Earl Hood

Were the Crows down by 86 at three quarter time?

If we can keep the engine room fit and in form, i.e. Gawn, Jones, Viney, Brayshaw, Oliver, Petracca, Salem we won’t lose too many. And we have the depth to cover a few injuries down back or up forward this year.

Remember early on we had just Hoges as a forward target but he was playing part mid, part forward with a bevy of small forwards yet we were just bombing it long into the forward line with a too high press. Massive inside 50’s but small rate of conversion. Could not work out the game plan. Basically very agricultural, kick the ball forward at all costs with no idea how to convert. But the last 5 week’s, things have turned on their head, our conversion rate for inside 50’s has gone through the roof. Our forward press is rational with Lever making sure he is between the opposition and the goal. Work through those structural issues, plus add Mad dog mid, Viney and key forward in TMac and the whole equation changes. Please let it continue!

And loving it!!

But you said it was nice?

Don’t need rising star noms, we had heeps of those when we were Shyte from 2008 to 2012, they don’t mean a lot. Happy for our young guns to fly under the radar and perhaps the real talent doesn’t qualify, in Fritsch and Bull as they are a fraction too old.

Neither have the Eagles!

6 Brayshaw 5 Hogan 4 Hibberd 3 Lever 2 Oliver 1 ANB

As I posted somewhere else, if we can keep the midfield healthy, hungry and inform we will be very hard to stop from here on in, as we will be more consistent game to game. A midfield of Max, Jones, Oliver, Viney, Brayshaw, Tracc, Hogan means we are very competitive, every week!

Best since Dipper I reckon?!

I’m speechless!!

Where has this set shot accuracy come from?

Have we got a wind advantage?

Good game from Lynden Dunn tonight, attacking the ball and doing things he wasn’t doing in his final season with us.

The Demon shop seems to sell out of popular things regularly, I tried to buy the indigenous jumper last year but got told at the shop sorry none left, sold out and won’t be getting anymore, bad luck.

I thought we would crack 45,000 early on so great news but I think a sign that we are near a ceiling for membership unless we snag a flag and then you drag in more lapsed members or mute supporters and brand new bandwagon members.

So if some Wurundjeri elders knock on your door tomorrow to say they want their land back, you will be saying fair cop mate, here’s the keys!

White feathers now! What’s this 1918? Pro I implored you to see your doctor ASAP last week but you obviously didn’t follow up and the medication has worn off and you are raving again or at least providing links to raving lunatics from non universities and other nutjob web sites. Are they the same sites that deny climate change? Again I suggest you to see your physician immediately!

Interesting I know in our darkest hours I was Pro [censored]! If I had been the head recruiting officer back then we would have Hurley over Watts, Dusty over Trenners, Darling over Cook! And we all agree on Wines and there are others. My mantra at the time was kids with talent but with a dose of aggro and we had the full selection of the best talented, mongrels available at that time. But we went for the nice kids, often with questionable talent. Once Roos showed up he used the phrase competitive nature I think as a major indicator for draft selection. I believe competitive and aggro are similar traits. Thus we started picking out Bugg, Tracca, Oliver, Harmes, Hogan, then Vince, Lewis etc. And given the management at the time yes we would have stuffed up and lost the talented [censored], if we had drafted them. Many of your greatest talents were one degree away from disaster, what the unauthorised [censored] up, the late night disco club punch up when you should not be there, etc. Think Matthews, Duck, Darling, Brereton, Hamel, Dipper etc. common in the 70’s.

Nut gee you are splitting straws here, not founded versus initially funded and equiped??? Most people are comfortable with the facts that the US played a major role in the development of the Al Queda via support for the Mujahideen in the war against the Soviets in Afghanistan, which created an opening for the Taliban. My reading indicates the Israelis were initially happy to promote the creation of Hamas as a better alternative to the PLO. Hamas initially concentrated on developing health and education services for Palestinians but increasingly diverted funds and efforts into fighting the Isreali Government’s siege of Gaza. Why did they do this? Was it because they are mindless, aggressive terrorists or because they saw no future for their people due to the siege and the increasing co struction of illegal Isreali settlements on their lands, who knows?

Sorry for that comment, didn’t know you would be so sensitive about it. But Bugg does get a lot of forward opportunities when he plays, think he got a few goals in an early game in the ones. Then he struggled like a few others like Garlett in our hopelessly congested forward setup in rounds 1 to 5. He still offers something I believe, although no automatic pick I agree, I prefer Jeffy for his X factor but he can go missing.

Well people who have not played at this level keep saying such I know. But he has a habit of being at the drop of the ball in the forward line. If he could kick straight he would be a weapon as he usually seems to get 4 or 5 shots at goal. He also adds a bit of unsociable football, but that needs to be managed I agree but he has defensive forward skills, so in my eyes he is a chance for a game this week, but what would I know.

Well please attend no matter who the FD selects. They know best, but yes there were some circumstances last season where they...... OH no need to go there!

Don’t think we will really miss either of you really if he is selected but tell me were you planning on flying to Alice for the match?

Interesting dilemma though rjay. I would like Jeffy in just because I believe we have fixed up our game plan issues, I think he would have had a field day against his old side yesterday and he has X factor, foot speed, goal kicking accuracy but how our game plan stands up against top sides is still to be demonstrated. Alternatively the fact that we are No 1 for inside 50 entries by a huge margin may push you toward Bugg who seems to be a limited player but has one undoubted skill, he seems to know where the ball is going to land and pops up with a mark inside 50m. His set shot accuracy is still an issue but he does also bring aggro and defensive pressure. I love Jeffy but perhaps if there is a change it is Bugg in and Spargo rested?