Ouch!

Statistically I think the whole team has gone backwards in terms of possessions etc since round one, and what does that actually mean if anything at all? Take a look at Vince and Tyson's stats... statistically speaking they have both gone backwards too, it's easy to use statistics to justify anything... in fact 89.4% of people use statistics incorrectly!! Watts had a poor game and whilst I was not there it does sound like his application to the game was sadly lacking. But if some people on these boards actually took the time (and had the stomach ) to look at Watts in some of the replays of games, you would see that he is often blamed of shirking a contest when in fact I think he is attempting to receive the ball on the outside as he is instructed to do and others are supposed to feed it to him. Coupled with a fairly ordinary tackling technique either which doesn't help. If he is dropped then so be it, Roos obviously would do this so he can work on aspects of his game in the VFL,... but worse contributors to the team can be found up easily up until last week where he was definitely poor. That said he is still our best disposal of the ball, gives us flexibility in how we structure the team, and our guys need to look for him on the outside to take advantage of his kicking skills. If the rumours of Salem playing are true, it will be interested to see who does in fact make way. I think we are bringing him in too soon, but I guess we at least have someone with disposal skills comparable to Watts...

... ironic that he is a free agent at the end of the year too, yet everyone is concerned about Frawley. Dunn is fast becoming a concern for me in that I think he is definately needed by the MFC.

Whilst I don't agree that he should be dropped, I don't disagree with you on his skill levels, his impact on games, and that he can make me nervous when he has the ball in hand. I have a hunch that when Roos was bemoaning the basic skill errors on display against the Weagles, that Grimes would have known that his skills were not up to par that day, and to be fair he was not flash against GWS either, but to his credit was very good against Carlton. RPFC Don't disagree that he is a leader at our club, and that he puts in his all week in week out, but the comparison to Maxwell at least early in his captaincy years isn't too far off the mark. Compare Jones and Grimes to the captains of the other AFL clubs, and Jones looks like the leader that our players look to when we are under pressure, and he also seems to be the player that tries to lift the team when things aren't going our way... I don't get that from Grimes at least not nearly to the same degree as I do with Jones at present..., that doesn't mean I don't think he should be our captain, (I think our club needs co captains at the moment) but I think he needs his football to come up another level to show he can lead the team on the field as well as off the field.

Agree with this. Roos was very clear on how he was going to handle the list and the new recruits Roos wants the kids... and I suspect some of our slightly older recruits that have been mismanaged along the way to develop their skills in the VFL... but also to work on the non-negotiables, culture, standards etc... I also don't think that he is going to play someone like Jetta for a single week only to drop him for a quiet game... he will give players a few games once they have earned the right (through good form, and who can play the role required of them) to find their feet in the seniors. I also don't think we will see Evans dropped after playing as sub for a couple of weeks. I suspect he will get a full game in the next week or so, and that JKH might get another game or so before giving him some time in the VFL to work on some parts of his game, ad to rest up from playing AFL etc... A few too many people on these boards seem very flighty about things,... which is the way the club has worked in the last 5-7 years... Roos seems a lot more deliberate in how players earn games in the seniors, and teaching kids to play his style through their time in the VFL. Salem in particular I would be amazed if he is played in the first half of this year... He had a great game in the VFL... but I think Roos won't play him until he is confident that Salem can play that style week in week out. How many players have we seen come into the seniors at the swans and have an immediate impact, because they hone their craft and know exactly the role required of them through playing in the seconds... We play Salem this week and he'll get smashed, whats that going to do for confidence?

With Trengove going down, and with Terlich being 50/50 any chance we might elevate Jetta this week? I would have thought they are playing similar positions at the moment, and I know Clisby could be another possibility.. but it sounds like Jetta is in ripping form at the moment.

Not taking anything away from Jordies effort on Ablett last year which was a top effort, but I also recall that part of the reason it was so effective, and it was mentioned at the time by Jordie and others... Garland perhaps?? was that they understood that it was something that Jordie couldnt do alone, and there was a clear understanding that players would need to assist Jordie in sticking the tag, ie curb his influence. I might not have that 100% correct, but I recall it was partly this treatment of Ablett that had Bluey McKenna whining last year.

I don't agree with you here. I agree that Grundy is a talent, but I don't think playing him so soon is a short-term pain, long term gain. I think it's going to damage Grundy as they are exposing him too soon, and he is getting smashed by experienced players... He had a solid end of season last year and was better than Jolly. But he is a 19 year old player. TBH with peoples comments about No 1 Draft picks... I'd actually argue that Nick Reiwoldt is the only out and out star that has been elite or showing elite potential for most of his career. I am not saying Delidio, Cooney, Hodge and Goddard are not gun players now... but Delidio and Goddard were slammed earlier in their careers for being soft. Hodge took a bit longer but had injuries, Cooney perhaps showed what he was capable of earlier, and has the brownlow medal, but injury has hurt his career. Murphy Gibbs and Kruezer all have some deficiencies about their games, as do Scully and Watts for that matter. Swallow, Patton, Whitfield and Boyd.... too early to tell

Don't agree, Upset of a generation would be us rolling the Hawks. Rolling Carlton in the state they are in will be an upset, but if it occurs, you can be sure they will be talking about how Carlton lost rather than how we won!

*sigh* Spencil got flogged by probably the strongest and in form ruck in the comp at the moment... We have no other ruck, and he should fare a lot better against Warnock. Jetta can't play unless you want to drop georgiou. Riley is back playing, and Jetta is is rookie... Any other ideas??

I picked my 'other' teams around a similar time to you, but I did it based upon teams that were competitive, but not the 'champions' of the time. But they had to have something that caught my eye or someone in the team that I loved watching. NFL - Detroit Lions (Barry Sanders was just something special, and I loved the helmet ) NBA Portland Trailblazers (Clyde Drexler) Premier League - Chelsea (Prior to Romanovich taking over not sure why I took a shine to them, but they counter balance the Dees for me at the moment in terms of success!!) I have 4 kids under 10, 2 of each, girls support Sydney as their mother does. Boys support the Dees with me, My older son who is 10 is a member, but being in Tas we don't get to many games and so the pressure placed upon him by other kids in the school ground isn't perhaps as bad as things might be in Vic and other states over there. He also plays soccer rather than AFL. The 3 year old ... lets just hope things turn around for him before he develops a focus on AFL. I must confess I am starting to 'watch' the game on the net with the live score updates more and more.... which is a level of detachment that makes it less painful to watch.

Nah... I think we are much better prepared to be crap than they are No one would even accuse us of tanking !

On the Footy panel shows last night they were interviewing Kernahan and 3 weeks in he was talking about next years draft was backing Malthouses ability to rebuild this team. They sound like they will be using this year to sort out their list in preparation for a rebuild ... Could be a race to the bottom.... legitimately of course

But these picks will be a part of all drafts moving forward, at least if they keep free agency compo, it's as 'uncompromised' as it will get.

I can see him using one for a player like Peter Wright... especially if Mitch Clark decides not to continue. But one of the two (hopefully two of the three) would be used to drop down the draft and secure players like he did with Tyson you would think.

To be fair Chip is not telling the MFC that it requires $800k to keep him, it's likely to be less than that as a contract amount for the MFC to retain him. If this is true, I don't have a massive problem with it, if a club bites and agrees to that price then so be it, and we get compensated above the odds if our form continues as it does currently. This is the world of free agency, it's not going anywhere... we just need to be smart and understand the market. Also think that if we finish bottom of the ladder then the PP should again be firmly on the table, we have a coach and solid administration behind us, now it's purely the list management that needs addressing, and knowing Roos he is likely to spend one or two of those picks to get other players to the club like he did with Vince and Tyson etc... That being said I think the other clubs are looking forward to the first 'open' draft for a while.

Damn, watching the way the hawks are playing tonight, glad our boys aren't taking them on. The words spoken by Roos last week about the gulf between the top teams and the bottom is very scary! ... and Cheney playing on Pav and doing a damn good job! *sigh*

I tend to agree with you regarding untried coaches. If Roos committed for 3 years AND they got the senior coach at the end of this year to work with him for two... perhaps that could work. What about if Rawlings was selected as the senior coach at the end of the year. Has been around for long enough. Whilst I think that our list falls apart at the moment. I can see it turning quickly as well however. Perhaps it just takes some consistent efforts over a couple of weeks with a couple of wins... the players to believe...

A little OT, but only way Hird is gone will be is infraction notices get issued IMO. They will not pay out his contract unless they prove he has breached it in some way.

I agree with your first couple of points, but Roos being taken back is a big leap to trying to handball the job off to Bomber which appears to be what the OP is suggesting is taking place I am not sure with Bomber being around next year, I could easily see him pulling out of coaching again... would it be a shame? absolutely because I think he along with Roos, Lyon and Clarkson is one of the best coaches in the country. Half of the teams in the AFL would probably better off with him at the helm, but I don't know what motivates him...

I'm sure all coaches talk to each other. I know full well that the job is too large to hand over to an untried coach, but that is the whole point of the succession plan, it's to get an existing assistant who is capable of leading the team forward and have them come in as the senior assistant and work under Roos for a year before handing over the reins. Sorry but Bomber isn't a senior assistant. He is a dual premiership coach FFS! I am not against having bomber at the club, he could be a fantastic asset... the point I am making is that if the club is talking to bomber then in the space of a couple of weeks this club has done a back flip on the whole premise of 'succession' and the thing that apparently was the key factor in luring Roos to the MFC has been blown away in 120 minutes against WCE last week. Also Roos was somewhat reluctant to come back, Bomber is no different. Said he had finished when @ Geelong, was reluctant to take over with Hirds suspension, yet now we are a chance of landing him 2 weeks into 2014.

Not to doubt your source or cast any doubt over what you say, but if this is the case then we've been sold a crock of shite by Roos, PJ and co... Paul Roos was to come here identify a current assistant coach that he could train up and mentor for this coach to then be ready to hand the reins to as a succession plan. How the heck is Mark Thompson that person? Roos was to identify a coach in waiting, not a senior coach that has almost as good a record as the man himself!! It would be like getting Clarkson or Malthouse to work as an understudy to Roos...

Hate to be pedantic, but 5 teams are already ahead of us, and closer to the flag. But the sentiment was admirable !

PJ would be unlikely. I suspect partly due to the fact that he didn't leave the EFC on the best of terms, but perhaps more importantly, he hasn't done anything yet @ MFC that is measurable enough to be considered, other than what we who are close to the club can see. I am not talking about capability, as I think he is extremely capable. He hasn't even had 12 months in the job. More importantly from the AFL perspective is that PJ is needed here by the MFC to make the club strong again. Nisbett, Cook and Ireland have been doing this caper for the best part of 10 years, They are significantly stronger candidates as a result of that.

Could also be something to do with the equalisation deals from last week. The AFL may have agreed to the purchase of Etihad for example!

I think another positive is that with a midfield (Cross, Jones, Michie, Vince, Tyson etc) .... means that Salem, Toumpas and Viney don't have to be the 'Messiahs' and can develop as young players in the team without the pressure of having to save the team!