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I'll take a wild stab in the dark. He's doing a good job ?

By the time the average punter with 2 school age kids gets home it's 8:30 on a school night. It's a terrible timeslot

Great and underrated point. There'd be Gardner sympathisers posting on this website who would readily acknowledge that they thought there was no way the current board would get rid of the debt, but not only have they got rid of the debt (and massive interest payments) they're still raking in huge coin from dedicated and united supporters who share a common goal in moving this club forward. McLardy needs to learn to sell it better, I acknowledge that, but gee, some of Gardner's love children who get their knickers in a knot over the terms of reference of huge money coming in never said a bad word about the last board even though we had $5mil debt. I'm no accountant, but that doesn't add up to me.

How about the five teams currently at the top of the ladder for a start off? Sydney: Goodes, LRT Adelaide: Tippett, Walker Hawthorn: Franklin, Roughead Collingwood: Cloke, Dawes West Coast: Kennedy, Lynch

This is my last post on this topic because it's obvious the point is being completely lost. I don't think a single person has said the idea of a fund raiser is a poor idea or that other clubs don't do it. It's purely McLardy's statement that we need to raise money in this fashion because we cant pay 100% TPP if we don't. Chook do you think it would be a good thing if paying 100% was completely dependant on the well to do tipping in? Because indirectly, that's what McLardy said.As I said before, I'm satisfied with the response that it's just dressing to make the idea of appealing to those with the coin. But we can't seriously be surprised or upset with people for taking his word literally.

Find it remarkable people think funds from the well to do is in anyway negative. If that was a major source of income you could rightly be worried. But $750,000 equates to less than 2% of our forecast revenue. Its tops up the coffers and allows some value adds we otherwise wouldn't have. Every club does similar things. Actually, every professional sporting club on the planet does it. Jesus, even political parties rely on the donations of the well healed. Coteries have been around for a generation now. They aren't there just to pat each other on the back. They raise funds. The only difference with the Foundation Heroes is they got publicity because 1. Jimmy was the public face, and 2. they retired debt at such an astonishing rate that whole football world sat up and took notice. Just no pleasing some people.

Sorry to take this off topic (and a really interesting one at that!), but who the f' let this moron in? Anyone who likes their own posts should be banned for life. Carry on.

In total agreeance with Old Dee, RobbieF and others. If i could i would happily donate that kind of money to the club. No-one is being forced to donate. No-one is being threatened. The donations are made because people love this club and want to contribute those amounts. If people here for one minute think it does not happen at every AFL club they are exremely mistaken. It happens at just about every football club in the land. I have a Collingwood friend who does exactly this. Melbourne's function receives more press because it stems from the original debt demolition and Jim Stynes' campaign. But it is nothing that other clubs do not engage in. If it is that extra 1% that puts us ahead of the opposition in years to come and delivers us what we all so desperately crave, then go for it. Whilst everyone who posts on this board has their own opinions, and comes from different walks of life, like it or not we all have the same love. The Melbourne Footy Club. It is what unites us all in happiness and makes us tear each other apart in anger. I have been guilty in the past of losing sight of this when engaged in discussion with fellow posters, and sometimes it pays for everyone to just take a step back and remember this. Good on the club for holding this function. Good on the Foundation Heroes for their wonderful generosity. And good on every Melbourne member and supporter for the contributions they make, be it through memberships, donations, apparel or simply turning up of a Fri/Sat/Sun and supporting our team.

THE GREEN MILE by Whispering Jack The last home game of the season is to be played at the ungodly hour of 4.40pm on a Sunday night in late winter and, because it's against Adelaide and the forecast is for a shower or two, one wonders whether a crowd will turn up to farewell Brad Green who will play his 254th game proudly wearing the number 18 guernsey for the last time in a distinguished career with the Melbourne Football Club. It would be a shame if the Demon faithful fail to turn up to celebrate the occasion. This season has been a long, hard and eventful one but for all the wrong reasons. While the passion and the generosity of the Melbourne fans at Tuesday night's Foundation Heroes Dinner was encouraging, the curtain will come down this week on the difficult era in which Green played in a pall of gloom but, as always, there is hope for better times on the horizon. Brad Green arrived at the Melbourne Football Club at another low moment in its history at the end of the last century. The Demons had recently admitted to breaching the AFL's salary cap and, as a consequence, were sanctioned by way of fines and the loss of their first draft pick at the 1999 National Draft which would have been selection five. Ironically, that pick was given to Fremantle who selected Leigh Brown of the Gippsland Power who is currently an assistant coach at Melbourne. The club's first pick that year became selection 19 and it chose wisely when it named young Brad Green from the Tasmanian Under 18s. Green was a versatile young all round sportsman who had played representative cricket and soccer as a teenager, captaining the Australian under-15 cricket team. He was scouted by Manchester United and spent time in training at Old Trafford before deciding to concentrate on our game. Years into his career, commentators would always reprise the connection with the great soccer club whenever they were caught short for words while Green was present on the playing field. Things immediately turned around for the club in Green's first year as it rose from 14th to make the 2000 Grand Final where it fell to a great side in Essendon, a tough, match-hardened team brim full of experience that lost only one game that year and took the opportunity to maul its younger opponents into submission on its way to the premiership. The young Green, who was a star in the other finals and had booted four goals in the semi final against Carlton was bashed in the throat and ended in hospital. He hadn't lasted a quarter in the season's ultimate game. It was ironical that when Melbourne's current coach spoke at this week's Foundation Heroes Dinner, he highlighted the fact that the team he now has at his disposal suffered from its inexperience of an average of roughly sixty games per player against the leading clubs whose make up is nearly double that figure - a differential of two to three seasons per player on average. This was not dissimilar to the gulf between the two participants that one day in September, a dozen years away in a year in which Green, Cameron Bruce, Paul Wheatley and Matthew Whelan were all introduced to the club from a draft in which it was deprived of its first pick. Green grew with the club and established himself in a number of roles. He was equally adept in the middle, in defence, on a wing, half forward or deep in the forward line where his accurate kicking for goal was a feature of his game. The club was strong enough to contest the finals in most of those early years under Neale Daniher but never enough to make it to the last two weeks in September (actually, that 2000 grand final was played in the first week of September due to the forthcoming Olympic Games in Sydney). In 2006, the Demons finished fifth but were the highest placed of all the Victorian teams. Off the field, the club had endured in-fighting when two separate factions emerged in the wake of the dismissal of Joseph Gutnick as its chairman and further controversy affected its fortunes when Gabriel Szondy suddenly resigned amid accusations of incompetence and mismanagement of the CEO. Rarely during the past decade or so have the Demons been without some form of off-field wrangling and controversy which still manages to dog them to this very day. At the start of 2007, hopes for the team were high but it fell into a form of football recession, one from which it is yet to emerge. Wooden spoons and early draft picks followed and these have led to charges of cheating and the current round of tanking allegations. On the ground, the club has failed to rise above twelfth position in the past six seasons and it currently sits close to the foot of the ladder. Through all of the gloom, Brad Green stood out like a beacon in a stellar career that has now spanned more than 250 games and 348 goals (hopefully, he will make it to 350 on Sunday evening). In 2010, he had his best season, kicking 55 goals and taking 153 marks. He made the All-Australian squad and won the Keith 'Bluey' Truscott Medal along with the Ron Barassi Leadership Award and the "Heart and Soul" Award stamping him as the ideal successor for the captaincy of the Demons, after the retirement of James McDonald. He skippered his country in the round ball 2011 International Rules series against Ireland and was the only Australian to kick a goal during the series with many commentators describing this goal as a "captain's goal". His leaving is soured to an extent by the club's recent history. When the club fell on hard times and was close to broke during its 150th season in 2008, a new Board headed by the legendary Jimmy Stynes took over to lead its fight for survival. The debt was broken and the club was ultimately able to provide its players with better facilities and an upgrade in the amount of personnel available but some discontentment in the background culminated in the now infamous loss at Geelong on 30 July 2011 that led to the sacking of coach Dean Bailey. In the wash up that followed the appointment of the new coach, Green lost the captaincy and his place in the leadership group for this year and was then struck by injury and loss of form that wiped out most of the first half of his current and final season that even saw him playing a few games with the Casey Scorpions. He returned in the way that great players do and recently kicked a bag against Gold Coast as the team stormed to a seven goal win at the MCG. And so the time has come for Brad Green and one suspects, some of the other club elders as a new generation emerges to take up fresh challenges in changing times. I look upon the end of his illustrious career in much the same way as that of the biblical Moses who took a whole generation through the wilderness but never made it to the Promised Land. THE GAME Melbourne v Adelaide at the MCG 26 August 2012 at 4.40pm (AEST) HEAD TO HEAD Overall Melbourne 11 wins Adelaide 19 wins At MCG Melbourne 7 wins Adelaide 5 wins Since 2000 Melbourne 6 wins Adelaide 11 wins The coaches Neeld 0 wins Sanderson 0 wins MEDIA TV Fox Footy Channel – live at 4.30pm. RADIO SEN ABC774 3AW Triple M THE BETTING Melbourne to win $6.00 Adelaide to win $1.13 LAST TIME THEY MET Melbourne 22.17.149 defeated Adelaide 8.5.53 at the MCG Round 7, 2011 Less than 20,000 fans (actually 19,987) turned up to watch the Demons demolish a poor Adelaide outfit at the MCG but the game turned out to be a disaster for the Demons even though they won by 16 goals. Jack Grimes injured his foot only minutes from the start and missed the rest of the year and Mark Jamar was also injured during the game and forced to miss several weeks. Jack Trengove was reported and suspended for a sling tackle on Patrick Dangerfield. Ricky Petterd, Colin Sylvia kicked four goals each and Liam Jurrah three while Brent Moloney was his team's best. THE TEAMS MELBOURNE Backs Joel Macdonald Colin Garland Tom McDonald Half backs Jack Watts, James Frawley, Lynden Dunn Centreline Jack Trengove Jordie McKenzie Jack Grimes Half forwards Sam Blease Jared Rivers Rohan Bail Forwards Jeremy Howe Brad Green Neville Jetta Followers Jake Spencer Colin Sylvia Nathan Jones Interchange Daniel Nicholson James Sellar James Strauss Luke Tapscott Emergencies Matthew Bate Tom Couch Jordan Gysberts In Daniel Nicholson Out Tom Couch Milestone: James Frawley 100 games ADELAIDE Backs Graham Johncock Ben Rutten Sam Shaw Half backs Brodie Smith Daniel Talia Michael Doughty Centreline Bernie Vince Nathan van Berlo David Mackay Half forwards Jared Petrenko Taylor Walker Richard Douglas Forwards Jason Porplyzia Kurt Tippett Matthew Wright Followers Sam Jacobs Scott Thompson Patrick Dangerdfield Interchange Luke Brown Ian Callinan Brent Reilly Aidan Riley Emergencies Josh Jenkins Tom Lynch Jarryd Lyons In Jason Porplyzia Aidan Riley Brodie Smith Out Chris Knights Josh Jenkins Rory Sloane (elbow) The Demons have already played their part in the downfall of one premiership contender earlier in the year when they caused a major shock in beating the Bombers. Ever since that game Essendon has been in freefall and if you composed a ladder for the second half of the year it would sit below Melbourne in the pecking order. Now it's the moment of truth for Adelaide whose credentials in the top four have been questioned because its fixture looked much easier than the other contenders. A week ago, the Crows were coasting towards a top two finish and a home final in the first week of the finals with Brisbane, Melbourne and Gold Coast left on their roster but their shock loss to the Brisbane Lions after holding a 38 point quarter time lead has served as a wake up call. They now need to win both remaining games and do so by reasonable margins to strengthen their position going into the finals. Melbourne has languished through the season without showing much credibility and will be aiming to finish the season strongly to hold it in good stead for the future. The Demons' record against the Crows on the MCG is good and the last time they met, it was an easy 16 goal win for the home side. Times have changed but with Adelaide suddenly shaky, Melbourne has another opportunity to upset a premiership contender. And what a great way that would be to send of a great servant of the club like Brad Green? For the Demons to get over the Crows they must get on top in the midfield against an opponent that boasts the dynamic Scott Thompson and Patrick Dangerfield together with an array of foot soldiers who can run and spread as well as any in the land. It is their midfield, its improvement and its consistency that has been instrumental in lifting them from the depths under the adept coaching of Brenton Sanderson. It also has a strong spine with Walker and Tippett dangerous up forward and Rutten and the much improved Talia down back. In comparison, the Demons don't have the midfield depth and while they are solid in defence, they've struggled all year up forward and more so since the injuries to Mitch Clark, Ricky Petterd and the demise of Liam Jurrah. For these reasons and the fact that the Crows have too much to lose if it can't come home with the four points, I'm tipping them to win but not by much. Adelaide by 11 points.

Why not ? We're not going to be pressing for finals next year, so we can afford to have a potential gun key forward on our list for 12 months, especially if it means securing Viney with a second rounder. I really rate Hogan. He's aggressive, imposing, has courage in the air, contests really well, splits packs, loves body contact and when we're starting to make inroads he and Clark will form a formidable forward-line. I can wait a year to get a player like him on our list. He's similar to Hurley, but moves like a midfielder and is a better mark. How many other quality 193cm key forwards of this type can you currently name in the AFL ? They're as rare as hen's teeth. He's a taller version of Jack Darling. An ordinary footballer like Cam Mooney ended up being a valuable contributor in premiership teams and kicked 67 goals one year. He didn't have a quarter of the talent of Hogan. We're desperate for another key forward and Hogan would be a 10 year fixture. Anyway, I'm keen in case you can't tell.

Educated people?

IMO this isnt so much flagging the retirement of the older players, but younger guys being delisted too; At the Foundation Heroes dinner on Tuesday night McLardy made the club's approach very clear to its players. "The harsh reality of AFL football is that some of you won't be here next year and at times that will be difficult to manage and to comprehend, but for life you will always be connected to the Melbourne Football Club," McLardy said.

Cash is always needed. It would be dire if no one donated. My MFC Membership is a donation. As an MCC Member i don't use it. But i know the club does.

I was there last night and I tipped in a bit more than I usually do because I can and because I wanted too. I don't give a flying fig what they use as a reason I know they need the money so I contribute. I would imagine that the majority who were there last night couldn't give a stuff either, they were asked to chip in and did. What I can't understand is why anyone that didn't put in or wasn't there really cares how they dress it up.

GC with ND2 is in the box seat for MD1/Martin if they him. We'd then be looking at ND3 for MD2/Hogan. That would land Viney in the 2nd round and give GWS ND1, 2, and 3. If we rate Hogan I'd be up for this. ND3: Hogan ND4 + 13: Caddy + ND7 ND7: best young talent ND25+: Viney

Would rather take another skilful midfielder (e.g. Mayes) at pick 4. It's been clear that our development of big forwards hasn't been quite right so why waste such a good pick on another one? We need mids!

She is one hell of a woman. Jimmy met his match when he married her. Just saw her on A Current Affair. She is intelligent, articulate, self effacing, brutally honest and attractive to boot. She is naturally doing it tough as are the children and I personally wish them all the best from all of us. She shared her husband's last months with the MFC and deserves our thanks for that.

The issue is that the club says it hasn't got enough money to pay 100% of the TPP unless it receives a significant cash injection. I say that is the wrong allocation of resources and is a management issue and not a promotion issue. The message I got is despite paying off $5 million (a saving of significance), despite receiving extra money from the AFL, despite an increase in membership, despite a better stadium deal and despite what would appear to be increased sponsorship we still can't find the money to pay what a club has to pay to win a flag - 100% of the TPP. One way or another that's not good. What I'd love is the club to come out and say "we are dead serious about winning a flag. We will pay 100% of the TPP but in doing so we need contributions to assist in the development and recruitment of the best players. Please help". That tells me that they have allocated resources right and I'd feel as though I was giving our players the best possible chance to reach their full potential. That's the way I see it. In the interest of sanity I won't now give a full critique on Daniher as coach, Gardner as a Chairman and Richard Griffith as a recruiting manager.

You better believe it. Isn't gold the color of bananas?

??? why.. no disrespect but what is wrong with this. All clubs have their coteries etc. its just an extension of this surely. I see it as the club getting on the front footin a way it can. We havent the might of some ther clubs so we do what we ca . You know what.....its working.

For those who bag Bruce, you are denigrating a great and successful servant of the club. Unless you know him you won't know the real story. So keep your derogertory statements to yourself, because you only know half of the facts. And because of the quality of the guy you won't hear it all

Nicholson will be good enough. Petterd will be good enough at another team. Jamar is good enough, regardless, he is not going anywhere until he retires. I think Dunn has a role to play.

Depends which media idiot, ex-player or footy follower you talk to. WE all know tanking is deliberately loosing games. In any case this doesn't involve Melbourne so in the eys of the media it will be a non-issue, smart list development, prudent and great forward planning.

Perhaps, but the player will have known form a long way out that he was likely to go because those discussion will have been had from a long way put. The way James McDonlad left was a disgrace. He may not have bene happy or agreed and he may well still have tuned up at GWS but at least he wouldn't have had to turn up at a presser looking stunned. I hope to god a lot of our supporters can put aside their sulkiness at our season to come out and thank Greeny in a respectful way i.e. by showing up. He helped give me my best personal moment in attending the footy with the SF win against Carlton in 2000 and for that alone I would congratulate him.

You have just got to stop "liking" your own posts....

We're looking for an athletic crab

Toumpas, Hogan, 13, Viney = win big time

Nearly happened to a few of us in the GWS game at the G...

Well seeing Greeny's last game was the only upside to attending the round 23 clash at Subi! Now it'll be more of the same, get hammered to numb the pain of a 10 goal hiding!

Why? He has called time, I think he has called time at the right time. Congrats Greenie!!! Will be there Sunday!

Definite keep for me. He costs little, is a good backup if others go past him, is average at his roles and provides that "bigger body" that so many moan about not having. If we are going to have big body players but lose sellar we then cannot get rid of all our older blokes. I'd prefer Seller to Bate, Rivers, Green (and Martin if it comes to it).

I'm all for getting Hogan. Some on here may have read that I am a massive fan. Get it done MFC. Hogan would rip off Lucas Cook's arms and beat him with them. The kid is a beast.

I hope so. He's essentially our utility KPP - plays down back, then forward, then ruck - all reasonably effectively, and within the one game. He seems to have a decent character about him as well. In short, a very good pick up in the 50s. Whilst he needs to hold more marks, he always provides a contest and, at least, brings the ball down for our non existent crumbers.

now ya have

If Cloke and Clark were in our forward line it would be frightening to coaches to ponder who do I put my best defender on and while I may cover those two who goes to Jurrah, Howe and Sylvia. Stevie J was a loose cannon until he got suspended for 6 games by Cats leadership group in 07 then he just took off, I think Sylvia is showing signs of it sinking in. We have underestimated the injury he copped at the start of the year. As many forward options as you can get is a bonus, Kennedy, Darling, Lynch, Lecras, Nicoski & a resting Cox/Natanui were a nightmare to all defences in 2011 & will be next year if they are all fit again

You really are pathetic. The very fact that I'm a member of the Foundation Heroes would confirm I've donated money so I don't quite get the anon comment. In case you hadn't noticed the title of the thread is: Anyone at Foundation Heroes Tonight? So if you aren't interested in what happened then don't bother opening the thread, just go back to giving your advice to hard working public servants and politicians, they probably appreciate it more than anyone on here. Perhaps you and the other sad sack supporter ADC could get a room together and boor the [censored] out of each other.

It's not an apparent trend Salmon/Van De Haar Dunstall/BreretonBuckenarra Sumich/White Kernaghan/Spalding Ablett/Brownless/Stoneham Carey/Mckernan/Longmire Lloyd/Lucas Brown/Lynch/Bradshaw Tredrea/Thurstans Hall/O'Loughlin/Davis Riewoldt/Koschitzke Mooney/Hawkins/Johnson Franklin/Roughead/Williams Cloke/Dawes/Brown I've been following this club and the game in this country for over 30 years and every Premiership side or close contender has had at least 1 power forward and 1 or 2 others who played a rolein the forward line. Meth Coast of 05/06 had such a good midfield they were the only ones without a genuine power forward, Ash Hansen was the best of a bad bunch. Floods, zones, presses will come and go but having two real power forwards will be a very good head start. Having said that We still need to be certain taking Cloke will not hamper our list going forward, but a front end loaded contract should sort that

I find it quite extraordinary and I wonder if we are the only supporters, who can turn a massive positive in to a potential negative. Make no mistake we are in hard times, our sponsors are only temporary and our membership is down; the only way we can keep on track, and believe me I think we are, is to raise funds to keep the ship going. Now if that means some supporters putting their hands in their kick until we are self sustaining then so be it, as long as those that are prepared to do so, do and as long as the rest of the supporters don't feel that it's some sort of conspiracy to keep the executives in desks, then let's just accept it.

I have no doubt they'll keep him. I reckon he has shown a great work ethic and i suspect Neeld places a very high emphasis on this

We enjoyed the night and our two guests kicked in very generously as well and are now considering further options to support our club. The players and footy dept staff kicked in $30,000! We are happy to contribute to our club. A frequent poster here donated major dollars last night. Thanks to all. EVERYONE can give a bit not just those who are Foundation Heroes. You know what to do. Go Dees.

All those landers who denigrate the fundraising or moan about the exclusivity of the Foundation members I think you are forgetting the obvious. The Clubs that have to market such clubs are the lower ranking Clubs. Dont you think Collingwood and Hawthorn have the same Clubs but we dont ever hear about them. Their funds just roll in without raising a media eyebrow. Be thankful that we have generous backers and that we are not reduced to a rug being carried around the boundary accompanied by the local boys brigade band!

We are zero chance to win the next 2 games. Not just because it would not be beneficial for us in the long term, but also because we suck.

Defending Schwab seems about as popular as saying that you rate Terry Wallace's views on list management, but I reckon Schwab gets some pretty unfair treatment round here. There's little doubt that he meddled too much in footy department matters, but he's seemingly rectified that behavior; and when I look at some of his raw achievements one can't help but be impressed. Our sponsorship has been at record levels, our membership is at record levels and our financial position is supposedly at it's strongest since we broke with the MCC in 1981. And speaking of the MCC, Schwab has presided over an agreement that now makes us once again a section of the MCC and he's also orchestrated an agreement that ensures a better financial dividend from the MCC. Also, we now own the Bentleigh club, which places us in a stronger financial position with greater leverage. The first person I heard say that we "grew out of a ground and not a suburb" was Schwab. I've always felt that he gets the MFC and our difficulties. He understands our nuances and challenges better than most and he embraces our rich history, which says a lot considering he grew up a Richmond supporter. He's responsible for our re-branding with the emblem change. An emblem that reflects our legacy to those lost in wars, our history in writing the rules of the game and our longevity. Whether you like the blazers or not it's another sign that he wants us to embrace our heritage. Does anyone give a better speech when discussing our club and its place in history ? But those that seemingly don't like him want to put every poor playing performance, bad recruiting decision, or past coaching inadequacies at his feet. I'm not suggesting that he's above scrutiny, or that he hasn't made mistakes, but equally there's been much to like. Stynes virtually begged him to come back to the club such was our squalid state. Off the field things are now looking very sound and for that Schwab must take much of the credit and I'm glad that the Board has recognised his good work. Clearly we all want our on-field fortunes to change and it remains the club's greatest challenge, but off-field he's presided over a club that now has no excuses, or impediments to make this can happen. I have a feeling he'll leave a lasting positive legacy to the MFC.

I would just like to say thank-you. Thank-you for your obvious passion & commitment. Thank-you for giving. Thank-you for helping to save our beloved Demons. Thank-you for being a fellow Demon. I know it is such a simple word but thank-you from the bottom of my heart. PS A huge thank-you to all other Foundations Heroes.

Excellent post!!

There really is a serious amount of shite posted on this site. The sooner Melb. starts winning games and we can talk positive footy stuff the better.

Mind you....

What are you on about...really??

Deevoted- excellent post. In any business structure be it sporting or otherwise, when there are weaknesses such as lack of resources, both financial and human, you will find dysfunction - People involved in areas they should not be involved in. I can see this happening during the bleaker days at the end of Baileys reign. We seem to be in a completely different situation now where the business side of the club is quite settled. The football department, even though it has delivered little to date looks well structured,well resourced and stocked with reasonable people. There seems little reason for interference from the business side of the club (aka CS). To want to blame our showing to date on the CEO firstly shows that there is little acknowledgement of our reality. But it is also deflecting blame from those who are primarily responsible - the players and then secondly - the coaches.

He has been a very serviceable pick up for mine. He can definitely make some improvements, but I feel that if he keeps going on the path that he has taken so far, he will prove his worth, as he has done a few times this season.