It's a strong side, but the problem with all these extra fringe first graders we have is they could block positions for up and coming juniors we need to gain experience. I'll be pissed if Taffe or Tracey end up playing FB in cup and Papalii being put on the bench or played out of position. The way this clubs been going we'll do exactly that and let another club take Papalii off us.
These fringe players you mention have only been bought in on one and two year contracts, I think it’s pretty fair to say they’re only here to do a job for us until the young blokes are 100% mind and body, conditioned to play against seasoned men in 1st grade.
Gould runs a very organised ship, lot of stuff going on that we never get to see, ‘the way the clubs been going” as you say, doesn’t exist anymore, that’s past mentality, my thoughts are all eyes are on building a production line of talent for the future …. and yes we will lose some, but not the ones Gould wants to keep.
Our young blokes would know exactly what the clubs plans are for them in the future, they’d be told up front that the club is conditioning them for long careers as Bulldogs in one of the toughest sports in the world, and if they’re patient and work hard they’ll achieve these goals together, they’d know players will be bought in to fill gaps until they’re ready, they’d know that both the club and themselves will need to make sacrifices to get to where both party’s need to get to, and sometimes that might even include dropping back a grade to make everything work, but they’d know they’re not being held back, they’d know it’s temporary ..
Personally I’d like to see our young blokes have the patience that a lot of Melbourne players have shown in the past, and continue preparing and waiting for their turn even though they’ve been offered good money elsewhere .... if they’re enticed away early by money, is, “it’s about the money” the culture and mind set we want from our future players …
We want players e.g Panthers, who’ve all come up together, that all want to stay together and win premierships as bulldogs together show they really want to be Bulldogs of the future ..
With the specialised half’s and forwards training schools etc. we now have, I think when our young blokes start coming through, they’ll be 100% ready for it, we’ll lose a few, but Gould generally doesn’t lose the ones he wants to keep, and if we do, the club has to be prepared with the next man up attitude anyway ..
Don’t worry about our juniors or players being blocked etc. the clubs in good hands and the juniors will be being prepared and know what’s required of them in the future, up to them from there if they want to be a part of it ..
