Ted Lasso

My personal opinion on Max is he's going to retire as Melbournes greatest ever player, and probably the greatest ever ruckman full stop. looks likely to finish with 8-9 All Australians, probably 1-4 as AA captain, could definitely win a brownlow, probably multiple premiership captain.

Just had to win, 5 changes, chemistry completely thrown, Viney and Lever clearly underdone, and game not played on our ters for extended periods. and we just grinded a win out. super impressive.

Agreed, It's hard to se West Coast wanting to part with any high end draft picks, and it's hard to see any players they have that would interest us. Fremantle is a bit similar in that it'd likely take a combination of players and picks to get a deal done, and they're obviously pretty happy with how they're tracking

I think the clubs approach to this has been correct in terms of acknowledging the reality that a week like this was inevitable and it's much better to have that happen at week 7 than later in the season. really hoping to see a really strong performance from Bedford and Melksham in particular, even McDonald, just to really keep the pressure on the guys in the 22 to hold their spot.

I reckon if it were me i'd be thinking i could win multiple flags in the next few years here, no gurantee either W.A club gets anywhere near this level anytime soon. he also knows in 2-3 years he's going to be the number 1 ruckman and there is no doubt the level he's currently playing at is in part due to the combination and support of Gawn, it really allows him to play to his strengths and develop naturally. there is no doubt he'd find the situation much more difficult at West Coast for example where all eyes are on him.

I'm really confident we win this because thankfully the out's seem to be more around the edges players the fact our midfield, backline, and forward line have remained mainly in tact is great. I think it'll be similar to our previous games, the Hawks will fight pretty hard but at some point we will have 5-6 minute patch where we put the foot down and kick 4-5 goals quickly and that'll be the game.

From the club the messaging is that they're extremely confident and i think Gary Lyon? said he thinks he's likely to sign a short term deal, or one is on the table already. Outside the club 'Big name W.A player who hasn't re-signed with melbourne, here is an easy headline' reality, probably only Luke Jackson knows what he's going to do, but either we keep him which would be great or we likely win our second flag in 2 years and then start figuring out what we're going to do with pick 1, and what else we'd need to get the deal done

Jackson won't leave, he will sign a short term deal, and potentially go after that. but i reckon we've got him for minimum this season and 2 more. if he did decide to leave this year we'd be very well compensated, while he's a gun and i'd love him to stay, i don't think our potential dynasty hinges on what happens here.

They are, but neither are as good as our best, it reminds me of the Hawks dominant era, every team knew their best was THE best and if they were on, it wasn't going to matter what was tried. I think we're a bit the same, but i also think the reason i don't mind the daylight second theory is that we're playing at i'd say 60-70% of our capacity and still undefeated. Personally i think Geelong are the second best team, that forward combination is pretty scary, and something most teams will struggle to contain.

The take the first option mantra was adopted because our skill level as a footy side was very poor, these days we're one of the most skillful teams in the comp! Mark Williams has had a huge say in that, as have others. I think we're really missing Salem at the moment, but all of our players are much much better at hitting a target under pressure these days

More just balance on a wet day i reckon. May, Lever, Petty, Smith maybe leaves us a tiny bit light on at ground level, not saying those guys aren't solid enough ground level players, but you get what i mean

Have found the changes in the com box super refreshing. Buckley and Chunk in particular provide great insight without arrogance

OUT: Jackson, Sparrow, Pickett, Smith iN: Viney, Bedford, Melksham, Lever

I'd say it's Viney, Lever for Dunstan, Smith Both players are stiff, but that's part and parcel of playing in the reigning premiership who've won 13 in a row or whatever it is. the pleasing thing is our depth is such that a lot of our VFL boys would be best 22 at other clubs at the moment. Smith would walk into a lot of teams IMO I really like Luke Dunstan as a player and hope he finds a way to break his way into the team.

Given this development, No change.

The girls are very capable of getting the job done today, but up against an all time great side, it'll be a tough game. Seeing Daisy lift the cup would be almost as satisfying as seeing Max and Goody do it.

Honestly, i think the report Gussy hasn't re signed because he wants midfield time is a bit full of it. Gun midfielder accepts team role outside midfield, hasn't re-signed at round 4 - must be disgruntled. Potentially Gus and his management have noticed, as most dees fans have that Gus has become one of our best and most important players since the grand final, and they're keen to ensure he gets the correct value on his next deal, which is absolutely fair enough.

I'd be tempted to give Kozzie a week or 2 to find some form in the 2's. OUT: Weid, Pickett In: Brown, Chandler

I just can't see how they're going to be able to stop the influence of Gawn/Jackson as targets around the ground. even if they somehow manage to do okay in the ruck

Worth noting that one genuine ruckman is nowhere near the level of either of our 2 genuine ruckman. going to be a fun night of our mids having the upper hand.

I can't stress enough how big an advantage these guys are. Alex Neal-Bullen and Tom McDonald are also high minutes players. and it allows you to really focus your rotation on players who benefit from playing in burts. Having these guys would seriously help guys like Petracca who don't quite have the same tank

I'd hate to say anything that could be taken as positive towards Port or their fan base but, I see tonight going 1 of 2 ways. Either we give them an absolute smashing, win by 40 plus points (i hope this one) or They rally under the pressure and give us one hell of a fight where we have to be at our absolute best to win. Given their previous success at choking hard under pressure, i think it may be the first

Tommlinson, Smith, out: Brown, Lever in Weideman and Brown forward McDonald and Lever slot in down back

I can't believe this is even a thread.

It's particularly funny to see because i know a lot of Port People who were desperately hoping we'd beat Geelong in the prelim because they thought we were no chance of beating them in the grand final. I think they'll show up and have a crack but we will win the big moments and win by 3-4 goals, we seem to be operating in first gear at the moment and banking in wins.