"Tanking"

[Rhino Richards 1,467]

And by the by what does it matter or indicate that at times he had Spencer and McClean beside him? He played as a forward that day and as the key ruckman Spencer would have his turn resting up forward. And McLean was/is a mid and almost all mids spend some time up forward, indeed it is often said what makes players like Judd and Ablett (and Swan for that matter) so dangerous is their capacity to play forward and contribute goals.

Lack of pace in FF line. No crumbing ability. Spencer was immobile and raw was hardly of any use up forward when we had Jamar. McLean is a plodder who is not a goal kicking centreman (112 games and 52 goals). He has none of the skills of a Judd, Ablett and Swan and had 7 kicks that day with no forward pressure applied on the opposition. No wonder he spilt his beans with positional moves like that. Why wasnt one of Davey, Jetta or Petterd played there?

[Dee Fan 3,247]

I hope we hear from the great defender(s) of Wilson to see if he/they has/have changed his/their opinion of her capacity to dig up information when no one else can. I guess it's easy when you just make it up hey Fanbob?

Couple of red faces here now and I would guess that there would be a retraction or two as to how she has "accurately summed it up".

Credibility= Zero Make our own mind up as to who.

[loges 6,767]

Lack of pace in FF line. No crumbing ability. Spencer was immobile and raw was hardly of any use up forward when we had Jamar. McLean is a plodder who is not a goal kicking centreman (112 games and 52 goals). He has none of the skills of a Judd, Ablett and Swan and had 7 kicks that day with no forward pressure applied on the opposition. No wonder he spilt his beans with positional moves like that. Why wasnt one of Davey, Jetta or Petterd played there?

Is this the most important thing we have to worry about?

[low flying Robbo 979]

Excellent response from the Don

[P-man 13,367]

Bravo P man

Cheers mate. I recommend it as I said. I no longer feel like knocking her block off.

[mauriesy 7,427]

You speculate, but present that speculation as fact.

Perhaps posters here should also take note of that sentence.

[Whispering_Jack 31,261]

Lack of pace in FF line. No crumbing ability. Spencer was immobile and raw was hardly of any use up forward when we had Jamar. McLean is a plodder who is not a goal kicking centreman (112 games and 52 goals). He has none of the skills of a Judd, Ablett and Swan and had 7 kicks that day with no forward pressure applied on the opposition. No wonder he spilt his beans with positional moves like that. Why wasnt one of Davey, Jetta or Petterd played there?

Surely this is moot given that the CEO of the AFL regularly both before and after the event was on record as condoning such experimentation? Those statements were made not only about the way Melbourne played in 2009 but also Carlton in 2007 and other clubs as well. This is of course, yet another of many fine points that went completely over Wilson's head and which she didn't allow to get in the way of a bad story.

[mauriesy 7,427]

I hope we hear from the great defender(s) of Wilson to see if he/they has/have changed his/their opinion of her capacity to dig up information when no one else can.

No one here has been a 'great defender' of Wilson. IMHO, she doesn't need my defending her one way or the other.

I have, however, along with others, made calls not to pass off speculation and rumour as facts, regardless of which side of the debate you fall on. I could go back through dozens of posts here where conclusions are drawn without a shred of evidence.

So that is equally as true for Demonlanders as it is for Caroline Wilson. She's just more noticeable because she writes for a major daily.

Some of the character assassinations here vis-a-vis Wilson's vindictive campaign against the Melbourne Football Club are just pot-kettle-black. I'd kind of hoped we could rise above it all until the real facts are known.

[P-man 13,367]

I think it's a completely accurate article in its depiction of the whole debacle.

Don McLardy, on 13 Feb 2013, said:

..the key points of Wilson’s opinion piece are just plain wrong.

I'm gonna side with Don on this one. Sorry Ben.

[McQueen 17,867]

Perhaps posters here should also take note of that sentence.

I'm sure most of us don't pretend to be a professional journo.

[Guest José Mourinho]

We certainly werent a chance of competing in the match given those tactics. It was one of the most pressureless kick to kick events I have seen.

Carlton won easily on the scoreboard but they certainly werent tested, and would have hardly raised a sweat in doing so. It was a prime example of bruise free football that Carlton labelled us with in 2011.

Who did we have fit at that time who would've performed better in the forward line?

And I distinctly remember there being question marks over whether Brock could play anywhere other than the midfield, which needed to be determined beyond any doubt.

[Robot Devil 1,895]

So that is equally as true for Demonlanders as it is for Caroline Wilson. She's just more noticeable because she writes for a major daily.

Yeah, but we are a bunch of supporters sitting around chatting. No one should be printing our conversations as fact nor are we paid to report fact or make comment.

CW is a public figure postulating in a 'popular' newspaper. Her conclusions need to be rock solid or there are consequences which would be humiliating.

[daisycutter 29,903]

she claims on 3aw now that she gets her info from inside and currently outside the club

said there are still a few "inside" the club who talk to her - i think we knew that

[Dee Fan 3,247]

Yeah, but we are a bunch of supporters sitting around chatting. No one should be printing our conversations as fact nor are we paid to report fact or make comment.

CW is a public figure postulating in a 'popular' newspaper. Her conclusions need to be rock solid or there are consequences which would be humiliating.

Her next piece should start with "In view of the embarrassment I have caused, I hereby wish to tender......"

[Dee Fan 3,247]

she claims on 3aw now that she gets her info from inside and currently outside the club

said there are still a few "inside" the club who talk to her - i think we knew that

I reckon they post on here.

Mind you it's not a bad idea to feed someone with inaccuracies to find where the leaks come from and to assist with the destruction of someone's credibility. Particularly if that person is trying to destroy yours.

[Dee Fan 3,247]

No one here has been a 'great defender' of Wilson. IMHO, she doesn't need my defending her one way or the other.

I have, however, along with others, made calls not to pass off speculation and rumour as facts, regardless of which side of the debate you fall on. I could go back through dozens of posts here where conclusions are drawn without a shred of evidence.

So that is equally as true for Demonlanders as it is for Caroline Wilson. She's just more noticeable because she writes for a major daily.

Some of the character assassinations here vis-a-vis Wilson's vindictive campaign against the Melbourne Football Club are just pot-kettle-black. I'd kind of hoped we could rise above it all until the real facts are known.

She doesn't seem to worry about facts or has that fact escaped you?

[mauriesy 7,427]

I'm sure most of us don't pretend to be a professional journo.

That's irrelevant. I'm talking about the quality of the debate, not who says something and what position they're in.

[mauriesy 7,427]

She doesn't seem to worry about facts or has that fact escaped you?

No it hasn't, because no one here has a certain grasp of the facts either.

[Carrot Top 947]

she claims on 3aw now that she gets her info from inside and currently outside the club

said there are still a few "inside" the club who talk to her - i think we knew that

How many times and on how many issues is she shown to be completely wrong, and instead of backing down she gets on the front foot with "that's not what I've been told".

She talks to the disaffected, the insane and people that just like causing problems.

[Dee Fan 3,247]

No it hasn't, because no one here has a certain grasp of the facts either.

No one here gets paid to print theirs though, do they?

[bing181 9,436]

she claims on 3aw now that she gets her info from inside ... the club

Confirmation people. She reads Demonland.

[mauriesy 7,427]

No one here gets paid to print theirs though, do they?

An erroneuous view is just that, whether it's in the pages of the Age, or here.

[waynewussell 6,922]

I would commend some analysis of how the Pres' statement re-shapes the probable AFL response to our defense.

[waynewussell 6,922]

or even, what our defense now looks like...

[Robot Devil 1,895]

An erroneuous view is just that, whether it's in the pages of the Age, or here.

I think the title of "Head Football Columnist" on your business card might behoove you to fact check more than an Internet forum alias does.