Macca

Got the exacta in the Cherry Tortoni race Wadda ... won well and looks to have a bright future. But 'Front Page' looked ultra impressive in winning the Creswick Stakes ... looks to have a big future. Gytrash won the race last year whilst Nature Strip won the year before so the race has produced some handy types. Both horses Blackbookers for sure.

Went close with the last 2 picks ... Well done DZ with Hello Youmzain. Fought on really well and I had a bit on for the win. And Pinatubo possibly loomed too early as apparently the horse just gets the mile. Dettori got the win for his horse and Frankie is riding as well as ever. Sha Tin for the last 4 races is my plan tomorrow. A quaddie and a few exactas.

Ah well, there's always the late double ? By the way, we are overdue for the late double to salute too. Not sure it's ever happened

I've ended up going local Wadda as I'm reasonably confident with JMac onboard ... Best Bet Randwick Race 5 No.6 Southern Lad (Win) $3.00 Pinatubo is a terrific pick for tomorrow night (stole my thunder!) ... needed the run last time and is sure to fight out the finish this time.

A commanding performance. But sadly, the horse would get too much weight in the Melbourne Cup or Caulfield Cup but you have to wonder whether either race is a true handicap these days anyway. Got to have a high rating just to get into either race ... and they have cut off the loophole for the Northern Hemisphere 3yo's. So the weight difference has shrunk between top & bottom. Now is the time to make both races SWP or WFA because we're close enough to it anyway. And the World's best stayers don't feature. Make the races true international affairs. And if a horse like Stradivarius won either cup at shortish odds then so be it. We'd hail the champion horse.

Probably right Wadda ... although my picks are mostly still running ? I usually do ok at Ascot too ... bit more confident about the Sat night racing though and Stradivarius should win the Gold Cup tonight. Very short so multi only. Just need to find another winner to go with it.

I'll almost certainly pick out something from the Saturday night Ascot meeting. There's 3 G1's on offer so something will no doubt stand out.

Royal Ascot it is then lads? Go to RacingPost.com for all the news and form. Once there just click on any horse for the form I watch out for the tips and the guest tipster (which get posted up on the day) The odds are up earlier though.

Battaash wins. Commanding performance - all class. In the end, the even money offered was money for old rope. I was on Glass Slippers for a bit of value (in a double with Circus Maximus) but the fillly was no match for the winner.

Mogul presented and then didn't run on. The winner (Pyledriver) wins at 20-1. Carrying a bit of condition was Mogul but no excuses. Form is tricky, all the same. Nearly all the horses are first up after a long break.

Good thinking Wadda The racing on Friday night & Saturday night from Ascot is first class A lot of familiar names with 10 Group races to choose from. We should be able to find 3 winners amongst those events. I was on Frankly Darling as well ... Mogal should win too. Mogul is a full brother to 'Japan' (who races in the Prince of Wales Stakes tomorrow) Addeybb is in the same race ... won 2 G1's in Oz in our Autumn.

Yeah I've had a bit of a flutter tonight Wadda Just a couple of one-off doubles & win bets. As you said, some handy types running around and the favoured runners usually find their way into the finish. Great racing to be had. Should we resurrect the Monkey Business thread for our best bets? AFL & NRL back in full swing as is the EPL from Thursday onwards. Maybe get our picks in before Saturday? We may need a break during the winter racing as has been the tradition (apart from having an interest in UK & Irish racing festivals)

As for our collective leadership on the field, where is it? Of the experienced players who set foot on the ground last Saturday, how many came close to playing at their best? Gawn - yes, Petracca - yes All others, no. Oliver is below his best (as he was last year despite winning the B & F) He's got the ability to be pure A grade and should be dominating. Jones, Salem, May, Lever, Jetta, T-Mac, Brayshaw, Fritsch, Harmes, Langdon, Melksham, Tomlinson & Viney can all play much better than their current output. And none of them are rookies who lack experience. So why is that? Whatever the answer is, it can't just be the coach. Goodwin may not be a great coach but last year's pitiful performance was on the players IMO. We beat Essendon and things might improve but I'm not holding my breath.

We need to look further than the coach ... and previously, its often where I have looked (first) But not this time. We have deep cultural issues and the A-end of the problem is the output of the players. So does the fish rot at the head PF? I believe so but not every time. Were Skilton & Ditterich poor coaches? Record says maybe but neither coach had the cattle Either did Barassi who lost 21 games in his first year nor Roos who lost 18 games in his first year. Have we had the same type of Board for all these past decades? Do we need to look at the Board, Jackson, Pert & Mahoney as well? I say yes. Let them sort it out for once. So we've got a problem at the top and a problem with the output of our experienced players (who go missing when the heat is applied) Cause and effect That's My Take!

There's a few things in favour of Goodwin being retained until at least the end of 2021 The biggie is the financial aspect ... as others here have pointed out paying Goodwin out is an added expense we simply can't afford. Let's not forget that we posted up a loss of $1.5Million in 2019 despite still receiving the Pokies & NT money. And we are going to be front and centre with our hand out to the AFL to help try and balance the books this year & next. I reckon we'll win enough games this year to keep his head above water too. 7 or 8 wins will suffice in a 17 round season. Now, that's not my ambition for the club more so what I reckon will probably happen. And we did win 2 finals in 2018 so there's that. The players are more at fault in my opinion ... self satisfied and we switch off when we shouldn't (all too often) We've got too many on our list who just aren't up to it. We're a decent side on paper only. The same blokes who can play well go missing way too much ... the 2nd half against Carlton was your perfect example Goodwin may not be a great coach but he's not nearly as incompetent as many here make out. We could change the coach but I'm not sure the results would change that much.

You are correct with the evaluation of our forwards ... collectively, they are below par in nearly all facets of forward play. And unless we can find some personell who do know how to play as forwards, we won't be winning many games. And I can fully understand why Jackson was/is preferred to Weideman & Brown ... Weideman won't play in front and is therefore of no value as a KPF whilst Brown is pure back up. Small forwards who perform well generally need decent big key forwards to feed off ... so Kossie on his own is asking a bit much (if people here are thinking he'll be some sort of savior) We could rest Jackson (I wouldn't) but his replacement won't improve the team IMO. Unfortunately our forward line improving might have to wait until the off-season. In other words, with a change of personell. In the meantime, in a year where we will struggle to figure, we may as well get some game time into Jackson. I was calling for his inclusion before the season for the same (above) reasoning. T-Mac has regressed to a point where he is only getting a game because the cupboard is bare. He'd otherwise be out. Melksham is overrated, Hannan jogs around, Spargo is too slow and Petracca is needed further afield whilst Fritsch can't kick straight. And our forward line pressure is not AFL standard. Compare our forward line to Richmond's - the difference is stark.

As a few others have mentioned here it's the experienced players that keep letting the team down - as a collective. Been going on for years. Blooding youngsters instead of persevering with NQR's is a necessity. But don't blame the newbies. So it's not one individual experienced player it is all of them bar maybe 2 or 3. And it's never the same 2 or 3 ... seems to work in rotation. Who amongst our experienced players stamps their authority on a match every game? Gawn? Who else? We are lazy and we lack character (especially under pressure) Endemic in the club's culture. We should have crushed Carlton today ... we had a chance to put the jackboot on their throat but we shied away (again) The participation award seems to satisfy. However, we can beat Essendon next week because they're below average as well. After that, who knows?

Best Bet Rosehill Race 8 No.3 Bangkok (Place) $3.30

Yes we need to display high footy IQ with the ball in hand ... either taught and/or Goodwin needs to extract the best from those with those talents (notably Gus, Trac & Clarrie) And our forwards need to work really hard to create targets ... we don't have too many natural forwards but they can at least have a 100% work rate. No excuses. David Williams-like is what is needed. Footy hasn't changed that much in that area, rjay. High work rate = positive results.

Better to show some real character when it doesn't matter. So when the heat really is applied you're well prepared. But judging by your tone anything less than a proper victory against the Blues just won't cut it. There's a few things that need to happen if we're going to play finals (actually contending for the flag is a whole different matter) Leg speed & quick ball movement Proper ball skills especially accurate kicking to position & space. A functioning forward line (the biggie) A connect between the midfield & the forward line. Clean clearance work with a dominant ruckman A defence that plays tight and doesn't leak goals. We've got issues with all of the above so we'll need to improve immensely, right across the board. And do we possess a never-say-die will to win? In every game we play? As always, we live in hope.

Best Bet (Saturday) Flemington Race 2 No.1 Divine Caprice (Place) $3.30

The time honoured Stradbroke Hcp is on this Saturday ... along with the G1 JJ Atkins Plate for the 2yo's. Apparently they might have to lift the weights in the Stradbroke as there aren't enough lightweight jockeys about up there. Dawn Passage is now the $5 favourite and is carrying 50kgs. Looks a half-decent field though with Trekking and a few others in the betting. And the racing returns to the UK this weekend with 3 G1's ... Coronation Cup (Fri) 2000 Guineas (Sat) & 1000 Guineas (Sun) Stradivarius with Frankie on board is currently $5 to win the Coronation Cup.

If it were 50 years or so down the track the AI's could be attending. Now there's a way to build a membership base. All the AI's would be programmed to be optimists so they'd therefore keep fronting up.

Good point Ben If you don't ask, you don't get. So we keep asking in all sorts of areas. Hopefully, in the end, you get what you need.

Gonzo is right though Cards Sometimes the obvious 'ask' needs to be aggressively pursued. It can't be assumed that the Pies & Tigers won't push for both games to be their home fixtures. The comp is just as aggressive off the field. We need to push hard and fight for everything that we can get. I'd also be pushing for a round 1 home game against the Cats and 5 years worth of home games against the Bombers. Maybe 10 years worth to square the ledger.