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Hi Daz & Brendan. I can’t say too much except that right now, I think a deal gets done. When I announced this a month ago, I didn’t think it was possible because I couldn’t see Dees getting fair value from Cats. They’ll certainly have their work cut out taking on Bailey, Claz & Stengle. The stories I could tell re Bailey.

Geelong can ask the Vic Gov to cover the cost of Clayton's salary.

Geelong will send the email

I've said it once and I'll say it again: trading him to Geelong is going to be one of the dumbest things we could do, and other clubs are going to be asking Melbourne what the hell they are doing. Reminder that Geelong dealt with this with Stevie J, Collingwood with Swan and Didak, Hawthorn with their own collection of issues, and Richmond with Martin. We somehow let our equivalent go from 4x B&F winner, multi-time All Australian, Coaches and Player MVP, to literally being the most cooked and overvalued contract in the league in the course of 12 months. We will lament this. Irrespective of his cultural and behavioural issues.

Morning all What fresh hell awaits us today?

Oh please. Don't act like it's a solid rock hard leadership group, far from it. Under their watch there have been significant off field issues for the last couple of year. They absolutely need to take some sort of responsibility for the mess along with the football department as well.

it now seems like clarry has gone from villain to victim, all within the week afl media is just another cheap reality show ... no angle rejected if clickable

Maybe.. just maybe, this actually comes back on the Individual for once and not the club. Oliver is a bloody 27 year old grown adult. For once how about he takes responsibilities his own actions. The club literally had to move Oliver in with the Gawn family last year because of his off field issues. Sums it all up. The footy club have seriously thrown every ounce of support and bended over backwards for him to try and keep him on the narrow straight. I'm comfortable if the club wish to trade him. They've done everything they can. Geelong are not certainty to fix him. Jack Steven and Mitch Clark come to mind? Bailey Smith and Clayton Oliver in the one room on a Saturday night.. good luck.

It’s incredible how much the media drive the narrative to the point where marginal possibilities become self fulfilling prophecies

Don't panic, this is here to serve as a distraction to all the other bs going on. Great first year by our young winger.

Melbournes cultural issues have been tearing them apart for 2 years now and if this is the circuit breaker required then so be it. 1 player doesn’t make a team and I have a feeling this will help us more than hinder us. Thanks for your service Clarry!

You live and die by these types of catastrophic list management decisions. If we decide that we need to move on from Clarry, and we give him up for little value, to a direct competitor, then we cannot expect to contend next year or even beyond. Our window is brief while Gawn, May and Viney are still at their peak. Losing Gus and now Clarry, means that supporters need to massively reset their expectations. The same people on here advocating to push him out for the betterment of our culture, will also be the same people who scream "sack Goody" two weeks into season 2025 when it becomes clear that we are not a top 8 team anymore. This is not a Hogan for May trade. We are struggling to attract established talent, hell, we are struggling attract mediocre talent too. Trading Clarry is not some magic bullet. It won't suddenly fix all the issues that this club has. Just remember all this in 2025 when you're melting down over our performance.

I personally think it shows maturity making the decision not to attend a medical appointment whilst still drunk.

Media pundits and some posters are talking as if Melbourne have no choice but to let Oliver join Geelong for whatever scraps we get in return. Not so. It's time to get tough, tell other clubs to back off, and warn Oliver that the club will fine or suspend him for any further infractions. Melbourne have given him a contract that ensures he can retire from a game a wealthy man. The club has also gone out of its way to support him when he experienced off-field problems that have had an adverse effect on the team's performance levels. Metaphorically speaking, his response is apparently to kick Melbourne players, officials and fans in the teeth. The notion of letting him leave for a likely mid-teens future draft pick, while still playing a hefty chunk of his salary, is frankly insane. Having seen how the Petracca and Oliver sagas have played out, one thing is now certain. Very few clubs, if any, will be offering seven-year contracts, even to superstars.

Surprised the confidential details of Clarry’s meeting with the club haven’t leaked yet. Wonder what the hold up is?

Correct, it won't fix all the issues but it'll be a big step forward at least from a culture perspective. We've been babysitting this guy for the best part of nearly 4 years. Club is way bigger then the individual. I would rather have a year next year of total reset then go through another year of noise and distraction around Oliver. Clubs have also shown that you can turn around fairly quickly through good drafting and trade. Collingwood, Geelong and Sydney have proven this.

There’s 1 top up player who only started training with the club in recent weeks so there goes that argument. 1 late call up to the list who’s been retired for 3 years. 3 first year kids who are 19/20 and can’t be expected to have developed bodies by now. A 20 year old from Port who’s played 5 games across her first 2 years. Their ruck is 36, the back up ruck 21. Key forwards are 22 and 20. If you think they are on the same fitness level as the injured players: Purcell: best mid L Pearce: gun starting ruck B Mackin and McNamara: both starting wings Harris and Zanker: both first choice key forwards 2 more mature bodies: A Mackin, Beasley And Paxy: long described as the fittest player in aflw Then I just don’t know what to tell you.

Fantastic win tonight. Players really put the footy down and linked up well. Best we've played this year. 6 Hore - clearly best on, all over the ground 5 Hanks - back to her best in and around the cintest 4 Chaplin - another ripping game intercepting in defence 3 Fitzsimon - an absolute workhorse in the forward line and between the arcs. She covered a lot of ground and impacted with her tackling. 2 Heath - in everything as usual and seemed to play further up the ground too 1 Bannan - in and out of the game but impacted when she had the chance and her early play and goals were instrumental in the win even if she faded

Well they do have $1 farms and all that sweet Cotton On cash not coming out of the salary cap.

To say we’ve had enough of Clarry is one thing. To use him as a pawn in a game of power struggle between the CEO/board and the FD, in some deluded attempt to be seen as “getting serious about our culture” is another. You can’t ask someone who’s struggling with serious health issues to sort themselves out, but then hold every small indiscretion against them along the way. Recovery is never linear. You either accept them, warts and all, or you don’t. But you absolutely do not dangle them like they’re a piece of meat at an all you can eat buffet, for your own convenience. We can’t keep throwing him on the table and threaten to give him away. We are like the boy who cried wolf at this point. Hard to find a more shambolic football club than this one

I've been a member for 35 consecutive years since I was a kid, this is the first time I've seriously considered not rejoining. I couldn't go to many games this season and the club is a basketcase, not really sure what the point is.

I'll get shot down for this I'm sure, but if the Dees Trade Oliver to Geelong, I'll be done with this club. This is the first time in my 20 years as a member that I have even considered such a thing.

Everyone seems to be blaming Pert, and I’m not really a fan , but isn’t the cause of all this Clarry himself? He was warned and asked to change his ways a year ago , but apparently has transgressed again. Best on baller I’ve ever seen at Melbourne , and the whole thing is devastating, but what are we supposed to do??

How about we just don't trade Clayton? Works for me. We really don't have to.

Here’s a 25-point summary of the article on Clayton Oliver's potential trade from Melbourne to Geelong: Melbourne Demons face a crisis over Clayton Oliver's looming trade to Geelong. The club is weighing whether to keep a disenchanted Oliver or trade him for less value. Oliver feels unsupported and let down by the Demons after being used as trade bait twice. Melbourne risks further deterioration if Oliver stays without feeling fully invested. Despite tensions, Oliver may attend the Demons' best and fairest night out of loyalty to teammates. Oliver wants to move to Geelong, and his manager, Nick Gieschen, is working on the deal. Geelong is calm and confident about the trade, sitting in a strong negotiating position. The Cats are expected to offer a future first-round pick for Oliver, which is seen as a bargain. Geelong's psychologist, David Williams, formerly of Melbourne, knows Oliver well. Oliver could join Bailey Smith at Geelong, potentially revitalising both players’ careers. This trade would give Geelong a powerful midfield boost alongside other recent acquisitions. The situation highlights Melbourne's broader issues, including internal crises and player discontent. Melbourne initially stated Oliver was staying, but his positive meeting with Geelong changed that. The club finds it hard to reverse course after considering trading Oliver for two consecutive years. Gary Pert, Melbourne CEO, is under fire for his role in the handling of Oliver’s situation. Oliver feels abandoned after following the club's off-field expectations to improve personally. Coach Simon Goodwin repeatedly praised Oliver's development but now faces the fallout of trade talks. Despite personal challenges, Oliver remains a top player, winning four best-and-fairest awards. The trade saga is another setback for Melbourne after the Joel Smith drugs suspension and other controversies. Christian Petracca, another Melbourne star, has also had grievances with the club. Dan Houston rejected a move to Melbourne after hearing about the club's cultural issues. Oliver’s close relationship with captain Max Gawn adds further complexity to the trade. If traded, Geelong would likely pay most of Oliver’s $1.4 million salary, with Melbourne potentially contributing. Melbourne may use the trade to reset its culture and salary cap, similar to Collingwood’s past rebuild. The trade could signal the end of Melbourne's premiership window, raising concerns among fans. The situation highlights internal turmoil at Melbourne and Geelong's strategic opportunity to capitalise on the Demons' mismanagement of a star player.

Will be mfc interim coach by round 8 the way things are going.

We’ve instigated this. Which means we’ve lost the bargaining power to hold him. It’s, IMO, a monumental mismanagement of one of the 5 best players this club has ever had.

We’ve mismanaged Clarry to the point where we will be virtually giving him away. Getting rid of him may fix some of the issues/distractions, but we don’t move forward as a club without moving on the folks who mismanaged this so badly. Farcical.

This club seems to have stopped caring about selling itself to members back in 2022. They have treated the supporters with such a level of contempt, and a total lack of respect. Best culture in 40 years, says the man who is now flogging off a star player for some stale chips, to save our culture.

Pretty pathetic from Clayton. Very childish, if that is him. At least Christian kept quiet. The MFC has bent over backwards for this [censored]. He is a 27yo that needs 24/7 baby sitting. One day he might turn into a grown up.

Forgive me. This thread has fried my brain. Appreciate it. Also not a fella 🙃

This is just damning stuff

I’m sorry but that’s plain rubbish. Sounds like he got toasted at the Brownlow and skipped several appointments. If anyone’s feeling wounded it’d be his backers at the club. The media are full of 💩

She’s good, she will be attending the women’s match tonight and B&F tomorrow. She will send updates on the way out of the burning building. She also said Oliver was at the women’s game last week supporting, but no song and dance like the time Trac attended a game a few weeks ago.

I don't understand why everyone is blaming the club for taking this course of action. Without being inside the club, you don't really know how much of a detractor Oliver has been. Oliver went off the rails last year because he was a DH. Not because of mismanagement. He has been guided and supported his whole adult life and he is still making terrible life decisions at 27. If anything, I would praise the club for being able to turn Oliver into such a wonderful player over the last decade despite his personality issues. There was no way to orchestrate a trade without the media getting knowledge of it. The opposition clubs and Oliver's manager were always going to let it out to increase their bargaining power. The other clubs don't want to bring in a distraction on a huge wage. The MFC's choices are either a terrible trade or stick with Oliver and his roughly $1.4m contract for the next 6 years. I hope we have the courage to walk things back if the offer is too outrageous, particularly in terms of dollars.

I don’t understand this ‘I’m cancelling my membership’ or even more so this ‘what other team should I barrack for’ chat… I get people are unhappy with our situation. I’m not thrilled either. But supporting teams is about riding the highs and lows regardless of the ferocity, volume and depth of the lows. Take yourself back to the evening of 25 September, 2021. The elation of that night had the years of Barry Prendergast, the post- Norm Smith years, the sad Robbie Flower years and the disappointment of the Daniher and Balme years all baked into it. If you’re going to disappear when we approach a LOW then frankly you don’t deserve to be involved in the highs when they come along…. I feel like I’m lecturing a bunch of 6 year olds so I’m going to stop now.

I am gutted. I am over 50 and he is the best player I have seen including Robbie. FFS surely we can sort this out. I wonder if this is part of the keeping Trac on board negotiations? This is sad.

We are the weirdest club ive ever known. "Get out!...But come and say goodbye to everyone first!" ...Jesus Christ.

End of the day, regardless of who's done what or how this particular issue plays out, Pert is finished. Amongst many other things, a CEO is responsible for the image of an organisation. Our image is in the toilet so he has to go. Really he has to walk for the good of the club.

Ok, I've got some more mail on all of this. Melbourne is now looking to package up Oliver and Petracca to Geelong for a future 4th rounder and we pay $2m of their contract each year till they die. Apparently Trac got on board once he was shown that he could be the new face of a Farm to Plate cooking show with all produce being produced on his new farm that he has apparently been given by some guy on Instagram with the handle of #cottononcosta Oliver is happy to go now too as he's been shown that any off field indiscretions are only in the news for a maximum of 15 minutes. Plus, with Geelong being close to the water, he will be able to directly fish his taped up packages from Mexico directly from his seafront property.

Good. Keep it at 'any'.

Ahhhhhh The warm, comforting bosom of the Draft thread

MFC Hierachy.........

Grundy was offloaded simply for the size of his contract…..Oliver is being offloaded because he’s a bit of a twit.

Brad Green is also part of the problem - he ain't the saviour!

Well we are.. we have proven to do this ourselves. Preliminary final in 2018, super draft of Pickett, Jackson and Rivers in 2019, premiership in 2021.

The club is a s*** show right now. Regardless of what you think.

The club is a basketcase. We had two generational mids that we built a team around and got a flag while still in their mid 20s. Within 3 years we've reverted back to the basketcase we've been for 60 years and both those players (on long term contracts) want out. Heads must roll, the nuffies in charge are going to kill the club.

Wildly ambiguous titles. I wonder if I could be the clubs new General Manager of Dog Reiki and Paranormal Choreography?