Fitz Fitzpatrick

Lets assume Prestia, being a Dees supporter, was sitting on the couch in QLD today watching the game. What were his thoughts about 2016?

Wines, Darling, Sloane, Rockliff Every club can point to players they should've picked but the difference with this list is that these 4 players were told they would be picked up by the club. Its hard to get closer to picking someone and not picking them than that

Soidee, most definitely we have seen the peak of the sport of Australian Rules Football. It was undisputedly Australias game 10 years ago. No sport lasts forever and the fever pitch excitement around soccer amongst under 20s is beginning of the end for this game. It will take a few decades to play out but the AFL will never be as strong as yesterday.

Im [censored] scared that Roos ALREADY has passed match day duties over to Goodwin.

Ive been thinking the same thing. 4 years ago, after a loss like today this would be page 23 by now. there is most definitely a serious drop off in passion.

Exactly! I am one who actually wasn't happy we won last week. In my opinion the win against the Lions helped to disguise some serious issues out of that game. Today those issues had no where to hide

Im sick of people even mentioning the umpiring after an effort like today. Thats like someone p1ss1ng in your mouth and your pointing out that your Tshirt is getting wet. FFS, there is so much more to be concerned about after today than some [censored] umpiring decisions. Wait until we are matching it with other sides and the results come down to umpiring decisions THEN we can discuss it. Until then it is just pointless noise

People will point to the geelong game but thats like pointing to the essendon win in 2012. Its irrelevant. you're only as good as your last game and the lack on dynamic and teamwork between the side is dismal. MFC is not the worst list but the team is the worst in the AFL

I think its fair to say at this point that progress has not been made since August 2011.

we really miss pedersen

Its clear from both last time we played them and today that St Kilda have a much better list. THats all its coming down to. any one on ones invariably won by the saints, all over the ground really

Footscray looked really good today. are SO far ahead of the Demons

TMac forward looks good for the future I reckon. Perhaps as a CHF , he's a good mark , kicking not great but could be worked on. Such a good link up target from half back though. Get Carlisle and put him as CHB. Hogan at full forward. Thats a good spine i reckon

True! A old mate of mine moved down to melbourne for work a couple of years ago. He knew nothing of footy and i don't think had ever even watched it on TV. He asked who he should follow when he got down there. I told him to get on the Dees. I did tell him they weren't traveling too well but were a great club and would come good. 6 months later i heard from him - told me to stick the Dees, he's following the Hawks. I nearly put the phone through the wall!

Thats an interesting correlation dee - luded. Fair to say theres something in that.

a bit left field but what about some kind of incentive for side to play offensively. for example, the ladder is more weighted to percentage rather than points OR extra percentage/point is laid on when a team wins by more than 30 points? may result in a team going early and then shutting down , but just an idea I would consider that in conjunction with a rotation cap. I don't like the rotations, for reasons beyond the congestion. i just don't think 100 rotations is aussie rules

i dont agree with the argument about injuries and the low rotations. players will deal with injuries exactly how they did in recent history when the rotations were 25-30. John howard was in office - it wasn't that long ago!!!

it wont make a difference. 80 cap is still a HUGE amount of rotations. I guess younger supporters don't know any different but in 2004 the average was 35!! thats the type of footy we won't to replicate. 80 is a wishy washy middle ground that will be unnoticed in its change

Something I've really noticed is worth noting in this discussion. Ive been overseas for 15 years. Left 2 weeks after the 2000 grand final! put 4k away to fly back for the GF the following year, never happened did it. Anyway, years back when i would sit some Brits or French, Italians down and show them some footy over a beer(back then it was VHS tapes sent over), they would really get in to it, marvel at the speed and the marks and of course the bumps. Anyway, to a person, they would be impressed and enthused about the game. Recently, say from 2011 onwards, whenever I sit someone down and show them the game , the response is of curiosity which soon moves to disinterest and eventually something else happens and they leave. This is a reflection on the current games ability to attract NEW fans to the sport. Not people brought up in suburban melbourne and adelaide homes but migrants, tourists and Aussies from non footy regions of the country. I don't see it as having that ability at this point in time.

Too true Old Dee.

Yes, i agree La Dee-vina, that would be the most sensible approach. in fact probably the only way to get the coaches and players to agree to it

Good memory Daisycutter! yes i feel you may be right. its got to a stage also that most current players soon won't remember the game being any different unfortunately but like you said, at least its now up for discussion. Us dyed in the wool supporters will watch anything, almost, but my concern is the ability of the sport in its current form to be appealing to the next generation.

My initial reason for joining this forum several years ago was to bring to attention the degradation of the 'style' of footy. i felt i had an advantageous position to observe this for the reason being that i had gone several years without seeing a game due to living overseas. Apart from 2 or 3 posters, i was shouted down. i feel vindicated now by the overwhelming shift in opinion amongst the media and footy itself. Due to the unique position i had of observing it through a "back to the Future" type experience i saw the shift and decline in style before it really became obvious to an audience who had viewed it week in week out and could not see the subtle changes . Throughout this debate I have insisted that the interchange needs to be capped. the counter argument is that it wouldn't change things much but thats when the case is mounted to cap them to say 80 a game. well i agree that 80 a game wouldn't make a difference. There is a direct and very distinct correlation between the huge uptick in rotations in the mid 2000s and the decline in style of play. Lets not mess around with 80 rotations. In the early 2000s, say the era of the Lions premierships, or even the late 90s, footy was great. Forget the argument stating there were bad games back then too. Thats such an obvious statement that it shouldn't even be mentioned . of course there were. But the good was better and more frequent. Rotations were about 25 - 30 a game. Lets bring it below that to counter the superior athletic condition of todays players. Each bench position can be changed once a qtr, excluding the blood rule. The other argument I believe is false is when people counter that the high rotations create a fast paced game. I call Bullsh1t on that one. What they do is create an ability for players to run faster for longer but there is a BIG difference between players moving faster and the GAME moving faster. As it stands with all the stoppages and congestion, although players are able to move quicker for longer , the game is moving much slower. Remember 10 years ago when the players were in position, the ball would race down one wing, and then transition back out of defense along the opposite wing. Position to position, one on one to one on one. Fast footy is the BALL covering ground quickly. So, in summary, my thoughts are that players are to start qtrs and after goals in traditional positions and that each interchange position can be changed once a qtr, excluding blood rule.

Nothing of substance unfortunately, Ethan. Just a contrarian thought as everyone is looking north and i feel toumpas may get packaged up with a pick and offered to S.A.

anyone considering the Agrade mid Roosy alluded to might be Ollie Wines? perhaps first pick and toumpas?