I am new to this website , a young demon supporter and as a result i have never seen a flag

But then again you dont have to be young to have never seen a flag

Asking, where will Melbourne finish in 2008? my guess is the bottom of the 8

Here is my good/bad analysis

New coach bailey - Good .. young blood

Neitz still at the club - Bad .. worst captain in the AFL

TJ gone - Good .. injury riddled & inconsistent

no byron - Good .. great in 2006 but lost his game in 07

mclean needs to have a good year

White still as ruckman - Bad .. getting old and worn .. under the pump in 07

The Fixture - bad .. we play WCE , gellong , port and kangas twice

I am new to this website , a young demon supporter and as a result i have never seen a flag

But then again you dont have to be young to have never seen a flag

Asking, where will Melbourne finish in 2008? my guess is the bottom of the 8

Here is my good/bad analysis

New coach bailey - Good .. young blood

Neitz still at the club - Bad .. worst captain in the AFL

TJ gone - Good .. injury riddled & inconsistent

no byron - Good .. great in 2006 but lost his game in 07

mclean needs to have a good year

White still as ruckman - Bad .. getting old and worn .. under the pump in 07

The Fixture - bad .. we play WCE , gellong , port and kangas twice

I dont think TJ was injury riddled, i think he got too big a head to play. We see it time and time again that the top draftees fail to deliver compared to the 2nd or 3rd round. TJ was my fav player, I started following melbourne after i moved home in queensland (where i followed rugby) and used to love the skill he would dish up. But as time has gone on, he still struggles to make any real mark in a game. Each good game or preseason i would tell myself 'this is the year he will deliver' but he didnt. He was tagged week in week out, not an excuse but something that needs recognising. With the loss of TJ, Jones or Brook will be tagged, i believe Brock will get the majority of the attention. This will take time for him to be able to cope with (if he can) meaning i think we wont see the brock that people suggest we will.

Bailey has made the right decisions so far off and on the field however who knows what he will be like long term. For all we know he could be a shocking coach on game day but this will take time to see.

I have never really liked neitz and dont believe he should captain however i do appreciate the importance of him being in the side. Thoes who watched the geelong elimination final in 06? would see this. He is a great forward but i do think its time to pass the captancy off

White will struggle me thinks this year. His body really slowed up towards the end of last year and i think bailey will give every oportunity to play the others too.

The fixture is great for a team that finished bottom 4 i believe. we travel 5 times i think??? which is an ok number.

At the end of the day i think we will come between 10 and 13. Bailey will be playing some kids who will obviously make mistakes, some enough to cost us games but im fed up of finishing 7th and 8th each year so even if we come 16 this year and i see some improvement then ill be happy. Would like to see Bruce and or Green traded too but thats not for another 10 months

Neitz is certainly not the worst captain in the league. Its too late and I am slightly too inebriated to analyse the rest of your post, however you need to stop and think about what your saying. Are you calling Neitz the worst PLAYER to be a captain, or the worst CAPTAIN.

He is certainly not the worst leader/captain in the AFL - however - the worst player? We have to wait until 2008 to see... (2007's 'Worst Captain' award went to Ritchie Vandenberg)...

I am new to this website , a young demon supporter and as a result i have never seen a flag

But then again you dont have to be young to have never seen a flag

Asking, where will Melbourne finish in 2008? my guess is the bottom of the 8

Here is my good/bad analysis

New coach bailey - Good .. young blood

Neitz still at the club - Bad .. worst captain in the AFL

TJ gone - Good .. injury riddled & inconsistent

no byron - Good .. great in 2006 but lost his game in 07

mclean needs to have a good year

White still as ruckman - Bad .. getting old and worn .. under the pump in 07

The Fixture - bad .. we play WCE , gellong , port and kangas twice

Kane Johnson(at what point in your career do you stand up) and Vandenberg(struggled to get a game all year) better captains than Neitz. remind me .... who captained Freo and the Dogs last year, two teams most had finishing top four. Dogs had injurys late in the season,late not early like some teams but Freo werent to bad off. no better example of two teams swept up in their own [censored]. their captains failed to pull their teams together. the Saints had three captains, all equally as useless as each other( with regards to leading men, not skill level) . I like the fact we have one captain, not seven that roate depending on what no. came up on the chookwheel. when Neitz leads he runs straight through people, he is hard at the ball and loves to crash packs. not enough have followed his lead hence no handover until next year.

with regards to the draw: a couple of years ago when 1 final had to be played at the G every week, i think we were 7th or 8th and the way the finals draw fell was that if we won our games we could play four finals at the G even though interstate teams were above us, we blew it. Geelong last year and WC, Sydney and the Lions in the past have shown to finish top four and be successful you must be able to win away from home. be challenged early dont wait till the finals to find out youre not that good.

try putting forward some ideas rather than just going to town on the club.

The Fixture - bad .. we play WCE , gellong , port and kangas twice

We DO NOT play the Eagles twice, once at the MCG and same with Port, only once and at AAMI. Better get your facts straight before posting rubbish

i dont think we'll make the 8 next year, but this doesn't really worry me too much.

sure, i know this means another year of pain, but looking 2-3 years ahead (when we might actually have a realistic shot and top4 and premiership), i dont think its such a bad thing to spend another yr out of the 8.

anyone who followed 2007 season closely would surely know well that despite our injuries, 2007 proved that our senior players just aren't good enough, in terms of playing ability and leadership. we made 3 finals series in a row, 2004-2006 and this gave us false hope going into 2007.

it is painfully obvious after last yr, that with Green, Bruce, Carrol, Robbo and White as our senior players we will not seriously push for top4 and premierships. sure, we may come 5-8th, but no closer. that isn't to say i love these players, because i do. but premierships are won with great senior ability and leadership.

for that reason, i think we will probably come 9-11th. we simply have too much talent in our team to come bottom 4 with our best team on the park, but there is no doubt we are in a transitional stage at the moment.

it is not until Mclean, jones, Bell, Rivers, Sylvia and Bate are our senior leading players that the transitional phase will be completed. hopefully that will be in 2009 or 2010.

next yr these players i mentioned are still relatively inconsistent and youngsters, and while this is the case we will not be strong premiership contenders.

i see huge promise and positives on our current list. Dean Bailey is a positive, as are our players under 24 yrs old...

if next season we come 11th, but see real improvement and development from Frawley, Pettard, Mclean, Sylvia, Bate, Rivers, Morton and Grimes as they push to take a strangle hold on starting 18 positions, then i will not be totally disappointed.

next yrs pain could be gain in 2-3 years. because imo there's one thing for certain... we are not premiership contenders next season, and we won't be with our current senior players. we learnt this lesson well in 2007. next year should be our transition and development. coming 6th, while not being real contenders is pretty pointless imo

i love seeing the demons win more than anything. i know it could mean much pain for me next year. but still, that's my realistic predicction

Bruce, Green and Robbo not good enough. have they been the problem or is it the rest of the team, either still developing, not interested ie Travis and Yze or just not good enough. i think it was in 05 Robbo kicked something like 84 goals. During radio interviews opponents coaches/assistants allways say Robbo in a nightmare to match up on, plays very tall for his size, very damaging. the bloke is a champion. he does more than sit on peoples heads. the three of them are on the wrong side of 50 but in seasons 04 05 @ 06 a lot of clubs would have loved to have had them. an unijured Robbo playing for the Eagles during those years would easily return 60 goals a year. i think we can make bottom half of top eight, and if we do we havent overachieved like some would say the Roos have. Connoly has said that 55% of our list is under the age of 23. the days of nursing the next tier are over, if Brock cops a tag stiff bickies, this is a mans game. time for everyone to stand up.

When Melbourne made the five in '87 and came within 2 points of a shot at the flag they IMO did it as a team that seemed to gel together as a single unit. They didn't have the biggest names in the competition but they way they worked together made 1+1=3 if you know what I mean

Last season, it seemed to me as an outsider, they struggled in the way of team dynamics, if true then what the cause was only they know

Combine a great team feeling with uninjured players and we will be in the 8 pushing for the 4. Don't think the odds of the 4 are high though is definitely doable

Am very much looking forward to the new Demons under Bailey, that team dynamic might not be too far away

I am new to this website , a young demon supporter and as a result i have never seen a flag

But then again you dont have to be young to have never seen a flag

Asking, where will Melbourne finish in 2008? my guess is the bottom of the 8

Here is my good/bad analysis

New coach bailey - Good .. young blood

Neitz still at the club - Bad .. worst captain in the AFL

TJ gone - Good .. injury riddled & inconsistent

no byron - Good .. great in 2006 but lost his game in 07

mclean needs to have a good year

White still as ruckman - Bad .. getting old and worn .. under the pump in 07

The Fixture - bad .. we play WCE , gellong , port and kangas twice

pfft worst captain in afl?!! get a life mate! and how do u kno he is the worst captain? speak to any melbourne fc player and they will tell u his the best captain they have played under and also a great inspiration. u also need to check ur facts also before u post garbage next time :angry:

We will finish top with a perfect 22-0 record.

We will win the flag by a record margin making Geelongs effort last year look ordinary.

We will have 2 count them 2 players tie for the Brownlow.

We be the greatest team AFL/VFL have ever seen.

Oh hang on ,did you mean this season???

It never ceases to amaze me the amount of low-IQ dipshits that come on this site to bag out one of the club's greatest ever players and captains... They never have any facts to back it up... The only reason they don't like him is that he doesn't have the profile and success of some of the others. Neither of these two drawbacks are his fault.

If you're going to be an MFC fan, BE an MFC fan... otherwise go to puntroadend, where they eat their own.

My kids had the honour of forming part of the Guard of Honour for David Neitz's 300th at the G on a cold wintry night against Collingwood. The atmosphere experienced that night is something that will stay with me forever. A feeling of pride that we were all taking part in something so BIG! I seriously doubt so many people would be so emotional for "the worse captain in the game"

Your comment about David Neitz is offensive - he is and always will be a legend and it has been an honour to watch him play.

The fact that so many of our players were shattered that they couldn't win it for Neitzy says it all to me - not a poorly spelt post with incorrent facts by some newby.

I am new to this website , a young demon supporter and as a result i have never seen a flag

But then again you dont have to be young to have never seen a flag

Asking, where will Melbourne finish in 2008? my guess is the bottom of the 8

Here is my good/bad analysis

New coach bailey - Good .. young blood

Neitz still at the club - Bad .. worst captain in the AFL

TJ gone - Good .. injury riddled & inconsistent

no byron - Good .. great in 2006 but lost his game in 07

mclean needs to have a good year

White still as ruckman - Bad .. getting old and worn .. under the pump in 07

The Fixture - bad .. we play WCE , gellong , port and kangas twice

You [censored]!

I am new to this website , a young demon supporter and as a result i have never seen a flag

But then again you dont have to be young to have never seen a flag

Asking, where will Melbourne finish in 2008? my guess is the bottom of the 8

Here is my good/bad analysis

New coach bailey - Good .. young blood

Neitz still at the club - Bad .. worst captain in the AFL

TJ gone - Good .. injury riddled & inconsistent

no byron - Good .. great in 2006 but lost his game in 07

mclean needs to have a good year

White still as ruckman - Bad .. getting old and worn .. under the pump in 07

The Fixture - bad .. we play WCE , gellong , port and kangas twice

Your analysis - Bad

This topic makes my blood boil!! Seriously stop posting crap!!

Neitz is a true legend of the club and he bleeds for the club you watch the way the played on Danihers farewell and his 300th both games where he shouldnt have played because of injury but did for his club and inspired the players around him and the supporters aswell so please please dont make stupid accusations!!

Neiter is well past his best and well may be appointed captain because there isnt an obvious option.

If he is captain it is a choice he will make for the club more than for himself, Bailey has let him decide.

It is a shame we dont have someone in the wings, but it isnt Neiters fault.

We arent the only club with this dilemma.

Ive been told there is no one at the Bulldogs willing to Captain. Is this better or worse than our position?

The Bullies are not happy to even play for Eade, much less be his Captain, but Johnno gets the job, because he is a clubman.

I dont see its necessary for so many to come down so hard on a first time poster who didnt express himself very well.

Neiter is well past his best and well may be appointed captain because there isnt an obvious option.

If he is captain it is a choice he will make for the club more than for himself, Bailey has let him decide.

It is a shame we dont have someone in the wings, but it isnt Neiters fault.

We arent the only club with this dilemma.

Ive been told there is no one at the Bulldogs willing to Captain. Is this better or worse than our position?

The Bullies are not happy to even play for Eade, much less be his Captain, but Johnno gets the job, because he is a clubman.

I dont see its necessary for so many to come down so hard on a first time poster who didnt express himself very well.

i think he got his point across, this bloke joined in July 07 and waited six moths to serve up this rot. as i said if youre going to bag something or someone at least offer an alternative.

I dont see its necessary for so many to come down so hard on a first time poster who didnt express himself very well.

Just because he's new doesnt mean that we should treat with care or treatment his comments are equal to ours and he should expect to get honest feedback from demonlander's. Saying such controversal things aswell makes him much more inclined to recieve criticism. If you met someone for the first time and they said "I hate such n such a race" would you feel your need to respond to that in the same way that we have or would you just let it slide because its the first time you met this person?

Excellent post sylvinator

Al's - Re: McLean ... he will be fired up to atone for last year and also he knows it's basically out of he, Bruce and Green - whoever stands up most on the field this year take's the captaincy off Neita. If we want this guy to be our future captain and possibly our No.1 player I say the sooner he gets heavily and consistently tagged the better - we're not winning any flags anytime soon but I hope McLean sees this period as a developmental phase to lead our side and be a star of the competition.

Robbo's best year was 05 with 73 goals ( the big fella managed 39) Robbo however has had 9 years as a best-22er and his next best effort is 44 (twice). However he has been a great second forward and a hell of an entertainer... who knows what he will turn out after his recent decision to stay with the club - this bloke has played all but the first three of his 205 games under Neale Daniher, but the Dean is in now.

Melbman - good call on team dynamics - you look at the Cats and just how much of a TEAM they seem to be in all meanings of the word - our boys seem to be dropping in this department year by year but as you say DB is the number one bearer of this responsibility now - and it's a huge one.

(How could anyone not like David Neitz... i'm amazed and sickened! Darn living legend and historical figure of the MFC)

This is what we needed last year and need now:

-Decent run with injuries

-More passionate/unified team dynamic

-Coach gets it right at the selection table and on game day

-At least a couple of players dominate games with some regularity

-Bit of luck in the close ones

-More individual improvement, especially the kids

If ALL of the above happen we'll end up about 6th/7th - but all of these things WON'T happen so I'll say 9th

can we add mindset to that list. whether your six goals up or six goals behind , all 22 players must be just as hard at the ball. when we tackle we must hurt the opposition, tackled players must go to ground and be the last one up. what happened to burying sides?

In answer to the original post, no we won't make the 8.

Why should we? New coach, new game plans, new players. It's a recipe for the future, not this year.

Let alone thinking like the mug who put $100,000 at $61 on Sportsbet for us to win the flag.

Why should we? New coach, new game plans, new players. It's a recipe for the future, not this year.

Why shouldn't we?

We made finals in 2006 and our list has not got worse, in fact, with natural improvement from the likes of Jones, McLean, Bate, Petterd, Dunn, Newton, Buckley etc... our list is looking healthy and capable.

Apart from Neita and possibly White, most of our senior players should continue to produce at about the same level.

Why are people choosing to remember the horrible, injury-ravaged year we had in 2007, and not the 3 years in which we played finals footy?

It wasn't too long ago that we were sitting pretty in the top 4, before some ordinary losses saw us drop to 7th...

I understand that as Melbourne supporters we tend to expect the worst outcome, but this lack of belief in the team is really frustrating.

I am with you Jaded - I find it staggering that people have jumped off our band wagon so quickly. We had the worst run with injuries that I can ever remember a team having. Prior to the start of season 07 we were expected to make the top 4. Our season would have been played out differently had we not had so many players unable to play. I think we will shock a lot of people this year - maybe I am just the eternal optimist but I think we will still be playing in September.

Thanks for the observations fellow posters. I didn't realise we had a bandwagon rolling quite as yet. More hiccups, false promises and injuries than you would care for recently colour my view.

Regardless, if we make the 8, I'll be the first applauding the efforts that got us there, because the team will deserve it.

I simply happen to think that it's unrealistic at this stage. A footy culture change takes a while to grip and turn a club around.

Then again, every year throws up surprises and we may be one of them. I'll hold fire until I see some proof of your optimism displayed on the field.

I'd bet that not even DB would realistically expect us to play off for the flag this year. Competitive yes, learning even more and setting our sights a little beyond the learning curve.

And btw, I haven't jumped off anything. It's an assessment, nothing more so lay off the histrionics.