Season 2016 - North Melbourne

Football Discussion Non Essendon Stuff
1

North Melbourne

Coach – Brad Scott

2015 –
Points For – 5th
Points Against – 12th

Top 5 Best and Fairest

  1. Todd Goldstein
  2. Ben Cunnington
  3. Shain Higgins
  4. Brent Harvey
  5. Jack Ziebell

2015 Rising Star Noms

None

Ins – Jed Anderson, Ben McKay, Ryan Clarke, Mitchell Hibberd, Corey Wagner, Declan Mountford, Farren Ray,

Outs – Leigh Adams, Ryan Bastinac, Daniel Currie, Nathan Grima, Keiran Harper, Scott McMahon, Eric Wallace, Max Warren

My Prediction

Hard to believe every year I expect North to drop and every year they look like they might before finding late season form. This year… I expect them to drop. I don’t think the late season form is coming either.

They have been stocking up for a tilt for a while now and you cant help but look at the list and think there just isn’t enough quality for them to be a genuine contender. Last year a lot went right and they still only just made the eight. I would expect the same output from Waite this year and Goldstein was outstanding but an injury there would be a disaster for them.

They have the best ruck in the game feeding a relatively good midfield. They aren’t the class of others but they are workmanlike. They are “blue collar” and whilst Dal Santo and Higgins give them a little more class, they are mostly grunt.

Up forward they need Brown to start to realise his potential as Petrie and Waite don’t have a longtime left. They all did ok last year along with Higgins, Thomas and Nahas at their feet. I think this will drop off this season.

The backline didn’t perform as well last year and I don’t have any reason to seeing it improve. They have some good talls with Hansen and Thompson but still need improvement and consistency from Tarrant.

I cant see where the improvement is going to come from and with so many of their better players pushing towards retirement, it feels like a sudden drop isn’t far away. If Goldstein gets injured then you are looking at ■■■■ creek in a barbwire canoe. As it stands, for me they finish 10-12

2
The free kick Siciliy got showed everything that is wrong with the current rule. Dropped at the knees and used his arm to push the tackle high

Knee was on or very close to the ground when he was tackled.
About time players started calling each other out for it.

Thought it was ironic however that the likes of Thompson and Thomas were crying all night because they tackled blokes who they took high, when that is precisely how both of them have forged careers for themselves.

On the back of cowardly dives and dropping to their knees whenever the ball is within earshot.

I take your point that Thomas has made a rod for his own back (although Selwood still gets a free pass), but the tackle you’re talking about wasnt a tackle, went nowhere near the guys head, and was a mfu by the umpire.
I’d have been publicly seething too.

Edit: and while I’m no fan of Thomas, the way the umpires were talking at him was borderline offensive.

Don’t believe everything you hear. Particularly if it comes from the mouth of Brad Scott.

I watched the game, not the press conference.
You?

Both. Just for my understanding, you have said that what the umpires said to Thomas is “borderline offensive”. If this is not from the press conference, where do your comments come from given the AFL did an investigation and found the umpires said nothing wrong?

I reiterate my point. Don’t believe everything you hear. Particularly if it comes from the mouth of Brad Scott

Same goes for the AWFUL muppets

3
Embarrassing for all concerned.

From Mark Evans:
“I have informed the club today that we’ll be asking them to explain their actions, in particular to find out why Brad would make such a statement before doing a proper investigation and checks from their end.”

Brad should tell him “because that’s the AFL way” and cite Demetriou, McLachlin, Fitzpatrick, Harcourt e.t.c…

AWFUL protesth too much, farken high horse cockwobbles, as though the humps are above being biased human beings. Brad Scott and the AWFUL are made for one another.

4
I believe the normal punishment is the threat of de-registration, a $20,000 fine, and having to do two years of community service. Also, the umps need to actually persecute you in the next game.
He's got no hope of getting votes in the coach of the year award next round, if there were votes :smile:
The umps give votes to the best three coaches, and that still won’t include Scott.
5

More downside than upside. Fark’em, they’ll drop. 10th.

6

There is no doubting that they are about to fall off the precipice in a big way.
IMO, it won’t be this year though.
I expect them to be in and around the Top 6 again, with another Prelim not out of the question.

The likes of Waite, Dal Santo, Higgins, Petrie, Thompson, Harvey can probably give them another good year’s service.

I’m fully expecting to hand out some hidings to North between 2017 and the end of the decade.
Some mother of hidings at that !

7

jarrad waite

lol

8
jarrad waite

lol

Can play
Though has a serious case of the Jekyll and Hyde’s

9

Fold.

10

North Melbourne

Best 22
B Firrito Thompson Hansen
HB Atley Tarrant Mcdonald
C Wells DalSanto Harvey
HF Anderson Waite Higgins
F Thomas Petrie Brown
R Goldstein Swallow Zieball
Int cunnington Jacobs Wright Gibson
Emg Macmillan, Garner, Hibberd

Imports - Half forward line
Old Farts - Centre line
I probably should have cunnington start in the centre, but then i couldnt call the centre line old farts.

Improvement to come from

  • Atley stepping up
  • Wells getting on the park
  • Thomas diving less, only joking he wont change
  • Andersen becoming a dangerous speedy forward/mid. Breaks up their one paced midfield.
  • McDonald becoming creating more drive off half back.
  • Brown kicking more goals
  • Yep not much improvement there even being optimistic.

I dont really see that much depth/talent in there players best outside 22.
Talent wise, Durdin was rated highly, yet to debut, plus last years picks - Mckay will take time, + Hibberd may play next year.

Lets look at the age of the key players in the best 22 who look like they may fall off the cliff soon.

  • I dont think they can recruit a dangerfield + selwoos like the cats did to fix there problems.

Brent Harvey 37, 8 months MID
Drew Petrie 33, 3 months KPF
Jarrad Waite 32, 11 months KPF
Firrito 32, 2 months Def
Nick Dalsanto 31 11 month Mid
Daniel Wells 30, 11 month MId
Scott Thompson 29, 8 month KPD
Sam Gibson 29, 8 month Mid

  • Farren Ray ® 29, 10 month not sure why they drafted him guess extra depth for finals…???

Development wise they hope Brown comes along this year, he looks like he has some tricks, Ariel steinberg would agree :slight_smile: And i guess they hope Mckay becomes the other key forward, or the go back to trying Black there again and Mckay groomed to take over from Thompson.

Think North will lack pace against the better sides. Need good years from Wells, Anderson + Harvey
There experienced players should perform to a good level again, its just whether they will have the drive to continue to play on to finish mid table in 2017. This team if the stars align could at best make a prelim, however they will most likely be in a dog fight for a place in the bottom position of the eight. Predicted finish 5th - 12th

If North finish outside the 8, I imagine their coach might feel the blow torch.

11

They came close to not having Boomer.

He wass doing some handy work Saturday and got his leg nicked by a chainsaw!

12
They came close to not having Boomer.

He wass doing some handy work Saturday and got his leg nicked by a chainsaw!

Said he fell off a ladder
Must have been cutting a 6 foot hedge

13

He’ll do anything to avoid Crowley this year

14
They came close to not having Boomer.

He wass doing some handy work Saturday and got his leg nicked by a chainsaw!

Said he fell off a ladder
Must have been cutting a 2 foot hedge

fixed

15

Really dislike this club, see them as a VFA standard club trying to mix it with the big boys but can never really get there. I laugh at how they consider us to be one of their main rivals, if they have any rivals, funny because it seems we don’t even consider them anywhere near a rival. Dislike their president (how can anyone stand his commentary??), dislike their coach, dislike their players from Boomer to Lindsay short legs Louganis… dislike their fans, all 1,500 of them.

Guess i’m just sick of heading to Etihad to watch their 1,500 fans rock up and celebrate another fighting shinboner late surge type of win.

Cannot see them being a major player this year, they may have a Port Adelaide 2015 type of year… hoping at least. If they make the finals, off the back of mostly fighting, scrounging blue collar wins, will only make another prelim if they get another dream finals run. Just don’t believe they have anywhere near enough quality as other top sides but somehow they scrounge enough wins to please their fans.

Tipping them to finish between 7th & 13th this year, older blokes will fall away a little, their middle age group are blue collar & their youngsters haven’t shown much to suggest champions of the future.

16
I walked past Ben Brown leaving Hisense Arena today and whispered 'boooo norf' hoping to moz him... childish, I know but it felt good.

Did you have a tin to rattle at him?

haha, no, I only had clappers…

17
I walked past Ben Brown leaving Hisense Arena today and whispered 'boooo norf' hoping to moz him... childish, I know but it felt good.

Did you have a tin to rattle at him?

18

I walked past Ben Brown leaving Hisense Arena today and whispered ‘boooo norf’ hoping to moz him… childish, I know but it felt good.

19

Can’t see where the improvement comes from. Jed Anderson might be a worthwhile addition, but it’s not enough. 12th in defence also shows they get scored on too heavily to be a genuine threat despite making the prelims the past 2 seasons.

6th-12th

20

One of the big factors working against them this year, is their tough draw. It will kill off their final chances in the second half of the season.