Rodney (Balls) Grinter

I'd love to turn the tables and inflict better than 186 on the Cats in a few years. Still think we have plenty of scope to get better and that they will head on a downward spiral in the next few years. ...and to do it at a packed MCG in front of 80,000 screaming Melbourne supporters.

You're assuming they make finals.

Just make sure he has the teeth in for the Tinder profile - after all, he plays for the MFC, not Collingwood!!

Yeah, I'd like to think that we could have found another way to get May if we'd kept Hogan, but perhaps that's not realistic. Feel for Jessy, he was there for a fair period when we were pretty average, thought he was an important part of the rebuild and ascendancy back into relevance 2015 - 2018, but unfortunately things just fell apart for him on and off the field. Could still be a pretty solid player if he can get his body right and I get the feeling GWS could still be a contender in the seasons ahead, so I wouldn't resent him having some sucess (preferably not at our expense!!). Similarly, I don't really resent Hannan for leaving us. Howe's a different story and as it turns out $$$lly was better off taking the money and ending up at a struggling Hawthorn - got about what he deserved in footy karma in the end I think.

You ready

Ok, 17 and LD the cherry on top for next season then! 😜

He was an unrestricted FA wasn't he, so the moment the Saints let go all interest in him as a player, they really didn't deserve anything in return from him from anyone. Just another really shrewd list management move from the MFC, not to pay big for Cerra. Get LD and pick 17. If that's not what you call having your cake and eating it too, I don't know what is.

Don't let silly facts like that get in the way of downplaying and bagging out the MFC though!

He still had to play well to take votes off opposition players though. Just on this point, is interesting if you transfer LD's 11 Brownlow points from St Kilda ti Melbourne (I know it doesn't work like that, but anyways). Team Brownlow votes: Melbourne 31 – Clayton Oliver 23 – Christian Petracca 16 – Max Gawn 8 – Tom McDonald 5 – Jake Lever Total votes: 96 (first overall) Port Adelaide 36 – Ollie Wines 25 – Travis Boak 11 – Karl Amon 7 – Aliir Aliir 5 – Dan Houston Total votes: 91 (second overall) The other dimension that adding LD provides is another bonefied star that the opposition have to try to shut down, which should take some of the attention of guys like Trac and Clarry.

I think our young midfielders should see this for exactly what it is. The we are the premiers, trying to backup and go again and that just because they may potentially represent part of an ongoing sucessful future for us, it won't just be handed to them on a platter, they have to earn it. At this point, I think the acquisition of Luke could be such a boon for the club. Essentially he's replaced Jones and AVB on the list with a younger more reliable body. With no disrespects, those guys probably wouldn't have competed for spots next season and would have been somewhat of a downgrade as depth. Plenty of examples of quality players on the outer at their original club who became regular good contributors at another club. Tom Rockcliff is just one recient one that comes to mind. Brent Maloney to some extent is another. Having this depth across all lines is such a valuable asset to our team and if players really value playing in another premiership, then having to compete for spots, spending substantial time in the VFL is something that they will need to accept or else go chase the money and an easy ride somewhere else. How good was it being able to replace Tomlinson with a ready made near elite young talent in Petty early in the season. If we hadn't had Harry toiling away in the VFL learning his trade and ready to step up for action when Tommo went down, that could have put a serious dent in our finals, let alone premiership campaign. Similarly Bowey who barely got a look-in all year senior selection wise, in for Hunt. That's how all these up and commers like Jordon, Weid, Laurie, Bedford, Baker, Chandler etc need to be looking at it. At the end of the day the compeditive, selfless type of player we want values playing in a premiership team more than getting top dollar or easy game time. That appears to be the judgement call that Luke has made here, along with the reassurance from Richo, Goody and Co, that they have some belief in what he can bring to the team and a willingness to give him a go if he plays the way the team needs him to.

I like the above comment from their supporter forum. Reminds me of one I found on The Age Real Footy podcast comments this morning: phil lewis 3 HOURS AGO Melbourne were lucky on Grand Final day. Footscray were well in front and playing the best footy of the game, then fatigue from playing 7 straight games on the road finally caught up with them. If Melbourne want to take credit for that they are delusional. There last 1 and half quarters was the best footy played all year, against a team that had nothing more to give. That jealousy and envy is hard to comprehend all at once. At the end of the day, it doesn't matter how these muppets rated us, if we got lucky etc. We did it all season FFS, finished on top of the ladder and wiped floor with the competition in finals. It doesn't get much more comprehensive than that. Suck it up lads.

Was a great gather at pace from Harmes and then classic line breaking Harmesy burst away from the pack and deliver deep into forward 50. Top reading of the play and timing from Fritta to get on the end of it as well.

Big Maxy Gawn was a mid range pick 34 and the four picks before him we had who we selected on-ballers were flops. Sometimes it's all a little bit luck of the draw, but I'll happily back Taylor with whatever type of player he thinks is best value at any pick, 17, 37 or anything.

It had been 24 years since we'd last played off in the big dance and 10 yo me though we were on the verge of being the premiers again or sometime in the next few years. Bombers are up to 21, so maybe if they make a grand final sometime in the next few years, perhaps it could be a case of history repeating?

The one that probably had the most emotional and memorable impact for me was that one of Gus's. Game was somewhat in the ballance for a good period without a score after those Fritta & BBB goals put us back in it. Huge pressure moment. Mixture of a sense of relief and gratification for me when he kicked it as I'd internally back Gus to kick the goal in a pressure situation like this. As it sailed towards goal, straight through the middle, I rose up out of my seat, with a long slow fist pumping YEEEAAAHHHHEEEESSSSS. Hitting the front at that moment was huge. By the time Oliver kicked his goal, that 3 minute run of goals had just become an unbelievable blur and I was in a place of absolute ecstasy. Reactions of the players after kicking those goals in the third and fourth quarters was awsome. Asides from the already much mentioned Tommy Sparrow, Claret and Salem goals, I really loved Dogga's reaction after kicking his goal. Over the past couple of months I think Dogga's confidence and competence in front of goal gas gone through the roof. Where-as I would get nervous and doubtful about any of his set shots from anything muc further than 25m out from goal, over the past few months, he's more reliably slotted them through from the 30m - 50m range, which I think bodes very well for his future. Seeing Langdon slot that goal after practically running the length of the ground was so well deserved. Lingers ran his guts out for us all day and was one of the ones I thought really shone through for us in that third quarter when we most needed that extra effort to get us back in it.

Those bogan yuppie types of the late 80s, early 90s were the worst. Guaranteed to get around in one of those trendy leather jackets, beer in one hand and telling everyone in earshot what a great team the mighty Hawkers were. These zealots and instant experts in footy would evaporate any time Hawthorn weren't in form and they almost went extinct in the early 2000s, before that 2008 revival bought them back in record numbers. That Jeff Kennett was their president says it all. Just thinking of these creatures is enough to supress any inner arrogance I might have.

Not sure if it would count as arogant behavior to be telling Joel Selwood to go suck a big juicy lemon when he had his dummy spit in the PF after giving away that 50m. Our players reaction to that was priceless, as was my satisfaction watching everything unfold.

Don't worry, I'm already dreaming up that back to back, which morphs into a three peat. As much as part of me dispises them, I'm really still somewhat envious and in awe of what the Cats, Hawks and Tigers were able to achieve once their list build and system hit the sweet spot of sucess. Looking at the strength of our list, it's hard not to think we are on the cusp of greatness, but also knowing that we are also potentially just that key couple of injuries and patch of poor form off being back in the pack is keeping me humble ...for now!!

I guess another form of arrogance, that I am pretty guilty of is in the misery and wishing ill of others. I find this particularly the case with teams like Hawthorn, Essendon, Carlton and West Coast, who have had so good for so long realitively speaking in my lifetime as a supporter. I've known good and bad supporters from all these clubs, but some of them have been truly putrid in their arrogance and I guess the recollection of that is both the basis of my resentment of these teams, but probably also a good reminder of what not to become.

Good thread BoBo. I'm struggling a bit with this myself with respects to how to get the ballance right and how to go about it. I've always thought we have had some gun players on our list, some of which have been somewhat underrated until now. Also thought we'd have the potential in our team to go on and win the big one at some point. If I had expressed these things in any way to supporters of other clubs in the past, I think they would have just been dismissive, felt sorry for me to be one of those poor Melbourne supporters and not seen it as a sign of arrogance. But I feel like now that we have actually had the sucess, I might need to tone down some of that at risk of being seen to be arrogant. The other dimension to this is the expression of celebrating the sucess that we've just had. Again, I feel as if because of our torrid history, we have been forgiven for any over the top celebrations and I've certainly not held back on any public celebration of our premiership. I guess it's about walking that fine line of being proud, happy and celebrating sucess without rubbing others faces in it and putting them down.

Apparently being voted the best player in a GF and producing on the biggest stage of all isn't very watchable these days 😥.

As an individual player, Max has been an absolute gun and probably one of our few elite players for a period over that ~5years. This season was absolutely the making of Maxy the elite captain that discovered how to bring all his team mates along for the ride, with the GF and his surrendering of the main ruck role to an on-fire Jacko being the pinicle of that journey.

Yeah, I don't know. I have Kayo, so have been watching that on repeat for now and in no great hurry. As you suggest, I'm also kind of hanging out for something with exclusive content to be released in the future as well.

Yeah, who's kid is that Jake Bowey too? Might have premiership potential one day those kids. ...or Jack Viney as the literal take your kid to work on GF day!!! P.S. as a related asides, I loved that video of Jack Viney doing star fishes in the confetti. Great imagery of a bloke in a totally blissful moment, living out a life long dream.

I recall the scene that followed this, when Max got up and postured to the players and umpires as if he'd been awarded a free kick for rough play, which never came. I actually thought it was a powerful statement of how the MFC is always made the scape goat whenever the league wants to set the tone of acceptable physically and protecting the head etc, but rarely gets the same protection in return and how Max is perpetually alowed to be a punching bag for our opponents. Interested to know what result did Daniels get from the MRO on this one and weather that graze to the forehead that Max had after this incident was there before it or as a result of the that incident.