stranga

Given the short turn around i reckon Bail and Mcnamara will come in also.

100% agree on all points...

Agree. I just cant understand the blind faith the board and many supporters have in Bailey. While he has shown a hard line in terms of drafting and youth, there are serious unanswered questions around his ability to develop these young players and to implement a suitable AFL game plan(going by our on field performances). I say no need to rush into the extension unless we show signs of improvement this year.

Yes ill pop in as well, in the desperate hope that there will be some positives to take out if it. Hope Scully and Trengove get another run but they may not after the 5 day break.

no no none of that, but i think there were some glaring issues that im concerned cant be completely fixed over the course of 3 more practice games. Again, not that i expect flawless football from the young team.

Im so sick of these type of responses. We have the right to raise questions and so we should after such a bemusing first up performance. We have been promised we would see improvement in the areas listed in the above posts yet it almost seemed we have gone backwards. The skills were atrocious. There were no examples of good skills. We all knew it wouldnt happen over night but i need to see glimpses at least. I do not see any evidence of a stable game plan and i can sense the players are unsure of themselves which affects their confidence. I also think it was the reality check a lot of people needed. Time to stop overrating most of our players and our coach.

Two players can be subbed off and replaced for th eremainder of the game, sort of like how they do it in soccer.

Im thinking its a certainty. Give them a taste of what an AFL road trip is like. Im sure they are used to travelling anyway.

Great post, i feel the same way. I would have thought more ppl would feel the same yet everyone seems blaze about the injury situation. The club doesnt have a great track record and thats all there is to it. While i know there is nothing we can do now that he is injured and we have to trust the clubs "Slowly slowly" stance on Watts' development, I dont recall this sort of restraint being required for the likes of Kruzer or franklin who were both quite skinny and also taller players.

I sure hope youre right about it just being soreness. 3-4 week seems a long time for that.

Absolute joke of an injury list if you ask me, don tknow what they are doing down there. Back injuries are nasty, just look at gumbleton. Grimes missed a whole year with his stress fractures. Saying its a coutious approach is a good way of fending off supporter concerns but it doesnt wash with me.

Exactly, again it comes down to this whole theme of not being able to be critical of Watt's in anyway (even though i wasnt being critical). Anyway i refuse to believe that there is anyone on here that isnt slightly insecure about it at the moment. ANYWAY BACK TO THE INTRACLUB.....

Im not being a doomsdayer, just impressed with Natinui and wish we were abe to see what Watts can offer in action also. I understand he will come good eventually but its just frustrating having to wait, thats all.

I know, after seeing Natinui last night im getting more and more impatient.

So was that "virus" pre xmas we all heard about actually this back problem? People have been mentioning him in recent training reports so i assume he is now training?

i understand he had a niggling injury but i dont think there was mention of "missing half a season".

clutching lower leg? At least its not a hammy, groin, knee. Doesnt sound like a broken ankle. Hopefully a corky or rolled ankle.

Great, the stress begins....

Yeah its unusual especially considering the like of blease and strauss didnt move and they have higher expection on them. I dare say we will see JM on the senior list as soon as there is an injury.

I concur Jimmy is a great man and i would go to war for the man, he inspires me. The Macdonald call on Fev was hilarious. He also touched on his training goals over the preseason and mentioned he keeps a logbook of how many errors he makes and is trying to get it down to zero errors per session. Good to see hes a perfectionist, i think he will be greta for us with his experience down back. I love Cameron Schwabs emphasis on Heritage and how it plays a massive part in the success of our club along with the business and on field side of things going forward. I take it the belated presentation of Spencer's Truscott trophy was Cams idea. Seeing Ox and Neita there brought a huge smile to my face and i hope the rookies gain an understanding of how much the club means to some people.

Asolutley no chance we will make 35k this year. The membership ladder is pretty much set in stone yearly. Bottom three = Dogs, Dees, Roos. Is it me or is it strange that the membership figure only grew by around 1000 in the whole January? Perhaps ppl are waiting see what our NAB form is like?

Dont forget this is Melbourne we are talking about .....

Yeah its disappointing. The spate of foot injuries in particular is concerning. Thats 4 or 5 players in the space of 12 months that have had foot problems. Bate will be an important part of our forward structure so i hope he comes good soon. Spewing about Daveys hammy also.

our newest tanking tactic - dont show up....

I for one am resentful that Miller has continued to gain opportunities after countless insipid performances purely because of his size (which isnt all that impressive if you ask me) and because he is a "good clubman". His lack of football smarts and basic skills puts him in the same category as players like Godfrey, ferguson, carrol and guys of that nature yet they were gone long ago. As you mentioned he was BOG in the Freo final but a handful of good games in 9 years really isnt acceptable particularly when compared to his normal standard of game which ususally involves a low number of inefficient possessions and no presence whatsoever in one of the most important positions on the ground. I dont think he helped develop the young team at all in most games last year.