deejammin'

I think Harry plays his best footy as forward/backup ruck, which solves a real need for us and is good for his confidence as a player. It allows him to get up around the ball get his confidence up and then unleash forward. Won’t help our goal kicking much though!

I share the concerns of everyone here about Jack Vuney’s health but reading between the lines of the club statement is it not possible that his omission has more to do with match preparation and fitness than lingering symptoms? The statement says the “objective things are tracking well” I assume that’s the medical recovery but that “Jack wasn’t quite ready for a the demands of an AFL game” I assume that refers to the more subjective amount of contact training and full training he’s been able to do. Maybe it’s rose coloured glasses but I read that as a good sign that we think the team is working well and want Jack cherry ripe before he returns, rather than something ominous medically. Fingers crossed. Also he’s flying with the team to do training in Alice, isn’t it a bad idea for someone experiencing symptoms from concussion to fly?

I assume with JVR travelling with the AFL team to Alice after replacing Bill as an emergency he’ll be out of the Casey squad? In some ways that makes this team more balanced. Allows us to play Verrall, Fullo and Jefferson through the forward line which feels like a bit more of an opportunity for them to do well. Go Casey!

This is THE game to show we’re back. Win this and we’re 6-6 with Port, North, Carlton, Saints again and Eagles as five more must win games in the run home to take us to 11 wins. We would probably still need to jag one or two of Pies x2, GC, Adelaide, Dogs, Hawks to make finals. Lose this game and we’d need to win 8 out of last 11 games with some tough runs in there. Probably season over. Let’s stick with what’s working, win and hopefully win well enough to creep our percentage back up towards parity. Out: Spargo In: Viney

TMac is stiff, however he had three all time terrible turnovers in the first half last week that led to goals. Against a depleted Sydney tall forwardline of Hamling, McLean and Ladhams clearly the match committee is hoping we can intercept and hurt them the other way and think Lever, Turner and May are better at this than plugger. Tom will be back, his lockdown has been outstanding but the connection between Lever and May and Turner’s exceptional form make this the option. It’s also not a bad idea to give our old boys weeks off, I wish Melksham had played against the Hawks, but maybe his exceptional game against Brisbane was the result, TMac may well need to come back refreshed against Owens and co at the Saints. Spargo and Sharp would want to play well with Viney closing in on a return.

Does Hamling and Ladhams as the forwards mean we can’t play both Turner and Lever as well as May and McDonald? I’d think May on Ladhams, McDonald Hamling and Turner Hayward leaving Lever free might work? But also could make us vulnerable at ground level?

With Lever, Viney and Lindsay all (fingers crossed) available this week I think this is the first week we’ve had our full best 22 available all season. No Kozzie til round 4 then Lever went down, May in and out in the early rounds and Windsor as well. With all due respect to AMW who may have been pushing one of Salem, Bowey and McVee for a small defender position I doubt it. McAdam also may have been pushing a Fritsch or even a Spargo but would’ve needed to hit his straps. Marty Hore is good backup but it’s going to be tough fitting May, Lever, McDonald and Turner as it is. This is it, our best team, while Sydney miss Gulden, Papley, Amartey, McInerny and Francis. Cmon dees! Let’s get on a roll! ins: Viney, Lever. Outs: Spargo, Sharp Fritsch to sub

Xavier Lindsay training Ghosty?

GOAT. No question.

Spargo out, Viney in I think Lever needs another run in the twos to get to full form and Disco down back is looking like peak Jake Lever anyway. Not sure what we do once Jake is fully fit, but not next week. Hope Lindsay is just precautionary, he’s a gun and we need him. Incredible win, god I wish we’d brought that last quarter against the Hawks. Win next week and we’re back in this season, especially if North, WC and Richmond can steal a couple more off our rivals.

This is what makes it clear there’s a media agenda against us as opposed to just some negative stuff going on. The Oliver trade to Geelong was clearly an attempt but it didn’t happen for a number of reasons, many will remain rumours forever as they relate specifically to what two or three people did or rumours about what they did and what they were feeling. Instead of letting dead dogs lie, accepting it was something to report on and its over now they attempt to keep the story alive ALL YEAR in an attempt to make it more true in retrospect and to try to besmirch the people who shut the story down at the time, because it wasn’t happening and didn’t happen. It’s pathetic and seems to be aimed at our club more than most. Sam McClure knows this is nothing to do with the Geelong trade and that Clayton has had serious issues that it’s good he’s now putting his hand up when they overwhelm him. Instead of showing due sensitivity to him or even acknowledging the positive step for Clayton instead he uses it as an opportunity to air his story, again. Pathetic. A certain nasty rumour which was aimed at our coach for the better part of four years and was apologised for, admitted got “out of hand” and wasn’t true in the end of of a certain court proceeding earlier this year is another example. The entire footy media knew it wasn’t true years ago, but they kept it out there, just to destabilise our club and undermine our coach. Hurting our ability as fans to enjoy one of the most successful and competitive periods in the clubs last fifty years. And now here we go again…. I used to love all footy media, even the really bad shows like the Sunday footy show and footy classified. Now I can’t watch any of them as if they’re not ripping us apart off field they’re implying nasty rumours that they will later use to rip us apart off field. Besides MFC’s actual games there is so little football media that is trustworthy or enjoyable for us as MFC fans. It’s all Collingwood and Hawthorn fluffing and small club bullying. How can that be a sustainable model?

They have been all season. They murdered us with these calls in our Geelong game. Geelong’s first goal came from a call that a kick to May that was clearly 20m was play on and Kozzie marked on a lead at a crucial point in the third quarter to be called play on despite it being 25m easy. Kills the game. And then there was the Lever to Viney kick in the last quarter of the GWS game…

Watching Wines play ruck for Port today is there any chance we put Langford in as a backup ruck when Maxy needs a rest? He’s a tall lad and strongly built, might work? I’d prefer not put Petty in there.

With Turner coming in effectively for Oliver I think he definitely goes back, Rivers to replace Oliver’s midfield minutes and play predominantly in the guts this week. Like many I’m mystified by Melksham’s selection, not because his form is bad, but because I don’t see how our forward line functions with both Melk and Fritsch there, too short for contested marks, too tall for extra pressure and crumbing. Also Petty has finally had a couple of decent weeks as a forward and we throw him into backup ruck changing his whole role? Also if the logic is JVR needs a few more weeks at VFL to gain form I could see that, but there’s a bye and he’s in WA so it feels a bit like cutting off our nose to spite our face. If as many are alluding to there’s a mystery injury of the week in the forward line and JVR plays forward ruck with one of Melksham/Fritsch playing sub that makes far more sense to me. Use Sharp’s athletic ability for more of the game against an unfit WC and have a utility type to sub in.

And Selwood in 2018 and beyond. The football media’s goldfish memory is astounding, Viney has played the tagging role well in the past and Goodwin was his coach then. I hope he renacts his famous grab the arm don’t argue tackle a few times this week and wears Harley like a cheap suit.

Interesting week, lots of players vying for spots and plenty in decent form too. Huge game, win and win well and our season has a faint pulse, lose and we’re done. What we put up against WC in Perth last year was embarrassing, I hope the boys remember and it spurs them on to make a statement. Oprions: JVR, AJ Or TC for Fullarton Melksham for Tholstrup or Fritsch Turner or Adams if May is out or potentially Turner in with Riv returning to the midfield and someone else out, Sharp out as sub maybe? I think the Turner forward experiment should end. He looked like peak Jake Lever in the Freo game and should get the chance to show more of that. My guess is In JVR Turner Melksham Out Fullerton, Fritsch, Sharp Tholstrup to sub Although Ghosty just mentioned there’s a vibe around TC at training so maybe he comes in for Fullerton and JVR keeps working on his leading in the VFL. That’d be really interesting, I think TC could compete aerially as well if not better than Fullerton forward, offers a lot more in the ruck, the only downside being he’s slow, but with only two/one tall forwards for most of the game that could work?

Balta’s not playing in either the VFL nor AFL. He can’t play night games due to his curfew of 10pm which rules him out of AFL and the club have given him the week off VFL as it’s “been a big week for him”. McVee must play AFL. It’s easy to forget how good he is but he’s a star, we’ve really missed him. Great defender, good one on one, quick, good skills, good teammate. Great in. I hope May gets up too. I really hope Melksham gets up too, this may be harsh as I love Fritta and he’s been such a gun for us but what he’s been doing without the ball this season is not up to it. He lacks intensity and does what I used to do in junior footy (a shocking indictment), he makes it look like he’s chasing and pressuring but mainly just corrals and never gets close enough or desperate enough for real pressure. He’s also missed some sitters, that round one snap to put us four goals up still haunts me. I’d like to see him rip it up at VFL level this week to earn his place, plus Melksham does many things well and is important for leading our forward line. I’d stick with Fullarton, Cambell needs game time, and Fullo did enough last week to earn another go against the Richmond second rucks.

I like this team. I think having AJ and Jeffo with JVR makes for a more dynamic forward setup, particularly as I think AJ will ruck more than he usually would against a depleted GWS ruck lineup allowing us to both rest Max and throw him forward. Also AJ is tough, he will take the pressure off JVR to crash every contest and should give him a chance to get some looks on a lead. The downside might be that it does mean Fritsch MUST play with intensity and tackle, we saw some of it this preseason but we also saw him look disinterested and not chase also, I hope he brings his intent. He’ll get good looks as a third/fourth forward but he needs to bring a pressure game. Finally we get to see JVR as a permanent full forward!! Rip em apart Roo!! Jeffo did some good things against North, I like Disco but he hasn’t set the world on fire in the PS games. If Jefferson brings his best it could be exciting and we won’t lose a heap. Langford and Lindsay are class, GWS are lacking inside mids and with Green either not playing or coming back from a calf having another bull to throw in there allowing Trac, Clarry and Viney to be thrown forward at stages is huge! Lindsay looked at home against Freo, I’m excited to see him. Also while I’m excited to see what Henderson can do geez Kynan Brown is stiff, tackling machine, quick, does some nice things. Looked good when he came in against North in preseason. Would’ve thought he’d be a chance. Go Dees!

I know his stats look good but it didn’t feel like a good Toby Greene game. Two of those goals were from free kicks, one a particularly dodgy ducking one where Viney caught him high and another that was also dubious in a marking contest I think? My memory is he barely touched it in the first half with McVee starring, could be wrong though, I was at the game and my memory is coloured by heckling Greene a lot in the first half. Wish he’d been suspended this week though, even his quiet games like that one are damaging. And I don’t know who we have to shut him down.

I still remember how good we were for three quarters against GWS last year with no Trac, half fit Clarry, no Salem, Max returning from injury, Windsor looking tired and sore and Lever on one leg. They only beat us by two points as Hogan got on top of TMac for five minutes and they piled on the goals. We were 5 goals up at quarter time. This is winnable, especially with a fit Trac, Clayton, Max and Lever. McVee being injured hurts us as he put a warm blanket on Toby Green last time and our record without Kozzie in the team is pretty woeful, Melksham, ANW and ANB were also important last time. But the additions of Langford, XL, Petty back and Sharp give me hope that we can hold our own. Also Max against no recognised ruckman must be exploited and could be the key. Dees by 5 goals.

Toby Green to be suspended for a boot to the face of Maynard would be chef’s kiss beautiful.

GWS are REALLY committed to dumb skits huh?!

Seriously?!

What happened to Hogan? Will he miss next week?

I hate both these teams so much. I hope the coin flip hits me in the head and knocks me out so I don’t have to choose. I’m going to barrack for (minor) injuries.