hemingway

Yep I can identify with your feelings. Both simply great players and epitomised the Demons at that time. 29 & 8. Despite his greatness, I decided against wearing Rons number because every kid seemed to wear 31, choosing Big Bob Johnson 16 and when he left the club, my mother turned the 6 into a 9 to avoid buying a new jumper. 9 being Brian Dixon who was an uncanny and remarkable footballer. A wingman then, we would call him an insider mid today and with his long arms he had an uncanny knack of extracting the pill from a pack of players. A left footer he kicked the ball about 30m but always kept the ball moving forward.

Similar types. Tassie played tall and like May seemed to have an uncanny knack when to mark and when to punch. Perfect timing you might say. May is more attacking than Tassie but it’s a very different game. And ground conditions at times were atrocious. Like May, Tassie was a beautiful kick, but, more often than not, a long penetrating drop kick compared to Mays raking drop punt. Tassie could give it and receive it. However, I can’t remember him being reported as his aggression was tempered and measured. Tassie was rarely beaten over a whole match. The great Hawks full forward John Peck who dealt out physical punishment like lollies never tried the rough stuff with Tassie out of respect for him and also knew that a Tassie punch might just find it’s way to his head. Pecky hated playing against Tassie. Tassie like May read the play beautifully always being in the right spot. Tassie like May could be played across the ground. Norm Smith used him at Full Back, Centre Half Back. Centre Half Forward and in his last few seasons, in the ruck. A short ruckman at 6.2 he was able to position his body to negate taller rucks tap work. From memory Tassie lined up in the ruck in the 64 flag team. Tassie was a good looking coot with black hair and movie star looks. Steven also looks pretty good in the eye of old Ernie. Tassie was solid at ground level but May is quicker and more agile. Gee it’s a good comparison but Tassie ended up playing in 3 premierships and captaining the side in 69. So was a bloody legend. Sadly, he had a long period of illness before he died 5 or 6 years ago.

It’s difficult to compare players from different eras. Over the last 50 years, we have had many great defenders. However, I can’t recall watching a performance as dominating as that of Steven May. Yes, it was a poor opponent with a dysfunctional forward line, but even so, Mays game was incredible. His instinct for the game was evident over 4Q. He knew where to go, he knew when to mark, he knew when to punch, he knew when to defend and he knew when to attack. He stood calm and resolute every time the ball came in his direction. There was no panic or rushed decision making. His ball handling was always sure and decisive. And that long penetrating stabbing drop punt was something to drool over. Have we ever had someone that has played with the confidence and certainty of May. Its rare for a supporter particularly this one, to relax, knowing that every time the ball went into our defensive zone, May was there like the Rock of Gibraltar standing tall, with the ability and agility to return the ball like a slingshot into our forward half. His ability, style and presence make other players stand tall. It was a wonderful feeling to watch a player in the red and blue be so dominant. You know that Tiger fans must feel the same way about Dusty. It’s a good feeling.

Yep it’s a funny thing. Despite our early goals, no one looked switched on. We were close to the fence and many players looked uninspired. My son made the comment after watching players on the wing fumble under pressure that better sides would destroy us, thinking Richmond.

Agree Jnr. Have been a fan of Harmes but yesterday was disappointing. Poor overhead, dropped or juggled many marks and fumbled many possessions even when he had time. And slow when running to the contest. Not sure about his future. At his best he is a valuable member of the team but at the moment he is a long way off.

Still just a kid who has only played a handful of games. Enormous talent with a quick mind. Only injury will impede his development.

Agree with first sentence. Still has a young immature physique that will get knocked around in the contest. Needs to protect himself. And not be overused. Shoulders and knees the main area of concern.

Ratcheting it up for what is the first game of the season. Wrong psychology Red. You should be saying it’s ok to drop the first game, let’s wait until mid season. Freo is a good side that is likely to turn it on with speed and overlap. We can’t expect to win the first game. It’s a long season and we take each game and remain detached until the season gets serious. Meditate Red.

Don’t know about a parasite but for me it’s chronic depression with a few brief moments of hope and if I’m lucky joy. The joy doesn’t last long. But each year, my wife sympathises with me, treats me kindly on the weekend, and my psychiatrist readjusts my medication. Yet strangely, I start each season with hope and love for my team. I love seeing the same expressions of Demon supporters on the train and the walk to the G. Mood is bright and conversation flowing. With lots of comments like .....do you remember that game in......or we will need Gawn and Oliver to fire...or the backline will be the key. But it’s a good feeling. I feel part of an army, an army that has gone through the same highs and lows, that feels like I do. That celebrates and hurts. Whether we win or lose, we love our club but winning makes the love come much more easily. However, defeat makes the return journey a downtrodden road to Hell. Disappointment and sometimes despair. However, irrespective I will react angrily and sometimes aggressively to our supporters who rubbish and criticise the team. Don’t bother coming you [censored], I say. I try and practice mindfulness but it’s not easy. But hope and that sense that this season we may surprise the critics and the naysayers remains for the time being.

Don’t be a spoil sport Bing. I thought you were a big picture guy rather than a Lilliputian.

Bob, I am not sure of your expertise regarding Rorschach, but it has been an important psychiatric tool particularly popular in the 30s, 40s and early fifties. It had an important place in psychiatry over 40 years. It had been discredited over the last 40 years by psychiatrists who also discredit Freud. I find that revisionists are usually minor players when compared to giants in their field that they seek to debunk. However, in its time it was a useful diagnostic tool. But only one tool. The point you make is correct. The value in the tool was establishing the patients interpretation of the ink blots. That is the skill of psychoanalysis. Much depended on the skill and expertise of the psychiatrist/psycho-analyst.. it was a critical tool used in the psychiatric evaluation of the Nazi War criminals at Nuremberg. It has to be seen in its historical context. It was a very valuable tool that was used selectively as a diagnostic tool.

What rubbish, nasty and vicious ? Vitriol? Observations from a group of supporters that want to see the team have success and be coached by a motivated switched on coach, hopefully Simon Goodwin. That’s all. His behaviour or presentation is not very reassuring. I hope I am wrong.

No-ones claiming to be experts, rather, merely some observations on what we observed. And body language is an indicator of mood. Perhaps we see it differently, but to me he was as flat as a tack, and if so, that feeling is passed on to the others, staff and players.

Just saw the interview. Simon looks terrible to me, there is no spark or enthusiasm. Looks depressed or simply the realisation that he’s looked at the mountain and it is too steep for him to climb.

Reckon I would rather share a post game shower with an unloved Fence than a character with, well, how I can put it nicely, pathological deep seated perversions!

Agree with the other comments made on this thread. We are in the fortunate position that if Simon falls over, we have a premiership coach and also an assistant to a multiple premiership coach in the wings. With Williams, you have all the knowledge, skills, confidence and communication style that makes one think that a “transfer of power” could be a good thing. Williams has a verve and a spark that is infectious. Not sure about Yze. All we know is that he has been taught by the Master and is obviously a senior coach in waiting. But we have been down that track before. Williams in the other hand has an established track record.

Gravitational handicapped. Have not heard this one but it’s a good one. Should go in the best quotes for this season. Agree with your comments 56. More run, more space etc could well apply to all clubs this season. It’s going to be a necessity and a reality.

No I don’t think so mate, just sharing my thoughts amongst friends.

I don’t care what Max or anyone else says. Preferably don’t say anything at all, well not until you can win games of footy, and, hopefully, consecutively, even try winning a string of games. Then try winning enough close games to be in the bloody 8 at season end. Try winning finals games. Words no longer mean anything. But how do you feel? How will you feel at the end of your career if you are associated with a team of losers, a club that attracts derision. Is a laughing stock. You may have lots of money, but how will you feel about your footy career? Will you feel a failure, will your team mates feel that they are failures ? Or will you and the Coach simply move on? Will you get over it as you and your team mates sip on your Pinot Noir in the wine bar and blame others? Just win games, win the close ones. Until then I will mute the sound coming from you and Simon or the next coach’s mouth. I will not bother reading what you have to say. I will remain totally detached and increasingly lose interest in the season. I will forever remain loyal but I will have lost the emotion I have for my team. I will remain detached. I will take more interest in other clubs and the results of other games. It will be purely of academic interest as to what happens. All of us Demons want to see you as the new Richmond. Tough, resilient, successful and proud. Do you have it in you?

Fake news old Dee. Green bananas would be my choice.

Naturally you can question the choice of venue. The common objections have been mentioned. Establishment, old boys club, wealth, privilege, private school, sexist. Perhaps membership and attendance reflect some or all of these characteristics. However, these clubs have all seen better days. The movers and shakers have long deserted these places for more upmarket venues. They represent the past, not the current or the future. In the main, they are sparsely populated by old retired gentleman catching up with their peers. Having attended most of the clubs on the invitation of publishers and interested folk that still read books and descriptive fiction, my main complaint other than the absence of the fairer sex, is the quality of the food. In my experience, it reminds me of boarding school. Those present remind me of elderly gents at the funeral or wake of an old friend. Why anyone would want to spend a few thousand smackers each year to be a member is beyond me. After lunch and bucket loads of post lunch Port, I would want to kill myself. Although food poisoning may knock me off before my 303. However, I did enjoy stumbling down the steps one sunny afternoon with an ex AFL President who was loud and rambunctious. He enjoyed loudly telling a young man carrying a bike frame along William St, that the frame would need wheels to be rideable. Laughing loudly at his own joke as he stumbled away! Now that’s class!

So you prefer Murdoch media platforms Jnrmac for objective, non partisan and informed commentary?

You must be bananas Maple.

Concise clear report. Great stuff PF.

Max is like a good red wine. Initially immature, with doubt about its quality and longevity. He has developed and matured with each passing year and keeps getting better. He has become an accomplished and fine player, a good leader and a damn nice bloke devoid of the ego and hubris of others. He has remained loyal and wears the colours proudly. And we are proud of him. By the end of his career he will enter the pantheon of Melbourne greats. He has achieved this lofty height by sheer hard work, dedication and commitment. All the greats achieve their status not by luck but by sheer hard work. They work harder than others and have a single minded attitude toward their calling. Sure they have ability but you don’t become great by only having ability. You have to do the work. People like Max and Dusty understand that and embrace it. They get their material rewards but it is not what drives them. They simply desire to be the best that they can be and leave no stone unturned. It takes time, but in the end they get there. In the end, they want to be part of finals success and ultimately enjoy premiership success. Let’s hope, Max’s commitment to the Dees is rewarded with the top prize.