Jaded No More

Finally some official confirmation about Lynden Dunn's injury. Dunn report on Footygoss Hope he makes a full and quick recovery. Poor kid!

Can't go past my boy Belly. He'll soon be known as Whelan II. One from left field could be Frawley. He could surprise a few this year assuming he gets an opportunity to play seniors. I hope Godfrey, Brown, Bizzell and Ward all drop out of our best 22, otherwise we're not progressing. Yze and Miller's positions for 2007 depend entirely on them. Miller I know will give it his all and hopefully his confidence grows now that he's injury free. As for Yze, if he fires up, he might just get this record.

True. Toughness is not being a dirty sniper like Carr, but sticking up for your teammates shows a certain level of togetherness and unity and strength. Put it this way, how long has it been since you've seen Yze or Robbo or Bruce or White run over to help a teammate fight a battle? For all of their skills and talent, a lot of our more senior players (with the absolute exception of Neitz) have always shyed away from the physical stuff, be it in play, or while a pack is forming. It sure as hell makes me smile when I see Carroll dumping Gehrig into the ground, then Brock proceeding to run through Kosi. I like that finally we have guys in our side who look like they could, and would, kill you if you got in their way. I'd hate to meet some of our current players in a carpark. Whereas a few years ago I could probably aim my stilettos* at some of our senior players and they'd run away scared. *Google it if you've got no idea what I'm on about

Too many things have happened in this thread since I last read it... I don't know where to start. Firstly, terrible news about Dunny if true. I hope the bastard who elbowed him in the head gets a nice long rest! On the plus side, great news about Sylvia, but I don't believe he'll be back next week. If the club is towing the company line, ie- 'a few weeks', than I stand by my comment that we won't hear from him before Round 8 at the earliest. Hope I'm wrong! On the Yze debate (just for a change ); essentially the problem is where to play Yze. He cannot and should not step foot in the backline because he is less accountable than Ward and Brown combined, and he won't go in hard to stop his opponent from getting a mark or goal. Up forward he is just lazy, or bored, whatever way you choose to look at it. He doesn't get involved in the play enough, and he doesn't even crumb goals unless the ball falls into his lap, because he is scared of getting crunched in the pack. So that leaves the wing, but then the competition for spots is so tough, that you couldn't see him getting a sustained run. His pace is ok, and his skills are unquestionable, but no matter where you are on the ground, you need to show physical and mental commitment at all times. It's great that he got 25 possessions in a sub-standard VFL match, and a practice one at that. If he wouldn't, you'd just about have to stick a fork in him and say he's done. But if you put that in context, Bartram got 17 in a half and he hasn't had a pre-season. The stat sheet reads 12 tackles, which is very positive, but it's still not enough to say he is now deserving of a spot in our 22. He has spent a lot of time doing very little, while earning big money. This is only the beginning of his reality check, and it should continue for a few more weeks to come if we want to see a real change in him. BrownlowBruce, nobody expects Yze to magically transform himself into a fearless, hard-working, tough footballer in the form of James McDonland or Brock McLean. But there is an acceptable level of commitment and hardness that every single AFL footballer needs to reach. Yze has been below par for a lot longer than we'd like to admit. Edit: What's the go with Byron?

And I don't think we'll see that change until he's playing for Sandy while our senior team is playing a proper home and away match. He isn't missing out on match-day payments just yet... I'd say that until he does, thing won't change. Would love to not see him play Round 1. Not only will it end the stupid record (which btw, is rightfully Stynes' and should remain so), it would serve as a serious warning to both Yze and other senior players who tend to go missing when the pressure is on.

Ward is a better footballer than who, Godfrey? Yes. Bell? No. Bell has two things Ward doesn't, defensive ability and good disposal. Ward's main redeeming quality is his pace, but he is mainly a 'run and bomb it as far as you can' player. He makes my side until Bartram is fit. One thing is certain, I would hate to see more than one of Ward/Brown/Bizzell in the backline at any one time.

Don't worry Fan, I think our faith in Bell has payed off. He is now firmly in our best 22, and will continue to make people eat their words. He has no direct competition, in fact, Whelan can finally have a much-needed helping hand. Go Belly! :D

Very smart move to take yourself off with the first sign of soreness. It pays to be soft in pre-season games Now if we can only get some equally reassuring news about Carroll!

Apperantly a couple of people reported that he fell or copped a big hit, and was icing his collar bone?! Him not playing today could mean that either: - He was rested after a minor injury scare - He is not 100% and they didn't want to risk him - He has a serious injury they are not telling us about. A knock to the collar bone could mean anything from a bruise, to a break....

You overrate our rucks. I'd say we're 10/16. White is on his last leg, and isn't getting any taller, and Jamar is unproven. If either of those guys are injured, we're left with PJ and that would be ugly to watch!

I'm worried about Rivers... the kid has a knack for getting injured at the worse possible time. <_< Apart from that, great to hear everyone got through the match. Very lucky to avoid injuries this pre-season. Couldn't care less about the scores, especially since we don't play in Geelong this season, but always happy to hear Miller playing well. I hope everyone who played today spends the next week in cotton wool, and then bring on Round 1. Edit: disappointing to hear that Pickett didn't play, and the fact that Carroll was a no-show makes me thinks that the reports of injury from last week may be true!

He's got OP, and it's a condition that he's had since before he was drafted. I think he was badly managed as a youngster, and now our club is trying to solve this problem for him.

Absolutely terrible news for Thompson and the Kangaroos! It makes you realise how quickly your season can come unstuck. We just have one more practice game to get through, and I hope that we can make it out of Geelong unhurt and unreported.

Well it's not as if there are a lot of us around this place, so do keep up! Y_M, I'm doing whatever I can to stop the misconception that women know nothing about footy, and that their only interest in the sport lies with perving on players. It would be like me saying that all men know nothing about fashion

Thanks, but it's what 'she' said. Sorry, but it bugs me when people refer to me as a guy

It's good to believe in your players, but what I want to know is at whos expense is Yze getting a game? There are a handful of kids who have had a very good pre-season and worked very hard, and deserve to get a game. Yze doesn't play a vital role in the side anymore, and IMO could easily be replaced by a number of promising candidates. What really annoys me is that a lot of supporters are very unhappy about Miller possibly getting a game ahead of Dunn, and yet they are happy to include Yze in our side ahead of CJ or Buckley etc...

West Coast would trade for Brock + TJ + draft picks, but we would never pay such a high price. I don't think that acquiring his services is completely out of the question, but with suggestions like Miller, Yze, Ferguson, Godfrey, Ward etc... it certainly won't happen. As I said, the only way to get Judd to Melbourne, is if he requests to come to our club (like Aka), and West Coast decided to do the right thing by him and honour his request. Knowing West Coast though, it won't happen.

This is a completely pointless discussion, but still, there is no way we're trading McLean. He is the only untouchable in the side. Sylvia, 2 picks, and then maybe rubbish sweetners like Miller and Yze (ffs people, are you serious... YZE? ) will not do. 15 clubs will be throwing their house, left leg and eyeballs at West Coast. Unless Judd says "make a deal happen with Melbourne", the chances of us getting him are tiny.

Unless we tank and win the spoon, Judd being a 'free agent' does nothing for us. If Judd decides to leave West Coast, we need not only big cards for negotiations, but also Salary Cap space and money to throw at him.

I wasn't talking about you in particular, but generally about people who claim Thompson left due to lack of game time. Do you have any evidence that suggest he is actually a traitor?

Your post was spot on until the last sentence. The club begged him to stay because they didn't want to lose him. Letting him walk out without a fight wasn't an option, no matter the circumstances. But in the end the club did the right thing by accepting a good offer from Adelaide, and then using pick 12 to acquire Moloney. Losing a good player is not ideal, but it's a real shame that the club's hard work in securing Thompson and our club an equally good trade is often tarnished by rubbish accusations.

They've both played 4 pre-season games, which makes them the only 2 (along with Bruce and Yze*) senior players to have played all practice games. They deserve/ require a rest. *Yze will get his rest with Sandy in a couple of weeks time

Correct, and don't get excited about Bartram either. His ankle may have healed, but he has a fair few weeks of fitness training before he's ready to play. He will most likely play a couple of half games at Sandy, before they contemplate selecting him in the side. As for Sylvia, Round 8 would be a good result.

Agreed. Assuming he gets through Saturday's game, he will be there Round 1. Playing him is the only way to get him match fit. When looking at the opposition for Round 1, I don't see where Bizzell may fit in. If Kosi and Reiwoldt both play (unlikely), we'll need Holland. If one of those don't play, we may decide to go with 2 talls, and 4 medium running type players, which is where Bizzell may come in. He could be a temporary solution while Frawley is learning at Sandy. Then it is one of Ward or Brown, as Godfrey really won't be needed with the return of Moloney (hopefully). Miller is another certainty. He'll line up at CHF, but if the Saints stock up their forward line with talls, he may be moved to defence.

It's because apart from a very small pocket of supporters (probably the thousand or so who visit this place regularly), the rest of our 'supporters' are fickle, disloyal and jump off the bandwagon quicker than Paris Hilton jumps into bed. I'm sure many of them expected a flag last year or the year before, and when that didn't happen, many of them jumped off. I'm sure they'll be lining up for Grand Final tickets though