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Just pull the bloody thing down. Terrible place and can’t see a makeover helping. However it is clear that we will see more innovations that will seek to entertain fans. Flashing lights, advertising and every other device for fans with short attention spans The mind boggles what they have in store.

It's clearly a great opportunity to learn from someone who thinks they're the best.

The mental leap from 'we're not good enough to win a flag' to 'we've won a flag' is enormous. Players now know they are good enough .. And by some margin. Yet the room for improvement is massive. Virtually every player has improvement in them and will. now know that every single step they make in their training can generate the ultimate result. And the confidence in the game plan, their fitness and their team mates will be sky high. Plus the confidence that they can win from almost every position - other teams will know that Melbourne can pile on goals and win from 7 goals down I for one think we will improve this year. And when you look at the 2000's once you get to the top you can win 3/4 flags - Brisbane, Geelong, Hawthorn and Richmond have shown how to do it - with the right list, right age/experience bracket and injuries.

The article says that Daisy took some time to consider a position at Essendon. Presumably they mean the 600 milliseconds it took for the job offer to enter her auditory cortex before travelling to her motor cortex for her to say no.

They were still our club captains regardless what you think of them as players. They went through the darkest period in the clubs history and barely saw any light. They deserved to be part of it just as much as these blokes. Lyon, Neitz, Viney had their turns last December on the MCG. Jack Grimes captained more games then Todd Viney FYI. I am not wanting this discussion to be seen at potting those names, far from it. They too are a part of our rich history. But if we're acknowledging past players who have made significant impact at this club then Trenners and Grimes deserved to be recognised as well.

Count yourself lucky that you only had flu like symptoms and unlike many did not require hospitalisation, a ventilator or struggle to recover with long Covid. Unlike others you did not die. That is not spin. The politicians definitely had their moments but without quick action by our governments many more would have died particularly from the Delta strain. But don’t imply, Covid is nothing to worry about or there is no need to take precautions. Your fine, well bully for you. Others have not been so lucky and family and friends have grieved.

Daisy's loyalty to the red and blue will never be in doubt. This is the lady that told Gil that she plays for the Dees or won't play AFLW!! She isn't lost to us yet. The article says we want keep her when she hangs up the boots: Cats CEO Steve Hocking told 3AW that many clubs would be interested in securing the services of Pearce when she ends her playing career with the Demons. “Daisy is committed to Melbourne Football Club. They are clearly going to have a big say in the finals. They would love to win a premiership and our understanding at this point in time, and through talking to her manager, they’re [Melbourne are} committed to Daisy continuing there and she has not made a decision as to what her future looks like,” Hocking said. I recall a few years back she joined training with Goodwin and he was very welcoming. Lots of reasons to join the Dee's men's coaching team. Go Daisy!

Perhaps a little more deep-seated than that. I’ve heard him describe his day at the 1964 GF as a mad 11yo Collingwood fan. He said that he was so upset at the result that he cried all the way home to Ballarat in the car. 57 years probably hasn’t eased the pain….

Malthouse also predicted Scully to be the next Judd. How did that go for him?

The pathological hatred MM has for the Dees verges on laughable. I suspect if you asked him, he’d have some explanation for how we stole the Premiership last year, didn’t really deserve it, won’t be much chop this year….blah blah blah. To say he lacks credible objectivity is voicing the bleeding obvious.

Hope they install a newfangled invention called a "volume down button" on the PA. It's all the rage right now amongst fans who like to retain their hearing after a day at the footy.

Dogs had thrown everything they had at us to get in front. In truth they should have been level at best, as we had squandered shots on goal, going from 4.3 in the first to 5.9 in the second. Hannan's muffed handball could have been the first sign of fatigue as from then on they were pretty much powerless to resist the onslaught.

This is my favourite thing about going to the footy with my family. I can’t hear them.

A lot of interesting comments on here about Gus and his future since the announcement that he is delaying contract renewal talks. What is more interesting is that there were none of these same thoughts and comments about Gus before the announcement. Pre announcement: "what a great year Gus has had, particularly the finals"; "what a great role player Gus has developed into and how important he and his role is in the team", etc. Post announcement: "Gus wants more mid time and is looking elsewhere to get it"; "Gus wants more money"; "Gus is overpaid for a role player and has to take a pay cut so that we can keep Jacko and Oli" etc Is this our MFCSS resurfacing? Let's perhaps chill a bit and see what pans out. FWIW, I'd be very surprised if he has even considered looking elsewhere.

Latest…..heads, arms, and some unfamiliar item in the top left corner

If you've ever been to a game of ice hockey in the States, you will have experienced the brain-deadening effect of constant lights, music, gimmicks, etc, ad nauseum, literally taking up every spare second between "the play". Let's say the ref calls a stoppage. Immediately music blares AND I MEAN BLARES as the ref sorts out the players, holds up the puck and drops it onto the ice to restart play. The music only stops when the puck hits the ice. The whole thing can take 3 seconds. Three whole seconds where the viewing audience is deemed to be in desperate need of flashing lights, noise and stimulation. That happens over and over and over and over again throughout the game, and then there's the pre-game [censored], not to mention in between quarters (yeah, I know, there's only 3 of them) ... constant noise, announcements, TV screens everywhere, kiss cam, [censored] cam, on and on and on it goes. At the MCG, the inane ground announcer and the music played at volumes hostile to conversation rate about one out of ten compared to the full on numbing trauma of the NHL. Robbo's Haymes paint thing looks like a country school fete in comparison to the full body assault of the NHL. Be very afraid!

No one executes " equivalent skills" as Bowey has in 7 games. Throwing him out for an average practice game? Smith has made as many mistakes each game as Bowey has in 7 games. Can't compare even Hunty as his disposal is nowhere near Bowsers.

It's just a light show... which is nice but it doesn't address the fundamentals Level 1... Not sufficient gradient in the seating Level 2/3 Inaccessible to the general fan Level 4... lower half ... okay Upper half... rubbish

Thank god we no longer need to buy tickets if we have a membership and we can sit in our reserved seats. Bring on 2022!

How ironic. West coke have to sack a player for REFUSING an injection

I was just wondering if there has been any news about who will be unfurling the 2021 AFL Premiership Flag for the Round 1 game against the Bulldogs at the MCG? Who will be unfurling the flag for the Melbourne Football Club? I'm assuming it will be Ron Barassi? Or perhaps Nathan Jones? Or even Neale Daniher? However, it is my view that the honour should go to Ron Barassi due to him missing out at the Premiership celebrations in December 2021 due to unfortunately catching COVID-19. It will be wonderful to see Ron Barassi hoisting the Melbourne Demons first Premiership Flag since 1964! Our Premiership drought of 57 years finally over! GO DEMONS!!! We are the reigning Premiers! 😁

Obviously for home consumption. A membership promo. It’s well done and emotional for those with red and blue blood. However, I also find it a bit cringy. I would prefer to focus on what happens on the field. Let the way the side plays and results do the talking. That’s the way to gain respect and become a formidable club.

Here is an incredible article about Daisy. Too many great comments to quote. Just one to whet the appetite. "But as an analyst Pearce now offers a particular insight in a commentary role once reserved solely for male champions. “It is because she is smart. It is because she is worldly. It is because she has sat in footy change rooms and been a leader and been a mother and a professional,” McLachlan says. “When she sits there with Wayne Carey and Luke Hodge, they all respect her because she is smart and good fun and knows what she is doing. She is a peer. No other woman in the world has done it… as credibly. And she is now totally accepted by footy fans – there is not even a murmur.” aflw-star-daisy-pearce-makes-her-mark-on-and-off-the-field Hope you can get behind the paywall.

Stan attended the mfc coterie season launch on Friday night. He was interviewed as a past player and spoke movingly about the club and its past and how every past player just appreciates so much what the club as a whole has now achieved. So proud he was. Brian wilson echoed his comments also in a touching way. These guys, like us, really care. Kate Roffey' s address was top notch and powerful. No way will there be a premiership hangover.

Seeing Stan Alves in Melbourne tie has been worth the wait.

small correction: you can be well vaxxed and still transmiisable, but the viral load will likely be lower than someone unvaxxed. so, you may be transmissable but less so, if that makes sense

Although Gawn had little direct impact during our 3rd quarter blitz, him going forward disconnected the Bulldogs defence. Easton Wood was so spooked by Gawn being forward that he left Fritsch unmarked allowing him a free attack on the deep ball by Petracca for his third goal. The next play Bulldogs defence was stretched badly trying to cover our three deep forwards allowed Brown a clean unmolested mark.

Exactly. I don't have a digital wallet. To show my vax status i always scan the QR code to bring up my services app and vax certificate. Or for my regular haunts that i have saved, just pull up the app. Love the fact that this year i'l be adding the g as a favorite

44,903 this morning They are expecting to crack 45000 today. Puts this year about 7 weeks ahead of last year.

The reality is that nothing gets the kids on board like being born into it. The only logical conclusion is that the club should offer incentives for current members to have more children. Surprised they haven’t thought of it yet. Get to work the lot of you!

Agree on all of the above. The other thing i'd add is we are a systems based team. And with a flag under our belt we have proof positive that the system works, so we have complete team buy in thta system (not that we didn't have it last season). But also another year to cement that system, so it becomes completely automatic. Every player coming into the team understand the system and know what role thay have to play in it. I think that was a huge factor in the Tiger's run of success. Also, other teams face a big problem against us, a problem that was evident last year - to what extent do they modify their own system when playing us to try and beat us? That's a problem because system based football has proven to the most effective model in the last say decade (longer probably). Sure every team will employ tactical tweaks to blunt opponents strengths and exploit weakness, including us. But if teams move too far away from their own system in their attempt to beat us, it is doomed to fail. So i think the 'other teams will work us out' narrative is a furphy. The only path to wining a premiership, and finding a way past the dees, is to develop a rock solid system that works - whatever that may be. And as dees fans know all too well developing and cementing an effective system takes years. Which is why why i see the Bombers and Freo dong well this season. Both have been developing an effective system in the last 2-3 years, one modeled on the dees defensive structure. I think both will be really hard to score against this season and are on the right path to be top 4 teams in say 2023 or 2024.

Good post. I mostly agree - so much needs to go right to do it again. However, I think its interesting that the teams that took us apart last year were mostly at the bottom (Pies, North, Adelaide) or teams that we had beaten earlier in the season (Dogs, GWS, Hawthorn). To me this suggests (especially when you look at our finals form) that it was more above the shoulders. I don't think it's possible for teams who play such a disciplined game plan to be up for every game - but we showed we could do it when it mattered - not just in finals but the big games through out the season when our reputation was on the line eg tigers, dogs, lions, port, geelong. I'm not saying I think we are invincible but I think the fact that the pies, crows and north troubled us the most is more about our effort on those days than a game style that is our Achilles heel.

I don't know what Liverpool were thinking here, singing the Western Bulldogs song. Shows a complete and utter lack of respect

So from the details available the bottleneck from the station isnt being addressed despite a planned increased in traffic. Here's hoping the stadium management tuck some money away for that, and some to ensure an adequte number of gates are open and staffed for matches.

Email from the club said members don’t need to buy a ticket via Ticketek, just scan your membership. Which is great. ‘Tickets’ made available via the app 72hrs before the game

I wonder if the “never before seen experience” is watching the footy with the roof open

This bloke is going to be there (only if his mum says it ok).

He is more like Dangerfield than Dusty, but simply stronger and a tad better. But ultimately the big games set Trac and Dusty apart. They thrive on the big occasions whereas Danger tries too hard and his class drops (which he lacks sometimes anyway). I still find it hard to believe I’ve finally got champions on my team. For years I’ve talked to mates about them having Pendlebury and Buckley or Hird or Robert Harvey or more recently Dusty. I’ve been envious. I had Stynes growing up but even that isn’t the same, he was a workhorse. Having Trac and Oliver and Gawn in the headlines week after week. Mates talking me about being jealous of our midfield and how good x or z is….it’s a foreign feeling, it’s about time and it’s awesome.

It seems we will need to sign in with QR codes, not for contact tracing but to show proof of vaccination; see the bottom half of this article why-qr-codes-are-still-needed-to-go-to-the-footy Essentially: “You still have to be vaccinated to go to the footy. Your QR code, you show your phone, and you demonstrate you’re vaccinated. It’s the same in restaurants, it’s the same in pubs, but it’s no longer the case in places like supermarkets or other retail settings because you don’t have to be vaccinated to go into them.” ...People without smartphones can show a paper copy". So anyone who is not vaccinated will not get in.

To clarify the last sentence: that may be the case for MCC members but not for the general seating area. Walk up tickets will be available for all games this year at all venues, if the game isn't sold out. So @Deemented Are Go!you can get tickets at the gate 'like the good old days' but for big games you may find tickets are sold out beforehand.

Weid again for me Get out the whips!!

If Brayshaw leaves, his motivation will be money, not winning a Brownlow. In 2019, he played 22 games as an inside mid and got 0 Brownlow votes. In fact, aside from 2018 when he got 21 votes, he has polled a total of 1 vote. So let's stop this nonsense of Gus leaving to seek individual glory at another club.

Well I had a dream last night that our new base will be within the MCG precinct redevelopment. That the Club Rooms and training facilities will be underground in the now Southern stand area. The football sized replica of the MCG ground will also be five stories underground. No one will ever see the light of day - ever. Maybe even a hotel 10 stories underground for the Players and Coaches too with giant water slides and merry go rounds....

backline & midfield depth is off the charts. If Weid/JVR step up, and one of the developing wingers, we will have first class depth all over the ground. Which hopefully keeps everyone hungry & fighting hard to keep their spot (or break into the team)

Yep. Funnily enough I happened to watch that game last night as part of my 2021 season redux (two to go!) Sure cameron was too clever for Smith on a several occasions - though twice Smith beat Cameron in a pure one on one racing back towards goal, the second of which was critical as the lions were really pushing at that point. Cameron is brilliant one on one But an important point is related to why they chose to leave Smith on Cameron. Spoiler alert - it wasn't because he couldn't pick another forward up. Sure Cameron kicked 5 goals. Great. But no goal assists, only 2 involvements other than his goals (by way of contrast viney had no goals and 7 score involvements) and crucially bugger all pressure inside 50 . 13 disposals, but 12 were kicks, so not bringing teamstes into the game. But the key thing is the lions only scored 4 other goals. Cameron was basically their only avenue to goal and they went through him too often and look to isolate him on one one too often. Added to that is they looked to create space behind him to help him score. That is a rubbish way to play against us because we allow so few opportunities for teams to get behind us. Bottom line is even with Cameron kicking 5 they weren't scoring enough, and goody was happy with that.

Jeff Garlett is one that comes to mind.

The only evidence that Brayshaw is anywhere near a Brownlow comes from 2018, when we were an awful defensive transition team with Gus on ball and when he got all of Oliver’s votes because Oliver talked back to the umps. There’s been nothing either side of that year to suggest Brayshaw is a good on baller, yet alone a great one. He has nice clean hands around a stoppage but his pressure and in tight defensive work is a mess. If Gus gets 30 you have to live with his opponent getting 30 too, and there’s plenty of mids who will do better with their 30. Thats why our coaches use Harmes, Sparrow and Jordon on ball rather than Gus. He might enjoy playing on ball more. And might get that chance more often at a bottom 6 club. But he’s not getting on ball minutes at a top team the way he currently plays. If he was at Freo for instance he’d be behind Mundy, Fyfe, Andy Brayshaw and Serong and playing on the wing too!

I can understand the desire to see how the young blokes go in a “real” game. I would like that as well, but… I also think it is more important to “ hit the ground running” and thump as many of our opponents as we can early in the season. We need, if we can, to establish our dominance over other clubs so that they expect to lose to us. Go Dees. B2B in 22