The heart beats true

If I was a gay footballer I wouldn’t come out publicly - and probably for the reasons you make about the struggles of mental health. I think our game is hard enough. No need to add a bunch of strangers making comments and inferences at you constantly. Sadly in other sports when other players came out it was because they’d been blackmailed into it. I imagine quite a few players have come out internally, and the clubs support them. I just think the decision to be public about it would add unnecessary pressure.

At least I can sleep well in the knowledge that 50k members from BOTH Geelong and Richmond won’t be able to go to the grand final. Small mercies.

I’ve cracked the Channel 7 commentary formula... ‘Recognised player x almost does something spectacular, but ultimately fails to impact the contest. Commentators talk back and forth about what was almost done, and completely ignore the action of what’s happening. Wait for the next stoppage to rejoin the action. Immediately comment on what a good job umpire (insert umpires full name) is doing. Wait until a player breaks free of the contest and immediately call their kick either a ‘chiseler’ or a ‘squeezy one’. Rinse and repeat.’ How’d I go? Do I get the job?

2 teams playing in the prelim tonight who beat us by a COMBINED 7 points (both away games). But no, we are MILES off (or 7 points). #alternativefacts

2 years ago, when we finished 4th, Brisbane finished 15th. They are going into a prelim as favourite tonight. Lots can happen if you get on a role. Sorry, was trying to be optimistic. Forgot where I was for a minute. What I meant to say was ‘It’s the curse of Norm Smith! This club is killing me! Never being a member again! Trade Oliver’.

I think you’re right on here SWYL. The TV bank rolls the competition, and it’s as simple as more games = more money. I know some will argue ‘what about when The Suns play Freo’, but it’s easily offset by when The Suns play Collingwood, Richmond, The Eagles, Essendon etc. This is posturing by Jeff and Co to not have to pay as much into the coffers given their economic forecasts due to the Pandemic.

Must have been watching a different game to me. A winning score with 46 points doesn’t exactly make them unbeatable. You get a consistent team on the park, and then your best team at the right time of year, and you make sure during the regular season you win 3 of the 5 games you play every year that could go either way. We aren’t that far off it, we just need to do it more consistently.

As long as we aren’t being dramatic about it.

The way it’s written on the AFL website implies that the media and wider industry have known this for a long time. Also states if he does come back it won’t be as senior coach and implies Voss may be taking over. North’s season just went from bad to terminal. I really feel for all involved. Hard for the club, difficult for supporters, and next to impossible to evaluate for players.

I’d love Ben Brown. He had a very difficult year personally, and a change will do him good. He makes it that much harder for a defender to roll off him and go third up as he’s tall, quick and wants to lead - so you have to be brave to leave him. He’ll make Weed gain confidence by giving him the second best defender, and bring consistency to our smaller forwards roles. It’s an absolute no brainer on one condition - there isn’t an injury concern. If we do our due diligence and he looks good then I hope we snag him.

Dodoro is a waste of time. What’s the point of trying to play poker when everyone knows you’ve got a bad hand and all you can do is bluff? So instead anyone wanting to get out of Essendon now is clearly advised by their manager to announce it early so Dodoro can do his posturing, waste 3 weeks, and then get the deal done once the adults enter the room.

Rumour is he’s available, but I heard he’s not the messiah he’s just a very naughty boy.

Boring, uninspired and completely lacking in effort. And that’s just the commentary.

How Darcy Moore is an All Australian is beyond me. He’s been horrific. Had 4 clear turnovers. Only ever plays well when given free range and no pressure. May is 4 times the player he is.

That era we could have been anything. Stars everywhere you looked, so many good players running through the midfield - Lovett x 2, Stinga, Obst, Viney, The Febeys and Jimmy. Lyon and The Ox up forward. They really sucked me in to loving this club.

Just out of interest did they acknowledge Watts? I wonder what the protocol is.

Can’t wait for the completely irrelevant statement from Dodoro about this. Should have taken the offer last season when it would have netted them more. They just paid Joe 800k for the year to rehab and get himself right to go play in Brisbane. Nailed it ?

And then endless stream of ‘never gonna happen’ trade threads continues unabated.

Yeah, I don’t really get the consistent ‘watching these games we are a mile off’. I really don’t think we are.

And even then Howe went because Buckley promised him he’d be a forward. 5 games later he was in the backline (where he’d been a good player for us). He became an AA defender - but had he stayed he’d likely have been that for us too. 90% of the time after 3-4 years in the system players are what they are. Oscar is what he is by now.

Just realised, courtesy of this thread, that Demonland now has a facepalm emoji!

I wonder if this is the same Adelaide rumour mill that said the Crows wanted to poach Goodwin - and the very next week our board [censored] the bed and gave him an overly long contract? I wish I had mates in the media. I’d be getting them to constantly inflate my value. It’s all a game, and I hope we’ve learnt our lesson.

Would you do it in a kilt, because I’d quite like to watch that?

2019 taught us that it’s very difficult to manufacture a wingman. We tried half the list there and it never worked. Langdon is a natural outside player because he holds his space and he works unbelievably hard when we do and don’t have the ball. Lets recruit a natural outside player instead.

Must there be a thread for literally every possible player? One day I fully expect to come on here and read the draft bio for me, and I’m 42.