Rodney (Balls) Grinter

They might be able to quell one of that magnificent trio to an extent, but another Jack-in-the-box like Guss, Rivers, Sparrow or Kossie is likely to be injected into the midfield to cause some chaos. In particular, I think Tommy Sparrow is another of those 'built for finals' types we have. With Tommy Mac back in the team and Hibberd down back to play the third tall(ish) defender role, I also think the conditions are primed for Joel Smith to play that defensive forward role that Melksham was playing. He's a great contested mark and I think it would absolutely suit him to have his opponent take him to the ball. Once it hits the ground, he's got some of the best jets in the game and a great defensive mindset and tackling technique to stop the fast rebound.

Wearing my MFC scarf on the train on my commute to work this morning and getting alot of "Go Dees" comments from passers by. The sleeping giant has awoken! Since 2021, we are everywhere down here in Melbourne, proud and brimming with a quiet confidence that hasn't been prevalent in most of my time following the mighty Demons 💙❤💙❤💙❤💙❤ ...that and everyone else is jumping on us, because they hate Collingwood! 🤣

Yep. My whole week has been building up to this point. Work is going to fly by today. The oppertunity to win and go straight through to a prelim is huge. Hasn't presented many times in my life and that isn't lost on me.

I'd really really like to play one of GWS or Carlton in the GF, but I just don't think it's feasible with the way the draw pans out, unless we lost our first qualifying final. Carlton have had a great run towards the back half of the home and away season, but I think they'll come unstuck in finals. If we win our QF, I see us comming up against GWS in the prelim and I think we'd have their measure this time. They did have a fair bit of luck go their way in Alice Springs, including us kicking 100 behinds and I think we are better than that now. I think they'll also be stuffed by the time they make a prelim and maybe will see an inverse version of Melb V WC 2018 or us repeat the 2021 Geelong style prelim rout. Despite Fagan's insistence they're in their best position ever to make it all the way, I still see them as somewhat flaky and I think Collingwood will bust a gut to beat them at the Gabba, leaving a classic Melbourne Vs Collingwood GF. Demons, Blues, Giants, Lions Pies, Giants Demons, Pies Demons

Thought this might be a reasonable place to acknowledge and congratulate Jayden Hunt on his 4th placing in the WC B&F. Although the current state of the Eagles list somewhat tempers the achievement, I still think it's a good effort from Jayden to be a consistently good performer in a struggling side. Jayden certainly gave the impression that he was a pretty solid citizen at the MFC and I'm guessing his contribution to WC will likely go beyond his 4th B&F on feild placing. Shows how far the MFC has come in the past 5 years, when we were the ones recycling excess tallent and experience from the lists of others, where we have now become an exporter of such tallent ourselves, with Hunt, Baker, Bedford, Jackson and to an extent Weiderman.

On a related note, I recall a great moment at a work training session a few weeks back, when everyone was throwing out an interesting fact to introduce themselves with and the topic was inevitably answered by many (including myself) with which footy team you support. Small group, but the majority (x2) were Melbourne supporters. The one person in the group willing to admit they were an Essendon supporter also confessed that their son was swayed to become at Demon for life based on our 2021 premiership and the Bombers being total trash. This is how it works. Really hoping Essendon (and Hawthorn for that matter) don't get close to it for another 20 years and perhaps by then they will be irrelevant with a much diminished membership/supporter base.

Are we there yet? I've actually got an excitement around this year's finals series that I didn't have so much last season. On a related note, mentally my plans for the week all work up to and end at Thursday night!

This was always mooted with Jackson i.e. "he's so mobile he could play like another midfielder" and similar has been said of Grundy's physical attributes. However that it was never actually tried in home and away, says to me it would be a huge risk to do so for the first time in finals. I wounder if the club has ever actually tried it in match simulation and found it to be a dud? To me the mis-matches and confusion it could create for the opposition around the ground during ball ups and throw ins could create some oppertities, bus similarly also expose venerabliities if the opposition quickly work it out and have an dangerous on-baller that is able to get free enough to reek some havoc. Against a team like Collingwood that love fast and attacking ball movement, I feel that we wouldn't be prepared to take the risk, particularly when our own game is so much built around defense - we'd be giving up our best advantage.

Agreed. I feel that Grundy was and still is as invested as you could be to the team. Seems like a top bloke and I've got no doubt that if he's picked he will be playing his heart of for the red and blue. I actually didn't get that feel with Luke Jackson's performances in finals last year in particular, but maybe that's harsh and he was tired and physically spent. Not particularly comfortable with him meeting with Port before either of our seasons are finished, but when you look at the circumstances which bought him to us, I actually can't blame him to an extent, although I do also feel that the Collingwood pushing him out the door vibe is quite different to the embrace that the MFC have shown him. I guess in this 'professional era' of player movements that this sort of mature approach of players talking to clubs and understanding what their options might look like can be expected - if so, I just hope Grundy is being open with the MFC and Port are also preparing to talk reasonable suitable compensation. P.S. I feel this is quite a different circumstance to a team trying to poach an up and comming young star from our list like Kossie.

Nice- I got a Clarry bobble head for father's day. ...and a bottle opener. Could probably open a bottle with Clarry's head.

Spent the day in Brisbane travelling for work. Perfect weather for footy up here. I agree with Jono Brown Lions Vs Port should be played in the afternoon not at night. Sorry, just realised I should have posted this in the Non-MFC: Non game day thread.

I mostly like your thinking here, but I don't like the pretense of winning a game we technically should have lost - can you imagine how that would be referred to by them in perpetuity (maybe that's the point). What I'd prefer was an actual goal that was signaled as a behind by the umpire, so they think they've got it initially, but then gets overturned when the video shows a clear goal. Would be kind of hard on us for a second, but would be well worth it. Maybe a lesser rated goal kicker like Gawn or Lever kicking the goal would be better than Pertracca too?

Must be a slow week in football. Who we playing this weekend? - need Fritta back in the side, kicking goals in his moon boots if need be!

Feel absolutely gutted for Melksham, so can't even imagine how he'd be feeling about all this. Remember him saying a few weeks back that he was just playing every game like his last and I fear that at his age, that might now be true. Thought that along with some others that didn't quite make it into the premiership team in 2021, such as Bernie Vince, AvB, Jonesy etc, that Jake was a huge part of the group that lifted the MFC back from obscurity, into a compeditive finals team that believed in it's self. His persistence to fight back into the team over the past two seasons was both inspirational and exhilarating. Really loved the agressive, compeditive and attacking way he took on the game. He'd back him self for the impossible shot, have a ping at the sticks when it was on and although he had his share of misses, he'd nail a good portion too (like this one https://youtu.be/Oaw0TDkbI0s?si=bWcikia9Q5wHfBVI ) - probably better than holding it up and kicking to a contested situation or pack of waiting opposition defenders on most occations. Also think the MFC needed a few players with the combative attitude of never taking a backwards step Jake brings, so well illistrated in the 2018 elimination final against Geelong (see from 0:48 of https://youtu.be/CNGOI8QuEMA?si=LzfcSiNzwkYEWaKW ). Can only imagine some of this would have rubbed off on our current forward mix over the past 6 - 8 weeks that Jake's been in the side. If the fist fight between him and Maysey was a sign of disunity and the wheels falling off our season a bit last year, ironically, maybe Jake's missfortune could a catalyst for galvanizing the team for finals this year.

I agree with what you are saying Wodja. However, rather than being instigated and 'minted' by the AFL, I think it would be better if it actually came from the club. Could be presented by captain and coach at the B&F. In my amature playing days, I was someone who has been a part of teams that went on to win premierships at lower levels. In one instance, there was a surplus of actual game day premiership medals and I was given one by the coach on the day. Got to say that at the time, it did feel kind of token and somewhat rubbed the salt into the wounds of not making the squad on the day. An alternate medal given on another day might actually have been something I'd appreciate. Still do look back fondly on the mateship of that team though.

Don't think so, unless you get a pass out and go outside the stand - but I don't think that's what you are asking. It is quite possible now to walk from the MCC members in the Northern Stand to the AFL members on levels 1 and 4 via the Punt road end. Not sure if that was always possible prior to the new Norther/Olympic stand.

Great to know. Getting a little nervous, because I still haven't received an email from the club on this. I'm not sure why it couldn't have been ready and sent either Sunday or as soon as the AFL anouced their finals fixture this morning - or is it a matter of waiting for the ticket sellers to setup the link on thier site? (Which I'm still not sure why it couldn't be really as soon as the AFL makes their announcement.)

Has the club sent out an email about tickets? I thought I saw it somewhere that they had, but I can't find anything.

Interested in how the Casey watchers think Disco Turner is traveling. Obviously he's picked to play today, but I'd expected to see more of him this season based off his mature showing Queens Birthday last season before getting injured.

Yep. Perhaps I'll just reminded him of the Brisbane V Geelong prelim I went to him with last year and suggest that he wouldn't enjoy that sort of experience again!

Yeah, I guess I've got a better strike rate that the old man. He's got three sons and I'm the only one that's a passionate Demons (the other not really footy driven, but notional MFC supporters). If we get to the big dance at the G, the three generations of MFC supporters will be the together and I couldn't go past that. Dad was there at the G in 64, and I was there with him in 88 and 2000. Watching a winning one at the G with them both would be bloody magic. Love that Max recognises and values the significance of winning one at home at the MCG where family freinds and the MFC faithful can truly share the experience and hope that is really driving the playing group headding into this finals series.

If it's a MFC V Brisbane GF, I have a bit of a family crisis on my hands. Youngest son is fair dinkum and goes for the Mighty Demons, but his big brother supports the Lions (yeah, I know - should have thrown him out of the nest). Only have 2 X GFG memberships 🤔

Karo yes, but Kane Corns was actually pumping up the MFC as still a genuine premiership contender a few months back, when others were casting doubt. Generally don't actually mind Kane, but really didn't like the rumors and innuendo he stirred up about Kossie moving back to SA though. Thought that was pretty rank. Would agree that he's one-eyed self interested in that way, that others in the media don't quite cross that boundary to the same extent. I do think guys like Garry Lion, Jonathan Brown and Nathan Buckley step back and try to be a bit more removed, objective and conservative or even hyper critical when it comes to their former clubs, rather than go all out cheer leaders.

Agreed. Has done exactly what he and Roos set out to do when they respectively took up the helm and set us on the path to where we are now - built a list, culture and game style that means we are compeditive, have a recognisable game style/brand of football that stacks up in finals and sets us up to go deep into September, with an oppertunity to play off in premerships over the foreseeable future. Fantastic to have this extension to bring stability over the next few years that could be some of the greatest for the MFC in the modern/AFL era.

Cool beans Jayden. My guess is BBB would be the more likely of the two to pull up stumps early, but I think he still has pleanty to offer us on the list next season. Even as a depth player at Casey he's got such great footy smarts and character that he'd be a great mentor to someone like Jefferson. I'd also love to see BBB kick a big bag for the MFC and I recon it's still a possibility if he can get his body right for long enough.