Official thread for the 2020 Members Forum starting at 6:30pm. 

 

Opening speaker is Chairman Glen Bartlett.

Where is the Melbourne room at the MCG - I assume it is in the MCC?

Bartlett:

* Thanked Members and Sponsors.

* Home Base - rest assured working very hard on it. Most important project for the club. Looking at a number of sites. Proximity to the G is important. Getting the site right is important.

* Welcomed New coaches Yze and Williams

* Welcomed new players and said Ben Brown will speak later

* 600 questions submitted by members.

* Thanked all staff at the club during the challenging year.

* Thanked those that left due to financial reasons.

I unfortunately can't make it. Still super busy with work commitments.

I have 2 questions and 1 statement.

Question 1 - What is happening when the home training base? When will it be announced? Where will it exactly be? How much will it cost?

Statement 1 - Congratulations on appointing Mark "Choco" Williams as Head of Development. We are over the moon about it and we are looking forward to him working closely with our Demons players and helping them develop.

Question 2 - This is merely a suggestion but would it be possible to get the Demons players to look to creating a "Creed" for the Melbourne Football Club? Something similar to what Fos Williams (Mark's Father) did at the Port Adelaide Football Club? I think it would be something beneficial to implement as long as it had player and coaching staff contributions and also be something to help with developing a stronger culture at the Demons.

That's my 2 cents that I would like for someone on my behalf to please ask at the Melbourne Demons Members Forum. Thank you.

A question I just thought of that I wish I'd asked is what kind of induction do new players get to the club? Are they inducted into the history of the club and what it means to wear the jumper? After all we don't give them out in Weeties packets as our Pres said 

The question I asked was around the location and/or timeline of the new base but obviously we're getting nothing on that tonight. Would be great if they could at least let members know what the timeline is for finalising the location and being able to communicate this to members.

Pert:

• Talked about End of Year Review and changes made and how it's being implemented
• $3 million cut by the AFL out of the soft cap - lost 30% of staff across the board
• Leadership at the club - Alan Richardson in charge of the AFL men's program - installing new assistants
• Targeted Yze because he is acknowledged as one of the best assistants in the AFL. Been great from day one, bringing great IP to the club
• Stafford - made Max the best ruckman at the club - now has a broader assistant role - working with the forward line
• Chaplin - backline was solid all year in an up and down year - focus on developing the backline further in 2021
• On field consistency is key factor - psychological and physical resilience
• Consistent performance within a game is the key goal.
• consistency between games - too much variation from week to week in 2020.
• See our best football as good as the Geelongs etc but too much drop off from week to week.
• Best teams are the ones that can execute consistency and players have to be the drivers of this.
• Standards and discipline is important
• 2020 was the toughest year we have been through
• Psychological resilience is important and will be worked on
• Physical resilience with Burgess - had healthiest list and players were the fittest they have ever been.
• 2020 was only the First year of the program - 2nd year will be a step up.
• Skill execution against top teams needs to be worked on. (including goal kicking)
• Williams will be a great teacher
• Elite training facilities - Preseason will be done exclusively at Casey on the MCG sized ground. Will make a huge difference
• Built an indoor kicking facility that every other club has to be used during the year regardless of the weather.
• Number 1 off season priority is the Home Base - AFL standard and sized ground, with indoor facilities
• Game style and list management - players and coaches have confidence in the current game style. Supporters not so sure but coaches and players are very confident that it will work.
• Few tweaks from new assistants

Tim Lamb (List Manager)

• Trade Review
• Aims
• Tall Forward Support - Attract and facilitate a Trade for a Tall Forward to support Sam Weideman and Luke Jackson
• Execute Preuss Trade - Obtain Best possible outcome for club
• Mitch Hannan trade - obtain best possible outcome for club
• Enhance Draft position - work way up the order
• Starting point draft position - 25, 53, 62, 63
• End point 18, 19, 28 50
• Start of Period - Preuss, hannan,  future first pick, pick 26, pick 53, future rd 2, future rd3, future rd 4
• End of Period - Ben Brown, Pick 18 & 19, Pick 28, Pick 50, Future rd2 Bris, Future Rd 3 WB, Future Rd4 NM
• Over 2 year period
• 6 x Top 30
• 2019 Jackson, Pickett, Rivers
• 2020 Bowey, Laurie, Rosman
• Included in those are 6 are 4 first rounders
• Attracted experience to fill needs Langdon, Tomlinson, Brown and injected a new core of young talent

New Demon Q & A

Ben Brown

• Dees were clear stand out for him - Goody, Burgo, Gawn & Viney presented to him
• Currently in Tassie
• Can't wait for training in January
• Hasn't played a lot on the G
• Excited about playing more on the G
• Played his first game on the G against the DeeS
• Won 7 out of 8 against the Dees
• Has been for a run with Maxy and a few boys already
• Excited for the new chapter
• Knee feeling good
• Burgo has made a big impression on him
• Will be fit to start in January
• Feels like he has the level of footy to kick 60 goals again.
• Looking forward to working with Weid, LJ, Spargo and Fritsch in the Forward line
• Hair immaculate.

Jake Bowey

• Feels blessed to be drafted
• see himself as Outside mid/high half forward
• good vertical leap for a 175cm to play taller

Bailey Laurie

• Excited to get stuck into it
• Good inside 50
• Happy to play wherever

Fraser Rosman

• Can't wait to get started at a great club and it's going in a good direction
• pushed himself during covid break to train hard
• 194cm wingman
• Endurance and speed
• GOOD ONE ON ONE MARKING
• wants to earn respect of team mates.

What has happened to goody's hair?

 

45 mins in and nobody has mentioned learnings. So far so good. 

2 minutes ago, binman said:

What has happened to goody's hair?

 

And a three day growth. He's either starting to loosen up or is living out of his car. 

Simon Goodwin

• Thanked supporters for their support during difficult year
• No excuses
• Give context for 2020 by talking about toughness of being away from family, the compressed draw, shortened breaks and lots of travel
• lost preseason fitness advantage due to covid break
• cancelled game
• failed to make finals
• acknowledged Cairns games as the reason
• Will learn from all these lessons
• Need to survive the turnover game
• Improve accuracy
• Improve forward 50 efficiency
• Greater level of consistency - Port, Freo, Sydney, Geelong games
• Resetting the coaching staff
• Sounds like he's getting very emotional

Goody got super nervous/anxious it seems. He is definitely not a natural public speaker. No crowd there so who knows what the issue is. 

Max Gawn

• Full journal of notes on 2020
• Built huge relationship with teammates in 2020
• Talked about his relationship with Jimmy Stynes when arriving at the club
• Talks about doing things differently due to his personailty
• Hard to watch Bulldogs/Freo game with destiny out of our hands
• Didn't want to fight for 8. wanted top 4
• Already training despite not required to along with Trac, Salem, Melksham, Lever, TMac
• Expectations for 2021
• more consistency
• Harmesy, Jetta, Jones starting training tomorrow
• Thanked Ben Matthews - his midfield coach since Roosy
• Meeting Williams tomorrow
• Has to share Stafford with the forwards and not have him one on one anymore
• 2 sessions with Yze already and will be great for the midfield
• Yze will unite the midfield as one to be one of the best midfields in the comp
• Acknowledged OMac's contribution to the club

8 minutes ago, Demonland said:

Simon Goodwin

• Thanked supporters for their support during difficult year
• No excuses
• Give context for 2020 by talking about toughness of being away from family, the compressed draw, shortened breaks and lots of travel
• lost preseason fitness advantage due to covid break
• cancelled game
• failed to make finals
• acknowledged Cairns games as the reason
• Will learn from all these lessons
• Need to survive the turnover game
• Improve accuracy
• Improve forward 50 efficiency
• Greater level of consistency - Port, Freo, Sydney, Geelong games
• Resetting the coaching staff
• Sounds like he's getting very emotional

Improve 50 efficiency 

Improve accuracy 

These crucial points should have been set in stone 4 years ago. We are a Top 4 side with AFL Standard kicking efficiently. 
At least it has finally been mentioned 

Darren Burgess

• Tough year on the fitness front in 2020
• challenge but they got through well with duress they were under
• players handled the hub really well
• challenge for the staff
• had extremely hard draw with travel on day of games and compressed fixture
• had to call on medical professionals at short notice to help out in hub
• shorter preseason period this year which is a good thing
• 75 rotations and 20 min quarters in 2021
• changes in staff - New Head Doctor that worked in our hub this year.
• appointed new physio guy from the Blues
• lost phil merrymen from fitness team
• selwyn griffiths from the lions will be great addition
• high performance team is as good as any he's worked with
• offseason program is brutual
• players have come back in fantastic condition

No conference for AFLW

9 games

3 Week Finals

17 minutes ago, binman said:

Goody got super nervous/anxious it seems. He is definitely not a natural public speaker. No crowd there so who knows what the issue is. 

The writing is on the wall binman, he knows it might be his last year.

23 minutes ago, Demonland said:

Jake Bowey

• Feels blessed to be drafted
• see himself as Outside mid/high half forward
• good verticle leap for a 175cm to play taller

Bailey Laurie

• Excited to get stuck into it
• Good inside 50
• Happy to play whereever

Fraser Rosman

• Can't wait to get started at a great club and it's going in a good direction
• pushed himself during covid break to train hard
• 194cm wingman
• Endurance and speed
• GOOD ONE ON ONE MARKING
• wants to earn respect of team mates.

I enjoyed the part where he did an assessment of himself being a difficult match up for opponents on the wing, considering his height, endurance and speed.

Verbatim - "put a normal sized winger on me and I'll out mark them, put a bigger guy on me and I'll get them with my running/endurance/speed".

Very confident young fella ?

Q & A

• TMac lost about 5kgs and will play initially as a forward but don't rule out positional change
• Other clubs are getting funding for home base development because they already have a site - we don't because we don't have a site. Very clear that we want to be based near the G. Pert can't wait to announce something in the future
• Questions re: cuts to footy department and how it will impact - Richo answered that we won't be wanting for anything. Less people at the club but we've brought in some great people (Yze). Some people are going part time but players won't notice.
• Question about ruthlessness - Goody talked about being consistent week to week, quarter to quarter.

 

We have our first learnings mention.

2 minutes ago, Demonland said:

We have our first learnings mention.

??‍♂️

31 minutes ago, binman said:

Goody got super nervous/anxious it seems. He is definitely not a natural public speaker. No crowd there so who knows what the issue is. 

He lost it. I hope we haven't cooked him mentally.