Glenn Molloy

Spot on. They are asked who has "most at stake"....and although you could argue that Port and Essendon are two others, if we lose to the GC having started to establish trust, what sort of credibility do we have to make Finals? We need to win these next 2 and set ourselves up. As for Whateley, yes, his ego is starting to inflate a little, but he's a sensible and articulate commentator, and I'm more interested in his opinion than the majority of other lightweight journos like Jon Ralph.

He was just on AFL tonight - they put it to him that he was another 5-6 weeks away, he said he was hoping to shave a couple of weeks off that. Said he was at a similar stage to TMac in terms of the injury but because he hadn't had a pre-season he also needed to do a block of training. I reckon it's at least 5 weeks before he plays.

Sydney GWS Adelaide Port Geelong Richmond Melbourne Hawthorn Western Bulldogs St Kilda Essendon Fremantle Collingwood Brisbane Carlton West Coast Gold Coast North Melbourne

He said that because he still finds himself defending the deal that got us Tyson and Salem and got them Kelly (I know there were other pieces to the puzzle but that's the key one). Tyson was outstanding in year one for us but I'd call him handy since then rather than outstanding...played a few outstanding games but not in our best 10. Best 22, yes.

My thoughts, with the caveat that it was still a practice match! 1/ Loved our versatility up forward and the different tall and small options we have....super efficient going forward in the first half 2/ That efficiency was helped because we smashed them in contested ball and loose ball gets, just seemed to have more numbers. Although our centre bounce work wasn't great early. 3/ You could see halfway through the 2nd that we started to cruise a bit - part of that is the fact that it's a March practice game and they're never going to be full tilt the whole time but part of it is that maturity that is needed. I hope Oliver and Petracca aren't intending to bring their James Harden celebration to Round 1....cos it was about then that the players seemed to get a bit comfortable. 4/ It is inevitable that there are periods of the game where the opposition will win more clearances, contests etc and lift their intensity. Saints did that in the 3rd whilst we dropped slightly - fine, that happens. What worries me is how vulnerable we look when it happens. Good teams are able to stem the bleeding and defend really well so that the damage is lessened. We seem to let the opposition kick 6 or 7 in quick succession and it often costs games. We are great when we're playing to our strengths and when the game is on our terms but when it swings the other way, we just need to be able to change momentum quicker than we do. 5/ Looked like getting overrun at 3/4 time but pleased that we steadied and kicked the first 3 of the last. Good to see us respond and good to know that fitness doesn't seem to be an issue 6/ Defensively, we still seem to have too many fly when the ball is bombed in the air and no crumbers. Just need to get the balance right. Individuals : Loved the class of Fritsch, and he and Hannan showed that they can co-exist in the same team. Hoges was so impressive at winning contests and loose balls on the ground and his mobility was excellent, though he dropped a few that I'd expect him to clunk when the season is up and going. Lever was terrific, and Petracca's vision in the forward half is sublime. Brayshaw really worked into the game well. I really noticed how quiet Jones was....maybe because he is always so prolific and rarely has a bad one but he just seemed a bit off it. Hopefully he's just blowing out some cobwebs having had a couple of pre-season niggles. Gawn really struggled in the first quarter in judging his marks but improved as the game went on.

You know what, I'd rather he play - will get another 15,000 bums on seats and I'd rather beat their full strength side. Better test for us and who doesn't want to see Viney, Oliver, Petracca v Danger, Selwood, Ablett?!

I suspect you're right Roger. When they asked Ben Matthews about how Balic had settled in, he was hardly glowing in his praise and referenced some of the issues he'd been having at Freo. I think he's in for a long pre-season to build his fitness base and will be entrenched at Casey for the first part of the season. Hopefully he can chip away as I think he's got some talent.

Anyone know if training will be on Monday? They haven't updated the website yet and am hoping I might be able to go.

This is a key question for me. I know we have Pedo to help out but we don't have Watts to help as a 2nd ruck anymore......I assume we'd use TMac but am a little surprised we didn't get an experienced ruck to replace Spencer and back up Gawn.

1. No game at Skilled Stadium. Last year was about the first in 20 that we didn’t have to go down to that hell hole 2. No game in Hobart – though happy to play the Roos twice. I might regret that request #18onthetrot! 3. 6 day breaks kept to the league average, rather than twice the average like it was last year. I think we had 9 six day breaks which was well above the next highest of 6. 4. Opening round blockbuster (happy if it’s the Pies) 5. At least two Friday night games at the G. There are of course a few other “nice to haves” (e.g. less interstate trips) but from both a playing and commercial perspective, the above would be ideal. When does the draw come out?

That's true, and you know what, they'll probably get the best out of him....but I just don't think we ever will given the history and more particularly, how comfortable he is at the club. 2016 he was very good but he had to go to another level this year and he only did it in patches - even before his injury. Footy is littered with players who needed a kick up the bum and to go to a second club to fulfil their potential, and it wouldn't surprise me if Jack is one of those. I'm going to miss him but when Goodwin, Jones and Mahoney say the sorts of things that they are, it's clear that they have good reason for letting him go.

Convinced he'll go. Connors on trade radio said "he was getting his head around it" and it sounded like Connors was encouraging him that it will be the best thing for him, even though it's hard for him. If I'm Jack, I'm thinking that a move to Sydney, where it's still a big city with plenty to do, is ideal. Will shake him out of the comfort zone but still have him at a club that is virtually certain to play finals, and in a city that he'll probably enjoy.

Stanley is a renowned pea heart who plays a good quarter every six weeks. Thurlow is quick but a poor decision maker and average user - got dropped from their finals team. No way are these adequate swaps for Watts. Set your sights a bit higher!!

Dodoro will offer next year's 4th round pick and a packet of used syringes - and then complain that he doesn't understand why the Bummers have a reputation of being "hard to deal with".

No interest in trading Neal-Bullen. Was one of our big improvers this year, only in his 3rd year and will get better. Can play forward or mid. I think our original offer for Lever of 10 and 27 is very fair and we should only have to move slightly on this (perhaps 27 moving to early 20s) to get this done.

Which is great, but we need to turn that into #premiershipclub

Who says that the recruitment of Lever squeezes out the Macs and Frost?! There's a thing called injuries (unless you're Richmond 2017 and never get one!) , and competition for spots. It's critical to have depth, and TMac has shown he can play either end. Even in your last scenario, we had Hogan, Watts, Gawn, TMac, OMac and the Weid in our team in Round 1 vs the Aints, and it was one of our better matches. We had Joel Smith playing the Lever role, and he was doing it well until he got injured. Adding Lever doesn't squeeze a tallish player out.

Lever will fit in well with us because he got shafted by the umps, just like we do most weeks! Take a look at a replay of the big mark that Riewoldt took early in the game. Lever's arm is being held by Townsend. Meanwhile, at a critical time halfway through the second, umpire pings Jake for a very slight tug of the jumper after the ball has been spoiled, enabling Townsend to get a free and a goal. Tigers were very good but just like the Doggies in the GF, got an absolute dream run from the umps when it counted. How Betts didn't get a free in the goalsquare just before halftime for holding is beyond me.

Anyone who says Lever was pick 14 and therefore we shouldn't give anything more than pick 10 is kidding themselves. If that draft was re-done now, Lever would be pick 3 behind Heeney and Petracca. He's had three years of development too. I think two first rounders may be overs but 10 and 27 is probably the minimum we'll have to pay here. You can get a decent player at 27 but it's very hit or miss. Historically, we're pretty generous when it comes to trading....if we like a player, we'll try and get the deal done, unlike the Bummers, who in this situation would probably give pick 63 for Lever and still be kicking and screaming.

Great post, I'd forgotten that game, but he won it off his own boot. Those who describe him as a serviceable player do him very little justice. Was one of our few players who had genuine roving ability off the packs, could kick goals, and was much more consistent than people give him credit for. I'd love him in our side now!

I'm a bit tired of the comparisons to Dusty of two-three years ago, and the belief that this is a similar situation. Firstly, Martin wasn't a superstar at that stage but was playing much better than Stringer has been the last two years. Secondly, Richmond wanted him - they just weren't going to pay the earth to keep him. Thirdly,, there weren't any questions about his professionalism as a footballer - it was more who he chose as his friends off-field and the issues that his father has had. Even those questions weren't really legitimate; just because Martin has neck tatts and hangs out with other people with tatts like Swanny, doesn't mean he's off the rails! I can see why clubs would be interested in Stringer but I just don't reckon he's what we need. His football has been bog ordinary for 18 months and our culture has been transformed in the last three years. Too big a risk to bring in someone who could compromise that culture very quickly. Plus, he seems like a bit of a [censored], so he'd be a perfect fit at the Bombers.

Had a reasonable first half of the year where he finally gained some continuity in his footy. Has sublime foot skills (apart from the horrendous turnover vs. Pies in first quarter, but he wasn't Robinson Crusoe). I don't think we can afford to get rid of young players with his foot skills given our lack of class around the ground. He should only get better from here. My only worries are that a) he's not a natural defender, so not sure that H/B is the right spot for him, though he will at least develop some defensive nous and b) he's not at all quick. I still remember him chasing a Pies player in the last quarter right in front of me and it was like he was jogging on the spot! Needs a big year in 2018 but I wouldn't trade him.

Come on guys, do you really think that the Crows would want Frost as part of a compensation for Lever? There's no way we've exited the Lever race just because we've signed Frost. Stop thinking about best 18 needs and start thinking about best 42...every club needs depth, and with Col Garland on his last legs, what happens if TMac and/or Frost get injured? No reason why Lever, TMac, OMac and Frost can't co-exist in the same side, and even if we're playing a team with a smaller forward line, we can either move TMac forward or have Frost/OMac as depth. Absolutely convinced we are still in for Lever and a big chance to land him.

Devon Smith is Devon Smith is basically gone....his issue is more of around midfield time rather than coin. If Kelly stays you can take it to the bank that Smith will go

Speed is only any good if it is combined with good decision making - Hartung hasn't got that.