What is wrong with MFC…

[heartbeatstrue 57]

This thread is like therapy for me. I know much of this has been rehashed on various other threads. Anyway trying to keep it brief, here goes and in no particular order...

1. We lack a winning culture. This is now deeply ingrained and affects just about every aspect of the club and its footy. See thread “The Melbourne Football Club Culture - How do we fix it?” for suggested solutions.

2. No intensity in our footy. A job for the coaches to build this into the team, whatever situation we're in. Even last game of a dreadful season that we all want to end as quick as possible.

3. Trouble with tackling. How often do opposition players treat Melbourne's attempts to tackle with contempt. Sometimes the same opposition player shrugs off 2 or 3 Melbourne attempts at tackles (usually on his way to kicking an inspirational goal). When we do hold a player up, too often the tackle is deemed “in the back”. Need tackling skills to be drummed into them.

4. Dean Bailey is developing a run-and-carry game. Good. Except when it leads to handball suicide. When there are no options up forward (this is next problem on the list!), they have obviously been instructed to handball it off. Which means sideways or back. Which leads to a string of going-nowhere handballs, until we inevitably turn it over. Which often results in an easy goal to the opposition. My worry with what I've seen this year is that we are destroying players by insisting on handball, which when it fails turns ugly and destroys confidence in natural abilities and instincts. A solution I'd like to see, at least until we develop the skills and confidence in DB's game plan, is to allow and credit long kicks into the hot spot infront of goal. Give the forwards something to work with, put some trust in their marking skills (Robbo, Miller) and crumbing. Better to turn it over down there, than in the middle.

5. Develop a forward strategy. The past few weeks there's been nothing. Almost no forwards presenting, which explains largely all those handballs going nowhere. This to me is the biggest coaching failure. When Robbo's injured, improvise. Solution, we gotta get some specialist forwards and fast. Or we're not going to kick winning scores no matter what. Draft them, trade for them, develop them in-house. Whatever it takes. Because the other problems are all to some extent dependent on fixing this chronic problem.

6. Bulk up our young stars like Morton, so that we start 2009 with a respectable physical presence.

This is not an exhaustive list but a work in progress...

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All of the problems that were on display yesterday in the pathetic effort against the Tigers (who are not that great a side) are fixable to some extent. Realistically, I have no confidence that many of them will be. There seems to be too much of a head-in-the-sand attitude. How come Bailey seemed surprised at the lack of intensity? My guess is when you’re as close to the playing group as the senior coach is, you see the great skills of such elite individuals and it’s easy to imagine it will all come together in the team effort on the day. Which is when the underlying problems are manifest. DB only gets to discover them when the team is placed under pressure.

Most of the problems I’m seeing are to a large extent coaching-related. DB admitted as much afterwards when he bemoaned a zero out of 10 effort. It’s the coach’s jobs to instil intensity, to fire the passion and self-belief, to teach them to tackle at this level, to develop some forward smarts (even with the depleted options available), to address the handball problem (without throwing out the baby, continue developing the run-and-carry game plan but build in some allowance for confidence-building spontaneity as well, it might even win a game or two).

Yesterday Yze showed something of what is required. He played with passion I thought, put in some good second efforts, was prepared to kick forward. And he presented on occasions infront of goal. Good lessons for some of the others. At one point I began to wonder would I ever see Jones kick a footy again before the day he retires. But he did, once after I had that thought. Long and straight to an opposition player standing alone who took the easiest of marks. His confidence and instinctiveness in his game seem shot.

Another telling moment was at the 24 minute mark of the last quarter. Our Morton won the footy on the Members wing right in front of me as I was about to leave. It was a good effort, he’s got great skills and great potential. He had time and space to kick forward. But whether instinctively or through training, I’ve no idea. But he turned into traffic and handballed to a player surrounded by Tigers. Dreadful option, but he did it having given up the chance to capitalise on his efforts to win it in the first place. The result, turnover, quick ball to Deledio, Richmond goal. That was it. Season over. Me and my kid walked out shaking our heads.

[heartbeatstrue 57]

I've gone from feeling analytical about the season and in particular the pathetic effort against Richmond on Sunday to feeling a bit angry. I was looking forward to some guts against the Tigers, something to hang on to over the long summer. We got nothing and thinking back, with hindsight going into that game with nothing of a forward set-up never gave us any hope.

That's with hindsight on my part, but what was the foresight of the coaches who plan the forward strategy each game? If that was the best they could devise, they are hopeless. If they didn't care enough about the result of that last dead game (hard to believe) then they have treated us with contempt.

Then I read Robert Walls in today's Age and he makes similar comments. I will go and watch Melbourne through thick and thin, but many of my Demon-supporter friends have simply given up watching them. I am feeling angry at being treated with contempt. Lucky I've got a whole summer to cool down B)

Robert Walls in today's Age:

Finally, a memo to Melbourne chairman Jim Stynes and coach Dean Bailey. If you want members to come and watch you play, get your team to score. The Demons are ranked second in the competition for uncontested marks. They average 102 a game. But it's a waste of time and energy when the uncontested marks are the results of short kicks that go backwards and sideways.

It is infuriating watching this rubbish. Melbourne is last for inside-50 entries and scores. Why? Because the Demons play "ring a ring a rosey" in their back line and midfield. In case you don't know, Demons, you have to dare to win.

Exactly! Not rocket science.

[Straight Sets Simon 23,113]

Exactly! Not rocket science.

Melbourne were criticised for playing this way in 1997, but apparently "modern football" is all about keeping possession.

[heartbeatstrue 57]

Melbourne were criticised for playing this way in 1997, but apparently "modern football" is all about keeping possession.

Look, I support DB in what he's trying to do. We plainly don't have the players with experience and age in their bodies to play like Geelong but that is what's required. DB is a teacher and what he will build into our young (and talented imo) group will be brilliant in time. He may lack a bit in the motivational stakes but he'll be learning too.

All I'm extremely disappointed in is that we couldn't give the group who have played the past few weeks something by way of a half-functioning forward set-up. I don't understand why, even with our depleted forwards, we couldn't have improvised far better than what we have. I believe many of us here could have 1) foreseen the problem, and 2) put together a better forward strategy. 'Dare to win' is how Robert Walls described it.

Apart from the demoralising effect on spectators of having nothing up forward, I really believe it's taken a toll on many of the players, Jones for instance. It doesn't help them develop as Bailey is trying to teach into them if you're only able to play and be competitive over two thirds of the ground.

[Guest Chopper]

Our boys have to over posses because we have no one up forward to kick too.

This is why we need Jack Watts.

[Straight Sets Simon 23,113]

Our boys have to over posses because we have no one up forward to kick too.

I think I noticed this problem 44 games ago...

[Guest Chopper]

I think I noticed this problem 44 games ago...

44 games ago, I was content with Neitz & Robertson being our targets in the Forward 50.

[Straight Sets Simon 23,113]

44 games ago, I was content with Neitz & Robertson being our targets in the Forward 50.

I wasn't.

I wanted Robertson, Neitz, Davey, Bruce, Green, Miller, Dunn, Sylvia, Bate etc.