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A short sharp craft session followed by a run around the tan for some Preuss continues to impress, if he can translate what I see on the training track to games, he will be an asset, still have not seen him miss a kick, there was a short kick to him that dropped short, thought he would let it go but he scooped it up off the ground and nailed his kick going the other way Got some good pics of him and Gawny doing one on one Craft all about quick ball movement A few of the rehabbers joined session today, all the Hs, Harmes, Hunt, Hore, Tim Smith Jetta, Petracca, Oliver were still in 'rehab'group Melksham and Baker did a boxing session, as per the photo, got a bit willing a couple of times, fun to watch They are trying to fast track Bradtke, Stafford put him through a brutal half an hour at the end of the session A pleasing sight is Bernie Vince bouncing around, big smile on the dial

T-Macs goal makes me feel sick every time I see it. It reminds me of how drunk I got that night. Three days after the game I received a tuxedo jumpsuit in the post, apparently I’d ordered it when drunk.

Fugazi. But I like it.

Love that Lever was on his case about coming to the club. I suspect the same would have gone on with Max and Preuss. Says a lot to me that these guys want solid teammates around them and are welcoming challengers into the fold.

It's an epidemic, young men committing suicide or attempting to commit suicide is a massive issue facing society not just the AFL. Most of use grew up with the toughen up attitude and we never communicated our emotions to anyone. It is very hard for my generation and ones older than me to understand what the pressures are on young people that would lead to them even thinking about taking their lives. It is bloody scary, we can't have the mind set that generations before dealt with the pressures of life so why can't these young men. Men are garbage at talking about emotions, add in modern technology it causing more isolation. If boys had an issues when I was growing up we had a punch on and moved on, these days it is worse, social media allows people to attack others and play emotional games for long periods of time. Not sure what anyone can do about it and something I am working very hard at with my boy is listening, it doesn't come naturally to me and it is hard sometimes really understand what he is really saying, but I'm there and I hope as he gets older he will always know that I'm there to listen.

I used to love going to the footy as a kid and catching the end of the Ressies match. I'd hear all the die hards around me who had seen most or all of the match retell how so and so had played a blinder and was a shoe in for next week.

Just received an email from Australia Post saying that my package from MFC is due for delivery tomorrow. That means it will likely arrive around Australia Day.

Obviously you either haven’t seen the plans or know how to read drawings! I have seen the drawings (and as an architect I know how to read them)! The footprint of the proposal neither extends into Yarra Park nor eliminates the playgrounds. Further, it is of a lower height than the Pullman Hotel and residential and commercial buildings on the opposite side of Wellington Parade. Nor does it “tower over” the street as, being on the South side, it casts no shadow and is lower than a fully-grown plane tree! Frankly, your comments are an embarrassment to the educated readership of Demonland! ?

When I started going to thre footy you could watch the U19’s, Reserves then the Seniors. From memory Robbie Flower went through all 3 in the one season by May. and never left the Seniors.

Well, snorting ice cream will do that...

Tom McDonald's goal was the most concentrated moment of pure unadulterated joy I've ever felt as a Melbourne supporter…but I guess I'm biased.

reminds me of a right-footed matthew lloyd, only less of a toerag

Re Bruiser. From the one bit of vision, he can tap, mark, kick goals and make second efforts. And that is when he is standing still. Gets to lots of contests on the run and seems to have footy smarts. You don't kick goals from forward ruck contests or from 60+m out without some ability. Speed is not the only valuable attribute. The ability to read the play so as to get to contests and to favourable positions are just as valuable, especially for a 206 ruckman. Admittedly it is only one set of highlights but I say give him a go.

I don't know why the media keep harping on this: Given the dominance of Gawn, it was strange that North Melbourne back up ruckman Braydon Preuss was so keen to get to the Demons. Even more so given Kangaroos big man Todd Goldstein is in the twilight of his career, while Gawn has years ahead of him. Preuss has put it on the record that he believes he and Gawn can play in the same team, just like the Eagles premiership duo of Scott Lycett and Nathan Vardy did in 2018. But if it ain’t broke, why fix it? I simply cannot wait til the Gawn/Preuss tag team shuts these clowns up.

I've been very impressed with Steven May and I cannot wait to see him run out in the red and blue come Round 1. Kudos to the recruitment staff for getting this done now before the vultures swooped. We got a huge asset to our backline and the team. Didn't know he was a pilot to boot. Another tick from me.

One advantage of having Preuss which I hadn't thought about previously is that Gawn now has someone decent to train with. In the last couple of years he's had beginners who didn't make it and a retired ruckman against whom he could hone his skills. Now he has to contest at training with someone his size which, I would think, should be good for his continuing development of both ruckwork and contested marking. And thanks Saty for the photos. That's what made me realise that Preuss's value might be more than just gameday.

AFLX is terrible. I preferred AFLs I through IX.

they way my bombers mate put it is 'you pay overs for melksham so you get hibberd for unders' i can't believe the turnaround in milkshake since he became a forward; has been sensational

Better than the alternative.

I much prefer recruiting May over Gaff, lets say.

yeah like the pullman and the other 6 plus story buildings across form the station on wellington pde do

This is the first I’ve visited D-Land for a while and it’s fascinating to see that there’s still so much interest in Jesse. I had a couple of days feeling a bit unsure of whether it was a good thing or a bad thing, good trade vs bad trade, but now he’s just another opposition player now.

When I was there last week I was standing next to someone and we identified the drone and couldn't believe how steady it was. Just didn't move. We looked again some time later and it was still rock solid in exactly the same position. I was fascinated then realised why it was so steady. It actually wasn't a drone it was a street lamp. I'd be taking my training reports with a grain of salt if I get back there again. I now fear I might have given a training report on the Melbourne Storm by accident.

I think he will stay

May as well give a loyal sponsor a plug. The Melbourne Football Club's partnership with IG, the world's leading online trading provider will continue for another 2 seasons. http://www.melbournefc.com.au/news/2018-12-18/ig-partnership-continues IG’s logo will continue to be present on the coaching staff’s uniform until the end of the 2020 season, with the partnership running for six consecutive years in total.

Indeed, sounds like a quality person. You can’t underestimate the impact on a footy club with the likes of this type of person coming on board. Another leader on and off the field. Exciting stuff.

With all the great content we get online through the official site and social media do we really need the magazine anymore? Seems like an unnecessary cost in this day and age that could be better spent on us winning a premiership.

100% agree. He has a steely resolve and love the quality of the person. His potential is huge considering the Talent he has around him at the MFC this year. He has mentioned in the past how he'd love to play in the style of Alex Rance but was limited due to the young backline at the Suns. How exciting!

The other thing it does is make you appreciate the quantum leap in standard to the Firsts and just how good they are. A bit of perspective can be a good thing.

looks like a beautiful ball drop.

My North supporting mate thinks Preuss could become a very handy player for us. (Emphasis could, as he is still young for a big man) he also reckons that most of the North supporters he talks to at games are sore losers and a holes? Essendon supporting in laws were happy to see Melksham go as he was too inconsistent, Hibbo, they were gutted to lose. I feel we won both of those trades thou.

it may be a meagre offering (4 games on sundays) but at least it's a start (just)

And that storytelling was very important between follow supporters of any team persuasion... it helped fans connect with one another. A really Aussie way of attending the Footy. bring it on.

Supporters of opposition clubs always use some way to justify their club allowing players to go. Bomber supporters said the same about Melksham to feel good about their team letting a player go.

Why? All reports about him so far have been extremely positive even the non-rose coloured reports. Sure it's pre-season training and everyone's up and about and training the house down but he could does fill a necessary hole for us and looks capable. Proof will be in the pudding. I'm certainly looking forward to the JLT series to see what he can do. Hopefully he'll make the cut for Round 1 and from there we'll see.

I've now lowered my expectations on Preuss.

Only 1 game but doesn't look too slow.

Looks like @Satyriconhome is in the house.

So, should we get a priority pick then????

I'm pretty sure I've always received these just prior to Christmas. I recall getting an email saying you had to purchase your memberships by a certain time in order to get then before Chrissy.

A typical knee jerk reaction (like when John Cain reduced speed limits after a bus crash)! I am wary about government announcements on the run without debating it in parliament or following due process. Wait until the plan is finalised, application made, Council and/or VCAT consider it and then start worrying. At the moment it is only a thought bubble!

For what it's worth, there has been chatter about Hogan for a couple of years now. I was heartbroken when it looked as though he was gone, but I've come to the conclusion that the 'Brains Thrust' behind Melbourne's recent success felt the Melbourne Football Club was better off without him. I can only assume their knowledge and insight is keener and sharper than ours, I also assume they had their reasons for brokering his decision to terminate his contract.

I agree with almost everything you wrote aside from the vomiting on Tom Scully as if it was a bad thing.

Great post Steve. I believe it's questionable however as to whether it was intoxication that was the cause of Maxy spewing on $cumbag. I think it's just another example of good judgement.

I agree with the premise of your post. May will be huge for us and is much more of a need going into next year in comparison to Jesse. However, I question a few points you've made. To compare Hogan to Watts and Sylvia is completely ridiculous given what Jesse achieved in his first year at AFL level and the fact that he came back to pre-season at our club in unbelievable condition on multiple occasions and was one of our strongest runners. Even this year, his start to the year was unbelievable and he was considered by many as being in AA form. Sylvia and Watts never came close to impacting games the way Jesse has. This is without mentioning the fact that Hogan missed a year with a back injury, lost his father at the age of 22 and was diagnosed with Cancer in the same year. Is it really a surprise that some of his behaviour has been a little erratic during the off-season? Should we make mention of the fact that Gawn used to smoke on the way to training, vomited on Tom Scully due to intoxication and [censored] about for a number of years before the penny dropped? Or that Harmes has publicly admitted that up until the 2018 pre-season, he was never in the condition he needed to be in? Or maybe that Jetta needed a wake-up call by being delisted and given a rookie lifeline to seize his opportunity and put the required work in? Hogan has experienced events that some of us don't experience until we're well into adulthood. He is 23 years old, think about that for minute.