Macca

Plug-in-and-play is this bloke. Looks ready to go Got a bit of toughness about him with a Steely resolve (Luke Hodge like) Excellent left foot kick and can take a mark (in front and up forward) And he's elusive with the ability to side step opponents. 2 or 3 quick steps then steadies before delivering up field Langford will be a real asset

Mission accomplished in terms of getting hold of 2 x Top 10 picks and then using both picks on Mid/Fwd/Utility/HB/Link players It's impossible to form a definitive view after perusing the highlight packages but both players look hungry for the contest and get to a lot of contests with both being left-footers with very efficient disposal skills Traits that JT looks for It should be remembered that Jason Taylor's track record is excellent when it comes to these types of players so in terms of trust, I'm all in Landing pick #9 was a master-stroke in negotiating and all up, we have drafted 4 × first rounders over the last 2 off-seasons not long after winning a premiership All 4 can play around the midfield with HB, HF & Wing being covered by the 4 as well. All 4 look like versatile players It's a very nice package ... well played the Demons Recruiting Team

We gazumped them for Oliver all those years ago and then prized pick 9 out of them even though they never needed to trade pick 9 Good luck with pick 18 next year, Bombers!

It goes the other way as well Rivers, Gawn & Fritsch in the 30's. McVee a rookie draft pick. T-Mac & ANB in the 50's If the good outweighs the bad by a decent amount, it's an overall win

There's always going to be an underperformer or 2. Or perhaps 4 or 5 on a list. 12-15 years ago we had 20+ underperformers The key is that the best players need to be on song as they can't be replaced easily Best 16 need to be very good (or better) and then the others fill the gaps as role players or decent depth So in taking a glance at the lists of any premiership team, those teams will still have a number of underperformers (who don't play) I'm not concerned about McAdam as he is really only a depth player ... but the health and form of Oliver, Petracca, Fritsch, May, Lever etc could be a concern unless they all get back to their best In other words, if all our very good players are at their best along with our youngsters being developed well, we'll be fine

And now their GM has been sacked! What a mess

Left out Fritsch who can be, and has been a standout player with a well structured forward line. And the service to the forward line is all-important of course

Power Rankings Week 12 Highlights Chiefs @ Bills Highlights Ravens @ Steelers

Lions, Vikes, Chiefs

Things are tightening up in the tipping comp. Moves aplenty and many are within striking distance of the lead *Subject to a proof read* Leaderboard (This Week's Awarded Points in Brackets) 23 - Go the Biff (3), Dr.Gonzo (1) 22 - layzie (3) 21 - Clintosaurus (0) 20 - DemonDave (1), JV7 (3) 19 - titan_uranus (3), Gorgoroth (3) 17 - BDA (1), DeeSpencer (3) 14 - ElDiablo14 (3), Macca 14 (0) 9 - Dee Zephyr (0) p.s. This year's points tally looks more like a Brownlow Tally! 3 Votes ... P Cripps

@DeeSpencer @Clintosaurus @titan_uranus @ElDiablo14 @Gorgoroth @Go the Biff @Dee Zephyr @DemonDave @Dr. Gonzo @JV7 @BDA @Dappa Dan @layzie Leaderboard Tipping Comp to follow in the next post In the meantime ... n.b. The games listed for next week are correct but they've got the month wrong! (Should be Nov not Dec)

There's always free agency as well and sooner or later more free agents will become available year to year. The key is to get in the ears of the free agents early (as what happens in overseas sports where free agency is a factor) Also, we can replenish draft picks for any of our players who want out for better opportunities elsewhere. Successful teams often have that luxury So, with the right planning and good recruiting, it's entirely possible to keep adding real talent to the list ... every season I've always held the belief that a club needs about 16 very good players to contend. A team can win big with 12-14 but 16 is the magic number for my liking So right now, if the list were all fit, at their best and raring to go, I reckon we sit at about 13 May, Lever, Gawn, Windsor, Rivers, Petracca, Kozzie, JVR, Oliver, Viney, Langdon, Salem & Petty (13) Tholstrup, Pick #5 & Pick #9 gets us up to 16 And then there's role players such as Melk, T-Mac, Bowey, McVee, Chandler, Turner, etc etc Add 2-3 very good players every year and you stay in the hunt Everything else is dependant on the talent levels contained in the list, coaching included, IMV

Under JT, we've had a history of working our way up the draft to seemingly snag certain players (Jackson, Oliver, Kozzie?, Tholstrup etc) And the point of difference pick in this year's draft ... Tauru But do we pass over a highly regarded mid at pick #5 for Tauru? Maybe, maybe not! Or perhaps zeroing in on acquiring Pick #9 was for a specific reason with a specific player involved With all the talk, I can't see Tauru slipping to pick 9 but the other clubs could well be faced with passing on a decent mid in order to acquire Tauru. Except, Tauru could end up at Richmond or St Kilda as both those clubs have 2 picks before our 2nd pick. But again, there will still be a few decent mids available from pick 6 onwards There's a whole host of fascinating outcomes but Langford seems to be the favoured pick for us at #5 So, we could lock Langford away at pick #5 and then it's fingers crossed for our 2nd pick?

So if Tauru is rated by most of the clubs as the Unicorn, there's a good chance he'll be drafted before our first pick (#5) Of course, the clubs can still swap/trade picks on draft day so Tauru could end up at a host of different clubs A tall, talented, athletic & versatile player who can play back, forward or maybe even in the middle would appeal to any club He was originally linked to North as they seem to have a number of developing mids. And they've got pick #2

49ers should have put that game away but Geno Smith gets it done with that final run To make the playoffs, any of the 4 NFC West teams is probably going to have to win that division ... a wild-card spot is a stretch

Must have a look at Ted Lasso! *Spoiler Alert* As for the The Penguin, the logo in the sky at the end was just brilliant So there will be more, but what that more is and how long away the spin-off might be, is anyone's guess And how good was Cristin Milioti as Sofia! Played her part to perfection She didn't quite steal the show as Colin Farrell was just mesmerising as the Penguin I'm giving it 4.5 Stars

Yes, it's one thing having our own opinions but the MC & JT may well be happy with a mid and a position player with the 2 picks In the 12 years with us, Taylor's track record is fantastic with draftees, so if there is a left-field pick, I'm quite happy to back JT in But if it is 2 mids, we will need Turner and/or Jefferson to come on. Injury-free, Petty is an excellent target and JVR should keep getting better

Our draft hand has a direct connection as to whether Petracca & Oliver stay or go, post 2025. And there's a good chance that the club won't know for sure, either way And then there is the form of both players and whether either or both get back to their best A safety first attitude would be to draft 2 mids and then if everything works out well, we find a way to manage 5 or 6 dynamic mids Nice problem to have and it should be remembered that Viney only has a few years left and Petracca can play various roles in the forward line (with stints in the midfield) And we'll be looking to cover for the loss of Brayshaw & ANB All things considered, I reckon we'll draft 2 mids and hope that a forward line line that contains 2 or 3 of JVR, Petty, Turner & Jefferson can somehow work to a high standard Looked at in another way, we probably won't be wanting to risk having a B- midfield in the future Our chance to rebuild a stellar midfield is right now

Initially I thought the final episode of 'The Penguin' was excellent but slightly surprising. But when looked at from an overall perspective a week later, the ending was close to perfect and very well done Will make some further comments in a week or 2

J-Mac has only 2 rides tomorrow R4 #3 Pisces R7 #2 Aeliana The Double is paying 12-1

And no FTA footy on Saturdays for the first 15 rounds is going to be a shock for those who don't have cable or streaming But I read somewhere that Ch7 can broadcast Saturday games but on a 2 hour delay! (Back to the 90's!!) It means that a high viewership game like the Collingwood/Geelong round 8 Saturday night fixture won't be on FTA

The down side is that we can't make good money against teams like the Cats, Bombers & Blues (no home games against those teams) but it should be remembered that we've still previously posted profits when given similar fixtures in the past (often with poorly performed outfits) But when comparing those different times, the talent levels of the list of players available is like chalk & cheese Previously, hardly an A Grade player to be seen but right now we have Gawn, Petracca, Oliver, Rivers, Kozzie, May, Viney, Lever, Langdon all being capable of A grade performances Add on players like Salem, McVee, Windsor, Tholstrup, Fritsch, Petty, JVR & the 2 top 10 draft picks and we are in good shape to make a run at it Replacing ANB & Gus won't be easy which is why I believe the club made a concerted effort to get another top 10 pick in the draft But it's always been about talent levels and with the fixture that we've been given, we're every chance Just need a reasonably good run with injuries And I reckon we've got a far better chance of drawing reasonable home crowds against interstate teams when the games are played during the day

10 of 14 games on FTA so even though we've been largely relegated from Prime time, we are still going to be quite visible to the masses. Helps our sponsors too And the overall match-ups aren't difficult at all. So in effect, finishing 14th gave us a much easier draw and set us up for 2 picks inside the top 10 in the draft We play the following teams once only ... Sydney, Brisbane, Geelong, Port, Freo, GWS, Carlton, Essendon & Doggies (all of whom could be described as finals contenders) So, considering that our list is still in quite good shape (injuries aside), we've been gifted a golden opportunity ... especially if those 2 draft picks have an impact in their first year. One draftee (at least) might be a plug-in-and-play type And despite all the other issues we've had, that stuff will be forgotten quickly if we start winning from the get-go. Flying under the radar with an underdog status can be a real advantage as well as an us-against-them mentality The MC need to use every means possible for a top 4 finish But much will depend on Petracca & Oliver. If both get back to their best, the sky is the limit Top 8 at a minimum but if we have a 2021 type year with regards to injuries, we can contend again Bring on the draft and let JT work his magic

Chiefs Texans Ravens

And we'll probably get 30k+ to the game as opposed to the 16k we got on that Saturday night last season Our supporters base is bordering on ancient so the day games appeal Bring on the Red Sherrin! (personally, I always preferred the Ross Faulkner as the torpies went further)