6 hours ago, Ghostwriter said:

That’s really saying something… you have many, many, many disappointing occurrences from which to choose. 😉

Not sure what you are getting at here Ghosty!??

14 hours ago, picket fence said:

87 preliminary is right up there with the MOST disappionting occurances in my life!😵😵‍💫

“ it’s a goal, it’s a goal”

I had that game on vhs and would watch it after a big night out. I was somehow sure Eishold or Campbell would somehow kick the [censored] goal and win us the match, it never happened.

3 hours ago, D4Life said:

Thanks, punctuation has never been a strength! I haven’t found the spellchecker & grammar button in Demonland!!

If you measure Roos time comparing each season he coached to the preceding year, there was a substantial improvement each year!

If you look at sports team results around the world, any sport, teams have a better record at home, note I’m sure someone will come up with an anomaly!

Why:

• knowledge of the ground, stadium, wind etc!

• Higher team support, which typically leads to more favourable umpiring decisions.

• Routine, own bed, less travel etc!

Pies & Cats both have significant advantages as clubs:

• Cats 9 home games at own stadium and not greatly disadvantaged in 7 other games played across MCG/Marvel as they play at each often enough! Also home stadium 95% of home fans due to ticket restrictions!

• Still benefit from a virtual go home academy, Dangerfield and more as an example!

• Numerous others I’ve mentioned before, including ex Cats stacked in at the AFL!

• Pies get 16/17 games at least interstate games of any club year after year, how often do they play at Kardinia Park!

• Umpiring through crowd number bias!

• Tribunal through MRO, even if only subconscious bias! It’s a joke that he is allowed to judge Pies players!

There is more, but if you have any doubts about AFL trying to even the competition, Pies and Cats both benefit heavily from their treatment by the AFL!

Cats & Pies were broke late 90s both had millions in debt! 25 years later both profitable huge memberships, state if the art training facilities & get blockbusters, we are still trying to nail down a training base which will be another 3-5 yrs away

2 hours ago, picket fence said:

Not sure what you are getting at here Ghosty!??

Well it seems pretty much EVERYTHING about the MFC is a disappointing occurrence for you. With one exception… the almighty Jeffo.

11 minutes ago, Ghostwriter said:

Well it seems pretty much EVERYTHING about the MFC is a disappointing occurrence for you. With one exception… the almighty Jeffo.

Once again Ghosty you have overstated events and underestimated my gravitas, not to mention insult my intelligence!

22 minutes ago, Ghostwriter said:

Well it seems pretty much EVERYTHING about the MFC is a disappointing occurrence for you. With one exception… the almighty Jeffo.

I think it’s time we start calling him the almighty El Jefe

Edited yesterday at 06:401 day by Ted Lasso

3 hours ago, At the break of Gawn said:

He also said that Scott doesn't even speak to the players all that much during the week and leaves that up to the assistant coaches.

The only thing that's surprising about this is that we hear it so rarely, especially as it's not just specific to Scott/The Cats.

A while back on one of the footy shows, one of the experienced coaches they had on made a similar comment, that it's the assistants who spend the time with the players, not the head coach.

Edited yesterday at 09:421 day by bing181

@Dannyz any update on who the 6 that include Buckley are?

4 hours ago, Red and Blue Flame said:

@Dannyz any update on who the 6 that include Buckley are?

Buckley, Skipworth, Lade, Kelly, King & Giansircusa I believe.

Montgomery, Leon Cameron, Cameron Bruce and Jarrad Schofield were spoken to but not proceeded with.

Edited yesterday at 13:321 day by Dannyz

Yaaawwwwwwwwwnnnnnnn! when will something happen?

Watching games yesterday we are a long way off being competitive in this comp

Selected coach needs to be innovative in approach as the game continually evolves and we need to be at the front in my view or we will be bottom 4 for years

44 minutes ago, Kent said:

Yaaawwwwwwwwwnnnnnnn! when will something happen?

Watching games yesterday we are a long way off being competitive in this comp

Selected coach needs to be innovative in approach as the game continually evolves and we need to be at the front in my view or we will be bottom 4 for years

You have obviously forgotten that we lost to the now brilliant again Pies, twice this year, by a goal or less.

On each occasion we had more possession, contested possession, inside 50’s, shots at goal and of course less frees.

So based on that and the fact we lost 9 games by less than 2 goals this year, are we really hopeless, or maybe a couple of players needed, a recommitment to selfless play, under a slightly changed game plan, a strong pre season, natural development of some younger players, a good injury run and we are a strong chance to play finals.

20 hours ago, Roost it far said:

“ it’s a goal, it’s a goal”

I had that game on vhs and would watch it after a big night out. I was somehow sure Eishold or Campbell would somehow kick the [censored] goal and win us the match, it never happened.

Funny you mention Eishold. Was behind that goal.. had he kicked it i would have marked it. Wasn't a hard kick... ( apparently I was wrong )

Horrible place artic Park

21 hours ago, Roost it far said:

“ it’s a goal, it’s a goal”

I had that game on vhs and would watch it after a big night out. I was somehow sure Eishold or Campbell would somehow kick the [censored] goal and win us the match, it never happened.

I did the same thing but mine was jimmy not giving away the free kick

2 hours ago, Kent said:

Yaaawwwwwwwwwnnnnnnn! when will something happen?

Watching games yesterday we are a long way off being competitive in this comp

Selected coach needs to be innovative in approach as the game continually evolves and we need to be at the front in my view or we will be bottom 4 for years

I reckon just about every list is one or two shrewd off season changes away from being competitive again. We aren't that far off it ffs.

In a lot of ways we're not that far off

The biggest issues are our disposal skills and decision making with the ball. (we win our fair share of contested ball and hard ball gets)

And dumping the long bomb almost permanently. Effectively, that tactic just turns the ball over. Especially when targeting the hot spot. But the low, rapid kick forward can work. Backmen can panic in that scenario but if you give them 5 seconds of hang time, the intercept mark or spoil will eventuate (especially if we telegraph the ball to the hot spot)

The better teams don't resort to bombing it long under pressure ... they'll look for the extra handpass or the low, fast, skimming kick

As a percentage play that fast rocket kick can pay off if our forwards play in front most of the time

Hopefully Kentfield comes on and JVR delivers on the promise he showed early in his career. Or if can somehow recruit a KPF

In the meantime, we can win with a medium/tall forward line (Fritsch, Melk, Kozzie, Petracca, Chandler et al with 1 or 2 key bigs for structure)

And our mids need to start hitting the scoreboard as well. It's a glaring weakness with regards to our overall scoring opportunities

The other standout out feature of the finals is how the corridor is in constant use. Another area where we are sadly lacking

But it's not rocket science ... just share the ball at pace and go direct. To do that properly, a team needs to be highly skilled

We need a coach with an attacking mindset (when we have the ball) and a total-team defence mindset when the other team has the ball

A bit like 2021 except the long bomb we employed back then is now obsolete

3 minutes ago, Macca said:

In a lot of ways we're not that far off

The biggest issues are our disposal skills and decision making with the ball. (we win our fair share of contested ball and hard ball gets)

And dumping the long bomb almost permanently. Effectively, that tactic just turns the ball over. Especially when targeting the hot spot. But the low, rapid kick forward can work. Backmen can panic in that scenario but if you give them 5 seconds of hang time, the intercept mark or spoil will eventuate (especially if we telegraph the ball to the hot spot)

The better teams don't resort to bombing it long under pressure ... they'll look for the extra handpass or the low, fast, skimming kick

As a percentage play that fast rocket kick can pay off if our forwards play in front most of the time

Hopefully Kentfield comes on and JVR delivers on the promise he showed early in his career. Or if can somehow recruit a KPF

In the meantime, we can win with a medium/tall forward line (Fritsch, Melk, Kozzie, Petracca, Chandler et al with 1 or 2 key bigs for structure)

And our mids need to start hitting the scoreboard as well. It's a glaring weakness with regards to our overall scoring opportunities

The other standout out feature of the finals is how the corridor is in constant use. Another area where we are sadly lacking

But it's not rocket science ... just share the ball at pace and go direct. To do that properly, a team needs to be highly skilled

We need a coach with an attacking mindset (when we have the ball) and a total-team defence mindset when the other team has the ball

A bit like 2021 except the long bomb we employed back then is now obsolete

Singing from the same hymn book has been the way since '22, and now people can see that I hope for whoever is the coach. We get someone who can teach forward craft; that will be one of the biggest challenges along with the midfield overhaul.

28 minutes ago, Mouseymoo said:

I reckon just about every list is one or two shrewd off season changes away from being competitive again. We aren't that far off it ffs.

They talk about momentum in matches. I think it's similar with team progress. It may well have been a few players or coaching staff started cutting corners slightly post-flag and this turned into more people cruising and/or developing larger , lazier habits. It didn't want the coach change but at least we will have fresh pairs of eyes finding where the flaws are or finding the tiny low-hanging-fruit wins which end up leapfrogging us way up the ladder. I'd certainly prefer a glass-half-full expectation for next year.

9 minutes ago, demon3165 said:

Singing from the same hymn book has been the way since '22, and now people can see that I hope for whoever is the coach. We get someone who can teach forward craft; that will be one of the biggest challenges along with the midfield overhaul.

Well, there weren't many (if any) people questioning our method of attack in the 2022 or 2023 seasons

Both years we won 16 games in the season proper and what we were doing was actually working

I'll take a 16 & 6 or a 16 & 7 record any day of the week. Of course, we ran out of legs in 2022 and that was an issue. And in 2023 we ended up with a D Grade forward line once the finals started

So sound reasoning for falling short in 2023 but no excuses in 2022 (Imv)

But gradually, the long bomb started becoming obsolete culminating with a lot of questions in 2024 & 2025

The argument against not bombing it in back in 2022 & 2023 was that we were effectively stopping the opposition from scoring when we did bomb it in (average score against in both years - 65 points)

For proof, go back and read the relevant threads in 2022 & 2023. Hardly anyone here was questioning our method of attack. Many of us thought we were heading for another flag especially with a 10 & 0 start to the 2022 season

In hindsight, it's a different take. But that's hindsight. Bit like the draft ... shouda, couda, wouda

As for the forward line, we need at least a couple of new additions as the personnel we have right now keeps falling short

The midfield? Our existing mids need to share the ball in an attacking way with long bombs being a thing of the past. The extra handpass instead with our mids running into space up forward to receive 20 metre passes

Edited 18 hours ago18 hr by Macca

16 minutes ago, Macca said:

Well, there weren't many (if any) people questioning our method of attack in the 2022 or 2023 seasons

Both years we won 16 games in the season proper and what we were doing was actually working

I'll take a 16 & 7 record any day of the week

But gradually, the long bomb started becoming obsolete culminating with a lot of questions in 2024 & 2025

The argument against not bombing it in back in 2022 & 2023 was that we were effectively stopping the opposition from scoring when we did bomb it in

For proof, go back and read the relevant threads in 2022 & 2023. Hardly anyone here was questioning our method of attack. Many of us thought we were heading for another flag especially with a 10 & 0 start to the 2022 season

In hindsight, it's a different take. But that's hindsight. Bit like the draft ... shouda, couda, wouda

I’ll die on the hill that we were never “figured out” in 2022 and 23

We didn’t give ourselves a chance in 22 because of an inability to run out games, part of which was a result of poor management of players throughout the season

We were primed in 23 but had a horrendous run of bad luck which saw us run out with a D grade forward line in the Carlton semi, which saw one of the all time awful goal kicking performances

Neither of the straight sets exits were a result of our system, but 23 was probably the last year we could realistically win the flag with that style and group of players

1 minute ago, demoncat said:

I’ll die on the hill that we were never “figured out” in 2022 and 23

We didn’t give ourselves a chance in 22 because of an inability to run out games, part of which was a result of poor management of players throughout the season

We were primed in 23 but had a horrendous run of bad luck which saw us run out with a D grade forward line in the Carlton semi, which saw one of the all time awful goal kicking performances

Neither of the straight sets exits were a result of our system, but 23 was probably the last year we could realistically win the flag with that style and group of players

I agree, well said, dc

But others are allowed to be bitterly disappointed with the 2022 & 2023 seasons. That's their right and it's just opinions when it's all boiled down

Just because you're in contention doesn't mean you're going to win big. Just ask Sydney, Geelong or the Pies

Either the Cats or Pies (or both) are not going to win the flag this year. Let's hope it's both!! haha

Top 4 might mean you've got a 1 in 4 chance. We got 3 x top 4 and won once

We certainly weren't a tearaway favourite to win the flag in 2022 or 2023. In contention, yes

But the club did act after the 2023 season anyway, endeavouring to add skills and running ability from the 2023 off-seasons onwards ... and that's coming from a point where we already had a more than decent midfield

But I'm expecting more quality additions in the upcoming off-season (but how we do that is anyone's guess)

Anyway, we secured Windsor, Kolt, Langford & Lindsay. In fact, we traded up or manoeuvred our way up in the draft in order to secure all 4

Whether any or all 4 players end up being top players remains to be seen. It's too early to judge (properly) ... we'll know a lot more in 2 or 3 years time

Edited 18 hours ago18 hr by Macca

3 hours ago, demon3165 said:

Singing from the same hymn book has been the way since '22, and now people can see that I hope for whoever is the coach. We get someone who can teach forward craft; that will be one of the biggest challenges along with the midfield overhaul.

You can't teach forward craft. Players either know how to instinctively lose their opponents or they dont. Its why 3 or 4 of our players had career best years for marks inside 50 per game (due to faster ball movement) and 2 didnt. We're going nowhere with the same KPFs.

17 hours ago, Dannyz said:

Buckley, Skipworth, Lade, Kelly, King & Giansircusa I believe.

Montgomery, Leon Cameron, Cameron Bruce and Jarrad Schofield were spoken to but not proceeded with.

R Harvey and B Royal still in the mix apparently...

The Age is with @Dannyz (or maybe just reads his posts):

https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/new-coach-new-president-will-demons-also-have-a-new-midfielder-20250907-p5mt1y.html

“Multiple competition sources, who preferred to remain anonymous, confirmed the candidates are Nathan Buckley, Geelong assistants James Kelly and Steven King, Collingwood assistant Hayden Skipworth, Bulldogs assistant Brendon Lade and Essendon assistant Daniel Giansiracusa.”

30 minutes ago, titan_uranus said:

The Age is with @Dannyz (or maybe just reads his posts):

https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/new-coach-new-president-will-demons-also-have-a-new-midfielder-20250907-p5mt1y.html

“Multiple competition sources, who preferred to remain anonymous, confirmed the candidates are Nathan Buckley, Geelong assistants James Kelly and Steven King, Collingwood assistant Hayden Skipworth, Bulldogs assistant Brendon Lade and Essendon assistant Daniel Giansiracusa.”

An interesting and positive article; glad to see this snippet too

The Demons’ business plan for building a new home base at Caulfield Racecourse is progressing well. Two competition and one racing source, who preferred to stay anonymous, said relevant parties were aligned for the first time.