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I love the 'community' aspect of forums. It's what drew me to throw Demonland a lifeline when it was flagging 11 years ago and keep the admin work up, even though I am far more time poor than I was when I took it up. I find I too do build a picture of persona for people who post here a lot that flows through their writing. There are two particularly prolific posters who have been known to open new accounts on occasion. One of those people once accused me of matching IP addresses to spot them, but it's just that for some people, their style of writing is as recognisable as a face to me. To that end, I do notice when people stop coming and I wonder about them, and I'd noted rpfc's absence too. He was a poster I found with opinions that generally aligned with mine, and felt like a mate in the trenches with me during the Scully saga (we lost that battle and the war though). Anyway, I recognise the shallowness of forum relationships since you actually don't know who the person really, but I do find myself going, "gee this is going to wind P_Man up", or "ProDee is probably going to call me a flog for this" or "Samael's posted in the VFL game thread, I'm about to read about how well Michie went"; it's not that different to real human discussion for me. Anyway, as someone who hardly knows any real life Melbourne fans, I love being able to share a common interest with people, learn from people who know far more about footy than me, hopefully put down a strong argument here and there, and share the love when we're winning and look hot. This site has given a more hardcore edge to barracking for and supporting Melbourne than I would have had otherwise.

Interesting, it appears that people on this site do care about one another, at least for some. There is an interest and a familiarity with some posters, The passionate, the enthusiastic, the analytical, the argumentative, the pedantic, the hateful, the depressives, the fence sitters, the fickle, the eccentric, the offbeat, and so the list goes on. Some posters are entirely predictable and some sway like the gum trees and can surprise you with their change of heart. I guess its like everything in life. Sometimes we move on and sometimes we don't. Think of what we were doing 5 or 10 years ago, or 20 or 30 years ago. Most of us are doing different things, have disposed of activities, friends, houses and material possessions. Changed partners, wives, lovers, Changed jobs, lost jobs, taken up new pleasures. Changed drinking habits and other activities. Some posters simply change habits or behaviour and move on. When we get tired of some activities, we stop them and move on or stop them for a time and have a break to return at a later time. However, supporting the Demons for most of us is a life long passion. We will never support anyone else and we all want to see a flag before we die. We are steadfast and it is permanent feature of our being. Demonland is an interesting distraction that fills in some time between our other more important activities. Eventually if we stay along long enough, we will all have a permanent holiday. As Lord Krishna once observed, we are not the materail body but a spirit soul.

Your last sentence is egotistical and arrogant. Most of us don't share a lot of information with others for a variety of reasons, but to say you don't share a lot because Demonland doesn't deserve it, really! You really don't do yourself any favours, or perversely, despite what you write you enjoy stirring up reaction. You may think that's fun, but really most people will just think your a turkey.

I think it's time we stop the poster attacking. Both sides need to accept we all have different views and as many have said, it is only a fan forum and accuracy of posting is not a requirement. We have gossip, rumours, allegations, inuendo, fantasy, etc. I find it tiresome wading through posts of people attacking each other on here. I have met Saty at training and he is a nice bloke, as I am sure are most of the rest of the posters. Saty is unusual in his posting style, but he is not Robinson Crusoe. Everyone needs to be a little less precious and not attack everything said, because you may not like the poster or their style. Lets all move on. We are all Dees fans.

Yes. I'm going to be really disappointed if I ever meet Clint Bizkit and he doesn't look like a cross between Clint Bizzell and Fred Durst.

Lets be honest.. Jesse ain't home sick. He wants to get out of Melbourne after having to deal with Saty everyday! That would just be enough to make me fly back home! I think we can have a bit of sympathy for poor Jesse..

History would say there is definitely no point. Reasoning with Saty is about as productive as reasoning with a bloke on a street corner wearing his underpants on his head. There are some valiant attempts but they will always be stonewalled. That's not to say that relaying content to the players is clearly crossing a line. Nothing will come of it. Nothing ever does with old Saty. He's the only poster who as far as I can tell has a free pass to do pretty much what he likes. All because he used to post training threads recounting stories of players winking at him. Anyone else would've surely been banned several times over by now. How Curry and Luded have been given their marching orders while Saty continues to survive, only admin would be able to answer. The first two had their faults but they at least had some sort of interest in contributing constructively to the forum. Saty openly hates the place and tries to shut down any thread or discussion that doesn't involve pom pom waving. And then, the best kicker of all, claims he doesn't really care about footy. Doesn't care about the club having success. It's just the players who will pose for a gun pic that he cares about. The whole thing is completely stark raving bonkers. But at this stage it's hard not be entertained by the absurdity of it.

You won't be disappointed.

I love you all.

It's amazing what can happen when a team plays for each other, supports each other and believe in each other. This is what Melbourne sides had under Northey and Daniher. That, I hope, will be the next phase in the evolution of our current team. It all about degrees of improvement and I reckon we are not far away. My next door neighbour is a Bullies supporter and is old enough to have seen their one and only premiership in 1954. I was rapt for him last night and I hope they can go all the way.

Luke Shuey is a regular here?..... Oh.

Why would you tell him about the thread? Ridiculous.

While I respect and understand your comment I actually think the biggest success of the Essendon, Hird and his sympathisers campaign has been to con fans into thinking the bold statement. Essendon came into 2012 having been spanked by Carlton in the first Elimination final with a list most thought would need to go backwards before it went forwards. They started out the season unexpectedly on fire winning their first 9 games in a row with amazing fitness and strength before an unprecedented spate of soft tissue injuries crippled the list and their season. The reality is a lot of people think the performance enhancing drugs mustn't have worked as Essendon didn't make finals, but really had they kept their pumped up players on the park they could probably have made finals or even top 4 based on their first 9 rounds. The combination of the drugs enabling the Essendon players to get too big too soon for their own bodies and bad luck is what I believe kept them from succeeding, not a failure of Tb4 and other substances to enable them to recover faster and endure larger training loads than a clean athlete. Also on Jobe Watson compare his 2012 stats to every other year he played and you will see a sharp spike in almost every category, 3 more possessions a game than his next best year, 2 more marks etc etc. Sure some players have a blinder but the coincidental fact that in the year he was being injected with a number of substances including Tb4 he played so much better than his career average and the good luck that unlike his colleagues he didn't succumb to injury and was able to take the park during the height of the Dank/Robinson/Hird program says to me that his performance was clearly enhanced by what CAS has found to be illegal performance enhancing substances. We'll never know how much worse Essendon or Jobe would have gone without the program, maybe it would have been the same, but this is the eternal argument of drugs in sport and given the rigour and systematic intensity of Essendons program in 2012 and their improved performance during that time it's highly, highly likely that drugs helped both the team and Jobe win his Brownlow. Its a shocking endictment on the Afl and AFL media that this hasn't been discussed more openly and this blanket "the drugs didn't work anyway" argument has been allowed to be preeminent. As to anyone who looks at it logically it seems highly, highly unlikely that the drugs didn't help in some way.

Right here.

Rhino was a F log. Use to ban me every 2nd day.

saty, i think you crossed the line telling jesse there was this huge thread on demonland discussing his contract negotiations. knowing there was a mix of positive and negative comment and robust debate. it was just an invitation for him to read and then not be in a position to really respond to anything he might disagree with not a very smart thing to do, chap

Speaking of Rhino Richards, I'm still carrying a demerit point from the days when he was handing them out like they were going out of fashion. Any chance of having this removed Nash?

I once organised a date with Ben Hur once. Looked nothing like Kate Upton in real life. But I'm with you, Mach, with some posters I do picture their avatar speaking their post to me. It's part of the reason why can never take anything Ethan says seriously, why I picture Ernest smoking a pipe while he is typing, why I feel dirty when I read Uncle Bitters contributions, and feel slightly aroused when I read something from Munga.

Why do you insist on trying to spoil the fun of the trade forum? This whole time of year is based on innuendo and hearsay. You dont need to constantly repeat that, we already know it. And we love it. Its called the silly season for a reason.

Come on! You offered to meet me for a beer after the Essendon loss earlier in the year stu, then pulled the offer once I declined, like it never happened... jilted. But glad I was on my own that day. Perhaps the closest I've ever come to being arrested at the footy. And for those wondering about BBO's avatar pic, I've met the 'man' several times. Yes, that is exactly how he looks in real life, but often he changes the colours around a bit depending upon mood. His missus, on the other hand, is a 4'6" obese truck driver covered in tatts and suspicious facial hair...

Always has despised Demonland. Has already admitted recently that most times he posts to bait others and get a reaction. While i enjoy what the Mods do around here i get disappointed when he is given the soft pillow and allowed to continue to derail threads, shout at others for having a opinion on players and the constant bad mouthing of Demonland.

I imagine Saty sees it along these lines: “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” ― Edmund Burke.

Absolutely! I've taken great pleasure in watching Nasher grow from a baby-faced little girl, to become a couple of mighty Demons hugging each-other. The transformation has been akin to the Melbourne Footy Club under Paul Roos.

Mach I think I might be the only one but my AV is a pic of my good self. At the Dee's Freo game from '08.

Does anyone else think of posters looking exactly like their avatars (in your head at least)? in fact, it's downright annoying when ppl don't have one. Better get my act together.

This shepherding on the mark is just plain ugly. And the umpires endlessly telling players to 'stay behind' but they blatantly get ignored.

Harsh. You made me spill my chamomile tea.....

OMG those Whorethorn players whinge when frees don't go their way. Had it too good for too long.

Bloody hell, I wish I didn't hate every other team in the afl. Finals would be so much more enjoyable.

I'm at the game and hawks are warming up, I thought I saw Fitzy but it was just an adolescent giraffe.

Nor was Jack Watts until this year. Fitzy's history isn't written yet and while I don't think it will be a great one there are many players I've misjudged before they've retired. Fitzy seems like a ripping fella, gave what he could for us in shocking circumstances and is now about to play a final for the team that's won the last three flags. Fair effort I'd say. Good luck Fitzy and I hope you win and are BOG, not because I like the Hawks but I just hate Geelong even more and you're the best thing on either team as far as I'm concerned. I'd love to see both these teams struggle for a few years like most clubs do. Hate them both.

Politically I found it hard to see eye-to-eye with RobbieF but I rarely disagreed with him on football matters. I got the impression he was very generous to the club too.

Weren't most teams to a lesser degree? I think you notch those matchups to the "Oscar will grow into the role of stopping them in a year or two" category and put more eggs in the midfield and outside runners trade basket tbh You're not stopping Riewoldt or Daniher without giving up a first round pick (Carlisle?) OR developing your own defending youth. B Grade defenders are on the table because they can't stop big forwards. Our defensive performances against Hawthorn and Port Adelaide showed we have a capable defence and Hurley wasn't such a pressing need. It's the turnovers in the middle and midfield leadership that killed our defence in the last two rounds, not the personnel\ Tom and Oscar McDonald and Frost were signed in response to "tall defenders are needed" - I don't know how much taller a forwardline needs to get to have us covered but it's surely not a frequent occurence that warrants adding more defensive depth on the sideline.

When discussing the Rising Star, many on here talked about how the likes of Oliver and Petracca have a higher ceiling than Daniel. If either of them can reach the level that Daniel displayed last night, I would be rapt. He may not make the highlights reel often, but jeez he'll be good for a long time. Daniel is pure footballer in the Sam Mitchell mode.

Think our lot should be made to watch that game repeatedly to learn what pressure and toughness at the contest looks like. The Dogs were outstanding. They should also watch Caleb Daniel - best disposer and decision maker I have seen in a young player. Should have been rising star.

^ zzzzzzz.....

You're making me cry Ernest. This site needs inspiration music to go with posts like yours!

His clearances, tackles and contested numbers are pretty good. He's an outside finisher but he's not soft. He's exactly what we need IMO. In this thread across the course of one injury restricted year he's gone from gun worth pick 6 to "who cares" For all Ross and Clarko say "one soldier goes down another comes in" role playing, I still think there is a big element of synergy between players that develops over the years. I think everyone is excited about Max, Clayton and Jesse, but IMO something is missing in that equation at the moment. I think Hartlett provides the missing link and would really complement the inside work that Oliver is going to produce. Max tap, Oliver handball to Hartlett, 70m gained to Jesse 1:1. I want to win a flag. We've had 10 shocking years and people pine for the good old Daniher days when we made finals - we did that 12 years out of 20 prior to our recent trough but we were never really flag challengers at any time. I think we have the makings now but need to take the right list management steps. 2019-20 is the time to bring in 30+ FA as icing. Now is the time to build the list components to really challenge then. We've taken piscks 2, 3, 4 and 9 in the past 2 years, now is the time to invest in mature talent that fits our needs. Bernie will probably be finished and Hartlett will be 28-29 in those years and have played in our system for 3 years. I couldn't care less now about Wells, Dal Santo, Thompson or Mitch White, they won't figure in an MFC flag, but Hartlett could.

Awesome game by the dogs, what a team effort, smothers spoils, massive tackles, bold running play, not spitting the dummy at the stupid umps. Am going to pray for a miracle for Jong. Will go back to disliking the dogs next year, for now woof woof.

Right... Ever heard of a bloke called LeBron?

At the top of this thread, I'm reading the concern for rpfc on RUOK day, and I'm thinking how compassionate demonlanders have become. By the time I got to the bottom, reality is well and truly restored.

Maybe rpfc already stands for something like 'really powerful flying chunder'??

Everything ok Saty? Not usually your style to flat out have a go at someone.