Ted Lasso

Significant news. it really is incredible to think back to 2012 when the club was in legitimate trouble and think just 11 years later we'd be around the 70k member mark, had won a flag, look a big chance to win another, on the verge of securing a facility upgrade. all the wonderful people involved have done a remarkable job.

I stopped taking you seriously the moment you suggested Viney of 2023 was "no more than an equal of steele"

Smith goes forward, Hibberd covers down back. the Blues don't have quite as many talls as we usually might so we can afford to go a little smaller down there. Smith has shown the capacity to clunk a mark up forward

This is really going to be a midfield battle. the Saints contained the Blues pretty well but didn't have the talent in the middle to maintain their dominance, i suspect we have more midfield talent than the Blues so they'll be relying on pressure to cause mistakes. Without McKay/SOS i think they'll struggle to kick 100 points against us, and as long as we don't just bomb it to Weitering over and over again we should be fairly dangerous in attack. I don't see a natural match up for Petracca in their side.

Right now we are a top 4 team based on talent, our system isn't top 4, teams have figured it out, and our hunger isn't what it was in 2021. I suspect the club needs to do a review and make some tweaks for us to really contend this year, the talent is there, but i don't think we're any better than the team that went out in straight sets right now

That's where he and James Jordan will be playing in 24 i suspect. maybe Tommo as well.

I'm shocked. i can't even wrap my head around the logic that leads to this conclusion

I would say our slight drop off is in part due to opposition teams having planned more for us, moving the ball more aggressively in general and we've dramatically improved offensively. i think a fully fit Hibberd and an inform Tmac will allow Petty to also drop back and stiffen the backline up nicely. Salem will also help a lot. We look like a dramatically better team when Kozzie is in the middle and our forward line looks downright scary with Petracca down there. you wish you could clone blokes but i do think these guys need to split that time a bit more evenly. give Kozzie more of a look at the midfield.

I suspect you could have a third team in either Perth or Adelaide.

It's hard to imagine too many changes given how the team went last night but i'd guess Spargo and Petty walk back in and Schache and Jordan probably make way

Enjoy the night mate! hope we get a big win for ya!

I'm sure his manager would have had that chat but it looks as though it was always something like 90% Fremantle or 10% Melbourne and no other team was ever really in the discussion

I suspect it'll be Laurie, but they might also consider Harmes

I personally would have advised LJ to go to West Coast. he'd have gotten the same or more money and been their number 1 ruck with Nic Nat as a mentor in the short term.

If it were me i'm going HARD at Ben King, who i think we could definitely get with one of our world famous presentations and we have the draft assets to get it done, unsure on the cap side of things. if not, geez pick 1 would be tempting, especially given 2 of the picks we're offering would likely be late teens. something like 6, 18 and 18 so Harley Read can come in and win a flag in his first year and develop without the pressure in a strong team that won't rely on him the way the Hawks would

I am still incredibly confident in the player Luke Jackson will in time become. but the pressure of being at a club like Fremantle on that sort of money this early in his career is a legitimate risk to his development

Happy days. massive to keep Kozzie on board given the way his career is trending! also i believe means all major potential departures are now signed up for this year so no distractions or will he won't he questions

Yeah i know, i am just suggesting this for purely selfish reasons. kid is going to be special. like Jefferson as well!

Geez JVR is a special young player. can we sign him up for a decade now and save multiple threads about his contract in the future?

Some people generate headlines and ratings with their thoughtful and respected analyses, credit to Kane Kornes in that he's recognised he's not that, unlike some other commentators and he's god down a more pizz taking path.

Hearing that Essendon and the Saints both have real interest in JJ and will pursue him. which makes sense as he's a quality guy and player with premiership experience.

It's incredible to me that someone with so much Raw talent wasn't an early draft pick, but it really does show that even with the incredible work recruiters do, at times guys slip through the cracks and you can get an incredible pick up if you're at the right place, and the right time Even Bailey Fritsch is a good example of an elite player that somehow slipped much later than he really should have based on AFL output

No, it's been a few years in the making to be honest, the only role JH really has made his own is the tagging role when we choose to go down that path. truthfully he's always been a guy who's given us an incredible return for a rookie, but he has some limitations and i suspect those inside the club rate guys like Jordan and Sparrow a little bit higher now.

James Harmes is not a best 22 player at the MFC right at the moment. he's right on the fringe and i suspect will be at another club next year. Ripping guy and great team man, but it's one of those good team problems we haven't had in a really long time

Essendon are likely to only have the resting ruck, and Jones as their main tall targets and Stringer kinda I reckon we could get away with going slightly smaller at both ends against the Bomber