Jump to content

A COURAGEOUS CLUB

Demonland
in Archived

Featured Replies

Posted

These wonderful words originally penned and posted on 14 April 2010 were reprinted on the decorative placemats provided at the Melbourne Football Club's Debt Demolition Dinner on 4 August 2010 a - the day that the club's supporters helped it become debt free for the first time in decades ...

A COURAGEOUS CLUB by dandeeman

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.

 

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing

Featured Content

  • REPORT: Port Adelaide

    Of course, it’s not the backline, you might argue and you would probably be right. It’s the boot studder (do they still have them?), the midfield, the recruiting staff, the forward line, the kicking coach, the Board, the interchange bench, the supporters, the folk at Casey, the head coach and the club psychologist  It’s all of them and all of us for having expectations that were sufficiently high to have believed three weeks ago that a restoration of the Melbourne team to a position where we might still be in contention for a finals berth when the time for the midseason bye arrived. Now let’s look at what happened over the period of time since Melbourne overwhelmed the Sydney Swans at the MCG in late May when it kicked 8.2 to 5.3 in the final quarter (and that was after scoring 3.8 to two straight goals in the second term). 

      • Clap
      • Thanks
      • Like
    • 2 replies
    Demonland

  • CASEY: Essendon

    Casey’s unbeaten run was extended for at least another fortnight after the Demons overran a persistent Essendon line up by 29 points at ETU Stadium in Port Melbourne last night. After conceding the first goal of the evening, Casey went on a scoring spree from about ten minutes in, with five unanswered majors with its fleet of midsized runners headed by the much improved Paddy Cross who kicked two in quick succession and livewire Ricky Mentha who also kicked an early goal. Leading the charge was recruit of the year, Riley Bonner while Bailey Laurie continued his impressive vein of form. With Tom Campbell missing from the lineup, Will Verrall stepped up to the plate demonstrating his improvement under the veteran ruckman’s tutelage. The Demons were looking comfortable for much of the second quarter and held a 25-point lead until the Bombers struck back with two goals in the shadows of half time. On the other side of the main break their revival continued with first three goals of the half. Harry Sharp, who had been quiet scrambled in the Demons’ first score of the third term to bring the margin back to a single point at the 17 minute mark and the game became an arm-wrestle for the remainder of the quarter and into the final moments of the last.

      • Clap
    • 0 replies
    Demonland

  • PREGAME: Gold Coast

    The Demons have the Bye next week but then are on the road once again when they come up against the Gold Coast Suns on the Gold Coast in what could be a last ditch effort to salvage their season. Who comes in and who comes out?

      • Thanks
    • 75 replies
    Demonland

  • PODCAST: Port Adelaide

    The Demonland Podcast will air LIVE on Monday, 16th June @ 8:00pm. Join Binman, George & I as we dissect the Dees disappointing loss to the Power.
    Your questions and comments are a huge part of our podcast so please post anything you want to ask or say below and we'll give you a shout out on the show.
    Listen LIVE: https://demonland.com/

      • Thanks
    • 31 replies
    Demonland

  • POSTGAME: Port Adelaide

    The Demons simply did not take their opportunities when they presented themselves and ultimately when down by 25 points effectively ending their finals chances. Goal kicking practice during the Bye?

      • Haha
      • Thanks
    • 252 replies
    Demonland

  • VOTES: Port Adelaide

    Max Gawn has an insurmountable lead in the Demonland Player of the Year ahead of Jake Bowey, Christian Petracca, Clayton Oliver and Kozzy Pickett. Your votes please; 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 & 1.

      • Thanks
    • 31 replies
    Demonland
View All