Possibly. Nearly every year 2 teams are replaced in the 8. Everyone would have thought you were crazy if you said this time last year. “Richmond won’t make the 8”

I think the dogs will be 1 of the exceptions to that rule. Geelong on the other hand coped a belting and 2 soul destroying defeats in round 23 and QF2.

I don’t know which way it will go next year but I am very happy that it was us who served up those soul destroying defeats. Hopefully just the start of a long era of payback.

Any interest in Melk out there?  You would hope we could get maybe a third rounder for him and VDB each (at best).  Can’t see either getting back in the firsts for us, even with injuries.  Sparrow almost plays the old Melk role but goes both ways, and Fritsch has taken the mid sized goal kicker role off the table.

10 minutes ago, buck_nekkid said:

Any interest in Melk out there?  You would hope we could get maybe a third rounder for him and VDB each (at best).  Can’t see either getting back in the firsts for us, even with injuries.  Sparrow almost plays the old Melk role but goes both ways, and Fritsch has taken the mid sized goal kicker role off the table.

Is VDB contracted?

Both are free to a good home. Best we could hope for would be a swap of third or fourth round picks.

Apparently GCS are interested in Melksham but unsure if he's willing to go there. 

57 minutes ago, Dwight Schrute said:

Apparently GCS are interested in Melksham but unsure if he's willing to go there. 

They'll need to make room on their list (trade Macpherson and Brodie)

I hope he stays, unlucky to not be in the Grand Final team, we had a good run with injuries this year, that may not be the case next year

Would we pay say $100k of his contract to move him on.

I suspect he is on mid $500's approx...maybe $450k but no less

Edited October 2, 20213 yr by Diamond_Jim

Melky has been a good servant if he stays we would have to get him to 200 games he is solid depth but if he goes good luck to him and it would help us lock in a couple of our young guns a year earlier.

Ordinary player.  Never applied pressure. Cya melk.

Needed to find a different role as the game can no longer carry low pressure forwards.

In my opinion, Melky kicking two or three is less valuable than a barely-sighted Kozzy with 23 pressure acts.

Pressure is contagious and effects the psyche of the opposition. The way the game is played now, you can get no goals from your smalls and still dominate as long as that pressure is elite.

Theoretically, Melky could play the medium goalkicker role that Fritsch plays, but he's just not smart enough or quick enough for that role at this stage of his career.

4 hours ago, DeeZone said:

Melky has been a good servant if he stays we would have to get him to 200 games he is solid depth but if he goes good luck to him and it would help us lock in a couple of our young guns a year earlier.

It’s funny, I just see him as a reasonably talented guy who came and did his thing for a while without really buying in and as we got more and more buy in from other players, probably with less raw talent, he became irrelevant. I don’t feel like we owe him anything. I don’t wish him ill, I just don’t feel like we need to get him to 200 games.

1 hour ago, FlashInThePan said:

It’s funny, I just see him as a reasonably talented guy who came and did his thing for a while without really buying in and as we got more and more buy in from other players, probably with less raw talent, he became irrelevant. I don’t feel like we owe him anything. I don’t wish him ill, I just don’t feel like we need to get him to 200 games.

He would have been over 200 and probably 100 for the club if not for the year off due to the drugs saga.

Too good a footballer not to be on a list somewhere. His lack of defence is a worry at times but Pies, North or Blues would surely have a look. 

Should be free to a good home. Did not suit our 2021 style as we amped the pressure game and he aged as well. However he offered us fantastic service, easy to forget in 2018 if I recall he led the league in goal assists and in my view was one of the best pound for pound one on one players going about. If he can find a opportunity elsewhere we should support as also frees some cash and a spot on our list (and spots are tight). 

15 hours ago, FlashInThePan said:

It’s funny, I just see him as a reasonably talented guy who came and did his thing for a while without really buying in and as we got more and more buy in from other players, probably with less raw talent, he became irrelevant. I don’t feel like we owe him anything. I don’t wish him ill, I just don’t feel like we need to get him to 200 games.

Agree but it would have been nice to get him there.  Sometimes that all there is to a football career.

(I remember Steven Icke finished up on 198 games.  A great football story and a B&F winner, and I know injury finished him off but couldnt we have nursed him through 2 more games?)

Melksham’s future and options 

Keep him?  
Handy experienced fringe 22 player, ready to go in case of injury.  Can play mid forward role as backup to Fritsch, Sparrow, Anb. Potential wing backup if he had a big pre season and injury free. One year left on contract. 
 

Accept trade offer? 
After his 2018, the extension to end 2022 was probably on $450k contract per year.  His contract update would be severely less and back to the $275k ish mark.  He might want to seek out a “risk taker” club that offers him 2-3 yr contract. Not sure which club would that brave/foolish? At 30, it’s unlikely given he is a med sized forward and there’s plenty of such players around.  
Dees would likely take a current or future 3rd round (pick range 50-55) exchange in a heartbeat. 

Any bloke who can kick a goal with both left and right from fifty should get his 200 with us

18 minutes ago, spirit of norm smith said:

Melksham’s future and options 

Keep him?  
Handy experienced fringe 22 player, ready to go in case of injury.  Can play mid forward role as backup to Fritsch, Sparrow, Anb. Potential wing backup if he had a big pre season and injury free. One year left on contract. 
 

Accept trade offer? 
After his 2018, the extension to end 2022 was probably on $450k contract per year.  His contract update would be severely less and back to the $275k ish mark.  He might want to seek out a “risk taker” club that offers him 2-3 yr contract. Not sure which club would that brave/foolish? At 30, it’s unlikely given he is a med sized forward and there’s plenty of such players around.  
Dees would likely take a current or future 3rd round (pick range 50-55) exchange in a heartbeat. 

If Melks finds a club off his own bat we will let him go. He might be able to eek out a 2 year deal. Otherwise keep him next year as depth and maybe play a few games or more depending on injury and form. Doubt he will NOT get a new contract after next year. Same for Hibbo. We will need to find money to retain our talented youngsters. That is life in footy.

Looks like he's staying. 

DEES LOCK IN ANOTHER FRINGE FORWARD 

Melbourne forward Jake Melksham will see out his contract at the Demons next year after giving consideration to a move to a third AFL club.

Melksham played only 12 games at the Demons this year as the new wave of small forwards took over, playing his last game in Round 22 before watching the finals from the sidelines.

The former Essendon player, who crossed to the Demons and then sat out 12 months through the Dons player bans, had been a dangerous goalkicking forward who kicked 32 goals in 2018.

But he fell out of favour as Kysaiah Pickett, Charlie Spargo and Alex Neal-Bullen all played effective roles in the finals as small forwards alongside Ben Brown, Luke Jackson, Tom McDonald and Bayley Fritsch.

The Demons marched to a premiership with mid-sizer Fritsch kicking six goals in the Grand Final as Spargo and Pickett applied immense forward pressure.

Rivals keen for mid-sized forwards do not have the salary cap given uncertainty over total player payments to make bids for a player of Melksham’s calibre.

So he will attempt to make himself a senior regular again for the Demons.

Veteran defender Michael Hibberd, who also crossed from Essendon to Melbourne, will secure a one-year deal with the Demons.

Don't mind keeping Melky on. Will be handy depth. Should Fritta or Spargs get injured, he can step straight in.

Unsurprisingly no one wanted him. Hasn’t played well since 2018. Possibly another preseason trial on the wing. Otherwise break in case of emergency half forward.

Makes even less sense that we’re keeping M Brown as well now.

The clubs strategy of long term deals has helped spread the salary cap but has meant we’ve kept a lot of players 1 or 2 years passed their used by dates. 

I'm happy with Melk staying. He's a good leader for the forward line and is a nice back up option if any of our half forwards have long term injuries. I mentioned before that we have already let a lot of experience go in Jones, Jetta and Vanders with 500+ games so it's important to keep these kind of senior players like Melk to drive the standards and help the young kids coming through. 

It may be a long shot but I hope he can play 100 games for the club. He needs another 17 games. 

33 minutes ago, DeeSpencer said:

Unsurprisingly no one wanted him. Hasn’t played well since 2018. Possibly another preseason trial on the wing. Otherwise break in case of emergency half forward.

Makes even less sense that we’re keeping M Brown as well now.

The clubs strategy of long term deals has helped spread the salary cap but has meant we’ve kept a lot of players 1 or 2 years passed their used by dates. 

List management is above most people. Look at Collingwood and Gold Coast as examples.

Consider how hard it would be for our recruiters and list management team if we offloaded all of our fringe players at the same time. We then need to trade (we dont have the picks) or draft to replace all of those numbers on the list. We are then left with a big bunch of 18 year olds who are taken with late picks, who we then need to give 2 year deals to. And of course, zero depth if we suddenly have a run of injuries.

As much as I am not a fan of Melks lack of pressure, it will not kill us to keep him (and Hibbo) on for another year as backup.

 

edit: That first line is not a crack at you. It's merely a statement that even the pros can't get it right at times.

Edited October 4, 20213 yr by faultydet

50 minutes ago, Caligula's cohort said:

I'm happy with Melk staying. He's a good leader for the forward line and is a nice back up option if any of our half forwards have long term injuries. I mentioned before that we have already let a lot of experience go in Jones, Jetta and Vanders with 500+ games so it's important to keep these kind of senior players like Melk to drive the standards and help the young kids coming through. 

It may be a long shot but I hope he can play 100 games for the club. He needs another 17 games. 

Exactly. We talked so much about culture in the post-GF interviews and Melksham has this is spades. Wants to be best 22, works hard for the footy club off the field, and when he was playing for Casey he was playing his [censored] off. Understand the knocks about his two way running, but 2018 saw clutch goals and tagging JJ. He is more than better than depth and means that Spargo, ANB and TMac have to get better to hold their spots. He might even push Sparrow, Jordan and Harmes as well. Great problems to have :)