Jump to content

An even keel - strong stuff

Mono
Mono
in Melbourne Demons

Featured Replies

I don't think the idea is just swapping out the underperformers, it's cutting out the guys with no heart or a mad desire to be the best AFL player they can be. So you cut away Blease, Davey, whoever else lacks that heart, and bring in people like Couch, McDonald and maybe Dunn, not because they'll perform better and maybe they won't, but because they'll give their all and so they deserve to be there.

No, 'guys with heart' won't win us games in the short-term, but it's where we need to start considering our previous player development strategy apparently consisted of singalongs around a campfire and pats on the back for getting on an AFL list. And I think this has been glossed over a lot when demonlanders have criticised Neeld. He's said in interviews that he's barely even gone into the details of his game-plan yet because the coaching staff have had to start with trying to instill individual players with that desire to work their arse off and push past their limits that so many of them seem to be missing. That whatever it is that makes a player want to push themselves to go from B/C grader to an elite player.

This won't happen overnight and unfortunately for some of them, it never will.

More words, whatever, that's all this is. Anyway, I think our coaching staff is on the right track. See what happens.

  • Quote
    •  

    Er, that article is from Peter Ryan - AFL.com's MFC guy with Holmesby.

    The MFC didn't write that so don't read too much into from a 'this is PR' or 'isn't it good for the club to be so strong' perspective.

  • Quote

    That article is great. Honesty is what we members want. Then we can accurately judge the club on its merits.

    No more rubbish please. Harsh reality is better.

  • Quote
    •  

    I really hope people on here get a bit of a wake up call and realise that we have a really average list and have has an average FD over the past few years.

    Neeld knows it. So do the rest of the coaches. If Neeld and Misson pretty much imply that we are light years away from becoming a strong and difficult team to play against, what do you think it says about Bailey and co?

    If Neeld and Misson said our fitness levels weren't up to standard when they arrived, and that our training and attitude wasn't at an elite AFL level, what does that say about Bailey and co?

    Does it mean that they simply had no idea about how a professional AFL football club should be run?

    Does it mean that players, and especially our 25 yo + players have developed bad habits at training which leads to on-field performance?

    Neeld has come from arguably the most professional and elite sporting club within the AFL. Misson has come from Sydney and St Kilda and has helped take both to Grand Finals.

    Both would know. Both would know how far behind our players are. Both would know exactly where they need to get to. Wouldn't they?

    I can't help but smell yet another clean out over the next two years with the possible recruitment of a few more recycled/mature age players along with some quality draft picks.

    A top class recruiter with an outstanding history is what we need next.

    Sorry demonlanders. We are in for a few more years of pain I reckon.

    No arguement from me

  • Quote

    You will get no argument from me that we are coming from a long way back and some massive changes need to be made. But wasn't that supposed to be happening over the past four years. I think supporters have every right to be frustrated and angry, when it looks like the club has wasted so much time. Especially when throughout that period we have been told everything was going perfectly with the rebuilding process and that supporters just need to be patient.

  • Quote

    You will get no argument from me that we are coming from a long way back and some massive changes need to be made. But wasn't that supposed to be happening over the past four years. I think supporters have every right to be frustrated and angry, when it looks like the club has wasted so much time. Especially when throughout that period we have been told everything was going perfectly with the rebuilding process and that supporters just need to be patient.

    4 years and IMO we are in exactly the same spot we were in at the end of 2007.

    Be it less $5miilion in debt.

  • Quote

    • Archived

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

    Go to topic listing

    Featured Content

    • PREVIEW: Essendon

      As the focus of the AFL moves exclusively to South Australia for Gather Round, the question is raised as to what are we going to get from the  Melbourne Football Club this weekend? Will it be a repeat of the slop fest of the last three weeks that have seen the team score a measly 174 points and concede 310 or will a return to the City of Churches and the scene where they performed at their best in 2024 act as a wakeup call and bring them out of their early season reverie? 
      Or will the sleepy Dees treat their fans to a reenactment of their lazy effort from the first Gather Round of two years ago when they allowed the Bombers to trample all over them on a soggy and wet Adelaide Oval? The two examples from above tell us how fickle form can be in football. Last year, a committed group of players turned up in Adelaide with a businesslike mindset. They had a plan, went in confidently and hard for the football and kicked winning scores against both home teams in a difficult environment for visitors. And they repeated that sort of effort later in the season when they played Essendon at the MCG. Unfortunately, performances like these went against the grain of what Melbourne has been producing from virtually midway through 2024 and extending right through to the present day. This is a game between two clubs who have faltered over the past couple of years because their disposal efficiency is appalling. Neither of them can hit the side of a barn door but history tells us that every once in a while such teams have their lucky days or come up against an opponent in even worse shape and hence, one of them will come up trumps in this match.

      • 0 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • PREGAME: Essendon

      Facing the very real and daunting prospect of starting the season with five straight losses, the Demons head to South Australia for the annual Gather Round, where they’ll take on the Bombers in search of their first win of the year. Who comes in, and who comes out?

        • Like
      • 224 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • NON-MFC: Round 05

      Gather Round is here, kicking off with a Thursday night blockbuster as Adelaide faces Geelong. The Crows will be out for redemption after a controversial loss last week. Saturday starts with the Magpies taking on the Swans. Collingwood will be eager to cement their spot in the top eight, while Sydney is hot on their heels. In the Barossa Valley, two rising sides go head-to-head in a fascinating battle to prove they're the real deal. Later, Carlton and West Coast face off at Adelaide Oval, both desperate to notch their first win of the season. The action then shifts to Norwood, where the undefeated Lions will aim to keep their streak alive against the Bulldogs. Sunday’s games begin in the Barossa with Richmond up against Fremantle. In Norwood, the Saints will be looking to take a scalp when they come up against the Giants. The round concludes with a fiery rematch of last year's semi-final, as the Hawks seek revenge for their narrow loss to Port Adelaide. Who are you tipping this week and what are the best results for the Demons besides us winning?

        • Like
      • 15 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • CASEY: Geelong

      There was a time in the second quarter of the game at the Cattery on Friday afternoon when the Casey Demons threatened to take the game apart against the Cats. The Demons had been well on top early but were struggling to convert their ascendancy over the ground until Tom Fullarton’s burst of three goals in the space of eight minutes on the way to a five goal haul and his best game for the club since arriving from Brisbane at the end of 2023. He was leading, marking and otherwise giving his opponents a merry dance as Casey grabbed a three goal lead in the blink of an eye. Fullarton has now kicked ten goals in Casey’s three matches and, with Melbourne’s forward conversion woes, he is definitely in with a chance to get his first game with the club in next week’s Gather Round in Adelaide. Despite the tall forward’s efforts - he finished with 19 disposals and eight marks and had four hit outs as back up to Will Verrall in the second half - it wasn’t enough as Geelong reigned in the lead through persistent attacks and eventually clawed their way to the lead early in the last and held it till they achieved the end aim of victory.

      • 0 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • REPORT: Geelong

      I was disappointed to hear Goody say at his post match presser after the team’s 39 point defeat against Geelong that "we're getting high quality entry, just poor execution" because Melbourne’s problems extend far beyond that after its 0 - 4 start to the 2025 football season. There are clearly problems with poor execution, some of which were evident well before the current season and were in play when the Demons met the Cats in early May last year and beat them in a near top-of-the-table clash that saw both sides sitting comfortably in the top four after round eight. Since that game, the Demons’ performances have been positively Third World with only five wins in 19 games with a no longer majestic midfield and a dysfunctional forward line that has become too easy for opposing coaches to counter. This is an area of their game that is currently being played out as if they were all completely panic-stricken.

      • 0 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • NON-MFC: Round 04

      Round 4 kicks off with a blockbuster on Thursday night as traditional rivals Collingwood and Carlton clash at the MCG, with the Magpies looking to assert themselves as early-season contenders and the Blues seeking their first win of the season. Saturday opens with Gold Coast hosting Adelaide, a key test for the Suns as they aim to back up their big win last week, while the Crows will be looking to keep their perfect record intact. Reigning wooden spooners Richmond have the daunting task of facing reigning premiers Brisbane at the ‘G and the Lions will be eager to reaffirm their premiership credentials after a patchy start. Saturday night sees North Melbourne take on Sydney at Marvel Stadium, with the Swans looking to build on their first win of the season last week against a rebuilding Roos outfit. Sunday’s action begins with GWS hosting West Coast at ENGIE Stadium, a game that could get ugly very early for the visitors. Port Adelaide vs St Kilda at Adelaide Oval looms as a interesting clash, with both clubs form being very hard to read. The round wraps up with Fremantle taking on the Western Bulldogs at Optus Stadium in what could be a fierce contest between two sides with top-eight ambitions. Who are you tipping this week and what are the best results for the Demons besides us winning?

        • Love
        • Thanks
      • 273 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland
    View All