If we are to be a finalist in the next few years, Paddy Cripps our 2015 Best & Fairest and Jacob Weitering 2015 No 1 draft AFL selection are central to to this future.

Hopefully it is a priority of our coaching staff to ensure that players don't suffer long term debilitating injuries due to playing when injured.

Last season Jacob Weiteing a young first year player, seemed to suffer a shoulder injury, but wasn't rested. Both players now seem to be struggling with injuries. Could this be the time they need a spell to ensure their bodies and their spirit survives?

Interested to hear your opinions

Cheers for now
Adeiadeblue

I understand where you're coming from.
These two are VERY valuable
I believe the club understand the importance of these two particularly, but i also believe they wouldn't rick any player.
Weitering missed two matches after he hurt his shoulder against the cheats.
I am not knocking him but i'm not sure he understands his own body yet.

Cripps is going to be sore early in the year because he hasn't had the body of work of the others.
On saturday he hurt himself in the very first play at CHF.
He went in and severely bumped Joyce from GC.
Straight after you can see him struggling to move and with his hands on his hips.
At quarter time he left the ground but as we saw played out the match.
I think he may well have sustained the injury then.
All players play with some sort of injury.
Hopefully the club mitigates the risk.

Bernie Vince lost his whole toenail last weekend in the game v Geelong.
I've seen Homeland, thats gotta hurt.
Played this week.

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"I'll tell you what I didn't do;
I never injected anyone."
AD 3/3/14

We are not qualified to pass judgement. Leave it to the experts. If they are not fit they wont play

The experts who pretty much destroyed Kreuzer? Taken him years to come good again.

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"Get ready, Teddy - you're on": Ron Barassi half time 1970 Grand Final

Footballer gets a knock. The club asks the player - do you reckon you're right to go? They always say 'yes'. Footballers want to play football.
You want to create an environment where players are realistic about their capabilities and honest with the coaches. Is Cripps at 50% better than Palmer at 100%? What's ultimately best for the team? It's not just about the medical team saying yes or no - it takes years for both the club and the player to understand their bodies and know which players can play through which level of discomfort. And history shows they don't always get it right, but I do feel as if the environment at the club now is less of the old-school play every week regardless mindset, and more flexible with their thinking.

Players need to push through pain in every game. We shouldn't be soft on our players and we need mentally tough players who can endure and play through the pain barrier.

The alternative is to cotton wool the players and lets see how that goes?

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It is not as bad as you are lead to believe.......it is %$#^& worse!!!

The standard of medical care at clubs these days (with one notable exception) is very good, and I can't imagine a scenario where they go to Bolton and say "Cripps should be rested or he'll suffer long term", and Bolton responding "Nah, @#$%&! him; he'll play this week".

Bolton is looking at the long term, and that includes player welfare.

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"The old believe everything, the middle-aged suspect everything, and the young know everything." Oscar Wilde

Exactly, and exactly why with the current youth we'll have a hard second half of the year.
Players will always have a niggle... We've been lucky to now for REAL injuries

Go you good things

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“Every single element of the Club has to be the best in the league, meticulously and methodically, and only by doing this will we be elite and challenge for number 17.”
Greg Lee