hemingway

Don’t know what’s happened to Chandler. His form early 23 was terrific. For a short period he became a real excitement machine. Yet he went off the boil late 23 and so far this season has been underwhelming. He needs to cement his position this year or may well fall by the wayside. Hoping to see some of that 23 form but beginning to have serious doubts.

Agreed. I really don’t know why we pay attention to the footy media. I suppose it’s hard to avoid and when you do read the comments it’s frustrating and annoying. . It’s a world influenced by media. Social media has just made it a lot worse. Standards have dropped and commentators exhibit their biases, laziness and need to be noticed. We need to avoid them all. I now avoid most of the mainstream commercial media particularly Murdoch based organisations. They are appalling. Dunstall is bad but he has many mates. Tell me a good one. However, their laziness and lack of homework is annoying. Stick with DL for information, commentary and spirited debate.

Ok Froggy I accept that you have made positive comments about ANB but that you would like to see improvements in his disposal. Fair enough. However, ANB seems to attract forensic comment over his skills. There is not a player out there without a weakness or not prone to error. However it’s best to look at a players strengths and what he brings to the team. In most cases a players strengths will outweigh his weaknesses. So you accept the weaknesses if on balance he brings added value to the team. At the end of the day, ANB is a premiership player whose efforts that day contributed to a famous victory. I’m sure he had his fumbles along the way. I seem to remember another premiership player nicknamed Froggy who was slow, turned like the Queen Mary and kicked wobbly old punts that were lucky to stretch beyond 50m but who happened to kick the winning goal.

True. Sir Les was entertaining and funny and of course a great Ambassador for the country.

Does he have any aggressive aggro though ? Or will he be pushed aside?

Robbo makes Mike Sheahan seem like Einstein ! Robbo seems such an appropriate name. Conveys a suitable bogan image of a character with poor habits and not too many neurons. A la Sir Les Patterson. Apologies to all the Robbos out there!

Agree well said. He has so many positive characteristics that enhanced the team. Perhaps we are only beginning to recognise the true value of those characteristics and the extent to which he will be missed. He was the thinking footballer that backed up with natural intuition and courage. One of the most courageous players I have seen. Above all else, his versatility across all lines made his role in the team almost irreplaceable. He ranks up there with Petracca, Oliver, Viney and Gawn for contribution, leadership and value.

He may well have all the attributes to make a good coach but why would he subject himself to the pressure and stress of coaching ? We all now know that stress has a major impact on health and all types of disease. Perhaps skills base coaching or mentoring but not game day coaching. Personally, I think he will step away from the MFC and footy to consider his future options but hell there is no hurry. Some form of media role would suit him but I reckon he is better than that. I thought he was studying engineering or something that requires greater intelligence than a media role. With some exceptions footy media is a resting place for morons or for people who could not get a job in the real world.

Sensible

Mixed emotions. A naturally gifted footballer with a footy brain. However, definitely the right decision given the importance of his health. I think we were all worried about the prospect of another knock during the season. Even a minor knock. I don’t think I have ever felt as sick as watching him knocked out during the QF. I remember muttering under my breath, “please move Gus, please move”. One can only imagine the horror for his family. Despite the sadness of his forced retirement, he leaves the game with an impeccable record as a player and and a reputation as an outstanding person. He will be missed. A heart and soul player. He will be remembered for his outstanding service and passion for his club. Who will ever forget that courageous mark and goal, and his emotional reaction with his teammates and Demon supporters. Thanks for the memories Gus. You are a star.

It’s all been said before but I hate the term “spud”. Its unnecessary, insulting and disrespectful. Tomlinson and others may have deficiencies but we all do. Yet we don’t go around calling family members, friends and work colleagues, “spuds”. Just not necessary.

Exactly

It was only a practice match with lots of reasons for the way the game was played and the result. However, there was nothing to allay the concerns from 2023. The 10 unanswered goals is a real concern given our inability to lock opponents down and stop the run. Like 2023 there was an inconsistency in application and effort. We play in patches. We see no obvious solutions up forward or with forward connection. In general play, the good is very good but the bad is way too common. How long do we experiment with tactics and game plans? We don’t want to spend the first half of the season experimenting. . We need a better level of effort and consistency. We need stability in team selection and positioning. Our injury list and potential injury to key players does not help. Also I can’t see Gawn, Petracca, Viney, May etc playing week in and week out. If they do, they will be stuffed come finals time. Do we have a group of players that have the hunger and confidence to play a dominant brand of footy that marks us as a top side? Do we have a group of players that have slipped or are not that good? Do we have a coach that has run out of ideas? Do we have a coach whose message to players has worn thin? We need to have early wins to instil confidence and belief. Winning papers over the cracks. Losing will result in media speculation, internal rumblings, pressure on the coach and players. One thing is for sure. We cannot afford more injuries or players on the long term injury list. Hopefully my early disappointment is an aberration.

My biggest concern going into the new season. Not encouraging so far. We need some consistency and stability in our forward set up. Harry is a big heavy guy not twinkle toes. A big worry. Club should target mid season not before then.

Must be true then !

Perhaps you need to consider hormone replacement therapy WCW.

Hate it. ok if you live in the Melb metro area but terrible if you live in the country.

Perfect answer

Lorne seems an odd place to choose for a camp. Crappy oval apart from the view, variable windy weather, cold water. Sport facilities zero. Plenty of good bushwalking perhaps and hill runs. Maybe the team is bonding over nice meals at some of the new restaurants, although the pizzas on Erskine River are good. Are they saving dosh for the legal costs and future settlements coming from the various actions from disgruntled executives and board members ? I don’t know but the PR is not looking good despite all the talk about culture and professionalism. The footy can’t come soon enough!

Great writing WCW , very descriptive and you create really good word pictures of training and players. Great stuff. Other training posts also excellent. The difference in style and content give us a broader view of what’s happening. Thanks and well done to all.

My first response to seeing Eddie pop up was to groan. Was it appropriate? Probably not when you have others without his Club alignment who could have done a good job, without the huge ego and awareness of their own self importance. Unfortunately, Eddie is like a circus spruiker. He does a thoroughly professional job but always seems glib and insincere. And as others have mentioned he cannot resist the need to refer to Collingwood. Again, he is massaging his own loyalty and of course his own ego. However, he is a pro and like a good salesman he could sell anyone or anything and he got the job done. For me however, his glib tone means that he does not truly connect and does not convey the emotion or gravitas of the occasion. But he has friends in high places and is a person of great influence. And would no doubt claim he was a friend of Barass.

Respect this position. Beware of the voices that urge you take on risk when those voices have no responsibility or accountability. The world is increasingly litigious and populated by folk who feel they should be compensated for some personal hurt or grievance. Similar to the health industry where everyday medical professionals have to deal with patient requests and demands that may be inappropriate. If the professional provides a service just to avoid a confrontation or to keep the patient happy then the professional takes the risk of being investigated by the relevant health body. A mistake or wrong action can risk a professional losing their registration and right to practice. Together with the risk of financial penalty. As you say apropos of Demonland, the editors [censored] is on the line. You owe posters nothing..

You can look at it 2 ways. First, the media hate us and are out to get us line. We know the journos bias for their own teams and their dislike of Melb. At the same time, the club and its players and officials have given them lots of material. Our attitudes are influenced by our own bias. Second, an alternative view is that despite the “bad press”, we clearly are an important club. We do matter. Our history, recent successes, growing membership, and playing list full of A graders means we can’t be ignored. Don’t forget our glory years of the 50s and 60s brought unparalleled success and unparalleled hatred from other clubs and their supporters. For 100 years Collingwood has drawn great strength from being a hated club. So maybe we should embrace the hatred and like the Pies stand loud and proud. And ignore the footy media scribes. Perhaps feel sorry for anyone who has to trawl the gutter to maintain their profile, keep a job, be universally disliked and perhaps feel occasional shame in belonging to the footy media. Doesn’t do much for their CV and future career prospects.

OD, you do not need to tell us that you have no interest in the “girls game”. I’m sure it’s not intended but it sounds condescending and disrespectful. The development of AFLW has been amazing and the performance of the Demons fantastic. We should be interested and supportive.

Fair enough but we need competitive beasts. I’ve spent 50 years of my footy Demon viewing past watching Melbourne footballers with talent. Jack Watts was just another one although the unfair weight of expectation on his thin shoulders did not help. We need elite players that have pace, skills and tackle like there are no tomorrows. Just use Collingwood as the template.