PaulRB

I thought Tapscott's kick after the siren was another sign that some of the players seem to have lost something off their kicks at the moment. Perhaps there has been a trade off for building their tanks i.e. more run = less punch, for the moment. Some of the Saints mids don't have penetrating kicks as well.

He was good offensively, yet considerably less inclined defensively. Must keep, has Stevie J potential and attitude. Another preseason to build his engine.

I thought Sellar was OK, played forward, back and in ruck. Moloney was ineffectual prior to being subbed off. Sylvia looks disinterested despite his stats. Trengove kick for goal was woeful, yet his field kicking later was sublime.

Wouldn't know how to behave if we were a successful team... Been so long. Go Dees

meow

You forge steel by burning off the impurities. This trade period and draft are Neeld first real moment with the bellow and hammer. I trust that they will forge a team that will contend for a flag. I doubt they could do this without turning over at least six to eight players on the current list this year.

Those players who were named as uncontracted till October in The Age this week, deserve a chance to show their wares. The AFL call it Free Agency and for clubs with no finals pretensions it seems honourable to give loyal and hard working MFC players the chance show another club that they might be worth drafting...

I think a story in The Age that mentions Gyberts' next contract being on hold till Oct and potential interest in him from Geelong (which, no doubt, they did not confirm) COMBINED with him being omitted from the team is no coincidence and the thread logic is sound, it indicates at least a number of things... Gys and co just received a huge rocket (a "Howler" as those of the Potter generation would say) from the club. Simple message: not good enough. The sub plots 1. bit of pre-trade period advertising to suss out the possibilities and get the deal talk started... 2. acknowledging those players that are comfortably signed up (Jones, Evans, Howe) and are performing. 3. letting us folk in the stands know that years like this one will not be tolerated anymore, and that change is afoot. 4. Letting Cloak, Boak and other prospective player targets know we are serious about moving up the ladder. 5. Getting on the front foot and feeding the media stories the MFC want, rather than having certain knobs in the media fill the vacuum with stories about tanking, early retirements and how woeful our footy has been this year. Looking forward to the Saints game.

Hopefully we have a plan B.

I think Neeld, Misson and Craig after their first pre-season and season will know which players have the appetite for the work involved in becoming an elite AFL player (Gysberts, Blease, Jurrah and a couple of others have struggled, although injuries can hurt) the descipline and nous to apply the new game plan (Moloney appears one who has struggled to "buy in") a role in the new structures and roles the FD is working to establish (Rivers may be surplus as a tall defender...) Should be an interesting trade and draft.

Gysberts (omitted) - ...

Gysberts (omitted) - Maybe not so good...

Gysberts (omitted) - Perhaps my expectations are realistic...

It is an identity vacuum issue. In the absence of the MFC asserting their own identity, story and news on the field, the media provide one for us. And in general bad stories work better than boring ones, and we've offered some juicy non-footy moments in the past couple of years. On Cloke, for some reason I see him as a bit of a contrarian and the Melb bashing may work in our favour. I mean if he's planning to leave the most powerful club in the league, for a new adventure/challenge, then Melbourne certainly fits the bill.

I don't disagree. All teams compete within a set of rules. All teams push against these rules to gain an advantage. Perhaps it's a flaw of the MFC PR dept and our ability to justify ourselves in the public realm that has lead to us been hypocritically crucified over this issue..?

I think to tank there has to be a reward for losing, i.e. higher draft picks. Losing NAB cup games could be a legitimate preparation for the real season, like putting players in for surgery early, etc... If it helped Roos get his team into finals or the Grand final it is all fair... Its is a line ball question given higher draft picks could be part of a teams preparation for finals...

Another stat on Cloak is that he is Collingwood's No# 1 for putting the ball into the forward 50. While not a midfielder, he gets alot of ball wide outside 50. Him and Clark alternating in this role (the other deep) would cause headaches for many defences. I thought the recent press on MFC fundraising to target Cloke type acquisitions was a clear indication of our intent.

I think Tom McDonald shows how a great preseason can boost a player coming into the real stuff. If Cook can have an uninterrupted pre-season then we'll see how much talent he has. Until he gets that pre-season, we are just speculating.

Big player turnout - https://twitter.com/melbournefc/status/233016205416484865/photo/1 Thanks for the great games and memories Brad.

He may be a [censored], but losing NAB cup (practice matches) is a long way from tanking...

Be my guess too, given the participants. Allows time for a couple of farewell games.

Can't get too excited when your first line "Cloke, Boak, Caddy, ..." puts control of the outcome beyond the MFC coach and FD, and into the hands of three players who have never stated they want to come to our club... Neeld and co will get us there, but it won't be via the most obvious (though unlikely path). How many had Mitch Clark at Melb this time last year?

Fair point. Fingers crossed his injury is not chronic...

Be interesting to know to what extent his ongoing shoulder issues over the past couple of months have effected him and his position in the team.

Morton to miss rest of season