dpositive

Too many times we let the player with the ball run down the ground with no one stopping them while other players flood back into a defensive spot. This tactic lets the player with the ball get closer to the forward zone before he releases. He is under no pressure and can kick to a position as he is well balanced and has had plenty of opportunity to assess options. Quite often this kick is to a space that the receiver is running into with an opponent a couple of paces behind I saw North and Carlton play on Friday and they treated this play totally differently. Carlton released a player by providing a moving sheperd and maybe our tactic avoids this but even then they did not get deep into the forward zone without having pressure applied Anyway not sure if that clearly explains it but it was frustrating to watch and I hope our coach and players are satisfied that what they are doing is effective. There has certainly been improvement this year so I am pleased with that.

Lenny Hayes?????

Watched him closely live He nearly always uses the ball well He is almost too clever for his own good he seems to know intuitively where to go defensively or offensively but I just see that his teammates don't use him Many times Dawes had three defenders on him as he led to the flank Watts was making position alone in the safe in the centre the kick inevitably went to Dawes Perhaps his teammates don't like him directing them which I thought he did too much early Third quarter he stopped pointing and just seemed to be everywhere up and down the ground and just could not be ignored Even when Port tried to tag him he seemed to roll off on his own to the right spot until someone used him I have always been frustrated by him but he does not impose himself physically but certainly has skills in excess of most other players I would suggest that when we use those attributes we win "We play well when Watts does" No he plays well we don't always use him "Watts plays well when we do" yes when we are playing well we use him He enhances the team He won't and can't do it by himself it is a team game Watts is a young team player The team and he will only get better

I reckon Lenny Hayes might have just shortened A bloke who wants to be a head coach but also has no baggage as his style the onlyway to play Knows Lyons/ Roos types structures and style Has credibility as a player who has performed on the big stage(norm Smith medal) Will have a few years to get to know Roos who seemed to be pointing to real mentor role after transition He said he loves all about MFC exec players supporters Very positive interview on that issue alone

demons and Port seem to be the odd ones out with little spread.

It snowed in Beechworth with remnants on vehicles and roads. Heavy falls on road to Stanley made driving difficult No reports of training in the snow but the Milawa boys who wear the demons colours and are on top of the ladder after last years flag were seen training in the pub. Its important to build up all the skills of the game required to be successful in the country. Time to cope with a trip to Adelaide Hope its warmer there.

Thanks beats I will certainly need time to digest this and will probably enjoy RPFC's comments before I get a handle on my thoughts. Like most things I just support the club and believe that our officials know how it works and are improving things to match other clubs. but as said it is a frustration when you can see the blindingly obvious. We dont match up YET.

Wow This looks like a really intense analysis device. Hope the coaching team is already analysing our players to this depth. I would like to see your results on the ten coz I like your rigour. The advantage with a tool like this spread across a large number of opinions is that it can have some statistical value as it would iron out subjective bias. But It would have to be a large sample. Also the unknown known is that we dont know how the coach would use this objective response or how fellow players impact . eg Messi is acknowledged at the top level in every aspect of their game but the coach and his fellow players seemed to ignore his presence most of the final he was ineffectual.

Wow This looks like a really intense analysis device. Hope the coaching team is already analysing our players to this depth. I would like to see your results on the ten coz I like your rigour. The advantage with a tool like this spread across a large number of opinions is that it can have some statistical value as it would iron out subjective bias. But It would have to be a large sample. Also the unknown known is that we dont know how the coach would use this objective response or how fellow players impact . eg Messi is acknowledged at the top level in every aspect of their game but the coach and his fellow players seemed to ignore his presence most of the final he was ineffectual.

Well no. Thanks UD I am probably not sure what or how I would do it and agree with what you have said. Dont want to pay overs for any players who are not performing. I dont really know how the salary cap works (obvious) but just get frustrated that we are paying a similar amount for players who are obviously worth less than other lists. I was thinking that we could spread that money among more players but as you suggest that may be wasted so probably means delist some performers and maybe not pay over for Frawley but use the money to buy a better number of better players.

I did refer to this in a rather confused manner on another thread. While a salary component is often attraction, which is sometimes an element in over paying, paying for performance is more important within any organisation. Payment on worth is the best policy and it is pretty obvious that our list is not worth the same as the Sydney Hawks or Cats so why would we pay the same salary cap to players who are not performing at that level. It does seem to me to be a flaw in the AFLPA and AFL arguments about salary levels. Why not reach the salary floor/ Cap requirement by spreading our spend deeper into the Casey side and try and encourage a deeper performance rather than an elite few being overpaid. Surely our current list is not performing at the same level as other lists and yet we are paying the same Dollars.

What about refinancing the cases scorpions as part of the total spend so that our player contracts are based on our players performance levels. How our players value can currently be the same as other teams Geelong Fremantle Hawthorn as salary cap requires is beyond me Players may have an unrealistic expectation of their power if they are economically rewarded too highly this can result in their failure to react to instructors etc Some cold hard facts need to be communicated to the entire squad I hope PJ andPR know how to do this

Always reminded me of "leaper Lynch" former teammate of roos who was a high flying ineffective forward. Whelan made his reputation picking up his spillage. He went back for some time and returned to full forward when he bulked up. Pretty handy player Alistair Lynch

Thanks OD will try and find time and will try and catch someones attention when we go to see the boys play in Adelaide.

Don't know where to put this so will see if it has any impact among the more astute correspondents on the site Just watching the tour and see an ad for colonial first state featuring red and blue traffic lights QBE we're long term supporters of Sydney enjoyed the journey and success through promotional campaign. Could colonial be an opportunity for the club to secure a long term sponsor with a profile that would be mutually beneficial? Could someone mention this to our club decision makers?

I reckon Little Hird and the Essendon players all genuinely believe they are innocent because they took a drug to make them play better which was the same as the drugs that all other AFL clubs use. AFl and AD particularly thought that playing ball with ASADA and applying ther own penalties would make this issue go away. Lance Armstrong genuinely believed that it was ok to take drugs to make him perform better which was the same as the drugs that al cyclists took. LAnce was ok while UCI (French controllers of the sport) were on side . Lance got greedy and the amounts he was contracted for winning the tour de france became unsustainable. The American Cycling body took on the UCI with WADA backing and eventually won. The big money talks. AFL (AD) thouht that they controlled everything but the money of the sponsors of a tainted sport may well have the last word backed by ASADA. This is a compelling and fascinating story. I just hope that we do get public disclosure in a transparent and non manipulated or biased forum.

Beechworh is beautiful any time of the year Could swap weekend 5k from MCG for weekend in country retreat. NO not really no comparison Good to see NE Vic so well represented I guess we appreciate the finer things in life food wine exercise but most importantly fresh air and a relaxed friendly life.

Hey guys while we are on the fantasy land thread I got a call about my telephone service from a chap with a strong indian accent. He stated quite categorically he was calling from Melbourne. I understand there is an office block in Chenia or Mumbi named Australia and the floors are named after states with assigned areas for cities etc. This practice confirms the truth of the lie "I am calling from Melbourne" Does this global practice mean that as long as you wear a Melbourne demons jumper you are a melbourne demon. I saw an article on TV that indicated the AFL are keen to export Aussie rules to India NOWW how about the franchised melbourne demons??? out of india.

Georgiou to back line Howe to forward pocket

Its interesting how many bomber supporters have a smile on their face.

no complaint with Dawes but would like to see Howe deep in the pocket. It fits with a lot of the scenarios above.

Should go back to the basic of protecting the player particularly the players back and head players on the ground where an opponent sits/falls is pushed onto hi sback the player on the grpound gets the kick the player who is tackled around the head front on side on doesnt matter gets a free kick. How many times have we seen players getting up with blood on their head or had to have strapping around their head where there has been no free kick. How does that happen?? Also players rarely fall flat on their faces for no reason the player behind them usually has pushed them. Perhaps a jumper with heat pad recognition could record the in the back which has caused a potential injury. These players are so skilled that even at the speed they play they usually are in control and know when there is an infringement especially one that may cause an injury.

I think Roos is justified with frustration. He has certainly made a big difference to the team but there is still a residue of lack of confidence. There is certainly improvement in many individuals. The best players are different every week and the shockers are different every week. There is some consistency but these are not enough to provide wins. Perhaps it is just the frustration of getting the selection right for the week Knowing who is going to play well at a given day seems to be the problem They all have some skill and fitness its still between the ears knowing when and how to apply what they do. While there is little joy at Casey apparently the squad could now be shuffled to not just punish and reward but rather to change the emphasis. some players need to be rested from the ones to have a lighter run in competition at Casey where they are expected to dominate. Some Casey players will be given the opportunity to play up to experience the pace and see what they are required to do. Georgiou was one who played well but seems to have regressed at Casey and this could be what is happening. The whole squad needs to get together and celebrate what they have achieved in the terms of improvement and now challenge themselves to get into the firsts against Port Freo etc and make a difference. I also see the players looking back not forward and missing the run of a leading player or by the time they play forward the lead is covered But I am positive that Roos knows what he is doing Perhaps he is also frustrated with the umpires especially as we so often have the momentum changing decision against us. And we still have no backs or heads, from the limited cover I see although it does seem to be a bit of a raffle even with other televised sides. The umps do seem to favour the better players and unfortunately ours are unknown, perhaps that could be a task the players are set dont get known for talking back, shaking head or querying but get known by handing the ball back with a positive acknowledgement.

I am still enjoying the conversation although I seldom can contribute in a meaningful way . Usually too slow with any pretensions of the wit required. Looking forward to the trip to Adelaide to cheer the boys against Port. Thats about as far as I can get.

Thanks everyone for their input. There certainly seems to be more consideration of this matter on this thread than anything I have seen in the media and certainly more than presented by the EFC. I do not profess to understand the many intricacies of the case as I have not read the legislation and would not try and predict an outcome, but I certainly think there is a greater implication in this case than merely the EFC. I have seen that many have touched on these external matters and think that ultimately there will be some whitewash. As when MFC was identified as the example of tanking for list management practice that was endemic in the sport EFC has been identified as the drug takers. The profession of innocence and the confrontation of EFC is the opposite of the submissive approach MFC adopted. It would seem the EFC has not helped its defence by not having any records It seems incredible that an organisations which used its influential coach and reputable doctor to entice/encourage gullible players to have intensive treatment can now say that the body pursuing its legislated role is bullying those players. Why WorkCare hasnt entered the fray may be because they are waiting the protracted and intensive examinations that are occuring or it may be that this issue is not one too big to fail but rather too big to succeed. Players taking substances is probably accepted at every level. The legality of the processes and the substances probably depends on the capacity of the player to pay. EFC may only be the latest taking/using the latest in an isolated sport that thought it was beyond the oversight of international agencies. The arrogance of AFL and EFC is on show and may /should lead to a more severe penalty than anything applied to the MFC who complied with its scapegoating and has suffered. Perhaps the entire local sports arena is riddled with dangerous practices and only the scrutiny of prolonged and exhaustive examination will purge these practices and their practitioners for the betterment of long term physical condition. I can only feel sympathy for the athletes involved in programs where stimulants or alternative practices place their long term welfare at risk, I guess that is the other side of them accepting such exorbitant payment for the duration of their brief physical output. Sorry for this ramble but as I opened this is the result of the many comments I have read on this stimulating and informative thread I hope I have not done it an injustice. I continue to watch and appreciate the comments of everyone while not knowing who to agree or disagree with.