Macca

Really? You don't think that has ALREADY crossed my mind?

Wtf would I love Hundley?

I'd take him over Hundley but he has been black-banned. Quite literally.

Is Romo available?

'Curb your Enthusiasm' is back finally (after a 6 year hiatus) ... the first 2 episodes have been up to the usual high standard - esp episode 2. 'Stranger Things' returns in a couple of weeks on Netflix ... Season 1 was terrific so looking forward to season 2. 'Glitch' season 2 is currently available on IView - worth a look. And good news re 'True Detective' - it's back in 2018 (no news on the month yet) ... Read all about season 3 here In the meantime, it's time to have a re-watch of Season 1 of the outstanding crime/drama series. 3 years in between is time enough. Wasn't in to podcasts then so that will be a good add-on this time around.

Here are the games again for those who are still to do their tips ...

The significance of getting pick 35 from the Crows is a factor in all this too. I wonder if we might bundle that pick up with our pick 27 together with the pick we might receive for Jack Watts. Put the 3 picks together and turn it into another configuration that suits our needs. .

The way-back machine in operation again - a couple of classics from Eric Burdon as the front man of 'War' & 'The Animals'

Yeah ... but I am the world's worst tipster. I thought about the Giants but they couldn't possibly win in Denver could they? Detroit would have to be a realistic chance although their road form against quality opposition and/or against solid home teams is not good at all.

Good game today ... not fantastic but a good game all the same. Newton seemed off with his throws all game but the Eagles D-Line and their run defense was immense. Wentz was very impressive and Blount made a number of terrific carries. Thought the Eagles drive for their final TD was great ... that throw under extreme pressure early in the drive from Wentz to Hollins was 'Rodgers-like' - hemmed in at their own 19 yard line and facing up to a 3rd and 16 - that was the game clincher right there. Clutch. 3 plays later the ball is in the end zone and the score is 28 - 16. The Panthers couldn't bridge the gap after that and never really looked like it either. 5 & 1 and the Eagles are flying.

Again, if there are only 20-25 A grade players out of a sample size of 100 top ten picks, then that is a 1 in 5 strike rate or at best, a 1 in 4 strike rate. So in order to attain a player of say, Dangerfield's quality, a club needs 4 or 5 chances at it. And even then there are no guarantees. We at Melbourne know that all too well. Percentage-plays based on probability factors will be viewed more closely with regards to drafting down the track. It might take a while but eventually it will happen. Then, the true value of a draft pick will be seen. Back on topic ... if Lever turns out to be A grade quality and plays mostly at that standard over a 10 year period for us, we've snared an absolute bargain. As it stands, he's a very good player already.

How many genuine A graders are in the top 10 picks on average? Say, over a 10 year period. Many would be surprised how few there actually are. Maybe 20-25 out of a 100. That's 1 in 5 or at best, 1 in 4 (top 10 picks) That's just the reality of the actual results. I created a thread about it a few years ago. Within the OP I provide a link to all the ND's from 2000 through to 2009. So there's the 10 year sample size. How many genuine A graders? Forget B grade players or 150 game players ... only genuine A graders for the sake of the exercise. Oliver is well on his way to becoming a genuine A grade player so that's why I wouldn't trade him easily ... let's all hope that Lever ends up the same. Here's that thread (again) ... Bad Luck or Bad Recruiting

Patriots Packers Rams

'Almost certainly' is what I wrote not 'almost' If his form continues on the trajectory that he's displayed so far, we're on an absolute winner. For what it's worth, I wouldn't trade Oliver for 3 top 10 picks. And it's line-ball whether 4 top 10 picks would be enough for a player of Oliver's quality. As many others here have said, draft picks are massively overrated. And the facts and results of drafting bear out those views. Adelaide pushed for fair compensation because they know how good Lever can be - Lever's exposed form is at senior AFL level, not junior football. But as previously stated, I still believe we won out on the deal.

So let's get this straight ... You're unsure whether he'll play 10 years for us whilst I reckon he almost certainly will. Our discussion is therefore over.

What are you talking about? When he plays well for us we will keep extending his contract. So me speculating that he'll play 10 years for us is hardly a stab in the dark. If you reckon we've lost out on the deal write an email to the club outlining what you believe we should have done.

So you reckon he'll be gone after 4 years? Or perhaps after he proves his worth we'll just keep extending his contract?

So it's pick 10, pick 14 next year (assuming we play finals next season and win at least 1 final) and a 4th round pick next year (a negligible pick) to Adelaide. And it's a 10 year top quality CHB (Lever) for us along with pick 35 this year and a 3rd round pick next year. I call that a major win and way unders. But there again, I value a draft pick in real terms as only about half it's value. I also reckon that the real recruiting happens after the 1st round of picks. We might end up being well placed to unearthing those diamonds in the rough. Most first round picks are predicted because of the stellar form of those first round picks in junior footy but ... it's an absolute fact that close to half of all 1st round draft picks are busts. And we've had way more than our fair share of those busts. A great move by the club and I fully endorse the move. Kudos.

ESPN FC Podcast ... The USA Fails to Qualify for Russia 2018 - The Recriminations Begin

Quite an eventful morning as it turned out ... Argentina end up finishing 3rd after initially being a possibility of missing out completely Chile do miss out completely (they are ranked no.5 in the world rankings) The USA fail to qualify after a forgettable campaign. Losing their last qualifying game to Trinidad & Tobago will have heads rolling. Panama qualify outright after scoring a 'very late goal' against Costa Rica Honduras book a playoff berth against the Socceroos after coming from behind (twice) and defeating Mexico. Peru & Colombia played out a draw which turned out to be an 'ideal' result for both teams. Next up for Peru are the plucky Kiwi's Meanwhile, over in Europe, the Dutch fail to qualify ... the Netherlands really are short on star quality these days but they'll be back soon enough. And how about those Icelanders? Won their group outright and therefore get direct qualification for Russia 2018. I've worked out that we'll play Honduras on Friday the 10th November just after noon AEDT. (might be 1.00pm or 2.00pm our time) We're 17 hours ahead of their time zone. And the return leg will almost certainly be on Tuesday the 14th November in Sydney. 8pm kick off.

As the yanks are apt to say, Friday's game could be a barn-burner. I'll go for a scoreline of 32 - 29 in the Panthers favour ... home field decides it. If the game was played in Philly, reverse the scores.

Yeah, you're right Dappa, it's finding that 3rd road winner that's tricky. However, would any of us be surprised if the Pats or Packers lost? Seeing we're on a new page, here are the games again ...

Leaderboard in the comp 4 - Dappa Dan 3 - JV7, Clintosaurus 1 - Go the Biff, Macca 0 - The usual suspects Bill Simmons' 'Guess the Lines' podcast Just the 1 point on offer this week but we do play for 2 points in all the odd-numbered weeks (Week 17 is worth 3 points) The Thursday night match-up holds a lot of interest and whilst the Pats are heavy favourites against the Jets and should win, the game might be close, all the same. Same deal for the Packers/Vikes game although Green Bay are only 3.5 favs. Not sure I can trust the Lions or Tampa either. Rams @ Jags is another decent match-up.

Never trust a soccer score app Honduras it is then! The USA will be kicking themselves for missing out. A couple of 'unusual' finishes to those Concacaf games ... hmmmm

Next up is the USA by the looks of it ... that's a challenge Edit ... turns out we play Honduras next