10 positives

_________________
dane's trolling again

The big positive is that as a club certain efforts (weak - Garlett, spasmodic - Waite, dumb - Robbo) are no longer being tolerated.

_________________
17 4 10

The last half a season. We finally looked like we were playing to a plan A/ that worked and B/ the players actually kept to.

Quite.

_________________
"A good composer does not initiate. He steals."

- Igor Stravinsky

I got to see Carlton in their proper guernsey again...It has only taken nearly 20 years to see it more than once, but it happened.

Whoever changed the monogram from the thick, bold 1920-1997 to the one without it ...WITHOUT consultation should be shot.

I felt like it was the real Carlton when I watched them, not an imitation Carlton.

It felt like coming home and something to be proud about again.

Without consultation?

_________________
dane's trolling again

Without consultation.

tap in 79 with a revolver in the board room.

I meant a non-violent form of protest... shot with a water pistol. Not a gun.

In 1998 the change over was done without consultation. One year they wearing the famous old dark navy blue guernsey, the next they were wearing something else. I can't remember a letter going out to members saying "oh, by the way, people, we are changing the guernsey...suck eggs, see ya next year at the G."

Yeah that's why we lost we by 103 points to Port Adelaide....

Face it we're a mediocre side at best....

You're living in the past Tap, get with the times for goodness sake.

http://www.news.com.au/sport/afl/carlto ... 7048250439

Only 2 surgeries + Walker's. Bell getting screw removed from finger & Doc having hip surgery.

20 less than last year. Positive.

- Docherty and Everitt excellent recruits
- Sheehan will be a gun defender. Has all the tools.
- Menzel will be a fantastic medium sized forward for us
- Buckley showed a bit
- Tom Bell maturing to become a very servicable, big-bodied midfielder
- Gibbs becoming the midfielder we had hoped for
- Murphy's improved leadership
- Rowe becoming an AFL standard CHB
- Yarran playing consistent football
- Sticks no longer being president (sorry, love you Sticks, but you were a spud as president)
- Moving on senior players like Robinson, Garlett and Waite. We're trying to build a culture they just don't fit in with.
- De-listing fringe players that clearly weren't up to it (McInness, Cachia, Temay) and a few more still likely to go
- Only a few off-season surgeries this pre-season as opposed to the ridiculous number last pre-season
- Not playing Kruezer in the last few rounds; make sure he's fit and raring to go for 2015
- Showing all the signs of a committed group playing for one another at the tail end of the season, despite so many of our best 22 out
- Game plan more suited to our players strengths

I honestly think with some astute recruiting through the draft and via trades, we will be very competitive next year and might push back into the 8 (particularly given an easier draw). My personal (realistic) hopes for this trade period are Kristian Jakcsh (GWS) and Sam Kerridge (Adelaide). I had also hoped for Tom Mitchell (Syd) but apparently he wants to stay there. Hope we choose the best player available at our first pick in the draft; regardless of position. With the sides below us likely to choose key position players, we may get our choice of the best midfielder in the draft...

_________________
O say does that star spangled banner yet wave.

I agree with a lot of what's been said.

- Yarran and Gibbs stepping up
- The Sam Rowe feelgood story
- Everitt and Docherty ticking boxes
- The emergence of some new extrovert young guns - Menzel, Buckley
- Slowly emerging signs of leadership
- Some new success with international recruiting
- A new president who is so far showing some good signs that he is willing to get stuck into the hard decisions & face reality, now that the whole 150th year / Sticks retirement parade is finally over and done with.
- An end to the etihad/telstra/colonial era is now in sight.

Blue skies ahead

And looks like another fruitful trade period....

_________________
17 4 10

List age average is younger with Scotland Waite Duigan gone
List culture improves with nuisances gone: Bootsma Garlett Robinson Waite

Inclusion of gun new ruckman Kreuzer
Inclusion of KP's Jaksch and Jones
Inclusion of inside mid Whiley
Picks 19 & 28 in the draft should get us some good mids

Improvement expected after strong preseason from Thomas, Docherty, Hendo, Buckley, Cripps, Walker & Sheehan
Only 3 operations in off season and players will complete a traditional Aussie based preseason.
Giles up and running again.

Casboult improving his kicking.

Bring on 2015!

_________________
Everyone looks good in Navy Blue

Agree totally re your reference to our culture. I call waite and garlett "cock teasers" they entice you with their very best and you get sucked into having them in your best 22 because their very best is formidable. But their inconsistency is not worth the commitment of having them on your list. Its just a pity that our football department didnt see fit to trade them when they had currency. I think they would have last year if we had in place then, the new emerging culture that our change in president seems to have sparked. But thats history...moving on.
The player that really annoys me and gets me angry is that waste of space bootsma. I wish that player no goodwill at all, something that i never say, but he really encapsulates the potentially destructive forces that are unleashed when quick money meets a flawed personality. How did we ever recruit such a narcissistic dick head.
Robinson i judge differently. Basically a decent person who can be a bit misguided. He needed taking down a peg or two and this seems to have been done. No contract, no suitors . But no doubt he can play. White line fever. We need the hardness that he brings , and just need the unguided missile to have a gps installed. There were signs in the latter half of the season that his play was starting to become smarter. I think with a new found attitude read "pulling his head in" he could become a real player. Of course that is up to malthouse to judge. I think there will have been some real counselling behind doors to try to assess if there is real repentance. If convince malthouse would be willing to give him a second chance. The fact that he was shopped around does not imo mean that robinson is necessarily gone. Sure if there was interest the club was open to a trade, but equally without decent interest the club was using it as a demonstration to him that he needs to lift his game. For me he is worth the effort provided that he realises that the game has changed and he has to knuckle down.

Biggest positive for mine is we are "sticking fat" and building a team to go forward. 2014 could easily be seen as a backwards step, simply because we didn't make the finals. But I don't believe so.
I am confident, because my club is confident that we are moving forward, even Judd, who made up his mind to call it quits can see that and is sticking around.

But the biggest positive of 2014 would have to be Essendon*. Sorry, someone had to say it

Caught cheating again.

This time I hope its more than a slap on the wrist. Its time karma caught of with the Evans clan

_________________
Everyone looks good in Navy Blue

The biggest positive of 2014 is

A) we are willing to list build
B) we are executing a trade strategy
C) we are demonstrating the ability to develop players: rowe, white, sheehan, menzel, buckley

There's a couple of usual suspects who haven't arrived in support of getting rid of Malthouse yet....

_________________
dane's trolling again