Jump to content

Discussion on recent allegations about the use of illicit drugs in football is forbidden
  • IMPORTANT: PLEASE READ BEFORE POSTING

    Posting unsubstantiated rumours on this website is strictly forbidden.

    Demonland has made the difficult decision to not permit this platform to be used to discuss & debate the off-field issues relating to the Melbourne Football Club including matters currently being litigated between the Club & former Board members, board elections, the issue of illicit drugs in footy, the culture at the club & the personal issues & allegations against some of our players & officials ...

    We do not take these issues & this decision lightly & of course we believe that these serious matters affecting the club we love & are so passionate about are worthy of discussion & debate & I wish we could provide a place where these matters can be discussed in a civil & respectful manner.

    However these discussions unfortunately invariably devolve into areas that may be defamatory, libelous, spread unsubstantiated rumours & can effect the mental health of those involved. Even discussion & debate of known facts or media reports can lead to finger pointing, blame & personal attacks.

    The repercussion is that these discussions can open this website, it’s owners & it’s users to legal action & may result in this website being forced to shutdown.

    Our moderating team are all volunteers & cannot moderate the forum 24/7 & as a consequence problematic content that contravenes our rules & standards may go unnoticed for some time before it can be removed.

    We reserve the right to delete posts that offend against our above policy & indeed, to ban posters who are repeat offenders or who breach our code of conduct.

    WE HAVE BUILT A FANTASTIC ONLINE COMMUNITY AT DEMONLAND OVER THE PAST 23 YEARS & WE WOULD LIKE TO CONTINUE TO BE ABLE TO DISCUSS THE CLUB WE LOVE & ARE SO PASSIONATE ABOUT.

    Thank you for your continued support & understanding. Go Dees.


The Breaking of Nathan Jones


Demonland

Recommended Posts

5 minutes ago, america de cali said:

If other clubs supporters had true respect for Jones they would be trashing and cursing him like we and others do to the likes of Selwood, Martin, Rance, Hodge, Franklin and other players who know how to win. They would never speak of Jones like that. Jones gets soft respect because he is ineffectual and benign and they are happy to have him keep on playing forever for us.

The difference being they are all premiership players in ruthless, successful clubs.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 minutes ago, Lord Nev said:

The difference being they are all premiership players in ruthless, successful clubs.

 

The lack of ruthlessness keep the likes of Jones playing for us well past his time. Many better players have been tapped on the shoulder at successful clubs. That’s the law of nature that our club seems to have forgotten. 

Edited by america de cali
  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Great Respect for Nathan Jones, to play for as long as he has with extremely poor sides, for a club with massive off field issues and to stick fat, most players would have jumped of the sinking ship.  The ship did plug the holes for a year but these plugs couldn't with stand the pressure of 2019.  Hopefully we have a stronger ship in 2020, my fear is we will never have strong enough structures to stop the boat leaking again.

On his on field performance, last 2 years he has be moved around a lot and really don't know what position they see him playing, he isn't a defender, gets lost on the wing and really is a in the guts type of footballer.  Unfortunately, the club sees him behind a few for the role he should be playing.

Edited by drdrake
Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 minutes ago, america de cali said:

The lack of ruthlessness keep the likes of Jones playing for us well past his time. Many better players have been tapped on the shoulder at successful clubs. That’s the law of nature that our club seems to have forgotten. 

We did tap players on the shoulder in the past, only problem was that it led to Neeld being coach. 
 

Jones is a has been though.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 minutes ago, america de cali said:

The lack of ruthlessness keep the likes of Jones playing for us well past his time. Many better players have been tapped on the shoulder at successful clubs. That’s the law of nature that our club seems to have forgotten. 

I think you're moving the goal posts a bit now mate.

Your point was Jones wasn't hated like the players you mentioned. Opposition supporters don't generally bother hating clubs that aren't successful.

And as far as 'tapping on the shoulder' goes, he was still being selected by a coaching group that had no problems dropping Vince and Lewis, so I'm not sure you can categorically state he's deserving of that 'tap' without being inside the club.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 minutes ago, nacnud said:

We did tap players on the shoulder in the past, only problem was that it led to Neeld being coach. 
 

Jones is a has been though.

Our problems then were far deeper than a few ageing players. That has been well documented. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 minutes ago, america de cali said:

Our problems then were far deeper than a few ageing players. That has been well documented. 

True, get ourselves right off field and we can succeed on field.

Anyways, Jones is still playing mainly for the sake of leadership and with an actual preseason should hopefully improve on last year. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites


16 minutes ago, america de cali said:

Our problems then were far deeper than a few ageing players. That has been well documented. 

What else has been mentioned by coach and player during last season was the roles Jones was being given. If Jones was fulfilling those, then coach and player would be comfortable. We don't know the conversations that were had.

Jones will get games this year and will be given roles to carry out by the coach's. They may end up only being cameos but if they add value he may well get more time than people believe. When Crawford finally got his GF medal it wasn't just on sentiment it was playing a role. If memory serves, he didn't play every game that year, even when fit (think it was a little over half).

If Jones is managed correctly and we get to the finals he will find something within himself and the coach will know that.

I couldn't think of anything more fitting.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Jones deserves enormous respect from all Dees fans for his resilience during some really awful years. I can't see a role for him in our best 22 in 2020. He is a centre mid or he is not in the team. He would have been more highly regarded as a contested ball mid who could drift forward to kick a goal from the 50 if he'd played in better teams in his prime. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This conversation seems to resurface every few weeks. This is less about Nathan Jones and more about the 20 players on the list who failed to step up and take his spot last year.

Jones played 22 games last season because he was seen as a far better option, even when the season was shot, than the likes of JKH, Stretch, J.Wagner and a bunch of others who have previously been given many opportunities and failed every time.

I expect Jones to play round 1 and he will hold his spot until someone puts together a solid enough run of performances at Casey to take it off him. Given our lack of depth and his durability, there is every chance he will play game 300 in round 15.

  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

7 minutes ago, poita said:

This conversation seems to resurface every few weeks. This is less about Nathan Jones and more about the 20 players on the list who failed to step up and take his spot last year.

Jones played 22 games last season because he was seen as a far better option, even when the season was shot, than the likes of JKH, Stretch, J.Wagner and a bunch of others who have previously been given many opportunities and failed every time.

I expect Jones to play round 1 and he will hold his spot until someone puts together a solid enough run of performances at Casey to take it off him. Given our lack of depth and his durability, there is every chance he will play game 300 in round 15.

Good points. I hope our depth improves enough. 
we need it

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 minutes ago, BrisbaneDemon said:

He could be a real dangerous small forward, he’s a good kick at goal and a decent mark.

Dismissing the point that he's as slow as a wet week, and would apply next to zero forward pressure.

But, yeah, I'm sure he'd be a "real dangerous small forward"...

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

52 minutes ago, BrisbaneDemon said:

He could be a real dangerous small forward, he’s a good kick at goal and a decent mark.

Sorry that just simply isnt true. His marking has never been a feature. And even if he did make a decent small forward we need quality small forwards or need to develop them quickly. Cant cop jones being picked ahead of Pickett for example. 

Edited by Gouga
Link to comment
Share on other sites

56 minutes ago, BrisbaneDemon said:

He could be a real dangerous small forward, he’s a good kick at goal and a decent mark.

Decent mark?  Contested  marks 2019 - Nil.
For career,  27 at an average of 0.09 per game. 
He is a good kick for goal but he tends to hang off the contests just outside 50 waiting and calling for a teammate to win the ball and get it to him. Never mind looking after an opponent or winning the ball himself. Seriously if his teammates were deaf, he would never get the ball.

Edited by america de cali
  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites


  • 2 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...

I picture Jones being similar to what we had with Lewis and Vince in their last seasons, he’ll be in and out of the side potentially depending on injuries or demanding form. He will be valuable at times when younger blokes are tiring and he just knows how to get that extra 1% out of himself. 

He played very well in Marsh 1, so right now is in the 22 for round 1. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nathan deserves a lot of respect.

However, the last few seasons has shown that Nathan's time to finish has come.

It comes to everyone. Given the financial rewards these days, we see too many players trying to hang on to their careers. Nathan has given a lot to the club but the club and the game has given a lot to Nathan, his material lifestyle, and, his future. There are not many people that are able to set themselves up for life in their early 30's.  

Also there is a lot of ego involved. And there are plenty of people (friends, supporters and club personnel) encouraging a player to keep going. Gary Ablett is one example of this influence. .

As they say in the classics, its always better to go out on on top rather than on the slide. Ablett should have retired. Sure he is still a great player, but he has become a shadow of his former self. 

The easy decision for Nathan was to step aside as Captain. The harder decision was retirement.

He has chosen to go on. I think its a mistake both for Nathan and the club. It was time for him to take the burden off his shoulders.

He is the past and not the future. This is where a wise coach could have intervened and encouraged the player to retire with dignity. I suspect that if Clarkson had been the coach, the outcome would have been different.

If we have a successful year and he is part of it, then his decision to go on may seem the right one. However, if he retains his place in the team, it still stops the development of a young player or someone that could contribute to team success for several years.

If we have another poor year, then Nathan could become an embarrassment. And on a personal level, he will find it very difficult to motivate himself, given his comments on 2019.   

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, hemingway said:

Nathan deserves a lot of respect.

However, the last few seasons has shown that Nathan's time to finish has come.

It comes to everyone. Given the financial rewards these days, we see too many players trying to hang on to their careers. Nathan has given a lot to the club but the club and the game has given a lot to Nathan, his material lifestyle, and, his future. There are not many people that are able to set themselves up for life in their early 30's.  

Also there is a lot of ego involved. And there are plenty of people (friends, supporters and club personnel) encouraging a player to keep going. Gary Ablett is one example of this influence. .

As they say in the classics, its always better to go out on on top rather than on the slide. Ablett should have retired. Sure he is still a great player, but he has become a shadow of his former self. 

The easy decision for Nathan was to step aside as Captain. The harder decision was retirement.

He has chosen to go on. I think its a mistake both for Nathan and the club. It was time for him to take the burden off his shoulders.

He is the past and not the future. This is where a wise coach could have intervened and encouraged the player to retire with dignity. I suspect that if Clarkson had been the coach, the outcome would have been different.

If we have a successful year and he is part of it, then his decision to go on may seem the right one. However, if he retains his place in the team, it still stops the development of a young player or someone that could contribute to team success for several years.

If we have another poor year, then Nathan could become an embarrassment. And on a personal level, he will find it very difficult to motivate himself, given his comments on 2019.   

 

 

I agree with all of that except that he should have retired or been pushed. I think we've learnt our lesson from James McDonald's exit. Sometimes there are cultural intangibles that are more important than just the football. I have no doubt he understands if he's good enough he will play if he isn't he won't. But keeping him sends a clear cultural message of respect to the playing group which outweighs the cost of his position on the list. 

  • Like 1
  • Love 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

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...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Demonland Forums  

  • Match Previews, Reports & Articles  

    DEPTH CHARGE by Whispering Jack

    The jubilation on the coach’s face as he danced a celebratory jig by the playing bench after the final siren sounded to record his team’s four-point victory over the Demons when the teams last met, said it all.    On that rainy Friday night at the Adelaide Oval, Ken Hinkley’s young midfield secured much more than four points on offer. The victory over one of the big dogs of the competition after a succession of wins over some of its lesser lights gave his team respect and validation fo

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 5

    TRAINING: Monday 25th March 2024

    Demonland Trackwatchers Demon Dynasty & Kev Martin were trackside at Gosch's Paddock today to bring you their observations from training. DEMON DYNASTY'S TRAINING OBSERVATIONS Kade Chandler's left knee heavily strapped. BBB, Spargs & Jake Lever also in rehab group. Jake Bowey solo running separate kicking/sprint/agility drills. Super fine morning / early arvo at Gosch's for the boys to blow out some cobwebs. Choco initially had the light duties / rehab group

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Training Reports

    HIBERNATING by KC from Casey

    When they locked up the rooms for summer at the end of last year’s football season, the rooms gathered cobwebs, the atmosphere became dense and the place developed a sleepy feel. They opened up the rooms to let Casey out to play on Sunday but the team was still hibernating and they missed the bulk of the opening quarter. By the time they worked out it was game on, their opponents from Box Hill had accumulated five goals and, if the game wasn’t over, it might as well have been. For a se

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Casey Articles

    A FORK IN THE HAWK by George on the Outer

    For too long in the past, Demon fans became habitually sick and tired of watching the Hawks hand out thrashings to their side. But Melbourne’s empahtic 55-point win at the MCG on Saturday has truly put a fork in the Hawk and turned that history well and truly on its head. The Demons have now won nine of their last ten encounters with the other result, a draw.     And like a fork, it was the multi-pronged options that Melbourne had all across the ground.  It certainly helped that Hawthorn

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Match Reports 8

    PREGAME: Rd 03 vs Port Adelaide

    The Demons head on the road for the next 2 weeks as they travel to Adelaide to play Port on Saturday and then have a 5 Day break before facing the Crows in the Gather Round. With injuries to May and Lever who comes in and who goes out?

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 262

    PODCAST: Rd 02 vs Hawthorn

    The Demonland Podcast will air LIVE on Monday, 25th March @ 8:30pm. Join George, Binman & I as we analyse the Demons victory at the MCG against the Hawks in the Round 02. You questions and comments are a huge part of our podcast so please post anything you want to ask or say below and we'll give you a shout out on the show. If you would like to leave us a voicemail please call 03 9016 3666 and don't worry no body answers so you don't have to talk to a human. Listen & Chat

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 46

    VOTES: Rd 02 vs Hawthorn

    Last week Steven May took the lead in the Demonland Player of the Year Award from Jack Viney. Clayton Oliver & Max Gawn round out the Top 4. Your votes for the win/loss against/to the Hawks. 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 50

    POSTGAME: Rd 02 vs Hawthorn

    The Demons cruised to an easy 55 point win over the Hawks at the MCG but but paid a heavy toll on the injury front with Steven May & Jake Lever possibly sidelined for a number of weeks.

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 357

    GAMEDAY: Rd 02 vs Hawthorn

    It's Game Day and after mixed results in the first two weeks of the season the Demons have the opportunity to capitalise on their good form last week when they take on the Hawks at the MCG today.

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 437
  • Tell a friend

    Love Demonland? Tell a friend!

  • Podcast 

  • Podcast 

  • Podcast Stream 


    Open Stream in
    New Window
        TuneIn    Opens in New Tab
  • Support Demonland  



  • 2021 Premiership  

  • Social Media 

  • Non MFC Games  

    NON-MFC: Round 03

    Discussion of all the other games that don't involve the Demons in Round 03 ... READ MORE

    Demonland | Round 03

  • Match Preview      

    DEPTH CHARGE by Whispering Jack

    The jubilation on the coach’s face as he danced a celebratory jig by the playing bench after the final siren sounded to record his team’s four-point victory over the Demons when the teams last met, said it all ... READ MORE

    Demonland | March 27

  • Latest Podcast      

    PODCAST: Rd 02 vs Hawthorn

    The boys dissected the clinical thrashing of Hawks praising the immense performance of Christian Petracca whilst lamenting the injury toll to our defensive unit ... LISTEN

    Demonland | March 26

  • Training  

    Monday, 25th March 2024

    Demonland Trackwatchers Demon Dynasty & Kev Martin were trackside at Gosch's Paddock today to bring you their observations from training ... READ MORE

    Demonland | March 25

  • Casey Report      

    HIBERNATING by KC from Casey

    When they locked up the rooms for summer at the end of last year’s football season, the rooms gathered cobwebs, the atmosphere became dense and the place developed a sleepy feel. They opened up the rooms to let Casey out to play on Sunday but the team was still hibernating and they missed the bulk of the opening quarter ... READ MORE

    Demonland | March 25

  • PreGame      

    PREGAME: Rd 03 vs Port Adelaide

    The Demons head out on the road for the next 2 weeks as they travel to Adelaide to play Port on Saturday and then have a 5 Day break before facing the Crows in Gather Round. With injuries to May and Lever who comes in and who goes out? ...READ MORE

    Demonland | March 28

  • Match Report      

    A FORK IN THE HAWK by George on the Outer

    For too long in the past, Demon fans became habitually sick and tired of watching the Hawks hand out thrashings to their side. But Melbourne’s empahtic 55-point win at the MCG on Saturday has truly put a fork in the Hawk and turned that history well and truly on its head ... READ MORE

    Demonland | March 23

  • Post Game      

    POSTGAME: Rd 02 vs Hawthorn

    The Demons cruised to an easy 55 point win over the Hawks at the MCG but but paid a heavy toll on the injury front with Steven May & Jake Lever possibly sidelined for a number of weeks ...READ MORE

    Demonland | March 23

  • Votes      

    VOTES: Rd 02 vs Hawthorn

    Last week Steven May took the lead in the Demonland Player of the Year Award from Jack Viney. Clayton Oliver & Max Gawn round out the Top 4. Your votes for the win/loss against/to the Hawks. 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 ...READ MORE

    Demonland | March 23

  • Game Day      

    GAMEDAY: Round 02 vs Hawthorn

    It's Game Day and after mixed results in the first two weeks of the season the Demons have the opportunity to capitalise on their good form last week when they take on the Hawks at the MCG today ... READ MORE

    Demonland | March 23

  • Training  

    Friday, 22nd March 2024

    Demonland Trackwatcher Kev Martin and I attended the Captain's Run at Gosch's Paddock on this lovely sunny morning to bring you the following observations from the training session ... READ MORE

    Demonland | March 22

  • Training  

    Tuesday, 19th March 2024

    Demonland Trackwatchers Kev Martin & Walking Civil War attended Tuesday morning's training session at Gosch's Paddock to bring you the following observations ... READ MORE

    Demonland | March 19

  • Training  

    Saturday, 16th March 2024

    Demonland Trackwatchers Kev Martin and Dee Zephyr wandered down to Gosch's Paddock on Saturday morning to bring you their observations from the Captain's Run in the lead up to Sunday's Round One match against the Bulldogs ... READ MORE

    Demonland | March 16

  • Farewell  

    Angus Brayshaw Retires

    After 167 games including the drought breaking Premiership Angus Brayshaw has made the heart breaking decision to medically retire from football as a result of a series of serious head knocks over his nearly decade of footy. We wish Gus all the best and he'll always be a hero at Demonland ... READ MORE

    Demonland | February 22

  • Latest Podcast  

    PODCAST: Koltyn Tholstrup Interview

    I interview the Melbourne Football Club’s newest recruit Koltyn Tholstrup to have a chat about his journey from the farm to the Demons, his first few weeks of preseason training, which Dees have impressed him on the track and his aspirations of playing Round 1 ... LISTEN

    Demonland | December 14

  • Latest Podcast  

    PODCAST: Jason Taylor Interview

    I interview the Melbourne Football Club's National Recruitment Manager Jason Taylor to have a chat about our Trade and Draft period, our newest recruits, our recent recruits who have yet to debut as well as those father son prospects on the horizon ... LISTEN

    Demonland | November 27

  • Next Match 

    .

    Round 03

       vs   

    Saturday 30th March 2024
    @ 07:30pm (AO)

  • MFC Forum  

  • Match Previews & Reports  

  • Training Forum  

  • AFLW Forum  

  • 2024 Player Sponsorship

  • Topics

  • Injury List  


      PLAYER INJURY LENGTH
    Jake Lever Knee Test
    Clayton Oliver Hand Test
    Oliver Sestan Concussion Test
    Steven May Ribs 1 Week
    Lachie Hunter Calf 1 Week
    Daniel Turner Hip 2-3 Weeks
    Charlie Spargo Achilles 2-4 Weeks
    Shane McAdam Hamstring 3-5 Weeks
    Jake Bowey Shoulder 7 Weeks
    Jake Melksham ACL 12-14 Weeks
    Joel Smith Suspension TBA

  • Player of the Year  


        PLAYER VOTES
    1 Christian Petracca 27
    2 Steven May 25
    3 Max Gawn 21
    4 Jack Viney 20
    5 Bayley Fritsch 19
    6 Clayton Oliver 18
    7 Christian Salem 12
    8 Blake Howes 11
    9 Jack Billings 10
    9 Alex Neal-Bullen 10

        FULL TABLE
  • Demonland Interviews 



  • Upcoming Events 

×
×
  • Create New...