really bad at the Hawks. Remember how James MacDonald left the Dees, and how so many of the long term players of that era left the club uncomfortably or with dissatisfaction? That's the sense I get for the Hawks - Neeld era-ish problems. . Imagine holding your entire mature midfield up for the highest bidder.

Agree with BoBo above, Jackson looks like an Adam Goodes type player. He is not there yet, and he has a LONG way to go to get anywhere near Goodes, but his midfield attributes, aerial ability, burgeoning ruck work, and aggressive 2nd efforts hint at something rare. I am not a fan of huge contracts - either financially huge or duration huge - but we simply have to keep this bloke.

I know we all love the bloke: hard as steel, salt of the earth, etc... But I reckon he is a lot more skilful than people think. Due to his place in the team he is not required to get huge disposal numbers, but his in close work, his kicking away from congestion, his marking and goal kicking are all parts of his impressive arsenal. And who couldn't love a bloke with a huge gob, nicknamed "Chompers".

I actually think he is a very good coach. The players love him, his leaders play for him, and the young players are devoted to him in a way Clarry, Trac and Brayshaw are to Goodwin at the Dees. His record is very good, but their striving for success has a very hard outer limit, especially in 2 ways: Game style. The chip and charge, incremental "game of inches" requires a skill set that the Cats under Mark Thompson might have got away with (amazing skills those teams). But even those cats of 07 09 and 11 did not chip and charge, they flung it around with breathtakingly quick handballs and kicks. The chip and charge method comes unstuck under fierce pressure and clearly struggles in the finals campaigns. List management/recruiting. If bringing in elite older talent to support your list is not your main strategy, it can work. Hawks 2013 - 2015, Dees 2021. But if it dominates your strategy and costs you young draft picks, and even the young talent you do get are starved of opportunity, it is a dream killer. Higgins was a recent terrible decision, and even now they have decided to keep Gary Rohan. Bewildering.

I loved his footy at the GC, but thought he was a bit of a loose thug at times. Always seemed to be pointing and directing others. The way he arrived for his first preseason at the Dees had him on my "watch, wait and see" list. I wasn't too sure to buy in or not. Someone else mentioned above, that after a game a year or so ago he was interviewed and was brutally honest about the way we played - that's when I began to watch and listen and have since become a huge fan. Goodwin and Gawn seem to have built a culture of "smiling assassins", and by that I mean they are great, warm hearted, people inclusive, genuine good blookes who are focused, mildly angry, game focused beasts once they cross the white line. I reckon May leads this mindset. One of the best recruits in my memory.

Really hard to read for next year. A LOT of clubs had injuries to significant players, or in high numbers (gold Coast, GWS, St Kilda etc...). There are a lot of factors to come into play across the pre-season training period. Richmond could do anything from making the top 4, finishing 12th, or returning to their natural place in the pecking order - 9th. GWS, Fremantle, Carlton, Essendon and maybe even Gold Coast could rise. The only real mistake on the list is Geelong. The assistant coaches they have lost, the age of their list, the huge salaries for stars, their decision by Selwood to keep going - a difficult year coming up for them.

I have thought that some players here and there are not going to make it/struggle to maintain their place in the 22 etc... but haven't really bagged or let loose on anyone. However, coming into the 2021 finals I did say that both Sparrow and Jordon should be picked ahead of Viney. I have happily gorged myself on humble pie after that one! He was at his brutal, ball-hunting, body-thumping, angry, in-your-face best in the final series.

Things at Carlton just seem so different. I don't know if it is new board, new coach, SOS departing or a bundle of things all working together. I am not a fan of what GC has done with the priority pick, but good on them for using a loophole to their advantage. We would have been gloating if we achieved it (not that we have needed to over the last few years). Essendon still strutting through trade week like silent, smug gods, not realising that no-one wants to trade with them. As for the Dees, I still get the sense that some very quiet but brilliant game of Rummiking is being planned behind the scenes and we will end up with Mac Andrew (is this name right?) or some other specific target.

Alves and Wells - both such huge losses. Alves was a gun, absolute gun. I was only young but footy obsessed and Alves was part of what made me listen on the radio and check the scores of a Saturday. I reckon he would be rapt to see a red and blue flag.

Oliver's goal at the end of the 3rd quarter. The athletic team grunt, spread and skill of Jackson, Viney and Oliver I know many people despise the channel 7 commentary, but the "Bang: bang, bang, bang" call from James Brayshaw was breathtakingly perfect. I was up off the couch, roaring and fist pumping. Best moment of my footy watching life (apart from the raising of the cup by Goody and Max). The right arm pointing of Clarry with a look of "we are gods" written across his face. And the look of absolute astonishment and frozen shock on the faces of Treloar and Bont as they tried to understand what the **** was going on. Close 2nd - Brayshaw.

He was going to be picked up somewhere, he has so much to offer, and not only to indigenous players. But did it have to be THERE!?!? If, during a Dees v Pies game next year, the camera shows him wearing black and white, I will fair dinkum vomit.

Can't see him wanting to come to the Dees as a backup. Surely he wants to play. I really rate Ratten as a coach so there must be something with Dunstan which might not be well known outside the inner circle at the Saints. As far as the Dees needing/wanting him: there are so many ahead of him - Trac, Oliver, Viney, Sparrow, Harmes, Jordon. If injury hits, Brayshaw - and possibly others. I would prefer to draft a mature age (22-24) or intentionally develop a younger player already on our list who has yet to play at AFL level like Laurie, Rosman or even DeClase.