Macca

Correct ... the Demons won our first flag at the old East Melbourne ground (1900) and a number of other venues have been used for the GF including the Lake Oval, Junction Oval & Princes Park In a parallel universe the GF might have been played at all sorts of different venues if not for the MCG contract So, it doesn't matter where you play the GF, as long as you win it! That's all that matters

Yes, your defence won the game for you. Giants receivers couldn't create seperation (when it mattered) and your run defence was far too good for the Giants running game

What stands out about the 2021 Premiership was how well our forward line performed And how open our forward line was largely on the back of really quick ball movement forward (using the corridor on many occasions) Fritsch's GF was a great example. The ball was kicked to him for about 8 one-on-one's. He won the ball 7 times for a return of 6 goals 1 Behind On top of that Brown & T-Mac played their roles well as KPF's with the other forwards chipping in when required Now that is what you call efficient scoring and it was a joy to watch We need to get back to playing that way as we've got the talent to do so (when fit)

Reminds me of the Demons forward line going into the 2023 finals It's hard to win without attacking weapons especially when it's multiple players The NQR replacements are just that, NQR

If the Lions get excellent production out of Hipwood & Daniher, they'll win. They can win without them firing but they'll be doing it the hard way instead Taking the heat in the hotspot area of the forward line as well as gaining possessions, playing in front, bringing the ball to ground front & centre and putting their bodies on the line etc etc But most of all, hitting the scoreboard Do all that with the other forwards chipping in and they'll be hard to beat Talented key forwards who produce the goods are worth their weight in gold in September Something we were sadly lacking in the finals series in 2023. And it cost us We had no one doing all that in the Carlton SF and only JVR in the QF (and therefore, by default, too much was placed on the shoulders of a player in his 20th game) Hipwood & Daniher are seasoned campaigners and that makes all the difference

Wrong thread

2022 we had a fit and healthy forward line ... not A grade but availability was fine 2023 our forward line was D Grade with so many forwards being unavailable (Melk, Petty, Brown, JVR, T-Mac (on one leg) Fritsch (banged up) Petracca (not available forward with Brayshaw taken out)) That's a lot of outs replaced with NQR's So the 2022 Demons beats the 2023 Demons by 4 or 5 goals So it's a B/B+ Grade forward line vs D Grade forward line (2022 vs 2023) with the make-up of the rest of the respective teams being quite similar So we had no excuses in 2022 but in 2023, there were sound reasons on why we didn't advance in the finals So on every metric, we didn't stand a chance to win 3 finals in 2023 But in my view, we completely blew our chances in 2022 ... that's the one that got away. Won our first 10 games then lost 8 out of our next 14 games In 5 of those 8 losses we were leading at half time and in the other 3 losses we were within a goal at half time So teams kept coming over the top of us. Energy levels an issue? Yes So, in 2022 we ran out of legs and that's on the coaching and the fitness staff. By contrast, the Cats were managed really well and went on to win the flag with ease It should gave been our flag which would have made it back to back flags 2022 - The one that got away As for 2024, we started the season off with an A grade midfield and finished with a C- Grade midfield (No Brayshaw, Petracca out for half a season, Gawn good but not great, Viney ok and Oliver well below his best) You cannot win big with those sorts of talent levels. And that includes the close games

Whilst strolling down memory lane, Wikipedia's summary of the 1945 Bloodbath GF is interesting reading Wiki 1945 VFL GF Carlton vs South What was interesting was the aftermath and the mooted rule changes including reducing the amount of players on the ground and possibly reverting back to no boundary throw-ins (that little known rule was in operation from 1926 - 1939) Even back then they wanted a more open free-flowing game

And New England went into Cinci and won! +10.5 Pats looks a Lead Pipe Lock/Stone Cold Lock/ Moral/Certainty!! So far (we don't need more than 5 picks to get it up to 25-1*) Bills +2.5 Texans -4.5 Pats +10.5 *Gamble responsibly

Have you got your 3 key offense players back?

@layzie So have you got a 'Moral' for us this week? New England +10.5? haha

Some of the stuff that went on in those days makes you cringe Nearly every team had their thugs and thug acts happened in numerous games. Often unpunished as 'video' evidence was not allowed to be called upon until years later e.g. Balme king hitting 3 Carlton players in the '73 GF might carry a lifelong ban these days Just crossing the line to play back then took a special type of courage. Yet players such as Robbie Flower managed to not get king hit. That was a skill in itself back then!!

Yes, give the club a dream run with injuries like what happened in 2021, then those expectations would be more realistic A club should be able to cover for a modicum of injuries but 2023 saw us lose most of our starting forwards 2022? Different story We did not manage the list properly especially when we could have easily rested our stars against the lesser light teams that season Geelong did so and won the flag But were they the best team in 2022 or the best managed? As for this season, losing Brayshaw was a huge body blow as he was our most versatile player ... and then a handy utility in Smith was unavailable Neither player could even be replaced in season On top of that a huge out was Petracca missing half the season. And Clarrie had an ordinary season by his own standards Midfield which was our great strength, was decimated and bottom 4 or bottom 6 standard So any sort of high expectations with those extra blows that happened was pie-in-the-sky stuff I had us a possible top 4 chance way back in February but that was before Gus, Petracca & Smith were rendered innefectual with Clarrie never came good In my view, to get unto contention again we will need to rebuild our midfield as nothing is a 'given'

I tend to believe you are going to be right. With all the talk not refuted, it sounded like he'd already made up his mind that he wanted out. The silence was deafening And you cannot have a player dictating terms no matter how good a player they might be. Do that and before you know it, factions & cliques start appearing and that can last for years One caveat ... If we make it to a GF next year and/or win it, things might change But also, the club may well entertain the thought of receiving some prized draft picks in order to keep our window open. It takes 2 to tango Great player but there's a bit of baggage It's hard to see a trade happening this season but what if the Tigers come at us with a big offer? They'll have the capital

Ha! In horse racing, likely winners are called 'Morals' but no one in the industry is allowed to use the M word (so it's often used after the event which suits no one!)

We had a much better chance of winning the flag in 2022 rather than 2023 In 2023 we went into the finals with a D Grade forward line (with so many outs) and to expect to win 3 finals without any real fire-power up forward was totally unrealistic But in 2022 there was no such reasoning attached. But such was the euphoria of finally breaking through in 2021, we let the club off the hook. That was the year that got away from us Whilst the Cats were smart enough to rotate their better players, we just went with the same team and ran out of legs. But with better management, we would have at least made the PF In fact, as early as round 8 in 2022, it was obvious that we looked like a tired outfit. Class got us through to the top 4 but no legs The above is how I reckon many will see things in 5 or 10 years time unless ... we win another flag or 2 in the next 5 or 6 years If that happens, we won't be looking back This is what our forward line could have looked like in 2023 but for various reasons, Petty, JVR, Melksham & Brown didn't play. And Fritsch was banged up. T-Mac was a liability And after losing Gus, we couldn't use Petracca forward in the way we wanted to HF Fritsch (if fit) Petty Kozzie/Petracca F Melksham/Chandler JVR Brown/T-Mac (if fit) 2022 - No excuses 2023 - Reasons

Possibly but I've long held the belief that the league knows the result well before the night itself And their track history with reportable incidents/MRO/Tribunal is highly questionable as well They're are just like any other sporting body. They are a law unto themselves

Big game for Dallas on Friday and for those us who have streaming/cable and also get the public holiday off, we get to watch the game live!

Good summary, Gonzo That gives us 2 x Stone Cold Locks Bills +2.5 & Houston -4.5 1 or 2 others here might come up with a 1 or 2 more Might end up with 4 or 5 at the line

Bleacher Report Week4-NFL-Power-Rankings-where-does-every-team-stand 1 - KC 2 - Bills 3 - Vikes 4 - Lions 5 - Eagles 6 - Steelers 7 - Seattle 8 - Texans 9 - Packers 10 - Saints 11 - Bucs 12 - 49ers Others 13 - Jets 16 - Rams 17 - Dallas 19 - Atlanta 25 - Bears 29 - Jags

And how about the leak in 1978 when Blight won!! Seemed like everyone knew but the SP's probably didn't lay any bets After that we had the Mayne Nickless guards bringing in the locked-away votes in the big metal cases They kinda overdid it! They were still reading out the 1's then 2's then the 3's until 1984 so most of us knew it was a con So this time around, we were told before the 'count' that the Bont wasn't going to feature in the finish (?) How do they get away with this sort of stuff?

I was devastated at the time Maybe more so because I knew it was rigged. It added to the cruelity of Wells not winning But you live and learn and I became a cynic at a very young age haha

@Dr. Gonzo So which team is your stone cold lock this week? Home or away Anyone else got one? Mine is Houston -4.5

I've been absolutely miles off and in the last 5 or 6 years, the NFL has been really hard to read. So many upsets and we used to see more spreads of 10+ on a regular basis. The lines are much tighter these days KC -8.5 @ the Chargers is uninticing but the Chiefs might slip into gear. Same story for the 49ers at home (-10.5) Both teams will probably win but I don't like either line. The Chargers are the value as are the Texans But what would I know? haha

@Gorgoroth @Go the Biff @DeeSpencer @titan_uranus @Clintosaurus @Dee Zephyr @Dr. Gonzo @DemonDave @BDA @layzie @Dappa Dan @ElDiablo14 @JV7 Leaderboard Tipping Comp (points awarded this week in brackets) 11 - DemonDave (3+1) 5 - Go the Biff (1), DeeSpencer (1), layzie (1), Macca (1) 3 - BDA (1), Dr. Gonzo (1), JV7 (1), titan_uranus (1) 2 - Gorgoroth (0), Clintosaurus (0), Dee Zephyr (0) 1 - ElDiablo14 (0) https://Bleacherreport NFL -Week-3-Top-Takeaways-For-Every-Game