BillyBoy

My only close up recollection of this player was in Sydney last year. 200 MFC members (or so) including me were allowed to have seats at the Giants stadium to watch Melbourne play the Suns. We were all perched in a tier above the coaching box but fairly close. It was a nice group, very grateful to see at least 1 game in the season. At some stage, Melksham had royally messed up and the coach took him off and some of the crowd (if you can call 200 of us such) gave him a Bronx-style ripping as is normal. We were in earshot of the coaching box. As he crossed the boundary, the player in question looked up at us and said pretty much verbatim - "go and get f**&ed you c**&suckers". We were a very red and blue crowd - no Suns supporters at all. There were young children among the 200. And it is us members who help to pay his salary and are loyal to the team. I was very unimpressed and won't shed a tear if he departs.

Dear all, I was clearing up some old computer disks today in search of a work document and came across this gem that I found years ago. It is a digital version of the Souvenir Football Record for September 19. 1964 - Grand Final Day - Melbourne v Collingwood. It sold for the princely sum of 1 shilling. Among other information provided, we learned that: The new stadium to be built at Waverley would "Cater for all" and be the largest sporting arena in the English-speaking world. It was the product of "Scientific consideration". Ross Faulkner "Native Brand Footballs". 3DB with Ron Casey and Lou Richards - uninterrupted descriptions of the 1964 night football matches. Melbourne U19 list against Collingwood "Philip Morris Presents Your Side of the Fence" with a picture of a guy smoking. Gordon Collis wins Brownlow. Harry Beitzel's column. The full Melbourne Senior list for the game, then positions and later all their statistics. The tall players would be relatively modest height these days. The week's big TV events - Team Preview (Thursday), Kevin Dennis Sports Parade (Friday), Football Reply (Saturday at 6), Football Inquest (Saturday at 7), World of Sport (Sunday at noon), Football Replay (Sunday at 2). Ice Skating an St. Moritz. Melbourne won 14 lost 4 that season with a percentage of 138.1. Fitzroy didn't win a game. John Peck (Hawthorn) 68 was the leading goalkicker. Huge full page ad for Rothmans King Size - eek! Plus much more. The PDF scan is too large to upload but I have put it up on one of my servers. You can download it here - http://bilbo4.economicoutlook.net/bill/Football/1964_Grand_Final.pdf I was very young but I still have memories of that day at the MCG. best wishes bill

Dear Paul61 You have to download the MFC app onto your phone. Then select More at the bottom of the screen. Then select Mobile Membership (first option) which allows you to login to Ticketmaster which manages MFC memberships and seats. Then you will find the 'ticket' to allow entry, which is just the virtual version of your plastic card membership card that you would normally scan at the gate. The virtual ticket can be saved to your virtual phone wallet and will link to your allocated reserved seat. It is much better than the system to date and you will be able to catch up with people you sit near and haven't seen since August 2019. best wishes bill

I have been following MFC since the early 1960s and have been a long-time paid up Member (in high tier of the membership commitment). I live in NSW but up until this year I have attended 16 games a year in Melbourne (as per home-and-away Membership). I don't think I will renew my membership again this time around. Why? 1. I did not withdraw my membership this year even though I knew there would be no possibility of attending games. I did write to the MFC asking them to reciprocate by negotiating cheap Kayo subscriptions for members, particularly those in NSW, who rarely are able to even watch the games on TV (7 Mate only carries a few games up here). MFC declined that suggestion. So I concluded the loyalty in these difficult times was one-way - me to them. 2. Irrespective of the fact they mistakenly renewed the senior coaches contract for some years it is clear he is consistently out coached by smarter operators. He needs to be replaced. He appears inflexible and is often outwitted by other strategies (the Footscray game was a classic example of that). 3. His game plan, inasmuch as there is one, relies on skill levels that our players do not seem to have. I cannot tell whether that is a basic talent issue (player problem) or a lack of player development issue (coaching problem). 4. They consistently select players that are incapable of the standard. Hiding Oscar in the forward line yesterday was embarrassing. 5. I did manage to see a game in Sydney this year. Melksham was playing poorly and at one stage he came off the field to the interchange and a supporter (there weren't many) shouted something about getting a move on (nothing offensive) and Melksham replied something like "come down here you [censored]" (threatening the spectator) which summarised his disdain for those who support the club through thick and thin. He rarely sets the world on fire with his play, often doesn't contest and is clearly a product of poor decision-making from the coach via his Essendon connection. 6. The fact they select players who cannot compete with the better teams and/or (most importantly) lesser teams that display more earnest indicates a recruitment problem. Despite all the fanfare about Lever, for example, the rate of return to the club from his contract is very low, and I am not including his injury period (which was not his fault) in that assessment. He talks a lot about leadership but is not worth the fee. Steven May is clearly playing well and apart from his initial misadventure (overweight/undertrained etc) has contributed strongly to the club. But he is also expensive. That outlay might have been justified if we were that close to contesting the GF. But we are light-years from that now and we should have used that cash to develop some younger talents. Some of the other recruitment decisions and trading away draft picks are mind-boggling. 7. I can cope the team losing - we have been loyal for decades with that the norm - but when I saw players not even running last night as Sydney players broke tackles with ease - then one has to question why I pay several hundred dollars a year to fund that sort of player commitment. There is a disconnect somewhere and it doesn't seem to be getting any better. The post-match analysis from the journalists often highlight the lack of two-way run from many of our players, who often seem to be coasting. I have seen that a lot. These are reasons among others why I find it difficult to continue. I thought things were on the improve with Jackson/Roos. But whatever development work they put in seems to have been squandered by a series of poor followup decisions, including the senior coach appointment. It is very hard psychologically to remain anything other than detached from what is going on with the MFC. And, footy after all is just a game that we seek a bit of fun away from our other, more serious endeavours in life. Two things the club should do to change this: 1. Get an established senior coach who has demonstrated their skills. If the club asked me to put in an extra hundred bucks or something to help them pay out existing contracts I would do that in a flash. 2. Stop talking about brands and all that hype and admit that the team is nowhere near being a successful finals club with its current list and use that cultural shift to renew the list. St Kilda and Carlton are now ahead of us in prospect and Sydney and Fremantle will next overtake us.

Surreal as the umpires walk out.

The Demon’s Members Stand in Sydney tonight.

Normally, being located in Newcastle most of the time means I have to travel a lot to games in Melbourne. But this week I was surprisingly invited to be in the ballot for a ticket to today's game as a NSW member. I was lucky enough to get a ticket. So I only have to come from Newcastle. I have no idea how the ballot worked or whether anyone actually missed out. But, the reason for limitations on numbers is that they are only allowed to put a limited number of people in certain sections (as per NSW government restrictions) and they have to be spaced right out. It turns out that my ticket is in one of the glassed-in sections in the main stand. It will not be as much fun as sitting in the Olympic Stand with the rest of the people I have shared the seats around me for many years week-in, week-out during Winter, but I feel very lucky. Let's hope we do better today!

Losing only one game for the season (given this will probably be the last game) is pretty good isn't it!

I also opted for a digital membership and the club's FAQ says that the digital 'card' will be available through the MFC iPhone App in November just after the AFL releases the 2020 fixture. After the Club sent me an E-mail saying the membership kit had been posted out I waited to see what would arrive. A scarf appeared in the post the day before Xmas and no further information was included. And then I found that the Melbourne iPhone App is currently not working - the landing page comes up but then it crashes. I wrote the Membership to see what the issue was but the office had already closed. So I guess we will have to wait until the new year to see what the problem is. But there is still 3 months to go so no problem. best wishes bill

I rarely post but often find the conversation interesting. I have been a supporter since the late 1950s. I saw the 1964 Grand Final as a young boy. I go to about 16 games a year (from Newcastle, NSW!) I think I understand the game quite well. But what I have seen this year (and last for that matter) are the following consistent facts: 1. Midfield gets the ball a lot but kicking delivery is very poor. 2. Mad-style handballs often to disadvantage instead of kicking. 3. Kicking accuracy in front of goal has been poor - set shots. 4. On-ball players often jogging whereas I see other teams' players running hard in similar situations. 5. Players regularly and persistently played out of position - this is a coaching decision. And inflexibility during games when problems are clear (see also point 7). 6. Chaotic bull-charge game style but not commensurate with the skill levels of the players. Would need very fast forward line and excellent kicking delivery which is not present. 7. Less-skilled players promoted in selection and persisted with when other more skillful players are left in the seconds, and, when they do get a chance in the AFL, their confidence or fitness is low. 8. High injury count - probably related to the chaotic game plan. 9. Consistently poor drafting and/or recruitment choices and poor development of top draft choices (with exceptions). Thus, I do think 2018 was an aberration and agree with Gary Lyon. MFC does not have the sophistication of player skills that the higher level teams seem to have and our seeming game strategies are incommensurate with the skills we do have. I have also never been impressed with the senior coach. He appears wooden and inflexible from where I sit.

I have three tickets to the game tonight spare after a family illness. They are located in Section 3 of the O'Reilly Stand, Row X, Seats 54, 55, 56. We will be sitting in Seats 52 and 53. This is a great location at the SCG to watch football. If anyone wants them at half price ($35) then please send me a direct message today and we can arrange to meet at Gate F tonight or I can send them to your mobile number. best wishes bill

The ruck coach I referred to was the old Casey coach Justin Plapp (who is the midfield coach - sorry). The fourth person was a trainer for MFC who I have seen often down at the Paddock when I have been around (about as short as Plapp, heavy set, unshaven). Plapp was throwing the balls up or in. The other guy was receiving the hit outs and handballing back to Preuss and the grey hair guy was competing against Preuss.

I was out running near Gosch's Paddock this morning and Braydon Preuss was doing specialised ruck work with the ruck coach and an older ruckman who I couldn't identify as his foil. The older guy was not quite as tall and had grey hair. They were doing centre bounces and boundary throw-ins with a fourth guy taking hit outs and feeding it back to Preuss in a sort of follow-up strategy. It was obvious they were probably going to keep him back for Thursday.

If you live interstate (from Victoria), you have to use this URL https://7plus.com.au/live-tv?channel-id=Seven Melbourne Event That will fix it I think. It works fine in NSW. You set up your state when you register for 7 Plus. Just give your location as Victoria irrespective and the URL always thinks you are in that state. best wishes bill

Is anyone travelling from Melbourne to Perth on Tiger Flight: #403 leaving Tullamarine at 7:15 and arriving in Perth at 9.30? I would be interested in sharing a Taxi from the airport to the stadium if anyone was willing. best wishes bill