deelusions from afar

What's this??

I want to agree with your interpretation but am wondering if I read the same article?? These were just quotes from CC's radio interview yesterday. I can't see any mention of "if he comes back, we’ll be fine… if he doesn’t, we’ll work through that". The two way street message and reference to shift in landscape (in my view) is just about him saying players and managers are increasingly thinking they can break contracts when they feel like it - But that's not how it works (because the club has to agree and GC aren't going to). GC will hold players to contracts and that's why it is a two way street - if you sign the contract, you honour the contract. What am I missing?

I know it happens.. but the fact that GC have been so strong with public comments about not trading BH means its harder for them to soften / change the narrative without looking silly. It would be a terrible precedent for them to set. Do you see it that way?

Sadly I think you're right - mostly because for a deal to happen is going to make Gold Coast look very silly given their strong stance. Even if a deal made sense to them rationally today - how do they walk back their comments and save face at the same time?

Yeah was thinking the same. Hope Tahj is coping ok

Don't know a lot about him - but seems he might be decent as a resting ruck but still got a bit to go in terms of ruck craft and endurance (an extra spot on the bench will help that obviously)

No slight on Random Task - I would have thought much the same - but to get for a 4th round pick in the 2027 (compromised) draft, it is an absolute steal!!

??

So if true would report to / be under Taylor Whitford?

Can I take the credit here - because I've been a keyboard warrior banging on about this and not been invovled in any discussions with Tom at all!

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If we don't manage to land Bailey Humphrey in the Trac trade and get a bunch of picks, would they be worth on trading to Richmond to get to the pointy end - I think they have 2 and 3 (but will be 3 and 4 after Oscar Allen compo). Apparently they are open to splitting one of them.

Is there any other news on the assistant coaching front? We seem to have a few roles to fill. Always hated Geelong with a passion though that is at least partly due to their continued competitiveness - so don't mind the idea of a few ex-Geelong people getting on board. Is Tom Hawkins in the frame? We need some help with forward craft - and Mihocek is a start - but having a coach who's played in a modern system and known for not just kicking but also creating goals

I agree but would swap with JVR. I feel like Jefferson adds a point of difference up forward to Mihocek and Kentfield more than JVR does. JVR played as a defender as a junior too

Isn't that how it would work? Ie they say "Look BH, you're contracted and a required player. We appreciate you're homesick and we're open to you moving back to Victoria. If there's a deal that is satisfactory on the table then we will look at it. But this is just to get you home - we're not necessarily going to deal with your club of choice."

Would it be fair to say that if King is adopting a Geelong style, Rogers could play a similar role to Gryan Miers? From what I've seen (not much), he seems to be very good at pulling the kick late to ensure he finds the target with low bullet passes?

Just a thought... everyone on Demonland loves "Demon Forever" and many despise Tim Lamb. Though the two of them have never been seen in the same room at the same time 😱😱😱

I'm still holding out hope that King has someone senior up his sleeve to get on board... but that's looking less likely. I think externally we look like a risky proposition - a bit of a catch 22 position in that if we landed a big name then Bailey Humphrey might be more likely to push to come to us or if we land BH then a senior assistant might be prepared to get onboard. There are clearly some assistants that are better than others... but I remember after 2021 the Cats changed over all their coaching assistants and none of the names seemed great on paper - they won the flag the next year. I think the key thing is showing promise next year - an exicting game style, unified players and potential from young players. Then we will have players and coaches etc wanting to get on board. The media has been focused on our off field issues for a few years now. It's why Trac and Oliver are free to explore options as while they are at the club we won't get clear air.

When we say we want a player... surely this will go down to the final day. Will come down to how much the Suns really want Petracca.

Given he's contracted, I wonder whether this is about having flexibility for King - if he can bring in all the people he wants, we let him go but if not we hold on to him for a year?

Can someone remember what we were supposedly prepared to give up to trade up to get Humphrey in his draft year. Wasn't it something crazy like 3 first rounders? As much as I love the look of some of the proposed trades here - I think we'd have to pay more if we were to get him (if he's gettable)

Everyone sees it differently @picket fence - I feel like I've defended Clarry for years and he will always be a favourite. But he is on massive coin and is not playing like it anymore + seems to be a distraction to the rest of the playing group (though he's not alone there). The club has done the right thing by him in refusing to trade him two years ago when it he was not in a stable place off the field (would have got a lot more than we will this year if he goes) and supporting him since. I've hoped we would seee him get back to his best the last few years - while there are signs, he's still a long way from it. He (along with Trac and Viney) continue to bang it on the boot which doesn't work in the modern game. They couldn't possibly be coached to do that - but clearly it's not an easy thing to coach out of a player. Trac has the marking / forward craft, Viney has the leadership.... Just not sure what Clarry offers that is ahead of the alternatives. I'll get around him if he stays. But if he goes - it might be what he needs. He's treading water at Melbourne

I'm torn here (like many I suspect) that the likes of Trac, Clarry and May were absolute heroes in 2021. Pivotal in breaking the drought. The idea of them all departing 4 years later would have seemed an absolute nightmare / doomsday scenario in 2021-2022. At the same time, it seems (for whatever reason) Trac wants out, maybe (and maybe not) Clarry is more trouble than he's worth (May might be in a similar boat). I'm torn because the pain, disappointment and frustration of the last 3 years is probably pushing me to want change for changes sake. And as some people say it is very hard to get A graders into a football club - we might not fully understand what we've got till its gone. At the same time, I can see with some astute trading and drafting, this could unlock a new successful era - there are plenty of promising kids on our list. We add a few more this year, play an attractive game style with dare, front load the contracts so that we have a war chest, and go hard in future for free agency players. I look at the hawks and their midfield (without Day) doesn't really have any stars. They go alright! So I'm torn.

We were apparently desperate to get Humphrey in his draft year. Victorian lad. I reckon if Trac is thinking Gold Coast, we will throw the kitchen sink at Humphrey - it is definitely worth a shot!

I find the views people have on coaches / assistant coaches fascinating. Mark Williams has clearly had an enormous impact on the MFC. I've heard about some of his kooky ideas and I'm sure his experience, passion and out of the box thinking played a big role in the '21 flag. But he has also been responsible for development and goal kicking which clearly has not been where it needed to be the last few years. Is this his fault? I have no idea - it could be. But equally it might have had more to do with the culture / environment, the fitness levels, the club psychologists etc etc We don't really know who is responsible for what and even if we did, it normally takes the whole football department wokring in sync to see the fruits on the individuals labour. So I find it amusing that posters will say that we won the flag because of Yze and Williams but the disappointments afterwards were all Goody's fault. Surely they all share in the successes and failures. I'm not saying some coaches aren't better than others... but many on here seem to want to reduce people to saviours or sinners when people are often both. A big name / profile doesn't necessarily mean they will be good at the role. So if Whitford is highly regarded internally and in the industry, then that's good enough for me.