MFC Communications Failing?

[Rhino Richards 1,467]

The performance on the field will matter about 1000 times more than any amount of anger supporters feel about being fed spin.

Put it the other way around - do you think that if by some miracle we won a lot of games, those supporters would give a tinker's curse about the spin?

Exactly right. And when we are missing our 3 marquee players and in each case the information coming out is contradictory, rosy glassed and clearly not accurate then when we are not winning and it was clear we had a big big hole up forward do you think...... you know just putting the dots together that....

And I will take that miracle. Because after 7 years of on field carp so up some more after so much hope and promise was created the continuation will continue to burn existing members and discourage new ones.

As for me mistakenly judging the supporters - that may well be. But then so are all the spin masters at the clubs.

I think this is more 21st Century spin. You clearly struggle with the MFC disposition I doubt whether you know about the other 17 clubs.

Although EFC's "Whatever it takes" really was leading edge at the time.

[sue 8,477]

sue, just because "all clubs do it" doesn't mean they all do it as frequently and strongly as the mfc seem to be doing lately

nor is it in the same context as being such a disaster of a club which has sacked most of its management for lack of performance and promised a new level of realism in managing the club

saying "all clubs do it" is to much of a cop out

No it is not a cop out. They all do it and presumably for the reasons which a number of posters have mentioned. We just feel particularly aggrieved and frustrated about it at our club now because about our hopes for immediate progress with a new 'star' coach, new admin, stronger mid-field etc have been railroaded by a spate of injuries to our tall players. They'd be far less concern about the spin if we were winning games.

[Rhino Richards 1,467]

I asked a couple of professionals in the sports medicine field.

Bottom line is - what you see is a best guess. Highly tuned athletes can have wildly fluctuating and different healing rates.

Again, I point to Chris Judd who is now on his 2nd revision of his return date from surgery. "The injury is not making as quick as progress as hoped".

Remember Junior ? He had a 2 week soft tissue injury that just refused to get better and it was some 8 weeks before he took the field again.

Some here are expecting exactness in a very inexact Science.

Edit - the only spin I think they put on it is they give an estimate based on what is an expected as a normal recovery. In a lot of instances it just doesnt happen that way and rarely does an injury heal quicker than anticipated.

I dont think that is the case at all. Dont you think it would be better to say TBC particularly when two of the players have had chronic injuries for over 12 months??

And both Judd and Junior are/were over 30 and in the twilight of their careers so its reasonable to expect there slippage in veteran player injuries.

[binman 39,081]

In Hogan's case, I don't think the club can run around worrying about what various media outlets are mis-reporting.

Did the club itself ever say the injury came in the Geelong match?

I think that was just Barrett (highly credible source...)

Yes.

Barret suggested it was a stress fracture, implying it was pre existing problem, which seems to be true - though this is just a guess because apparently the sky would fall if the the truth was revealed.

And i disagree about the club not worrying about what various media outlets are mis-reporting. They should be -its what managing communication and the message is all about.

Edited March 28, 2014 by binman

[daisycutter 28,684]

No it is not a cop out. They all do it and presumably for the reasons which a number of posters have mentioned. We just feel particularly aggrieved and frustrated about it at our club now because about our hopes for immediate progress with a new 'star' coach, new admin, stronger mid-field etc have been railroaded by a spate of injuries to our tall players. They'd be far less concern about the spin if we were winning games.

think you missed my point.........i can accept a certain amount of (necessary) spin but not what we've been copping

[sue 8,477]

think you missed my point.........i can accept a certain amount of (necessary) spin but not what we've been copping

Sorry, I should have been clearer. I was trying to address your point. We have copped is a high rate of injuries and combined with the frustration about the the effect on the 'new start' has led to the perception that we are copping excessive spin compared to other clubs. At any time we feel things when it affects the MFC, and particularly now. We naturally take less notice when it is the other clubs.

[binman 39,081]

We have copped is a high rate of injuries and combined with the frustration about the the effect on the 'new start' has led to the perception that we are copping excessive spin compared to other clubs. At any time we feel things when it affects the MFC, and particularly now. We naturally take less notice when it is the other clubs.

Sue i for one don't think we are necessarily copping more spin than other clubs. But just because all do it doesn't lessen my frustration that we do it to the extent we do.

Also like Daisy of course i accept that there will always be a level of spin. But there is a difference between spin and misinformation/lies. Take the Hogan scenario again. In the link i posted above the club categorically says 'Melbourne forward Jesse Hogan injured his lower back during Melbourne’s NAB Cup game against Geelong in Alice Springs last Friday'

Now perhaps that is strictly true but there has subsequently been a suggestion (including Jesse himself in adoor stop interview) that it was pre-existing injury - which makes things a lot more serious. The above quote is designed to suggest that it is new problem caused from the Geelong game. The most positive 'spin' i could put on that is they are being disingenuous.

[sue 8,477]

Sue i for one don't think we are necessarily copping more spin than other clubs. But just because all do it doesn't lessen my frustration that we do it to the extent we do.

Also like Daisy of course i accept that there will always be a level of spin. But there is a difference between spin and misinformation/lies. Take the Hogan scenario again. In the link i posted above the club categorically says 'Melbourne forward Jesse Hogan injured his lower back during Melbourne’s NAB Cup game against Geelong in Alice Springs last Friday'

Now perhaps that is strictly true but there has subsequently been a suggestion (including Jesse himself in adoor stop interview) that it was pre-existing injury - which makes things a lot more serious. The above quote is designed to suggest that it is new problem caused from the Geelong game. The most positive 'spin' i could put on that is they are being disingenuous.

Doesn't lessen your frustration, but why expect us to be 'better' than other clubs? I'm just saying your frustration is magnified by the overall position we are in.

On Hogan's injury, I think you are being a bit harsh. If they thought he had an injury he wouldn't have played in the Geelong game. So it is not an outrageous lie or even deliberately misleading/disingenuous to say he was injured in the game, even if he inflamed a pre-existing problem. There are probably things any club wants to hide, but I doubt that this is an example.

[binman 39,081]

Doesn't lessen your frustration, but why expect us to be 'better' than other clubs?

At least in part because PJ has made a point of reaching out to fans and asked us to stick by the club.

[Rhino Richards 1,467]

At least in part because PJ has made a point of reaching out to fans and asked us to stick by the club.

And in addition, the AFL stepped into run MFC 12 months ago from concern about ongoing support for the Club given the previous six year and disaster of a year (2013) we were sailing into.

If ever there was a club that needed to stick with and effectively engage with long suffering and increasingly disengaged members/supporters..it is MFC.

I think PeterJ understands this problem but his execution of the solution could have been better.

[Grapeviney 8,972]

Yes.

Barret suggested it was a stress fracture, implying it was pre existing problem, which seems to be true - though this is just a guess because apparently the sky would fall if the the truth was revealed.

Just to clarify, Hogan himself said it was sore before the Geelong game (this was on the footy show).

[Dockett 32 1,213]

Reckon it would be nice if people were upfront and just gave us the truth. Mightn't like it, but could deal with it.

[bing181 8,224]

"Sam Mitchell not warming up, will be a late out. Battered & bruised from last week"

No mention of any problems with Mitchell from Hawthorn during the week. Nothing. On the other hand, re a couple of the other injured players, we get this from their Elite Performance Manager:

"“We’ll get them back into full training next week, and then we’ll see the best way to get them into game play from there. “They’re both at a similar stage and they’re progressing really well.”

[sue 8,477]

At least in part because PJ has made a point of reaching out to fans and asked us to stick by the club.

It is clear there are two schools of thought on this and agreement is unlikely. I maintain that the information you so desperately want is of far less interest to the majority of members and potential members whom PJ is courting rather than us Demonland tragics. You either believe that is wrong or don't consider it relevant. Fair enough.

[Slartibartfast 16,017]

No mention of any problems with Mitchell from Hawthorn during the week. Nothing. On the other hand, re a couple of the other injured players, we get this from their Elite Performance Manager:

My issue is not with ONE bit of spin, not with ONE injury healing more slowly than expected but with what appears to be planned misinformation in relation to many many players.

Jamar, Gawn, Hogan, Dawes, Clark, Viney and Garland have all had injuries that have taken so much longer to heal than expected. Akram's razor suggests this is not bad luck but a policy by the MFC to misinform.

Now I believe it's better to be conservative and surprise on the positive side rather than be optimistic and under deliver. For stakeholders looking for hope having important players failing to play when anticipated only further damages the trust supporters have

Trust is precisely what Peter Jackson said he wants to build. Just at the moment it's difficult to believe.

[beelzebub 22,308]

I trust the MFC FD to tell me rubbish.

Seldom disappointed.

[Grapeviney 8,972]

My issue is not with ONE bit of spin, not with ONE injury healing more slowly than expected but with what appears to be planned misinformation in relation to many many players.

Jamar, Gawn, Hogan, Dawes, Clark, Viney and Garland have all had injuries that have taken so much longer to heal than expected. Akram's razor suggests this is not bad luck but a policy by the MFC to misinform.

Now I believe it's better to be conservative and surprise on the positive side rather than be optimistic and under deliver. For stakeholders looking for hope having important players failing to play when anticipated only further damages the trust supporters have

Trust is precisely what Peter Jackson said he wants to build. Just at the moment it's difficult to believe.

Wasim Akram would like to inform you it's Occam's Razor (or Ockham)

[Whispering_Jack 28,089]

Wasim Akram would like to inform you it's Occam's Razor (or Ockham)

Yeah, but how many wickets did Occam take in test cricket?

[Damo 3,017]

There is also the fact that our eggs are generally in the one forward line basket.

This makes our predicament a little more precarious than many other clubs whose injuries are scattered more widely. Made further exasperating by having such a promising Pre-season.

Many people unfortunately were giving this start of the season "one last chance".

There are quite a few posters that have either changed their name (really gives me the tom-[censored]!) or have moved on.

[Dee Fan 3,247]

To be quite honest I think the club should put out an injury list with no predictions of return, they are usually wrong and they are always optimistic.

The numbers beside the name are a guess and/or a best case scenario, so they are going to look stupid for no gain at all and if they are way out we get this sort of reaction.

[Machsy 2,858]

My issue is not with ONE bit of spin, not with ONE injury healing more slowly than expected but with what appears to be planned misinformation in relation to many many players.

Jamar, Gawn, Hogan, Dawes, Clark, Viney and Garland have all had injuries that have taken so much longer to heal than expected. Akram's razor suggests this is not bad luck but a policy by the MFC to misinform.

Now I believe it's better to be conservative and surprise on the positive side rather than be optimistic and under deliver. For stakeholders looking for hope having important players failing to play when anticipated only further damages the trust supporters have

Trust is precisely what Peter Jackson said he wants to build. Just at the moment it's difficult to believe.

I think you're deliberately misinterpreting PJ's words here.

[praha 10,358]

The Melbourne YouTube channel is the only one without a logo, and has the fewest subscriptions of all clubs:

[S.R.J 418]

The Melbourne YouTube channel is the only one without a logo, and has the fewest subscriptions of all clubs:

Who the fark would want to subscribe. Hard enough watching them playing each week

[Elusive Tunbridge 795]

Yeah, but how many wickets did Occam take in test cricket?

As few as possible.

[Machsy 2,858]

The Melbourne YouTube channel is the only one without a logo, and has the fewest subscriptions of all clubs:

Do they use it though?

They used to - not so sure now.