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Is this the best Demons side of the last 57 years?

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I have vague memories of 2000 and only truly got interested in footy in 2004, but since then this is clearly our best team.

I'd be very interested to see what 2018 Melbourne in the middle of the 19 quarters of footy won in a row (with an average of like 18 goals a game) would be able to do against this side. I expect they'd kick about 7 goals and lose by 4, as every other side this year has.

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    6 minutes ago, Chook said:

    I have vague memories of 2000 and only truly got interested in footy in 2004, but since then this is clearly our best team.

    I'd be very interested to see what 2018 Melbourne in the middle of the 19 quarters of footy won in a row (with an average of like 18 goals a game) would be able to do against this side. I expect they'd kick about 7 goals and lose by 4, as every other side this year has.

    Anyone doubting the ESS 2000 side as one of the all time greats is kidding themselves. They were going indestructible and we had no chance from the get go. This year WE are the team everyone else fears and can only LOSE it from here. We can’t be beaten

    Of course im extremely confident we will do it

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    Has to be.

    Has genuine stars. Oliver, Gawn, Trac, Lever and May.

    Has players willing to sacrifice themselves for the team. 

    Is supremely fit.

    Has a great game plan.

    Good blend of experience and youth.

    Seems to thrive in the big games with Collingwood the only team it hasn't beaten this year.

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    I'd say we still have room for improvement. I believe the real Demons will be coming next year. They might look like such: when they play weaker teams, game over by half time; against good teams, got total control by 3rd quarter. They'd win more1st quarters. They'd kick more goals then behinds.

     

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    Easily the best Melbourne side of my lifetime. As much as I fondly remember some players from that early 2000s side, we currently have 3 of the top 10 players in the game, 2 of the best defenders in the game and a lot of young talent to round it out.

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    i can only talk since 71 which is the year i really got the demon bug. def the best in my time. Yes i loved the schwartz, Lyon, charles, jakovich era but they were only ever great in patches, they weren’t half the “ team” of this group. We’ve sat on top most of the year and even our losses were a shock usually to bottom teams. 

    IF they win the next two and take the flag then they would have won 20 games, drawn another and lost just 4 times. Without fully researching that I reckon that may put them up there in the top 10 ish of  the most dominant teams of any club of any era. 
     

    so, already best in my time. win the next two and i think we can start talking about them in even bigger terms . 

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    6 hours ago, MrReims said:

    Anyone doubting the ESS 2000 side as one of the all time greats is kidding themselves. They were going indestructible and we had no chance from the get go. This year WE are the team everyone else fears and can only LOSE it from here. We can’t be beaten

    Of course im extremely confident we will do it

    2000 we had a brilliant team - gets lost because of how good Essendon was. I know footy was more open back then however we destroyed teams that year on the scoreboard. This is the most complete Dees team I've seen however it needs to make the GF first to be considered the best IMHO

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    I have seen the teams from the 1950's and 1960's so this team is much better than the 1964 team which had Graeme Wise as the only ruckman.

    The parallels of the 1964 and 2021 side is defence but the onballers in this side are much better.

    This side must win premierships first before comparing them to the teams of the 1955, 1956, 1957 1959 and 1960 who all had great defences and great onballers.

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    Two more wins.  It’s so close. 
     

    I remember 1988 and 2000 excellent teams but in the GF, it gets brutal.  No next week. 
     

    This side will need to be careful of the physical side of footy.  Winning contested footy is one thing.  Hard hits on the body and attacking the man get deployed in the GF. 

    Opposition may try to rough up Trac, Clarry, Max or even youngsters like Bowey.  We will need to be disciplined.  That’s one thing we’ve yet to get tested in. 

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    This is the best team in terms of individual awards/performances but they have yet to make a GF. They need to make it and then win it to be considered best since 64 or they will be rated the same as 88 and 2000.

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    My strong recollection of our Melbourne teams only goes back to about 1992, and it's fair to say that this is the best team we've had by some margin.

     

    The only team who I think would challenge this team would be our team from 98'. Gawn/Jackson v White/Stynes in the ruck. Midfield of Petracca/Oliver/Viney/Langdon/Brayshaw v Viney/Leoncelli/Rigoni/Yze/Tingay. And our defense of May/Lever/Petty/Salem/Bowey up against Neitz/Schwarz/Farmer/Lyon/Roberson. And while we have the likes of Jones/Hibberd/Melksham in the 2's, they had G. Lovett/S. Smith/Johnstone.

    This team is much more sound structurally though. Best chance for a premiership in my life time!

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    Yes. 1987 team never would have beaten Carlton in the grand final. Flower, Lyon and Wilson wouldn’t have played. Carlton had easily beat us that year.

    1988 team went through a bad slump and in the end was lucky to make it. Hawthorn we’re far too strong.

    1998 team was good but too unpredictable to really go all the way.

    2000 face facts, we were playing for second all year. Nearly got beaten by Carlton in the elimination final.

     

    This is the best team I’ve seen and I’m not young either

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    6 minutes ago, Cassiew said:

    Yes. 1987 team never would have beaten Carlton in the grand final. Flower, Lyon and Wilson wouldn’t have played. Carlton had easily beat us that year.

    1988 team went through a bad slump and in the end was lucky to make it. Hawthorn we’re far too strong.

    1998 team was good but too unpredictable to really go all the way.

    2000 face facts, we were playing for second all year. Nearly got beaten by Carlton in the elimination final.

     

    This is the best team I’ve seen and I’m not young either

    Carlton was the qualifying final

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    9 minutes ago, ucanchoose said:

    Carlton was the qualifying final

    That what I meant

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    Easily the best since 1964. The 1964 side was just beginning the slide after 10 great years hastened of course when Barassi left and Norm Smith was sacked.

    We had some pretty good teams in the late 80's, 90's and our last GF when ND ran the show. Those teams always had bad luck heading towards finals and we seemed to lose a good player each game through injury as well as during finals.

    Way more depth and talent now. With all the young players in the team we should be up for a while.

    We now also have a top shelf off field leadership. Coaching/development/fitness  great and recruitment/list management great.

     

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    I was thinking about starting a new thread but this current topic is pretty much the same.

    My question:

    When was the last time we were unequivocally the best team left in the finals series and favourites for the flag?

    From my limited recollection:

    2018 - Richmond/WCE the clear favourites

    2002/2004/2005/2006 - Certainly not us.

    2000 - Essendon hands down.

    1998 - North

    1994 - West Coast/Geelong

    1988 - Hawks

    1987 - Carlton?

    1964?

    I’m of firm belief that this flag is ours to lose, and anyone else who wins it is the underdog.

     

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    There's the best team and the one with the best chance of winning. I think we are certainly the latter and if we win will also be the best team

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    On 8/29/2021 at 12:42 AM, MrReims said:

    Anyone doubting the ESS 2000 side as one of the all time greats is kidding themselves. They were going indestructible and we had no chance from the get go. This year WE are the team everyone else fears and can only LOSE it from here. We can’t be beaten

    Of course im extremely confident we will do it

    Essendon 1999 where also as good and in a one off upset lost to Carlton. I'm quietly hopeful and definately or best team I've seen. I'm 42. But one off games can always go not the way you'd think.

    Edited by Bates Mate

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    I don't really remember ever a Demons team playing so well as team. It is exciting but I don't want to get too overly confident. We haven't won anything yet! 

    I remember the Demons teams of 1994, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2018. They all had flaws of being inconsistent.

    The feel of this year is weird, especially being stuck in lockdown here in Melbourne. Will the Demons team of 2021 be able to break Norm Smith's curse? Who knows? A few months ago before a Melbourne Demons game at the MCG I made the effort to go and personally apologise to Norm Smith at his statue before the game. I don't know if it means much but I felt it was something that I needed to do. I wasn't born when Norm Smith was sacked but I wanted to say sorry for how he was treated and I hope that he could forgive us.

    We will wait and see what happens I guess? I am hopeful that we have a team that might be able to finally end the suffering we have endured for 57 years. Fingers crossed!

    I AM MELBOURNE THROUGH AND THROUGH!

    GO DEMONS!

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