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That is compete bulltish. There are dozens of posters here at Demonland who know what is happening in the inner circle of the club.....

It could quite equally say - "I had no idea the place was run by the cleaning lady ubtil I actually got here"

I'd preferred it if he just shut up and do all his talking on the field.

Maybe its time the players stop getting treated like babies and only get a 2 minute talk when they are dropped from the leadership group. All I'd expect from Neeld would be to outline the reason behind his decision and what he wants Green and company to do better. If that only took 2 minutes then so be it. They had to get over the Junior thing and now Brad and co have to get over this.

Morton vs Howe - want to Howe run Morton around, and make Morton accountable as a HBF Clark vs Sellar - give us a look at Sellar on a key forward Petterd vs Strauss (if fit) - would like to think that Petterd can take his I50 pressure up a notch, and will teach Strauss to hit targets under pressure Bail vs Trengove - see what Bail is like shutting down one of the better mids Bate vs Moloney - make Bate accountable against a quality mid that will be on the end of Jamar's taps Jones vs Nicholson - both gut-runners, with Nicho looking for a promotion to senior list Frawley vs Watts - see how much JW has been doing in the gym Bartram vs Davey - Flash to play forward and Barty tag him Points; * Tapscott, Magner and Couch are not to go near Grimes * Jurrah to play after a restricted preseason and kick 4 goals * Morton BOG.

It's not all over yet, none of those is a bust ... 2003 pick 3 Sylvia: he has been improving since he got his body right and could still realise his potential 2003 pick 5 McLean: that's Gysberts now 2007 pick 4 Morton: It's easy to forget he just turned 21 this year 2009 pick 1 Scully: that's 2 unsused compo picks 2009 pick 2 Trengove: Co-captain at 20.

We DESPERATELY need some more decent mids.

Lets just wait till the season begins...then maybe we might see who stands up and who falls over

I also made it down to my first ever training this morning. I did not take notes or anything but am happy to answer any questions that you may have. As Nick mentioned, main session involved match simulation. A couple of impressions: It was very congested with strong emphasis on structures and accountability. There was a good level of talk and camaraderie. MORTON – Thought Cale was very good. Mainly played HBF on Dunn and took some good marks due to reading the play and disposed of the ball well. Was one instance when Dunn clearly had Cale out positioned, but he managed a last minute desperate lunge to punch the ball away which drew praise from coaches and teammates. GRIMES – Played the entire match in defence with his usual aplomb. Backed into a pack with no regard for his personal wellbeing to spoil a mark, luckily his teammates looked after him. TAPSCOTT & JORDIE – Both played in the scratch match in addition to the walking and running Nick mentioned. Tappy played midfield with some penetrating lace out passes. COOK – Took some solid grabs based on good body positioning and kicked well. Still a while away from seniors but appeared to have space and time, just needs patience and experience. GYSBERTS – Good in heavy traffic with some key clearances. JONES – Always hard at it. Keeps pushing himself, tackled well and disposed well. DAVEY – Did not star, but no sign of the apathy mentioned in other reports. Played forward. HOWE – Love his work. One easy goal kicked as a result of him launching himself at a pack and knocking the ball clear which was subsequently crumbed by a player running past. BATE – Did not complete the entire session due a knock during the scratch match. Not sure whether it was a rolled ankle or a corkie, but don’t think it was anything serious.

Quality stuff from Brad. He will go down as a club legend, so he need not be Captain this year. That said, I would love to see Brad regain his 2010 form, secure AA selection and re-sign with the club for another couple of years. That's the sort of leadership we need from him this year.

To the contrary-he is not here to make mates and play favourites with club stalwarts . Amateurish is the best way to describe the attempted coup on CS . Those associated with it have had the unnecessary burden of politics removed from them . Good job too. The slate is now clean. Redemption awaits those that feel aggrieved .

I agree with the decision 100% I agree with the decision to oust Jnr I agree with the whole new for old policy . As for the way bad news has been delivered by our club. I don't think there is a nice way to say it . The important thing is it has been said. Actions count-words do not . The old leadership group can show the way onfield . Green will be the professional he is paid to be . I wish Jnr all the very best with his new mates. Progress we wanted and progress we shall have .

Will become the youngest captain in history. [censored] can't let Trengove have the number 1 spot in anything can he?????

The are certainly plusses to winning the pre season cup. And if we get that far then fine. However, I find the pre season cup annoying in that the test or contrived rules drive different strategies than what would happen in the real stuff. If we dont progress with the NAB cup then we focus on proper practice matches in preparation for the season. FWIW, i think we go into the NAB cup with arguable the broadest list of available players we have had in years. Previously we have seemed to mount up injuries through the pre season and carry over from the past years. When we have been a struggling club, injuries particularly to your better players just crucifies you. However, I would not be surprised if the team looks raw and rusty under Neeld. He has only been in charge of the side for about 5 months and its fantasy to think a team will be able to implement a new game plan/style in so short a time. I am not overly confident about MFC doing well in the pre season comp but I expect the side to improve subject to injuries etc as the season goes on reflecting the growing maturity of the young team and the understanding of Neeld's way of doing things.

Wrote something similar in the Moloney thread in The Locker Room. I agree that Moloney can be a top midfielder, not sure about the Swan reference as he is more of a complete mid where Beamer is an elite, or near elite, clearance player but merely neat and effective around the ground - Swan is a powerhouse around the ground. Finds space, follows up, gets the pill at will. While Beamer does need help, he also cannot defend the 33% drop in his possessions in losses. He needs to do more. But this thread is about the midfield as a whole so I don't want to derail it. We need stars in the midfield and Moloney is our best shot in 2012 but one isn't enough... We need to get 3 of Trengove, Viney, McKenzie, Gysberts, Bail, and Nicholson, to be in the top 20 mids in the comp in the next 2 to 3 years.

Does that include the tragics on this site that think they are "in the know". I think it does . There's something in that for all of us- even the former leadership group who are now not . Once the season begins -there is only 1 general and all the rest are soldiers .

All right enough of this .BM is actually the least of our problems .Perhaps he can improve as he does every year .As Martin Flanagan said in yesterdays paper he is the heart and soul of our club and actually barracked for us as a kid so he knows the history .Why don't we pick apart the guys like Morton and Gysberts-who never put a block on for him .CM is one guy that should thank god he is still on a list . Brent , as has been said ,would walk into any team in the comp.Can he get better? Yes we/he can! By the way ,I don't want to keep up bagging our own .Morton has another crack ,has 80 games to his name ,should be doing the business now and has not done the business so far .I think he lacks confidence and just needs a breakout game . Consider Moloneys losing performances in light of the guys he has had to protect and let run free under our stupid plan last year .There will be no "outside/inside " this year . Everyone is inside till we have the pill .Any BM knockers here ever won a an AFL B&F ?

Burgo was painful- get real .Suburban and witless , looking like a gushing sister in every interview . Robbos a natural lair and a charmer with enough confidence in himself to make it fun to watch . Thanks Burgo- honest and sincere effort but bland .

Sunday is good.

Player exodus? I know one little fella who is stuck there for 6 years...

I know what you mean, but no team has a "dozen gun mids". In reality, sides have 10-12 players that are capable of rotating through the middle. Many of them will have limited time in there, but enough to allow for rotations, match-up difficulties, manning up, getting a player into the game, etc. There haven't been too many teams that have had as many as 5 'gun' mids. Brisbane at their best had Voss, Lappin, Black, Aker, Power; Geelong - Ablett, Bartel, Corey, Selwood, Chapman. Those teams were the exceptions. Collingwood have been well served by Swan, Pendlebury, Ball, and (more recently) Thomas, Hawthorn won a flag with Hodge, Mitchell, and Crawford. They weren't the best team that year, but they also had Franklin. Their better mids were well supported by Sewell and Lewis. The Saints never won the ultimate, but were well placed with Hayes, Ball, Dal Santo and Montagna. West Coast had Kerr, Cousins, Judd with Fletcher and Embley in support. Let's cut to the quick - Jones, Moloney, Bail, Bate, Sylvia and a host of others are the midfield support acts in our quest to win a flag. And the support acts are crucial. But it's stars that win you flags. It's the midfield guns that take you to the next level and allow you to compete when the games are at their fiercest. The intensity in finals is 3 notches higher than just about any home and away game. We need Trengove, Gysberts, Viney, or a 'Swan' that comes from the woodwork to become our 'gun' mids. They might come from this year's super draft. Who knows, it might be Grimes. These guys will at times rotate through the midfield this year: Moloney, Jones, Gysberts, Trengove, McKenzie, Bail, Sylvia, Magner, Green, Tapscott, Couch, Evans, Howe, Grimes, Bartam, Bate, Watts, Davey, and more. Having enough players to take their turn in a rotation isn't the problem. Unearthing some genuine 'gun' mids is our challenge. I'm actually very confident that we'll compete at a much higher level this year. But until we have genuine midfield class we'll be making up the numbers. And when I say making up the numbers I mean anywhere from 5-12. That said, I reckon we'll make the 8 this year and it will be the stepping stone that gives this list confidence that they're heading in the right direction. Once we've broken new turf and are able to consolidate that position we'll only be a couple of midfield guns away from being serious players. Success starts to breed success. Btw Lutz, not all of this post is directed at you, as I'm aware that I'm probably preaching to the converted.

And he never polled a vote in the Alan Border Medal.

You do realise that he's one dimensional, hasn't got great vision, isn't creative and doesn't run the lines ? He is what he is, which is a good ordinary footballer that gets the most out of himself. I actually respect the guy. He was a rookie draft pick that has gone on to win a club's Best & Fairest, which is a great achievement. But I'm aware of his limitations as a footballer. He needs to be relegated to a second string midfielder if we're to become any good. There's certainly a role for him, but while he and Jones are our best two we're crud.

Last year Brent Moloney was declared our BEST player by THE CLUB. The End. Calling a former member of our leadership group not even "a leader's toenail", IS player bashing. The End. I can take criticism when it comes with some fraction of thought. And AGAIN I POINT OUT, I DID NOT say Moloney should have remained in the group, I say AGAIN that no one knows unless they know everything behind the scenes. So there is your correction. The End. And as I've pointed our above, you continually misquote, misinterpret, and blatantly just make things up to try and support your weak arguments. The End. My apologies to everyone else reading this thread, has some great stuff in it, and I should have known better than to feed this troll.

An Old teacher of mine always said. "You've got to speculate to accumulate". So if you don't risk there is no reward. Every player we draft is a risk, and hasn't that been proven time and time again. Melbourne aren't much good at punting.