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I'll declare my hand early by saying I’m an unabashed fan of Aaron Davey. I’m only an occasional visitor to Demonland (longtime lurker, first-time poster as they’d say on the radio), and I generally enjoy the passion of the site and the wit and insight of many of the posters. However, I was disappointed to return recently and see Aaron Davey’s image removed from the banner above, yet unsurprised given the steady knock on him here and elsewhere through the year. It was especially sad to see echoed here through the year the character assassination handed out to Davey by Luke Darcy on one Channel 10 broadcast (and from what I saw, Luke Darcy, aside from being a not very illuminating broadcaster with a terrible haircut, was as a footballer little more than a glorified netballer, just a long streak of mediocrity like Harley and Maxwell behind him). Now he uses the microphone as a bully pulpit, and a half-lame Aaron Davey was a very soft target. All that BS about body language and effort, pointing to a single, misjudged contest. Anybody who genuinely thinks or actually said Aaron Davey wasn’t trying in that match or in this season is a poor judge of both football and character or at best is relying on lazy truisms and generalisations. As a bit of backstory, my family and I only moved to Victoria from Sydney 8 or 9 years ago. At the time, like I think the vast majority of people in NSW (certainly then and probably now), I don’t think we had ever watched an entire game of AFL/VFL, though I had played a few seasons of ‘Aussie Rules’ as a kid. People in Melbourne couldn’t believe I had never heard of James Hird, much less David Neitz and Russell Robertson. Fortunately for me, I had old school friends who were working for MFC at the time, and over the next few years we attended plenty of home games and even spent some time with the team in the rooms after matches. It was 2004-2006 and the way Aaron Davey played football was a revelation. He was a lovely unassuming kid to boot. It wasn't long before my family and I were addicted to the Dees and to the AFL in general, and the game now happily rules our winter months. Like everyone here, we've enjoyed relatively few only-relative highs and endured more than a few lows watching the Demons over the past half-dozen seasons. But in that time nobody has brought us more pleasure than Flash. The running bounces, the closing speed, the scything passes from half-back (one from a couple of seasons ago Gerard Healy declared kick of the year on ‘On The Couch’), the fingertip control, his two best-on-ground, three-Brownlow-vote performances in the matches against the eventual premiers only last year, the many goal of the year nominations, including the preposterous volleyed effort from a few years ago, and the ground he covers - and the pace at which and the grace with which he covers it - all game, every game to make contests, to apply actual pressure, to win or receive the ball and to help-out teammates. Before this year, I saw Aaron Davey described by a good judge as perhaps the only player to have ‘invented’ two roles that have since become standards: early in his career he was the prototype defensive small forward; and later the attacking small quarterback – the latter role reprised and perfected this year by Davis at Collingwood and Yarran at Carlton. More recently, I saw Mike Sheahan describe him as a pre-Cyril Rioli Cyril Rioli (high praise indeed). I think there’s a tendency among some of the crankier sections of the commentariat and fanbase to overlook or underplay the importance of the obviously gifted players in favour of overstating the impact of the honest toilers, people they can more readily identify with: the James McDonald-type busting a gut for ‘his club’; Nick Maxwell, in the GD bib, doing all the one-percenters and precious few of the ninety-nine-percenters, making all the difference with his ‘perceived' or 'referred' pressure; or the death or glory of a Mitch Robinson, the poor man’s Jonathon Brown, with no respect for his own safety or anyone else’s. I respect the bull-at-a-gate endeavour of players like Moloney, but you can see the same in the Rugby codes, especially in the teams being thumped by better teams. Heedless, head-down barging at stoppages is not what sets the AFL apart. It’s not what makes the game a great spectacle. It’s also not what wins big games or premierships. In the same way Robinson tends to win more ball and have his best games only in Carlton’s worst results, Melbourne is unlikely to win a flag while Moloney remains the team’s ‘best’ player. You need your best players to be better than that. I know I’m being unfair to Moloney, who has an important role to play and whose clearances, at least when he puts boot to ball, put him up there with Nathan Jones ;-0. (In any case, the set piece stoppages and clearances will become steadily less of a factor as the AFL looks for ways to keep the quarters shorter, the ball moving and the players out of the hands of the trainers.) If Melbourne is to contend next year, the team doesn’t need the effort of Brent Moloney as much as it needs the skills of Aaron Davey. We all know he’s had a lean season by his standards. But he had a difficult and interrupted year in 2008 and came back to win the B&F the very next year. Mark Neeld is talking tough, as perhaps he needs to, but I hope when he talks about making Melbourne the hardest team to play he’s also thinking about the part he played in the way Dale Thomas and Leon Davis play their football. It’s especially hard to play against somebody who’s too good for you. I hope Aaron Davey isn’t too good for Mark Neeld, and I hope Mark Neeld can give Aaron Davey the confidence to again be too good to leave off the Demonland banner.

To those in the media and on here who rubbished Garry and said his short stint would achieve nothing, please take a moment to relect on the changes at the MFC recently. Not saying he takes all the credit but he clearly has had some major input.

I thought it was a bit of harmless fun for the boys, and it is good to see them let their hair down a bit. JT is usually very professional and reserved, so it was great to see that they aren't like that boring little moneygrubber that shot off recently, and can actually be kids and have some fun.

Can we just have one thread for all wild Sports News First guesses masquerading as stories?

I'm so hoping for Hagdorn to write an article titled "Melbourne to not win the AFL premiership in 2012".

I think the criticism on this site has been so harsh because he is such an important player. When he is on song he is arguably our most important player and this year was a stinker for him.

A Draw....After a dramatic Geelong fightback. Pods boots 4 Hawkins 4. Collingwood up by 44 points at 1/2 time Crowd 99,998 Highlight...Eddie & Mick have a Punch on after the Siren, Bucks nowhere to be seen.

LOL!! Welcome to the Internet daisycutter. And I usually just go to the self service counters and put bananas through as onions.. do I care? NO- I like bananas in my milkshakes and they rip the farmers off, so karma!

And I believe we should all give KC an award for his work through out the year. Very much appreciated.

I'm going for Geelong because I hate everything about Collingwood's past, present and future. They are all parasites. From the president, to the boot studder, to the fans. Even the young fans. If you're Collingwood, I hate you basically. Probably hate Carlton more but that's another story.

Apart from anything else, I live on Smith St. Last year I was kept awake until around 4am listening to drunken revelers outside singing Good Old Collingwood Forever off key, car horns blaring, and various other primal grunts and screams. I can live without enduring that again.

I don't really care about the quality of the performance. The important thing was that four of our young stars got out there in a very public bonding exercise and showed that they are both a team and a great group of friends. Once again our young brigade are showing themselves to be very media savvy and aware of the image they project and how it impacts on the perception of our club. I don't think there could have been a better way to show that the Scully defection hasn't broken the cohesion of our playing group.

Coaches are not Pokemon. We don't need all 150.

I am prepared to back Flash in to return to former glories in 2012 Massive Pre-Season required & a permanent return to his small forward crumbing role & he will respond. Lets back in Neeld, Misson , Craig & New Forward Coach to go to work on Aaron. & who know's who he might be crumbing too in 2012?

Skin-coloured spandex, nerd glasses, black wigs and American flags have always been a winning combination in my book. Sorry you don't agree.

Is this even a question? Any true Vicotrian, nay Australian, is going for the Cats. Can you imagine the rubbish we would have to put up with if the Pies not only went back-to-back but at the same time equalled Carlton and Essendon on 16 flags? Makes me sick even thinking about it. And for the guy who talked about the Cats being the umpires pets and whinging for free kicks - Collingwood are the AFL pets and whinge for EVERYTHING!!!

Good to see that chilliboy finally landed on his feet and got a job at Sportsnewsfirst!!

I want the Cats to win by a goal after the final siren kicked by one S. Johnson.

Just backed the Cats so I revoke my previous comments.

Unbelievably smooth mover. Wowwee. Happy to put up both compo picks. That's about it unless they want some knives and forks.

Good luck if true.. but It's Sportsnewsfirst right? They have as much credibility as Brendan Fevola on mad Monday.

Legitimately don't care. Last year I was all for the Pies for the same reason as the OP, intense boiling hatred for the team they were playing. This year let's hope 44 players do a knee and we'll be assured of going up at least two spots on the ladder in 2012.

Davey has talent, but he is not a naturally aerobic athlete. As soon as he had his season and preseason interrupted he started losing fitness and he's just not a good enough runner to make up for it. The game requires repeat efforts now, which is also not Davey's natural strength. I think this has led Davey to search for the easy kicks, running around behind players trying to receive the ball to use his great footskills. But he's a much better player when he can use his speed to win the footy himself. He went away from winning his own footy this year and I think that was the biggest difference between his good footy and bad footy. He ranked 22nd at the club for average contested possessions per game. He was in front of only Morton and Evans in terms of midfielders. For a senior player that isn't good enough. Hopefully he can get a full preseason, because I think he needs it more than most.

Freak of reality? No, somebody with his powers of anti-oracle cannot be replicated. Freak = Kim Hagdorn

The only problem I see with this is your hypothesis stems from a Hagdorn 'scoop'... The guy is guessing, and you are guessing on his guessing. If anyone guesses on your guessing from his guessing we would enter a 3rd level of guessing and risk being stuck in limbo...

Yes. He is the Freak of reality...

Hagdorn kiss of death - guaranteed not to happen now.

A bit harsh PJ. I have confidence that the rise of the club under the new management and coaching structure will see Flash return to his best. The bloke has been hassled without relent over the last couple of seasons and his team mates have not been switched on, skilled enough, structured enough nor tough enough to intervene. The hardest team to play in the afl will require players like Davey.

I can't understand the bit about Moloney? One of the best clearance players in the AFL polled 19 brownlow votes and won our B&F. He is a gun player and will be in or best players for years to come. THe thing is Moloney's year would have been much better if guys like Davey and Green stepped up. Hopefully Davey can get back to his best. A lot of issues are mental ones. Can't handle a tag, sulks far to easy. Doesn't work hard enough and is generally scared. I really wish this coming year was the last of his contract. (not sure when but i do think he was given a nice 4 year deal) As it seems after he signed the big deal he has dropped off. SHould be on the trade table or involved to get GC under 17's.

Agree, anyone remember the impact of losing the experience of James McDonald and Cameron Bruce last year? We don't have room to lose AA team members

Demons must re-sign Brad Green asap. Simple. All this bagging of him is pathetic IMO.

I thought Jack T rocked. Gutsy move starting the show solo and the boy can dance... nice one.

This is the first post Iv'e seen on the attractiveness now of the Club. Scully is doomed to languish in the west of Sydney, but what would new draftees now think if Prendergast gets them to us at trade/draft time.

Craig is an elite sports scientist - check his history - who took the crows to minor premiers one year and was revolutionary in his trainging methods - just think how hard that is to achieve. His humbling interview on SEN yesterday had 'class act' stamped all over it. Huge get for us

No Paine, no gain?

Paul Roos said on On The Couch a couple months ago that Neil Craig is one of the very best coaches in the league and that he is universally respected by all other senior coaches. I recall Roos also saying that he was very hard to coach against. Very prepared, runs a very well drilled side etc. This is an enormous get for the club. I cannot believe people have any doubt about this. We have beaten some much bigger clubs to secure his signature. The Scully situation aside, the Demons are seemingly becoming an attractive club to others. I can't remember this ever happening before - certainly not in my lifetime. I am absolutely stoked about recent developments. This is all good.

To quote a great man (?) from a great movie - Sid from Ice Age: "You're hanging out with us now. Dignity's got nothing to do with it."

I agree. Pick 4 in this years draft, big woop. GWS has pick 1,2,3 and 5 plus many more. The 2 compensation picks will be a lot more tantalising than pick 4 in this years draft. Many on here won't be willing to give up both compo picks, but i definitely am. Have a look at his video on the AFL website, and granted that all highlight reels show just that, but by god he is a mover. He seriously moves like a Rolls Royce poetry in motion. I thought Brad Crouch was something, then i stumbled onto O'meara's video, and wow. We have to do everything in our power to try and get him to the club.

My sentiments exactly rpfc...A place of power & respect must be earnt at this club....from this day forth.

His performance was poor but that isn't what convinced me he isn't a leader or shouldn't be captain - it is his awful body language when he is down that can leave one to assume he is selfish and consumed by his own performances. Another issue is with the related lack of vocal and physical support for his teammates; he rarely talks at the breaks and relies on Beamer to do what the captain should do. I know it is tough to do those speeches but you tell the bloke making the noise to shut up and you fake it the best you can. He puts his body on the line when he has to, but he doesn't get in the face of the opposition when we are being punished as Neita used to, nor does he get himself, and throw himself to the bottom of every pack like Junior did when the 'chips are down'. He isn't a leader of men and he has trouble mustering the courage to fake it. He can have two more years. But none more as the captain of the MFC. I'll leave it at that as I don't want to harp - but I can sense a softening of position and I will find it unacceptable if Green is not asked to 'win' his captaincy back.

I have always, and still do, think the captaincy is massively overrated. Green had a relatively poor season (albeit 37 goals from effectively a forward pocket is not a bad return), but to use this entirely in substitution of an AA 2010 season is ridiculous. At 31, I think a one year contract is unreasonable from a club/player perspective in these circumstances. Two years, with the second being largely performance based, is pretty much on the money. I do believe, as I have maintained previously, that a blanket one year rule for over 30s is ludicrous.

garry has been great but all the recruits have also mentioned schwab - has done awesome things at our club

He would provide good tackling training.

We don't need a big bodied midfielder we have enough, we need to re-educate them and apply some sort of structure at clearances. The reason we are poor at clearances is we are predictable and no one works to help each other it has been drop the ball directly behind the ruckman. Next year around the footy we will have Moloney, Jones, Sylvia, McKenzie, Gysberts, Trengove and Tapscott the last four will get stronger over the pre season. Add Structure and hopefully a group of guys that learn how to help each other to create space this will improve. What we do lack is quality outside midfielders with speed and can use the footy, Blease is one, Davey was one, Bail and Nicholson might be ableto fill this role but they both need to improve their kicking,I can't think of any other midfielder with real pace. The guys mentioned above are one paced.

To be fair, i have a strange feeling that Artie is E25, or enforcer25 from the days of old. so many similarities, unapologetic is so confident in his opinion its annoying and is on it just as much. hell he has been on for 2-3 months and already has like 950 posts..... just like.... E25!