ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT

[Demonland 72,423]

ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT by The Oracle

The season is wearing heavily on the Melbourne Football Club. So much so that it was reduced to almost rabble status by Richmond in the first half of their Round 22 game at the MCG and even a spirited third quarter fight back was insufficient to help it win what was in many respects a meaningless fixture.

The game was lost before it started, first at selection when players who are hopelessly out of form and confidence were selected to play. Whatever the problem is with Aaron Davey, it was clear last week against West Coast that his head is not in the right space to be playing the game at the moment. He has endured a poor season, had a lengthy lay off with a knee injury and clearly came back way too soon. It's possible now that the AFL's Match Review Panel will give him the rest he needs for the remainder of the season that the selectors did not afford him. One possession in the first half is not what a player of his stature deserves to celebrate his 150th game.

Then there was the matter of the captain and the decision to hand him the green substitute's vest. This was pure folly. If he was unable to see through a game of 100 minutes then he had no business being in the selected side. Earlier this year, Jack Grimes was substituted off after 4 minutes when he suffered his foot injury. Green might have been called upon to play for 96 minutes in those circumstances had someone suffered a similar injury against the Tigers.

The move did advertise to the world was how critical the club's leadership crisis has been in its demise over the past month or so and how that weak attitude permeates the club.

The game started with Richmond showing greater intensity, tackling harder and winning the contested possessions, particularly out of the stoppages despite the fact that Mark Jamar was getting the hit outs. The opening contest was indicative of how most of the first half went for the two teams. A Demon possession smothered, a pack, a scrimmage and a holding the ball decision against the player at the base of the pack. Fifty metre penalty (a real one where the Tiger player took his kick fifty metres from where the initial infringement occurred). Goal in 1:02. Five minutes later, Richmond had three goals on the board, two from free kicks, at which point some of the Melbourne players decided that it might be a good idea to start the game.

And so it was that they regathered their composure and fought back, inspired by Colin Sylvia to get to within five points after Liam Jurrah kicked his third at the halfway mark of the second term.

Things could have been even better if one of the field umpires would have managed to get his measurements right on a fifty metre penalty awarded to Clint Bartram. If that was more than twenty metres then I'll bare the proverbial in Bourke Street. Put it in the "it can only happen to Melbourne category" and weep.

A travesty like that can only be followed by more disappointment and, right on cue, we were subjected to another fifteen minutes of shambolic football, poor disposal and weak decision making that saw the Tigers back on top with a well deserved 26-point lead by half time.

However, the game was far from over as Melbourne came out fired up to ram home seven goals to one in the third quarter to turn the game on its head and take an eight-point lead into the last quarter. The main question now was whether the team had spent its petrol tickets just getting into that position.

The Demons had their chances to take firm control early in the final quarter but their accuracy in front of goal which had kept them in the game for three quarters deserted them in the last. As they did in the second term, the Tigers grabbed the ascendancy at the midpoint in the quarter and kicked the goals that counted finishing the last stanza with 6.3 to 3.6 to run out winners by seven points.

Melbourne was well served by Nathan Jones who burrowed in and never stopped trying. He might not be the most skilled but he did show endeavour and leadership throughout the game. Colin Garland, James Frawley and Jared Rivers were good down back despite the Tiger onslaught and, of course, Sylvia was the star.

Shame about the rough conduct charge although one hopes that, in considering this, the AFL Match Review Panel remembers that even when West Coast's Josh Kennedy broke Sylvia's jaw last year, it was insufficient to sustain a charge against that player. At least Sylvia has learned his lesson after earning heavy criticism for selfish play last week. His 29 possessions and 5.0 surely earned him best on ground status.

Sam Blease was again a shining light, Jordie McKenzie worked his butt off and Jack Trengove continued to impress but too many players put in subdued performances. All Australian ruckman Jamar was good in the ruck but he failed to take a mark.

The lack of marking in contested situations by the tall timber has been a lowlight for much of the season. When there are no consistently safe marking targets up forward either in the air or on a lead, the groundwork is laid for indecisiveness and an unreliable short game and turnovers.

What the club needs now is a quality coach to instill tactics and strategies that work rather than what has been served up as passing for a game plan this year. In the meantime, the team's development has not only slowed down - it's been totally arrested!

Melbourne 4.0.24 7.1.43 14.2.86 17.8.110

Richmond 6.2.38 10.9.69 11.12.78 17.15.117

Goals

Melbourne Sylvia 5 Jones Jurrah 3 Trengove 2 Bennell Green Petterd Watts

Richmond Martin Miller 3 Foley Riewoldt 2 Cotchin Edwards Graham Jackson King Nahas Webberley

Best

Melbourne Jones Sylvia Garland Frawley Jamar McKenzie.

Richmond Foley Martin Deledio Grigg Tuck Vickery

Injuries

Melbourne Nil

Richmond Nil

Changes

Melbourne Nil

Richmond Nil

Reports

Melbourne Sylvia for high contact on Post in first quarter

Richmond Nil

Umpires McBurney Ryan Hay

Crowd 36,321 at the MCG

[Dockett 32 1,239]

Lost at selection.

[Sir Why You Little 37,053]

F@#$K it...i hate losing to that rabble club, i really do.

It really hurts.

[Watt and Howe? 16]

1. Get John Butcher

[Guest Guy Rigoni]

It hurts seeing Martin have so much impact on the game when our #1 pick that year can only muster up 5 kicks.

[Dee Fan 3,247]

F@#$K it...i hate losing to that rabble club, i really do.

It really hurts.

The way we've been tis year are we much above them?

Sylvia great game by the sounds of it today, but as usual against rubbish; I'd like to see him play a couple of those sorts of games against Collingwood and Hawthorn, not Richmond or Gold Coast.

When will we learn; Col thrives on these contests, but we'll heap praise on him and the media will laud him, oh well.

[Straight Sets Simon 23,113]

It hurts seeing Martin have so much impact on the game when our #1 pick that year can only muster up 5 kicks.

Agreed, Melbourne didn't even interview Martin from memory.

[Sir Why You Little 37,053]

The way we've been tis year are we much above them?

Sylvia great game by the sounds of it today, but as usual against rubbish; I'd like to see him play a couple of those sorts of games against Collingwood and Hawthorn, not Richmond or Gold Coast.

When will we learn; Col thrives on these contests, but we'll heap praise on him and the media will laud him, oh well.

I don't care where we are on the Ladder...i hate losing to Richmond Full Stop....we aint better than anyone right now.

[Dee Fan 3,247]

Agreed, Melbourne didn't even interview Martin from memory.

They heard he was going to get neck Tatts and that frightened them off, not a good look in the MCC rooms after the game. You can hide the ones on the arm and back etc. but those Jailhouse ones on the neck are a no no.

[Guest Guy Rigoni]

Agreed, Melbourne didn't even interview Martin from memory.

Yeah, i understand that Martin has the IQ of a potato and that we wanted to draft high character guys, but looks like we really dropped the ball on this one.

[Jaded No More 68,967]

I love that our players just pick and choose when they want to play, when they want to put in and go hard. We played two good quarters and lost to a team below us on the ladder who destroyed us when the pressure was on.

Yeah Sylvia had a great game but isn't it sad that he was motivated by his own bruised ego and doesn't play like that every week. We have too few who do enough and too many players with serious mental inaptitude. No coach can fix the rotten culture of softness present in our leadership group. It breaks my heart but I have honestly never felt so low as a Melbourne supporter. Hope has rapidly diminished this season topped off by a horrible second half of the season.

[Dee Fan 3,247]

I don't care where we are on the Ladder...i hate losing to Richmond Full Stop....we aint better than anyone right now.

At the start of the year, during the pre season games, I said we were worse than last year and we had gone backwards, well today proved it. I also said that some of the teams below us with lesser picks and supposedly worse teams would go past us, well today that was proven to be true as well.

I got shouted down and called a fool at the time; any of the posters that participated in that care to comment now?

We are dreadful and we have got nowhere the talent we think we have, just because they were top 20 picks doesn't make them stars. We are weak of mind and spirit and our club is full of front running players that have no idea how to dig in and win, that's not going to change in the short term.

I will say it again our recruiting sucks and the types of players we have recruited are simply not good enough, Scully in particular has shown that. how did he get picked at number 1?

[Jack7 528]

Sheeds,Scully's all yours!

Sick to death of his nothing 3 metre handballs mostly to team mates under pressure.

That pathetic tackle on Edwards had to stick,Edwards brushed him off like a mozzie and kicked the goal.

1 MILLION DOLLARS A YEAR-MY AR$E! He's barely worth 300k!!!

2 first round draft picks thank you very much.

Sheeds,you've lost your marbles.

Edited August 21, 2011 by Jack7

[PeterJames 46]

At the start of the year, during the pre season games, I said we were worse than last year and we had gone backwards, well today proved it. I also said that some of the teams below us with lesser picks and supposedly worse teams would go past us, well today that was proven to be true as well.

I got shouted down and called a fool at the time; any of the posters that participated in that care to comment now?

We are dreadful and we have got nowhere the talent we think we have, just because they were top 20 picks doesn't make them stars. We are weak of mind and spirit and our club is full of front running players that have no idea how to dig in and win, that's not going to change in the short term.

I will say it again our recruiting sucks and the types of players we have recruited are simply not good enough, Scully in particular has shown that. how did he get picked at number 1?

In a way we have gone backwards with Green and Davey. Davey shouldn't be on the list next year just woeful. We have gone forwards in a way that Trengove, Watts Blease Gawn and Tapscott have played a certain amount of games.

[Straight Sets Simon 23,113]

Sheeds,Scully's all yours!

Sick to death of his nothing 3 metre handballs mostly to team mates under pressure.

That pathetic tackle on Edwards had to stick,Edwards brushed him off like a mozzie and kicked the goal.

1 MILLION DOLLARS A YEAR-MY AR$E! He's barely worth 300k!!!

2 first round draft picks thank you very much.

Sheeds,you've lost your marbles.

That tackle really was pathetic and then there was no second effort.

[P-man 13,366]

Scully played like a guy with one eye on the flashing Exit sign. Absolutely gutless effort today. Just leave already. Davey also a disgrace.

There are several who can hold their head high however, not least of which is Jones who I'd put ahead of Sylvia for BOG. I'm also loving the look of Blease more and more. A sniff of hope out of today, which is a sniff more than there's been the past few weeks.

[deeflog 679]

Scully played like a guy with one eye on the flashing Exit sign. Absolutely gutless effort today. Just leave already. Davey also a disgrace.

There are several who can hold their head high however, not least of which is Jones who I'd put ahead of Sylvia for BOG. I'm also loving the look of Blease more and more. A sniff of hope out of today, which is a sniff more than there's been the past few weeks.

he's already gone in his own head

[angrydee 842]

What we're seeing is the result of Bailey's coaching. A good coach can turn things around pretty quickly. Look at Essendon - a rabble last year and a team on the rise now. Today was a well drilled team vs a team in transition - who as a result are not a TEAM. A captain who misses 2 goals that he once would have aced. He should be dropped - captain or not. Sylvia selfishly going for goal and missing everything when he should have given off. The kids are getting games and when they're finally drilled with a decent game plan things should turn fairly quickly.

[Rhino Richards 1,467]

I got shouted down and called a fool at the time; any of the posters that participated in that care to comment now?

Do you think they would change their assessment now?

Honestly, nothing like shooting from the hip.

FWIW, Martin is indeed a very good player and was assessed as such. But MFC took Trengove and Scully who were both clearly standouts in their year. Trengove is very good. Scully has had injury interrupted year and was also injured tonight. He will be a class player. Easpecially so if he was not in a midfield that has been so 3rd world.

If you really want to ask some questions about tonight and the season, I would be asking them about Davey and Green. Its not so much a senior player and leadership vacuum. Its a hole. I feel for the other players when 2 guys play like passengers and millionaires at that.

If anything sucks its our leadership. There needs to be a clean out at year end and Green and Davey should be front runners to be out of that group. On tonights efforts they will be fighting for a spot in the team.

[PeterJames 46]

Aaron Davey should be very worried at the moment. A lot of players play school footy as Terry Wallace said but if we get a tough coach Davey won't be in the mix at all. Is so soft and just refuses to work hard. Any danger of running hard? Having a chat after the game with an ex Hawthron player/ assistant coach and asked what do you do with him, trade him maybe? He laughed and said to be traded someone would have to want him. todays footy you can't have an unaccountable weak .... that doesn't want to work hard. If the next coach is fair dinkum he won't get a game. Just paraphrasing there.

[Great_little_footy_team 8]

The way we've been tis year are we much above them?

Sylvia great game by the sounds of it today, but as usual against rubbish; I'd like to see him play a couple of those sorts of games against Collingwood and Hawthorn, not Richmond or Gold Coast.

When will we learn; Col thrives on these contests, but we'll heap praise on him and the media will laud him, oh well.

Hawthorn round 2: 26 disposals

Collingwood Queen's Birthday: Our best player with 17 disposals and four goals

Colin Sylvia had an awesome and consistent 1st half of the year and then had a big form slump. We all jump off him and say he must be traded... Today I thought he was going to shut you all up... apparently I was wrong

He is our most dangerous match winner and before being dropped was our leading tackler going the other way... Give him a break!

[Kento80 83]

Hawthorn round 2: 26 disposals

Collingwood Queen's Birthday: Our best player with 17 disposals and four goals

Colin Sylvia had an awesome and consistent 1st half of the year and then had a big form slump. We all jump off him and say he must be traded... Today I thought he was going to shut you all up... apparently I was wrong

He is our most dangerous match winner and before being dropped was our leading tackler going the other way... Give him a break!

+1

[Dee Fan 3,247]

Do you think they would change their assessment now?

Honestly, nothing like shooting from the hip.

FWIW, Martin is indeed a very good player and was assessed as such. But MFC took Trengove and Scully who were both clearly standouts in their year. Trengove is very good. Scully has had injury interrupted year and was also injured tonight. He will be a class player. Easpecially so if he was not in a midfield that has been so 3rd world.

If you really want to ask some questions about tonight and the season, I would be asking them about Davey and Green. Its not so much a senior player and leadership vacuum. Its a hole. I feel for the other players when 2 guys play like passengers and millionaires at that.

If anything sucks its our leadership. There needs to be a clean out at year end and Green and Davey should be front runners to be out of that group. On tonights efforts they will be fighting for a spot in the team.

I said at the time that i couldn't see any improvement in the team in fact I said it had gone backwards, that included the team as a whole and not just the new kids. We are not as good as we think we are, we are devoid of leadership and experience and our kids are just not that good.

It's quite simple really. Would you care to comment on that?

[Rhino Richards 1,467]

I said at the time that i couldn't see any improvement in the team in fact I said it had gone backwards, that included the team as a whole and not just the new kids. We are not as good as we think we are, we are devoid of leadership and experience and our kids are just not that good.

It's quite simple really. Would you care to comment on that?

You see what you want to see and its your choice.

I dont think the core of the players have any aspirations that they are better than truly are.

I agree on leadership and experience but your so misguided on our youth that its not funny. Dont underestimate the lack of leadership and experience on young player. Check that. The embarrassment of our leadership group is a heavy weight for young players.

[Bang Bang Bang 5,826]

Disappointing result because I was expecting to win today, a couple of key moments go our way and we win and get the 4 points. But alas, we didn't. The 4 points are meaningless in the overall scheme of things anyway.

It's never fun losing to Richmond, but they had more confidence coming into today and were lucky enough to be 7 points up when the siren went. It was a pretty even contest.

Annnnyway, I was hoping to at least see some positives that can be brought into 2012 and I think I got what I wanted.

Blease was really impressive, his kicking is excellent and his pace breath-taking. Was a long wait with this kid but I think he'll repay us in spades.

Bennell played a good game, great pace, ball use and went hard at the pill and the man. Well done JB.

Morton was good I thought. Although some will disagree. Ball use pretty good.

Once again our senior players let us down at crucial moments, in particular Davey who would have to be some chance of not being at MFC next year.

Chin up guys, a couple of soft wins to finish the year, a new coach to weed out the dead wood, and we may see big improvement in 2012. If Essendon can do it, then so can we.