Whispering_Jack

Sick of reading old rehashed discussion about AFL business, sportswoman of the year and the world's problems? Try this for a good little read - Focused Demon Viney to harness aggression

Vlad would have to go too because he endorsed everything we did during that period of time. Anderson's gone. Hamish is too vanilla. It looks like you and me Redleg. I know we can run the AFL and not only that I have a fantastic plan that will ensure that nobody tanks ever again. Wherever Melbourne finishes, it will automatically get first pick in the draft no matter how many games it wins. Problem solved.

The point is that whatever Melbourne might have done in the game against Freo is irrelevant to the investigation because Melbourne won comfortably so it can't support the case that we tanked that year.The three games we're under suspicion for are our best performance against the Swans at Manuka when we kicked badly, the Tigers game when we led at the siren and the round 22 game when the Saints beat us by 47 points, a game we were expected to lose by 80. Eyebrows were raised after we took off Liam Jurrah who is well known for not having a tank (and yet we tanked by taking him off ?) Go figure this all out?

Great stuff!

You think that's strange? Let's not forget Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs admitted to tanking way back in the 1960s but were never investigated either. I was thinking about this very thing last night while dining out on mashed potatoes and quite frankly, I'm sick and tired of the whole thing. Billy used to say the AFL never believed him because, "Most People I Know Think That I'm Crazy", but I'm waiting for the time when they sit up and decide to make it a blue day for Carlton supporters and investigate their club because Fev also admitted that Carlton tried not to win. For their selective dealing with this issue, I can only wish on the AFL an itchy case of poison ivy. Meanwhile, poor Billy is nowhere around and can probably be found somewhere over the rainbow. I still remember Sunbury and the good old days of the Aztecs and find it so ironical that last time I saw Billy, he was singing his favourite song, "I told the Brock".

In that event the tanking case against the Melbourne Football Club depends on how it went against Fremantle in late 2009. Remind me again of the result of that game? I'm sure it's an important piece of evidence in the tanking case.

My Christmas message to the slimy little punk after who this thread was named:- Seasons greetings and a Happy New Year to everyone else.

A big thanks to poster monocular who noticed that the feature story THE NAME GAME had been put up twice and reported it to Andy. As a result, the story was saved for posterity because it would otherwise have been lost (I deleted my notes after the article was posted).

I suppose this will probably end up in "Other Sports" but, at this time of the year, its worthwhile reflecting on how other teams bearing the name Melbourne are burning it up in their respective competitions. The Melbourne Renegades are undefeated and on top of the BBL table followed by The Melbourne Stars who have lost only one game and that was against the Melbourne Renegades. And if you think the BBL is Micky Mouse stuff then let's look at how the Melbourne Demons are travelling in the Premier District cricket competition. After comfortably disposing of Fitzroy-Doncaster yesterday, the Demons are way out on top: Melbourne 62 1.832 Prahran 49 1.407 Ringwood 47 1.404 Carlton 43 1.076 Richmond 41 1.789 Dandenong 41 1.458 St Kilda 40 1.283 Melb Uni 37 1.116 Fitz Donc 32 1.105 Geelong 32 0.835 Frank Pen 28 0.808 Camb Magpies27 0.933 Foot-Edgewate27 0.903 North Melb 26 0.726 Casey-SM 21 0.675 Haw-Mon Uni 8 0.733 Essendon 8 0.617 Northcote 5 0.508 In other sports, Melbourne is on top of the Lawn Bowls competition ladder. With all that going for it, surely its only a matter of time before the Melbourne Football Club follows suit and claims its rightful spot on top of the table. * I discount the Melbourne Tigers in the basketball for their obvious connections with striped animals.

So many layers and a subject that's been discussed a million times here so please keep on topic. Thanks.

But only because someone found out that CS once read a book about them.

I agree although I don't think they can charge based on circumstantial evidence. That's why I also have to agree with the previous poster that the CC blame game is tending to hijack the thread. There will be time for that later if warranted but for now ... Let's stay on topic as BH has done please folks.

PM Andy (Demonland) - he's the tech geek around here but do it before Xmas Day because he might be hard to find for a while after that.

But the investigation into Bailey ended with no further action so it really started with McLean and the farcical way he was set up by On the Couch and my information is that it was exactly that - a set up.

We're all entitled to a "view" here but I think you'll find that people jumped on him for attacking the CEO who wasn't the person who was responsible for the way in which Dean Bailey's sacking occurred.I take your point that some at the club might have said something at some stage about tanking. I don't know. However, it is absurd to suggest that Carlton is not being investigated because "nobody ever said anything". Libba said something. Fev said something. Those things have been well documented in the past. A then Carlton Football Club member told me in late 2007 that Carlton was sending Fev off to surgery early because they had no interest in winning any of the remaining games because the Blues were after a big fish and also wanted Kreuzer. If the AFL was honest, it would have would widened the inquisition to involve several other clubs that were in the same position as us and that really didn't try hard to win matches with priority picks seemingly the aim. I don't agree that our behaviour was any different to that of other clubs. The matter was brought to a head because of consistent efforts from some within the media to highlight Melbourne and Melbourne alone. The fact that the three supposedly experienced wise heads who questioned McLean that night didn't question why he went to a club that picked up three #1 draft picks in a row when he was so principled about leaving a team that "experimented" says everything to me.

The Ox.

If that's your response to rumpole's claim about your agenda here, then it amounts to a very sad admission along with your above post.Please send my best wishes to Hazy and the gang.

My views on Bailey's coaching whilst at the club are well known. On his conduct after he was sacked (and while I agree he had to go, it wasn't handled well), perhaps he was just being honest? And just remember, it may well be the acceptance of his honesty and integrity that determines the outcome of this entire tanking shambles.

Thankfully, I know nothing about the shenanigans that go on in horse racing but I'm aware that since much of that sport is connected with the gambling that's part and parcel of the racing industry, there's always been a level of dishonesty and corruption associated with it (and that's not necessarily a comment on Mr. Smerdon and the bag of money story).Sadly, the AFL in paying lip service to the interests of the gambling element that's taken growth in our game, has gone down the slippery slope of conducting a discriminatory, gutter level inquisition into one club that is going to turn the sport into a laughing stock. It took the AFL no less than 5½ months at great expense to carry it out but 15 minutes to quiz Tony Liberatore when he alleged tanking and probably no more time to deal with Paul Roos' "joking" that a player shouldn't be kicking goals in a NAB Cup game. Why for instance, should Dean Bailey have to engage a lawyer (most of us are expensive) to defend himself when he's been through this before while Terry Wallace whose own words are tantamount to an admission of the breach of the AFL's rules and Brett Ratten most of whose six games at the end of 2007 as coach were far more questionable, are left untouched? I hope the AFL does the right thing out of this and reimburses Bailey (and the MFC for that matter) his legal expenses at the end of all this.

In something of an anti-climax, it appears that the world did not end yesterday, life goes on and the lads will be back at training on 7 January, 2013 after all. I'm sure I speak for most Demonlanders who, for whatever reason, simply can't make it down to training and therefore gain so much enjoyment from reading the reports of those who are fortunate enough to get there. Stay safe over the break and see ya in January!

Tom Kavanagh

Just checking out on what other Demonlanders are reading.

As in the player wasn't really an edible fruit?

The latest word on young Dale is that he commences his 9 month stint at the maximum security Port Phillip Prison on Tuesday. Despite the unlikelihood of him getting time off for good behaviour, this means he should still be able to participate in next year's draft combine but he has promised to fudge the results so that other clubs don't get wind of his natural athletic ability. Source: his sister's blog on the Prostitute Collective website.

Some people here should give it a break. Whatever one might think about his coaching, Dean Bailey gave his all for the club and put its interests over and above his own. He has a lot more class than some of the whiners who would attack him. The inquisition has been an insult to the club and the people involved because we clearly followed the appropriate guidelines and did exactly what other clubs (none of who have been investigated or interrogated) have done before us. We've been discriminated against in a disgusting way and if anybody's integrity is open to question over this saga then it has to be that of the AFL.