djr

I watched Roos closely this morning and he was applauding on numerous occasions how the ball was run and carried the whole ground in the wet conditions.

Thanks 275 for checking this out. Its obvious that Daniel Cross is an elite endurance athlete. Whether he's 25 or 30 doesn't really matter for the enduro runners. There is a lot of evidence around that tells us that these types of athletes don't peak until they are in their late 20's to mid 30's. For him to "only" come 4th says a lot about the other 3. Its rare for clubs to have a large number of players on their list that fall in this category. The only real measurement of whether our list has improved their overall fitness is the number of PB's recorded.

Would be interesting to see where Daniel Cross was placed in the Bulldogs' time trials in previous years. If he was middle of the road then it might say a bit about our core level of fitness. I suspect he has always been up there among the leaders.

I've been enjoying this thread over the past month. Its been insightful and unemotional. The investigative reporting have been top class. I've learnt a lot more about this issue than the confusing info dished out in the mainstream media. Well done guys.

Don't get too excited about Essendon's impending demise. ASADA still looking into MFC. There is still a lot of unanswered questions.

If we start chanting our club song and the Gyoto Buddhist Monks become our major sponsor then I will know that Mrs. Roos may have taken it all a bit too far.

Agree

I think debating whether we should have picked Nathan Freeman over Christian Salem is missing the point. As Paul Roos said you need to look at this year's draft as a package. The debate should be whether MFC will be better served by the recruiting of Dom Tyson, Christian Salem AND Jayden Hunt over Josh Kelly and Impey/Crouch/Taylor. Effectively we have traded Pick 2 (Kelly), Pick 20 (there were 3 mids still available in Impey/Crouch/Taylor), and a late pick that GWS didn't use for Tyson, Pick 9 and Pick 57. When I look at it like this I feel comfortable with our decisions.

I think debating whether we should have have picked Nathan Freeman over Christian Salem is missing the point. As Paul Roos said you need to look at this year's draft as a package. The debate should be whether MFC will be better served by the recruiting of Dom Tyson, Christian Salem AND Jayden Hunt over Josh Kelly and Impey/Crouch/Taylor. Effectively we have traded Pick 2 (Kelly), Pick 20 (there were 3 mids still available in Impey/Crouch/Taylor), and a late pick that GWS didn't use for Tyson, Pick 9 and Pick 57. When I look at it like this I feel comfortable with our decisions.

I had a bit of a laugh. Your analogy reminded me of Flashart from Black Adder.

GNF, your posts can be so tiresome. These are just your personal opinions yet you make out they are based on fact. I suggest you have no idea as to what is going on within confines of the club or know what the players think about Neeld. I suggest you have no idea as to whether he's a natural manager or not. You basically have no idea about anything. You are just commentating from the cheap seats. Just my opinion.

I think sadly Neeld will not be given the opportunity to develop this team beyond this year. It will be the next coach that will reap the rewards. I hope it will be recognized.

Have you considered why some players are sent to the backline? It is to improve their defensive skills which will stand them in good stead when they go forward. Watts will be a far better player for having this experience. Neeld is not an idiot. He knows exactly what he was doing.

I also was at the game and agree with pretty much what Maldon has said. On the injury front, I went up to Jessie Hogan's uncle after he chatted with his nephew and he told me that Jessie received a corky after been slammed in a marking duel in the first quarter. He might miss a week but he's OK. I also noticed that Chris Dawes had an ice pack on his knee after the game. It could be just a cautioning. A few observations. Chris Dawes is not AFL ready and I expect he won't be called up for a few weeks if tonight was any indication. On the other hand Fitzy is in fine form and should get his chance in the next couple of weeks. Jimmy T was disappointing in the first 3 quarters and looked a little lost. He seemed to find his compass in the last quarter and got more involved. His kicking skills are very good. I thought Strauss attacked the ball very hard and even broke through packs. You get a sense that he is gaining confidence with every outing.

I reckon we need not look any further than Evans at the moment. He has the pace and smarts to cause trouble at the feet of our big guys. He's also got good defensive skills.

Any news on Clark?

Boy, life must be really tough for you OD. Every post is the same. You need to lighten up.

Good idea. Julia will be available in a couple of months.

Does anybody know much about Ron Gauci? He is currently CEO of the Melb Storm. Took over from Matt Hansen after the salary cap scandal in 2010. What he has done to rebuild that club after the football department and board was completely stripped has been remarkable. I know it does help having the best coach in the business under him.

I've heard some ridiculous comments on these forums as of late but this one is in the top three. Armstrong please refrain from posting if you are going to dish up this unsubstantiated crap. Boy, they are coming out of their holes now.

One of the most ridiculous comments I've read.

Ask any Richmond supporter how long they have been waiting. Freo were a joke for countless years. True supporters just don't give up. The club becomes part their DNA. At least we had some success in the '00s. The old adage - there is always next year.

Old Dee, we get that

Nasher, you make a good point. A way around this could be to let the AFL determine the probabilities of teams making the finals. If for example a team has a 30% chance of playing in September then they would qualify to participate in the ordering system. If by chance they do make the finals then they are disqualified. The betting agencies are constantly framing markets on who will make the 8 based on probabilities. The AFL can do the same.

Another way of looking at this is that the AFL have been quite shrewd in charging 2 Melb officials with actions 'prejudicial to the interests of the AFL' and then fining Melb 500,000 for being an employer of these 2 officials. These charges would be harder to defend in court than a tanking charge. I think certainly this was a legal settlement where Melb really had no option but to accept these penalties.