Ted Lasso

I think Jack still feels he owes the club, and i think he's been building the last couple of years, flashes of what he can do in 2014, had a consistent patch in 2015 but couldn't keep it up and now he looks like he's put it all together and it's finally clicked for him

I think the number 1 focus of the club at seasons end will be locking away Jesse Hogan which is more than likely going to be big coin. Dom Tyson while his form is up and down will still demand moderate coin and TMAC moderate to big coin i would have thought Watts keeps his form up and he'll be demanding more and more Oliver, Brayshaw, Petracca we will need to keep money aside for and if Trengove plays well i imagine his next contract will be a bit higher then rookie wages, I highly doubt the club would be in a position to bring in both Hurley and Prestia or anyone else like that, one would probably be the max

He really didn't miss all that long in terms of running so i don't see Brayshaw as being all that far away fitness wise anyway, Harmes i really rate but i think having to break back into the side will do him a lot of good! he's certainly good enough to do it. adding Dunn and Lumumba to the backline i think will really help as well! good bit of experience down there

I think he might go out for Brayshaw, i reckon the club will be keen to get guys like Viney, TMac, Hogan, Tyson, Brayshaw, Petracca, Oliver and the real core of the side going forward to play as many games together as possible

for either deal i think we'd be giving up this years second round pick and next years first rounder. maybe a swap of later picks.

Oh geez, this site went into meltdown when dunn wasn't picked last week, it'd be so much worse if Omac goes out and they still don't pick him

any chance we see Petracca?

Agreed, he's a very underrated one on one player, i don't remember seeing him lose a genuine one on one contest, has the Speed and hardness to compete with just about anyone.

The role he played for us was far more significant than any of the other potential nominee's in my opinion, 15 contested touches in a hard fought close game with a quality midfield is a good effort but two clearances that resulted in two goals in the last from a first gamer is insane. imo he doesn't play anywhere but the AFL team in 2016 unless he is rested, kid is as promising as anyone at the club, including Hogan

If a good player wants to come to your club i reckon you go for it, yes we have some inside mids already but Prestia would be as good as anyone we have, and has plenty of room to develop even further, he's a good leader and he's not a bad outside player either. i understand the concern about our lack of outside class and polish but i am firmly of the belief that Kennedy, Trengove, Petracca, Watts, N.Jones, M.Jones, Vince and Salem can all play roles that will in time make us very dangerous on the outside.

Can't agree with this sorry mate, but i also appreciate this isn't the topic to debate that on, this will be a really interesting test for our boys, i believe not only do we need to win, but we need to win well, anything less than a five goal win would be quite disappointing in my opinion

We also have administrators at our club in PJ and Paul Roos who have a zero tolerance attitude on drugs, so it will never happen at the MFC, as far as i am concerned whether the bombers players were " Sacrificial lambs" or not is irrelevant, every profession athlete is 100% responsible for what goes into their bodies 100% of the time, so the Essendon players are 100% responsible for what's happened to them. Having said that i personally won't be going out of my way to be involved in any protests beyond simply not going to the game, as great as it would be to see us belt the top up express, i will not give them any of my hard earned after what that club has pulled.

Wouldn't mind Duncan, Motlop, Caddy and Scott Selwood in Red and Blue

Track for sure, should come in within the next 3 weeks. I think Weiderman may get a run later in the year but noone else really stands out in my opinion

Hearing a lot of people say that if GWS had kicked a lot better they would have been 7 goals up at 3/4 time and put us out of it, but i really think that goes both way, there were multiple patches where we clearly dominated the game, and our disposal was just off and we got burned on the rebound, i feel we are good enough to beat them more often than not.

Gee the cats midfield is scary, especially once they add in Scott Selwood

if he keeps his current form up he will get a new contract and he will get some decent coin as well! looks like a totally different player and we're a totally different side when he's playing well!

Every Essendon supporting mate i have is an absolute nightmare to deal with at the best of times right now, i'll just be happy to rock up to the G sit with other Dees supporters and watch us win 2 in a row for the first time in donkeys years and enjoy it.

I really think he is suffering because of three major things. 1. the weight of expectation is getting to him, he had a huge deal on the table from the MFC, and he decided to put talks on hold for now, that carries some risk that if his form drops away sharply the offer may not be the same when he re-opens talks ( for me he's going okay at the moment though ) 2. he is not understanding that just because he is talented beyond belief that it's going to be his hard work that gets him through the moments where it's not going all his way, not his talent, this is something Macca was talking to him about at training last week, " if it's not going all your way, which happens to every player, simplify things, don't worry about goals just set yourself the goal of doing 1 or 2 things really well, like don't be outmarked and get to as many contests as you can" 3. i think we have one to many talls down there and it's crowding the forward line! i personally think Watts is good enough on currant form to be the second big and allow us to play an extra small/medium forward

He is far to good a player not to go for. MFC has chased Dion hard the last two years, family of long term Dees supporters, but given he was contracted the Suns would not even entertain the idea, now they don't have a choice, and i have no doubt the Dees will be neck deep in chasing him. My info is he is about 80-20 towards leaving and the only chance of him staying is if the Suns win a heap of games, play finals and look like contending for a flag, he and a few others don't seem to be huge fans of Eade.

Correct! up to four changes per break i believe outside of the cap

time for a massive call, if Jack holds his early form all year, and we win 10 plus games, he will be in the All Australian team and right in the mix for the Bluey

Last year we would have found a way to lose to the top up express, i bloody hope we've improved! should give them similar treatment to what the swans did to the Pies last night really. North will be a challenge but not impossible to beat, while we haven't beaten them in a while we've been reasonably competitive against them so that's something!

and a couple of brutal clearances from Oliver in a row to turn the game on it's head, not bad for a first gamer

Jacks always had talent, but it seems the penny has finally dropped about how hard he has to work and how hard he has to attack the ball to do anything with that talent. well done Jack!