Macca

Yes it's hard to see our team falling away with all the young talent we have on the list (and experienced talent of course) The template is there now and we just need those within the club to remain hungry (ravenous) whilst endeavouring to stay ahead of the game making smart moves Our best beats both of the teams tonight but we were not always at our best in the 2nd half of last year Recruit well and keep extending the window

Yep and it's gone from maybe 3 pages in the godawful years to often 15+ pages these days I suppose being a good team means less envy when watching the rivals play? So we can easily watch the good teams (now) with a more discerning eye

Actually, when we were crud the other games were barely talked about. Many here were saying that they weren't watching other games mainly because it was so painful to watch our games (2012 - about 2015) As we improved and became a top side, these threads became popular again. Last year was probably the most popular for the 'Other games'

Maybe not

Just watched the 'Match of the Day' highlights and on another day, Man Utd might have scored once with their opportunities and maybe Liverpool only 3 or 4 times In terms of goals scored, everything seemed to go right for Liverpool in terms of deflections and the way the ball was pinging around in their favour ... but they were the superior team of course Defensively Man Utd weren't good and they got sliced up In terms of CL spots (apart from Man City & Arsenal) United should be able to consolidate 3rd spot whilst Spurs, Liverpool & Newcastle will fight for the 4th spot As for the Title, can the Gunners prevail? They are 5 points clear with 12 games to go so there's a lot to play out

Ouch! Mind you, my Hammers are headed for relegation unless they get their act together! They are sticking with David Moyes (for now) But the Man Utd loss is being described as the worst ever (especially to a rival in Liverpool) It's a bit like that 7-1 win to Germany over Brazil in the World Cup (in Brazil) Doesn't get forgotten easily

We're primed and ready to go! The teamwork was great and we ran hard all day. 2 wings (Langdon & Hunter) to be a driving force as well as the run out of half back (Salem, Rivers, Brayshaw) The other teams are possibly going to be forced to play 2 ruckmen against us with 1 of them a probable liability as the match goes into the 2nd half. 2 x All Australian ruckmen versus what? There's a lot to like and it looks like we'll he playing 3 talls forward (rotating about within the forward line) And we looked quite mobile despite playing a tall forward line We're going to be awfully difficult for the other teams to match-up on. More of a nightmare for the opposition match committee's And we looked very fit

Full credit to the Aussies for a stirring win in the 3rd Test. The pitch was a tad 'questionable' but to win by 9 wickets on a bush track was nonetheless, quite an achievement We have now qualified for the World Test Championship* and our opponent may well be in fact, India But India can miss out if they don't win the 4th Test and if Sri Lanka win both of their tests at home to New Zealand. Which is quite possible but not probable But who knows? I didn't believe we had a chance of winning the 3rd or 4th Test but we could now win the final test if augers well *The World Test Championship will be held from the 7th June until the 12th June (6th day is a reserve day) at the Oval

I believe you are right ... vaguely remember the same

Pertaining to your last paragraph ... we ourselves can have a corridor based, ball-in-motion style as well as some real dash off half back. It's entirely do-able. We played that style quite a bit in 2021 (Finals especially) And 2021 is still quite recent right now I seem to remember Salem & Rivers (especially) dashing out of our defence a lot in 2021 and either linking up with the midfield or delivering to leading forwards. (Rivers mainly linked up with the midfielders) Yes, that largely went missing last year (injuries played a part re Rivers & Salem) and Langdon wasn't as good either. Hunt the dasher was used as a defensive lock down player. So we definitely lost our dash. Brayshaw played well across half back last year but he plays a different style Salem himself had 5 inside 50 entries in the first quarter in the 2021 GF If we hadn't have put together 16 wins last year then the thinking might have been ... premiership hangover! It's an easy thing to say when a premiership team drops away but it is a very real thing that does happen quite a lot

Harmes will be ok as it's only one hit out. Certainly wasn't at his best but we know how good he can be van Rooyen needs time as he is still only 19. First of all he needs to break into the team and then needs a block of 3 or 4 games to show his wares But Hunter really stood out especially because it was his first go in the Demons jumper. He's hit the ground running and if he & Langdon both shine this year on both wings, lookout! If he'd picked up 15 possessions instead of 27 we'd probably be quite pleased with his output first time up Also, Grundy was quite good ... he's certainly got a presence and is imposing. And that's what you want from a ruckman (we've got 2 as well) The possessions will come

27 possessions to Hunter was most pleasing Rivers, Kozzie & Bowey getting amongst it through the middle was good to see Grundy & Gawn worked quite well in terms of both having a real presence in different parts of the ground ... that will concern the other teams McVee looked alright too. Brown & Chandler were ok as well

Related to SIM card We are creatures of habit 🍺🙂

We are largely on the same page anyway, DS What really matters is looking ahead and yesterday didn't answer too many questions nor was it ever going to. Saints didn't offer much As Jaded said in a post above, the Tigers clash will tell us more but really, the answer lies in the season proper We aren't going to declare our hand until then and rightly so Still, it's nice to win by 10 goals in the 4 periods allotted to the Seniors. We've got a good list so we'll be contending if augers well My one concern is our forward line functionality and our delivery into the forward line (as stated earlier, there are more than a few areas pertaining to that functionality)

Yeah ok but what about 2021? I'm counting that year in as well as last year. It seems you're only talking about last year Appraise both years so with regards to most of 2021 and a reasonable amount of 2022 and you'll find that we have attacked hard from half back and through the corridor If it's recency bias, then you make good points. But you have to count the sum of all parts (both years) So why is 2021 important to this discussion? Because if we don't attack hard from half back and through the corridor as we did in 2021, then I don't hold out much hope of saluting again. If we counted 2020 as well, then our movement was often stagnant that year (missed finals with a decent list) So 2022 is important as well in terms of what not to do ... to counter a crowded forward line we can't allow teams to have the time to flood back. And bomb it in as a counter measure? Doesn't work So move the ball quickly and directly with precision as a default move (as we did in 2021) By contrast, the Pies weren't moving the ball with speed, precision and directness in 2021 But we did win 16 games last year so there many times when we did move the ball quite well. But not enough of that sort of ball movement when it counted and our ball movement from the midfield often consisted of the long bomb It's a bit like the long ball in soccer ... often obsolete for the good teams and now largely the domain of the strugglers

And we attack from half back and through the corridor as well whenever applicable. So that part of it is identical apart from when we attack through Langdon's wing. The pies attack through their wings on occasions as well. We do what they do (or vice-versa) And sometimes we'll prefer to attack in a more careful way through our defensive wing. But the Pies do that as well when they are forced to do so However, I will say that the other teams flood our forward line as a default move so to overcome that is not easy So I don't see much of a difference between the 2 teams apart from the midfield area onwards So if we periodically fall down is from the midfield onwards, that is the fault of our midfield coach, the overall coaching, the midfielders themselves and the forward line coaching as well as the forwards not presenting well enough So it's all of that, all at once Again, the above is not pertaining to yesterday per se. It's more an observation from 2021 & 2022 And we need to get better with our inside 50 forays if we are to win big again. And that has been a talking point from about midway through last season (by many here) At our best (2021) we attacked furiously from half back and through the midfield. Last year less so, but we often had to deal with our forward line being crowded so it became diificult to pin-point targets up forward. Thus, the bombing it in whilst hoping to create scoring opportunities from those long bombs (?)

Well I was more referencing last year as opposed to yesterday but the point remains regardless And in 2021 the tactic often worked ... but the other teams have done their homework and also, the game and gameplans evolve As previously stated, to the eye at least, the Pies are very efficient when they enter their forward 50

The following is not necessarily particular to yesterday's game (but some instances pertaining did occur) Bombing it deep when we're outnumbered deep often leads to uncontested marks to the opposition. And when our forwards get to the contest from those long bombs we rarely take marks anyway. As a percentage play, it doesn't work consistently enough Far more thinking is required with our forward 50 entries. And all our forwards need to be on the move too in order to create multiple options. Playing in front and/or creating separation is a must It's really not all that complicated ... lowering the eyes should be a prerequisite for our midfielders Hate to say it but we could learn a bit by how the Pies go about it So we get the first bit right ... a midfield that gets an abundance of the ball thus creating lots of forward 50 entries If we want to win another flag we need to be far more efficient heading into the forward line

Gator's 2/3 parlay is worth passing on this week Sandown R5 #2 Pericles 3.30 Sandown R7 #12 Steel City 5.50 Sandown R8 #1 I'm Thunderstruck 3.70 Close on 70-1 for the treble

And the U.S Army had the MCG as their home away from home during the 2nd World War! haha Interlopers!!!

And we haven't always had the MCG as our home ground as pointed out by @No. 31 We played our home games at a ground called 'The Metropolitan Ground' situated between the MCG & Wellington Rd (between the years 1865 to 1885) To be more precise, Yarra Park which probably included Yarra Park No.1 Oval. Ironically, an area previously discussed as a new home base From 1885 to 1890 we played our home games at what is now known as the Lexus centre (on & off) Carlton played their home games at the MCG between 1885 & 1890. Who knew? Blueseum has more details if interested Obviously Richmond became a 'Co-Tenant' in the early 1960's so they were 2nd (actually 3rd if we count Carlton as the first tenant from the olden days) But the MCG is probably seen as our ground by most (aside from Tiger supporters and now, Pie supporters) Essendon play at the MCG a lot as well so they could even lay claim But these days the MCG is often dubbed the people's ground and that's probably a more apt description Personally, I call it our home ground and all the rest are just interlopers!!

I reckon we're shell-shocked and India will be going all-out to crush our team So it won't matter what team we put forward, the 2 pitches in the final 2 tests will be raging turners and we've got no chance on skill alone anyway We can only do well if India rest on their laurels ... and that, I can't see. They are out to prove to the World that they are the Kings of cricket There's probably 50 spinners in India who would love to take the place of Ashwin, Jadeja or Axar. So expect those 3 to go for the jugular I'll be surprised if it isn't a 4-nil shellacking

Agree wholeheartedly I didn't mind playing Agar as left arm orthodox bowling is lethal in India ... even Stephen O'Keefe took 11 wickets in a Test match in India and he bowls nude-nuts! Michael Clarke took wickets in India with his pie-floaters But the Agar selection/non selection is small-potatoes compared to the big picture And I reckon CA has misread the room. Real cricket fans care passionately about all test series but playing India and the winning or losing against them is huge To get thrashed is unacceptable and there will be repercussions with regards to the make-up of the team. Leadership has to be questioned too ... Cummins & McDonald will come under fire unless we stop losing in the way we are losing right now We can't even beat Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka anymore (lost or drawn the last 2 series played there) As previously stated, we're a B grade outfit these days and the Poms will be well prepared for the Ashes contest

I remember the days when we would play 2, 3 or even 4 warm-up games before the Tests began. All first-class and all 3 day games Now it's virtually nothing. So to say the least, we were ill-prepared. Player preperation was playing big-bash cricket on roads (seriously??) It's unprofessional and that's on CA ... the Test series' against India rivals the Ashes Tests these days. It's a big-ticket affair So we can blame the players (as I have) but what about the governing body, grazman?

In Secret, Giga Kick* & Coolangatta will offer fierce opposition in the Newmarket, GtB, but I Wish I Win's finish on Saturday (in the Lightning) was spectacular Private Eye & Buenos Noches will be powering home as well you'd imagine So it will be another fabulous rendition of the time-honoured classic (March 11th) The All-Star Mile is on March 18th so could 'I Wish I Win' back up so soon a week later up to the mile? It's got the 3rd most votes so far so it's assured of a start *Giga Kick might only run in Sydney this Autumn (Challenge Stakes, TJ Smith Stakes and maybe then Royal Ascot?) Footnote: There's talk that 'I Wish I Win' might be entered for Royal Ascot as well