Tomorrow night, if there is any justice left on the planet, Melbourne players will be celebrating a historic premiership which will finally end years of disappointment for everyone associated with the club. It almost goes without saying that the congratulatory focus will be with those most prominently involved on the day such as : the players,  coaches and the club president. 

However there are many many more people who have made a contribution which is largely overlooked. The first of these is the supporters who have passed away since 1964. In my case, my brother who had been a member of the coterie passed away in Papua New Guinea in 2011 as well as another member of the Bull Ring group who was killed in a traffic accident near the Botanical Gardens ,

Just now, Mydee said:

Tomorrow night, if there is any justice left on the planet, Melbourne players will be celebrating a historic premiership which will finally end years of disappointment for everyone associated with the club. It almost goes without saying that the congratulatory focus will be with those most prominently involved on the day such as : the players,  coaches and the club president. 

However there are many many more people who have made a contribution which is largely overlooked. The first of these is the supporters who have passed away since 1964. In my case, my brother who had been a member of the coterie passed away in Papua New Guinea in 2011 as well as another member of the Bull Ring group who was killed in a traffic accident near the Botanical Gardens ,

Nice words mate. Many things have happened since we last held the cup aloft.

if we get up I will break my self imposed (health related) abstinence to have a drink in memory of all Dees who are not around to share the celebrations.

 

I like the idea of this, it goes to those from the club who are no longer there that played a role in the clubs survival. I'm thinking people like Diamond Joe, Jim, PJ, Roos, Daniher, Jnr, Green, Robbo, Flower, Lyon, etc.

To continue

I am sure that almost every supporter will have similar experiences with their deceased  loved ones, but we all should be proud of those friends and family who contributed through the bleak times and  stuck fast.

Through those times I encountered some remarkable examples of people who stood tall while many others did nothing much. I left Melbourne to take up a job interstate in 1993. At this stage Melbourne was languishing on the bottom of the ladder (10th).  Melbourne games were rarely televised on TV and we would rely on Video tapes to see the games after they were played, Most of the time we didn't get to see our team. Rod Grinter seemed to get the job of liaising with the interstate .  supporter groups. He would send us Video tapes of the games which always arrived. I will never forget that.

Similarly a friend of mine's father transferred from Collingwood to Melbourne in the1930s and played 1 game for us ,his only senior game for both clubs. As an MFC member I undertook to find out more about his football career The archivist was passionate about the background and playing information on all players. These people actually gave a stuff.

 

All the best Tomorrow I will be watching but with a heart pang because I can't be there

 

Edited September 24, 20214 yr by Mydee

30 minutes ago, faultydet said:

Nice words mate. Many things have happened since we last held the cup aloft.

if we get up I will break my self imposed (health related) abstinence to have a drink in memory of all Dees who are not around to share the celebrations.

 

I would love to be with you for that

 

2 hours ago, faultydet said:

Nice words mate. Many things have happened since we last held the cup aloft.

if we get up I will break my self imposed (health related) abstinence to have a drink in memory of all Dees who are not around to share the celebrations.

 

I'm a bit of a teetotaler as well @faultydet, but if our boys get up i'll definitely be having a celebratory beer with my old man.

39 minutes ago, Demon Disciple said:

I'm a bit of a teetotaler as well @faultydet, but if our boys get up i'll definitely be having a celebratory beer with my old man.

It's the family aspect of this that has me so excited.

So many others have been able to have a quiet (or rowdy, your choice) drink with their family members to celebrate a flag except for the rare few, Demons included.

If the boys can get over the line tomorrow, I will be getting happily pickled knowing that so many others will be sharing that special feeling together.

In a similar vein this is a lovely tribute to the players we have lost too soon.