It is off season

[MCG-Unit]

I’d expect nothing less from you Tony

Imo
Anyone who thinks it’s a positive that we are paying players to play at other clubs is a delusional sycophant

With all due respect (or none of it in this case) … were you dropped on the head as a child? More than once?

I don’t think anyone particularly likes their club paying players to play elsewhere however, it’s become a bit of a necessary evil.

In any case, can I please get your take on Collingwood paying >$1M in total this season for Treloar and Grundy to not play for them?

Why can't you make a point, without the drive-by

[CQ SAINT]

I would like to ask my fellow esteemed Saintsationlists, does the AFL bring any of its gentle persuasive powers to bare during protracted trade negotiations that are threatening to end in a no-win stalemate?

In other words, it seems to me that JB, like all players , is an asset of the AFL franchise and it is within the AFLs interests, to keep him viable and in the news.

And that extends to adding a little weight to the palm of the hand about the ink a deal.

I suspect the AFL weighed in on the last day of the trade and said, ‘Hurry up and do it Saints’ ‘Remember who you are!’

Billings only value is cap shares. He just cashed in his $100 shares at St.Kilda and got 50 shares at Melbourne. Melbourne were chosen because after the other recruits issues, Jack is still a golden haired boy and holds hope that his chances at sustained success are slipping away slower than Melbourne's.

[AeonFlux]

None of those salaries are correct - or even close *

And why are we trying to have room in our cap for this season - or any season in fact

We can’t bring in anyone of any note now

I can’t see how paying under your cap for any season is beneficial


And offaloading Billings is overrated.



.

There's a fine line between fiction and non-fiction, and I think Big.Marmot snorted it somewhere in 1979!

.

So glad that the daze of The Cho/Alfred E Clueless is over at Moorabbin........ and therefore,

that ZZ's favourite furry forumite combatant........ is no longer the Saynta's Mist Lanager!


- Aeon.










* Reckon those salaries, are, pretty much in the ballpark.


.

[B.M]

Are we still trying to convince ourselves that paying at Melbourne player is a good management idea?!

[TheGreatZacsby]

Are we still trying to convince ourselves that paying at Melbourne player is a good management idea?!

B.M get the bloody hell over it. It’s done and dusted. Move on and stop wasting everyone’s time. Why can’t you understand that nearly everyone on this board thinks Billings gone = good and that you keep jumping up and down like a child cracking a tantrum in a toy store is going to change that. Move on!

[Jacks Back]

Are we still trying to convince ourselves that paying at Melbourne player is a good management idea?!

B.M get the bloody hell over it. It’s done and dusted. Move on and stop wasting everyone’s time. Why can’t you understand that nearly everyone on this board thinks Billings gone = good and that you keep jumping up and down like a child cracking a tantrum in a toy store is going to change that. Move on!

He's stuck his fingers in his ears (god knows where they've been) and is shouting la la la la la la la la

[SAINT-LEE]

Jack Keeps Billing Saints fans on Saintsational....

[SAINT-LEE]

Everyone, including all Saints staff think paying to get Billings gone was poop. But it was the ONLY way ANY AFL TEAM HAD ANY INTEREST...do ya get it?

He was told he was excess baggage.
He told us he wanted a fresh start.
Which came 1st? I dont, you dont, we dont know....

So wtf is the nonstop buggery about?

How ever it occurred we wanted him off the grounds and he wanted to go & vice versa.

No one wants him. No one.
UNLESS we paid them to take him.

To say he was rubbish in his career is OFF. To say he is unlikely to rise above his past is like lottery winning odds

If you cant understand how that makes defines his current ( not past) worth...well, that means something doesnt it?

[B.M]

Done Dusted shocking and embarrassing

Spending money in our cap - for an opposition player

Laughable

[saintsRrising]

I’d expect nothing less from you Tony

Imo
Anyone who thinks it’s a positive that we are paying players to play at other clubs is a delusional sycophant

Yes part-paying a player to play at a another club ended so badly for Collingwood this season.

[Yorkeys]

If he’s so poor

Why did Melbourne pick him up

Don’t convince yourself of a false notion to justify a list management decision that is absurd

Why?
He doesn't do drugs
Doesn't vandalise cars
Doesn't have concussion issues
Makes Brown look tough
Handsome. Most of Melbourne look like robbers dogs and there has to be some promotional pics.
And they feel sorry for us picking up Paddy not Christian.
Jack will be the perfect nets bowler. Dee's fwds can run all their training patterns and Jack will deliver lace out.
But he can't under game conditions.
Spare cash from their dopy recruitment of Grundy
Dunstan now has a dicky knee

[TheGreatZacsby]

I’m changing topics. Sick of B.M and his ongoing rant of Billings. I’ve already forgotten about him.

Tony has there been any news at the club? Has Liam Henry and Paddy Dow made their way down? Has Phillipou been training hard?

[SydneySainter]

Our opinion of his value in the end means nothing. It's the assessment by the current coaching group that determines what happens, and it looks like their assessment is that Billings is not part of their best 23.

Now, if Billings was considered of real value, clubs like North Melbourne would have been very eager to grab him, yet they had no interest .

Billings' manager was desperately spruiking him knowing full well there was almost no interest.

I sincerely hope he goes well at Melbourne, but I'd say that both the club and Billings himself would have been truly relieved when Melbourne came to the party. As for this notion of " why would a recent premiership club be taking on Billings if he was just big average?"

My answer to that would be to look no further than Luke Dunstan.

It was a poor career choice on Dunstan’s part to move to Melbourne.

He was clearly of the view that he was AFL standard and his most recent purple patch certainly supported that.

But he was naive if he ever thought he was going to be in the Dee’s best 22.

[shanegrambeau]

Let’s move on to more positive topics!
Let JB sail into his new world.


Whilst Melbourne will get a lot of heat for ‘culture’ and drugs right now, we would be blind not recognize that loads of players will be enjoying recreational drugs in October and November in particular- including Saints players.

I know it’s preaching to the choir isn’t it.

Let’s just hope we don’t get too much damage done on the PR front.

Remember GT said it was rife during his time, then Roo said it too at the end of his time, and when the ‘zero tolerance’ old timers are told to sit down and have a cup of tea, you have to just say a prayer to the godless god .

[SaintPav]

I’d expect nothing less from you Tony

Imo
Anyone who thinks it’s a positive that we are paying players to play at other clubs is a delusional sycophant

Yes part-paying a player to play at a another club ended so badly for Collingwood this season.

Didn’t we do the same with Jack Steven?

[tony74]

I’m changing topics. Sick of B.M and his ongoing rant of Billings. I’ve already forgotten about him.

Tony has there been any news at the club? Has Liam Henry and Paddy Dow made their way down? Has Phillipou been training hard?

Officially by AFL rules clubs are not allowed to have any formal training so any players that come down to the club (or anywhere to be honest)are not supposed to wear Saints official gear etc. So it’s a bit adhoc, some players have their own training routine whilst away, most have some sort of program that they adhere to, whilst others will mosey on down to the club and do their own thing. They are all expected to come back on good Nic mind you. The boys in Bali were great, can’t speak for the group meeting up in Spain somewhere, and the interstates who knows. But when they hit the aths track at Rowans Rd in a month they’ll be expectations I assure you

[D.B.Cooper]

I’m changing topics. Sick of B.M and his ongoing rant of Billings. I’ve already forgotten about him.

Tony has there been any news at the club? Has Liam Henry and Paddy Dow made their way down? Has Phillipou been training hard?

Officially by AFL rules clubs are not allowed to have any formal training so any players that come down to the club (or anywhere to be honest)are not supposed to wear Saints official gear etc. So it’s a bit adhoc, some players have their own training routine whilst away, most have some sort of program that they adhere to, whilst others will mosey on down to the club and do their own thing. They are all expected to come back on good Nic mind you. The boys in Bali were great, can’t speak for the group meeting up in Spain somewhere, and the interstates who knows. But when they hit the aths track at Rowans Rd in a month they’ll be expectations I assure you

Very informative post, thank you!

[skeptic]

LBut when they hit the aths track at Rowans Rd in a month they’ll be expectations I assure you

No doubt.

Troy Schwarze learned that the hard way

[TheGreatZacsby]

I’m changing topics. Sick of B.M and his ongoing rant of Billings. I’ve already forgotten about him.

Tony has there been any news at the club? Has Liam Henry and Paddy Dow made their way down? Has Phillipou been training hard?

Officially by AFL rules clubs are not allowed to have any formal training so any players that come down to the club (or anywhere to be honest)are not supposed to wear Saints official gear etc. So it’s a bit adhoc, some players have their own training routine whilst away, most have some sort of program that they adhere to, whilst others will mosey on down to the club and do their own thing. They are all expected to come back on good Nic mind you. The boys in Bali were great, can’t speak for the group meeting up in Spain somewhere, and the interstates who knows. But when they hit the aths track at Rowans Rd in a month they’ll be expectations I assure you

Thanks Tony. Your posts are so valuable! I’m only asking about Phillipou because I have high hopes for the young buck. I want him to go huge this next season.

[remboy]

I’m changing topics. Sick of B.M and his ongoing rant of Billings. I’ve already forgotten about him.

Tony has there been any news at the club? Has Liam Henry and Paddy Dow made their way down? Has Phillipou been training hard?

Officially by AFL rules clubs are not allowed to have any formal training so any players that come down to the club (or anywhere to be honest)are not supposed to wear Saints official gear etc. So it’s a bit adhoc, some players have their own training routine whilst away, most have some sort of program that they adhere to, whilst others will mosey on down to the club and do their own thing. They are all expected to come back on good Nic mind you. The boys in Bali were great, can’t speak for the group meeting up in Spain somewhere, and the interstates who knows. But when they hit the aths track at Rowans Rd in a month they’ll be expectations I assure you

What date does proper preseason training start?

[bobmurray]

I’d expect nothing less from you Tony

Imo
Anyone who thinks it’s a positive that we are paying players to play at other clubs is a delusional sycophant

OMG, get over it.

Reads like he's not happy someone else is getting the attention.

[tony74]

I’m changing topics. Sick of B.M and his ongoing rant of Billings. I’ve already forgotten about him.

Tony has there been any news at the club? Has Liam Henry and Paddy Dow made their way down? Has Phillipou been training hard?

Officially by AFL rules clubs are not allowed to have any formal training so any players that come down to the club (or anywhere to be honest)are not supposed to wear Saints official gear etc. So it’s a bit adhoc, some players have their own training routine whilst away, most have some sort of program that they adhere to, whilst others will mosey on down to the club and do their own thing. They are all expected to come back on good Nic mind you. The boys in Bali were great, can’t speak for the group meeting up in Spain somewhere, and the interstates who knows. But when they hit the aths track at Rowans Rd in a month they’ll be expectations I assure you

What date does proper preseason training start?

27th mate

[King Max]

November I assume. Not today.

[Yorkeys]

Seems there were also significant post season medical procedures: Dougal, Captain Jack, Max, Mason.....that all?
DMac to see European specialist in last ditch attempt.
Hope all went well, no noticeable scars.

[tony74]

Most major surgery was RL with a new hip