La Dee-vina Comedia

Is that a scar on the back of his leg? If so, would that be from surgery to re-attach his hamstring? It's a reminder that players really do put their bodies on the line and we often underestimate how much physical damage and discomfort players are prepared to put themselves through to achieve success.

I was only a little tacker in the 60s, but I thought Barry Vagg was a half forward.

Just in case you thought I was congtradicting you or interpreting you to be negative with your comments, please be assured I was not. I was trying to agree with you with some supporting eveidence.

I'm hoping for the same outcome but in a different way. I hope Viney voluntarily and willingly gives up the co-captaincy. It may be hard for him mentally if it is stripped from him. But if he chooses to give it up, either because he wants to concentrate on his own game or because he sincerely believes in a single captaincy model and thinks that should be someone other than him, he should be of a better mind to continue to do what we want him to do.

Stef Martin goes alright as a ruckman who is 199cm.

An excellent example of why watching footy at the ground is a different expereince to watching it at home. Apart from the greater emotional involvement of being present, the ability to see the game as a whole, rather than the execution of play by individuals, is why I like attending games in person. To go one step further, if anyone from the TV networks is reading this, please understand that close-ups of play while it is happening isn't particularly revealing. They are good for replays, but not live while the play is unfolding.

It would be hard coping with mental health challenges when you are in the public eye, so I hope he gets better soon. As a matter of interest, do we know whether his foot has properly healed? (And as to the comments from Drysdale Demon, some things are better left unsaid...so I won't say them.)

I would have thought kicking like this would have been out of the question if there were any concerns about his calf.

In which case, all is forgiven.

The question I'm about to ask may seem esoteric but is not intended to be. It's a genuine question: Can a team "overachieve"? A team is made up of inividuals each with a maximum potenial (or achievable level of performance). The coach's job is to convert those talents into a coherent peformance. If the players don't perform to their best or if the coach fails to maximise that potential, the team will not do as well as it might. That is, it underachieves. But if every players does his best and the coach does his job, hasn't the team shown what is achievable. In other words, and in a less esoteric expression, wasn't 2018 an example of what can be achieved, rather than an "overachievement"? I accept there are differences between the 2018 team and the 2020 team. Some players have retired or otherwise left the club. Some players may be past their peak while others are just moving into their prime. Essentially, though, it's the same team. I refuse to accept the we "overachieved" in 2018. Rather we showed what was possible and what should be possible again in 2020.

Great photo which sums up the world today. Notice how three of the adults in the background are more interested in their digital devices than the live action itself.

In addition, wouldn't all the medical staff (docs, physios, etc) also be at the camp? If so, his recovery may be better managed if he's where the support staff are.

Way back on page 1, this used to be an interesting thread about present players doing their training. Pity that another otherwise excellent training thread has been derailed.

Is there anything stopping another club with a free list spot (if there are any) offering Bennell a contract now? I'm not suggesting that there is one out there ready to pounce. I'm just curious about how the sysem works.

Having a place in the finals locked up before the end of July. And pretty much every other suggestion in this excellent thread.

Is it too much to ask for these two to debut together in a winning team just so the Herald Sun can use the headline "Baptism of Fire"?

Most exciting part about this was reading Viney was kicking on his right! (Great reporting, by the way)

It's a long way to get to Hell, Michigan and back.

Not sure if you realise that facts aren't welcome on social networks in this post-truth world. Consider yourself admonished.

Past performance is the evidence. I hope I'm wrong, but if 'Weideman' was a TV program, it would have been cancelled because of poor ratings. I accept that footballers, like TV shows, sometimes need more time to prove their worth. And like some TV shows, after poor starts they eventually fire. I hope Weideman is like one of those.

I think it means people who object to apostrophes being used when they're not needed, particularly when used to pluralise words such as tattoo and mantra.

And on a slight tangent, if I recall correctly, one year under Bailey I believe we had only three players on the list who had previously been on the list of another AFL club. Brent Moloney would have been one; I can't recall the others. I suspect Bailey had the idea that a homegrown list is better than a Foreign Legion.

https://www.melbournefc.com.au/news/553620/training-gallery-dees-go-indoors (Trying desperately to keep the thread on track...)

Most derailed thread. Ever. Just to get back on topic, it seems training was not "postponed" at all. Rather it was moved indoors. And away from Saty's prying camera, they were prepared to do some competitive work with "shirts on" versus "shirts off". I'm tipping if the club announces a Gosch's paddock training day with half the team with their shirts off, there'll be a larger crowd of spectators in attendance than normal.

I'm curious...would you play White and Ditterich in the same side or not play White? If you play both, would you do so as two ruckmen or have one play in a different position? For what it's worth, when they played with us, I think White was the better ruckman but could not play any other position. I can't recall Ditterich playing anywhere with us other than as a ruckman. I would only pick one ruckman, so I would choose White. Peter Moore can provide the back-up.