A COURAGEOUS CLUB

[e25 5]

Are you fair dinkum?

It was a very good post by you dandee.

[H_T 3,049]

Are you fair dinkum?

It was an excellent post dandeeman.

[jabberwocky 2,301]

Thanks Tim and all. Contacted the club and they are sending me out a copy.

[Red Sox 2]

Thanks Tim and all. Contacted the club and they are sending me out a copy.

Yeah, fantastic stuff dandeeman.

Good to see the club make use of so many great resources we have - the supporters!

[Deevout 534]

I have supported this club for 38 years. As a supporter I love to see displays of courage. Success takes a combination of many things such as skill, fitness, teamwork but success doesn’t occur without courage.

Courage is not something that begins and ends on a football field. In fact successful teams make courageous decisions long before a winning list takes the field.

It takes courage for a club to go to its members, sponsors and supporters and ask for more support and money after a period of sustained failure.

It takes courage to sign a completely unproven coach against a lifetime coach who has had sustained success. It takes more to justify his appointment and offer him another year after 2 years of failure on the score-board.

It takes courage to remove proven performers from your playing list, again weakening your short term on-field strength.

It takes courage to sell a plan that strips the playing list bare and guarantees a lack of immediate success and just hope the membership can share the vision and project forward.

It takes courage to stare down the media and football world in the face or ridicule and profess to have a plan with no evidence of same or results to speak of.

It takes courage to develop a playing list at the correct pace capable of playing at the highest level not bowing to the impatience of the football world.

It takes courage to pay your playing list well when they have achieved so little.

It takes courage to sign player for 3 years who is yet to take the field at AFL level.

These risks have been undertaken in an effort to achieve the ultimate success and have been geared to the long term of the club as a whole. But it was undertaken when the club was most vulnerable both on and on the field.

For the plan to succeed the club as a whole, from the admin to the footy dept to the sponsors, members and supporters need to reciprocate trust.

Will this club win a flag with our current list… who knows? History says it’s difficult for a club to come from as far back as we have. The odds are against us. But what this club has done is truly unique…. and history is created on a daily basis.

When I see our battling president attending games, speaking to my kids at family days and urging the club and members on from his hospital bed after brain surgery, I can sense that this club is rebuilding itself on a courageous new model.

Like an young Irish boy from humble beginnings coming to a new country to play an unknown game, this club has risked its immediate future to make a play for glory.

Its time to support your club people. I for one can feel the beating heart of this club grow stronger day by day.

THE TEAM WE LOVE. WELL DONE BLOKE!

[The Time is Now 4]

Will this club win a flag with our current list… who knows?

We will win a flag mate and we will be sitting at the G watching it together....Well said couz!!

[dee-luded 2,959]

I have supported this club for 38 years. As a supporter I love to see displays of courage. Success takes a combination of many things such as skill, fitness, teamwork but success doesn't occur without courage.

Courage is not something that begins and ends on a football field. In fact successful teams make courageous decisions long before a winning list takes the field.

It takes courage for a club to go to its members, sponsors and supporters and ask for more support and money after a period of sustained failure.

It takes courage to sign a completely unproven coach against a lifetime coach who has had sustained success. It takes more to justify his appointment and offer him another year after 2 years of failure on the score-board.

It takes courage to remove proven performers from your playing list, again weakening your short term on-field strength.

It takes courage to sell a plan that strips the playing list bare and guarantees a lack of immediate success and just hope the membership can share the vision and project forward.

It takes courage to stare down the media and football world in the face or ridicule and profess to have a plan with no evidence of same or results to speak of.

It takes courage to develop a playing list at the correct pace capable of playing at the highest level not bowing to the impatience of the football world.

It takes courage to pay your playing list well when they have achieved so little.

It takes courage to sign player for 3 years who is yet to take the field at AFL level.

These risks have been undertaken in an effort to achieve the ultimate success and have been geared to the long term of the club as a whole. But it was undertaken when the club was most vulnerable both on and on the field.

For the plan to succeed the club as a whole, from the admin to the footy dept to the sponsors, members and supporters need to reciprocate trust.

Will this club win a flag with our current list… who knows? History says it's difficult for a club to come from as far back as we have. The odds are against us. But what this club has done is truly unique…. and history is created on a daily basis.

When I see our battling president attending games, speaking to my kids at family days and urging the club and members on from his hospital bed after brain surgery, I can sense that this club is rebuilding itself on a courageous new model.

Like an young Irish boy from humble beginnings coming to a new country to play an unknown game, this club has risked its immediate future to make a play for glory.

Its time to support your club people. I for one can feel the beating heart of this club grow stronger day by day.

Love your work there mate, spot on.

And this is exactly what I hoped for, back in, was it '07, when I emailed the club to say that I for one would not attend another game nor renew my membership 'till we made changes to the coaching/footy dept'. And I didn't for, I don't know, 4 or 5 weeks. The only pity was the week back, we played Carlton who were sitting on 16 premiership points, then & there, then we won that game, with 'Riley' at the helm.

http://www.afl.com.au/Default.aspx?tabid=208&newsId=46139

[She Devil 64 21]

Great stuff Dandeeman. Very well put. I totally agree.

[Tim 3,531]

Thanks Tim and all. Contacted the club and they are sending me out a copy.

Fantastic - good result and recognition, and great post. To quote a luminary from another club, at least you can say "I did something" that had an impact.

[Demonland 73,485]

...and to give it the full recognition it deserves, we're pinning it up and giving it full article status on Demonland!

Well done.

[drdrake 3,203]

It also takes courage for the supporters to continue to turn up to matches and buy memberships. The club has got the base to build on, record memberships, Home MCG attendances will average over 40,000 people in 2011, Money and a list that is full of talent.

If anything the past three years has made our supporters even more passionate and credit to the club we feel important and very much a part of the Melbourne Football Club.

[Demonic Ascent 0]

They showed some footage of Jimmeh on the footy show speaking at the Debt Demolition dinner the other and he seemed to have taken your idea and ran with it speaking of 'courage' on a few occasions and what courage means. Very good post you should be proud dandeeman!

[Hobbits's 17]

well done dandeeman ! another courageous decision made today by the club. junior would be big enough to accept the clubs decision.

[mikeod 21]

Can you take a pic of what the club sends you?

Would love to see how they did it up.

[jabberwocky 2,301]

I know it's small but I can only upload 500kb. Its A4 size and is now in a frame for posterity.

[H_T 3,049]

*BUMP*

Addition:

"It takes courage and good sense for the club to offer a fair and reasonable one year contract with apt market value - as per club policy - to enable a 31 yo player who has given 12 years of service and 220 odd games, to continue his career at a club he supposedly loves."

[Vagg 2,449]

Well put, HT. Agree completely!

Bring on 2011.