Colin Sylvia going ... going ... GONE!

[Ron Burgundy 8,588]

Lethal was spot on. But it's wasted on here.

Lethal was absolutely wrong on Clark.

Sylvia is an icing player. That's why several clubs, including Freo obviously, wanted him.

Those that are comparing him to elite midfielders are the ones missing the point IMO.

For him to leave as a free agent is not a good result, especially for a club in our situation.

[Ron Burgundy 8,588]

I can't believe I had Neeld so wrong for so long.

The period under his stewardship was an entirely dreadful period for this club.

Under Bailey and Neeld we have lost virtually all of our senior players for nothing.

[jumbo returns 6,741]

Like has has been supporting them for the last seven? Most selfish player we had on our list. Last person to support anyone.

I understand....but not right now. Not for next year. He's a big body and that's what we need at the first bounce.

[rpfc 28,966]

Boo hoo.

He has left, and he may bring more in leaving than he would have in his last three years.

[#11-TonyAnderson 864]

Hope the replacement pick is more consistent than Col

[jumbo returns 6,741]

I can't believe I had Neeld so wrong for so long.

The period under his stewardship was an entirely dreadful period for this club.

Under Bailey and Neeld we have lost virtually all of our senior players for nothing.

I bit emotive there. Are you going to blame FA on Neeld?

[The Third Eye 288]

This year on the radio I heard Col best summed up by Leigh Mathews - I thought at the time it was great insight.

Lethal said Col would never be an elite footballer as his size didn't match his abilities - and he didn't have a natural position. Said he was a natural leading key forward but was 10 cm to short to hold down this position. However had the body size and foot skills of a midfielder but didn't have the peripheral vision, clearance ability in close or tank to mix it in midfield. Though Lethal was spot on - therefore, think he'll be handy on a fwd flank for Freo but not move into the category of elite AFL footballers.

Combine all those with the lack of apparent care for the club and his off field antics and you can understand why such a highly regarded player at 17 or 18 managed only once in ten years to crack it into the club's top 5 in the b & f.

Roos and others might have made noises about wanting to keep him but if we're adopting the no DH policy then he was the one who had to go first. No issues from me.

[DemonFrog 1,359]

I can't believe I had Neeld so wrong for so long.

The period under his stewardship was an entirely dreadful period for this club.

Under Bailey and Neeld we have lost virtually all of our senior players for nothing.

Don't worry Ron many of us know he was terrible very quickly and wanted him gone.

Now our new saviour id Mr Roos!

[jackaub 1,402]

I am shocked. Posters on here have been telling me for 10 yrs he is a gun!

No they were saying he was a potential gun if only he had a proper preseason!

No loss. Move on. The future doesn't include players with bad attitudes

I'm looking forward to a season where I don't have to watch Colin under perform. Good Luck Freo he will frustrate you for 3 years

[richyrich 44]

Not sure why everyone is so worked up on the loss of Colin. He is 27 years old, a sub standard AFL player who should have never been selected with such a high potential, highly scrutinize pick. The MFC will benefit substantially with his leaving. Assuming the club is granted a 2nd round or even 3rd round compo pick, we can use this pick on either a young upcoming player from the VFL or select a mature AFL player. Colin is of no loss. Perhaps he may show more light playing in a team with high profile players. I dont expect to see miracles from this guy and suspect he will struggle to make the best 22 on a regular basis.

The MFC have offered everything to Colin. His immature, party boy attitude is no longer required in this team. Wish Colin luck (as he will need it) and move on. Decision done, now its up to the recruitment staff to select the best player with that pick. Again, at 27, he wont be around the MFC when we are consistently competitive as it will take at least 5 years for this club to see ourselves in the top 8 of the AFL.

[dees64 104]

The world of free agency as many clubs are losing players & you have to question is this equalization as it appears the bigger clubs will just simply raid the smaller clubs who are not paying 100% of their cap.

This just shows the train wreck of a club we have been for over the last 5yrs as the majority of early picks have left the club due to our poor culture,development,coaching. This is the legacy of Scwhab,Neeld,Connoly & Bailey

Pick5 Mclean , Pick3 Sylvia, Moloney,Rivers,Pick 1Scully, pick 4 morton pick12Cook,pick11 Gysberts,pick13 Bate

[BrisbaneDemon 1,575]

Not sure why everyone is so worked up on the loss of Colin. He is 27 years old, a sub standard AFL player who should have never been selected with such a high potential, highly scrutinize pick. The MFC will benefit substantially with his leaving. Assuming the club is granted a 2nd round or even 3rd round compo pick, we can use this pick on either a young upcoming player from the VFL or select a mature AFL player. Colin is of no loss. Perhaps he may show more light playing in a team with high profile players. I dont expect to see miracles from this guy and suspect he will struggle to make the best 22 on a regular basis.

The MFC have offered everything to Colin. His immature, party boy attitude is no longer required in this team. Wish Colin luck (as he will need it) and move on. Decision done, now its up to the recruitment staff to select the best player with that pick. Again, at 27, he wont be around the MFC when we are consistently competitive as it will take at least 5 years for this club to see ourselves in the top 8 of the AFL.

Valid points, the thing that really grinds my gears is that we keep losing senior players like Beamer, Rivers and now Colin who are walk up starts to any other AFL team. Its not like we have a long list of proven AFL players to slot in after they have left. Our defense had a capping hole once Rivers left. When Beamer was on we had another big bodied mid fielder to help out our younger guys, and now Sylvia.

We have the worst list in the AFL, with so much dead wood to cut and we our better/senior players are abandoning ship whenever they get the opportunity. We cannot continue to lose senior players and replace them with kids

[richyrich 44]

Valid points, the thing that really grinds my gears is that we keep losing senior players like Beamer, Rivers and now Colin who are walk up starts to any other AFL team. Its not like we have a long list of proven AFL players to slot in after they have left. Our defense had a capping hole once Rivers left. When Beamer was on we had another big bodied mid fielder to help out our younger guys, and now Sylvia.

We have the worst list in the AFL, with so much dead wood to cut and we our better/senior players are abandoning ship whenever they get the opportunity. We cannot continue to lose senior players and replace them with kids

Granted. Peter Jackson admitted the MFC had put little funds into player development and recruitment. I was in a heavy discussion with a Geelong mate. We both agreed that the recruitment and development departments in AFL football are almost the most important area of a club to invest in. Paul Roos knows what he is doing. Assuming, worst case scenario, and he isn't able to improve our position on the ladder, he will at least provide some foundations for development and recruitment. He has come from the Swans, with their own academy, and knows how important this is to any team.

Every melbourne supporter is tired of waiting. As supporters we have been incredibly pacient. We will need to continue waiting patiently. It wont be a quick fix but if this club can sign 4-5 established players over the coming 2 years as well as clever decisions made with recruitment and development, we may start to rise on the ladder (this will be ever so slowly though). 5 years in my opinion, just to break into the 8. A further 8-10 years to be a real contest for a GF.

Set the foundations of this club first. However long, whatever financial cost, this club needs to strip every department back and start from scratch. Patching up on a rotten foundation will guarantee failure. Follow Hawthorn, Geelong and Sydneys road and start with the foundation and the rest will follow (with hard work).

[Ron Burgundy 8,588]

I bit emotive there. Are you going to blame FA on Neeld?

Nope. Just the toxic culture he created.

[Bedraggled Dee 336]

Granted. Peter Jackson admitted the MFC had put little funds into player development and recruitment. I was in a heavy discussion with a Geelong mate. We both agreed that the recruitment and development departments in AFL football are almost the most important area of a club to invest in. Paul Roos knows what he is doing. Assuming, worst case scenario, and he isn't able to improve our position on the ladder, he will at least provide some foundations for development and recruitment. He has come from the Swans, with their own academy, and knows how important this is to any team.

Every melbourne supporter is tired of waiting. As supporters we have been incredibly pacient. We will need to continue waiting patiently. It wont be a quick fix but if this club can sign 4-5 established players over the coming 2 years as well as clever decisions made with recruitment and development, we may start to rise on the ladder (this will be ever so slowly though). 5 years in my opinion, just to break into the 8. A further 8-10 years to be a real contest for a GF.

Set the foundations of this club first. However long, whatever financial cost, this club needs to strip every department back and start from scratch. Patching up on a rotten foundation will guarantee failure. Follow Hawthorn, Geelong and Sydneys road and start with the foundation and the rest will follow (with hard work).

Not sure I agree. I dont recon its all doom and gloom I would have prefered to keep Sylvia but we have enough talent on the list to think that a turn around is not a million miles away. The forward line and back line are solid and better than most clubs. I also have confidence in the ruck stocks with Jamar, Gawn, Fitzy and the pencil. The midfield is substandard but it is not as hard to fix as the bookends. I think for everything that Neeld did wrong in managing people and his crap game plan he did enact cultural change and created a more professional approach. There is no doubt the club is better trained and developed thanks to Neeld and Craig. Look at Garlands development and Jones's development as examples. Neither were the players and leaders they are now a couple of years ago. PJ has said the club is not all bad.

If we can add a couple of senior mids and a few qulity draft picks, implement a decent game plan that players buy into I think the turn around can happen pretty quickly.

[Bombay Airconditioning 6,477]

The world of free agency as many clubs are losing players & you have to question is this equalization as it appears the bigger clubs will just simply raid the smaller clubs who are not paying 100% of their cap.

This just shows the train wreck of a club we have been for over the last 5yrs as the majority of early picks have left the club due to our poor culture,development,coaching. This is the legacy of Scwhab,Neeld,Connoly & Bailey

Pick5 Mclean , Pick3 Sylvia, Moloney,Rivers,Pick 1Scully, pick 4 morton pick12Cook,pick11 Gysberts,pick13 Bate

lets remember UFA have already served ten years and clubs still receive compensation picks for them. Would you rather Scully or Hogan? Morton , Cook, Gysberts and Bate were bad selections. Viney showed last year what can be achieved under a bad system.

[Dr. Gonzo 24,460]

We need to get into a financial position where we can pay 100% of the salary cap. Successful clubs can still afford to entice free agents because they have the advantage over us in that they can pay the full cap.

Mate I do agree, but first we need to get into a position where we have the players that warrant us even paying the minimum 95% of the cap. I seriously struggle to see how we will do so next year unless we can attract a FA on massive coin (which I doubt).

[robbiefrom13 894]

I can't believe I had Neeld so wrong for so long.

The period under his stewardship was an entirely dreadful period for this club.

Under Bailey and Neeld we have lost virtually all of our senior players for nothing.

The thing is, as I see it, Neeld was an old-school bully type. Intrinsically just as destructive as an old-school party type. The appointment of Neeld was presumably bringing in a wrecking ball to break up that long-standing clubby set-up that was causing our steady slide towards oblivion.

Good-hearted supporters saw the benefit of Neeld achieving his intention, at times refusing to allow scrutiny of the methods Neeld used: they focused solely on the fact that what Neeld was offering to do to the unprofessional culture was certainly something the club needed and long overdue. Given the club's history, opposition to Neeld's intent was seen as likely, and incredibly frustrating, and for many supporters I suspect all criticism of Neeld's methods was interpreted as opposition to his intention. Maybe too, some supporters were not as tuned as they could be to current methods for maximising the performance of high achievers; bullying is endemic and widely approved of, still.

In any case, in appointing Neeld, the club appears to have - in desperation or in plain stupidity - thought they could use one out-of-date and psychologically dumb model to counteract another - and this was never going to work.

Roos will bring something wholesome to our club - because he understands both people and sport intelligently, and because he acts from a position of strength and respect. Bullying is hopefully over, and likewise partying as a culture - and both these changes will bring huge gains, I believe.

I liked Sylvia, but maybe it is all to the good.

[Return to Glory 8,477]

Don't you watch footy when you're at the game, or don't you go ? You get a far different perspective when you're at the ground.

The guy couldn't couldn't work in an iron lung.

Well there's a comment as misinformed as your belief that somehow your opinions matter and as inaccurate as your assertion that you rarely go on this site. I really preferred when you wrote the Truth Heart balm articles. You know, where you started each column with, "I didn't think it could happen to me, I'm just your average guy" with real emphasis on the average bit.

[beelzebub 23,390]

I actually think Colin Sylvia leaving is a win win and win for Melbourne , Fremantle and Sylvia

I really only care about the first bit

[beelzebub 23,390]

This is a bad time to lose him.

Our young fellas need support.

This is not a good day for the club.

Support....what a lift to the clubs... an opportunity to play wingman for Col..

really....lol

A bad time to lose him... au contraire...the PERFECT time to lose him.

[jumbo returns 6,741]

Nope. Just the toxic culture he created.

He was given carte blanche by the administration to attend to the soft belly culture that existed. He tried to do this by bringing in new players and demanding standards.

Unfortunately, he didn't have the reputation or respect to carry it out.

[Adam The God 30,644]

I don't think you need a gun key forward, but come grand final day you need a forward to stand up and make a difference. For Hawthorn it was Gunston. For Freo, with a better start they way he played in the second half and based on talent it would be Michael Walters.

I think Freo are almost a lock for the grand final next year, whether they win it will come down to things like injuries and luck.

Well, that's the thing. The ability to bomb it in long if need be to a contested situation and it to be marked or at the very least brought to the ground is vital in a close final.

[jumbo returns 6,741]

Support....what a lift to the clubs... an opportunity to play wingman for Col..

really....lol

A bad time to lose him... au contraire...the PERFECT time to lose him.

It would have been good to see what Roos could have done with Col. Still think the timing isn't great.

[bush demon 2,202]

Not sure I agree. I dont recon its all doom and gloom I would have prefered to keep Sylvia but we have enough talent on the list to think that a turn around is not a million miles away. The forward line and back line are solid and better than most clubs. I also have confidence in the ruck stocks with Jamar, Gawn, Fitzy and the pencil. The midfield is substandard but it is not as hard to fix as the bookends. I think for everything that Neeld did wrong in managing people and his crap game plan he did enact cultural change and created a more professional approach. There is no doubt the club is better trained and developed thanks to Neeld and Craig. Look at Garlands development and Jones's development as examples. Neither were the players and leaders they are now a couple of years ago. PJ has said the club is not all bad.

If we can add a couple of senior mids and a few qulity draft picks, implement a decent game plan that players buy into I think the turn around can happen pretty quickly.

Just want to say i object to this constant name calling ... it's not 'pencil', it's Spencer. Some of these new generation football supporters have no respect. it's a blight on a supporter website, plenty of other posts get dumped for trivial reasons yet we keep seeing these pathetic putowns repeated ad nauseum .... if i was a player it would certainly turn me off the club if i knew these were supporters.

In Disgust, BD.

PS would these people address the MFC players in these terms at family days, at training sessions or any other public functions?