8 minutes ago, 710 Asbury St said:

@Ghostwriter ditto that re Clarry! I did have a bit of a chuckle re “he who couldn’t tell a lie if his life depended on it”—only because with all the speculation about him in previous years, it’s funny to think all you’d have to do is ask him.

Exactly. I talk with Clarrie the same way I talk with my son who’s the same age. It wasn’t always this way with Clarrie though; I found that at the beginning he didn’t say much at all, he was almost always monosyllabic. Then over time trust is established and now he’s an open book. He has the very endearing trait of letting his guard down once he’s comfortable with you.

As for being told he’s loved and wanted, he thrives on this. He needs to be reminded of such and fear not, I remind him often. 😊

14 minutes ago, Ghostwriter said:

Exactly. I talk with Clarrie the same way I talk with my son who’s the same age. It wasn’t always this way with Clarrie though; I found that at the beginning he didn’t say much at all, he was almost always monosyllabic. Then over time trust is established and now he’s an open book. He has the very endearing trait of letting his guard down once he’s comfortable with you.

As for being told he’s loved and wanted, he thrives on this. He needs to be reminded of such and fear not, I remind him often. 😊

He is my favourite and most loved of this generation (maybe equalled by Max), has always been an honest player. I have loved him as a footballer ever since he stumped Jordan Lewis on the wing in that famous win against the Hawks. For me that was THE moment of THE game where the tide turned for our footy club. An epoch defining moment. I also love how he somehow time travelled to sit for a portrait by Vincent van Gogh, as seen in my avatar pic. Thank you for all you do for the club, including giving us a connection to our players.

On 28/04/2025 at 15:41, Ghostwriter said:

He’s actually already looking very close to how he looked when he first came back. At that time he looked dreadful; he’d lost all his muscle tone and a ton of weight, his face was gaunt and he looked terribly weak. He was literally unrecognisable. He came over to say hello and I wondered who this guy was and why he greeted me with such familiarity. The moustache was the only giveaway. The poor thing looked like death warmed up.

I presume this is a joke Ghosty?

30 minutes ago, Dingo said:

I presume this is a joke Ghosty?

I’m not the grim reaper, Dingo 😅

37 minutes ago, Ghostwriter said:

I’m not the grim reaper, Dingo 😅

Ok please clarify

More to the point l stood next to him waiting for an elevator at the first game - he looked and sounded fine to me.

3 minutes ago, Dingo said:

Ok please clarify

We’re talking about Luker, right? The first time he turned up at Gosch’s having been gravely ill, bed-ridden for weeks with a brutal case of pneumonia (incl. complications) yes, he looked dreadful. He felt dreadful and very weak. You saw him at the first game which was a couple of months later.

Ok l think l misunderstood whay you said.

So today he’s doing fine - correct?

After my brief chat to him , l thought he’s a nice bloke

And l should say he looked fine.Said he picked up his infection in hospital

On 28/04/2025 at 14:06, Ghostwriter said:

A cool and overcast day and I’m one of four spectators. The boys came out early today so maybe more people will turn up.

But more importantly, Melky is right for this weekend’s match. Yay! I asked him how on earth he copped such a deep gash… he said he landed awkwardly and it was his own boot stud that did the damage.

Spoke with Clarrie aka he who couldn’t tell a lie if his life depended on it. Private convo but please believe me when I say (again) if he leaves us, it won’t be his choice, ie. he’s a Demon and wants to remain a Demon, forever.

Richo said he knows Melk is my fave player but wanted to know who my favourite youngster is. I said it’s like picking my favourite child but if I hadda name one it’d be “Harves, The Bison.” Richo said he’s heard “The Bison” being mentioned and wanted to know where it came from. I told him it comes from DL, he likes it and promised to spread it. So, @Supreme_Demon… it looks like it’s a thing 🥳

Goody said he really appreciates supporters having faith in him all along. I thought duuuuude, you clearly DON’T read Demonland 🤣

He Reads it BANK ON IT!

22 hours ago, Ghostwriter said:

Exactly. I talk with Clarrie the same way I talk with my son who’s the same age. It wasn’t always this way with Clarrie though; I found that at the beginning he didn’t say much at all, he was almost always monosyllabic. Then over time trust is established and now he’s an open book. He has the very endearing trait of letting his guard down once he’s comfortable with you.

As for being told he’s loved and wanted, he thrives on this. He needs to be reminded of such and fear not, I remind him often. 😊

lol, my son is also the same age so can relate. And I know these guys are getting paid tons of money to play footy and it’s their job, but there are times that I feel for them with all the media attention they get and apparently the hateful messages and posts on social media. Because lots of them are my son’s age and younger, I can’t imagine what that life is like for them when it’s bad. And they’re kids who came into a job that pays them well and can at times give them positive recognition in the world that also can create problems down the track.

When Clarry was struggling with his issues last year, I had a couple of people come at me about it and that I felt bad that on top of whatever was happening, the medial was also giving a play by play—which is one of the reasons it took me a long time to post on here after lurking for a few years—but I can’t help but have a ton of empathy. And I understand it’s a job, but I can’t help feeling for him and hating how everything he does is so highly scrutinised. And it does feel like he gets it more than others do in similar situations. There’s just a lot about that whole situation that I hated and it really bugged me.

And yes, I want us to win, and I know people aren’t happy with his performance this year—but I guarantee he’s harder on himself than anyone. I’ve only been in Australia for 12 or so years, so he’s my first favourite player… He’s also now got quite a few fans in the US because I’ve basically forced my family and friends into watching AFL when I visited last year and they’ve continued following it. :)

1 hour ago, picket fence said:

He Reads it BANK ON IT!

I don’t know if Goody reads DL and I’m not about to ask him anytime soon, that’s for sure. Richo reads it, as does Chocco “occasionally.” Some of the young guys read it and admin read it as well. I sincerely hope Goody doesn’t ever read it.

1 hour ago, Dingo said:

Ok l think l misunderstood whay you said.

So today he’s doing fine - correct?

After my brief chat to him , l thought he’s a nice bloke

Luker is definitely fine now. And yes, he’s a lovely kid. He’s quiet and unassuming, but he’s always down for a chat. I also have a 19yo son which makes interacting with this age group easy.

28 minutes ago, 710 Asbury St said:

but I guarantee he’s harder on himself than anyone.

This is one of the many things about Clarrie that people either don’t know or don’t want to consider. He is extremely hard on himself. He hates not being the best that he knows he can be. He’s by no means complacent, nor will he accept a lower standard for himself.

I love that you’ve got your US fam and friends in the Clarrie Fan Club 😁