Diamond_Jim

same here.... suspecting there will be a heavy Tigers turn out. Anzac day will be a sell out but it would not surprise me if we have a higher physical attendance. Pies and Bombers supporters buy their reserved seats for the Anzac clash miles in advance. Shame there is no dynamic pricing ... it could even go negative the way the Pies and Bombers are going

One can understand the instruction run free and take the handball in the modern game but as many have pointed out the shepherd which releases the ball carrier can be just effective and in many case is a lower risk play than the over the top handball. The ball release is increasingly important because in todays game the opposition players other than the tackler will run away as well to cover the receiving player. Accordingly if the original ball carrying player can be released by the shepherd he will often not have an immediate opponent. Obviously it is not appropriate in all circumstances but like any tactic it has its uses. Perhaps the players are so highly drilled there is not much room for "improvisation"

Fascinating story PF. Helps us nobodies understand your vehemence on the concussion issue. Hope all ended up well mate.

and what is interesting is that they don't run away and thus open up space for the handball ... rather they hover nearby waiting for the short high one over the top. By the time they get it an opposition player is sitting on them or even worse intercepting. When Collingwood played GWS Pendlebury made a comment post game that they knew GWS were a looping handball type side and that allowed them to pressure the ball carrier into fluffing the hand pass

Melbourne 11 goals 4 to Hawks 6 goals 18 Not meaning to be facetious but many of our good wins last year occurred because the other side did not kick straight. Luck, pressure call it what you like but I hope it happens again.

Fully agree ... always great to see tactics discussed

Spot on Tiers ... some of those goal reviews over the weekend were pure conjecture from what I could see. To over rule the umpire there must be absolutely clear evidence. From what I saw that was lacking in at least a couple of reviews over the weekend. They also take too long. The very fact that they take so long means the video is not conclusive and should therefore be umpires call. We may as well do away with the goal umpire and have it called from a vault in AFL house the way it is going.

Noticed a few times on Saturday that when in the old days the play would have called out for a shepherd to release the ball carrier our non ball carrying player just stood off. I can understand the run away and take the handball over the top but what often happened is that the looping handball got touched and the play stopped or even worse. Just wondering if we have gone too far and that there is still a place for a good shepherd to release the running player. On a positive note I cannot remember too many of the old ring a rosie handball drills that we saw so often in 2017.

My Road to Russia continues.... Late one night recently I check my emails and there is a message from my Kazan airbnb host. In Russian of course so out with handy Google translate and it says he wants to cancel my three week booking as he wishes to increase his price. Having consumed a lovely bottle of red you can imagine how the exchange of emails then went. Quickly onto the airbnb site and of course the only available accommodation is worse and astronomically priced. Fast forward to next morning and I ask him the new price. Answer around double. Well the natural thing to do is yell.. we have a contract etc etc and report him to airbnb... but when you think about the alternatives not to mention the cost of air fares etc saner heads prevail and we agreed a new price which I am sure will pay his rent for the next year at least. And just to round it out I found that one of my two days in Moscow coincides with a public holiday they call Russia day. It apparently is a recent holiday to commemorate the establishment of Russia as distinct form the Soviet Union following the collapse of that wonderful national grouping. In practice it means Red Square partially closed for " celebrations". And Japan sacked their coach ... perhaps we are not so badly off with the flying Dutchman after all.

Liked the Womens 10,000 last night but the sub text was Bruce hyping everything up and Sebastian Coe calming him down...classic Example Bruce ... very important where you are positioned etc etc Sebastian... being on the inside or outside is about one extra stride every 100 metres... just go where you are comfortable

The interesting thing about many of those bombs on the weekend were that they were to around the 40-45 metre mark in front of the players. I get the bomb behind the forwards and let them run onto them but dropping it in front of them just begs the opposition to rebound. Would be interested to hear from the tacticians whether the bombs were simply short or whether this is the strategy.

at the match I made the comment that Pedersen was impressing me more than Weid. Pro Dee queried me as an apologist for Pedersen or similar. Your point DS is what I was trying to say... while the Weid was getting the goals it was not necessarily by imposing himself upon the other players. It was a good game but Coburg lacked big body tall players. I noticed two Coburg players on Weid while he was in the forward line. They were both at least a head shorter than him. Good game but like the Frankston practice game the week before it was a mismatch. (Remember that Frankston beat Coburg in a practice game.) Must admit from my position behind the goals I cannot really comment on his round the ground ruck work but the sheer weight of numbers in the talls available to Casey certainly assisted that dominance. The next three games are Werribee, Richmond and Geelong (followed by another ill timed bye before they play the Hawks.) Not suggesting we wait the full five weeks but one or two more would be advisable perhaps.

haven't been called a dude before ... but thank you .... perhaps there is hope for me yet

You have to love the Guardian articles ... they often read like those fantastic cricket summaries of the late Peter Roebuck. Where else would you find the following paragraph : Karl Newell, a kinesiologist at Penn State, said: “Consciousness gets in the way. If a pianist starts worrying where his fingers go while he’s playing, it will change the performance.” You suspect the opposite is true with Salem and his hamstring. If he can start playing without concerns about having to grab for it, we may soon see him realise his potential.

wonder if they have a club like the Primary club in cricket. Suspended in your first game for a new club... must be some sort of record

Despite the name "Avalon airport Oval" which depicts visions of windswept plains and a near abandoned airfield I see the oval is actually in Werribee backing onto the river. Moreover it is next to Bungie's Hole (not sure what that is). A night game though so I may give it a miss... but one never knows... some local knowledge on the expected culinary delights might tempt me !

His second quarter which was played right in front of me was superb. In the last quarter (down my end again) he was very useful. His body shape was so different to the rest of the guys as I mentioned during the match. A solid man among the relative adolescent sticks. Too good for VFL as you say OD but maybe not there for AFL. A bit like JKH I am afraid. The other dilemna is that with him in the side Casey have too many talls which could in the longer term stunt the growth of the next generation skill wise. Remember the days of Sauntner and Newton ... not suggesting it would be that bad but you need to think about what you are trying to achieve with the reserves team. It may not just be the thrill of winning. In respect of the Weid if and when he is selected for AFL the seniors could face the same problem when Tom Mc returns.

when do the incidents from Saturday's game get announced.? I thought it was 24 hours or similar with the one person MRP

Before you push for the inclusion of another tall in the forward line you have to consider the game plan. If we are channeling Richmond which we seem to be you limit yourself to one tall in the form of Riewodlt who if you think about is the proto type for how we are playing Hogan. At least we have Gawn which gives us dominance by comparison to the Richmond set up where they play a competent but not starring ruck. Personally I'm not sure. If the VFL players were starring against hard opposition then the case becomes stronger for those guys but they aren't there yet. On the other hand are our scrambling forwards worthy of our reliance. On Saturday they showed their worth so I expect they may get another go this weekend. Melksham showed last year that he is an efficient forward. Brayshaw for ANB .. I am comfortable to leave that to the selectors but I would be thrilled to see Gus kill it on the big stage.

Money ball has been used at Casey for at least a season or two and I assume it is also used at the MFC. Have no idea f what it means but I suspect it is simply taking the risk if you have the opportunity to solidly improve the overall progress of the ball in our favour. As you say... take the smart option having regard to risk and reward

Geelong will head home and have its usual victories down at Ocean Grove North which will see thm challenge for the 8. Yep .. we should have beaten them at the MCG sans Dangerfield

6 goals in 5 mins to the eagles ...impressive

go weagles

8 goals to one..........

Well... the battle took place on the outer car park as distinct from the main arena but the Weid did win. This being said Pedersen was not disgraced in that his half forward play was very strong. Looks like we will have a rematch on the plains of Avalon next week. On a more serious note the Casey forward line is over manned with talls which contrasts strongly with the senior side. Makes meaningful comparisons difficult.