Jump to content

The Brilliance of Robbie Flower

Whispering_Jack
Whispering_Jack
in Melbourne Demons

Featured Replies

 
18 minutes ago, Whispering_Jack said:

One piece is never enough - you have to see him in colour too.

This is from 1984 -

 

Yep and yep Sad I still think of him quite often, I posted ny Ode on quite a few occasions, As I said to some of his close acquaintances, "Where has 5 + years gone?? Great player!! Better Bloke!! there can be no greater legacy!!

Always remembered! 

Thanks for posting

  • Quote
    • Like 4
     

    Deserved to play in much  better teams.    We were terrible his whole career.

    Then he retires and we make the GF the very next season.

  • Quote
    • Sad 1
    17 minutes ago, JakovichScissorKick said:

    We were terrible his whole career.

    Except for 1987.   Fond memories of the first two finals at the MCG - still have the VHS tapes from "Name A Game"!

  • Quote
    • Like 2

    Such a shame he was born about 5 years too early. His silk could've really helped us during the Northey years, might have helped us pinch a flag in 1990.

  • Quote
    • Like 4

    It was awesome seeing him in the Big V and showing where he deserved to be -- amongst the very best. Never forget one game against SA where we were down at half time. Robbie was "swung to" (old fashioned term now) centre half forward (!!!) and practically won the game off his own boot.

    We hear of Millanes, Bourke/Barrett/Clay, Jezzas ... imagine the reputation RF would have if he'd played for a big 4 club. Stellar player.

     

    GO DEMONS!!!!!!

  • Quote
    • Like 3
    9 minutes ago, Dr. Gonzo said:

    Such a shame he was born about 5 years too early. His silk could've really helped us during the Northey years, might have helped us pinch a flag in 1990.

    Agree with the sentiment but there might not have been a club in '90 without Robbie. Remember the "do it for Robbie" fund in '86.

  • Quote
    •  

    Check the goal against Richmond at 1.50min of this clip. As I've written previously on here, I reckon it's one of the best I've ever seen.

    He's out of position in a marking contest in the centre of the ground, effects the spoil and prevents a certain Tigers mark, keeps his feet and is first to the ball, sharks it over an opponent, streams through CHF and dobs it from outside 50m. 

    As Bobby Skilton says in the commentary, it's football at its very best.

     

     

  • Quote
    • Like 1
    • Love 2
    51 minutes ago, demonstone said:

    Except for 1987.   Fond memories of the first two finals at the MCG - still have the VHS tapes from "Name A Game"!

    I have them on DVD

    Sensational!

  • Quote

    Nice clips boys but here's 16 minutes of brilliance.
     


    Note he kicked 5goals in the elim including a trade mark hanger and another 4goals in the semi final before getting his collarbone busted in the prelim and then retiring.
    If anyone should have been nursed to 300games it should have been this legend.

  • Quote
    • Like 4

    There has been none better for the MFC ever since Robbie. And dare i say only a handful before him.

    Dad turned up to every game during the dark 70's and 80's years. The only reason he did was to go and watch Robbie play. Unfortunately i was too young to remember.

    God we could do with him in the team now.

  • Quote
    18 minutes ago, Fork 'em said:

    Nice clips boys but here's 16 minutes of brilliance.
     


    Note he kicked 5goals in the elim including a trade mark hanger and another 4goals in the semi final before getting his collarbone busted in the prelim and then retiring.
    If anyone should have been nursed to 300games it should have been this legend.

    If we'd have made it through to the granny in 87, he would've played. He was emphatically on record with this.

  • Quote

    2 minutes ago, Demon Disciple said:

    If we'd have made it through to the granny in 87, he would've played. He was emphatically on record with this.

    He told Mike Sheahan it would have been ‘doubtful’ on Open Mike. It’s the second or third question of the episode. 

  • Quote

    Geez........... who can imagine Robbie on a wing in our 2020 team ?.

    I remember so vividly watching Flower carving up a wing the "G" when i was a teenager. I loved how the crowd reacted whenever he got the ball..... "Robbieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee". This is what we miss most nowadays... a player who makes the crowd go nuts when he has the ball.

    We were not a great side then, and havent been for a long time, but thinking of that still gives me chills.

    Im going to be off my face and full of tears if we win a flag before i die.

    GO DEES!!!!!!

     

  • Quote
    • Like 3
    2 hours ago, Grapeviney said:

    He told Mike Sheahan it would have been ‘doubtful’ on Open Mike. It’s the second or third question of the episode. 

    Speaking of which.
    2nd question.
     

     

    Edited by Fork 'em

  • Quote
    7 hours ago, Grapeviney said:

    He told Mike Sheahan it would have been ‘doubtful’ on Open Mike. It’s the second or third question of the episode. 

    My old man was good friends with him, told him many a time he would’ve played, nothing would’ve stopped him.

  • Quote

    Flower elevated playing football to an art form. He had the poise and grace of a ballet dancer, the dexterity of a gymnast. He was genuinely a one off!

  • Quote
    • Like 2

    Sadly missed.  I remember sitting in the old Northern stand, next to the players race.  Robbie was chasing the ball toward the boundary against the filth and had two opponents whacking him from either side.  He still gathered the ball and kicked it into our forward line.  I screamed blue murder at the opposition tactics.  You could clearly see the hits to the ribs.  In fact, from my vantage point, you could hear them.  But no free kick.

    Robbie played when footy was hard and physical, yet for a man of his physique he managed to rise above the thuggery and was a star in some very mediocre sides

  • Quote
    • Like 2
    • Demonland changed the title to The Brilliance of Robbie Flower
    14 hours ago, Mazer Rackham said:

    It was awesome seeing him in the Big V and showing where he deserved to be -- amongst the very best. Never forget one game against SA where we were down at half time. Robbie was "swung to" (old fashioned term now) centre half forward (!!!) and practically won the game off his own boot.

    We hear of Millanes, Bourke/Barrett/Clay, Jezzas ... imagine the reputation RF would have if he'd played for a big 4 club. Stellar player.

     

    GO DEMONS!!!!!!

    I think there is a lot of quiet acknowledgement among a lot of old players that Robbie was poetry in motion on the field. That includes old commentators still alive and other pundits........... His deeds were one thing but his balance could be a little better than Jesaulenko and Baldock in just one player. I really don't think we should be scared to say he was just simply incomparable.....

  • Quote
    • Like 1
     

    Such a two-sided player, kicking off both right and left, gave him so many options.

  • Quote
    • Like 1

    These clips genuinely bring a tear to my eyes today, just as they did when No2 flanked the MCG wings most Saturday afternoons.

    Robbie was one of the few shining lights in the very dim decades of the 1970s and 1980s for the MFC.

    Brilliant from the start of his career, loyal until the end of it. He has few peers in VFL/AFL history.

    Thanks for the clips WJ. Timeless and priceless.

     

     

  • Quote
    • Like 4

    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...
    Go to topic listing

    Featured Content

    • GAMEDAY: Essendon

      It’s Game Day, and the Demons are staring down the barrel of an 0-5 start for the first time since 2012 as they take on Essendon at Adelaide Oval for Gather Round. In that forgettable season, Melbourne finally broke their drought by toppling the Bombers. Can lightning strike twice? Will the Dees turn their nightmare start around and breathe life back into 2025?

        • Like
      • 52 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • PREVIEW: Essendon

      As the focus of the AFL moves exclusively to South Australia for Gather Round, the question is raised as to what are we going to get from the  Melbourne Football Club this weekend? Will it be a repeat of the slop fest of the last three weeks that have seen the team score a measly 174 points and concede 310 or will a return to the City of Churches and the scene where they performed at their best in 2024 act as a wakeup call and bring them out of their early season reverie?  Or will the sleepy Dees treat their fans to a reenactment of their lazy effort from the first Gather Round of two years ago when they allowed the Bombers to trample all over them on a soggy and wet Adelaide Oval? The two examples from above tell us how fickle form can be in football. Last year, a committed group of players turned up in Adelaide with a businesslike mindset. They had a plan, went in confidently and hard for the football and kicked winning scores against both home teams in a difficult environment for visitors. And they repeated that sort of effort later in the season when they played Essendon at the MCG.

        • Thanks
        • Like
      • 0 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • PREGAME: Essendon

      Facing the very real and daunting prospect of starting the season with five straight losses, the Demons head to South Australia for the annual Gather Round, where they’ll take on the Bombers in search of their first win of the year. Who comes in, and who comes out?

        • Thanks
      • 489 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • NON-MFC: Round 05

      Gather Round is here, kicking off with a Thursday night blockbuster as Adelaide faces Geelong. The Crows will be out for redemption after a controversial loss last week. Saturday starts with the Magpies taking on the Swans. Collingwood will be eager to cement their spot in the top eight, while Sydney is hot on their heels. In the Barossa Valley, two rising sides go head-to-head in a fascinating battle to prove they're the real deal. Later, Carlton and West Coast face off at Adelaide Oval, both desperate to notch their first win of the season. The action then shifts to Norwood, where the undefeated Lions will aim to keep their streak alive against the Bulldogs. Sunday’s games begin in the Barossa with Richmond up against Fremantle. In Norwood, the Saints will be looking to take a scalp when they come up against the Giants. The round concludes with a fiery rematch of last year's semi-final, as the Hawks seek revenge for their narrow loss to Port Adelaide. Who are you tipping this week and what are the best results for the Demons besides us winning?

        • Thanks
      • 197 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • CASEY: Geelong

      There was a time in the second quarter of the game at the Cattery on Friday afternoon when the Casey Demons threatened to take the game apart against the Cats. The Demons had been well on top early but were struggling to convert their ascendancy over the ground until Tom Fullarton’s burst of three goals in the space of eight minutes on the way to a five goal haul and his best game for the club since arriving from Brisbane at the end of 2023. He was leading, marking and otherwise giving his opponents a merry dance as Casey grabbed a three goal lead in the blink of an eye. Fullarton has now kicked ten goals in Casey’s three matches and, with Melbourne’s forward conversion woes, he is definitely in with a chance to get his first game with the club in next week’s Gather Round in Adelaide. Despite the tall forward’s efforts - he finished with 19 disposals and eight marks and had four hit outs as back up to Will Verrall in the second half - it wasn’t enough as Geelong reigned in the lead through persistent attacks and eventually clawed their way to the lead early in the last and held it till they achieved the end aim of victory.

        • Like
      • 0 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • REPORT: Geelong

      I was disappointed to hear Goody say at his post match presser after the team’s 39 point defeat against Geelong that "we're getting high quality entry, just poor execution" because Melbourne’s problems extend far beyond that after its 0 - 4 start to the 2025 football season. There are clearly problems with poor execution, some of which were evident well before the current season and were in play when the Demons met the Cats in early May last year and beat them in a near top-of-the-table clash that saw both sides sitting comfortably in the top four after round eight. Since that game, the Demons’ performances have been positively Third World with only five wins in 19 games with a no longer majestic midfield and a dysfunctional forward line that has become too easy for opposing coaches to counter. This is an area of their game that is currently being played out as if they were all completely panic-stricken.

        • Thanks
        • Like
      • 0 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland
    View All