Jaded No More

Well, in the end Casey, much like Melbourne, rolled over and died and lost the match within the space of a quarter. Silvagni will be feeling right at home at Melbourne, given he basically cost Casey the game by turning it over right in front of goal twice.

Disappointing game from him today. Some shite kicking, and poor defensive game. He really struggles when the ball comes in high. Bail, who is another small defensive option for us, has been largely disappointing in his first year. Kicking is pretty poor.

He's been OK (how good is his tackling!), but you can really tell that many of the experienced Melbourne players with Casey today, are there because they have disposal issues. Dunn is so frustrating. Absolutely brilliant at this level, but cannot transfer that to AFL. Maric has had a hand in plenty of goals. He is a very smart player, and never should have been dropped when we desperately lack small forwards. Edit: great goal from Straussy. He is such a good user of the ball, but doesn't seem to get a lot of it. Another Edit: Cloke has certainly been enjoying his burgers since his early demise.

Newton and Zomer, a forward combo for the ages!

A better option than watching us play against Geelong at Kardinia Park?!

I'm broke, but that post brought a tear to my eye, so $20 from me too (would love to contribute more if I could!). I hope Jurrah knows how special we all think he is and what high hopes we have for him! Edit: well done Fork, a great idea well executed.

Yeah, shame about the forward and back line. Carlton's top 6 are as good as any, the remaining 16 are rubbish. They will never win a premiership with an attack that revolves entirely around Fevola, and an average defense. And to be honest, yes Essendon have been impressive all year, but is that a premiership side out there? Who will fill the gaps left behind by Lloyd and Fletcher?

Agreed. Maric, Strauss (who better get a game and get used properly this week :angry: ) and Bail is why I'll be watching.

If there was someone under an injury cloud, they would take two emergencies, one for the player in question, and one as backup in case someone is unwell or injuries themselves before the match. That they are only taking Jonesy suggests to me no late changes.

Just because he isn't playing for Casey, doesn't mean they'll be a late change. He is probably the emergency that is traveling with the side, hence Dunn and Valenti both named for Casey. A day long of football watching on Saturday (with the possibility of actually seeing a win), excellent! :D Hope Strauss gets a game, because him and Maric will definitely be my two to watch.

Cheney is stiff, and I don't get why he isn't being played ahead of Whelan. Dropping him after one game is rough. I also don't know why we dropped Bartram for Petterd, and not for Jonesy. Very very happy and excited to watch Watts and Jurrah go around again!

Excellent news. If there was video footage he would have got 4, dirty dog. Learn to hit a target, instead of hitting players behind play. Idiot! <_<

Cheney isn't slow, he is no Bennell, but his speed is adequate. We will always have Garland and Frawley as an option for the super quick smaller guys anyway. And with experience, Cheney can learn to play in front, which is his big strength.

Nothing special, but is good on the lead (less so in the air). We need small defenders, and even if he isn't the creative type, if he can shut down an opponent then his place in the team is secure (for now at least). Not every player in your side is going to be a star, and your lesser lights are equally as important if they can do a job consistently. I like that Cheney is hard at it, and his marking skills are pretty good for someone his size. Kicking is passable. Good replacement for Wheels, and a good return for our investment.

I don't think Grimes deserved it based on last round either, however, Joseph has played twice the number of games Grimes has this year (6 vs. 12), and here are their stats: Disposal Av. Per Game: Grimes: 19.3 Joseph: 11.4 Mark Av. Per Game: Grimes: 6.8 Joseph: 1.9 Both have kicked a goal, and Joseph is ahead in tackles by a significant margin. Ward also averages less disposals and marks than Grimes, but has kicked 7 goals in 9 matches. I realise Joseph is a tagger, so his primary job is to shut down an opponent, but he is certainly not more deserving of a nomination than Ward or Grimes FinalSiren stats actually show that Grimes is #16 overall amongst the 'Rising Stars' (link) (sorry for hijacking this thread with Rising Star talk that is not related to injuries <_< )

The Rising Start Award is a joke. I mean come on, Aaron Joseph gets a nomination this week ahead of Ward who got like 30 plus disposals (and has been really good all year), and Grimes.

James Hird says hi!

Bell might not be the best decision maker, but he can consistently hit targets by foot. His disposal is far superior to Bartram's, and he is equal in terms of doing the team things and working hard off the ball. We know what Bartram gives us in that tagger position, so why not try something else for the rest of the year?

I have a soft spot for Belly, I do. But I don't think he has the required decision making skills or awareness to play in the backline. I've long wanted him to play midfield, and I'm glad Bailey played him there when he got a game. I still think he has some important qualities to add to our midfield, particularly tackling and strength. I would like to see him replace Bartram (he has superior skills) for the remainder of the season and play as a tagger. Whether that happens or not, I'm not sure. I also don't know whether or not he's done enough to avoid the cut at the end of the season. A lot will depend on what our senior players decide to do (Junior, Robbo, Wheels).

Glad that nobody could answer my question so far. Just goes to show that Wheatley isn't good enough to push anyone out of the side, and should not be a Melbourne listed player in 2010. By the way, the kicking thing is a myth. He turns it over consistently (even with Casey), and has no basic accountability; two things Bailey really seems to hate.

I would really love for the media to give this Watts issue a rest and let us do what we know is best for him. The club works with him daily, while the media replays the Davey tackle over and over again. FFS, if we didn't play him at all this year they would have just continued to ask "when will Watts play?" at every press conference we had. Now he's playing, and they are saying we played him for the wrong reasons, or he isn't ready, or he is being damaged. What will Watts learn at VFL that he can't at AFL level? Will he get any bigger playing for Casey? will he adapt to the pace of AFL playing for Casey? will he understand Melbourne's game plan better when he plays with Casey? The kid can kick, mark, make great decisions by hand and foot... he doesn't have any deficiencies that can be worked on at a lower level. The only thing he needs is time, weight and experience. If he doesn't play, it's because he is physically and mentally due for a rest, or he has school commitments, not because he "isn't ready". Of course he isn't ready, he won't be for 2 years. That doesn't mean that gaining experience at the top level isn't valuable. In fact, it's likely to fast-track his career. If Watts is happy to play out the year, and his body passes the test, I hope we play him. Even if he spends the rest of the year collection 2 possessions a game. If he or the club want him to go back to Casey to play at a lower intensity to gain some touch, or some confidence, that's fine too.

I see that nobody has an answer to my question... Who do you drop from the backline in order to fit Wheatley into the side?

For anyone who wants him in the team, who would you drop out of the backline in order to give him a game?

There is no doubt that Bartram is not good enough to be part of a premiership assault with his poor disposal and decision making. However, given where we are as a team right now, we could do worse than having Clint in the side to do those things that really, everyone should be doing, but very few actually do. I'm talking tackles, blocks, 1%ers. He has the speed to play on many small forwards and midfielders, and right now he is not so much of a liability purely because his work on gameday helps those around him. Plenty others will go ahead of him.

No doubt. I just wish we're as ruthless as them, and if we do win, it's because we're at home and our young kids really step up, not because we went in with our best available team and superior matchday tactics. This really is a game that we cannot afford to win by simply letting West Coast do as they please. If we win that game because Jurrah kicks 6, Grimes gets 30 disposals in the middle, Bennell steps it up, Frawley, Warnock and Garland demolish their forwards and Watts takes 10 contested marks, then I won't walk away from the game angry that we may have just blown our chances of getting Scully. Having said that, lets bloody well just lose that game. We've been [censored] for 3 years, what's another 7 losses gonna do?