Macca

Just last year Hibberd was out after r22 (dropped? Injured?) then missed r23 and the QF Recalled for the PF when Smith was injured

The chances are an injury could well appear and T-Mac could be near the top of emergencies or close to next in line (because of his versatility) Not forgetting that we have had a number of players who have missed out on selection because of a late injury (not publicised) or for Covid reasons And in an ideal world the MC might like him in the team (above the depth players) If we can make it to the GF Tom could find himself in the team by default

The other big factor is the money that may be on offer ... an extra $250k - $400k per year over a decent length of time is more than a little tempting. Along with the chance to return home? My guess is that at the very least, strong talks have been made between the various parties involved. With the stumbling block being the trade value. A stalemate looms

Well we don't know, AF and we are speculating but I'm not going to believe that all this talk has been merely heresay Remembering that LJ hasn't re-signed and that's a big pointer. If he wants to go home (and play for Freo) the terms of a trade will probably have been discussed Clubs work way in advance of the here and now these days. For instance, Scully was heading to GWS long before the details emerged. Perhaps more than a year out ... and that was 10 years ago. We have openly interviewed Grundy. More change However, an in-principle agreement is a moveable thing. Say for instance Jackson finishes off the season in stellar fashion? The trade varies? And it can go the other way too especially if an injury occurs

I reckon it's fairly obvious that we will replace LJ with another bona-fide starting 18 ruckman if LJ is traded Why else would we quite openly interview Grundy? And I see the 3 years difference in age between Gawn & Grundy as a positive. We get Grundy for 5 or 6 years and after 3 years of having Grundy as a ruckman we replace Gawn with another bona-fide ruckman or an understudy Another smooth change over much like the smooth change over between Jackson & Grundy (if LJ leaves) Of course something can always go wrong but any type of recruiting has an element of risk Against all that is has been our general recruiting in the last decade - first rate We are in very good hands and if ever there was a time to trust, it's now

And we have interviewed Grundy (that is public knowledge) so I it stands to reason that there is a fair chance that an in-principle trade has possibly been agreed to for Jackson's services Let's face it, it would be hard to believe that Jackson possibly being on the move has just been a lot of talk. Where there's smoke, there's fire and all that So logically, Grundy therefore steps in as the replacement for Jackson The thinking around footy clubs (and the supporters) is to just play one ruckman with another tall used in a chop-out role But by contrast, Gawn played mainly forward against the Lions in r23 but he rucked in at least 40% of the ground and had 26 hit outs. That's playing a large role as a ruckman yet LJ was the main man

Not if the strategy is to play 2 first 18 rucks in the same team And when we drafted Jackson that was the path that we undertook. So replacing Jackson with Grundy just continues on that same path. And Grundy is a proven ruckman Either Jackson or Grundy will/would be paid quite well (as well as Gawn) The talk is that the Pies can pay a percentage of Grundy's contract ongoing and if all it takes is a swap of draft picks to acquire Grundy, he comes cheap The FD/MC decided long ago that we were not going to use Gawn as the sole ruckman. Remembering that Gawn will be a 31yo going into next season The way I see it, going into 2023 Gawn would have 2 or 3 years left and Grundy 5 or 6 years left. When Gawn retires we replace him with another starting 18 ruckman to work with Grundy (or Jackson) That's of course if we continue down the path of playing 2 first 18 ruckman in the same team

As others have mentioned, T-Mac as the medi-sub could be a good fit (if he is fit enough) His versatility means that he can cover in a number of positions However, Jordon probably stays as the sub or they may install T-Mac (20% chance?) if the MC are looking for more versatility Jordon is also quite versatile but can't play as a key back or as a key forward I can't see Tom getting into the 22 on Friday unless there's an injury. As it stands, Salem is an inclusion for someone anyway

Yes, Ch10 seemed like an ideal fit for the Big Bash ... could end up there the way things are going, TD! Ch7 need to make the Tests work though and that shouldn't be too much of an ask ... Ch9 look like they are all-in with the Tennis (they are covering the US Open as well starting just after midnight tonight) Covid wasn't kind to the t20's though. The sport needs a packed house to get the viewers engaged. Being a new sport, the games looked strange played in front of empty stands As for the International draft, a fizzer according to the pundits And the Big Bash is up against the new UAE t20 tournament as well as the new South African league (where all the teams are owned by consortiums from the IPL) The BBL season is going to be right up against it this summer

Meanwhile, Channel 7 are suing CA with regards the Big Bash and the supposed lesser quality of the product (lower ratings as a result) An unprecedented move as I can't ever remember anything of the sort ever happening here in Australia or overseas

Eels all over the Broncos here - looking good A lot to play for with 4th spot at play for the Eels whilst the Broncos can slip out of the 8 with a loss

The Pies play a very attacking style and that style can lead to turnovers and being scored against ... but they are quite good at pressuring opposition midfielders forcing them wide which can lead to inconsequential inside 50 forays for the opposition Often eventuating in an out of bounds 45m - 25m out from goal as compared to their own players on the end of a pass in or around the hot spot in a 1 on 1 (when they venture forward) If there was a stat on dynamic inside 50's I suspect the Pies would be right up there And they wouldn't have an abundance of inconsequential inside 50 forays themselves That's the eye test though so others might disagree

Fremantle drawing that match against the Tigers a few weeks back proved very costly in the end ... 4th spot and a double chance in fact Ironically, if the Blues/Pies game had have finished in a draw the Pies would have dropped to 5th All it might have taken was Durdin to kick the ball to the goal square ... any number of Blues players could have been on the scene to punch the ball through for a point We've all had our moments though and the memories of that last quarter in the '87 Prelim final is a good example (except we had 3 or 4 chances to seal victory that day) Anyway, more proof that a win is a better result than a draw but not forgetting that a draw is a better result than a loss ... ask Carlton 😉

Am I right in saying that all our finals will be at the MCG? Even if we lost to Sydney we wouldn't be playing in Sydney on the Prelim Final weekend Win or lose and we stay at the MCG throughout

Terrible decision ... the worst spot to kick it to under the circumstances. Even if there was a Carlton player in the vicinity the chances are the ball gets punched out of bounds 20 metres from goal Control what you can control and as for the other 50/50 decisions, free kicks and eventualities, a lot of them are out of a teams control

(If) an in-principle agreement has been made between our club and the destination club for LJ's services then a fair bit of wriggle room has to be factored in as well For instance, a month or so ago a number of people here were suggesting that we should take what we can get for LJ ... but now those types have gone quiet and the new thinking is that any sort of trade value heading our way probably won't be enough LJ's stocks are rising by the week and that's good for us. Gawn's excellent game forward on Friday can mean that LJ continues on as the main ruckman and there's no reason that he can't excel as the main man

Max played a very valuable part in last night's win We played him in a proper forward's role and Max competed exceptionally well with a lot of grunt work involved. As well as attaining 26 hitouts (often in the same forward line) Brown looked a bit freed up as a consequence. Led into space created by Gawn (on occasions) Gawn played in the corridor often 50m - 75m out from goal and there was lots of front & centre activity on the back of his endless efforts Our forward line as a whole functioned really well as a result. Many of our shots at goal were from the hot spot area

Playing 2 dominant ruckmen in the same team is what we do And the MC obviously took that path when we drafted LJ in 2019. So the overall structural decision was made 3 years ago. Getting Grundy in to replace LJ (if he goes) just continues the direction we've already taken

Well in the end we won 3 of our last 4 which is an excellent result, all things considered. Pies the only hiccup but we'll have learned a lot from that loss 2 wins on the road against 2 top 4 aspirants as well ... 2 thrashings in fact. Combined scoreline Freo/Brisbane 13.18 vs 30.20. Away from home! We've hit our straps at the right time. And you need a bit of luck to offset the bad luck. Close win against the Blues vs injuries to our key personnel at various times And is that now 12 or 13 wins in a row outside of Victoria? We can win anywhere and we look very comfortable outside of the comfort zone. Not sure it exists in the minds of the players. We are focussed We are a very confident bunch, nothing intimidates us and our teamwork tonight was fantastic Great to watch

The Reigning Premier sends a message!

You'd take that scoreline at the start of the game ... most would have been happy with any sort of win Swans in a fortnight ... at the G or SCG we can beat them

Hungry!!!

Brayshaw dominating ... leading possession winner Another goal from his initial possession

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What about the pressure he's under Those 2 out on the fulls didn't hurt us anyway so where's the damage?