hemingway

Tom Scully attended Haileybury College on a sporting scholarship. All the APS schools offer sports scholarships, some more than others. Haileybury and Xavier have been probably the two schools that have dished out the most scholarships over time. In some instances, not to much attention is paid to academic studies where the student has not been academically inclined. A friend's son was in the same year as Tom Scully and said that his academic studies were not high on his priority list, indeed the only priority he had was to play AFL footy (followed by a quip made about basket weaving). Having said that, many of the young footballers who have attended APS schools have been very smart kids and have done very well at VCE level, our own Jack Watts and Jack Viney being two examples. These schools are seen by many for being elitist and only for the wealthy. However, they do also offer scholarships or half scholarships to disadvantaged kids. Most parents work hard and bust a gut to send their kids to these schools. They are not for all but they do play a role.

No words can describe my satisfaction at seeing the cocky, we can do what we like Hawks and still win, lose after the siren. And in particular, Cyril, Hodge, Lewis and Mitchell. The born to win in your face abuse and jumper punches, the off ball sniping, the back chat to the umps was all there on display. Having said that lets hope they don't go much further. They have the cattle but have they lost their edge? They did only lose by a kick. On another matter, Guthrie has become a terrific player and a real ball magnet. Danger is a great player but Guthrie is getting there.

Your last sentence is egotistical and arrogant. Most of us don't share a lot of information with others for a variety of reasons, but to say you don't share a lot because Demonland doesn't deserve it, really! You really don't do yourself any favours, or perversely, despite what you write you enjoy stirring up reaction. You may think that's fun, but really most people will just think your a turkey.

love the sarcasm Moon.

Nasher you are to be thanked for the work that you have done and continue to do on this site. Your comments are spot on. You do learn about people, their personalities and attitudes. You learn more about others than you do about yourself. You also learn a lot about footy. I am not only amazed but also informed by so many folk on this site. Posters analysis of players and the team, match games etc are far and above my own analysis which tends to be more emotional. I have never been one for detail but I find a lot of the stuff informative, even if I disagree with some of the comments. For me the most important thing is to respect the opinion of others (wherever possible!)

Interesting, it appears that people on this site do care about one another, at least for some. There is an interest and a familiarity with some posters, The passionate, the enthusiastic, the analytical, the argumentative, the pedantic, the hateful, the depressives, the fence sitters, the fickle, the eccentric, the offbeat, and so the list goes on. Some posters are entirely predictable and some sway like the gum trees and can surprise you with their change of heart. I guess its like everything in life. Sometimes we move on and sometimes we don't. Think of what we were doing 5 or 10 years ago, or 20 or 30 years ago. Most of us are doing different things, have disposed of activities, friends, houses and material possessions. Changed partners, wives, lovers, Changed jobs, lost jobs, taken up new pleasures. Changed drinking habits and other activities. Some posters simply change habits or behaviour and move on. When we get tired of some activities, we stop them and move on or stop them for a time and have a break to return at a later time. However, supporting the Demons for most of us is a life long passion. We will never support anyone else and we all want to see a flag before we die. We are steadfast and it is permanent feature of our being. Demonland is an interesting distraction that fills in some time between our other more important activities. Eventually if we stay along long enough, we will all have a permanent holiday. As Lord Krishna once observed, we are not the materail body but a spirit soul.

The underdogs became the victorious Bulldogs. A win for the good guys. Makes me think that there is a footy God after all. I would walk on hot coals to see them beat the Hawks or the Cats. What a beautiful thing that would be.

Sorry I missed the point, that being, Sam's value to the RFC not the MFC. With the RFC, Sam can have a nice fat little contract with the Board. They are a perfect match, so our own entrepreneurs don't have to get their hands dirty.

Sam is one hell of a guy. Just make sure he gets briefings from Earl, BBO, Biffen and some of our other "entrepreneurs" ........oh and also that these dealings are at arms length from the club.

Diamond, I don;t think this is the case. Why? -If it was going to happen it would have happened. -Wrongdoers in all walks of life, live the lie, perpetuate their own truth and build up the myth (the myth being that they were wronged by AFL/ASADA etc. There is also the Stockholm type syndrome between the players and the EFC. In cases where you are bombarded with criticism and attack (public/parts of the media), it is appealing to turn inwards and have the unity/solidarity of other players and the club. Most human beings create myths about all manner of things particularly where they feel a sense of injustice. -In some cases their football career and financial security is tied up with the EFC. Jobe is the interesting one/ Clearly the scandal has taken a heavy toll on his person. He may still leave the EFC, however, I suspect his sense of injustice and betrayal is directed at the AFL and ASADA not the EFC. i also doubt that Jobe will have his Brownlow removed. Time will tell however I can't see the AFL biting the bullet. Irrespective of CASA, the politics of the AFL will come down on Jobes side.

If we trade Wagner or Harmes I will jump off an MCG light tower. These two guys have so much upside. More importantly, they are competitive beasts who love the contest. You don't trade these type of guys particularly after years of having a team of softies.

Spot on La Dee. I remember it being said that back in the glory years the Dees had the advantage that young kids not only wanted to play with the great MFC and play at the MCG but we also had Jim Caldwell and a whole team of spotters in the country and metropolitan areas watching kids play. At the time, we were doing so more effectively than any other club, until we became complacent and lazy in the early to mid 60s. The club was warned by Norm Smith but took no notice. Also at that time other clubs (such as RFC) suddenly realized that money was a primary motivator and got the jump on the Dees who still thought that players would want to come to the Dees irrespective. Hopefully after 50 years the wheel has turned and young kids will not only want to play for a successful MFC but we can compete in the money stakes.

We need depth true but there is only so long you can hold a player as depth. If a guy like Dunn or Garland are not given regular games they are going to become very disgruntled players, not good to have around a club (and not fair on them). A bit like ANB. Players have to believe that they are going to crack it to maintain motivation and form. So giving Trengove another year is a good plan and gives him hope but beyond that it becomes "the law of diminishing returns."

Agree, as long as the two rucks are mobile and can take a grab. My concern is that if we go with Maxy alone with a chop out from part-time pinch hitters, we not only become over dependent on him which becomes a problem in the event of injury and game plan, we also risk running Max into the ground. He was fantastic this year but we are going to shorten his career if he asked to do the same amount of work in 2017 and beyond.

Agreed but his attack on the ball, dash and fearlessness is fantastic. Definitely the future along with Hunt. Long term better than Melksham and others.

wow, really, what a guy.

Totally agree Sir.

Really, is that the best you can do Pro? I hope your a more agreeable person in real life.

Anyone else sick of the Jesse Hogan saga? So much so that I am getting sick of Jesse himself. If he does not sign soon and dispel all the doubts I will actively dislike him. And if he leaves for more money my dislike will turn to a much stronger force. And it will not be love.

Well Pro if your only measure of success is a flag, does that mean that we have a team of losers and that we support a bunch of losers and indeed we supporters are losers. Sorry we do have a different handbook.

Thank you Ron for the lesson. You obviously have more involvement in the murky investment market than I do. Spoken like a true venture capitalist.

Losers mentality Pro or just realistic given a long period of hopes and dreams and disappointments? OD is not on the current playing list so you can hardly call him a loser. He is a long time supporter like the rest of us who desperately want success before we die. We are prepared to concede that it is possible we will not win a flag. Of course we want a flag but if we don't we want success. Talking about winners and losers as if there is no in between is the dumb bit. You call an athlete that makes an Olympic final or wins a silver or bronze medal a loser? I don't think your dumb but seriously if this is your proposition I will have to reconsider.

how words can hurt. very cruel la dee.

It also highlights how quickly things change. From finals contender one year, when everyone was talking them up and the start of the season when Tigers supporters were again looking to the season with optimism and another finals appearance. They may have been overrated and the seeds of their demise may have been seen from their list, their coaches, whatever, but not many predicted such an implosion. Its a lesson that tells us that success can sometimes be fleeting and footy supporters should not get ahead of themselves. The optimism at MFC will quickly be wiped if we have a poor year under Goodwin. Injuries, players not living up to expectations, can quickly destroy a season. And when that happens things turn pear shaped. For all those getting a vicarious pleasure out of watching the Tigers problems, be careful what you wish for. And don't forget where Melbourne has come from. We are still a long way from getting out of the woods ourselves.

its like so many news items today. There are so many people out there looking for publicity and relevance. Jako who is one of them. A past footballer looking to get himself into the headlines with rubbish commentary that will be noticed and get publicity. So much of footy news is like it these days. Like lots of news stories we have to learn to ignore and see it for what it is. Its just sheer unadulterated crap. There are plenty of more important things to be outraged about.