Retirements.

[Swanny40519]

If he goes around again he should stand down from the captaincy.

Agree.

Shaw, Goodes and Derickx should retire.

Parker to become captain.

Pyke - depends on how bad his knee is - could last one more year but that would've to be it. 2016 will be a difficult year due to the AFL $^$^*$&*^ trade restrictions so we may have to hold on to some fringe players until the end of next year. Nankervis is not up to AFL standard and we have to bank on Naismith getting a full preseason and be in the ruck so we can have Tippett and Buddy in our forward line to score goals. Cunningham is soft and Lloyd is playing well below last years standard.

[dimelb]

I agree Shaw and Goodes should retire at end of season. They may both have the capacity to go around again but they would be fading and in the end stopping younger players from getting development time. It might mean that we don't do as well in 2016 but if we play our cards right we will be back in town in 2017.

Although we lack run from defence there are players who can provide it; Rampe is the most obvious but McVeigh's field kicking can more than make up for comparative lack of pace, as is also the case with Lloyd.

I agree with Stuart Dew that games are won and lost in the midfield, and that is our real area of relative weakness atm. The rules that allowed us to lock up the ball are changing and we need something new in our approach, or at least enables us to run and carry as we can still do quite well on occasion. We need to see those occasions more often. We have missed Benny.

Also I've liked watching Brandon recently: he's having a genuine red-hot go and I can forgive the odd clanger because he's working hard on his run and his tackling. I think he'll keep improving. I would say much the same for Harry C. who I think should play as a forward with the odd stint as an outside mid. I don't see him as soft, but he needs to find where the ball is more often. He is still a good kick for goal and useful field kicking when he manages to avoid clangers. I don't doubt he's worth persisting with. We need to make more use of his greatest asset, his speed.

[MattW]

If he goes around again he should stand down from the captaincy.

Totally agree. His grappling with mortality is affecting the team, and his place in the team is likely to come into question next year.

[swansrob]

I'd be wary making Parker captain so young. He's a future captain, for sure, but I wonder if we should let him ply his trade for a couple more years and keep learning from the other leaders before he takes on that extra burden.

[RogueSwan]

... Nankervis is not up to AFL standard yet and we have to bank on Naismith getting a full preseason...

Just thought I would fix that for you :-)

I'd be wary making Parker captain so young...

Joint captain with Smooch? Is he still in the leadership group? Actually, who is in the Leadership group ATM? You would have to assume any Captain options would have to come from this group.

[jono2707]

Here's a wacky idea - how about just one captain?

[aardvark]

Here's a wacky idea - how about just one captain?

and how about one that leads by example?

[Ludwig]

I think we should make Tom Derickx captain.

He loves doing that media stuff that captains have to do. He talks a lot of crap, but it's not the same boring sort of crap coming from our current captains. And Macca and Kizza can concentrate on playing football again. Tom is the only one at our club that can converse with Eddie McGuire on the the same level.

In due course, Tom would drive everyone crazy and Mike Fitzgerald will offer us 2 priority draft picks and reinstate the COLA if we agree to delist him.

[sprite]

I don't understand the hate-fest for Tom D - yes he is 27, but has only played 12 games.

He held the ruck on his own last year for those games where Pyke was injured and did a bloody good job.

He isn't that slow, he has a big body and can make a contest around the ground.

Overall his stats aren't too bad for his inexperience.

Agree he ain't a world beater, but he can provide a good back up when needed.

I would have had him in the team for an extended period this year as soon as Pyke was injured.

By his efforts last year he plays with a damn lot of heart, which is missing from a few players this year.

EoR

[chalbilto]

I don't understand the hate-fest for Tom D - yes he is 27, but has only played 12 games.

He held the ruck on his own last year for those games where Pyke was injured and did a bloody good job.

He isn't that slow, he has a big body and can make a contest around the ground.

Overall his stats aren't too bad for his inexperience.

Agree he ain't a world beater, but he can provide a good back up when needed.

I would have had him in the team for an extended period this year as soon as Pyke was injured.

By his efforts last year he plays with a damn lot of heart, which is missing from a few players this year.

EoR

Obviously the coaching staff have a different opinion as they picked Nankervis ahead of him and I suspect, had he been fit, Naismith would have also been picked before him.

[liz]

Obviously the coaching staff have a different opinion as they picked Nankervis ahead of him and I suspect, had he been fit, Naismith would have also been picked before him.

Not necessarily. Derrickx himself has been struggling with injury and has been in and out of the reserves team all year. I don't think we know the pecking order in the coaches' minds.

[Ludwig]

I don't understand the hate-fest for Tom D - yes he is 27, but has only played 12 games.

He held the ruck on his own last year for those games where Pyke was injured and did a bloody good job.

He isn't that slow, he has a big body and can make a contest around the ground.

Overall his stats aren't too bad for his inexperience.

Agree he ain't a world beater, but he can provide a good back up when needed.

I would have had him in the team for an extended period this year as soon as Pyke was injured.

By his efforts last year he plays with a damn lot of heart, which is missing from a few players this year.

EoR

It's not really a hate fest, it's just me. I've made so many negative posts about Tom that it seems like a hate fest.

My theory on Tom is that we gave him another 2 years at a minimum salary plus a promise from Jesinta to get him a few dates with her friends. Tom is helping us get through the salary cap transition. If we replaced him with a qualified player the salary would put us over the cap. (I don't mean this as a negative as I think we are keeping AJ on the senior list on a similar basis even though he probably could be rookied without a problem). We were forced to lose a few players when we got Buddy and that was before we had to trim around 700k off the salary tab, so we have to keep a some players on the senior list that we might otherwise drop except that they are happy to be on an AFL club roster; even the minimum salary is better than they would do otherwise.

Tom's stats look better than they are because Champion Data don't have a category for hitouts to disadvantage or the number of times a player falls over by tripping over his own feet.

[Gary]

Here's a wacky idea - how about just one captain?

Agree ... sick of this co captain foolishness ... trouble is neither of the existing captains are what we need ... Parker would be fine by me ... we need someone without fear who can set an example in tough situations and then also produce brilliance. He is not too young for the job. I love what Kieran has done as a player ... but his contributions have become occasional rather than constant / electric ... Kennedy is an example in terms of commitment but opposition tactics and poor disposal are blunting his effectiveness ... not a captain IMO.
On another subject, more people seem to be picking up on the Lloyd "slide" ... I wonder if the coach has even noticed what is apparent week after week.

[MattW]

I agree that there should be one captain, that the current captains haven't worked out, and that whatever happens McVeigh can't be a captain next year. McVeigh's grappling with mortality is bringing the team down - you need a captain at the peak of their powers. It's foreseeable that McVeigh's place in the team could come under threat next year.

I'd be happy with Parker - he's team-focussed, inspirational, reliable, and steps up at every opportunity. I'd be equally happy with Joey. He's performed in big games since his first year here and continues to perform in games where the other mids don't. He'd bring an understated gravitas to the role, a determination - no bombast, just get the job done. At least he'd lead by example.

[111431]

And what about Dan the Man ?