Macca

Yep, it's a road but it might turn later on in the match. Regardless, the spinners might get a bit of work anyway Travis Head could be handy with his offies and we've got 3 part-time leggies. The batsmen seem to be handling the quicks ok Edit: And right on cue Scotty Boland grabs a wicket right on lunch. Nice delivery too

We punch way above our weight with regards to membership, crowd numbers etc etc There are a few here who think that we should have Collingwood or Richmond type support after winning 1 flag in 6 decades They are not being realistic as we're 10 years behind and would need to be in contention for 8 of the next 10 years to even go close to catching all the way up We just don't have that many supporters compared to the big clubs And we are not sleeping giants either. Our supporter build will take some time (manic, huge support like the big clubs) That's not to say we don't have good support, we do. Just not in big numbers I reckon the actual membership numbers cloud the thinking ... right across the board, for all the clubs, probably only about 25% - 35% of members attend games Many are happy to just plough their money into the club as a way of feeling connected

As @Kozzie4PM mentioned, it was '88 & '89 AFLTables.com has every result with a lot of the player stats and is a brilliant site ... about the only thing missing are highlights of any any given game One player stat that stands out is Bill Brittingham scoring 2.12 in the '48 drawn grand final against us (we won the replay) To be fair he was an integral part of 3 premierships for the Bombers but that 2 goals 12 behinds would haunt anyone for life. 3.11 and they win

Also, in our last 15 encounters against the Pies in finals, we've won 14 of those matches. 14-1 So if anyone here has any Magpie 'acquaintances', make sure you let them know about that record

That's my pick as well Pure artistry at work (poetry in motion) If that doesn't get you off your feet nothing will! Mouth agape stuff!

Yep and he hasn't played the role of an attacking midfielder for an age ... probably since 2018 Since then he has played various roles and that's the way it is As stated earlier, Brayshaw is a coaches dream and I'm not sure we've got a player on our list who could come close to playing his role with the same skill set and versatility Severely underrated on this site ... many just want to talk about a few errors And again, as stated earlier, all of our players turn it over from time to time so lets get stuck into every other player as well hey? (to be fair)

I'll be taking an active interest in the Women's World Cup. Might get to a game or 3 if work permits Matilda's need to start well ... the other 3 teams in our group are Ireland, Nigeria & Canada From what I can gather, the top 10 teams are as follows ... USA, England, Spain, Germany, Australia France, Sweden, Netherlands, Brazil, Canada Starts July 20th so just over a month away

Brayshaw could play as a pure midfielder but he does a lot of good work in traffic in that area between just behind the middle and deep half back From one side of the ground to the other. It's where we employ the press and he's right in the thick of it ... usually dishing off quick handpasses That's his role and it's vital. In soccer terms he's playing as a defensive midfielder or as a holding midfielder Plus he plays tall so he competes well in the air and also, he reads the play well Now, as for the errors, I'd agree they were terrible but once he settled back into his normal role, he was terrific Another longish post but his role takes a bit of explaining

I'm not sure our MC will be as sure, AF ... we'll need to at least replicate our all over the ground pressure along with our defence being stellar again I reckon they will learn a lot from the game (as losses often do) and they could easily be better prepared next time. Sidebottom, De Goey & Elliott add a lot Of course we were without Oliver, Petty & Bowey so we weren't at full strength either It's more about can we stifle their system again and this time, kick well in front of goal? Because we're going to have to do both next time up As good as we were yesterday, we only won by a kick when we should have put them away earlier If we'd thumped them yesterday, it may have set them back but they'll be thinking they can get us next time As long as we finish the season well, we'll be almost certainly meeting them at some stage during the finals ... can't wait to play them again

Saying Brayshaw is only just in front of Harmes & Jordon is unfair though. And quite laughable He is a miles better player than those 2 and in front of about another 10 players in the team Spargo, ANB, Kozzie, Tomlinson, Smith, JVR, Hibberd, McVee, Chandler & Sparrow are all behind Brayshaw in the pecking order The club seems to think so too as it was only recently that he was signed to a lucrative long term deal Outright 5th in the Demonland award and that's with a heavy bias against the bloke And he'd be doing very well in the B & F It's like he has to play a standout A grade game to get any credit (just 2 weeks ago that happened) Post too long for you? Bad luck

Ball retention is easier said than done I prefer the instant forgive file thinking. And it's how a player plays on an overall basis that matters (game to game) Even the best A grade players make errors and 2 of our best can turn the ball over more than we'd like (Oliver & Petracca) But overall? They are both fantastic

Go back and watch the game again ... you had his errors in your head so it wouldn't have mattered how well he played afterwards I thought he was terrific after a dodgy start So at least I'm acknowledging the errors ... you won't acknowledge his good play (properly) There's the difference. I'm being fair and you aren't being fair

You just don't like what I've got say Read any of binny's posts lately? There's some waffle for you haha

@old55 Would you argree that Brayshaw's disposal levels were A1 after making a couple of errors early in the first quarter? 20 effective disposals? (In traffic)

Sorry, haven't got the time I use the DE as a guide, as that is the best way to view it I agree that the efficiency gradings are questionable but it's like wiki, it doesn't have to be entirely accurate We live in a close enough it's good enough world so I allow players, umpires and even you to make errors I'd rather stick up for my own players So let's agree to disagree but I won't be changing my view on Brayshaw in a hurry. He's a valuable asset on a long term deal For you to put him in the same category with Harmes & Jordon is laughable. Neither of those 2 can get a regular game

He's got a fundamental role in the team as he is easily our best utility. Can play a number of roles even at half forward if required He's Mr Versatlity who once again had 20 efficient disposals yesterday He'd be a coach's dream

I disagree on Brayshaw I see him as one of the first picked and I don't play favourites (nor do I ever have anyone in the gun) After a couple of errors early Brayshaw's disposal levels (in traffic) was impeccable He got it 24 times too so at 83% DE that means he was only inneficient 4 times That's elite cinsidering he was in traffic a lot of the time Petracca went at 50% out of traffic So who used the ball better overall out of those 2? And where's the critical analysis of Petracca? To the eye Tomlinson used the ball well with his 15 possesions ... DE rating of 93% so there's the confirmation To be fair, you have to be fair so no cherry picking AF Highlighting mistakes is one thing but not acknowledging good play is disingenuous

By who? Discredited by those who think that a 70% DE is a fail? 70% is actually decent especially for those in traffic Used properly it's a good stat After a couple of early errors Brayshaw was impeccable with his ball use Those who can't see that are not watching the game closely enough And Brayshaw's excellent ball use is never highlighted, only his errors

Brayshaw is miles ahead of Harmes & Jordon. There's a huge gap lf we were point out all the errors made by all our players, the argument would make more sense Not running hard to create a contest is one such error that happens countless times during a game by many of our players But Brayshaw's biggest asset is he continually gets to contests ... and he does that better than many of our players His actual disposal numbers are quite high considering his role as a trouble shooter/utility And his DE% sitting above 80 all season is fantastic He is going to surprise many here with his B & F finish. He's played well season but his errors are the only thing talked about Petracca went at 50% DE yesterday ... so half of his possessions were inefficient (half) ... but to me that's not an issue either The consistent & fair argument would be to point out all the errors made by all our players And that includes not getting to enough contests, 2nd to the ball, not playing in front, not spoiling well, not running to position etc etc. In 4 games this season we failed in most of those areas But Brayshaw does all of the above well with the odd errant kick thrown in

ANB had a fine game. Made a couple of errors but so did every player on the field

I'm wondering why they don't single out every single player? Because all our players make errors as does every player in the league I reckon it's just pure scapegoating and those needing something to moan about Some can only be happy when they're whinging. Those types would clear a room in 5 minutes

If we were to lambast all of our players who make errors and as a consequence want them replaced, just about the whole team would need to be replaced Backmen are going to get outmarked, forwards are going to drop marks, players give away free kicks, we're going to get beaten to the ball at times etc etc That's the sport. So from an overall perspective, if the team makes less errors than the opposition, we'll probably win That was yesterday's game ... in the end, Collingwood made more errors than what we did due the same players who made errors for us applying great pressure And sometimes applying great pressure might mean that 4/5ths of your disposals hit a target (as it did with Brayshaw 83% DE, Salem 83%, Rivers 78%, Tomlinson 93%, May 78% etc etc) In my view 65% - 70% DE is quite reasonable. Anything above that is very good to excellent

Brayshaw will not be going anywhere As you said, as a pure utility he is extremely valuable. Can play in a variety of positions His knockers are clueless and they focus on a couple of errors way too much. Theirs is unintelligent analysis He'd be close to top 5 in our B & F ... even in the Demonland award he's sitting 5th and that's with many of the easily influenced not game enough to award him votes The smart thinkers know his value

Hunter was another who excelled after turning the ball over early. He is often required to kick long down the line (or slightly inboard) so if that kick is to a contest, it's up to the recipient to fight hard for possession. Hunter's done his bit Never gave up and had 28 disposals in the end. One of our best (along with Brayshaw) So it's the sum of all the parts Kicking for goal was poor today but we've been excellent in that area for most of the season So a bit of simulated goal kicking practice to get back on track and away we go

Brayshaw doesn't get enough credit for all the terrific work that he does. Often handballing off to a player in a better position. Deft touches on a constant basis. Competes hard and always puts his body on the line. Excellent spoiler as well His number of errors are often greatly exaggerated and his good work is played down and often ignored 24 touches at 83% Petracca went at 50% but there's no thought of throwing him down to the 2nds Viney went at 68% ... that means that a 3rd of his disposals were not effective Yet he was B.O.G So he (Brayshaw) had a great deal more than a couple of important clearances. That evaluation is utter nonsense He was fantastic after a dodgy first 15 minutes But all our players can turn the ball over such is the nature of the sport. It lends itself to forced errors and unforced errors At ground level (as opposed to up in the stands) it's very difficult to hit targets at distance. So players have to take risks delivering into crowded areas when kicking over 30 metres We need to allow players to make a few mistakes. You want perfection, you're watching the wrong sport The game is full of errors. And excellent disposals. You get both, that's the sport Collingwood made a stack of errors today and that was uncharacteristic ... but they all just didn't lose their skill levels overnight! We pressured them into errors. Again, that's the sport Take the good with the bad I say It would be different if we were talking about a player with low possession numbers making errors half the time That's a whole other argument