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It was eight years ago that hundreds of thousands of people from across the rim of the Indian Ocean, some Australians and one of them our very dear Troy Broadbridge, lost their lives as a result of earthquakes and the tsunami that followed. This Boxing Day is again a day on which we reflect and remember Troy and all the victims of this tragedy. Your tributes are invited tonight, tomorrow and in fact, at any time. Troy Broadbridge: No. 20 Born: 5 October 1980 Recruited from Port Adelaide Magpies (SANFL) Died: 26 December 2004, Thailand Playing Career: Debut Round 8, May 20, 2001, Melbourne vs. Essendon, at Melbourne Cricket Ground Team: Melbourne (2001-2004) 40 games, 2 goals Melbourne Most Improved Player 2001 Sandringham Premiership Team 2000 & 2004

That'll do. This thread is about the investigation and not about the CEOs position. I've asked before so let's please stay on topic and leave your agendas against club officials elsewhere unless and until there are charges laid as a result of the investigation.

The AFL won't make any decision on charges until the MFC submission is lodged. My inside info is that the AFL tanking case is weak at best and dependent on questionable evidence. Suggestions that officials brought the game into disrepute by comments at in house meetings are virtually impossible to sustain and would almost certainly see the matter end up in the court system.

Broady is still with us. I have been to Thailand many times. I wore a footy jumper there earlier this year in his honour for one night. God it was hot. But worth it. R.I.P. Troy.

If he was a [censored] at school then he turned it into an artform at uni, PE at Rusden and he was the original FIGJAM.

An honest footballer and ripping bloke. My thoughts to the friends and family of Troy and all others who lost loved ones on that day. Go you big red fire engine. Deepest sympathies Jason

I thought the video was pretty good. It was a lot better then last year. Some people also need to remember that not every dee's supporter is 80 years old and hates the world. My kids have watched the video about 20 times and they laugh everytime.

The tanking enquiry was started almost six months ago when it was initiated by an employee of the AFL who is no longer there. Will it claim more victims before the farce ends? Andrew Demetriou said there was no such thing as tanking and yet it's taken all that time for his investigators to come up with a report that apparently contains allegations of some form of wrongdoing but only from disgruntled ex-employees with axes to grind against the MFC and with nothing substantiated by more important witnesses. By all accounts one of the ex-employees spent most of his final months blueing with all and sundry at the club. His evidence is likely to be considered biased and unsatisfactory. Will Demetriou fall on the sword with them? And on the subject of blueing, Mike Fitzpatrick, a Rhodes Scholar and terribly conflicted because the AFL club with which he was associated has been untouched by this enquiry and yet, it is widely regarded that this club turned tanking into an art form. How can he therefore, play any role in any decision on this tanking enquiry? Heckle and Jeckle, the two investigators have been accused of stand over tactics against some of the witnesses. Did they really need to resort to such questionable behaviour and why did it take them so long to finalise their work. How did so much information about their investigation find its way prematurely into the media? Reputations are at risk and unless the AFL disposes of this mess cleanly, there will be more massive changes within the organisation. You can bet on it!

With all due respect, that's a cop out and you know it. RF is happy to play the ball and get physical, you can ignore his inference if you want to but don't [censored] down my neck with some deference to the FHs. Brock McLean is a FH. Hell, even Schwab is a FH...

there is a democracy, theres only investigations when clubs leak like the Titanic, , why point fingers at others, if they find us guilty there next, thats how a democracy works, you should be old enough to figure that out, if we get done for this then they have to fully investigate Carlton, thats how the system works, if we had a decent CEO we wouldnt be in this predicament, were in this position because theres a lot of people in the AFL industry that despise a certain person, who was Carltons CEO in 2007?

i drank all mine yesterday!

Demons. And we're not "Dees", either. "Dees" are nice, comfortable, safe and unthreatening. Ban the "Dee" word. We're Demons. On and off the field.

Must admit ya opening post went straight ova me bald head............now i get were ya coming from...........RRRRRRRRRRage

Santa got me a signed framed Jim Stynes jumper! What a champ!

I watched Troy developing, & saw a green but incredibly honest footballer in a game that was the older fashioned style of that day. He was growing & improving, & I always felt he was the real deal. He had some breakout sort of games, & stood up in some intimidating circumstances before he was taken tragically, O/S... We lost a terrific fella IMO, & a yet to be great of the club. Thoughts to Trisha & the Broadbridge Family.

I have always loved the open hearted ways of Schwarta. Open & honest. And the night he sent Sam 'the toucan' Newman ass over [censored] is my highlight from The Footy Show. I'm glad David is a one club player, & look forward to his kid/s if they ever play AFL.

hahahaha you bloody beauty , be great to get the chocklots , for a change

So you opened the Christmas scotch early this year?

I never bagged Sugar. He had courage to burn. A certain 1990 mark against Hawthorn comes to mind.

Especially for those glass and a half full type of people.

Better than this.....

if Gerry boy had any love for the Dees it's long passed.I only ever detect veiled contempt. I too think he's a Swannie through and through these days. That in itself I have no problem with, each to their own but I expect a more balanced perspective from professional commentators. He lacks this.

I am not wanting to be a politician - but I'll give my view on their performance. I do not want to run a company, but if I'm a shareholder I'll voice my views. Just because I doubt the board and question their behaviour, but I won't run against them, does not mean I should just accept whatever they dish up. I'd have thought that there is a big difference between criticising someone's performance and then saying that you can personally do better. Heaven's, no one would say a thing about footy if that were the case. Let's hope the footy starts soon.

Diamond Creek in the Northern Footy League (Melb).

Well i suppose the upside is we will discover who the enemy within is At the next agm it should be put that these people are not of a fitting character and ought be banned from holding a membership.

Dane Swan is in an UGGBOOT!

Barrett was all over us 5 months ago, now it's a joke. Well it proves one thing...The AFL Gestapo raids on the MFC have failed to uncover any decent evidence. Wilson will be so upset. But like BB said. We should take some of these people ( i won't call them journalists) to the cleaners during 2013.....

I found this article difficult to read without having Caro in the back of my mind.

The long period allocated for AFL clubs in which to recruit players has brought 14 new players to the club but it has also unearthed some old names and since I'm a great believer that any co-incidence might bring better times for the Demons, what could be better than to link new with old in the search for a bigger and better club? In its entire history, the Melbourne Football Club has had only one player whose surname is Hogan and that player managed only one game for club. He was Joe Hogan and his sole game in the red and blue came against Carlton in Round 6, 1932 at a ground that no longer exists - the Motordrome which was situated in what is now known as the Olympic Park precinct. Very little is known of Joe Hogan who was born on 27 March, 1909, wore the number 13 and came to the club from Ballarat Imperial. He played under legendary captain-coach Ivor Warne Smith. The Demons had a poor season in 1932 finishing ninth with only four wins and they were no match for the Blues who were premiership favourites and ultimately finished minor premiers only to be knocked off their perch by the Tigers in the grand final. The game was played at the Motordome because the MCG had undergone resurfacing works and the fertiliser used on the ground was a hazard to players. A crowd of 12,500 turned up to witness the game and the Fuchsias made a good fist of things in the first half to hold a five-point lead against the inaccurate Blues at the main break. The visitors overpowered them to win by four goals and I know absolutely nothing of how Hogan went other than that he never played again. The team finally broke through for a win in Round 9 against St. Kilda and made it three in a row with wins over Fitzroy and Essendon. The only other win came against wooden spooner Hawthorn. Although we heard no more of Joe, the club's next J. Hogan is due to pull on the boots next year. I'm betting that big 17 year old key position player Jesse, has a much longer and more celebrated career than the last. A number of players who carry the more common name of Jones, including current club champion Nathan, have represented Melbourne over the years so recruit Matt Jones should feel quite at home at the club. I could write a book about all of the Jones' but, at the time of writing the end of the world was about to arrive and I was restricted for time and space, so I will simply list their names and records in brief form:- ■ Alfred E Jones 24 games, 18 goals (1908-9) from Port Rovers; ■ Brent Jones 45 games, 5 goals (1966-71) from MFC reserves. At 191cm, 85.5kg, Jones played in the ruck and as a key defender in an unsuccessful era for the club; ■ Carlyle T Jones 11 games, 14 goals (1925-6, 1929). Played one game for St. Kilda in 1931; ■ Dennis Jones 62 games, 4 goals (1956-60, 1962). The strongly built 183cm, 90kg defender who could take a mark, played in the club's 1959 premiership team and later came back for a brief and unsuccessful stint as coach in 1978; ■ Gordon A Jones 61 games, 2 goals (1935-40). A dashing defender from Maryborough, Jones represented the state and played at centre half back in Melbourne's 1939 and 1940 premiership team despite the fact he was only 179cm tall; ■ Les Jones 121 games, 88 goals (1933-41). A dasher who played at half forward and kicked three goals in the 1939 premiership team; ■ Nathan Jones 135 games, 68 goals (2006 -) from Mount Eliza. The nuggety midfielder is one of the club favourites and is current best and fairest; ■ Raymond Jones 1 game (1949) from Collingwood. Now we extend the welcome mat to the latest Jones - Matt, who is already creating an impression in early training sessions. The other old/new name to grace the Melbourne playing list is "Viney" but, in this case, it's no co-incidence. Jack Viney is the son of Demon great Todd and the nephew of lesser known Jay who represented the club in the 80s and 90s. I've always considered Round 1, 1987 as one of the turning points in the club's history. The Demons beat Fitzroy comfortably in that game but things weren't shaping all that spectacularly until a late run at the end of the season saw the Demons in the finals for the first time since 1964. Much of the credit for that goes to the development work commenced under Ron Barassi's coaching earlier in the decade and to the recruiting of interstate talent at the end of John Northey's first season as coach in 1986. Three newcomers, Warren Dean and Earl Spalding (WA) and Todd Viney (Sturt) all made their debuts in the opening round of 1987. They were recruited by a young Cameron Schwab and their infusion into the team brought new life to the Melbourne Football Club. Todd was a tough as nails midfielder who didn't take long to make an impression. In just his second season, he was elevated to the vice captaincy (at age 21) and was a member of the club's losing grand final team in the same year. He remained an important cog in the Demon line up for several years, winning best and fairest honours in 1993 and 1998, the latter being his first year as captain when he led the team to a preliminary final. He retired at the end of the following season still at the height of his ability but succumbing to a sciatic nerve problem. Viney was a regular member of the SA State of Origin team through the 90s including his last season, achieved All Australian honours in 1998 and played 233 games (the most by a Demon wearing the number 12) and kicked 92 goals. In mid career, he had a brief stint to join the coaching staff for tennis player Mark Phillipousis but that didn't quite work out and he was soon back playing football for the Demons. Todd Viney is also a member of Melbourne's team of the 20th century. After his retirement, he coached in the country, worked with the Hawks during their 2008 Premiership season, moving to Adelaide in 2009. He returned to the Demons in 2010 as General Manager of Player Development, filled in as coach after the sacking of Dean Bailey and is currently National Recruiting Manager. Todd's brother, Jay made his debut late in the 1988 season wearing number 26 against West Coast at Subiaco and finished up at the club at the end of 1991 after 23 games (4 goals). Like Todd, he was recruited from Sturt. He was reserves best and fairest in 1990 and despite having his best season in 1991, he was lured home and captained the Two Blues in 1993 and 1994 before moving to North Adelaide where he was skipper in 1997 and 1998. A younger Viney brother, Ryan, trained with the Demons after the 2000 season but was not drafted. That may not auger well for Jack's younger brother Max but in true AFL fashion, I've decided for the time being to take things one Viney at a time!

Forgot an important "g"

I don't know what the hell some people expect - do you really think the club are going to bring in Judd Apatow on this project?? I enjoyed it for what it is; a cheesy xmas video where the players act like geese for the enjoyment of the supporters. If you're someone who is overly critical of this vid, maybe the problem is your own unrealistic expectations...

wow you must hate life

God you are all a pack of old farts (apolgies to dof). Let them have a bit of fun because there is no more fun to be had after 7 Jan

OK so another 'no news' article in the small paper by that doyen of footy writers Jay Clark says that the rule we would be likely to have transgressed is the following: "A person, being a player, coach or assistant coach, must at all times perform on their merits and must not induce, or encourage, any player, coach or assistant coach not to perform on their merits in any match - or in relation to any aspect of the match, for any reason whatsoever.'' - AFL Regulations 19(A5) We have the Captain and the COach as well as Brock McLean on the public record saying "we were never told to lose". Players might have been moved to different positions but not 'hey Johnno , go back and play on Nathan Brown but for God's sake don't go near the ball" Unlike Mr Teflon Paul Roos who instructed McVeigh I think it was to "make sure we don't score a goal" in the final quarter of a NAB cup match. Oh yeah but he came out later and said he was joking. And CHris Connolly apparently made a joke but we are somehow different?? Case closed.

UFC on Fox 5 was just a bunch of sick fights! The undoubted lowlight was watching BJ get slaughted by that arrogant freak (who will rule the ww division, easily). Hang 'em up BJ, nothing left to prove, I can't watch something like that again! Gustafssen is ready for Jones, but the Mauler said he'll take another fight rather than wait, that's how it should be. Love this kid. Dennis Siver looked fantastic. Would be a very tough challenge for Aldo the way he's going. I was actually going for Nate Diaz, has more class than his brother. But not even close. Not sure who can beat Henderson now that Edgar has dropped down. Some great highlights, Yves Edwards, Cruikshank, Matt Bown... The Jorganson / Albert scrambles... Very entertaining card. Bring on the heavyweights.