Pre Match. Pies v. Port. All comments please.

[Clifton Hill-Billy]

[ronrat]

Scmidthouse and Razor had the same game last week. Schmidt was so blatantly favouring one side by calling stuff not in his jurisdiction that Razor started paying the other way out of spite. Schmidt should be barred from every going near us. 2 or 3 years ago he played 17-nil against us.

[jackcass]

[Cam]

If Cloke wrestles, we are gone.
If Cloke leads, we have a chance.

[Magpietothemax]

Port is already trying to play mindgames with Travis, Hinkley declaring that he will be "desperate" and they are ready for that. Pressure on Travis Cloke is just so enormous. This is what I find so unfair about how Buckley has done this. He has engaged the media and assisted them in fuelling the speculation about Travis Cloke's future . Now we have arrived at a game where, with the media frenzy that has by now reached hurricane proportions, Travis' future at Collingwood now apparently depends on whether he performs on Sunday. I really feel sorry for the guy. If he performs, it will demonstrate an absolutely amazing ferocity of temperament. If he does not, it will suggest that he is human. I find the situation that Travis is in quite appalling. I hope to God ( I am an atheist, but invoking the deity i hope will express the strength of my feeling) that Travis can crash many packs and set up a winning scoreline. Go Travis Cloke!!

[Jezza]

[Woods]

[Magpietothemax]

Sorry, but your arguments are irrelevant. Are you going to keep holding the stupid but irrelevant act of "selfies" against him, when the females involved are nothing more than criminals who should be in jail? What has this got to do with the assessment of his performance, and Buckley's willingness to single him out, when Cloke's stats were actually as good as all our other tall forwards.
Did you expect him to say that he was happy to play VFL, and would be content to do so from now on?? Of course he said that he wanted to get back to the seniors!! What are we paying him $800,000 a year for otherwise??
Yes, he does have to match words with actions. But under difficult circumstances that have been created by the willingness of his coach to hang him out to dry in the glare of the media.

[qldmagpie67]

MTM I think your missing the point. The dick pics are very relevant to Cloke's situation. Do you think for one second that his girlfriend/fiancé was happy to see him sending dick pics to another woman ?
Do you think she went of Travis that's so funny let's live happily ever after ?
Umm no she would have been rightly peeved. He would have been under the pump in his home life.
Added to you think his parents would have been laughing at the situation as well ? How proud would his mother had been ? She goes down to her local,hairdresser and sees the woman's day mag sitting there and she can proudly say oh looks there's my son and his penis isn't he so special !!
Mate his mind set has been off since the preseason.
He didn't look interested in playing football and it showed. Watch some footage from those early rounds when he losses s contest and instead of chasing he stands there while his opponent runs off and becomes an attacking weapon the other way.
You mention the $800k he's paid. Well with big pay packets come big expectations. He wasn't dropped because he wasn't kicking goals or kicking accurately he was dropped because he wasn't showing the level of competitiveness to warrant a starting position in the seniors and wasn't or couldn't play the role required by the team.
So should the coach just say oh well that's ok we will basically allow you to do your own thing screw the team.
Mate the media speculation was always going to be fierce Buckley has never bagged him in the media he has stated he lost his desire and love of the game and needs to find it again.
His stats were no better or worse than other tall forwards but the difference is the other players haven't had 230 odd games experience and weren't being paid elite wages to perform.

He loaded pressure on himself with his own media statements.
No one wants him to fail (especially not true magpie supporters) and his success shouldn't be measured by goals or marks. If he plays his role for the team and does the little things like contesting crashing packs and providing the option then he's done his job a few goals would be great as well

[duggieboy]

^^^

Can't argue with any of this. That's the facts, right there.

[think positive]

Yep that's one hell of a post.

That said,

Go Trav! Hopefully you don't make a dick of yourself!

I'm looking forward to this game. It's been a grubby season apart from the cats game. Last weeks team was awesome and full of heart. They give me that tomorrow, I'm happy.

[think better]

[think positive]

Yep those empires don't care

[Pies4shaw]

Looking at the team as selected, which "small" is he going to bring into the game in any way thought might affect the outcome? It isn't like Rioli is going to feed off the ground ball.

Cloke has never been the actual problem with Collingwood's forward line - for 5 seasons our scoring options have been declining all around him. No Fasolo, no Elliott and with Sidebottom playing on the wing. Someone needs to have an absolute day out but I don't see who it would be. I think Cox, Crocker and Cloke probably have to get 10 between them and that seems to me to be an unrealistic demand.

[HAL]

Who?