4 minutes ago, Rob Mac...... said:

I've a very good feeling about Chaplin coaching us. Love how he carries himself and seems to effect others.

He had our backline humming; moved to coaching forward line and forwards seemed to get a bit better while backline got worse (plenty of reasons why, ...but still).

Also bad usually happens when we get someone from Collingwood.

I'm much more comfortable choosing Chaplin over Buckley

Okay, but that's not happening as Chaplin has said multiple times he won't be putting his hand up.

11 minutes ago, binman said:

To protect against some lazy wannabee coach entering a prompt into chatgpt like:

Give me a snazzy PowerPoint that includes a five year plan and minimum of two flags

maybe we don’t need a coach after all? Maybe we just need an elite AI prompter

“MFC’s “forward-half connection problem” has been their big talking point since at least 2022 — they can win the ball, lock it inside 50, and create pressure, but too often they fail to turn that dominance into scoreboard reward. A new coach stepping in would have to treat this as a multi-layered puzzle, not just a “kick it better” issue. Here’s how they might approach it:

1. Diagnose First, Change Second

A smart coach wouldn’t walk in with assumptions — they’d run a data + vision review:

• Heat maps & turnover chains to see where inside-50 entries are breaking down.

• Video breakdowns of leading patterns, spacing, and ball movement from the back half.

• Player role mapping to check if the forwards are structured to suit the midfield delivery.

2. Tactical Adjustments

A. Cleaner Ball Movement

• Quicker corridor play — not just “bomb long” but working 45° kicks inside to open up space.

• More overlap run from half-back to give mids better angles going inside 50.

B. Leading Patterns & Spacing

• Fix “clumping” — Melbourne’s forwards often collapse to the same space.

• Implement rotating deep targets (e.g., Petty, van Rooyen, Schache/Fritsch) so the defence can’t zone off one man.

• Use decoy leads to drag defenders and open pockets of space for medium/small forwards.

C. Midfield–Forward Synchronisation

• Dedicated mid–forward training blocks where delivery is the sole focus.

• Scripted drills to replicate high-pressure entries — not just clean training-ground setups.

3. Personnel Tweaks

• Identify if a true connector half-forward is missing — someone like Toby Greene or Izak Rankine who can mark, crumb, and create.

• Experiment with positional switches (e.g., Viney/Trac rotating forward more often to add aerial threat and grunt).

• Recruit for kicking skill + composure, even if it means sacrificing some contested dominance.

4. Mindset & Decision-Making

• Encourage lowering the eyes rather than kicking to the “hot spot” every time.

• Reward risk with foot skills — Melbourne can be too safety-first with inside 50s.

• Build confidence in small forwards to lead and call for the ball rather than waiting for crumbs.

5. Match-Day Levers

• If inside 50 entries are breaking down, shift an extra ball-user forward temporarily.

• Change angles by resting wingers deep forward to exploit mismatches.

• Use forward-half stoppage structures to score directly from repeat entries.

In short:

A new coach would blend structural change (patterns, spacing), skill emphasis (delivery, decision-making), and personnel clarity. The aim wouldn’t just be to get more entries — Melbourne already does that — but to turn dominance into damage.”

Love it.

Only two problems.

Any coach, or prompter who thinks Schache is part of the solution can't be allowed anywhere near the club.

There is only one Lever.

21 minutes ago, binman said:

Me too. To protect against some lazy wannabee coach entering a prompt into chatgpt like:

Give me a snazzy PowerPoint that includes a five year plan and minimum of two flags

Sorry, but I just had to... - apologies @The Jackson FIX (just saw yours).

---

Slide 1 — Title Slide

Headline:
"Uncompromising Excellence: A Five-Year Blueprint for Sustained AFL Success"

Visual: Hero image of AFL premiership cup with team colours subtly in the background.
Subtext: “Prepared for [Club Name] Board – [Date]”
Tagline: "Two Flags. One Club. Lasting Legacy."

---

Slide 2 — Vision Statement

Headline: "One Club. One Purpose."

Core Vision:

• Deliver an elite high-performance program on-field and off-field

• Two premierships within five years

• Build a sustainable dynasty through culture, development, and recruitment

Visual: Image of team in a huddle, words overlayed like a motivational AFL locker room wall.

---

Slide 3 — 5-Year Performance Roadmap (Overview)

Visual: Horizontal timeline, each year as a pillar

Year 1: Build foundations — elite standards, culture, game plan buy-in
Year 2: Finals contention — top 6 finish, emerging leaders stepping up
Year 3: First Flag — grand final appearance + win
Year 4: Consolidate — maintain top 4, regenerate list
Year 5: Second Flag — dynasty status, sustained success

---

Slide 4 — Key Performance Drivers

Four Core Areas:

1. Game Plan Evolution — Fast, relentless, defensively accountable

2. Talent Pipeline — Draft, trade, and develop with precision

3. Leadership & Culture — Standards, accountability, connection

4. High Performance & Sports Science — Recovery, injury prevention, peak match conditioning

Visual: Split into four quadrants with action photos.

---

Slide 5 — Culture & Leadership

• Establish "No Excuses" accountability system

• Player leadership group reset — aligned with club vision

• Cross-department integration: football, medical, welfare, analytics

• Community and fan engagement as part of player DNA

Visual: Locker room shot with “Culture eats strategy for breakfast” quote.

---

Slide 6 — Recruitment & List Management Plan

Short Term (1–2 yrs):

• Target 2–3 ready-made impact players

• Develop 5–6 emerging talents into AFL-level starters

Long Term (3–5 yrs):

• Maintain list age profile to avoid rebuild cycles

• Trade capital strategy for sustained contention

Visual: Depth chart graphic showing current vs. projected best 22.

---

Slide 7 — High Performance Edge

• GPS & performance analytics to tailor player load

• Injury prevention & resilience protocols

• Benchmark against AFL's top 4 fitness & speed standards

• Mental performance program for clutch execution under finals pressure

Visual: Graph comparing key metrics vs. top 4 teams.

---

Slide 8 — Success Metrics

• Year 1: > 90% player availability, top 6 defensive efficiency

• Year 2: Finals appearance, 2+ wins vs. top 4 teams

• Year 3: Premiership Win #1

• Year 4: Top 4 finish, > 60% win rate

• Year 5: Premiership Win #2

Visual: Two large AFL Premiership cups side-by-side with years underneath.

---

Slide 9 — Call to Action

Headline: “Let’s Make History”
Subtext:

• A shared commitment to elite performance

• Courage to make bold decisions

• United in purpose: Two Flags. One Legacy.

Visual: Club logo, cup, and a bold final image of players celebrating.

---

Edited August 14Aug 14 by Engorged Onion

5 minutes ago, binman said:

Love it.

Only two problems.

Any coach, or prompter who thinks Schache is part of the solution can't be allowed anywhere near the club.

There is only one Lever.

You should see what Elon’s one said 😬

10 minutes ago, Engorged Onion said:

Sorry, but I just had to... - apologies @The Jackson FIX (just saw yours).

---

Slide 1 — Title Slide

Headline:
"Uncompromising Excellence: A Five-Year Blueprint for Sustained AFL Success"

Visual: Hero image of AFL premiership cup with team colours subtly in the background.
Subtext: “Prepared for [Club Name] Board – [Date]”
Tagline: "Two Flags. One Club. Lasting Legacy."

---

Slide 2 — Vision Statement

Headline: "One Club. One Purpose."

Core Vision:

• Deliver an elite high-performance program on-field and off-field

• Two premierships within five years

• Build a sustainable dynasty through culture, development, and recruitment

Visual: Image of team in a huddle, words overlayed like a motivational AFL locker room wall.

---

Slide 3 — 5-Year Performance Roadmap (Overview)

Visual: Horizontal timeline, each year as a pillar

Year 1: Build foundations — elite standards, culture, game plan buy-in
Year 2: Finals contention — top 6 finish, emerging leaders stepping up
Year 3: First Flag — grand final appearance + win
Year 4: Consolidate — maintain top 4, regenerate list
Year 5: Second Flag — dynasty status, sustained success

---

Slide 4 — Key Performance Drivers

Four Core Areas:

1. Game Plan Evolution — Fast, relentless, defensively accountable

2. Talent Pipeline — Draft, trade, and develop with precision

3. Leadership & Culture — Standards, accountability, connection

4. High Performance & Sports Science — Recovery, injury prevention, peak match conditioning

Visual: Split into four quadrants with action photos.

---

Slide 5 — Culture & Leadership

• Establish "No Excuses" accountability system

• Player leadership group reset — aligned with club vision

• Cross-department integration: football, medical, welfare, analytics

• Community and fan engagement as part of player DNA

Visual: Locker room shot with “Culture eats strategy for breakfast” quote.

---

Slide 6 — Recruitment & List Management Plan

Short Term (1–2 yrs):

• Target 2–3 ready-made impact players

• Develop 5–6 emerging talents into AFL-level starters

Long Term (3–5 yrs):

• Maintain list age profile to avoid rebuild cycles

• Trade capital strategy for sustained contention

Visual: Depth chart graphic showing current vs. projected best 22.

---

Slide 7 — High Performance Edge

• GPS & performance analytics to tailor player load

• Injury prevention & resilience protocols

• Benchmark against AFL's top 4 fitness & speed standards

• Mental performance program for clutch execution under finals pressure

Visual: Graph comparing key metrics vs. top 4 teams.

---

Slide 8 — Success Metrics

• Year 1: > 90% player availability, top 6 defensive efficiency

• Year 2: Finals appearance, 2+ wins vs. top 4 teams

• Year 3: Premiership Win #1

• Year 4: Top 4 finish, > 60% win rate

• Year 5: Premiership Win #2

Visual: Two large AFL Premiership cups side-by-side with years underneath.

---

Slide 9 — Call to Action

Headline: “Let’s Make History”
Subtext:

• A shared commitment to elite performance

• Courage to make bold decisions

• United in purpose: Two Flags. One Legacy.

Visual: Club logo, cup, and a bold final image of players celebrating.

---

Blimey, I'm convinced.

MFC you have your coach!

6 minutes ago, Adam The God said:

Okay, but that's not happening as Chaplin has said multiple times he won't be putting his hand up.

I noticed that God but think we should try to change his mind.

Firstly Chaplin doesn't seem very egotistical, worshiping his wonderful "game plan" like Neeld did, and to some degree Goodwin. It's great to have a good game plan but football is largely an improvisational art; players need freedom to choose the best on field option in each unique situation. Too often, the past 4 years, players missed good opportunities to opt for the predictable "game plan" option.

I think Chaplin will strike the best balance between preparing the boys to play, educating them on strategy, while still giving them freedom to do the best thing in the moment.

Fair enough, Rob. See if you can get in Greeny's ear then. Perhaps while you're at it, you can get him to step down from the board too.

Please god, let us not leak like a sieve during this process.

I want everyone to have no idea until the official announcement

If anything is leaked to Browne or Caro or others during the next month all members should be furious

I honestly can't work out the Jobe Watson selection. The guy has been out of club land for years, wasn't part of any successful era at a club, his media commentary has been less than impressive, and I'm unaware of his involvement with other panels.

Does anyone have any insight on this?

Feel like they missed a trick not asking a Jimmy Bartel or a Jason Dunstall type.

I appreciate people's willingness to put pen to paper so to speak, all it needs is

Gameplan can be worked on but the following is more important.

Pace into the midfield
Ball skills by hand and foot
Decision making
Forward craft education and execution

If we can fix these areas up, along with some recruiting, it will be a far better and enjoyable year.

42 minutes ago, At the break of Gawn said:

I honestly can't work out the Jobe Watson selection. The guy has been out of club land for years, wasn't part of any successful era at a club, his media commentary has been less than impressive, and I'm unaware of his involvement with other panels.

Does anyone have any insight on this?

Feel like they missed a trick not asking a Jimmy Bartel or a Jason Dunstall type.

Got me completely baffled tbh.

Saves sending out for coffee ?? 🤷‍♂️

Frank Ponisi is a good pick, he knows the club well because they train at same place, most Storm players support Melbourne. Jobe Watson is ok, he knows football, have no problem with any of the people on the panel.

The job is Buckley’s if he wants it, I don’t know if he wants it, he’ll probably go to Tassie. If Buckley knocks it back I hope they give it to Cam Bruce, he’s been an assistant for 15 years, at Hawthorn with Clarkson, Carlton for not long then Brisbane with Fagan, he’s had premiership experience and he’s a former star of the club, we haven’t had an ex player coach the club since Barassi, aside from 10 games from Todd V and a few from Hutchison. If we could drag Yze from Richmond that would be my choice but that won’t happen. So first I think Buckley, he was just very unlucky with Collingwood, he set them up for a flag, I think we could win the flag next year with Buckley, same way Mccrae did at Collingwood after he took over from Buckley. Otherwise Cam Bruce👍

The only two reasons I can think of as to why Jobe is part of the process: 1. To vouch for Hird. 2. He’s a DEI hire.

5 hours ago, Bates Mate said:

Surely Richo's time is up soon!?

Why?

Massive amount of experience, industry-wide respect.

No offence to Jobe Watson, but I would of preferred an AFL player with Premiership experience.

Jimmy Bartel, Luke Hodge, Jordan Lewis etc.

7 minutes ago, Supreme_Demon said:

No offence to Jobe Watson, but I would of preferred an AFL player with Premiership experience.

Jimmy Bartel, Luke Hodge, Jordan Lewis etc.

lewis can't be on it as he's one of buckley's best mates

On 13/08/2025 at 14:40, Spirit of '87 said:

Given that it’s an Australian sport, why was it declared “a world wide search”?

I can only imagine that either he copied that term from other “world wide searches”, such as for a corporate CEO role or a police commissioner vacancy, or he wants to include other regions, to capture any ex premiership coaches who may now be living in say…Hawaii, for example ;)

Or Tasmania

3 hours ago, Adam The God said:

Okay, but that's not happening as Chaplin has said multiple times he won't be putting his hand up.

Collingwood owe us big time and I want it now, or next week at the earliest

On 13/08/2025 at 01:02, Redleg said:

As Tom Morris said ”Every Club Leaks”.

Club needs a Giant Nappy!

2 hours ago, At the break of Gawn said:

I honestly can't work out the Jobe Watson selection. The guy has been out of club land for years, wasn't part of any successful era at a club, his media commentary has been less than impressive, and I'm unaware of his involvement with other panels.

Does anyone have any insight on this?

Feel like they missed a trick not asking a Jimmy Bartel or a Jason Dunstall type.

JOBE WATSON WHAT THE [censored]!!??

1 hour ago, picket fence said:

Club needs a Giant Nappy!

JOBE WATSON WHAT THE [censored]!!??

Makes sense. Jobe is all about double denim and now, according to a recent jeans/genes advertising campaign, it’s back in vogue.

6 hours ago, The Jackson FIX said:

maybe we don’t need a coach after all? Maybe we just need an elite AI prompter

“MFC’s “forward-half connection problem” has been their big talking point since at least 2022 — they can win the ball, lock it inside 50, and create pressure, but too often they fail to turn that dominance into scoreboard reward. A new coach stepping in would have to treat this as a multi-layered puzzle, not just a “kick it better” issue. Here’s how they might approach it:

1. Diagnose First, Change Second

A smart coach wouldn’t walk in with assumptions — they’d run a data + vision review:

• Heat maps & turnover chains to see where inside-50 entries are breaking down.

• Video breakdowns of leading patterns, spacing, and ball movement from the back half.

• Player role mapping to check if the forwards are structured to suit the midfield delivery.

2. Tactical Adjustments

A. Cleaner Ball Movement

• Quicker corridor play — not just “bomb long” but working 45° kicks inside to open up space.

• More overlap run from half-back to give mids better angles going inside 50.

B. Leading Patterns & Spacing

• Fix “clumping” — Melbourne’s forwards often collapse to the same space.

• Implement rotating deep targets (e.g., Petty, van Rooyen, Schache/Fritsch) so the defence can’t zone off one man.

• Use decoy leads to drag defenders and open pockets of space for medium/small forwards.

C. Midfield–Forward Synchronisation

• Dedicated mid–forward training blocks where delivery is the sole focus.

• Scripted drills to replicate high-pressure entries — not just clean training-ground setups.

3. Personnel Tweaks

• Identify if a true connector half-forward is missing — someone like Toby Greene or Izak Rankine who can mark, crumb, and create.

• Experiment with positional switches (e.g., Viney/Trac rotating forward more often to add aerial threat and grunt).

• Recruit for kicking skill + composure, even if it means sacrificing some contested dominance.

4. Mindset & Decision-Making

• Encourage lowering the eyes rather than kicking to the “hot spot” every time.

• Reward risk with foot skills — Melbourne can be too safety-first with inside 50s.

• Build confidence in small forwards to lead and call for the ball rather than waiting for crumbs.

5. Match-Day Levers

• If inside 50 entries are breaking down, shift an extra ball-user forward temporarily.

• Change angles by resting wingers deep forward to exploit mismatches.

• Use forward-half stoppage structures to score directly from repeat entries.

In short:

A new coach would blend structural change (patterns, spacing), skill emphasis (delivery, decision-making), and personnel clarity. The aim wouldn’t just be to get more entries — Melbourne already does that — but to turn dominance into damage.”

@admin petitioning to make Demonland an AI slop free zone

Going by tonight's AFLW results, Daisy Pearce.