Our results match our draft picks!

[Biffen 12,944]

What about since then?

Cant we just look back with some fondness on those three games RR?

They were such promising times.

[Sir Why You Little 37,120]

Darren Cuthbertson was a legend for 3 weeks too...seen it before.

[Range Rover 1,935]

Cant we just look back with some fondness on those three games RR?

They were such promising times.

He definitely made us sit up and take notice during those first few games.

We can only hope it wasn't a flash in the pan.

C'mon Jordan ... we are waiting.

[Deers 202]

People just want him to be great....

That's all we can do - hope.

But the kid had 26 disposals and 8 marks on debut - in slippery conditions at Kardinia Park.

He is a prolific inside ball-winner with a strong core and the confidence to take grabs.

What about since then?

30 touches and 8 marks vs. Essendon in 2011. Actually, in 15 games last year he recorded 20+ seven times. His disposal average count dropped compared to 2010 but he more than tripled his tackles.

Don't rip on this bloke.

[Biffen 12,944]

Darren Cuthbertson was a legend for 3 weeks too...seen it before.

The power of the mullet is a wonderful thing .

Craig Smoker flashed brightly in the pan also.

[Sir Why You Little 37,120]

That's all we can do - hope.

But the kid had 26 disposals and 8 marks on debut - in slippery conditions at Kardinia Park.

Yes i remember that first game.

Still think he is a 3-4th round pick though.

But if i am proved wrong so be it.

Personally i am tipping he is one who may go this year.

[Range Rover 1,935]

30 touches and 8 marks vs. Essendon in 2011. Actually, in 15 games last year he recorded 20+ seven times. His disposal average count dropped compared to 2010 but he more than tripled his tackles.

Don't rip on this bloke.

No-one's ripping on him. We're just demanding more.

Tackling is fine. Good on him. But his first priority must be to get the ball, not tackle the man with it. Same goes for Trengove who seems to have similar issues.

Time to raise the heat on these high draft picks. Quit being second to the footy. Lift.

[monoccular 17,572]

You're right, absolute hacks. There were clearly better players available during that stage of the draft. Looks like BP stuffed it up again.

I trust that you are speaking tongue in cheek - they may be fantastic but both are injured, like so many of our high picks are or have been since drafting - Gawn, Strauss, Blease to name just a few.

[old dee 23,870]

What about since then?

Good question

[old dee 23,870]

I trust that you are speaking tongue in cheek - they may be fantastic but both are injured, like so many of our high picks are or have been since drafting - Gawn, Strauss, Blease to name just a few.

How come we pick so many crocks?

The MFC must lead the league in picking players who struggle to be able to play 10 games ( at any Level ) in the first two years on a list.

We certainly lead the league in players who get a season ending injury in the first two years

[Moonshadow 17,677]

I disagree with the writer's analysis.

It's superficial and doesn't allow for the fact that different players have different rates of development particularly if they have, as is the case with many of Melbourne's recruits, not had the opportunity to show their wares yet because of prolonged periods out of the game through injury.

I accept that some of the choices haven't come up to expectations but there's plenty of room for development among a number of our young players. How many of these blokes have played their 50-60 games yet? How many have had the opportunity to take part in a full pre season?

As for Taggert and Tynan from the 2011 draft, one hasn't been able to get onto the field much at all this year but is highly regarded and hopefully will get his chances next year. The other (Tynan) will definitely be a footballer IMO.

I agree with what you say WJ. However, we have not been able to develop some of these young players as we hoped. There are only one or two exceptions to this, Howe and Chip come to mind. We would honestly (and debatably) struggle to get 5-6 players capable of being in the best 22 of the top 8 clubs ATM. They get repeatedly injured or they simply do not make it at senior level.

We have been extremely poor at developing players to expected potential for at least the last 6 years - and that is a big hole in the life of a team's list.

Perhaps some of our picks have been wrong. Perhaps we have had some ongoing injuries to our young. But more importantly, we have not equipped our draft picks with the culture and guidance and determination required to move to the next level.

It has been frustrating to watch drafting opportunities go unrewarded (so far). Some of these might turn around under Mark Neeld, some may not. So far I like the new regime, but I want to see some results in the next 12 mths. Football is a ruthless and impatient animal.

We can all find reasons why this has happened - Junction Oval facilities, poor support around coach, club debt, etc. These have all been fixed (supposedly), and now is when we want to see confirmation that we are heading in the right direction. Can we say that this has happened under Neeld?

I am still confident that this will change. We need to develop players to the same (or better) level that other top clubs do.

Edited July 24, 2012 by Moonshadow

[Dee Fan 3,247]

Interesting thread from last year wonder if the OP still thinks I got it wrong?

[Ouch! 2,266]

Whilst I am not saying we have recruited well or not.... Cos at this stage we obviously haven't, it is Waaaay way way way too easy to pick out a couple of other draft picks that were good after our pick. Bailey obviously wanted a particular type of player, and Prendergast was asked to recruit that player... it failed, and Neeld has other ideas, but

It's like saying we failed in the draft that landed Essendon with James Hird at 70odd... I mean FFS.

No other club in the country disagreed with Scully and Trengove at the time.

No other club in Victoria would haven Nic Nat over Watts, and it wasn't just us that skipped over Hurley, and Vickery being better at this stage than Watts, seriously?

Fyfe at 20... yes thats an awesome pickup by Freo, but every other club would have had a chance to take him before that potentially, and did they?

The article isn't bad, but it's a little simple in terms of the research done.... it could be done to highlight faults in any teams recruiting if you dig hard enough.

I do agree with the leadership void bit, and I think the conditioning staff have almost as much to answer for as our recruiters. Its not just one thing, its EVERYTHING that caused this shambles!

[Trisul 664]

What about since then?

Dunno how Gys will go, but he was one of about five MFC players who stood up on that day in Geelong. For that alone he has my ongoing support.

Not much else to say - our picks are what they are.. until they aren't ours any more.

[Dee Fan 3,247]

Whilst I am not saying we have recruited well or not.... Cos at this stage we obviously haven't, it is Waaaay way way way too easy to pick out a couple of other draft picks that were good after our pick. Bailey obviously wanted a particular type of player, and Prendergast was asked to recruit that player... it failed, and Neeld has other ideas, but

It's like saying we failed in the draft that landed Essendon with James Hird at 70odd... I mean FFS.

No other club in the country disagreed with Scully and Trengove at the time.

No other club in Victoria would haven Nic Nat over Watts, and it wasn't just us that skipped over Hurley, and Vickery being better at this stage than Watts, seriously?

Fyfe at 20... yes thats an awesome pickup by Freo, but every other club would have had a chance to take him before that potentially, and did they?

The article isn't bad, but it's a little simple in terms of the research done.... it could be done to highlight faults in any teams recruiting if you dig hard enough.

I do agree with the leadership void bit, and I think the conditioning staff have almost as much to answer for as our recruiters. Its not just one thing, its EVERYTHING that caused this shambles!

There are a number of clubs that have picked up A Grade players with picks later in the draft, but we're not one of them, we have trouble picking A Graders with first round picks. How many of the later in the draft picks have we salivated about early on only to realise they are just good ordinary footballers?

Our recruiting has been [censored] and it's a cop out to let the responsibility fall in to the abyss between the recruiter and the coach, they can both point at each other and say it was him can't they? Some one has to accept responsibility.

[Range Rover 1,935]

It's like saying we failed in the draft that landed Essendon with James Hird at 70odd... I mean FFS.

No I don't think it is like saying this. That's not the point the author of the article is making. What he is talking about is a pattern of errors and missed opportunities. Not just one isolated [censored] up here or there.

It's not good enough to suggest "oh it's okay because x, y and z club didn't pick them, too". We've got to be better than that.

We must demand better. We must demand the best.

[Little Richard 6,265]

Yes i remember that first game.

Still think he is a 3-4th round pick though.

But if i am proved wrong so be it.

Personally i am tipping he is one who may go this year.

By 'go' do you mean will be traded or delisted? Because there are plenty of players who should be delisted before Gys.

I have a lot of faith in this guy, but as someone said earlier it might just be that I am hoping he is good...

[Dee Fan 3,247]

No I don't think it is like saying this. That's not the point the author of the article is making. What he is talking about is a pattern of errors and missed opportunities. Not just one isolated [censored] up here or there.

It's not good enough to suggest "oh it's okay because x, y and z club didn't pick them, too". We've got to be better than that.

We must demand better. We must demand the best.

That really gets up my nose, I get sick of hearing the same thing without the counter balance of "however the other clubs in the meantime managed to pick up several other A Grade footballers and by the way one of them did get this star as a bargain".

We never get the real good ones and all to often put it down to bad luck, bad luck my ass. Bad recruiting that is what it is.

[dee-luded 2,959]

I am Neeld fan but Taggart and Tynan arn't exactly setting the world on fire either.

Your kidding, they're half a season into they're careers.???

What's so great about Gysberts??

Please tell me. People just want him to be great....

He's a good player WYL, But he's had injuries & he doesn't have much of a tank.

[old dee 23,870]

That really gets up my nose, I get sick of hearing the same thing without the counter balance of "however the other clubs in the meantime managed to pick up several other A Grade footballers and by the way one of them did get this star as a bargain".

We never get the real good ones and all to often put it down to bad luck, bad luck my ass. Bad recruiting that is what it is.

That about covers it RobbieF

Not a lot more I can add

Except to say the proof of the pudding is in the eating

and right about now we are in starvation mode.

[old dee 23,870]

Your kidding, they're half a season into they're careers.???

He's a good player WYL, But he's had injuries & he doesn't have much of a tank.

Then he is not a good player dee-luded.

Stop making excuses to yourself.

[Range Rover 1,935]

That about covers it RobbieF

Not a lot more I can add

Except to say the proof of the pudding is in the eating

and right about now we are in starvation mode.

I always liked that saying of Guru Bob's on the old Coodabeen Champions radio show ...

"Tony, the proof of the pudding .... is the pudding.

Edited July 24, 2012 by Range Rover

[wisedog 352]

I think the experience of older players was severly undervalued, but the reality is, even if Melbourne did hold on to those players most would be 34+ now anyway.

The reason there's such a dearth of leadership at the moment is because of the failure to develop players from the 2000 - 2006 drafts. Outside Jones, Rivers, Garland, Davey and Jamar - there is really no one who's been able to cement a long term place in this side.

I say develeop, because I don't believe a club could be so unlucky as to make so many draft blunders over the last 11 years. I'm sure poor recuiting is partly responsible, but I think the real problem lies in the culture of the club and the way our young players have been developed.

We can only hope that we finally have the right people in place to turn this around.

[old dee 23,870]

I always liked that saying of Guru Bob's on the old Coodabeen Champions radio show ...

"Tony, the proof of the pudding .... is the pudding.

Very Good RR I had not heard that before.

I will steal it if you don't mind.

[Ouch! 2,266]

I don't think I am disagreeing with either RR or Robbie here, but I think it goes further than just bad recruiting. How often have you heard people say it's not the skills that make champions but how hard they want to be the best and succeed etc... thats where we have failed equally as bad.

I mean for example, Kyle Cheney was picked up by the club, he is now over at the Hawks and in their 22 at the moment, other than the red hair not looking great with the yellow and brown, how did he manage to escape? The argument in the artlcle even suggests that we gave games to anyone during Bailey's time to get game time into them, yet not a lot of games went his way, and now look at him.

Our whole football department from 2007 - 2010 was terribly resourced, we paid minimum cap, we had shite facilities up until recently. Bailey made a call when he had the chance to rebuild the club and told the recruiters to pick the type of players that we got at that time.... but looking at any picks we had in the top 5-10 of any draft is a bit off, as there are no great surprises there.... the skill is outside of this space where you do have to look at what is left.

Melbourne chose to do a rebuild when they picked up Bailey, but the resources and footy dept at the time was not adequate to assist in developing those players sufficiently either.

Looking at the restructure of the dept for Neeld almost proves this point with the expanded coaching group, mentors, splashing cash to get Clark etc....