hemingway

Agree, for 4 quarters, week in week out. Could do it in 2 finals but not 3. Wear and tear on players, very taxing over a full game let alone a season.

He may or may not be deluded, but if he is, he joins a significant number on this site who are similarly deluded. I was certainly deluded over summer over our prospects this year, given injuries, operations and all the other things mentioned to-date. I am not his defender but Saty is not a propagandist. If so, who is he spreading propaganda on behalf of? His communication style may rankle but he is a committed supporter, a loyalist and believer, not a bad thing when there is so much negativity.

Thanks Wiseblood and Redleg for your intelligent analysis and reason. Your comments make the site and this post worth visiting. I'm afraid bagging players and coach do nothing for me. One simple issue I have with Viney and Goodwins comments on game plan and contested ball is that all teams play hard contested footy. Some might do it better on any one day, but it has always been a prerequisite for AFL teams, probably always has been. Like kicking and marking the b..... thing. To suggest that this style of footy that MFC play is something different or special or that it gives us an advantage is strange. This year, we have teams that have been just as effective or even more effective than us, but they have a few more strings to their bow than we do. To be a successful coach you need to motivate players but you also need to be very creative and think outside the square. Just as a successful company does not succeed by doing the same thing every day. New ideas, innovation, and change is required from the top down. To stick to the same thing when it is failing is not going to bring rewards. The most successful coaches have always been creative and innovative. Coaches such as Chequer Hughes, Norm Smith, Barassi, Matthews, Clarkson etc all have this in common. And there are many others who seem to be full of ideas and willingness to adopt different game plans, methods, and tactics.

Like May he has talent but will injuries including his concussion allow him to string enough games at a senior level to achieve the consistency required at the senior level ?

Agree Jim, Over 12 months the effectiveness of our game plan has been uncertain. It appears easier for opposition coaches and players to exploit our game plan than the other way around.

Really classy. Can you have bogan classy ?

Now I know why you are known as Diamond Jim.

The AFL is a microcosm of society. Like a McDonalds, the AFL has become a marketing organisation rather than a football organisation. Everything the AFL does is based on marketing decisions. How best to sell the game, how to improve revenue flows, how to satisfy media and advertising demands, how to ensure that all the participates in the industry continue to improve their takings from the game.. Everything can be manipulated to satisfy the commercial and financial cravings of the industry. Assumptions are made and projections based on marketing/selling objectives. Disney is simply the latest opportunity to feed the machine.

Fawning, hero worship, call it what you like but as Nasher stated it gets tiresome week in week out. His racing commentary is pretty annoying also with his hero worship of Winx and Black Caviar. Not sure whether you can hero worship a horse. He is our best ever Athletics commentator but the Olympics are 4 yearly. I reckon he's a really nice guy, but as a commentator his time has come. Apart from his carry on over Buddy and Cyril, I get really annoyed by his mindless statistics all game. He used to do it at the tennis but that was only once a year. Yeah we know Bruce, you love reciting your stats but it is way over the top. Most of the time it is just mindless. As previously stated the standard of Australian sports commentary is very poor compared to European standards.

Josh may never be a star but in his first few games in 2017, he showed grit, determination, guts and a willingness to take the game on that suggested he could develop into a good defender. I prefer Josh over Corey but the two are tough hard players who relish the contest. I prefer players like the Wagners and Spargo who have a real crack every week over others who go missing in action. They may be depth but they are important depth.

exactly chook

He seems to do so every week, fawning over clubs and individuals. I thought he was barracking for Adelaide last week, or so it seemed. Is it our bias showing or does he simply like to back a winner ? His gushing carry on over Winx also annoys me. For Bruce, there are always special moments. On one occasion, when Buddy went near the ball Bruce almost wet himself with excitement. He is the best athletics commentator in the country and not bad with the nags, but his footy commentating has become excruciatingly.painful. However, it is his mindless recital of useless stats that really gets my goat.

Agree with your 3rd sentence. People are critical of Billy, but unlike others he has not been given many opportunities. Injury last year did not help. He needs to feel he is part of the team and not playing for a spot every week. He needs to build confidence and form.

Saty, I suspect that there will be many supporters not turning on whether they have made disparaging comments or not. Unfortunately, that is the nature of the beast, applying to all team based sport. Fans are fickle and they don't like watching or listening to their side losing after a succession of losses whether it be Melbourne or any side. Look how power sides like Hawthorn have a drop off of fans if their form is poor. Everyone wants to support and follow winners, and for the passionate, its personal.

Lets just say that the injury list is the worst in 4 years.

Blame Yahweh whether you are talking about Eve from The Book of Genesis or Eve, The American Rapper.

Depends on whose bed and in whose digs OD. Check in the bed and under it. Your sense of decency and piety may be disturbed. Bitters is just using a red herring referring to the Commos.

Hmmm. That's very descriptive. Like the Titanic our list undoubtedly has holes in it. Some of those holes are due to injury. AVB, May, Lever and the walking wounded TMac, Viney etc, and also those recovering from off season surgery. Will we see these players return to the team this season and/or be able to attain match fitness and form ? We desperately need them back but we need them fit and in form.

The result will not matter so much as the way we play. We can lose several more games and still make it, but how we play tonight and over the next few weeks will give us the answer.

True. Whatever happens, Preuss cannot be judged on one game alone, so I hope he is given a run of games to find his feet. I can never understand the point of dropping a player after one match.

But it’s important that you do your duty. Its your dharma. You will have a good afterlife where you will live a blissful eternal life unlike others on this site. And I am not thinking of you Bitters or Biffen. Well done dworship you get a VC for your sacrifice.

Yep, true. Patience is a virtue.

Of course part of the problem is that our anticipation and excitement was high because of last years 2 winning finals and the Demons were talked up by all over the summer. Wayne Carey is still a believer. Never thought I would say good for Wayne. So our excitement has been dashed on the rocks of our expectations. Or at least we were lulled into a false sense of security. I will try and take a leaf out of your book on positive thoughts and try and look at the whole show more constructively. During wartime, it looked likely that Germany would win both world wars but not to be. Our war has been going on a little longer which is another part of the problem. There are many of us who are running out of time to taste the victory champagne. It''s no longer character building to follow the Dees and accept defeat. Lets go Demons.

Good for you, you make some relevant comments. Positivity is a much better way to go. Its a long season.

Where you really thinking of watching the game? Go for a romantic candlelight dinner, nice music in the background, a very nice red (don't go for value forget the price), TV or mobile not close by. And don't check the result until next day.