Demon Dynasty

Have lots of time for Dom but sorry guys from where i sat (and bro), Dom single handedly turned the momentum of the game yesterday with 3 horrendous disposals/decisions within a few minutes at one stage in the 2nd. You could see the confidence boost it gave the Greater Western Circus boys on the resulting turnovers (some in the worst part of the ground down back) shortly after and how much it deflated our blokes from what was mostly a solid performance until then. Within a few minutes he missed a number of open targets within 20/30 meters with little/no pressure and in one instance kicked it directly to an opponent about 15/20 meters away from where his target was and he only needed to kick it about 20 meters (or slightly less) to get it to that target. You can accept multiple horrible kicks from a big ruckman or taller developing guy but not one of your higher draft mids on so many occasions. I would think he is borderline at this point until Brayshaw becomes available or he shows a big improvement. Very slow across the ground and slow at assessing/decision making also. Not unlike Toumpas in this regard, at times allowing opposition to intercept/get to more contests he is kicking to as he tends to telecast his disposals. Nothing instinctive/smart about his footy at this point and looks VFL standard at times. I saw more instinctive/smart footy from our first gamer (Olly) in one half than Dom's entire game yesterday.

So basically he is a pretty bog ordinary kick & poor decision maker then. That's a pretty ugly combo at AFL level i would have thought. I agree he needs a good stint downstairs to clean things up but not until someone better is available (Brayshaw) There isn't really an obvious ideal alternative to give Big M a chop out apart from Spencil who isn't available and IMO we cant afford two big fellas in at the same time. Not sure why Roos/FD use Pedo while Big M is being rested as Pedo has no impact and we usually bleed clearances when he is in the middle. Might be worth trying Frost as he has a height advantage over Pedo and Dawes (marginal) but seems to have a reasonable leap compared to those two also. Seems like the only alternative who can also play forward

Dean was awesome mate. Should have included in my best on reflection just ahead of Big M. That goal in the 3rd was invaluable and he broke free from many contests selecting solid options up the field. Room for improvement but progressing nicely.

Spot on Rocky. I noticed many of his disposals where shortish chips rather than trying to find 30 - 50 meter type targets where he seems very suspect by foot. Either he clicked on this or the FD had him working on it (or both) as he was much more improved on his short disposal game (by foot) in this match. Can't recall a play wher ehe cost us an ugly turnover for the rebound goal as per some of his past work. Needs to work on his awareness further as he seem to have a (limited) lateral view of his options as soon as he takes off. Would love to see him look up the corridor as his first option! Lateral after

Agree on the first 3 BR. I would persist with Frost though as he is reasonably athletic and as we saw in the 3rd quarter at one point with his amazing chase down from a LONG way behind, has a decent turn of speed. Outside of Jeffy, Antman (Kennedy), Viney, Watts (for his size), Harmes and Kent we are severely lacking in this dept. Can see Frost playing a similar style/role of game to Blizavs. FDs are crying out for the taller, more mobile/quickish player like this to play multiple roles. I would stick with the ice man for this reason, provided he gives a decent show/contest. Like everyone in the team, he should earn his stripes each week. Will need more than 66%* game time (and one match) to see where he's at. Of the first 3 players mentioned, the most disappointing for mine is Tyson given how long he's been in the system (NAB Cup also not amazing form IMO). Is pedestrian slow and so is his decision making when he gets the ball, which isn't often enough. His decision making in terms of which option he chooses to kick to is often horrid also. He would be first cab off the rank as soon as we have a fit Brayshaw IMO ....but not until then as there's really no one better to come in straight away (from the coach/FD chatter you hear anyways ... which usually has a bit of club spin attached to it i realise). Although i have my fingers crossed about Petracca coming in by round 3. If Brayshaw is back by then then then we have 2 certain ins for Tyson/Bugg. I tend to look away when Harmes gets the pill but he does show glimpses of potential and can find space at times. Also seems to put himself in a decent positions. Didn't get enough of the pill today (only 8 disposals/very low % on ground time though) but disposal efficiency in today's game was right up there (7th best @ 87.5%).

6. Viney 5. Watts 4. Kennedy 3. TMac 2. Oliver 1. Big M

Viney, Kennedy, Watts, Maxey, T-Mac up there. No Major Issues on the bench. For his first game Oliver was fanbloodytastic. Put one or 2 seniors to shame (Tyson.... ughh). Not finals worthy...yet. Check In again about Rnd 6 !

Viney, Kennedy, Watts, Maxey, T-Mac up there. No Major Issues on the bench. For his first game Oliver was fanbloodytastic. Put one or 2 seniors to shame (Tyson.... ughh). Not finals worthy...yet. Check In again about Rnd 6 !

Thanks for link Jack. Good article on how some of our NQRs (Injury wise) are going . Trenners even mentions the progress of Petracca. Says he's putting his best "foot" forward. Surely he means "Toe"?

And what's wrong with a good stoning?

Rjay who is that woman in your profile pic? Has she been tested?

I see my Clen reference (attempt at humor) didnt make the cut. Wasnt that bad was it admins?

Dunn at his very best Is a mile ahead of Oscar at this point. This should be so of course given the stages they are at In their careers. Not Saying Oscar doesnt have the talent to surpass Dunny but at this point pretty sure Roos/FD wld play a fit/healthy Lynden over Oscar assuming a choice had to be made between the 2

Lead backline superbly under severe fire last few years with a drop off (along with many others) in last part of 2015. May be hitting a flat spot and need a bit of a recharge. Injury wouldn't have helped but wasn't in the greatest form prior to that, albeit only NAB cup. Hope to see him back to his best with 2 to 3 AFL games under his belt. If TMac and Garlo can offer decent support and clean up their acts in a few critical aspects of their game (not new problems for either player and were evident again in their last match against StKilda) it would be a huge help to his confidence and take the pressure off mentally a little which might also help with his general enthusiasm/attitude and enjoyment of the game. Might not hurt to allow him to rest up forward occasionally while Dawes is out as well to offer a different look for our opponents and kick occasional goal from around 50 (not saying he should play this role consistently ....just occasionally as a change up, might freshen him up also). I expect Dunny (brush) will once again be cleaning the bowl with most of his opponents in a few weeks time.

Lots of blue sky hype on D'land of late. RPFC reckon you may have had one too many easter eggs already mate! Sure hope we win on Saturday fellas otherwise there'll be a few hot cross bunnies around here

Nice stuff City Mooney is one commentator that gets Roosy's style and grand plan. Has said that defence is the hardest thing to teach a bunch of younger players but that it has to be taught if the group is to work as a complete defensive unit (forwards included) and cover for each other when things don't go their way. He believed this would have been the focus in the first year or so until it was drilled into them. Reckons most players who come into the AFL know how to run forward and attack but most are pretty poor at defending and it doesn't come naturally as it's not something they have trained for in their junior teams. Basically this is what he believed Roos has been focusing on and fine tuning the last few years (with the resulting ugly results on the park and scoreboard) and that he has now flicked the switch, allowing the players some rope to run and carry and attack. For those who aren't already aware, Moons can be heard on 1116 SEN if interested (can't recall the exact day but pretty sure he does a short review of the weekends matches on Monday mornings around 10/11...maybe Tuesdays).

...."A 2010 study published in the American Journal of Sports Medicine found that only 63 percent of NFL athletes who had an ACL reconstruction returned to play another game. Roughly two out of three. And two years after ACL surgery, Andrews said, about 55 percent of NFL players are no longer playing in the league. For the majority, an ACL still is pretty synonymous with the end of a career."* *Link to full article below Just happy to see him back on the park. Fingers crossed and hope he has an "Adrian Peterson" like comeback! http:// http://www.newsday.com/sports/football/acl-injuries-no-longer-spelling-doom-for-football-careers-1.5335284

By my reckoning PG i think we've been doing pretty much that for nigh on 15 years now

Ah bit slow there ... preaching to the converted !

Ah bit slow there ... preaching to the converted !

Agreed....would also add Jackovich and Garry in that mix. Jakovich was unstoppable when he was on. Trouble was he was there one week, and would sometimes go missing the next through injury, suspension or just not interested etc.

Not many players capable of covering off on Nick Im afraid. Has to be a combo of Tom and Garlo with chop outs from others If they can make the contest. Nick plays such a high game and then runs back just as hard and does It repeatedly. Toms the most suited for this job Athletically and defensively. His problems arise when he actually gets the pill. I wld be treating Tom like a lumbering ruckman at this stage , making sure there's always one or 2 options running past from behind for the quick handball as much as possible to minimise the chance of Tom producing too many damaging turnovers, thereby reducing the opponent's ability to score from turnovers In our defensive half

Hope Nick's playing. Cant remember last time we beat them with him In their lineup. Shld give us a more realistic guide as to where we're at

Hate to agree with you on this one C&B but as you say, there's much that clubs don't tell us when they tell us what they want to tell us Front and square here is the Club's desire to no doubt play the optimistic card in the hope of selling a few hundred extra memberships and keep the sponsors/coteries on the drip. As per usual with all football announcements on such matters i'm taking this as another X file moment ie., the truth is out there (somewhere)! Hoping for the best (4 to 6) but preparing for the worst (2nd half of season or beyond)

Exciting debut with poise, nice finish, a little flair. Solid overhead and also lays a nice tackle! Would play him round one off the bench. Too good for anywhere else albeit he will need occasional breaks to recover from rigours of AFL. If we can get Brayshaw back on the park and Petracca debuts cleanly (touch wood), this could finally be a reasonable year for this club. Not to mention the Hulksta