Depends if we play them in the first half of the season or the last half.
Are you related to the Hawthorn Langfords ???
Ok Iâll play along.
The thing is Iâm not saying âcompletely hopelessâ as that would imply completely unable to win a game.
But if success is a premiership, and we keep finishing mid table or lower, then IMO itâs not really much of a stretch to suggest that perhaps around 8-10 current players could be part of the future and that weâd then need to find about that many more that we likely donât already have on the list.
The other factor here is, it is possible for a player to be a decent player but not necessarily the best fit for our list.
This isnât some rage fuelled exercise in player/club hate, rather a hypothetical about what it could look like if we were all in on a rebuild.
The reality is, some people simply subscribe to the view that we are never far away from a premiership and Ive got no particular issue with that.
For me though, I genuinely think roughly 8-10 of our current list could be part of the future premiership success but Iâm not convinced on the rest.
Note also this is more about can players fit into a best 22 if we were on track for a premiership.
Obviously clubs will always require depth on the list but thatâs not the point of this post.
Start with the more obvious outs (varying reasons):
Heppell
Hind
Kelly
Reid
Baldwin
Laverde
Shiel
Weideman
Gresham
Goldstein
Cox
Setterfield
Wright
Jones
Stringer
ADJ
Lual
Guelfi
JDavey
Wanganeen
Menzie
Hunter
So thats around 50% of the entire list turned over.
Then youâd get to the harder calls.
Hobbs probably isnât favoured so letâs say heâs out likewise Bryan.
Perkins maybe doesnât have much improvement left so look at a trade.
Parish is a good B grader also look to trade out for value while freeing a spot to play a younger mid
So thatâs now around 60% of the list.
Of the rest a couple more could be traded(noting contracts might make this impossible) :
Redman
McGrath
McKay
Too early to tell /juryâs out:
Tsatas
Visentini
Hayes
That leaves :
Merrett
Langford
Caldwell
Durham
Martin
Durrsma
Draper
Ridley
Caddy
Roberts
I think thatâs basically the group to keep or at least the majority of it.
Now do I expect a complete list cull overnight?
Of course not but those are the players give or take a couple that I think we could restructure around if we were to commit to going down the rebuild path (which I acknowledge is highly unlikely)
7 Likes
Hearing Timmy is like listening to Gary Lyon for the last 20 years. Fkg do something rather than just sook in your not stakes media gig
8 Likes
I hate being reminded of Dunkley.
Sadness.
Well, at least Cox, Perkins and Reid are working out amazingly⌠⌠⌠⌠âŚ
Imagine if one of the hierarchy at Essendon came out in the off-season and said we were shooting for finals in 2025âŚ
No neither can I.
2 Likes
Essendon Years with no All-Australians
1994, 1997, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022
Yeah, nothing at all wrong with the recruiting over the last 20 years.
And if it is wasnât for Merrett and Watson, there would only be 4 years in the last 22 when we actually had an all-australian.
Farking abysmal.
15 Likes
WTF does he have any obligation to do more than the tremendous amount he did in helping deliver 3 premierships?
Difference was Garry didnât deliver â â â â during his playing career.
4 Likes
For a so called expert on the game of afl, hes never once mentioned essendonâs recruiting, i wonder why.
Only team worse since 2002 (about Dodoroâs tenure) is Norf Farking Melbourne.
Thatâs the level we are at. Right there with the tin rattlers.
3 Likes
Tim sits on the fence more than Joe Daniher
2 Likes
Because without the Bombers, he is a labourer in Dimboola.
pretty sure he would have played elsewhere.
5 Likes
Didnât he have a hand in putting the Royal box together.
oh so more david evans than david barham?
Breaking News from my sources inside the Essendon Football Club.
Barham and Brad are in an extramarital relationship, Dodoro was previously part of this as a throuple arrangement. However, my sources inside the club have told me that within the past fortnight there was tension in that throuple relationship and Dodoro had to leave, hence his leave on personal grounds.
The news doesnât end there, from what I am being told on the ground by senior staff inside the club is that Vozzo has within the past day or two now replaced Dodoro and the throuple is now Barham, Brad and Vozzo.
Now, there is additional information that does further Caroline Wilsonâs comments recently about Bradâs arms behind tied behind his back - as my source for this intel has suggested that in the bedroom, Brad does like Barham to tie his arms behind him.
This is truly shocking news I have received, and I thought it was so important that I share it with you all on here, as everyone else loves to share the information they get from their sources inside the club.
1 Like
Dave really doesnât strike me as the menage a trois type
Will those options make $$$?
If not, thereâs fark-all chance of the Essendon Inc. PTBâs being in any way interestedâŚ
We got Shiel tho Tim, and the boomin 20 draft