Macca

Might have been the one that got away although we didn't even reach the prelim final that season despite having a 16 & 6 record (did the same last year)

A Spy Among Friends looks the goods. Set in the cold war 60's centering around Kim Philby Stars two of my favourites ... Guy Pearce & Damian Lewis. Anna Maxwell also stars in the show and is very good

Probably need to go all the way back to the Smith era the last time the Demons & Pies occupied 1 & 2 on the ladder Checked 1990 and the teams were 2nd & 3rd for 3 consecutive weeks (rounds 12, 13 & 14) ... behind Essendon

Which, ironically, is what the filth supporters are famous for (more so fighting amongst each other) Strange entities the lot of them

I've said my bit and it's time to chat about how we're going to beat the Pies & Cats. We're going to have to beat both to get where we want to get to. To me they are the 2 standouts Saints, Port, Crows and Blues aren't going to be easy either. And the Lions Bank the next 2 with some ruthless footy and then it gets hard ... at Port, Freo at home is a must win, then Blues, Pies & Cats. After that the Giants & Saints We need to be fresh for the latter encounters too so some tweaking with the line-ups over the next 2 is important. Sooner or later the legs start to feel it (although 3 x 10 day breaks is handy) But hey, it's one week at a time. Always remember that!

Yes, the kid definitely did stay in the picture!

Yeah, like the J.E.T.S with Rodgers

Ruchmond bog average and GC not too bad but if this is their best we can only be in trouble if we don't bring our best Their teamwork is reasonably good but the Tigers just don't have the legs anymore. At the contest they are 1 or 2 players short

3 years instead of 2 can work as it essentially ties the player to the club for at least 2 years A well run club should be able to add at least 1 more year to the 3 years by the end of the first contract year Where as 2 years only is a bit skinny. I reckon it's a good idea but am interested to see what the 3 year contract is going to be worth And a player like Nick Daicos probably won't be heading elsewhere but why wouldn't you pay him extra in his 2nd year as a jesture of goodwill and as a lure to a contract extension

By and large I agree but again, it's just a spirited argument And my aim is not to change DS's mind on Brayshaw. It's more so those who aren't sure on his value that I'm looking at So going against a could-be tide is about influencing others to step-up. Not necessarily the person you might be arguing with Down the track, Brayshaw could well be not maligned at all. But there will be another player to take his place no doubt. That's how things roll

We live with our words ... it's nothing personal, you know that Just a spirited debate about the value of certain individuals It would be a dull old world if we always agreed ... I don't hold grudges and never will To me, these discussions online take the place of pubtalk ... as an example I was with a group of Demons watching the Essendon game at the local Eventually the umpires copped the ire and I argued against that appraisal. It was a spirited argument but then quickly forgotten once it was obvious that we got outplayed So keep posting the way you do DS. I just disagree with you occasionally

So here's a question How can a player be seen as a player who often turns the ball over yet at the same time somehow has an elite Disposal Efficiency rating? That's Brayshaw Rarely gets votes in the 'land award. Barely gets mentioned unless he plays an outstanding game Is it because he came 3rd in the Brownlow and now gets measured against that outlier season? I mean I wouldn't have had him 3rd in the Brownlow that year but I don't hold it against him

I'm sticking up for a player (Brayshaw) who is much maligned on this site Is that somehow against the sites code of conduct? Blinkered & triggered? I've seen you speak in exactly the same way about any number of players over the years You should be on my side as most of the needless arguments on this site are caused by the unfair criticisms of 1 or 2 players (often when the whole team has been at fault) In effect, I'm hosing down the fire and pulling people into line. Takes a while but it does work Eventually the knockers are subdued

So what did you think of their 3rd quarter against Geelong? They jumped out of the way and went fully bruise free. No one to show the way They actually now need to bring in 3 or 4 experienced players just to be competitive. But I could care less. I hope they struggle for the next decade

Coming for him? Who is the one making the inflammatory comments? What the hell does he expect?

Most of the team hey? But at the time you only mentioned Brayshaw. See there's where people like you continually get it wrong You are biased and because of that, hopelessly compromised. You have a screaming need to have someone in the gun. Which is unintelligent Besides all that, Brayshaw played well against the Eagles (when he was needed)

And @DeeSpencer You've got to own your words ... half way through the first quarter against the Eagles you wanted Brayshaw subbed off As it turned out he wasn't needed much as we swamped the Eagles. No errors for Gus, no clangers and 17 possessions in a game where he was hardly called upon And you wanted him subbed off halfway through the first quarter? Why?

No you were wrong on Lewis. Hawks loss was our gain Experience, know-how & showing the way is often not seen by many. It's not all about the stats. We needed him right to the end Look at the Hawks now. No real experience to show the way and they are doing a 'Melbourne' circa '07 - '13 One of the first things Roos did when he got here was bring in some experience. Quite a bit of it actually. And Lewis was part of that experience The Hawks will struggle for years in my view. Another insane, over-the-top youth policy. I would have thought that Mitchell might have known differently

The wings could be crowded with Langdon & Hunter both playing as wingmen When Salem returns we'll find a role for Gus ... he's the Mr.Fixit in this team. Can play tall too Brayshaw is a link player when he has the ball in hand ... sets up players heading goalwards so his disposals aren't necessarily going to be gaining a lot of distance But the next disposal or 2 will gain distance and ultimately, scoring opportunities. Oliver uses the ball the same way but they go about it differently Oliver's fortè is the release handball where as Gus's go is the short kick to a player (who is often not under pressure) As stated earlier, Gus is a coaches dream and he is severely underapprecuated here Rarely attracts votes as he is unobtrusive

Don't forget his DE rating which you've been highly critical of in the past. 2nd in the club behind only May and ahead of every other regular But of course any timy error gets magnified 10-fold by many here. Exaggeration comes to the fore And he doesn't play entire games as a backman minding a flanker. Often he plays as part of the zone or in the hole or often as a kick behind play You're blinkered and triggered on Gus as you often are with certain players. Lewis was another where you couldn't see his value and it took ages for you to see the value of T-Mac up forward It doesn't pay to individualise too much in a team sport. For instance, many of our backmen copped undue criticism back in the day when the real fault was further afield The end result has a cause & effect factor

The end of an era at the Packers Aaron Rodgers departs after a stellar career. And the right time too as the team needs to reset Been fantastic to watch with that amazing arm and he'll do well at the J.E.T.S ... @Dr. Gonzo and @beelzebub will be well pleased!! Super Bowls are hard to win and to get one is a real achievement. Many teams never taste that ultimate success But I can't help but think that with a great coach like Belichick the Packers could have won 3+ with Aaron at the helm Been saying for years that the club needed to build a better overall game to compliment Rodgers fantastic passing ability But without Rodgers building a decent playoff team might take some time Interested in the thoughts of others And the AFC East just got really interesting with Buffalo up and running along with Belichick still about

Trump

That's a good point ... earlier in this thread I made mention as to how our KPF's became, by default, decoys Both created contests (a fair bit of the time) which brought the crumbers & medium sized players into the play. 2 goals out of 22 for the 3 key talls (when we include Gawn) is unusual. Although Grundy kicked 2 goals But it was North Melbourne and from an overall perspective, they didn't provide the pressure that the good sides will provide The opposition also didn't provide intercept marks from their defence nor did they have many easy passages from our forward line We had an easy time of it but the pleasing thing was how switched on we were from the first minute

But here's the thing Every game we need to bring our best and be suitably switched on And the match-day plan has to be spot on every time. We cannot be outcoached in the match-ups (e.g. the ruck situation vs Bombers) Complacency brings the wake-up call and we've had 2 instances this season ... yet here we are sitting on top of the ladder with an excellent percentage and a half-decent schedule

It's a far cry from yesteryear when we wanted more than a dozen replaced when the cupboard was bare And as good as the Northey and Daniher teams were, our depth is quite something these days A concerted plan to have at least 30 AFL standard players with at least half that number being B+ or better. The management has been first class I like it, I like it a lot (can you supply the gif layz?!!)