Wells 11

It should have been an awesome game.1 v 5 and a finals birth tantalising us for the first time in over a decade. Im just finding it hard to get fully hopeful about it knowing we're missing so many core players. But tbh I couldnt see how they could win last week either. The dees have continued to shock me in a good way this year .....and there would be no bigger shock than winning tonight. Still, Im hoping ...and perhpas the Darwin factor, and knowing the conditions, may give us some leg up.

It could be we finish 4th but it could be we also finish 10th. Can you ever remember such a season? Everyone has us for a win against North but we go in with something like 16 losses in a row against them and out two captains probably still missing. Stkilda has smashed us over the years and we got over the pies by under a goal last time. So I have Brisbane down as the only definite win and the rest of them are question marks. Will Hogan find his feet quick enough to impact in the next few weeks? Can Goodwin manage the workload of Smith and Hogan in their returns without exhausting the midfield. WIll testing the mids in this way in Darwin mean Port smash us the following week? Will Watts hamstring recover for Sat or is it still weeks away? How quickly will Jones and Viney be able to get back playing top footy. There's just centimetres and fate in the gap between 4th and 10th really Im hopeful as hell, but I find predicting impossible this year. One thing for sure is that There will be 2 or 3 teams that feel incredibly unlucky come September....hope we're not one of them.

Agrreed! I thought they were cracking down on that stuff. They probably are but waiting til someone less noteworthy gets pinged. They've basically just given the green light for the punch in the guts to go on for the rest of the year. He HAD to go for a week.

Just SUCH an important game for the club. I think we play 3 of the top in the next 4 weeks...and given we're missing so many of our guns that buffer may be key. Seems like this season theres just so little between so many.

talk about a non issue/ I Couldnt agree more. Hope they back him up this time. Fans leaning over the fence like that need to pull there head in. Oliver should have walked away but fair dinkum, taking it to the media...weak as [censored]. God I hate Carlton.

I think there's quite a few readers here who would have liked to be watching Jack tomorrow not today. Im still hoping he can crack another chance with us....looking slim now though.

Awesome post! Id forgotten how much I enjoyed that moment. Let hope there is more of such moments to go this season. With all the injuries the optimism of that day feels a bit of a distant memory.

As much as losing Viney and Jones is deflating for the team...I reckon having Hoges back will really lift them. Ive almost forgotten how good he is.

An article in the sun with the attendance numbers for all clubs. An impressive 4th overall. Yes we had Anzac eve and QB but considering the time slots we get given, and the lack of Friday nights, I reckon that says something about the passion at this club. Not that we even got mentioned in the article mind you. Would have had to have gone against the myth that dee supporters don't care. The article also spouted forth about how loyal the Essendon supporters are as there numbers are up 60% this year. To me that only shows how fast they fell off in a couple of bad years. The dees are in the elite bracket this year for support....and THAT is good for sponsorship as well.

Did I hear on the news that Goodwin also apologised to Longmire? I think this is the incident that redefines this kind of stuff in the AFL. I know he's got to cop whats come but I do feel bad for him. Hopefully the boys get around him and hold him strong. He did the wrong thing but he's part of our club. The great MFC. Enough with the bashing now.

Its been almost the worst year I can think of re injuries. Some terrible symmetry between losing Gawn and then Spencer 2 weeks later followed by Jones and two weeks later Viney. Im not going to say no Viney no Melb but no Jones, Viney, Watts, Garlett, Hogan, Brayshaw, Tyson may be. I think it may be a bridge too far Im afraid and I think the blues may step all over us on the inside. Hoping we see Watts and Hogan and Garlett and if we do i'll be a tad more hopeful again. But even then, our insidemid dominance has been such a feature of how we play that I think the Jones, Viney one two punch may hit harder than the Gawn / spencer one. On the upside. IF we somehow overcome all of this and land in the 8...then all these boys are back and probably fresh. Big ask of the club and its leaders right now. Jordan Lewis needs to step up biiiiiig time as does Bernie and Max. fingers are firmly crossed but Ive felt all of last weeks optimism drain out of me this week. Back to my reliably pessimistic demon self. At least its territory I can trust!

Im not sure why the negativity really. He just came out in print and tipped us as possible premiers. hes about the 3rd now and THAT hasnt happened since ...actually cant remember anytime in my lifetime that has happened. Its hard to believe and feels like Im opening up to a bigger hurt if it all goes terribly south. And its hard not to feel that imagining it wont somehow jinx the team.....like moving seats in the middle of comeback or something. But, god strike e down for sayng so, it is exciting to contemplate this.

At the end of the day it may be better for Oliver if the suspension does get lifted. If its 2 weeks this whole thing is going to be even bigger.

agreed....especially when they were all pretty soft on Rance who actually DID unashamedly dive. Oliver actually got hit. Fark me....its times like this I wish we had an Eddie. Who would totally [censored] them all up. We're still an easy club to beat up on off the field. Lyon just added to the farce with is comments when we needed allies speaking up.

its exciting but its only round 14 peeps....theres a loooooong way to go. If we lose a few we could finish up 11 or 12th. Calm finishing in tight games and a bit of luck will make or break teams this year. the margin between heart ache and joy has never been as thin. Im not counting chickens...and I wish the media wouldn't either.

Im amazed at a few here turning on Clarry. He's perhpas in our top 4 most fearless player on the list. he has no "staging" history and could expect nothing in that situation at all by way of a free or any onfield advantage. Which is what teh whole "staging" debate is really about. This ISNT that. I couldnt help but wonder as I read through some of the posts that if that was a COLLINGWOOD player elbowed in the face and felled after half time what the headlines would be. And I doubt anyone in the media would be giving this " stager" thing ANY attention ...let alone an ex captain and club legend in Lyon. I hope schofield gets a week and Oliver gets 3 votes next weekend against the swans...and goes on to win the brownlow

I couldnt watch it ....could listen on the radio. On the replay Viney clearly playing the ball and eyes firmly on it so hopefully he'll be ok. But he may miss with his shoulder anyway. At half time the idiot WA commentators were both sayng Oliver should get suspended for faking re the hit he took. Saying the league needed to crack down on players falling over for frees. Unbelievable. Why would you "fake" for a free AFTER the half time siren...then lie on the ground holding your chin. hmmmmm, crazy thought I know, but maybe he got hit??? Then with 5 minutes to go they started gloating..remembering the way the world was in 2002 (the last tie we beat them there) Each trying to out do each other. Sooooooo satisfying to shut them up it really was.

Early days...but if you had to pick coach of the year right at this point he'd have to be it wouldnt he?

Is starting to turn into a real weapon for us....upside is massive for sam.

We're playing great football...and the club has set itself for these 3 weeks. But the team that wins the flag this year will be the team peaking in September. So so even....form and injuries will be everything come that time of year. Heres hoping we're there and come in injury free and pumping. dreaming of 87 all over again ( could do without losing the equivilent of gary lyon in the last game though)

wouldnt be proud! I think you're being very generous there. Thats the biggest understatement Ive read on here for a while. I agree he must have had some terrible instructions but as a body of work he should forever feel ashamed of what he did to this club. Morton, Cook, Gysberts, Strauss, Blease.....still makes me nauseus to even think about that time.

Monday is either going to be really sweet or particularly sour. I both hate and love feeling this invested! Torture. But..truth is we ( and the team) are in that delicate place of finding out week by week just how good they really are. Whatever the result they have been brave playing without a ruckman all this time and whichever way this goes getting Gawn and Hogan back is going to make a massive difference.

If he cant finish it means nothing. Remember Cloke a few years ago at the pies. He was handy back then too but really bad for their morale when he kept kicking points. He's got to work though it quickly or be dropped imo,

I just think its wierd that he comes out about a mental illness (all power to him) but misses, what was it , one week?? I feel that kind of insults his admission. Why bother coming out with that at all. if he was going to be fine to go a week or so later? I dont know his particulars nor anything about his situation so its hard to make a really informed comment ...but for others who suffer from the black dog or similar its not a great precedent. ie Out Fasolo ( 1 week...depression) I hope for HIS sake he's taking care of himself ahead of the club.

You're a lucky man to have those memories! Too young to see either....but I vote for yours anyway