Are the Dockers about to detonate?

I think I'd rather go by the 26 goals and second highest number of contested marks across a season versus the performance in one game, although 4 goals in the narrowest of losses might trump 6 goals in a 90 point win (and I'm not sure what the difference is between a multi-pronged forward line and what you described for GWS). Even if were to be double-teamed that would open things up for Taberner/Apeness/McCarthy & whoever else as targets. The midfield was shaky because they were pretty young (and exhaustedly swimming out of the wreckage of their year). Not something that gets remedied in a hurry by adding more youthful midfielders. Good to see Fyfe come out and reaffirm his commitment to Freo though.

Saw nothing yesterday to make me say "must get Lobb". Saw a player who benefits massively from the attention given to Cameron and Patton. This is not - as you say - by virtue of a multi-pronged forward line. It is because Cameron is a genuine star and Patton is pretty big and may just have had his breakout game. Opposition teams have to give them more attention; Lobb won't be protected similarly in a Freo forward line and who knows how he'll react to being double-teamed or more, the way Pav has been for much of his career. What I DID see yesterday was a midfield which was a defensive liability and had no run and carry. There was none from the backline either (except good efforts from Weller). SPS - nice solid build, good tackler and beautiful decision-making and disposal - remains a priority for mine.

Fyfe's comments echoed Lyon's comments of a few weeks back, so they weren't really that bizarre. In fact, it suggests they are more or less on the same page and entirely in sync.

It's always a matter of probabilities when you're looking at recruitment. As Lobb is a risk so (exponentially) is Petrevski-Seton, who has no show at the level. Lobb is huge in contested marks at this stage of his career. That's about as hard to stop as anything in the game. He's proved better, streets better, than Hogan in that this year. First defender or last, he's a couple of clicks over 2 metres, if he holds anywhere near his current form, what defender could stop delivery from Fyfe & Bennell to him???? Utilities is merely a temporal definition. Mundy was a utility until he stepped into the sublime. Weller, Blakely, Tucker & Hughes alongside Fyfe, Neale, Hill and (with the moon in Aquarius) Bennell, are there many utilities in that lot? That's 6 midfielders. Add in Crozier, and if they get B. Hill and the possibility of Walters' cameos (with a bit more celestial blessing the poyential improvement of Sheridan, Balic Hughes, Langdon et al), there's hbf's and midfielders aplenty. Improvement in talls is always a more gradual process than it is for midfielders. Make no misdtake McCarthy will in all likelihood take at least a year to get back to peak form. Apeness won't hit his stride until at least mide 2017 (if he gets continutity), while Taberner is the most likely to take giant strides next year, he really needs to be freed up to take the third defender in the shorter term. I did like Tanner Smith's micro-form this year, that was exicting, but if we go back to probabilities, who would be willing to put money on him stringing a reasonable amount of games together? Finally, I think your point on Lobb having the buffer of Cameron & Patton for his form is more an argument for a multi-pronged forward line, is it not? So a big-man component of the attack featuring say Lobb, Taberner, Apeness/Smith & McCarthy would have a good variety of run, contested marking power and dynamism to give headaches to many a backline (plus Walters, Yarran, Ballantyne, Weller etc etc).

Yes, they were winning it out of the middle. Until Fyfe was unavailable to take on 3 tacklers at a time. How do you even know Lobb would be a highly functional forward at Freo? He won't have Patton and Cameron to take the best defenders and on present form he'd be expected to play 75% of game time in the back half... I agree you can have too many midfielders but not when only a few are good/elite. which is my point - team is stuffed full of utilities not midfielders. SPS (unlike Lobb) would not be even considered for a tag, which should allow him to get free and cause some damage, if he's as good as everyone - including Freo, with which he trained last year - thinks. I also believe Freo's young forwards have more improvement in them than our mids, assuming they get McCarthy. They are very young on the whole and a preseason will make the world of difference. Freed of the "kick it to Pav" curse, they could do OK. If they can't get Cam then yes, look at Lobb (or Marshall or English for that matter) but I just don't think Freo can get Lobb without selling the farm - which they really can't afford to do.

So last year Freo had a low scoring rate from defensive 50? The same last year where they finished top? Maybe it was because at their height last year they were generating it all from their midfield ;) . But really, every team would benefit from someone who has skills and pace (and hopefully vision) added to their list. At some point though, you've got to ask how many midfielders is too many. Maybe we could trade out some, but we saw what Crozier got to do this year with his skills and decision making and with some time we'll see the development of the younger guys there really come on and add to that type of depth you talk about. I don't think you could overestimate the difference it would make having two highly functioning key forwards in that Freo side though. There'd be an instant boost to their confidence for ya. and if Ballantyne is hoping to do anything like a Betts, you can see the benefit Adelaide has from their attack set-up.

Oops, meant to repeat that 22 and Ballantyne would not get Lobb to Freo, so trading for a lower first rounder would likely mean Freo gets neither

Disposal accuracy clearly doesn't tell the whole picture of last year when the team was breaking down at half back consistently (after about round 12) and unable to score goals. I haven't looked but weren't they the lowest ranked team to score from D50? When I talk of "depth" in our midfield or backline I am talking about having weight of numbers who makes good decisions and can dispose of the ball well - be it run and carry or accurate kicking - to make the team less constipated-looking. Fyfe wins his own ball and his bullocking style allows him to break free. Mundy has that distortion of time and space thing and a lovely kick). Hill has awesome break away speed and (usually) a beautiful kick. Bennell - if he can stay fit - has speed and great disposal. That's 4, discounted because Mundy will only be around a couple of years and Bennell hasn't been able to get on the park. Backline has even less players with good disposal but looks better when players like Hill, Mundy, Weller rotate through. Hopefully Tucker can find his feet there too. Lachie wins a lot of the ball but his disposal lets him down a bit so he's better to dish it off to others. Ditto Blakeley. Walters? well he can only ever be a part-time midfielder, he's needed elsewhere. If we get someone like SPS, that's another guy with good vision and lovely disposal and suddenly we have more flexibility to move around the back half Mundy/Hill/Weller and around the forward half Fyfe/Bennell/Walters. I'd add in rotating Tucker/Weller/Langdon/Sheridan through midfield - and suddenly Freo looks a lot less predictable. Freo needs forwards and ruckmen too - it has holes everywhere - but SPS still fills a need and I just wouldn't overlook a player who has such a high ceiling Anyway, he doesn't need to be able to do it all next year, the team's not contending then. But he's a 10 year talent and most of the others are pretty young too... And I'm not sure he's slipped down the draft list; his performances this year, including the State games, would be viewed in light of his injuries.

Turnovers have happened all over the place, but defence is where the pressure is and nothing tests confidence like pressure. The disposal efficiency stats, for what they're worth, showed we finished (I think) top 3 last year, so that's offers something. I definitely think teams applied as much pressure as they could last year, like the GCS uber-flood, and there were a few other key factors (including game plan tinkers) that also told on confidence levels. Losing an experienced player like Johnson certainly didn't help. Duffield was a fading power and even his disposal suffered in his final stages, but Freo was better in 2015 than they were in 2014. My thing on Petrevski-Seton's age and depth was that you were concerned about the depth issues in the midfield (& backline) delivery this year and it could be argued that the depth problem had much to do with the youth of the replacements. It's true Petrevski-Seton may not last to 9 or 10 and it's a risk, but he seems to have slipped a little in estimations so it may be worth the trade off to get a more rounded addressing of the clubs needs in one fowl swoop.

SPS will not be available at pick 9, I am concerned that Brisbane will look at him closely as it is, particularly if they get a comp pick. I also think GWS would want a pick 3 for Lobb; KPPs attract very high values - even ones like Boyd. I didn't say anywhere that a first year player will make that difference in his first year but it is a rebuild. You don't want all your good players the same age - I think this is Freo's problem at the moment - so many players from the 2008 draft have plateaued at the same, while older players have naturally declined. I disagree with your view that disposal was good last year. It was good for half a year. And yes, I maintain that had a lot to do with the loss of Johnson from the back half. I've also come to conclude that Paul Duffield's accurate kicking from the previous year was a huge loss. As was the loss of Fyfe, and his ability to mark the release kick (which I have also mentioned previously). I don't think I'm on my own with this theory - in almost every recent coach's press conference Ross has called turnovers in D50 as the primary cause of the team's losses.

Apology accepted. Love your work Don.

1st round for both Lobb and McCarthy and a lower pick.

Ballas for McCarthy might work but not Lobb. GWS have to slash their list this year so I they won't want to much dead wood added. SJ might retire yet or take a coaching role.

Problem is you aren't going to get much for those guys, maybe a few 3rd rounders. Zac might get a 2nd round pick. If Freo wants Lobb, Hill and McCarthy then they are going to have to give up something they don't want to lose. Or sacrifice that 1st round pick.

A bit melodramatic, 13th. The only change between this season and last is the number and quality of players not available to be on the park. Rossy and Nat are well and truly on the same page. Their approach to thinking about footy is the same. No issue there.

It wasn't 2009 when Kennett said that.

I think that is a distinct possibility...... I think Fyfe has realised (as I and a lot of other Freo fans have) that Lyon is not the coach to take us forward..... Even with 4 more years left I don't think Lyon will remain..... Fyfe is a bloke you can build your team around and is a key part of Freos future. He should have been captain this year tbh We must move heaven and high water to keep Nat and if that means goodbye Ross then so he it. A new Pres a new coach and make Fyfe co-captain with Mundy. I would love to see what Pav thinks about all this...... the blokes been through some tough times at Freo but where does this rank for him? I hope this doesn't ruin his legacy as he has been such a champion and has got this club from nowhere. As a member I really want answers as to what's going on down there cos there is certainly something fishy happening!!

"So documented evidence of his past decade in coaching isn’t relevant – but all of your ranty future opinions and predictions about how he’s finished are gospel. Righto then." We'll see who is right mate. Like anything, his results need context. He got a young, supremely talented list at the Saints that had already been knocking on the doors of Grand Finals with a terrible coach (Grant Thomas). Similarly, Harvey got the young 2010 version of Lyon's team to the second week of the finals. It's not like he's had to do a Leppitsch rebuild from the ground up...ever. The fact is this year he managed one more win than a Essendon VFL team and has had the same wins as Leppitsch.

I don't think those sort of depth issues would be fixed by another first year player though. You could also argue that we've had shortages in KPP's and now ruck stocks too. I'm not sure why confidence couldn't be a problem for a year, but their overall disposal was pretty good last year (back to your Johnson theory eh ;) ). I'm not wedded to recruiting Lobb this year, but what about if they swap pick 3 with GCS for their picks 9 & 22. Then trade the 22 & say Ballantyne onto GWS for Lobb? They still get a top 10 draft pick, and have a chance at Petrevski-Seton still.

Sorry Dougie. I might have mixed you up with Axle. Mind you, I'll never agree with disdain for Rossie's "game plan". It is mis-characterized. Winning footy is never boring. No AFL footy is ever boring. Sandi is still footy'd best ruckman. An absolute gem. Reads the game so well and covers the ground all game. Cam McCarthy might be a bonus but I wouldn't bust a gut to get him. Round 3 is all I'd offer. Apeness is the gun. Tim English should solve the problem of the ruckman/forward.