Temporarily Hopeful Demon

Spot on. The reality is that in literally any other workplace you couldn't even dream of getting the same leeway that Oliver has been getting over the past two years. The club has bent over backwards for him countless times. The irony is that some of the people who are angry at the club over this are the same ones who have lectured others when they dare to critique the club's decisions.

Here we go again with people re-writing Trac's career just because they're angry with him. There's much more selective evidence to suggest that he helped us attract MORE crowds. He was the only Norm Smith medalist in this club's history and helped us win numerous other games off his own boot. He also famously carried the team on his back in our 1 point loss to Carlton in 2024. I'd say he's been one of our most watchable players at his best. If you seriously think that Trac's 'arm waving' and 'finger pointing' are responsible for our lacklustre crowds then I'd like to know what you think of May having a crack at his teammates, including his own captain.

I sometimes go back and watch highlights of his performance in our 1 point loss to Adelaide in 2021. He was insane that day. Basically Chris Judd 2.0 It's amazing how far off he is from what he was then.

Agree. Not to mention that a few nuffies on here have been conveniently re-writing his career by saying that he has been on a downward slope over the past few years when he made the AA side as recently as 2023 and was on track for another one last year until his injury.

This bloke's resurgence was arguably my favourite part of the year. This was easily his best season since 2018. He carried our forwardline in multiple games, especially in our wins over Brisbane and North and our second loss to Gold Coast (should have kicked 9 that day). Sure, he's still a tad inconsistent but I don't think anyone would have predicted this turnaround three years ago when he looked done. He has thoroughly earnt himself another season.

Absolute gun

I'm just going off vibes but Geelong struck me as really arrogant in the lead up to this game. They seemed to just think it would happen.

I'm going to report you for plagiarism

This is on track to having a very similar plot as the '21 grand final. An arm wrestle until one team gets a run of goals late in the third quarter and then blows their opposition away in the last.

Geelong look absolutely cooked

I'm amazed Geelong aren't doing anything about Cameron. He's the last player you'd want to get off the chain.

Yes you are right. I am only 22.

He's an absolute phenomenon. Comfortably my favourite MFC player of all time. So glad he's staying.

The fact that NWM didn't get 3 votes for that game proves that the umps should never be trusted to judge what is meant to be the most prestigious award in the game.

Last year ANB tagged Daicos even more successfully and yet they still gave him a vote

Gotta hand it to Brisbane. They were a total basket throughout the 2010s but over the last five years I'd say they've been the benchmark side. And they call JDG a 'big game player.' Big lol. Has gone missing big time today.

It would be great for the competition if Brisbane can go back to back here

The lead up to the finals series in 2018 was unreal as well. We beat West Coast at their home ground in Round 22 after an entire week of worrying that we were on track to wasting another season. And our performance against GWS the following week was honestly my favourite home and away game I've ever attended. That entire game almost like a public celebration rather than an actual football game. We'd already confirmed a finals spot the week before and we played as if we basically had nothing to lose. Fast, aggressive, free flowing, attacking footy. I don't think I've ever felt as relaxed at a game as I was that day. That shocking preliminary final aside, the last month of 2018 was fever dream stuff. We couldn't have picked two better teams than Geelong and Hawthorn to knock off in the finals given the years of torture they used to inflict on us.

He's one player really wish I got to see in the flesh. I sometimes think about how watching Max Gawn in his prime as a teen/young adult would have been like what it was like watching Flower growing up. Two very different players of course but probably a similar vibe.

That was bad but I think the general consensus was that they weren't going to trouble Collingwood or Brisbane. From memory they were sorta flat track bullies anyway. Adelaide though... Before the Rankine case I was almost certain they'd make a preliminary final at minimum.

This surely has to go down as the worst finals campaign in modern history. Total dumpster fire.

I'm in a weird mood atm but I find this really funny. Our coach is named after a horror writer, we have a player named after one of his novels (Salem's Lot) and our second name symbolised horror. You can't really script all this 😅

Gawn was well due for another one. I reckon three best and fairests don't reflect how dominant he's been over the past 10 years.

What a horrific take that is. Compare us at the end of his tenure to what what we were when he took over. Not in the same [censored] postcode.

I [censored] hate how good the cats are every year