btdemon

Ninth

I agree. The only difference between us and them is our connection with a socially privileged supporter base (a generalisation, I know), an establishment heritage, and the good fortune to have Jimmy and his ticket come along at the right time. I would like North to survive, just as I would hope that non Melbourne supporters would like us to survive. And I agree, its only the preseason. Real form will emerge in the season proper.

Does he manage anyone on our list?

I love him. So much courage, judgement and anticipation. Occasionally his kicking lets him down but generally he is sensational. Can play on small or much bigger opponents. Watching our game against Sydney last year he was opposed to a much bigger Jesse White. They were running back towards the Swans goal. White was slightly in front of him and in the box seat. He just gave White a judicious nudge, like he was nothing, grabbed the ball, and was away. I think, from memory, the turnover resulted in a Melbourne goal. He only had one bad game in 2010. It was against Nth at darklands. It was a clanger-fest and he was dropped for the following week. Must have been bad bio-rhythms because he was great for the rest of the year after that.

If Bartram could kick he we would be talking about him in the most glowing terms. He is quick, desperate, super fit, and has great judgement. Just remember how many small forwards he stifled last year. He was fantastic. Its just that horrible disposal that lets him down. Such a shame. Most small forwards would hate playing on him. I still thinks he has a big place in our team.

I agree. I was on the Scully/Butcher bandwagon two years ago. Now I'm very glad we didn't pick him up and went Scully/Trengove instead. Butcher may be OK in the end but seems to have an attitude as well. Cook seems a better bet.

I have always maintained that Davey had the right recipe to win a Brownlow if he was in a decent side, surrounded by a good midfield. Well he is now in very good, albeit inexperienced, team. He is skilful, quick, eye-catching, and until recently, by far our classiest player. He is also fitter than he has ever been. With the Midfield of Scully, Trengove, Moloney, Jones, Sylvia and Morton and the addition of Gysberts, Bennell and Jetta when appropriate, it really takes the pressure off Davey as the first player tagged by opposition coaches. Could he do it in 2011 or am I one year too early with this prediction? Here's hoping!

Really impressed with Watts last night. He is going for contested marks with more confidence and is oh so smart with every aspect of his disposal and positioning. He will be very special payer. The 'don't argue' was good but it must be remembered that it was against Hitchcock, who is one of their smallest players. Still, it showed a new confidence and that Watts is feeling more like he should be out there with the big boys. The Dees really impressed me with their speed all over the ground. Martin is very quick and could still prove to be a very handy ruckman/utility. He is still learning the game. Jetta was great. Always gives 100%. Love his mongrel, and he seems to have improved his ball use. Garland just gets better. He, Rivers, Grimes and MacDonald are such good readers of the ball in flight. These are great attributes for defenders. Cook did not look out of place. Smart and with great ball use. He wasn't as skinny as I expected. Tom McDonald also I suspect Maric will earn a spot at some stage this year but i have a feeling he will continue to frustrate us with decision making. I hope I'm wrong. Nicholson and Evans looked pretty good and just needed to adjust to the pace of the game. I suspect they'll both play a lot at Casey this year but certainly look like 'keepers'. Trengove reminds me of Bartel. There 'just doing it' all the time. Jurrah was electric and is now such a drawcard for us. People will start coming to games just to watch him. A rare jewell. So much to be excited about!

For goodness sake! Can we please stop this now? Let the kid play footy. He'll make a decision at some stage and whatever happens, happens. That's it. We'll cope. He's only one player. All of this chatter just increases the pressure.

Pound for pound, the greatest I ever saw.

I think he already has. Its not over yet though.

Fantastic doco. You can pick it up on ABC iview. I think i will watch Chris Yarran with real interest now. Seemed like a lovely kid (even if he did look like was 25 when he was only 14). There was a real sadness about the seemingly inevitable nature of the derailment of the other boys, especially Daen Lomas. This story is probably being repeated many times around the country. The other thing that struck me is how the male culture of drinking around country footy clubs is so destructive.

Talk about lazy journalism and an easy way to fill a double spread with meaningless rubbish. It looked like the writer had had a quick scan across the official and unofficial websites and plucked a few obvious snippets. Typical Herald-Sun.

If you remember three or four years ago on this forum people constantly labeled Green as "soft" and even wanted trade him. Now he is often "suicidal" in his approach to a marking contest and we gasp at his brave and selfless acts. This must have taken enormous mental courage in his part to make this transition. These things happen to people at different times in their lives or careers. Hopefully JW will get there. What is interesting about all this is that we are asking very young people to take risks and do things that very few of us would be prepared to do.

I think this is a really important point in regard to Watts. I have tremendous regard for his talent, his sublime skills, and expect him to be a very good player. However, I am concerned with the amount of time he spends standing around a pack waiting for the ball to come out. He does seem to avoid heavy contact and doesn't attack the ball on the ground or in the air. He relies on his fantastic hand skills and brilliant reading of the play. Agression towards the ball is a natural attribute in some players. Scully and Jones, are a couple of prime examples of terriers who don't appear to fear for their physical safety. I suspect they have been playing like this since they were in early primary school. What Riv describes as "see ball, get ball". Interestingly they don't seem to get hurt that much either. Others players need to gain confidence and overcome fear. For some it is quite a conscious process. The decision to go hard to a contest is like jumping off a cliff. They have to gain the confidence they are not going to get killed by doing it time and time again. As a young boy playing footy I rarely got a touch. I was reasonably strong and fast. Coaches would say "You've got to go in hard to get the ball". I would think to myself, "I am going in hard". But the fact was, I wasn't. I thought I was, but I wasn't. Hence, my perception of the situation was skewed by my natural fear of physical contact. It wasn't until much later that I realised this. Way too late to be even a half-decent footballer. My concern is that Watts may well be thinking that he is going in hard when he isn't. Hopefully there are people working with him on this. Neita's advice about the first and last few steps is spot on. Watts needs to explode towards and away from other players using that short-burst pace that we know he possesses. He also seems to be a naturally nice guy with very little mongrel who has no desire to hurt other players. This may also be working against him being more physical. I don't expect he will ever be the "Dermie" type. There are many champions who didn't go about hurting people, but were very skilled and effective. I have great hopes for Watts but I think it will take time.

I like the new strip very much, except that silly collar. Why not do a proper collar? It would look great and surely wouldn't be a problem. I also think the emblem is way too busy.

I watch that game recently and agree we were robbed. I've let it go because it doesn't really matter in the overall scheme of things. I have also been watching older games (because I'm a desperate). I watched round 22 2009, Melb vs Saints. It was the game that LJ ran amok and Bails took him off, then put him upfield just to make sure we didn't win. We played OK but it was striking how our game plan has developed since then. You can see the beginnings of it, with free flowing risky running and field kicking but the skill level is markedly down on this year. Players like Jamar, Frawley and Dunn have definitely come up another notch from 2009. It was a good comparison and demonstrates the evolution of the Bailey game plan. It was a good confirmation that we're on the right track and Bailey is the right man for the job. Made me very enthused.

Colin? Unbecoming character? Which Colin and what do you mean?

I wish LJ had stuck with 48 and made it his own. I liked him in 48. Just remember Kouta carried 43 throughout his career. The Russian carries 40 and I'd hate him to change. Wheels carried 45.

I wouldn't be surprised to see Howe line up at some stage next year. He has a mature body and is that little bit older. With LJ, Petterd and Howe in the same area its going to be interesting to see how we "structure up". (please excuse footy cliche.) All three rely on desperate and spectacular marking. I hope they don't jump on each other. LJ and Petterd are extemely creative but unpredictable players who generate opportunities out of nothing. I hope Howe is as well. It makes me think that Green should still be played in front of goal because he is more predicable to our midfielders. He runs to the right places and presents consistently. This gives the midfielders more idea. The other two are wildcards. Anything can happen (and will). It remains to be seen what Howe will do. Dunne also provides a more predictable target. One thing is for sure, they will be potent and difficult to match up on. We haven't really seen a forward line with Ricky P, Aussie and LJ operating together as yet. Talk about exciting! Howe adds another spark, with Dunne, Green and possibly Bate adding solidity. I haven't even mentioned Watts. His value at present, seem to be playing further up the field, gathering the ball and delivering to the best option, rather than presenting as a main target. He is very good at this and will continue to improve. Exciting times!

If you don't think Davey is an elite player then think which player the opposition coaches attempt to stop. Its usually Davey because he is our most creative and skilled play maker. There is no doubt in my mind that he is an A grader by anyone's standards.

Yikes!

I don't want Kosi anywhere near our boys. I have nothing against him but he is obviously a major klutz. He could easily accidentally fall on LJ or Watts and badly injure them. He has a bad record when it comes to injuring himself and his team mates.

I agree 100%. Add to that the fact that Judd's first year at Carlton was partially ineffective due to injury. By the time we will be challenging for a flag Judd will be 29 and beginning to fade as a super champion. His value would have been wasted on us at the current stage of our development.

I agree. i don't want to be told "what I am thinking", because "I" wasn't thinking anything like that. Aaron Davey is a marvellous player. He is consistently the most skillful and classy player in our side. He is the player that I trust most with the ball in his hands. He is the best and most creative playmaker in the team. He doesn't go missing. He is the player that others give the ball to. If he is made captain, I will be very happy. Over the last five years he has kept me going to the footy. Racial stereotypes are misleading and damaging. Have a good think about what you have stirred up Deezman. I hope none of our indigenous players have stumbled on to this crap because it may well make them feel very uncomfortable.