When I was between 6 and 8 years old, I remember thinking the Roos and Malcolm Blight were pretty awesome and might have said something to that effect (this was mid to late 70's). Much to the complete disgust of my father and others in our family. Now while I never got a north jumper (am pretty sure grandma dug up a demon (or knitted it herself) top fairly quickly). However I met Robbie Flower for the first time at the Mornington Football Club, holding a training, and that was it-back in the family fold.

My point being that kids will come back and are surprisingly more loyal than you would think. That or supporting the MFC is a congenital defect that defies logic.

Our major problem as suggested by another Lander is the numbers of MCC members who dont tick the box. We used to have the highest number of supporters amongst MCC members (second Essendon - ha) (I'm not sure now) and given the increased cost of being an MCC member (with the construction of the new stands) ticking the box is just too much for some. With success there will be more who will come on board and also upgrade to premium membership, For some $721 (MFC/MCC member) or $831 (Premium MCC/MFC) is just too much.

As most of us are stuck on for good, we need to remind those supporters who are not members that there is a $59 (2014) armchair membership - that keeps them in the membership loop where they still receive information from the Club and there is always the hope that they may return.

The other problem is getting kids interested. Members can do this by buying a kids membership as part of a Christmas present. Don't forget the Pet memberships - good "donation" value this year.

?

If we have 7 supporters, then I was making a riotously hilarious gag that you must have many accounts given that there are hundreds of people signed up here. Not funny, move along.

In any event, I know plenty of Melbourne supporters. That said, many of these are connected to my days growing up in Camberwell. Moving around various other parts of Melbourne over the past 11 years, there aren't quite as many. I still think we have a lot more than gets reported. I know lots of Dees supporters who have busy work and personal lives and quite frankly can't be stuffed with it ruining their lives when the team is so poor. They're not likely to go online and fill out random surveys or ring talk back radio either.

Fark all, any other figure is rubbish. We're a club in decline. A terribly poor list, no home, very little money, few supporters, a miserable amount of members and little hope that that will change anytime in the future.Pinning your hopes on this club is not dissimilar to Tony Abbott pinning his and the countries hopes on coal. Wrong bet at the wrong time.

I remember reading a few years back (possibly one of the Schwab-isms) that we had the highest supporter --> membership ratio in the competition.

Don't recall seeing any particular numbers to quantify that, but I though it was interesting.

I fail to see the importance of this metric other than revealing we have the highest rate of sadomasochism in the AFL.

I'm in WA but still was surprised that on "show your footy colours day" at the local primary school, my son was the only one in the enitre school in a Demons jumper.

My Youngest son and another kid were the only two wearing Demons jumpers at their school on Footy colours day, what I have noticed in WA over the last few years is the big increase now in kids picking the Dockers over Meth Coast. As WYL says we really need to put together a few good seasons to get some young supporters on board

Mine made the local paper for doing the same.

your not in the Packer clan, are you 'Uncle Fester' ?

My Youngest son and another kid were the only two wearing Demons jumpers at their school on Footy colours day, what I have noticed in WA over the last few years is the big increase now in kids picking the Dockers over Meth Coast. As WYL says we really need to put together a few good seasons to get some young supporters on board

this winning to get members is only going to get fair weather support.

the real longterm support of which IMO we have lost an enormous amount, is the hand me down supporters, the kids of their Demon Grandad, or the parents... those who have followed in their fathers, or families Demons footsteps.

the heirlooms of members.

Just winning isn't enough to regrow this, because it takes generations to grow supporters into a supporter dynasty. Families of Demons is what I want us to try to ReGrow.

..... but we need something to unite these satellite groups into a union of supporters. Unite them.

I wonder if any of the blue rinsers that daisycutter sh ags mercilessly ever come on board as Dees supporters? I'm guessing he makes them play "dress ups" - short jumpers, maybe dressing gowns, old fashioned goal umpire coats with nothing underneath etc ... etc..!

He may even blow .... a whistle ... at crucial moments!!

Edited October 18, 201410 yr by Bitter but optimistic

About a decade ago it was around 250,000.

Has slipped steadily and now lurks around 200,000 according to the last Roy Morgan survey results I saw.

But, they are a rusted on bunch. You don't support Melbourne because it is the easy option

They also take up memberships and turn up to games at a higher rate than any other club.

I wonder if any of the blue rinsers that daisycutter sh ags mercilessly ever come on board as Dees supporters? I'm guessing he makes them play "dress ups" - short jumpers, maybe dressing gowns, old fashioned goal umpire coats with nothing underneath etc ... etc..!

He may even blow .... a whistle ... at crucial moments!!

Classic Gold!! Reading this at the local after beers.

Bbo you should write scripts man.

I wonder if any of the blue rinsers that daisycutter sh ags mercilessly ever come on board as Dees supporters? I'm guessing he makes them play "dress ups" - short jumpers, maybe dressing gowns, old fashioned goal umpire coats with nothing underneath etc ... etc..!

He may even blow .... a whistle ... at crucial moments!!

i wouldn't lower myself to respond to such crass gutter talk bbo

oh! seems i have

I wonder if any of the blue rinsers that daisycutter sh ags mercilessly ever come on board as Dees supporters? I'm guessing he makes them play "dress ups" - short jumpers, maybe dressing gowns, old fashioned goal umpire coats with nothing underneath etc ... etc..!

He may even blow .... a whistle ... at crucial moments!!

Classic Gold!! Reading this at the local after beers.

Bbo you should write scripts man.

BBO already writes scripts and uses some of the dialogue on this medium.

He has written such blockbusters,

You Me and a llama.

Llamas do it with foxes.

Biffs night in the "Hilton"

All of his memorable movie scripts are available at all good stores.

The disturbing trend I witnessed at games this year was of the increasing number of parents who turned up decked out in Demons clobber but had bought along their kids who were adorned in either Hawthorn, Collingwood or Carlton colors.

Kids aren't stupid. They will do what Mum and Dad tell them for a while but if it doesn't make sense after a while, they will drop off. We have lost a generation of support with the last 8 years.

I didn't like their generation anyway

I wonder if any of the blue rinsers that daisycutter sh ags mercilessly ever come on board as Dees supporters? I'm guessing he makes them play "dress ups" - short jumpers, maybe dressing gowns, old fashioned goal umpire coats with nothing underneath etc ... etc..!

He may even blow .... a whistle ... at crucial moments!!

'Twas good. Until the kids asked "what are you laughing at"

Brain went on the spin cycle but your post defies explanation

'Twas good. Until the kids asked "what are you laughing at"

Brain went on the spin cycle but your post defies explanation

I'm glad I did not mention some of daisycutter's other foibles. Let's just say he puts new meaning into the the old footy term Jockstrap.

I'd better leave it at that.

I know approx 50 Dee supporters but only 6 are members and not many of the rest go to or even listen to games. We just need some success. Remember the finals in the late 80's early nineties?

The MFC needs this from its Supporters

But after the first minute of game one over the past eight season all our Supporters could do is this

The big problem is not how many supporters we have, but the demographics of those supporters. I would expect that we have the highest average supporter age (and by a decent margin), so what happens when the 1940s & 50s kids die out?

Go to any school or Auskick clinic, even in traditional MFC strongholds, and you would be lucky to find 2% of the kids in a Melbourne jumper. We have very few supporters under the age of 20 due to years of miserable performance. Not only have we lost that generation, but we will struggle to pick up that generation's kids as well.

It took Hawthorn 25-30 years to turn their dominance in the 1980s into decent membership numbers, as the kids of 1980s are now taking their children along. So, even if we can challenge for a premiership by the end of this decade, it will take much longer to build a strong supporter base.

The big problem is not how many supporters we have, but the demographics of those supporters. I would expect that we have the highest average supporter age (and by a decent margin), so what happens when the 1940s & 50s kids die out?

Go to any school or Auskick clinic, even in traditional MFC strongholds, and you would be lucky to find 2% of the kids in a Melbourne jumper. We have very few supporters under the age of 20 due to years of miserable performance. Not only have we lost that generation, but we will struggle to pick up that generation's kids as well.

It took Hawthorn 25-30 years to turn their dominance in the 1980s into decent membership numbers, as the kids of 1980s are now taking their children along. So, even if we can challenge for a premiership by the end of this decade, it will take much longer to build a strong supporter base.

We can also contrast Hawthorn to North.

North has had two periods of success: the 70's and the 90's and not much in between.

I can remember Greg Miller once bemoaning North's lack of support and how it seemed strange as they were a successful club at the time.

What Miller didn't understand is that people don't come on board permanently after 5 to 10 good years. It can take generations to build that kind of following.

Sometimes it can take one smart moving to bump up crowds (i.e. Richmond's move to the G). However, it usually takes decades of sustained success.

We on the other hand went from being one of the most supported clubs in Victoria (in the 50's) to being one of the least supported. It took us decades to lose that support base but we did it.

easy - count the registered posters on Demonland and divide by 2.

The big problem is not how many supporters we have, but the demographics of those supporters. I would expect that we have the highest average supporter age (and by a decent margin), so what happens when the 1940s & 50s kids die out?

Go to any school or Auskick clinic, even in traditional MFC strongholds, and you would be lucky to find 2% of the kids in a Melbourne jumper. We have very few supporters under the age of 20 due to years of miserable performance. Not only have we lost that generation, but we will struggle to pick up that generation's kids as well.

It took Hawthorn 25-30 years to turn their dominance in the 1980s into decent membership numbers, as the kids of 1980s are now taking their children along. So, even if we can challenge for a premiership by the end of this decade, it will take much longer to build a strong supporter base.

this is exactly what I've been saying, those beginnings of family traditions.

We can also contrast Hawthorn to North.

North has had two periods of success: the 70's and the 90's and not much in between.

I can remember Greg Miller once bemoaning North's lack of support and how it seemed strange as they were a successful club at the time.

What Miller didn't understand is that people don't come on board permanently after 5 to 10 good years. It can take generations to build that kind of following.

Sometimes it can take one smart moving to bump up crowds (i.e. Richmond's move to the G). However, it usually takes decades of sustained success.

We on the other hand went from being one of the most supported clubs in Victoria (in the 50's) to being one of the least supported. It took us decades to lose that support base but we did it.

maybe playing @ home at the 'G', those administrators took the support for granted.... thinking thy had the supporters buy the short curlies.

... It took Hawthorn 25-30 years to turn their dominance in the 1980s into decent membership numbers

In 2004 the Hawks had a membership total of 31,255 and played to crowds as low as 11,682.

easy - count the registered posters on Demonland and divide by 2.

Are you saying that those of us on Demonland only have a two personalitites?