Jump to content

Number 2

Timothy Reddan-A'Blew
Timothy Reddan-A'Blew
in Melbourne Demons

Featured Replies

Posted

Consideration of symbolism - indeed the thirst for it - has steadily gathered baggage these last 57 years, proxying success and sometimes in a fond hope of creating it.

Now we are gloriously baggage free.

I've been thinking Nathan Jones needs to be recognised in some permanent way. Membership of Saturday's 23 would have sufficed but that wasn't to be.

And Nathan's story of devotion through protracted darkness is uniquely paralleled (possibly slightly surpassed?) by that other Number 2, Robbie Flower, for whom permanent recognition is also due, indeed long over.

Other major sports attach great honour to the retirement of numbers, and to the ceremony and curation that surrounds it, so I'm thinking this might be a fit recognition for Nathan - and Robbie - to suggest to the Club. I think it might have been considered before? But that was while we had baggage. And I don't think there will be future rush on other numbers; what Nathan and Robbie did was of a magnitude apart.

Still, it may be a bridge too far for the Club. At least, then, could Nathan - on his and Robbie's behalf - be charged with the selection of future wearers of Number 2?

Thoughts?

 

  • Quote
    •  

    Thought about the concept of retiring numbers recently, but decided against it as I love watching Gawn running around in Jimmy's old number etc. 

    It's  a shame most of the MFC based awards are already coddled up to a name

  • Quote
    • Like 2
     
    2 minutes ago, La Dee-vina Comedia said:

    I'd like Nathan Jones to be invited to unfurl the Premierhip flag at our first home game next year.

    I was thinking similar earlier. First home game next year will be massive for the flag and giving Jonesy a farewell.

  • Quote
    • Like 1

    I'd love to see the number 2 get handed over, so Nathan jones has a presentation with the new number 2 and hands the jumper over. 

    Personally i'd love to see it go to Angus Brayshaw, the selfless and couragous game he played, IMO he turned the game, i'll never forget it

  • Quote
    • Like 1
    16 minutes ago, Dwight Schrute said:

    I'd love to see the number 2 get handed over, so Nathan jones has a presentation with the new number 2 and hands the jumper over. 

    Personally i'd love to see it go to Angus Brayshaw, the selfless and couragous game he played, IMO he turned the game, i'll never forget it

    Its a nice thought, but I believe in players not changing their numbers and making it their own.  It worked for Gawn, but didn't for Farmer (who went back to his original no.)...

  • Quote

    I’d like to see Tom Sparrow get it

  • Quote
    • Like 10
    • Love 1
     

    If we're lucky enough to salute again in the coming years I would love to see him present the cup on stage.

  • Quote
    • Like 1
    • Love 1

     

    55 minutes ago, Dwight Schrute said:

    I'd love to see the number 2 get handed over, so Nathan jones has a presentation with the new number 2 and hands the jumper over. 

    Personally i'd love to see it go to Angus Brayshaw, the selfless and couragous game he played, IMO he turned the game, i'll never forget it

    I back this, I came here to comment about asking Angus Brayshaw and see if he wants it

  • Quote

    I'm not a fan of retiring numbers although "resting" No.2 for a couple of years might be appropriate.

    We've rested No. 2 before after Robbie retired. As I recall - and @picket fence might remember, Flower wasn't comfortable with his number being out of action. Eventually he went to training and asked the playing group who thought they were good enough to take it on. A young blonde winger stuck his hand up and said "I'll take it". And Stephen Tingay carried on the No. 2 with great distinction.

    Maybe Jonesy can anoint his successor in that great jumper

  • Quote
    • Like 2
    3 hours ago, Pennant St Dee said:

    I’d like to see Tom Sparrow get it

    What’s wrong with 32?

  • Quote
    3 hours ago, La Dee-vina Comedia said:

    I'd like Nathan Jones to be invited to unfurl the Premierhip flag at our first home game next year.

    This please. 

  • Quote

    Some great suggestions on here. I never thought about someone else in the team taking it over from Jonesy. But most of the mature crop probably has their own story with their own number by now. From the new lot,  Kozzy #36 has ties to Davey and Garlett, but not sure about Dogga, Bowey, Rivers or Laurie. I'd let Jonesy decide what he wants to do or give it to.

    He absolutely has to unfurl the flag. There is nobody else - nobody - that deserves to do this more. Combine that up with a proper farewell

  • Quote
    15 minutes ago, Dockett 32 said:

    What’s wrong with 32?

    There’s nothing wrong with it but Sparrow is a young bull and now a Premiership player. With number 2 now up for grabs, Sparrow may want to move to a lower number (as players like to do). I reckon he’d be deserving of it. 

  • Quote
    • Like 1

    59 minutes ago, Ethan Tremblay said:

    There’s nothing wrong with it but Sparrow is a young bull and now a Premiership player. With number 2 now up for grabs, Sparrow may want to move to a lower number (as players like to do). I reckon he’d be deserving of it. 

    I've never understood why this is the case. If I had been a professional AFL player, I'd like to hold on to whatever number I was given for the whole of my career. There have been plenty of great footballers in double digit numbers such as Ron Barassi, Alex Jesaulenko, Robert Walls and Peter Knights, just to name a few that come immediately to mind 

  • Quote
    10 minutes ago, La Dee-vina Comedia said:

    I've never understood why this is the case. If I had been a professional AFL player, I'd like to hold on to whatever number I was given for the whole of my career. There have been plenty of great footballers in double digit numbers such as Ron Barassi, Alex Jesaulenko, Robert Walls and Peter Knights, just to name a few that come immediately to mind 

    I believe it’s because the lower jumper numbers involve less sewing. 

  • Quote
    • Like 2
    3 hours ago, Dockett 32 said:

    What’s wrong with 32?

    Nothing, but whilst they may wish to pave their own path, outside of # 31 I think 2 and 11 hold great significance for the club.

    Flower and Jones were shining lights in very dark times for our club

  • Quote

    • 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

    • PREVIEW: Fremantle

      A month is a long time in AFL football. The proof of this is in the current state of the two teams contesting against each other early this Saturday afternoon at the MCG. It’s hard to fathom that when Melbourne and Fremantle kicked off the 2025 season, the former looked like being a major player in this year’s competition after it came close to beating one of the favourites in the GWS Giants while the latter was smashed by Geelong to the tune of 78 points and looked like rubbish. Fast forward to today and the Demons are low on confidence and appear panic stricken as their winless streak heads towards an even half dozen and pressure mounts on the coach and team leadership.  Meanwhile, the Dockers have recovered their composure and now sit in the top eight. They are definitely on the up and up and look most likely winners this weekend against a team which they have recently dominated and which struggles to find enough passages to the goals to trouble the scorers. And with that, Fremantle will head to the MCG, feeling very good about itself after demolishing Richmond in the Barossa Valley with Josh Treacy coming off a six goal haul and facing up to a Melbourne defence already without Jake Lever and a shaky Steven May needing to pass a fitness test just to make it onto the field of play. 

        • Thanks
        • Like
      • 0 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • NON-MFC: Round 06

      The Easter Round kicks off in style with a Thursday night showdown between Brisbane and Collingwood, as both sides look to solidify their spots inside the Top 4 early in the season. Good Friday brings a double-header, with Carlton out to claim consecutive wins when they face the struggling Kangaroos, while later that night the Eagles host the Bombers in Perth, still chasing their first victory of the year. Saturday features another marquee clash as the resurgent Crows look to rebound from back-to-back losses against a formidable GWS outfit. That evening, all eyes will be on Marvel Stadium where Damien Hardwick returns to face his old side—the Tigers—coaching the Suns at a ground he's never hidden his disdain for. Sunday offers two crucial contests where the prize is keeping touch with the Top 8. First, Sydney and Port Adelaide go head-to-head, followed by a fierce battle between the Bulldogs and the Saints. Then, Easter Monday delivers the traditional clash between two bitter rivals, both desperate for a win to stay in touch with the top end of the ladder. Who are you tipping this week and what are the best results for the Demons?

        • Thanks
      • 102 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • REPORT: Essendon

      What were they thinking? I mean by “they” the coaching panel and team selectors who chose the team to play against an opponent who, like Melbourne, had made a poor start to the season and who they appeared perfectly capable of beating in what was possibly the last chance to turn the season around.It’s no secret that the Demons’ forward line is totally dysfunctional, having opened the season barely able to average sixty points per game which means there has been no semblance of any system from the team going forward into attack. Nevertheless, on Saturday night at the Adelaide Oval in one of the Gather Round showcase games, Melbourne, with Max Gawn dominating the hit outs against a depleted Essendon ruck resulting from Nick Bryan’s early exit, finished just ahead in clearances won and found itself inside the 50 metre arc 51 times to 43. The end result was a final score that had the Bombers winning 15.6 (96) to 8.9 (57). On balance, one could expect this to result in a two or three goal win, but in this case, it translated into a six and a half goal defeat because they only managed to convert eight times or 11.68% of their entries. The Bombers more than doubled that. On Thursday night at the same ground, the losing team Adelaide managed to score 100 points from almost the same number of times inside 50.

        • Sad
        • Clap
        • Like
      • 0 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • PODCAST: Essendon

      The Demonland Podcast will air LIVE on Monday, 14th April @ the all new time of 8:00pm. Join Binman, George & I as we dissect another Demons loss at Kardinia Park to the Cats in the Round 04. Your 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.

        • Thanks
      • 63 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • PREGAME: Fremantle

      The Demons return home to the MCG in search of their first win for the 2025 Premiership season when they take on the Fremantle Dockers on Saturday afternoon. Who comes in and who goes out?

        • Thanks
        • Like
      • 424 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • VOTES: Essendon

      Max Gawn leads the Demonland Player of the Year ahead of Clayton Oliver, Christian Petracca, Kade Chandler and Jake Bowey. Your votes please. 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 & 1.

        • Thanks
      • 24 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland
    View All