Rhino Richards

Thanks for clarification on Sylvia. I hope he fulfills our hopes.

It depends on the injury. When did Sylvia first come down with OP? I thought it was pre season. He had a big year in the U17 the year before. Rivers had only a wrist injury during his time at MFC pre OP. Moloney was fit when he came to MFC and had a great first year then got OP. I dont think any of these issues were predictable. Its very hard to fully determine injury susceptibility of players whether they be big or small.

I would have thought the resting of a senior player like Neitz given his age but I would have thought a player like Moloney would have benefitted from getting as much pre season exposure after missing nearly two years of footy. If player cannot come up one week after playing an intra clu scratch game then how is he going to go in the real thing. What we dont know is if through his program he will have built sufficient fitness to recover week to week. However, given its six weeks to start of the H&A, he would want to progress a little. I am not sure why they are necessarily resting Robbo on the same basis as Neitz.

Not as closely as AFL but I recall the hand in glove tactics with Kewell in the World Cup and also with potential injured players in RU internationals.

How do you know? I have noticed situations in the past in RL, ARU and soccer where it happens. The uncertainty of an injured player is just another variable to keep the opposition guessing. Its not a be all and end all However the conflicting fluffy article are not good for impressions on supporters. Regardless there are likely to be other players missing.

How many of the players recruited by MFC who are currently blighted by injury had a history of injury when recruited? How else would you have determined they were injury prone?

Moloney has played 63 games and kicked 14 goals.

I dont know if its an official policy by the Club nor is the practice limited to just MFC. Most Clubs are protective of who is injured, extent of injury and basis of rehabilation and date of likely return. I am aware that some clubs rehabilitate or train key players at locations away from the training ground of the main group to avoid prying eyes of the opposition. Its all part of a smokescreen to prevent opposition clubs being able to develop and formulate team plans and match ups against your side.

Jack, Moloney and Thompson are different types of players. Thompson is a first dibs predator midfielder. Moloney is not a predatory as Thommo and plays a more outside game. When I compare Thommo's 2004 year with Beamer's 2005 year, Thommo was a far more damaging midfielder. I also think Thommo was more a rounded player in his disposal and defensive skills. Just watching Thommo in Abu Dubai, he has really blossomed into one of the premier AFL midfielders. Moloney would have had to improved a great deal to rival him IMO. You are right on the communication. I dont mind the cone of silence by the Club. But the issue of contradictory fluffy articles on players and the team does nothing to endure the Club to the supporters. Is this a Club or an AFL issue? Its a pity he has not got back on the track to show he has broadened his disposal options. He had a promising career ahead of him. He was a very capable performer in 2005 with the some aspects to be improved on in future years to become a better player.

The injuries suffered by those players are not the same injuries and most were not the direct result of physical contact.

I would not jump the gun on Moloney. He's out with a groin injury. http://www.melbournefc.com.au/Default.aspx...mp;newsId=55183 He is still subject to management of his long term OP issue. I hope he can return to the footy soon. However I am not confident about his future. He was a promising footballer but was never likely to be better than Scott Thompson. Thompson is an absolute gun and its a pity he returned home. Demissioner are you saying Moloney's long kicking was indiscriminate leading to turnovers to the opposition? One of his weaknesses was that his disposal was a little one dimensional.

Miller was not a straight trade for Grgic. The deal was part of the deal that got Bizzell to MFC and the draft pick that landed James Kelly to Geelong. One part would not have occurred without the other side of the deal.

I am looking at the situation that the Club is in today. You challenged the use of the word "crisis". I explained it. Glad your easily impressed though with the little things being done. This process should have been commenced up to six months ago when Harris should have been given the flick no later than November. Things would have been more professional and deliberate.

I have no qualm with using a headhunter for the CEO role to replace the standard industry tool that was in the role. I have an issue with the agency costs where we have had untenable turnover of staff under Harris. Many of the departures were either Harris appointment's in the first place (they could not work with him further and MFC had to pay out their contracts) or are people who the Club could ill afford to leave given its problems and challenges. I cant see how we are addressing the problems if we have had for the past 12 months, an underperforming CEO who appears to have lost the support of the people below. All that can be said is the CEO became a problem hmself and has caused damage to the Club operations and standing in the AFL community. As a stand alone entity we are unfinancial. Barely making a profit with significant debt. We continue to operate from the support of the AFL. The issue of going concern relies on the support of the AFL. I know all Clubs receive AFL support. But as a % of total revenue we are heavily reliant on the AFL for funding. With all due respect to hard working efforts of the Board we have not made significant progress in addressing the financial strength of the Club in the past 12 months. I wonder whether MFC can in its current form actually achieve that. We have all commented on the Kangaroos position and options. MFC's position is not that much different. The risks the same As far as recruitment is concerned its too too early to assess Bailey as a coach. As a consequence we are not sure just what the process has brought forth. It is believed that he was the best candidate and I hope they're right. At the moment, Dean Bailey is making the right sounds. But until he can achieve some on field success and develop the young side his appointment is subject to scrutiny. We dont know who our next CEO will be or how capable the best candidate who opts for the MFC job will be. So there is much uncertainty about the year ahead. The Steve Harris departure did not cause the crisis. The crisis is already there and has been there for many years. Harris's departure only emphasizes the challenge in front and how much ground we lost to our competitors. We had a poor year on and off the field. We cant afford too many more. The reality of the situation is hard for some to accept and I acknowledge that. Unlike you seem to be able to do, I just cant close my eyes and say blithely "She'll be right".

What was Roos willing to give up to get Miller? Fourth or Fifth round pick? His opinion could not have been that high to make a reasonable offer for him that the Club would have accepted.

Its a been a bigger carrot for MFC than other Clubs for many years but alas no cigar. Given we have a long list of players who are not fit for the pre season, it would be ludicruous to focus resources and player development on the NAB cup at the expense of the home away season. Carlton has shown the folly of that in past years. Its a nice to win trophy but not at the sacrifice of more important objectives.

Why wouldn't MFC tank the NAB Cup as much as any other Club? Financial issues aside. At this point MFC do not provide any reliable form track record and are a complete unknown. Playing at the Cattery is definite advantage to the home team. You've got nothing more than hyperbole!

Easy. Kangas finished Top 4 in 2007 and are a known commodity relative to MFC finished 14th with new Coach with heavily turned over list and no track record.

What does Paul Roos have to do with it? DB has talking about Miller being a stopgap FB rather than CHF. I think that says enough of what DB is seeing.

Aside from the limited public knowledge about the DB appointment how do you know beyond assuming what recruitment process has been put in place and why it has been done in the first place or even whether the new applicant is better than the person who left? The high level of staff turnover under Harris was an unnecessary financial drain and in many case a terrible waste of talent to the Club. Does the Club have to use recruiting agencies like any other business to recruit? Theres 20% of salary cost on appointment. We are an unfinancial Club with limited short term opportunities to grow membership/sponsorship/ revenue with no infrastructure and battling against Clubs whose turnover is twice our size. MFC are in an unsustainable model long term. But nah, there is no problem, there is no crisis. If the proverbial hits the fan (not you Fan!), I hope you wont be one of the supporters who gets jolted from some dream world and complain "Why werent we told?"

Back Carlton. They can still tank the main season!

No. It indicates more that supporters dont understand the proper purpose of the pre season cup beyond playing youngsters often at the illogical omission of more capable senior players. MFC have alot to play for this pre season - new coach, new game plan, 11 new faces on the list with a number of key senior players working their way back to full fitness after injury. However, the contrived games rules of the NAB Cup diminishes it as being a perfect warm up for the real games. After a side finishes 14th I would not think any senior player like Robbo is a proven commodity. Its fair assessment of you know what you get with Robbo that MFC sought value for him in the market. He has had two ordinary inconsistent years and at 28 needs to be able to compete at the top level consistently not just in the easy games.

Mo64 had him in. Its an odd omission. If anyone is fighting for his position this year, its Robbo. No guarantees for leaders. He needs to play and perform as much as anyone. How do you know he will? They are both young green players who both have the opportunity to impress. Draft positioning means little once you get into action. ...with old veterans Whelan and Yze included (in two positions! )

So much so they sacked him! I think he is a good appointment as FOM. But its the tip of the iceberg as there have been many who have left due to circumstances that it would have been to the Clubs benefit had they stayed.

As I did say "maybe crisis is not the right word......" but it is not that far away. Aside from Dean Bailey/ Chris Connolly who are as yet unproven in their impact on the team, nearly every other operating metric at MFC is poor, questionable or below par. Even from a football perspective, your assumption that all footy dept departures were at Bailey's is naive. Regardless of how Bailey does perform our club position is parlous. Our financial position is not sustainable in the medium to long term if MFC is to survive within its current form and we do not have many more roles of the dice to correct this. Sacking a CEO days before season start, (while necessary) is not a sign of a Club travelling well.