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Another rule change also announced today is no high free when the player with the ball is responsible for high contact. A very welcome change. It covers ducking, slipping down through a tackle and driving the head into the tackler.

http://www.afl.com.au/news/2016-12-21/third-man-up-gets-the-chop-in-radical-rule-change A big plus for Max I would guess...

2.508 billion dollar TV rights deal over 6 years. That's 418 million a year without even adding the revenue from memberships, attendances etc. So at 1.7 million per year Gil has taken home about 0.41% of revenue from the broadcast deal. Is that really that unfair? Forget about if you like the bloke or not and look at his achievements and things aren't going too bad. We've got a women's league. The Dees have a women's team. The Dees have posted profits despite still missing finals A fellow battler just won the flag. The AFL took control of Etihad to help those teams out and secure an asset (Way too slowly but) the AFL is at least thinking of reigning in some of GWS' advantages The fixture isn't getting any more screwed up that it has been!

I don't wish him any ill will and nor do I wish him well. I have zero feelings for this player. Although, I'm happier today than I was the day we drafted him.

I think you will find in time, that that is incorrect. My very strong suspicion, is that he was told that he would most likely play most of the year at Casey and if he wished to retire, we would accommodate that, with a settlement of part of his 2017 contract. I believe the concussion issue to be a furphy. I still wish him well and don't know why people on here turn on our players so quickly. Surely we can all understand, that he would have preferred to play 40 more games with us and earn his full, remaining two years of his contract, rather than retiring and settling.

Would have thought that was slightly harsh. We don't know the whole story and we don't know all the information H was given about his concussion. He was under contract and had every right to look at all angles about how he could get himself right and contribute to the club. Once he was properly informed then he pulled the pin. Yes, it's a pain that it's come in December and not in October, but to suggest he 'screwed the club' is totally over the top.

Best of luck to him and his future health. No ill will at all from me.

A shame for H in the way it ended, but I'm impressed with how well the club handled it and looked after him, even if he hasn't necessarily appreciated it. Either way, thanks for wanting to be part of the revolution, H. You can watch us win our next flag from the stands and be happy you got to be a small part of it.

I have no issue with 1.7 being the wage for the CEO of a multi billion dollar organisation, in fact I am a little surprised it is that low. I do have a massive issue with that media loving, polo playing, sycophantic, drug taker excusing, boys club favourite of a low life waste of oxygen that earns that wage being paid more than the bag of peanuts he is worth. Don't even ask me about their so called exhaustive international search for a new CEO they ran where That idiot came out as the best option! Nepotism at it's finest! It makes me sad to think where this league could be heading under the guidance of someone good, especially someone who would stand up to the boys club and some idea of what long term planning actually is!

Ive thought for a long time that rather than getting bonuses for attendence levels which I think he gets...his bouses should be ties to the differential between first and last. The lower the difference the bigger the payout. Watch how quickly equalisation would happen then!

What about how his brothers star has risen all of a sudden? Can't watch the bloke but channel 7 use him in everything. Now he's on SEN. Won't be listening to that show. It's as incestuous as Fat Phill's deal with GWS. They all drink from the same gravy boat.

Where are the 200 photos of JKH?

The question I have is how much did we pay a player who refused to take the field and honour his contract.

Good luck to him. His departure makes zero difference to out best 22, nay our best 25! Let's move on from this and promise to never trade with collingwood ever again.

Looking fwd to his replacement. That's about the long and the short of it for me.

Sometimes Demonland has posts that just read gloriously one after the other.

You really think Mclachlan is some kind of decisive difference to the TV rights deal? There's another 10 executives running around with that as well, trading off player access, cameras in the changing rooms, mid-game coach interviews, attendence-unfriendly timeslots, all kinds of things to push up the value for broadcast partners. - The introduction of the Women's League has been totally half-arsed, somehow both slow and rushed. Overplanned and ramshackle. - The Demons profits have little to do with McLachlan, much more to do with Jackson, and in the end all come down to the Demon supporters themselves, obviously. - The Bulldogs were the first 'non-favoured' team to win the premiership this century. Woop-dee-doo. This definitely shows that the AFL competition isn't heaving dangerously even on calm waters. - The Etihad acquisition is notable only for so being so obvious and so overdue. I refer to the benchmark of panda-onesie trumpet busker guy earlier - Ooh, they are thinking about reigning in some GWS advantages. I think you'll find the cyborg gene-spliced horse has bolted and will be breathing flame from its nostrils no matter how colourful the saddle blanket Gil puts on it. - A screwed up thing is not becoming more screwed up? Well, I'd pay a premium for that kind of service anyday. "This hotel room is filthy, why did you book it?" ... "Well, they promised it would not be any more filthy than last time I stayed." Pardon my sarcasm. This is an issue that people need to be cranky about, and with a bit of urgency. The AFL has been, is being, and short of significant governance change will continue to be very poorly run.

Oh Yeah, Vlad had a lovely time being CEO. If he hadn't tipped off the Essendon CEO we may well have had paperwork and solid evidence against those cheats. This must never be forgotten along with what you have said above....

It's now official ... Lumumba retires from the AFL Thanks Heritier, it was certainly an experience having you in the passing parade of players who have gone through the doors of the Melbourne Football Club. I suppose we are going to have to get used to the fact that you won't be coming down to training any more. Keep well.

All the other players were at the Heretier farewell function

Is there a harder working MFC staffer than Crossy? That pick up keeps giving in spades.

You don't have to like every Demon, or have feelings for them and ambivalence is fine. I was referring to posters who get downright nasty/vicious at our players when they leave.

Rhys Matheson. Never been more riled by a first year player than this [censored], absolute expert at ducking into the tackler, and also did that stupid shotgun thing. Let's see how good he is in 2017. Toby McLean from the Dogs is another who won't be happy.

No third man up !! This is one of the the few rule changes in recent history that actually appears considered, useful and will improve the game. FMD . It's taken a while.

Shuey and Selwood have just retired.

Notice also that the players complaining about the rule change via twitter are from clubs with [censored]-kicker ruckmen and who rely on their third man-er at times. Lolsies.

So will Selwood and that kid from Brisbane.

Nought Melbourne will be gutted!

This was my first thought. In some games last year the opposition were able to negate Max's influence at the stoppages by having someone jump over the top of him as the third man up. It always annoyed me, but this rule is not only good for the game but good for us as well.

Huge advantage for us.

JKH was training by himself with Crossy and a fitness staff member. Some sprints a bit of ball work. No one else in sight.

Good riddance.

What a disgrace, on his narcissistic part, that he was too selfish and thoughtless to sort this out before list lodgement. Had he done so in a timely manner, and not lead us all on, he may have left with at least a modicum of a respectable legacy: now all that will be remembered will be his screwing over the club.

......and puke

just love all the double-talk. lol. do worry about the future of language but

No - we'll need to have an outlet to express our rage when the club is treated as returning heroes next year. And I suspect the fat lady will be singing for many more years.

The AFL is actually treated as a seperate entity of the clubs, who pay a license fee to appear in the league. That Gil earns more than the highest-paid players is irrelevant. He manages and oversees the league, its finances, its distribution mechanisms, corporate sponsorships, and broadcasting rights. I do believe players should earn more, but it shouldn't be relative to what AFL executives run. The AFL is a corporate entity, and it's seperate from the ways in which clubs are run, and how people within those clubs are paid. If a club wanted to, it could pay its President more than the highest-paid player on the team. This is a silly thread because it mostly disregards other mechanisms that actually contribute to the ways in which players are paid. Gil might be overpaid relative to his output, but it has zero bearing on what players are paid. Suggesting he shouldn't earn more than the players demonstrates a comical lack of understanding of the AFL and its corporate structure.

He lowered the price of Chips at Etihad by 50c!! done his job close thread

I agree. 1.7 mil for this clown is ridiculous. I have no problem with the AFL paying 1.7 million, but at least get someone competent. Gil is hopeless, and I would argue that a trumpet-playing busker would do a better job. I know the kid who sells footy cards would do a better job.

And one legged ducks swim in circles.

Only JKH and the machine doing a bit of ball work.

Mate, why are you being so antagonistic? What is wishy washy about the fact that the majority of superannuants, other than those with self managed funds, will have at least a portion of their super invested in overseas markets and cash. Pure fact. So the point is, while we may be happy to reap the benefits which flow from a global economy, not many are happy to accept the sometimes harsh reality of a global humanity. Rather ironic.

Considering the fact that the AFL Final Eight system was only introduced in 2000, you weren't very ambitious in 1971 when we had twelve teams and a Final Four. Top Eight then was Fifth Bottom!

I agree, but then again Ive thought this every December since 1971

Yep but big Oscar McInerny made his way up due to form and injuries late in the year. By all reports from his draft days Gach has a stack of talent and he's had the year in an AFL system so he could end up ahead of the young guys on our list. Flippers is pretty raw and King is coming of an ACL injury. Just establishing themselves at VFL senior level and backing up Spencer would be a good start for those 2 this year.

Tyson is a lot more important to our mid set ups than many seem to think here. He sets up a lot and does the team things that get the ball moving. 2017 will see him step up another notch.