RIP Melbourne Football Club

[Little Richard 6,262]

A few minutes to go I went down to the race fully intending to give the boys a big spray as they came off. I've never done it before but I was so filled with rage and disappointment that I couldn't hold it in.

But as they came off they looked so pathetic and helpless - I couldn't do it. The sight of people throwing scarves and jumpers at them killed me.

I saw three individual fights between Essendon supporters who wouldn't stop giving it and Dees supporters who couldn't take anymore. I have never felt this bad or seen anything like it, but I won't give in ever because the club needs us more than ever.

[Fitz Fitzpatrick 886]

I just don't care enough about football to bother any more. Time to get on with the other things in my life...

You probaly need to change your profile name then mate.

[Fitz Fitzpatrick 886]

A few minutes to go I went down to the race fully intending to give the boys a big spray as they came off. I've never done it before but I was so filled with rage and disappointment that I couldn't hold it in.

But as they came off they looked so pathetic and helpless - I couldn't do it. The sight of people throwing scarves and jumpers at them killed me.

I saw three individual fights between Essendon supporters who wouldn't stop giving it and Dees supporters who couldn't take anymore. I have never felt this bad or seen anything like it, but I won't give in ever because the club needs us more than ever.

last weeks booing was a well timed and important display of supporters disgust. this week was just opportunism to sink the boots in. Glad you refrained Django

[jane02 3,748]

My husband and friends think I am the most loyal, optimistic Demons fan they have ever met. Been a supporter for over 40 years - unfortunately have not seen a finals win in my life time. I never bag our club and always know I will be back next week supporting.

Last night was the first match I have missed in years - I had surgery on Wednesday and was seriously contemplating against medical advice to go along. Instead I watched the game at home.

Whilst I feel pretty miserable this morning, the MFC is still my club and I will continue to support them. Yes changes need to be made and these changes have to happen. Through 40 years plus, there have been good times and bad times. We always manage to pick ourselves up and get on with it. My love for the Dees will never waver. I understand many of you are frustrated but hang in there - I am planning to.

[Undeeterred 3,124]

You probaly need to change your profile name then mate.

Excellent point... I'm really just being melodramatic, but wow that was horrible.

[Cheesy D. Pun 1,765]

Remember the film 'Super 8' with Nicholas Cage? In the movie they watch an alleged snuff film only to watch another one and see the same person 'die' twice.

Don't come on here and say that 'this' is the last straw unless you genuinely mean it. I don't want to hear it.

I'm not going anywhere. My role is to remind the club that we demand more. Walking away now of all times is truly futile.

It was called '8mm' but your point is still relevant.

[Little Richard 6,262]

It was called '8mm' but your point is still relevant.

Super 8 was that rubbish film that came out a year or two ago about a bunch of kids and a monster.

[Canplay 634]

Stick fat you turn coats. I know it hurts - but life wasn't meant to be easy and success isnt a given.

You're all sitting on your couches calling the club weak and walking away. However, a club is only as strong as it's members - and if you're all prepared to throw in towel then it's no wonder we're so weak on-field. My 3you and 1yo will have no choice but to support the red and blue - it is character building.

[Bossdog 2,002]

Well, after my rant last night saying that I'm done with this club.......This morning ,after a good night sleep, I will stick by the club.....I'm a MCC member but always pay for a full MFC membership as a donation.....After being a member for 50 years, how could I abandon them now in their darkest days.....?????

Edited April 6, 2013 by Bossdog

[Little Richard 6,262]

A small consolation was that last night a Richmond supporting mate came along to the game with me. Four times late in the game and on the way home people made various references about how that wasn't as bad as Richmond used to be. My mate couldn't believe they were still copping it even though the game had nothing to do with Richmond.

This put a little smile on my face. It didn't last long because I remembered that Richmond are now having some success but we can get there too, we just need the right combination of a whole lot of things and people. Hang in there guys.

I know its a dream but when the next MFC captain stands up on the podium after we win the flag (whenever that might be), he'll say thanks to the fans who stuck in there through the biggest [censored] storm in the history of sport and hearing that will feel damn good.

Edited April 6, 2013 by Django

[The heart beats true 18,128]

It was called '8mm' but your point is still relevant.

Right! Sorry. It was actually a pretty bad film.

Thank god for other forms of entertainment. Game of Thrones is saving my soul right now,

[gotzy9 33]

The club is destined to fold only IF it becomes financially unviable. We are going to need a lot of time to get out of this mess. Alot of time. the only way th e club will survive is if it can maintain a positive balance sheet for long enough to survive this "rebuild".

Thats where Fitzroy failed. They were financially unviable.

The call for supporters to not renew memberships, boycott games etc etc etc is as far as im concerned, cutting your nose off to spite your face.

Do these people really want to sit in their living room in a few years watchinng the Tassie demons play, thinking "there , i showed them! i told them i wouldnt renew if they didnt play better footy.!"

thats Garbage!

we have to circle the wagons here. Everyone on this forum has a love for the Club. We are the core group of supporters that the club needs now. Yes , the powers that be have F&%*ed the club up. I get it. But whats the point in punishing the "Club"? we need to remove these incompetent people but lets not make the problem worse by making rash decisions.

The time to show your emotion is in the stands. Outside the ground we need to think clinically and act in teh best interests of the club. Some of us have less power and influence than others, but we all need to do our bit.

Get around the boys, get to training, get to games, wear your jumper, buy a scarf, encourage the kids (show them videos of the 90s) , whatever it takes. fight hard for OUR club.

If we as members dont fight hard then I think we can almost be guarenteed that the Club we love will be a footnote in history in less time than we can imagine. The world of professional sport is racing forwards and is not sticking around for passengers.

Great post munga.geez last night is still really fresh and it hurts like hell but god i love this post mate,this is why I love this footy club because we have some seriously quality people around the joint like yourself who will not give up. Jimmy would be proud of you mate!

[Geddy Lee 582]

I was in an awful car crash on Friday; my car's written off and I have a very sore neck. Very lucky not to be pushed into the oncoming lane and killed.

Got to the ground last night in all sorts of pain but was full of hope.

Left at 3 QTR time, completely shattered. Haven't left early for about 15 years.

I wish the players gave a [censored] like I did.

[Sir Why You Little 37,046]

I was in an awful car crash on Friday; my car's written off and I have a very sore neck. Very lucky not to be pushed into the oncoming lane and killed.

Got to the ground last night in all sorts of pain but was full of hope.

Left at 3 QTR time, completely shattered. Haven't left early for about 15 years.

I wish the players gave a [censored] like I did.

Glad you are ok GL

Buy you a beer anytime

[machine11 142]

My husband and friends think I am the most loyal, optimistic Demons fan they have ever met. Been a supporter for over 40 years - unfortunately have not seen a finals win in my life time.

I've seen plenty of finals wins - just not the big one. Are you sure in forty years you haven't seen any finals wins?

[Deemanding 15]

The pitch black after the Geelong farce has just got much darker. No character, no soul, no idea,no ambition, no defence,no direction, no footy smarts, no respect, no Auskick supporters,no harmony, no excitement, no success,no hope,no spirit, no joy,no faith, no pride, no tackles, no unity,no mongrel, no culture of success, no skill,no coaching for all intents and purposes,no teamwork, no value,no trust, no honesty to the supporter base,no esteem,no bliss,no zest, no toughness,no change,no confidence, no flair, no courage, no effort, all and all no bloody good. MFC maybe not RIP but definitely needs ICU. My heart beats red and blue, but the pulse is fading.

[dee-luded 2,959]

Anyone else see the fat kid cryin on tv after the game in A MFC polo.

Sums it up in a picture

what is the matter with you.

[dee-luded 2,959]

I'll continue buying my membership as long as the MFC exists but whether I'll turn up to games or not is another matter. It's not even that it's demoralising or humiliating, it's just plain boring and life's too short. A couple of people asked me tonight whether I'd still force/coerce my newborn son to follow the Demons and people have been saying this week that its cruel to do so. I just give them a weird look and say of course he'll follow the Demons it's not even a choice it just is. Two things in life you can't choose are your family and your footy club you're born into them. Following a club like Melbourne builds character and teaches valuable life lessons at a young age. I just hope by the time he's old enough to know better we're somewhat competitive otherwise there's a fair chance he'll jump onto the Cats who is his mothers team - at least he'll be able to see some GF's in colour and not grainy black & white newsreel highlights which is all I have of Melbournes last 2 premierships.

Although I can't understand those handing back memberships or allowing their kids to support other clubs I can't really fault you as I would have in the past.

This shows why you don't think a Social Club overlooking our training base within earshot of the 'G' is necessary.

I think you, & possibly our past Board members over the decades, have thought the same way....

thinking like Businessmen in suits, instead of supporters out in the Outer with passion written on their Brows.

We need some grass roots Footy thinking from the Current Board..

We need the board to adopt a different attitude of what the Club can give back to the suporters, IF they want the supporter base & memberships to grow... anyone would think the club is a God, the way the attitude is toward the supporters who keep it alive. & have kept it alive...

Some people can't afford to pay large sums to donate to the club, & to Foxtel, to sit back in the plush Leather Lounge & watch.

This style of thinking, which i think pervades the whole Club, Is the problem... a business version of 'Cart before the Horse'....

. . . . . . now, where do you think the players where getting their 'CbtH' attitudes from? the likes of Bennell, Morton, Gysberts, etc, etc, etc for as long back as I can remember over the last 17 Yrs or so ????????

even if many people can't see it, the need for the Social Base, doesn't mean it isn't needed, it just means 'they don't get it'.

[deejammin' 2,370]

What seems an age ago I wrote in the Mike Sheahan thread:

The Melbourne Football club is more than the current team, or admin or Football Department it is 150 years of history, the foundation of the AFL Football, all the former players, every member and former member of the club from the bootstrappers to the cheer squad to the volunteers, the billets, the bugler as well as all of the fans. The club is more than the team, for the record a president who fought cancer and fought for youth in a public way is far from soft, the way the club adopted a young Barassi after his father was killed was far from soft, the way the club rallied around Trisha Broadbridge was far from soft. The way the club responded to racism allegations was far from soft, the way we dumped Energy watch was far from soft! 12 premierships is far from soft. This club is so much more than what is going on right now on field.

it seems far more appropriate now. This is why I support our club, you may hate the current players, admin or FD, you may hate all three! But the reality is that our role as supporters is to be the caretakers of this club, the most important, oldest, foundation club of the AFL. We need to hold those who are running its name through the dirt to account and demand better performance from those who have the honour of representing the red and blue, but this is acknowledged, the admin, FD and players all know it isn't good enough. The reality is 17 teams will lose every year, we have to make ourselves relevant enough that the wheel can turn.The booing in round one was a kneejerk reaction of a stunned supporter group, but now we as the supporters of this club need to show our true character.

I remember watching in disgust as Richmond fans spat on their players and coach, chanted obusive slurs at their own players, drove a truckload of manure to their own club, this is not how you support a club, and so it is with a large amount of hatred I watch their current transformation into an allegedly "great club with great supporters". Nothing could be further from the truth, they showed their true character and now it is our turn. We all know our stereotypes, disinterested, off to the snow, fair weather supporters. Now more than ever is our time to stick fat, to show the players, coaches and admin what the red and blue really means, what the honour they have inherited should inspire in them. Of course some on here are done, they can't stand it any more and I don't begrudge them that, we all understand. But I will be going to training and urging on the players, going to the games barracking for the players. Because even if every person currently employed at our club is incompetent, the MFC is so much more important than them, and it is our job as supporters to remember that, to carry it with us and make sure the MFC survives.

[Mydee 288]

The obituary that need not be written

Over the last few months a small but integral part of my life has come to an end- my involement with the Melbourne Football Club.

I am a little surprised that I don't feel great anger in coming to this realisation, rather it more a sense of sadness and emptiness that something that has, in the past, given me emotional highs and lows is no longer part of my life.

The decision marks the end of a long journey that started with my grandmother lovingly knitting a beanie and football jumper in the Melbourne colours and continued during my early childhood running around the streets of West Heildelberg with Geoff Case's number on my back. I remember being admonished for swearing at the television after the 1958 loss to the Magpies

It continued later with the weekly pilgramage to suburban football grounds to watch football in what was our Golden Age, culminating in being at the MCG for 1964 Premiership.

I continued to support Melbourne, taking out a yearly membership and attending most games, thinking that success was around the corner. We were always sold the line that one good player would make all the difference, so a parade of saviours who never quite made the difference. Nevertheless there were some great experiences including near misses under Skilton and finally the finals with Flower and watching a pantheon of champions such as Ditterich, Healey Fowler and Flower, until our resurgence as under John Northey via Ron Barrassi. Even in the most dismal days I could still seek solace in the Bullring bar in the members when things got too grim on the field.

In the early 1990s I moved interstate, but attended as many games as I could. I also joined the local Demons supporters group where I made life long friendships amongst fellow expatriate supporters. It certainly is great supporting your team with your own tribe. We travelled interstate together supported the team when they visited, watched games when they were televised and wrote ctritques on our successes and failures. I witnessed the attempts to merge the club and its rescue by Joe Gutnick. It financial and cultural crisis and rejuvenation under Jim Stynes

Through the topsy turvy progress of the club I continued to support them passionately even though the antics of the administration left me speechless, -the cute little round robin ofsetting insurance premiums against the salary cap and the tax assessments left in an office draw which I spoke about at an AGM immediately come to mind .

No one expects that supporting any AFL team will be a bed roses and my own user id on this forum, when translated into English reflects this, but you do expect some bang for your buck.

However this year I really can't see anything to be optimistic about, either in the short or long term. The on-field performance is substandard, golden opportunities which should have delivered a powerful dynasty of players have been squandered and there is absolutely no indication that either the players, coaching staff or off field management are up to scratch. All this with a dwindling and disgruntled supporter base.

Fortunately I have enough other interests to fill the void. I do feel sympathy for the children of die-hards who have had this fiasco foisted on them.

I will be sending back my Melbourne regalia, scarf, 30 year membership citation, mouse pad and stress football to the club as a symbolic gesture.I will also advise the local supporter group that i intend to resign my minor voluntary position as soon as a suitable replacement can be found- not that I expect anyone to step forward, given the waning amount of interest the group currently experiences

If sport can be seen as a metaphor for life then surely supporting the Melbourne football Club is like being in an abusive relationship

Adieu

[stuie 7,374]

I didn't say anything about Demonland.

I just said I won't be chucking anymore $$$ down the drain.

Oh, so you won't support the club you apparently barrack for but you'll happily continue to whine and moan on the internet... What a hero.

[jane02 3,748]

I've seen plenty of finals wins - just not the big one. Are you sure in forty years you haven't seen any finals wins?

Sorry - I have seen finals wins but not the big one.

[Bitter but optimistic 22,241]

Oh, so you won't support the club you apparently barrack for but you'll happily continue to whine and moan on the internet... What a hero.

Come off it Stuie. You whine and moan, I whine and moan. WTF is the problem with that? What's technology for?

[Biffen 12,943]

Come off it Stuie. You whine and moan, I whine and moan. WTF is the problem with that? What's technology for?

Porn and music.

[Bitter but optimistic 22,241]

Porn and music.

I don't do much music.