25 minutes ago, Salems Lot said:

I do wish there could be a float mic that picked up the questions better

Yep, absolutely agree. Spend millions on [censored] and cant afford to have mics in the room to hear the questions.

10 minutes ago, Ted Lasso said:

I think the forwards would be pretty excited by him validating that they perhaps haven't been given the best chance

the forward set up and conversaion has been slammed by the media and rightly so, but it's hardly Jacob Van Rooyens fault if the ball is coming in too slow, high and to a bad spot and he has to win a 3 on one against much more experienced players to get it.

I reckon he's a massive chance to really spike as a player in 2026.

Also need ppl that can teach the 'craft'

Quite a few elements to our game need revising.

If there were to be a title to the chapter of Melbourne's history for 2026.. I dub it "Revision"

There's a bit to do in late 25 andc26 before we lift the cup in 27 !! That chapter tbc "Perfecting"

If there was for mine a continuing observation of recent times its that we didn't play with much verve. Was as though the natural flair of many was stifled by a game that tried to pattern too much. Listening to the incoming he sounds like hes looking to bring back a bit of dash and dare.

We got one flag one way... lets gets another, another way.

Go Dees

28 minutes ago, Salems Lot said:

I do wish there could be a float mic that picked up the questions better

… said every single listener since the introduction of the press conference.

Man on the moon etc.

16 minutes ago, dice said:

What about former St Kilda players?

Only been one Former Adelaide premiership coach too

2 minutes ago, beelzebub said:

Also need ppl that can teach the 'craft'

Quite a few elements to our game need revising.

If there were to be a title to the chapter of Melbourne's history for 2026.. I dub it "Revision"

There's a bit to do in late 25 andc26 before we lift the cup in 27 !! That chapter tbc "Perfecting"

If there was for mine a continuing observation of recent times its that we didn't play with much verve. Was as though the natural flair of many was stifled by a game that tried to pattern too much. Listening to the incoming he sounds like hes looking to bring back a bit of dash and dare.

We got one flag one way... lets gets another, another way.

Go Dees

I completely agree but i think talking specifically about craft, what comes first a players prefered craft or patterns or the clubs intended structure?

the fact none of our players have lead at the ball very much comparted to other sides to me is a bit of evidence they've been told not to, rather than that they can't actually do it.

It'll be really interesting to see.

5 minutes ago, Palace Dees said:

I didn't think a tongue in cheek meme was necessary. Seems I was wrong.

Still, it's an interesting stat, you'd have to admit.

Interesting but useless. There do seem to be patterns where a swathe of future great coaches previously played or were coach assistants under a legendary coach. But your stat at best will appear in a few year's time when Useless AFL Stats points out how Melbourne players win flags and now Geelong got one coaching a premiership. 😉

38 minutes ago, Palace Dees said:

Not unhappy with Kings appointment. It just leaves me twitchy re his Geelong playing connection.

No former Geelong player has coached a flag since '63. Former Melbourne players have won 9 in that time. Since '52 the numbers are 1 vs 14.

BTW who? Barassi, Clarkson , Beveridge, who else?

The Herald Sun has this... but is behind a wall.

Perhaps some kind soul can precis ? Cheers

Something that resonated with me that was in the presser “Take what the game gives them” this to me reflects what both programs male and female have struggled with and not doing enough of. The licence to play with freedom, yes through structure. This excites me.

12 minutes ago, Ghostwriter said:

… said every single listener since the introduction of the press conference.

Man on the moon etc.

From memory I couldnt hear him too well either

1 minute ago, Go Ds said:

BTW who? Barassi, Clarkson , Beveridge, who else?

Sacrilegious question! (Insert tounge in cheek emoji here 😉)

The great Red Fox, of course.

4 minutes ago, Go Ds said:

BTW who? Barassi, Clarkson , Beveridge, who else?

Smith 64

11 minutes ago, Go Ds said:

Interesting but useless. There do seem to be patterns where a swathe of future great coaches previously played or were coach assistants under a legendary coach. But your stat at best will appear in a few year's time when Useless AFL Stats points out how Melbourne players win flags and now Geelong got one coaching a premiership. 😉

Wait until David King hears about it! 🫠

42 minutes ago, Demonstone said:

In the past 100 years, only two flags have been coached by blokes with four letters in their surname.

This stat, not unlike yours, is completely irrelevant and meaningless.

Four years since we won our last flag..

33 minutes ago, beelzebub said:

The Herald Sun has this... but is behind a wall.

Perhaps some kind soul can precis ? Cheers

Don't miss out on the headlines from AFL. Followed categories will be added to My News.

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New Melbourne coach Steven King has doubled down on the “expectation” the Dees will play finals in 2026 as he promises to bin Simon Goodwin’s game plan.

King won the race to replace Goodwin last week, beating out a field led by Nathan Buckley, by convincing the Dees his new club didn’t need a list teardown but a game plan flip.

The new coach will step out of a Geelong side that plays with attacking flair and pledged to play a “uniquely Melbourne” style that will see his team play with far more attacking flair.

In the waning days of the Goodwin era, the Dees were lambasted for kicking the ball high and long into attack and playing with a defensive mindset.

“I just want to give the players a bit more ownership to play with a bit more freedom with ball in hand,” he said.

“I think we can challenge teams more and as you see now in today’s footy, teams put scores on the board.

“I want our players to have freedom to get after the game, attack it, give our forwards a bit of a look faster with even numbers.”

When asked if he hoped or expected to play finals in 2026, King was clear.

Both club president Brad Green and CEO Paul Guerra have publicly said they planned for the Dees to return to September next year after a finishing 14th this season.

“For me it is an expectation,” he said.

“Every staff member, every player should expect to play finals next year and I’d be really disappointed if that wasn’t an expectation.

“There’s no guarantees in footy, I’m aware of that, but if you don’t expect something you don’t get it, and so you have to get after it. I’m a firm believer in visualising what you want to get after and go and chase it and make everyone else catch up.”

King said he knows Goodwin “well” and would reach out to him on a personal level “when the dust settles”.

The sluggish Goodwin style was a factor in his removal as coach in August and King said he was keen to “move the ball a bit quicker” to give his forwards one-on-one contests.

Green said King won the job in part because of his “contemporary game style” and that he “likes our list and can see it getting better”.

Guerra added: “At one point Steven mid-response to the panel said ‘I am the coach this club is screaming out for’”.

“It kind of captured where we are as a footy club looking for someone to bring that contemporary piece,” Guerra added.

The Dees will maintain some assistant coaches from the 2025 coaching panel and bring in new faces.

Interim coach in the final two games of the year, Troy Chaplin was in attendance when King was unveiled to the media on Monday.

It was in preliminary final week last year that King send a shudder through the Geelong camp when he collapsed at training, and he would miss the prelim loss to Brisbane days later.

Almost 12 months on, he said he had been “checked out fully” and was healthy, as he put the incident down to going too hard on an early morning workout.

Thanks @KoltTheRam

43 minutes ago, Palace Dees said:

Sacrilegious question! (Insert tounge in cheek emoji here 😉)

The great Red Fox, of course.

I don't know enough about players from the 50s to 70s but just looking at premiership coaches it really looks like your stat is wrong. 😂 ( I could only add Norm Smith)

3 hours ago, Adam The God said:

Our communications team are surely the worst in the comp.

It’s on website, also on google, SK performed very well, had his family there and a full press gallery, well worth the watch Adam.

"binning Goodwin's gameplan." Is such an unnecessarily inflamatory way to put it lol. Like any new coach King is going to implement his own style on the team.

With a King as coach and a CEO whose name in Italian and Spanish means "war", I'd like to think our coach's pre-game addresses will be like this,

"We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother..."

or

"Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more..."

Both from Shakespeare's Henry V

Can't believe I'm saying this but hats off the Geelong for allowing Steven to get into the club today and set things off. Many clubs esp the Filth would have marched him out the door.

The scene was set by a fantatisc interview by Guerra on 3AW when he outlined the repsoect hehad for Geelong to announce now and avoid disrupting their finals prep.

Classy.

Edited yesterday at 05:121 day by demon36
spelling mistakes

1 hour ago, Demonstone said:

In the past 100 years, only two flags have been coached by blokes with four letters in their surname.

This stat, not unlike yours, is completely irrelevant and meaningless.

Records are made to be broken, are they not?

1 minute ago, dazzledavey36 said:

If Chaplin goes then we will now need 2 new assistants. Yet if you asked me, Nathan was the weakest of the 3.

From the press conference Griffiths is staying on. FML.

19 minutes ago, demon36 said:

Can't believe I'm saying this but hats off the Geelong for allowing Steven to get into the club today and set things off. Many clubs esp the Filth would have marched him out the door.

The scene was set by a fantatisc interview by Guerra on 3AW when he outlined the repsoect hehad for Geelong to announce now and avoid disrupting their finals prep.

Classy.

Yes. You are correct. Classy. Show respect get respect