hemingway

It seems to me that he is stating the truth or the bleeding obvious, it will be a massive challenge to win at the Geelong fortress. Geelong after a good win, some of their match winners in form and the capacity Geelong crowd baying for blood. And lots of easy frees from the umpires who will respond to the noise. Of course, if our mob has some backbone it might work to our advantage.

In the first 15 minutes the crowd support was building but after that it was very deflating to see the rubbish being played on the ground. Very hard to get excited over a slow, listless and mistake ridden team. No energy no enthusiasm spread to the Demon crowd. I started watching from the MCC balcony, which was a mistake as you are detached and folks are more concerned about heading to the long room for refreshments and ensuring they observed the protocol of having a seat ticket, a bit like going to the Opera. And frustratingly, no-one says anything ! Its as if barracking on the balcony is frowned upon. Frowns came my way when I voiced support for the team and also my anguish. Went down to the bottom deck hoping to reboot my enthusiasm levels only to find the same mute Demon crowd. Not even the angry cries of "your hopeless......."" Although in fairness, it was difficult to discern which one of the 20 hopeless players to abuse. At the end of the day, my main disappointment was how the Club had blown a great opportunity to encourage Demon supporters through the gates. On the train coming in and on the walk-in to the G, I felt buoyed by the large number of Demon fans and their palpable anticipation and excitement. All those fans decked out in the colours who had made the long journey from country towns to watch their side. It reminded me of the feeling before the two finals games. A feeling that we finally had a footy team to be proud of and one we could anticipate winning. Looking forward to singing the song before and after the game. Alas 30 minutes later that energy and enthusiasm had evaporated, and, after the brief exhilaration of the two finals, it was like a return to "here we go again." .

Unlikely that Viney will play and if he does he will be struggling to catch Ablett and thats saying something. Of the holy trinity, I think Ablett will be the big threat at KP. I think his possessions are much more damaging that the Dangerman.

When I reread your comments this morning, there is nothing that I disagree with. I thought your tone was a bit over the top but again this morning it seems appropriate.

And you did not get a Nobel Prize for grace or courtesy. But you did get one for professional snobbery. I hope you feel better.

Oh give me the off season any day, where we have our hopes, dreams and expectations, so much better than the cold reality of defeat and pessimism. One game in and I am sick already of the footy media, pundits, ex-players, second rate journos spruiking their half baked opinions and angles on the game and the fortunes of clubs. I am already in shut down mode on all the external stuff.

Foot injuries can be easily diagnosed but difficult to know how long to rest. The injury can appear healed and then suddenly recur without warning. Those who have had plantar know that you can think your right only to realise that the pain or discomfort can sometimes be only a step away. A little like achilles injuries. Rest and rehab are key components to recovery, but for a professional footballer or any sportsperson, rest is the saviour but also the enemy. The longer the rest the more chance of recovery but try telling that to anyone who has a burning desire to be back on the ground. It would take a brave coach or club doctor to say to a player that they will not be allowed to train or play for 12 months or more. Impossible. For most recreational sportsmen and women, surgery is the last resort whereas for professional footballers it is normal and expected. If you don't do it, Clubs will be criticised. Everyone will ask "why was something not done sooner" when for most of us, it is the last resort. One thing's for sure. You should try and rehab the injury to avoid surgery, because if you embark on surgery, you still need to rehab afterwards. Once you start limping, you know there is a problem that can't be remedied by pain killers.

Yes, and body builder unable to sprint. I went to Shepparton and was shocked at CPs condition. He was as overweight as I have seen and looked like a park footballer that had wandered onto the ground by mistake. Unfortunately, this makes him look a lazy footballer as he cannot chase or break away from his opponent. Sadly, I think he is only ever going to be a "burst player" but unfortunately even his ability to play in bursts is hampered by his poor physical condition.

When the ball was kicked into our forward line or defence we rarely had players in front or behind the pack. Time and again Port swept the ball away when we had our guys flying for the aerial contest but noone at ground level. Very frustrating to see this occur repeatedly.

Its strange, as blind freddy could see that he was limping and not fit. There has always been a footy club culture that allows a player to play injured. However, why risk a player that is so important to the club in the first match of a very long season ? There are 3 possible scenarios: -Viney and/or the coaches are prepared to override medical advice or -The medical advice is equivocal, leaving the player and coach to make the call or -The medical advice is that Viney has a chronic injury that will not repair without long term rest of a year or more a la Clark and Trengove. An even worse scenario is a diagnosis that says that the injury will never fully repair, and that Viney will need to retire, or try and play on for as long as possible with the pain. However, on the evidence of Saturday, it would appear that Viney is going to have an interrupted season of football. And as we also saw on Saturday, he will have limited effectiveness due to lack of game time, poor fitness and inability to compete.

Gawn played a shocker on Sat, one not likely to be repeated. However, you can almost hear the refrain from opposition coaches, players and supporters, "No Gawn No Melbourne"" Beat Gawn and you minimize the opportunities for the Melbourne midfield to control the game. Even back in the day, people said the same thing about the great players, No Barassi No Melbourne, No Hudson No Hawthorn, No Hart No Richmond, No Dusty or Rance No Richmond etc etc. However, subject to injury, great champions have the ability to bounce back and rarely play poor games. Also great sides and great coaches can come up with ways to minimize the loss or poor form of a champion. I have no doubt that Gawn will bounce back but he will need to as Melbourne is not a great side at the moment and we don't have a great coach at the moment. I am not saying that Goodwin is a poor coach but he clearly has a view about the game plan and how he wants his team to play but this appears to limit his creativity and flexibility on game day. It will be interesting to see if the addition of Preuss will make a difference but I doubt it. The opponents strategy will be to counter Gawn whether Preuss is on the field or not. He may provide support to Gawn but he this will not stop the focus on Max.

Cowboys inhabited the wild west. What do you think? Or Ethan or McQueen?

A fine drop. Jasper Hill is not bad and also Paul Osicka. The latter hard to find but is worth the trouble.

Well clearly that's when Jesse's problems all started.

It will not come down to pace but Gawn and the midfield and our contested footy.

As compared to the distinction that comes with having in one's possession "objects"" marked ""Property of the Manor"

When the term clinical anxiety appeared it reminded me of the overuse of the term clinical depression. The latter term has been thrown around a lot when referring to footballers and other professional sports stars. I suspect the term used without understanding what the term actually means, which is major depression or a major depressive disorder, and, amongst other things, is not related to loss or illness (death of a loved one or cancer etc). There are lots of us with depression, it does not mean it is clinical depression.

Reputations can be accurate but often they are exaggerated, and, sometimes blown out of all proportion, however, in most cases, they represent some level of truth. I suspect this applies in the Watts and Hogan cases.

Sure does, airborne, looping through the air, one arm outstretched holding the ball, with a right or left baulk, driving a long drop punt forward from either foot as if time had stopped.

The annual cavalcade of European 4WD heading up the Hume to Nagambie.. They don't appreciate sharing the road with trucks and tradie vehicles. Rushing up with their picnic hampers to claim their favourite spot on the lake with Charles, Roger, Prude and Jude.making sure they have their umbrellas and macintoshes for the thunderstorm. The chicken or smoked salmon baguettes will go down well, suitably washed down with a bottle of Verve and perhaps a well aged Chateau Neuf de Pape for the boys, with the girls sharing a nice chilled Meursault or even a frisky little riesling from Alsace. Coffee and a touch of brandy to finish, hoping that those nasty scholarship boys from Xavier or Caulfield Grammar don't snatch the cup out of the hands of the rightful owners, Grammar, Scotch or Corio Grammar. Whoever wins, it will be wonderful catching up and networking with other merchant bankers, doctors, legal eagles and other upwardly mobile professionals. And there will be Biffen trying to chat up one of the lonely divorcees looking for her 2nd or 3rd goldmine.

Great observation and summation.

And a close one !

Well said. Sadly, there are so many ex MFC players (and staunch supporters) who are no longer with us who will not be sharing the joys of seeing the old club on the rise. I like to think that for those who remain on the planet we carry forward the hopes and dreams of all those who have stepped behind the curtain. They are still with us in mind and spirit. My father sits with me in the stands at the MCG despite his passing 30 years ago, just as my youngest son will sit with me when I move on to red and blue heaven. There is continuity and a universality associated with belonging to the MFC.

Agreed Lucifer. The environment of Perth may well be a disadvantage for Jesse. We know of Perth's history with troubled footballers. And often people are better off away from their home environment. Staying home or going home is not always the best option. Also Freo doesn't strike me as an ideal home. The Eagles may have been a better fit, but, there again, he may have been better staying at Melbourne away from the pressures of home.

All about balance, Preuss will not add any ground speed thats for sure. Can't see him playing but there is going to be an amount of experimentation in the early part of the season, so you never know.