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I didn't think Chip would wanna be up there until more players were revealed so he knew the direction the banner was taking before committing...

The other difference is their opposition hasn't kicked 10 straight behinds.

Go play in traffic, what a miserable thing to wish for a very young man. I loathe Essendon, think if the charges are proved they should be suspended as a club for two years, but wishing injuries is just wrong.

Hi Rhino. Try reading my post again. I made no judgement but simply used the word "possibly" which means that there could be a possibility that players who were injected with a huge number of doses of these supposedly unknown substances that might have included human growth hormones could have long lasting effects. We don't exactly know because according to the Essendon Football Club the dog ate their homework.

if you are willing to write off a bloke after 1 season then you clearly have no idea about the sport, tell ya a couple of blokes who didn't set the world on fire in their first year? Jobe Watson, Gary Ablett, Marc Murphy, Dane Swan just because Wines is playing well doesn't mean Toumpas won't become every bit the player the club believes he will be.

When learned people discuss the failings of the MFC at the Draft over the past decade - this Wines/Toumpas pablam doesn't even rate a mention.

...and maybe a vote if they ever hold an election but 'bing' you need to go into the marketing department. With a proposition like that we will break the 40k ceiling in no time. Our new slogan "A fridge magnet, a scarf and admission to games. Nothing more, Nothing less...

My all time favourite is from the Pot Black programme: "Steve is going for the pink ball - and for those of you who are watching in black and white, the pink is next to the green." No idea who the commentator was.

We have the wooden spoon in the bag

What is holding him back as an individual? Footy/ sport is not for everyone. Maybe he is a great individual and has other ideas on what life holds for him, he had a crack at it, saw what was required and didn't have that in him, some don't but that doesn't mean there is anything wrong with him.

Wasim Akram would like to inform you it's Occam's Razor (or Ockham)

We have no idea what effects or benefits, if any, where delt to players as there is apparantly no record (according to Club/AFL officials... and contrary to Dank's version) of what was taken, how much was taken and when/where it was administered. While i agree, the initial benefits (if any) may have worn off, those same potential benefits may have particularly assisted and fast tracked the younger less developed players within the playing group to retain and maintain their size increase (if there was one) from a much higher starting base than had they not allegedly taken named substances.

I think the AFL should be congratulated for ensuring that half the team didn't receive infraction notices, quarantining the issue to last season only, enabling Essendrug to field a full team (along with recruiting multi premiership experience in Chappy and Captain playing, who publicly admitted taking said banned substance) and are still kicking ass this year. Congrats to Vlad and co.

Thanks for providing the heads up. We'll do better than that and provide the link:- Bloodlines Dissected - check out the Dandenong Stingrays section.

I asked a journo, who'd know, about this kid. "Will he make it?" "Dead certainty. Quick off 20, lovely left foot." That'll do me

In the majority of sports I follow, I find it difficult to choose my favourite commentator. Various characters are masters of subtlety, colour, variance of tone and atmosphere creators. When it comes to AFL commercial commentators, it is a battle to select the worst performers as there is slim-no point in scraping for a favourite. The fox line-up of Ricciuto, Russell and Healy is akin to rubbing sandpaper over your open eyes whilst getting kicked in the guts by an ex-wife singing Celine Dion off key. Ten's shambolic, sycophantic concoction of B-graders in Richardson and Darcy are worse than 8 hours of dorothy-dixers delivered by Pauly Shore. Their sucking up to that hyperbolic, moustached mug is painstaking - and don't even get me started on his hyperbolic ramblings. There is the crux of my problem with AFL commentary. Each of them describe what is painfully obvious to witness with your own eyes and their dull skills are only exemplified when you have to put up with them in any pub foolish enough to turn the footy up. The hyperbole that they espouse truly ruins my enjoyment of any spectacle. Adelaide v Port Adelaide's commentary has produced numerous examples of this and it's only in its infancy! Russell's description of a 48 metre pass inside 50 as a "monumental entry" finally blew my gasket. I invite you to use this thread as a sounding board - punching bag - for the relieving of tension generated from listening to these "professionals." First entry: "The fast break is on. There's no one down field to kick to so he'll need to U-turn and wait for support" - G. Healy

Neale Daniher's biggest battle Another Melbourne coach struck down with a life-threatening illness. I knew he was ill, but didn't know what the illness was until I read this article. Hopefully he has many years of quality life left.

How about this? 'My name's Chip and I'm putting my hand up! Let's change this culture!!' No? Okay, show me the money.

I assume it was considered last year but I was hoping we'd trade Frawley during the trade period. He's been disinterested for a few years and frankly I've had enough of watching blokes who don't seem to care. Still can't reconcile the idea of all these blokes who say they want to change clubs to chase success. How about taking accountability for the success of the club you started with? The strength of most of the best clubs has been driven by the commitment of their players.

" The nights over for Buddy - He's been put on ice."

Ok, that is impressive wonder how long it will be before some of these kids start to question why they are playing better, but getting paid less, because of you know who.

St. Kilda beats the team that gave the Swans a bit of a touch up last week. Makes us look better than the Swans.

Don't know why we bothered with Roos, we could have just rotated some of the luminaries from Demonland through the coaches role. They could save us money and we would obviously win the flag every year as well.

My issue is not with ONE bit of spin, not with ONE injury healing more slowly than expected but with what appears to be planned misinformation in relation to many many players. Jamar, Gawn, Hogan, Dawes, Clark, Viney and Garland have all had injuries that have taken so much longer to heal than expected. Akram's razor suggests this is not bad luck but a policy by the MFC to misinform. Now I believe it's better to be conservative and surprise on the positive side rather than be optimistic and under deliver. For stakeholders looking for hope having important players failing to play when anticipated only further damages the trust supporters have Trust is precisely what Peter Jackson said he wants to build. Just at the moment it's difficult to believe.

plus he's not smiling. GONNNEEE.

Biffen sent me some "get well" cookies. I've lost touch with reality since.

Ha. I'll certainly spend some time in the bar - just been informed I'm a day early!!!

A lot of these drugs help supposedly help strength and recovery times. Recovery times allow for greater intensity and time of training. Strength would still be a benefit a year down the track. The training loads have already been done so yes they would still be benefitting from the drug regime even today.

I have an idea that he was about the club in the same manner that Jack Viney was around Melbourne i.e. father son with permission of the AFL. If so, one can only hope that they may have left the kid alone.

How could such a deal even occur? It's blatant draft tampering so there's nothing official that could lock them into it, just taking them at their word. And if they wanted to, they would have regardless. The far more logical (and painfully obvious) scenario was GWS weren't willing to gamble a top 3 pick on Viney for the sake of "doing the dirty" on the MFC.

Hello, back at my desk. Housekeeping first, Clark, Nicholson and Gawn were no shows. Dawes was there early training by himself, left the track like a rocket so didn't get a chance to speak to him, asked the trainer who had worked with him (Spin Detectors Engaged Please), said he had completed everything he was supposed to in the session and was feeling good, so still on track. Good news on the height front, both Jamar and Garland completed the full session, Russian told me he had to get through training this week and next and he will probably shirt up for Casey's first game, same with Garlo. Fitzy being Fitzy pretended to be concussed as he walked towards the doctors and physios at the end of his training, he was wobbling, much to everybody's amusement, gave me thumbs up, so assume he should be right. Both Tommy Mc and Fitzy didn't do last main drill with the group. After the main group had finished, the players not in the squad for Sunday joined with the Casey guys for more training, simulated match drill, interestingly after the teams had set up both Blease and Kent joined them but Evans didn't. A lot of the main group went to the adjacent oval and in my opinion messed around with the ball for another 15 mintues, bombling, outrageous kicks etc, nobody seemed that bothered so obviously a bit of fun after training. Interesting point of how the players are managed these days, Christian Salem was not allowed to play in the match sim, was told he had done his load for that day (sounds rude), bit [censored] off, which is a good sign ... watched him during main session, his kicking skills are sublime. Tyson also came off just before the main group finished but did some reflex and hand/eye coordination with a trainer. Jamar, Spencer, King spent the end of the session with Greg Stafford. Hogan - came out, did two laps of the track walking, sat in golf cart watching and left. Jack Watts (SDEP) told me was fine and was looking forward to Sunday, no physio, no bandages, no pressure sock, no crutches, no worries? Tommy Mc - had a good chat to him, first got a corkie in Alice Springs, first one on Saturday in exactly the same spot, then got a bit of a knock behind the thigh, he was wearing a protector on his thigh under his shorts, said he was a bit proppy but once warmed up it felt better and better, was going to recover and unless it reacts, he should play. Think that's about it, any questions as per norm feel free.

God, you're a painful sook.

Is it really that funny when someone's talking about redundancies? What a snide little remark.. and yet you have the temerity to have a great big sook b/c the the coach didn't whisper sweet nothings in your ear about what a struggle this week will be but how we're going to tough it out... as if that's not also SPIN !

Can't we have one thread devoted to whinge & whine instead of all of them?

I have waited 50 years I can wait a couple more.

No, but it was mentioned in Misson's autopsy report

Quite sad that the members don't get to know a single detail about what's up and absolutely no idea on a possible return time frame. Just nothing. I wish Mitch all the best but as members paying over our hard earned to support the club, as well as turning up and spending more time/$ at the games we attend, surely we are entitled to know some basics like the above on any player, let alone our highest paid player? I agree mate, close the thread. It's a whole lotta stuff about NOTHING..and we know NOTHING

nothing has been fixed yet. Identified yes.

Silly Wyl. That kid is going to be a super star.

[censored] i hate hawthorn.....but gee i want them to win tonight

Do you remember Brett Lovetts - short steps ? Not to be confused with shirking an issue as he was as brave as brave but he had such fat little sausage legs that he ran like Fred Flintstone bowls. I have never felt so calm as when he had ball in hand. Efficiency and decision making = 100%

So many sour, sour people on this site. Tragedy is, once in a while each one individually makes a sporadic attempt to be more positive, but gets dragged back into the pit within a couple of posts as someone else turns their comment into an excuse for a personal attack. And the surliness at the club is remarkable.

Geez i hope you dont work at the Club. No wonder the AFL had to bail us out. If member does not entitle to better information that is clearly BS then the Club fails another metric. If the medical staff dont know whats wrong with a player particularly one thats been injured on and off for 3 years then we should sack them, recognise that another failed metric and employ competent doctors. We have already sacked one medical clown for dealing with Danks 12 months ago and potentially compromising players. And playing it straight with supporters is saying in the papers if they really dont know "TBA" or "Indefinite" rather than 2-3 weeks which rolls over a period multiple times of that.

can we get a historical view/evolution chart of the demonland banners over these years?

Melbourne IMO should continue to trade until they learn how to use the high draft picks Its an apalling record We need ready made players not skinny kids or bean poles who take 10 years

How about we focus on what is, instead of what might have been?

If I have such powers then I really need to figure out how to use it for good instead of evil. Either that or work out a way to monetise it.

roosy would approve. you ditched the scoreboard

As a player Hird had the utmost respect from me. All now undone! I have never witnessed in playing and following the game for over 50 years that a single person is bigger than the whole football organisation. Outside of a very naive Essendon football club, Hird is poorly regarded due to his extreme hubris. I have no doubt that this will eventually bring the bummers back to a bottom 4 team where they will remain for a decade. Not immediately as they have a good list with resilience, but this will pass. Hirds hubris will haunt his club well into the future.

Glossary of Terms 50/50 - 1-2 Weeks 1-2 - 4 Weeks 2-3 - 4-6 Weeks 4-6 - Season TBA - May not play again