Young Blood

Tom has one foot out the door. Has been sited meeting with other clubs. Collingwood keen to have him in their backline.

From Sam Edmund on SEN this morning:

Same here. But I think North were one of the worst performing sides this year. You only need to look at our 2019 to see how players performance can drop off when the whole team is playing so poorly, There's so much upside still there for him at 27. If we can get 40 goals out of him which I think is entirely realistic if he plays most games then it will be worth it.

If both he and Weid can combine for 80-90 goals next season I will be happy. Its pretty exciting the potential of having two genuine targets next year. I know there are big 'if's like if if Ben Brown can get over the injuries that hindered him this year or if Weid can put together a consistent full season. I think both are possible. e.g. combinations in 2018 Tmac + Jesse combined for 100 goals Josh Kennedy + Jack Darling combined for 91

I thought he was very solid this year. His physicality in the back half is so important. If my brother passed away suddenly I would just fall apart. Amazing he was able to perform the way he did with everything else on top of that.

Urgh. Similar to Lynch deciding to join Richmond this really sucks as an opposition club. Deflating

I'm glad we're clear of Mihocek. He's a tough solid player but one only needs to watch his highlights to find he's predominantly an opportunist when it comes to goal kicking. Finds space as the third tall. We already have similar players of his type/role.

Where do the first round picks come from? I imagine Essendon will get their way prying pick 7 off them. It just wont happen. He's contracted. We would ask for something they wouldn't be willing to part with. They're simply sniffing around. Same as Collingwood is with Jetta and McDonald or the dogs are with Hannan. The media using different narratives to sway a story is so cunning and folks are getting sucked in!

Bit harsh. Demonland posts anything of note someone in the media says whether it has any integrity or not isn't the point. Everything is up for discussion unfortunately whether we like it or not. Thats what forums are for. I'm definitely going to tune out of this thread from now on. The fake news sans any actual validity is depressing and boring. I think most of us on here are adults (of some form) who can read the rumors ourselves without mulling over it and bickering on this forum. ✌️

If/when we lose next season I want it to be because we were outplayed by a better team. We know this teams potential. Less losses to sides because we didn't execute. More steam rolling sides that don't show up like the Collingwood and Hawks games.

I still think this is the right move. Its the aggressive risk we need to take. Even before this year Tmac was never a mobile player. He's always been limited in this capacity. We used to moan about his kicking as a key back especially when under pressure or kicking on an angle. I feel some of his deficiencies have been masked when he moved forward and are now made to look worse with his body changes. He has always been a steady straight line kick, a good mark and reader or the ball along with his endurance all being his greatest strengths. This translated perfectly to set him up as a second tall forward option. Alongside an in form Hogan and Weid he looked terrific. There was definitely some continuity to his game but I think everything was clicking in terms of positioning and delivery. This year you could see he put on significant upper body size and weight with the idea of playing as the deeper forward. It didn't work. He became slow, sluggish and it further reduced his already limited capacity of mobility with ball in hand. I don't think we're going to get another 2018 Tmac out of him. I think the club knows it and required more from the position. Going after Brown makes the most sense. He and Tom are similar yes but Brown as the second tall to Weid is a much better option IMO. I feel his attack on the ball and defensive pressure it pretty underrated and if he's taking the other sides second best tall defender at times I think he will perform consistently.

Good summation of the situation. I too think we need to build around Weid as no.1 option, putting some faith and confidence in the kid to go to the next level. I absolutely think he can do it based on what we saw this year. His discipline and attack shows he has what it takes. Now its just a matter of continuing to build on his body while improving his forward craft/positioning. Petty may well come through as a forward option next year. But in terms of the potential, the sample size is incredibly small. I think with Oscar most likely leaving we will need some taller back depth and we know this is Petty's natural position. So yes I am all in on getting Brown. It appears he is the best and most attainable option out there for what we need. We need to sure up our back and fwd tall stocks and get some insurance if both McDonalds depart.

I'll throw in Trac's against GWS. The one hand pickup in traffic. Two or three steps into a 40m snap. Pure Power.

The Albanian has returned. I know who is favourite player is going to be at Melbourne. Wears long sleeves, plays on a wing. Hopefully he can sharpen his kicking skills too.

I mean sure he didn't pan out in the most required role but that doesn't mean he was overall unequivocally a bad signing. He's a 194cm utility player who is a decent kick, mark and covers the ground well with a big tank. I doubt he was ever going to be used solely on a wing with his size a key attribute across the ground. While he didn't amaze or anything I think he produced relatively well as a third tall option down back, a role I hope he is able to really hold down next year as a best 22.

Yeah in tight we know what Oliver can do. The next phase is creating space for himself and what he does with the ball when he is in space. There were definitely some patches most notably the Adelaide game where there was a clear emphasis for him to drive his legs and break out of stoppages with pace before using the footy (Pointed out several times by his biggest admirer, King). I was one of those questioning why we don't see this more often from him. I feel its probably due to midfield roles and who does what more perhaps. We know that Trac and Viney are both encouraged to use their strength and power to break the tackle for forward momentum out of stoppages. Oliver for the most part gets the ball and looks to try and release players. Considering the increased use of Petracca in the middle this year Oliver did well to keep some level of consistency. Now that they've had a full season together the combination of Oliver, Trac and Viney continuing to build chemistry and strategy is something I'm looking forward to for the next few seasons. All three have the potential to really break a game open on any given day. Brayshaw has perhaps fallen behind a bit but I think he showed that when he's put in the middle he's still so capable. Just needs to find that extra role when he's not in at the coal face.

The rumors are probably true. Clayton being an immature 23 yr old probably wasn't happy where he finished in bnf and I'm sure Carlton are sniffing around. Does that mean he's going anywhere? doubt it. Nor do I want that to be the case like everyone else. But the rumor mill always strikes interesting discussions. Always fun exploring a different narrative for this team. Like what could we get for Oliver? Surely quite a bit considering his consistency and that there's still more to develop. Could we potentially form a good, perhaps more balanced midfield without him? Petracca, Viney, Brayshaw, Harmes have all shown they can play together at the highest level with the latter two obviously needing to find their way back. Maybe being back in the middle more is the answer. We have some depth with the developing Sparrow/Jordan and possibly even Rivers/Kozzy down the line. There's the Luke Jackson factor with his ability at stoppages. A handful of guys to pinch hit in the midfield like AVB. Is that enough? Probably not but with another solid midfielder in the mix it via trade or free agent it could be interesting. I would hope the football department would be looking at every angle and avenue to improve this team. Sometimes a pivot is whats needed as we've seen from other clubs in the past. I would be highly pessimistic of course of a trade for Oliver right now.

Congrats to Frost but him finishing in their bnf votes (I read he finished 8th not 7th btw) doesn't mean much to me. If you compare their top 8 vote winners to ours you'll see a difference in caliber of players. The bottom line was Frost wanted more opportunity as a best 22 backman. I don't believe he would have found that had he stayed at Melbourne. I don't think we missed him this year with the backline performing strongly and consistently most of the year. Oscar played 7 times this year yes but I feel it was mostly due to matchups or injuries to other players. Oscar will now be most likely going elsewhere in similar fashion. The makeup of our backline clearly has some set structure and Frost wasn't going to be a part of it, at least not full time. Mid sized players like Hibberd, Smith, Rivers seem more likely to get a spot alongside the two talls. Tomlinson has become an adequate third tall and looks like he might settle there with his versatility to move up the ground a nice addition up Goodwins sleeve. There's a chance Petty and maybe even Brown could be used as our tall back depth next season as well especially if we're looking to bring in another tall forward. Glad Frost found a home but not missing the thrill/anxiety of the Frost ball.

I think if the right trade came along I'd be open to it. If Carlton really want him they can trade us Charlie Curnow with some other picks/players involved from both sides.

Yeah I can see him spending more time up field when as he develops but its so good he's got strong foundations at the HB position. His kicking, confidence and attack on the contest were really pleasing this year. Also an important signing considering he's a WA kid. Hopefully the lure of heading back home isn't strong with this one.

I agree he definitely has deficiencies in his game. But I don't think tackling is one of them. His tackling has been down of late but he's definitely adequate in that area. Also just noting that tackling was down this year across all games due to various reasons. I think last year he was disappointing but most of our squad was. This year he didn't get a good run at it with suspension and injury. Some may forget he in 2018 he was: - ranked top 5 for forcing turnovers (and scoring from them) - ranked 10th in goal assists - ranked 9th for total tackles inside 50 I know I'll be shot down for looking at numbers from two years ago but his 2018 season was statistically comparable to Dan Butlers this year. (yes I am aware he played more games but I image Butler's avg's staying the same if he were to continue into finals). Butler 2020 ANB 2018 I think this is probably a lousy comparison but I feel these two play similar roles with their running and what is asked of them. Butler much better user of the ball obviously but I feel ANB is cleaning up this area of his game. If he can get back to his 17/18 form he'll be best 22 and we can keep some continuity with our playing group. Agree Wiseblood with losing patience with players like this but he's the same age group as our core players and I think could go up a notch to get back to his best as he does so much well. Anyway food for thought. I am not too fussed tbh if he does go but I would certainly want to get something decent in return or have him added to a larger trade for value.

Agreed. There are depth players I would be letting go before him. His attack on the ball and pressure is what provides opportunities across the ground. Hasn't done it consistently since 2018 which was his best season where he played every game. I think with a clear run at it he could get back to the numbers he was able to produce that season. I think he's had a difficult adjustment to make while at Melbourne. Was drafted as a mid with a huge tank and performed consistently at Casey as a mid for his first few seasons (always in their best) but couldn't break into seniors due to our midfield depth. So he had to pivot and move to a small pressure forward role in order to try and carve out a place in the AFL. That would be so difficult for some players who have developed their game around contested midfield/ball magnet football. He's done a decent job of it. I would be looking to trade/offload others first like Hunt. I think Nibbler who will be 25 next season has another notch to go up to with his game.

Oh I really hope its true he's signed on. Such an important player. I was starting to sweat on him leaving. Came in this year sans captain role but: - Noticebly fitter. Ran out games much better and seems injury free finally. - As mentioned improved disposal. Less rushed more considered. I want this guy in the centre in the heat of a final next year. He and Max are our heart and soul.

Surely thats a no go. I know he's had an up and down season but his one prior was great and he's a far better player then TMac. They would want more for him. I doubt its anywhere near realistic but would anyone consider a two man trade of Brown/Polec for Tmac/Brayshaw. I think Angus would be more the player they would be chasing especially with Higgins leaving, more quality inside mids. I would love to see Polec at Melbourne. We saw how effective Langdon was on a wing with his running this year. Polec might actually be a better more rounded player. His inside 50's numbers and ability to break the game open when he's on with his pace are terrific.

This thread is a joke. Arguably our most skilled player. I would say he's probably the next best field kick after Salem. Reads the ball better then anyone on our team. His very poor shot for goal this year let him down as well as his intensity around the ball at times. But the kid is 23, oozing potential on top of what he already has. One of our most promising players for sure. I think he has had to really adjust a lot more then people give credit. He was used across half back and further up the ground for most of his 3 years at Melbourne. Was only late last season he was swung deeper forward which everyone on here was pleased with. He had a lot more attention from opposition partly because of how dangerous he can be but also because he is meant to be a second/third string marking forward and for a lot of the season was really the no.1 option in terms of actual effectiveness. How about we give him a chance to straighten up his shots for goal. He had 46 attempts/opportunities from just 16 games. I wont count Petracca who was next in line for shots at goal but the other two forwards next in shots were Weid (27 shots) and Melksham (23 shots) so Bayley is certainly putting himself in scoring opportunities.