deelusions from afar

I LOVED the flamehead as a kid growing up.... but when I see it now it reminds me of all the terrible dark days of the MFC... though potentially it got much worse after they changed it to something else.

What a fun day Sunday was. Love the attacking game style - it matched the talk we had heard all pre-season. But it made me reflect that we might need to re-calibrate our expectations for our defence this season. The reality is that we are going to get exposed a number of times each game when we turn the ball over / certain risks don't come off. Our defenders are going to look helpless and even hapless at times compared to what we are used to. I'm not Lever's biggest fan, but he has copped it from a lot of dees fans here since Sunday. When it's about his disposal then that's fair enough but I think when it comes to one on one defending / guarding space / have the defence setup when the opposition counter attacks - we're going to look very different this year. Lever, Petty, CJ, Disco etc are all going to be under more pressure than we're used to seeing for our backline and their opponents are going to get better looks than what we've come accustomed to. So let's keep that in mind we're critically analysing the game / who has / hasn't performed etc. Interested in others thoughts.

Thanks for the update - I'm so confused about this when it seems like the MRC are no longer keen?

Interesting that King and co had him ear marked for this role about a month ago... hence some time down back in the practice matches. I get the feeling King wouldn't want any player to be a designated stopper in the team - it's about getting the best matchup on the day. So will be interesting to see what role Kolt plays under King when / if he doesn't have a run with role. Really want to see him make it - I think he has "something" whatever that is. It's amazing with a bit of belief / confidence how players can transform.

This is really promising obviously - but it does surprise me. I've got high hopes but given he missed all of last year, the pre-season games and was not a regular prior to last year, it's a surprise to me he could be a lock for round 1. Maybe they know he's the best equipped to deal with a dangerous small forward by a long way? I assume he would go to Higgins this week if he plays?

I miss you Benny Brown

Interesting in his interview on SEN today he was not wanting to commit to Latrelle debuting this week (when presumably unless there's an injury he's in) but also when asked about Nasiah and said we would back our whole system in. I always thought Goody didn't play many games with this sort of thing and if he said something about selection or strategy it was pretty spot on (maybe why he tried to give so little away). Some other coaches deliberately mislead - maybe they think it will give them an edge on their opponent. Will be interesting to see how King goes with this - surely after the weekend, it makes sense to have someone run with Nas this week.

I'm not too phased about media asking questions about Trac and Clarry. They were probably our two best players for a number of years including our premiership year and were subsequently traded out. From the outside, this is what is most interesting about Melbourne for a neutral supporter. This talk will disappear pretty quick if we can demonstrate a new playing style and snag a few early surprise wins.

Haven't seen much of pre-season training but with the extra bench spot I would think the big Moose (Heath) should get a go. He did ok up forward for the saints last year and at his size can be a good get out kick (hopefully we see less of that with the new game plan but it's always needed from time to time). If Moose fails to fire, I'd think it would be a mix of AJ or JVR. Surely White needs some years to develop. Haven't heard of Culley doing any ruck work at training - seems to have come from a random article (maybe not researched) but I stand to be corrected. What is more interesting for me is that if Moose plays (presumably spending more time forward than in the ruck), and Mihocek plays, surely there's only room for one of JVR, Jeffo and AJ - especially if we have Melksham and Fritsch in the mix. Playing fast football in terms of ball movement will require fast forwards (with lots of repeat efforts) - will be interesting to see who is the preferred option at the end of pre-season.

I'm more confident in the list than most - I think we have players that will embrace new roles, responsibility and game style and surprise us. Having said that, with significant list turnover, coaching changes and playing style changes, I think the first half of the season will be pretty much a write off and I am expecting to see threads like "Time to go Kingy?", "Maybe Goody was the right guy" and "Petracca = God" etc on here at the half-way mark. When everyone has given up hope for 2026, I think we'll start to bank a few wins and come home with a wet sail to scrape into the final 10. Obviously I hope we start strong and continue it but most teams that have had the kind of personell (on and off the field) that we have normally take a bit of time to get things to click.

He could be... but as far as I know he has only played forward (maybe a few midfield minutes) at VFL / AFL level. Couldn't we go for the best lockdown small defender not on an AFL list (if Bowey was put on the long term injury list). Surely there would be some decent ones there - maybe not stars - but very reliable players that get the job done shutting down the most dangerous small forwards week in week out.

Could we pick the best specialist back pocket player that is not on an AFL list. I feel like at AFL level, so many back pocket players are players that couldn't break into the midfield, half back or as a small forward. Surely there are mature age back pocket players that could do well at AFL level?

Agree - just clickbait article where (for example) they have a "pass" mark for 8 teams making the preliminary final!

Out of interest, have we done any simulations regarding final 2 minutes and need to score / need to protect the lead. I appreciate ball movement is probably more important but do remember when Macrae came into collingwood, they apparently did these drills from day 1 (they had a lot of ball movement work to do as well with the slow moving buckley style being replaced with Macrae's approach).

Agree he had a better first season on the wing but I think the player Windor should be modelling his game on is Max Holmes who Geelong can put wherever he's needed most - half back, centre sqaure, wing etc - so don't mind him getting some experience there even if he didn't set the world on fire. Even in his first season he was very good in close so I think he can definitely be a centre square burst player.

Bailey Humphrey is that player

Could he play the role we supposedly wanted Nairn for?

How the game has changed - a 195cm mid! He moves well - has genuine pace, comfortable in congestion, is prepared to kick both feet and is a threat in the air. We're not the only team doing this, but having the likes of Langford, Culley and now Onley adds a different dimension to our game. IN the future when we can't rely on Gawn down the line, the extra height will be handy!

Is it possible for someone to jump in and select Kalani before us or is there any kind of restriction on that as he's a father son and been passed up in the draft?

Got nothing against the guy but with 2/3 draftees this week small forwards, looks like its going to be even harder for Henderson to get a look in next year. Does he have enough upside to still make it?

Is he over his injuries or is he likely to be in the rehab group over summer?

I remember when we draft kozzie people said it's too high for a small forward. he only averages 9 touches a game etc... look at him now. Happy to trust Taylor and co (but I am very surprised)

The current version of myself LOVES this as this means we get another crack at a prospect I've wasted too much time reading about (Pickett, Dovaston etc) I fear that the Nov 2026 version of myself will be like "we traded the chance to get Y or Z so that we could draft X last year?? Really? What the hell were we thinking?"

That clip where he talks about Farrow and Nairn highlights that they like the idea of players with the versatility to play multiple positions which fits what we know about King (and the Cats where he has come from).

It's probably for a reason but at the same time, once Cal's drops, its brave to go against it - so could be a bit of group think? I also think Marc McGowan seems one of the more intelligent AFL journalists out there - once he said we were into Nairn, everyone else has gone along with it. In the case of someone like Cal, he prob looked into it and realised Marc was spot on with his intel.