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G'day all! First post in a while but I was around the vicinity this morning before work and dropped into training for the first 40 minutes or so. It's the first time I've managed to get a session this pre-season, so I was excited to see how the new recruits look in red and blue. I arrived at Gosch's at the same time as the lads and was surprised with their first warm up exercise. It appeared to be a variation of musical chairs where the players would run in a circle and would be required to place themselves in groups of 5-6 at certain points. Those left out would then be required to do a series of push-ups. Plenty of laughter out there. Joel Smith running laps. It'll be interesting to see if he factors in our best 22 this season. Vaned berg, Weideman, McKenna and Smith were those who I noticed in rehab. Standard stretches, jogging, and some handball activities followed. A late Tom McDonald then arrives and joins the boys to the shouts of "Tommy!" Players then continue their warm up with a standard kicking drill. Nothing too flash, but I'm delighted to see that one of the players closest to me is Jake Lever. Like nearly every other player in the history of game, I'm stunned to observe how good he looks in the Demon colours. Although he lacks a bit of muscle when compared to Sam Frost (who looks like he could snap Bailey Fritsch in half with a snap of his fingers) who happened to be standing next to him, I've read plenty of encouraging reports that he's been quite vocal on the track. Some sprinting exercises then followed. Our 2km champions Bugg, ANB and T.Mac all leading the way. No surprises here. Also, just saw the number 4 guernsey being worn by James Harmes. That one is still taking some getting used to. Unfortunately, that was about all I was able to see before I had to leave. Hopefully someone was able to pick up a few more details I'll try and come down again of the boys are training later in the week.

Just left training, was there for 90 mins, Petracca was a standout for mine, strong, great skills, moving well set for a big year. Gawn looks great, running well. Lever, taller and leaner than I thought. New draftees fitting in well. Salem strong in running also.

Well done OD - we solve one problem, you quickly move on to worrying about the next.

The wrist slashing on here about sponsorship is astounding. The club under Peter Jackson has done an amazing job. Sponsorship is hard. It's slow dance with uncertain outcomes and difficult negotiations. Yet some here think the club should update members every 2 seconds about why they haven't filled a sponsor position. These people frankly have no idea how difficult it is. There aren't 100 sponsors waiting in the wings to throw $2-3m a year at the club. Well done to the admin of our club. Quality sponsor.

The true value of this new sponsorship should not be under-estimated. PJ and his superb crew have managed to secure a partnership with a global financial organisation seeking to raise their presence in Australia and in the social responsibility profile. Congratulations to all concerned who sourced and nurtured this deal to its successful fruition. Anyone uncertain as to the calibre of people MFC now have working behind the scenes, should now be free of that uncertainty. Bring on the footy for 2018!

Good mate, real good. He's training with the backline, just came home from a bonding camping trip the backline boys organised for Friday night. He's looking much better then last years preseason. Took 13 seconds off his 2km PB, is within the top 5 at the club when it comes to lifting weights in the gym in certain categories (deadlifted over 200kgs before the Xmas break) and seems to be doing well. He also is trying to learn as much from the others as possible, especially Lever. Says whenever there is a one-on-one drill he always grabs Lever to test himself against. We'll have to wait and see if he gets a chance in the JLT games but so far it's going well.

I love it but am disappointed for some of our regular posters who won't have the opportunity to whinge and complain about the AFL and all that S$#T. Reading the first couple of pages of this thread and the level of self indulgent and self serving complaining was breathtaking. Move on and enjoy supporting your team!! As a follower of over 50 years this choice is a fantastic one...now if only we could resurrect Robbie (the greatest player to wear the red and royal blue) Go Dees!!

Oh yes, simply hilarious old chap. I nearly spat out my tepid earl grey when i saw that post! How about we have a little wager old chap. I bet that scally wag ne'er do well, T Mac's younger brother, if not injured, plays the first ten game of the season in the firsts. If he does i get to choose you avatar for the remainder of the season. If he doesn't you can choose my avatar for the remainder of the season. Now, given how lowly you rate the young fella (and you are clearly are an expert judge in both humor and the ability of AFL footballers) this bet is seriously weighted in your favor. But i am prepared to take that risk old chap. Just for a little fun and a few giggles. If you choose not to accept i can only assume you lack the courage of your convictions (unlikely given you are a MFC supporter of long standing) or you are, what do the young people say - a troll. But no doubt you are a man of honor so if you do not accept my little wager i can only assume you will desist from making any further snide remarks or puerile critiques of T Mac's younger brother's ability or character. Tally ho. Are we on?

I’m in love with my new Zurich luxury SUV.

is this article about the ex fremantle player sylvia?

Nope. It's just like how they started with the AHG sponsorship, that was a blue background too, but was eventually superimposed onto our jumper. I'm guessing it will end up something like this.

You would make a great Social Worker. Col is not a bad man from what I know of him, just not too smart. I think the problems he has had post footy, including his realationship with an ex girlfriend, have got the better of him and he is making poor choices. He is probably not in a good state of mind at the moment and I hope he gets some help and gets his life back together.

I'm surprised they jumped on board.. after our round 23 debacle last year, I'd thought we'd never get a major sponsor again.

For all the critics of Oscar McDonald, I have one observation which I think is a reasonable/uncontroversial one in the circumstances. If we can maintain a relatively healthy list this year, competition for a regular spot in the 22 will be fierce. Only our very best players will be guaranteed a spot each week, and they are all the obvious names. Beyond these players, you will have to be playing very well (i.e. be in form) and, relevantly, actually be a properly decent AFL player to be regularly selected in this side in 2018. If Oscar plays most games this year, I think the current vocal critics here should be obliged to concede that: 1. Oscar is actually a decent AFL player; and 2. their assessment of him as a player is not shared by the professionals within the club, and their views might be based more on some personal bias/prejudice rather than a proper assessment of his performance each week. Just sayin’.

Yay avatar bets! I lost mine and have to wear this hat (Ethan made it for me). Need more people to join the misery!

It's a cheap shot, assume you can only handle easy targets, waiting for you to accept @binman wager Omac was excellent again this morning forming a really good triumvirate with Frost and Lever Nathan Jones and Tim Smith were both back with main group, Tim Smith left a bit early though after a good workout with Crossy on timing his marks again

Great news to have such a long standing company on board. Good work Melbourne and PJ!

https://twitter.com/melbournefc/status/955193808190230528

Never a truer word written on this forum. Who says we weren't turning them away? How do you know this hasn't been a long process that's finally culminated in the perfect deal for the club? How do you know we haven't been in discussions with numerous companies as we look for the right deal? That's right, you don't. I'm constantly bewildered that some on here talk about our off field team as if they're twelve year old's who have no idea what they are doing. Do you think PJ and co. just sat at their desks for months awaiting a call from a prospective sponsor? Give them the credit they deserve. Your rhetoric may have been relevant back when we stunk it up, but we aren't that club anymore. Your constant knocks on the club make you look like a 'non' supporter who doesn't deserve to enjoy the good times when they roll around.

Was he also charged with selling Renaults to the public?

Well looks like all your points are like a panicked mother thinking her child is drowning only to find out that pool is only 10 centimetres deep and that her child is 15 years old. When this thread stated the season was months from starting, that why I did not panic and make up things as to why we had not signed a new major sponsor, if round 1 had come long and we still had no new major sponsor only then we should point fingers. This is a big sponsor known world wide, where is your postive post. Well done PJ for not panicking and just signing the first company that comes a long.

At least he spent the ill gotten gains wisely

I had a quick dig in their Corporate Social Responsibility section and while it is mostly a bit light-on for details (e.g. about ethical investment options) they do have a community partner we can work with http://www.raise.org.au/ A youth mentoring organisation which would definitely have some overlap with the work of the Reach Foundation. There may be an opportunity to get some healthy collaboration going on that level, which would make the sponsorship a bit more 'intimate'. Also noticed this while poking around the Zurich website. Zurich boosts market presence in Victoria and Tasmania But setting all this material and practical stuff aside... How good is it that we have a major sponsor that is definitely an arm of the illuminati?

Congrats to PJ and the club on this. Zurich is a great get, a well respected global company and a sponsor who should appeal to our membership base. Hopefully this is the beginning of a long term partnership akin to Sydney/QBE.

Waah, no sponsor, waah, no sponsor. Nek minut - sponsor? Waah, why not a better one? Get a life. PJ would [censored] himself laughing at some of the [censored] written on here by the MFCSS brigade.

If Peter Jackson delivers the goods (and I think he will) then I vote that this thread be renamed “Sponsorship - No Problem!”

I can’t see where we’ll lose a game.

Can't wait to see him in full flight for the dees! http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/more-news/jake-lever-cant-wait-to-face-former-side-adelaide-as-he-lauds-great-decision-to-join-melbourne/news-story/82853a32cfffa6a7cf1b646329e6912b

Bizarre, who pays for pornography these days?

Didn’t he retire from playing years ago?

Probably because we didn't lay a tackle until 10 minutes in in round 23

Of course not. I just find it bemusing that your line of thinking is to not express any form of pleasure, excitement, good will etc about the club signing a major sponsor for the next 3 years, but it is to instantly look for something else to whinge or worry or panic about. What's next? Complaining that the new sponsor starts with a 'Z' and it's too far down the alphabet for you?

Hopefully PJ extends his tenure at the MFC by a few more years.

[crow] they said it couldn't be done. they said it was a waste of time. that the afl would never let us not wear white. the said you can't fight city hall. they called us wankers. we said we'd never give up. apologies will be gratefully accepted. you know who you are. [/crow]

The rest he just squandered?

And more alliterative.

A few comments, to add to the other reports from Friday’s training session. Considering the trying conditions, strong northerly wind and high temperatures the standard of skills exhibited was quite high, stamina and fitness levels overall were very good. Agree with positive comments made by a number of observers/posters here re: Bernie Vince, Max Gawn, Dom Tyson, Dean Kent, Billy Stretch, Christian Salem, Alex Neil-Bullen,Christian Petracca, Tom MacDonald, Jesse Hogan all were noticeable for a range of attributes from their physical conditioning through to their determination and skills exhibited during the training drills. Impressed that most participants maintained an admirable intensity throughout the session which was intelligently managed by the coaching staff. Observed numerous rotations to allow for recovery and plenty of opportunity provided for maintaining hydration levels. Of the new recruits Bailey Fritsch moved with poise and purpose, looked very neat skills wise, was able precisely pass the footy by foot and appears accurate over an extended distance despite the conditions. He judged the flight of the ball superbly and marked confidently despite the strong gusting wind. Close by he is deceptively strong around the hips and upper thighs. After all the training drills were completed and most players departed for what one assumes was a cool shower. Josh Wagner, Jayden Hunt and Neville Jetta did some extra-curricula work competing in pairs for the high kicked incoming ball. Their positioning/bodywork to spoil or mark the ball was terrific. Jettta despite giving up “inches” was the obvious master. Observations on the possible ‘game plan’ for the coming season. Competewith strength around the packs, gain possession and clear congestion by handball and reminiscent of Hawthorn maintain possession by short passing allowing forwards time to lead into space to receive an accurate footpass. Well at least that appears to be plan A. Final thought as a visitor to the centre of the footy universe from the top end, conditions were much tougher for footy than ever experienced in the ‘cooler’dry season evenings in Darwin. Ok will acknowledge pre-season training is not a fixtured AFL game. But training intensity and duration appear to mimic something of game conditions. In anticipation of a continued positive trend on Goody’s team performance graph for season 2018. Adios from your northern correspondent.?Go Demons!

Well, you're going to want to have good insurance for the car, aren't you? Zurich is big on life insurance, I wonder what their actuaries will make of MFCSS?

Well, I guess he couldn't be accused of being a keyboard warrior....

Panic over now?

does this mean we get a huge swiss insurance company AND a japanese luxury car brand

I can understand frustration on this point, but surely it's much more important that both parties are comfortable on signing off on what is a large money deal?

I'm not totally keen on a royal blue clash, I'd prefer a predominately red one but it's better than white.

do i still get my 50% off a new lexus??

Great news!!! As a Financial planner I will now look to use Zurich as my number 1 insurance provider.?

Breast Cancer Network of Australia, the pink jumper.

I just don't understand supporters who revel in predicting the clubs demise. Definitition of "Supporter " is "a person who approves of and encourages a public figure, political party, policy, etc." Based on that the MFC is the "etc" and Picket, you seem to be doing niether of those things. As the saying goes, "with friends like you....." I know people will say this is a "Fan Forum" but once again, I am not sure where you sit within the "Fan" part of the forum, more a detractor than a Fan. Good luck to you and Go Dees!!! Salems Lot - Melbourne Supporter for 54 years!