Jump to content
View in the app

A better way to browse. Learn more.

Demonland

A full-screen app on your home screen with push notifications, badges and more.

To install this app on iOS and iPadOS
  1. Tap the Share icon in Safari
  2. Scroll the menu and tap Add to Home Screen.
  3. Tap Add in the top-right corner.
To install this app on Android
  1. Tap the 3-dot menu (⋮) in the top-right corner of the browser.
  2. Tap Add to Home screen or Install app.
  3. Confirm by tapping Install.

WELCOME TO THE MELBOURNE FOOTBALL CLUB - BEN BROWN

Featured Replies

1 hour ago, Half forward flank said:

Boring load of nonesense. never found you make much sense. 

Irony in a nutshell!

 
1 hour ago, Half forward flank said:

One of two, proven finals players or young talent like the selection of Rivers

And who might those proven finals players be, that are available and affordable? And how are you going to recognise young talent in a draft year in which there has been very little opportunity for young talent to reveal itself?

HFF clearly has a bit of an agenda against Brown from pages back where he mentioned that he didn’t like that Brown cared about social (political) issues and was interested in more than just kicking a footy.

Every criticism since has been developed from that mindset and I don’t think it’s worth engaging with HFF on this topic.

 
Just now, Mayday said:

HFF clearly has a bit of an agenda against Brown from pages back where he mentioned that he didn’t like that Brown cared about social (political) issues and was interested in more than just kicking a footy.

Every criticism since has been developed from that mindset and I don’t think it’s worth engaging with HFF on this topic.

And here I was thinking maybe he was on the verge of having a stroke. ?

1 hour ago, Half forward flank said:

One of two, proven finals players or young talent like the selection of Rivers

And who would they be? New recruits won’t cut it with where we are at with our development so that’s simply a bad idea. We must recruit best available talent and that’s Brown...fullstop


bozo.jpg.bef2be0e20f13c0d7b53815794ffb22f.jpg

 

2 hours ago, Sydee said:

My concerns remain... the ridiculous hair

 

2 hours ago, Roost it far said:

So who do you think the club should reasonably target for next year?

mcdonald-tipungwuti and a KD 

 
2 hours ago, binman said:

What on earth are you talking about?

Brown is lightly built? He is taller and heavier than lynch.

Riddle me this  - after winning a flag in 2017 without a big key forward why did they then go after and land lynch, a big key forward who instantly became their highest paid player?

Another question. Giiven how critical big key marking defenders of the ilk of mcgovern, may and vlaustin ate in modern footy who do you think are best placed to negate their influence? Mid size forwards like say hannan?

One more question, related to the second. Geelong best big key marking defender  one of the best in tbe AFL  was arguably the best player on the ground in tbe first half. But was unsighted in the second half. Which forward do you think was most responsible for that, and in particular stopping him marking?

Again, going to Hannibal's point about players doing a job and playing their role, perhaps to your surprised lynch metrics and kpis were unlikely be goals kicked, or even marks taken. His kpi is no doubt halving contests and making sure the ball hits rhe ground where his smaller teamates can do damage. Which they did. And as a result won a grand final 

I am glad someone was watching last night. Thanks binman.


1 hour ago, hardtack said:

And who might those proven finals players be, that are available and affordable? And how are you going to recognise young talent in a draft year in which there has been very little opportunity for young talent to reveal itself?

Stop asking him hard questions.

23 minutes ago, Tarax Club said:

bozo.jpg.bef2be0e20f13c0d7b53815794ffb22f.jpg

 

 

If he plays for us next year and kicks forty  goals he can wear his hair any way he chooses.

1 hour ago, hardtack said:

WTF does that have to do with his being taken on or not??  What century/decade are you even living in??  How about we get Max to rid himself of that hipster beard as well!  Sure, it's reasonable to comment on the excessively long run up (but if it helps him to kick accurately, then I certainly don't have a problem with it), or to comment on his staging (not that I've really noticed it so much), but sorry, I find those concerns about a person's appearance (which has no bearing on their footballing ability) to be so out of step with reality.

lost your sense of humor I see

3 hours ago, demonstone said:

You'd expect Baker to be a roll player on his sort of dough.

The proove is in the pudding.

There is a lot of people in this thread that severely overrate our playing group and underrate Brown.

Richmond won the game last night because Riewoldt and Lynch got involved after half time. Yes, the game plan tweaks enabled that but if you don’t have anyone for the small blokes to kick to or rove from, it was game over.

As @binmanmentioned, Stewart didn’t just decide to stop taking uncontested marks - He was well on his way to a Norm Smith medal at half time

 

Edited by BW511


To be fair, whilst I don't agree with @DeeSpencer's overall view, the argument against taking Brown is clear and deserves consideration.

It will either see us go into 2021 with Brown, Weideman and Jackson in our forward line, or with one of Weideman and Jackson not playing.

If the former, can that forward line work? It's taller than both Geelong's and Richmond's (for example), and with the added risk that Brown, Weideman and Fritsch aren't good with pressure. 

If the latter, is that beneficial to our overall development? What's the point in taking Brown if we then can't/don't play Weideman? Or worse, it stifles Jackson's development?

IMO, it will result in the former: we'll play Brown as the stay-at-home forward with Weideman and Jackson roaming further up. Jackson's agility mean he's not a true tall anyway, and I think Weideman will be better when he's released from the pressure of being our only tall marking option. The impetus on the FD is to ensure that Brown, Weideman and Fritsch are all chasing, defending and tackling when we don't have the ball. I'd rather us back ourselves in to see those players improve their defensive/pressure games than assume they'll never improve.

But dismissing the argument against as simply "Brown kicks goals, we need goals, therefore we need Brown" is a bit shallow. It's a fair question to ask and debate to have.

2 hours ago, Accepting Mediocrity said:

This has been written about Brown so often that it's become an assumed fact. Brown is a damn good forward and much more rounded player than most give him credit for. 

I don't get this just a 'lead-up' forward business either. For starters, so what, if he's kicking 60 a year? It would imply he's the best lead-up forward in the game. I'll take that for pick 23, in a team constantly criticised for not kicking to leading targets (which is a two-way street, and requires the ability to offer a lead in space).

But more importantly, he does have a well-rounded game by most measures: a great mark and set-shot, and can bend and snap the ball. Can also ruck. Then there's his aerobic capacity. I left a reminder in another thread - but it's worth repeating for the record here - that he also averaged the most kms of any AFL player last year, at 15.6km per match.

That's how you fit Brown, Weid and Jackson into the same team. Another mobile roaming tall who can mark a ball would be a godsend after the exit of Hogan and decline of TMac. I think people just see him as a bit soft-footed as compared to a big traditional one-on-one KPF, and so come up with any reason to say no. 

Edited by Skuit

3 hours ago, Sydee said:

My concerns remain

the ridiculous and painful runup when kicking for goal
the ridiculous hair
the ridiculous staging for free kicks (with some considerable success I might add)

I accept none of these are reasons to not embrace him but its not easy

Our forward line is rubbish and has been for some time - Weid IMO still has a very long way to go and TMac seems destined for somewhere else sadly. Jackson could be good in years to come but will need time to mature
 

Dennis Lillee used to have a monstrously long run up and he went OK!

All looking good. Expect him to nominate  melbourne any time now. Both parties are seemingly very excited. 
 

 


4 minutes ago, picket fence said:

Dennis Lillee used to have a monstrously long run up and he went OK!

Hoping Brown can pass on some tips to Melksham and Fritter on their run-ups. 

50 minutes ago, Sydee said:

lost your sense of humor I see

I think it must be a side effect of dealing with HFF.  Apologies.

 

Now that it has been suggested it's a done deal, I urge the reluctants to go back and watch some highlights and get excited. It will be far more enjoyable than hoping for failure so that you can be proven right. I think the 2019 and 2018 highlights have been posted before, so here's 2016: 

 

 


Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Unfortunately, your content contains terms that we do not allow. Please edit your content to remove the highlighted words below.
Reply to this topic...

Featured Content

  • REPORT: North Melbourne

    It’s late February. Two teams widely predicted to finish near the foot of the AFL table in 2026 face off against each other in sweltering 30-degree heat deep in outer suburbia in a match simulation with fresh new faces and uneven team numbers. There are no nearby sheep stations on offer; the result promises nothing more than bragging rights for the winner. Nevertheless, the loser appears hopelessly adrift, whereas the other seems to have found its footing after a couple of years of struggle – perhaps a hint at bigger things to come?

      • Clap
      • Love
    • 4 replies
  • POSTGAME: North Melbourne

    It was only a preseason match but the new look Demons spearheaded by new coach Steven King looked impressive as they put on a clinic against perennial cellar-dwellers North Melbourne as they cruised to an 80 point victory at Casey Fields.

      • Haha
      • Love
      • Thanks
      • Like
    • 328 replies
  • VOTES: North Melbourne

    The 2026 Preseason is upon us and it is time to vote for the inaugural Demonland Player of the Preseason. Please submit your votes for the Practice Match win over North Melbourne. 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 & 1.

      • Thanks
    • 24 replies
  • GAMEDAY: North Melbourne

    It's finally Game Day and the Demons, under new head coach Steven King, will run out onto the field with a new looking lineup and a brand new midfield when they take on the Kangaroos this afternoon at Casey.

      • Thanks
    • 302 replies
  • TRAINING: Wednesday 18th February 2026

    A couple of Demonland Trackwatchers were blessed with some beautiful Wednesday morning weather to give their observations of one of the final open training session at Gosch's Paddock prior to our first practice hit out against another team this weekend.

      • Like
    • 0 replies
  • NON-MFC: 2026 Practice Matches

    We are just weeks away from the start of the 2026 Premiership Season and the first Practice Matches are about to begin. Discuss all the games that don't involve the Demons in the lead up to Opening Round.

      • Thanks
    • 60 replies

Account

Navigation

Search

Configure browser push notifications

Chrome (Android)
  1. Tap the lock icon next to the address bar.
  2. Tap Permissions → Notifications.
  3. Adjust your preference.
Chrome (Desktop)
  1. Click the padlock icon in the address bar.
  2. Select Site settings.
  3. Find Notifications and adjust your preference.