Whispering_Jack

Alas Tim, I did not and the explanation is simple and referred to in my occasional Demonland reports in the series I've entitled "Highway of Demons". Back in 1964 I was a 15 year old and, unlike my counterparts these days who have iPads and FIFA games to play with, I had a Saturday morning job at a milk bar in Glenhuntly Road Elsternwick. At lunch time on the day of the GF, I dashed off to Channel 2 which was around the corner in Ripponlea where the doorman had promised me entry to watch the game in their studios (along with 100 or so residents from a local aged care facility so I can confidently claim to be the only remaining survivor). As for Ken Jungwirth, I agree. He was probably one of our first post-Barassi false Messiahs. He showed great promise a couple of years later when he made his debut but he wasn't physically strong enough to make the transition to key forward at the highest level and his career petered out like so many others in the subsequent span of fifty years. The only true champion we produced in all that time was Robbie and there were a sprinkling of stars like Stan Alves, Gary Hardeman, Greg Wells, Garry Lyon, Jim Stynes, The Ox, Neita and now, the tragically underestimated Nathan Jones.

He would if he could but he can't so he won't. Hird is the only party appealing against Middleton J's decision - not Essendon and not the players who are about to be served with the fresh SCN's. The test as to whether injunctive relief should be given is whether on balance it would be more convenient in the circumstances to give or to prevent the giving of the relief sought. To cater for Hird alone when everyone else in this scenario wants to proceed and have the SCNs dealt with (and we're talking about 34 players getting notices and not Hird himself) would not serve the balance of convenience. ASADA will serve the notices, players will break ranks, deals with be done and if someone names Hird specifically as one of those responsible and implicated in the drug regime, the dike will be broken. The Bombers will have their reason to sack him at a reduced pay out. Almost game, set and match (other than the question of the fate of the players).

Summary of the rest of today's Trade Radio talk:- Levi Greenwood North Melbourne is hopeful it can advance contract negotiations with Greenwood over the weekend, with Geoff Walsh confirming to NAB Trade Radio the club had been unable to so far satisfy his contract requests. Paddy Ryder Essendon has rejected Port Adelaide's opening offer for Ryder - pick 16. The Power offered up the second-round pick for Ryder, but Essendon has said they want more. Jimmy Toumpas Melbourne says midfielder Toumpas is definitely not on the trade table. Assistant coach Simon Goodwin telling 5AA that Toumpas was an integral part of the club's future. Sam Blease Former Melbourne speedster Blease says he is desperate to get back on an AFL list, and believes he can continue to play the game at the highest level. No idea if this nonsense continues over the weekend but if you're curious, click here: http://www.afl.com.au/afl/news/trade/trade-radio

Waite and Higgins North Melbourne has signed former Carlton forward Jarrad Waite to a two-year deal. The unrestricted free agent will join the Roos in season 2015. In more good news for Roos fans, the club has also lodged paperwork for Western Bulldogs restricted free agent Shaun Higgins. The Dogs have 72 hours to match the Kangaroos offer.

Good to see that nobody around is getting into a flap about Plapp. This article by Paul Amy is good enough 4 me. Sandringham Dragons mentor Justin Plapp has been appointed coach of VFL club Casey Scorpions It was a tough year for Rohan Welsh. He was deprived of the usual array of VFL standard players to back up the Demon listed players because many moved on at the end of last year and some of his key players were missing for long periods of time with injury. He had very little in the way of tall timber available due to the well documented problems the club had with injuries to rucks and KPPs. But with so many NQR Demons and a very young group of mainly lighter bodied VFL listers the team struggled and simply wasn't well enough equipped to play the defensive style footy expected from them as part of the alignment. They were difficult to watch and it was little wonder that they didn't attract the crowds. A lot more needs to be done to win over the local community so a new direction is certainly welcome.

I don't know if this is right but there are suggestions of interesting figures being bandied about suggesting that Frawley's package with Hawthorn is less than those offered by other clubs. If that's the case and there have been some intangible incentives offered to make up for this then they should be investigated before our compensation is determined. In any event, if we don't get band 1 for Frawley and/or adequate compensation for Mitch Clark then we should be back at the AFL's doorstep appealing against the no draft assistance decision which was partly based on us getting adequate compensation for Frawley and Clark. This never sat comfortably with me and if we get shafted again over the Frawley compo I would expect PJ to be on the front foot about it.

The Social Litigator looks at how the Federal Court Full Court might approach James Hirds appeal. Lawyer Natalie Hickey recognises from the outset that the proceedings are as much strategic as they are legal and it's clear from her analysis that Hird has a tough job ahead of him if his appeal is to succeed. However, I suspect that this is really about the practicalities of achieving the best outcome for himself when the relationship between the club and he is inevitably eventually severed. It's not about Essendon or the players, it's about Hird himself and probably always was that way. In the meantime, the Bombers' list remains unchanged with only Leroy Jetta who wanted out apparently delisted and, of course, we know full well about Paddy Ryder. The Bombers' trade and draft position will be in disarray until this messy situation is resolved and it really is time for Hird to consider the good of the club and the team instead of himself.

The Age's Emma Quayle has produced a very comprehensive coverage of the 2014 AFL National Draft hopefuls by type and position: The ruckmen Medium defenders Small forwards, defenders and midfielders Medium forwards Tall forwards Tall defenders Medium midfielders

Speed and agility tested at Combine The important beeps

I was privileged to have witnessed both his first and last games and the great majority of the 270 in between. His skills were exquisite and he always excelled when playing for his State among the game's elite. Time moved slowly when he was near the footy and it stopped altogether when he soared over a pack to take a mark. But there was more to Robbie than his brilliance as a player - he was ever loyal to the club and never considered overtures to play elsewhere for big money as some do these days. I was introduced to him at a function not long after he retired and a few months later met him again at an MFC AGM in the long room at the MCC. He insisted on sitting next to me in the middle of the crowd rather than up near the front where I thought he belonged. He was more than a champion player - he was a champion bloke. Condolences to the family. Rest in peace Robbie #2

Correct. It was the price the Bombers had to pay to get his co-operation with the AFL governance sanctions.

Nakia Cockatoo's draft hopes have risen with his impressive efforts at the combine DAY TWO DRAFT COMBINE RESULTS 20 metre sprint results Marvin Baynham 2.81secs Oleg Markov 2.87 Jarrod Pickett 2.87 Reece McKenzie 2.87 Connor Menadue 2.88 Nakia Cockatoo 2.90 Ed Langdon 2.92 Paddy Brophy 2.93 Conor McKenna 2.93 Nathan Drummond 2.93 Agility results Clem Smith 8.09secs Daniel McKenzie 8.10 Conor McKenna 8.12 Jarrod Pickett 8.13 Teia Miles 8.27 Lukas Webb 8.28 Josh McGuinness 8.33 Billy Stretch 8.33 Kyle Langford 8.36 Jack Lonie 8.37 Repeat sprint results Nakia Cockatoo 23.93secs Nathan Drummond 23.95 Daniel Nielson 23.99 Daniel McKenzie 24.02 Ed Langdon 24.06 Oleg Markov 24.14 Connor Menadue 24.14 Conor McKenna 24.16 Matthew Goodyear 24.49

Roosy at the Draft Combine

Summary of today's Trade Radio talk:- James Frawley Unrestricted free agent Frawley will almost certainly join the club when the period opens tomorrow, with the Hawks trumping the Cats for the All-Australian defender's services. He will join Brian Lake in the Hawks' defence, who this afternoon agreed to re-sign with the Hawks for season 2015. Bulldogs The Western Bulldogs are preparing themselves for a huge assault on this year's NAB Trade and Free Agency period, with CEO Simon Garlick telling NAB Trade Radio the club was in the hunt for Sydney's Sam Reid and Tim Membrey. With Liam Jones expected to leave the club for the Blues, Garlick said Reid, Membrey and GWS youngster Kristian Jaksch "certainly figure" in their discussions. James Hird Today's trade news was surrounded by the controversy at Essendon. Is he still coach at the Bombers? Kane Lucas Carlton is preparing to lose out-of-contract midfielder Lucas, with the club confirming on NAB Trade Radio he's on the trade table. Lucas played just seven games this season. Shaun Higgins Western Bulldogs CEO Simon Garlick has told NAB Trade Radio they may still match any restricted free agent offer for Higgins who is expected to be offered a contract by the Kangaroos. Levi Greenwood Richmond says it has expressed an interest in out-of-contract North Melbourne midfielder Greenwood, but head of football Dan Richardson expects him to stay at the Roos. The Tigers say they don't expect to trade any of their players this season Daniel Gorringe Marcus Ashcroft has told NAB Trade Radio the club wants to keep Gorringe, despite him requesting a trade. The Suns are also still in the hunt for Collingwood's Dayne Beams and Sydney's Nick Malceski. Ahmed Saad Saad says he will be allowed to return to training at an AFL club on January 1, 2014. He told NAB Trade Radio he had spoken with several AFL clubs, but did not yet have any commitment from a club to sign him. WJ - Saad is serving an 18 month suspension for taking a banned supplement. The penalty is slightly longer than the three weeks some people are suggesting the Essendon players served with show cause notices will get If you want to tune in at work tomorrow from 9am, simply click here: http://www.afl.com.au/afl/news/trade/trade-radio

Were you not listening when Mark Evans pronounced the reasons for not giving Melbourne draft assistance a week or two ago?

Could someone enlighten James Hird and me as to at what point this becomes all about the players?

I find so many of the comments here so strange. Mitch didn't play many games for this club but I don't recall a single game that he played for our club when he didn't give it his best shot. He suffered a debilitating physical injury and there were further issues with the healing process that prolonged his time out of the game and in that time, for whatever reason, the mental demons took over and the decision has been made that it's in his best interests that he move on. The club's position is that we should also move forward, get the best compensation and move on with the task of making ours a better team able to compete with the rest.

I'm a bit like Nasher. Pretty much ambivalent about him because it's been obvious watching him play through most of the season that his heart wasn't in the club and that he wanted to go elsewhere. I had the same feeling about Colin Sylvia before him and Beamer and Jared Rivers before that and of course, Scully in 2011 and it's not confined to just them. This is one of the evils of free agency and will continue to hound particularly the lesser clubs as long as we retain it in the present form or perhaps until the football world comes to accept it and what it brings. It's also symptomatic of the culture that developed over time at the club and it's no doubt Paul Roos' biggest challenge to overcome. With these things in mind it's easy to understand where the club's recruiting policy is headed and why there is a push to bring in players with mature heads and experience at being successful at both personal and club level. There's been a massive void in that area at this club for a long time and it can't be underestimated. It's something that's brought down our last few coaches and we can see what's happened at Gold Coast that lacked it, particularly after Junior went down. The one thing that is imperative in my view is the need to formulate a further contract with Nathan Jones that recognises his importance to the club and his leadership value and which establishes his commitment to the club going forward. There have been many theories about why the club's performances fell away in the latter half of the season and Josh Mahoney put it down yesterday to the number of players who had restricted preseasons and the impact of this on their fitness in the end. There's some truth in that but another aspect was the fact that we had at least one of our key players putting in half hearted performances while another who plays with full commitment and professionalism out for several weeks with a broken leg. Without wishing ill on anyone, had it been the other way around, we would have won a few more games at the end because, as we've learned over the past few years, players who are not committed to the cause are a cancer to a club.

Lucky to get that I reckon. Rumour has it that Chip's veins flow brown and gold and he's going there for the basic football wage plus tips because he loves the place and expects to spend most of the season playing in the ruck with the Box Hill Hawks alongside Kyle Cheney.

For some strange reason we anticipated this might happen.It's Andy's birthday today and he's out celebrating (hopefully the fact we get # 3 compo on top of the occasion) but I'm sure that the minute he gets the opportunity, Chip will get the chop from our banner.

Summary of today's Trade Radio talk:- Guy McKenna McKenna says he was given no specific reason from the club for his dismissal, but was not surprised by the outcome. His sacking comes after a two-week review of the club's football department. James Frawley James Frawley has officially left the Melbourne Football Club, telling the club of his intention to exercise his right as an unrestricted free agent. Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson has confirmed the club's interest in Frawley. Clarkson said today that the club would see how Frawley's situation plays out this week, but the club was definitely still keen on him. Mitch Clark Clark's manager Colin Young has told NAB Trade Radio today that Clark's passion for the game is as strong as he's ever seen. It comes after Clark chose Geelong as his preferred club for next season. St. Kilda St Kilda's footy boss Chris Pelchen has confirmed his club's number 1 draft pick is still up for grabs, but no clubs have enquired about it yet. Pelchen told NAB Trade Radio they would continue to entertain offers for a trade for the prized pick. Daniel Gorringe Port Adelaide has confirmed its interest in Gold Coast ruckman Gorringe who was pick 10 in the 2010 NAB AFL Draft. He wants more opportunities to play senior football. NAB TRADE RADIO 2014 PARTNERS: If you want to tune in at work tomorrow from 9am, simply click here: http://www.afl.com.au/afl/news/trade/trade-radio

Wow - great stuff Bush Demon ... I wonder how much of the club's history is appreciated by Demon fans now that there's a gap of half a century since our last premiership?

Given Brisbane CEO Greg Swann's public views on the worth of James Frawley, we should manage to get Merrett for pick #75 without any trouble.

The thread (like all others about specific players here) will be moved out of this board back onto the general football board when he's traded to another club or announces his decision to stay.

Swann is not ignorant of the rules but rather, is playing politics knowing that his own club benefits from us not getting band 1 compensation in the likely event of Frawley jumping ship. If it was his own club that was about to lose a player who was being lured by a long term big money contract and the prospect of playing finals football, he would be singing a different tune. Hypocrite.