Elwood 3184

With so many Carey Grammar lads in the mix, I suppose it must be handy having TV around to head up recruiting and JV to provide some insights right from the coal face

DARKEST HOURS: 1953 by Whispering Jack

...

Much appreciated as always Demonland and WJ. I noticed some negative feedback from the Bluey Truscott night thread about Cam Schwab's emphasis in many of his speeches about the history and heritage of the Melbourne Football Club but I'm one of those who believes it is essential to imbue that richness into the members, supporters, staff and the players.

Historically, club was the first of its kind. We wrote the rules and we got it started. We really do stand for something and the players should know they are forging something special as the team develops a new future. And, yes ... we've done this (coming from rock bottom to the top) before.

On that note, might I introduce a new book by Dr Mark Pennings

Colourful origins of AFL revealed in new book

Australian Rules Football's earliest rivalry between 'toffee-nosed' Melbourne supporters and a 'democratic' Carlton club helped turn a middle-class gentlemen's game into an iconic sport, a new book shows.

Well most of us are no longer toffee nosed but we're thirsting for long-awaited success. Bring it on!

Melbourne circles Sharrod Wellingham as Collingwood midfielder remains unsigned

We're all over him according to to Jon Ralph, which means he's probably headed anywhere but Melbourne, but read into it what you will.

The fact that it comes from Jon Ralph and not the office copy boy who only got a gig because a couple of real journalists have moved on from the paper lends the story a bit more credibility. However, I prefer stories such as these when they become fait accompli and not when they're journalistic scuttlebutt.

Collingwood is still in the finals and there's still much water to flow under the bridge ...

I reckon some people around here might end up having foot in the mouth issues over this.

There’s a comprehensive preview of the game on the VFL website – Casey Scorpions v Williamstown Preview

No changes to either side.

Tynan the sub.

Apparently we spoke to only 3 potential coaches. Those potential coaches didn't include Sanderson, or Chris Scott.

We could win a flag next year and I wouldn't be convinced we followed good process.

Why would we speak to Chris Scott. He was about to win the flag in his first season as coach of Geelong.

Unless we're aware of what went on in the decision-making process, we're not really in a position to criticise what went on.

Will probably play at Casey because I can see Moloney and Bate being promoted this week after playing well there last week against Collingwood.

Did anyone hear Paul Gardner on SEN a few minutes ago? As a "neutral supporter" he essentially backed up Brock's comments.

Sure he can have an opinion, but this public comment just adds more weight to the discussion and drops us more in it.

What is his agenda?

Fairely obvious, isn't it?

Rats is a good word to use when a former president weighs in and claims we were tanking.

It's going to be interesting to see what tack Richmond takes on Martin.

It's OK banning a lesser light like Connors but I wonder what it would take to sanction a star like Martin?

Everything about the Age has dropped enormously in standard over the years.

It's journalism in the political and international arena drips with bias and many of its journos are agenda driven hacks who have lost the thirst for a story.

In 12 months time it's going to be dead in the water and I would not be surprised if Caro jumped ship to take a gig at the Hun.

Travis comes with baggage named D. Cloke.

Good onya Rush -> that's really sticking it up that weak flower who you'll be opposed to on Sunday who couldn't stand the heat so he peed out of the kitchen.

Last year, Melbourne's top three goalkickers were:-

• Liam Jurrah 40 goals

• Brad Green 37 goals

• Colin Sylvia 25 goals

...

Alas, after nine matches we have had very little from the players we might have otherwise expected to contribute to the scoreboard. Instead, we have this:-

• Liam Jurrah 0 goals

• Brad Green 2 goals

• Colin Sylvia 0 goals

Incredible statistics and I agree. If you take the three top goalkicking forwards out of any team and replace them with an aggregate of two goals over nine rounds, you're going to see lots of blood and pain.

These figures should be sent to Mike Sheahan and Paul Roos.

we are paying 12.00! Downright embarrassing.

how predictable is it that the eagles will slam on a bunch of unanswered goals early in the first. Happens every time we travel.

Why should it happen this time?

Our players should be steeled and ready to perform after the [censored] we've copped as a club this week.

Anyone who doesn't want to put his head down, bum up and get the footy today doesn't deserve to get selected again.

I suspect that it's a case of Demetriou, with the aid of some friends in the media (who are now painting Mifsud as a saint), deflecting from the issue of an employee of the AFL divulging sensative material to a member of the media. Mifsud should have been sacked on the spot for this, failing which Demetriou should have immediately accepted his resignation.

In any event, Mifsud's position is now that of a lame duck. He's untrustworthy in the context of receiving confidences from the people he's supposed to be serving.

On the matter of what Aaron Davey is alleged to have said, I think it's interesting that Mifsud is dodging Davey.

Meanwhile, Melbourne is still in the competition and the coaches and players have jobs to do so they quite properly are focusing on that and not the media hype.

Spot on WJ.

They are so intent on keeping the story boiling over at the Age that they have Caro trying to cover old ground and doing a muddled and messy job of it here - Facing up to Demon days.

On top of that they dredge up Emma Quayle from half way around the world in in Varese, Italy with some comments from Michael O'Loughlin who might know Mifsud well but can't really add to the subterfuge that's been surrounding him lately - Backing for Mifsud.

Poor old Vlad must be desperate. Thomas has played him on a break over both Rendell and Mifsud and nobody's biting the line.

Mifsud must go.

I will be interested to see how the team is coached this week. I think it would be fair to say that Neeld made very few effective moves to either help capitalise on our superiority when we were on top in the latter half of the first quarter or to stop the flow of ball to the Brisbane forwards in the third.

I thought that he was a tactician and that Neil Craig alongside him had the experience to deal with such situations and I'd like to see some signs of this tomorrow.

GWS Giants playing Sydney Swans in the reserves curtain raiser ATM.

Swans have their necks in front 96-7.

Of the newer players:

* Magner is a real find and will play in R1. Instantly forms part of the midfield rotation.

* Davis was very solid. Looks a year away but has skill, poise and gets to the ball

* Couch got better as the other players got tired/slower. Need more convincing

* Tom Mac only got a few minutes - why?

* Seller - bigger and better than Matt Warnock. Not sure yet why Adelaide delisted him. Looks like a fairly ready made gorilla-minder

* I thought Jack Fitz contested really well around the ball and showed a good motor to get away and win possession

You left out Josh Tynan who did a few nice things early but was then subbed off I think.

There's a persuasive argument that McLardy interviewing the team leaders in that week provided the distraction and destabilisation that caused 186. What else was significantly different in the lead up? Now maybe you can mount an argument that 186 was the debacle we had to have.

How so?

We don't know what McLardy said and how he said it.

Was the playing group so mentally weak that it was incapable of handling a board member interviewing team leaders?

What about the media speculation about the board being on the brink of renewing Bailey's contract?

It seems to me that it's equally plausible (or even more so) that the game was the players' reaction to that news more than anything else. If there's a connect between what McLardy did and the board's change of heart about Bailey then we can all thank McLardy for saving us all - even if it was for the wrong reasons (which I'm not prepared to concede yet).

Yep. I am with you on this. Some of the venom being thrown in here at G.Lyon is totally disgraceful.

Some of you people need to go to the hall of mirrors & have a good hard look at yourselves.

That's the thing about forums such as these.

Somebody sums up the contribution of a person during his tenure in a particular position and others who might for some reason think that person's not such a good bloke will throw in their opinion. The discussion becomes focussed on something entirely different to the role that person played (in this case Garry's 6 months in what was virtually the football director's seat). Suddenly, everyone who has an agenda against the person in question comes out of the woodwork and the thread's been hijacked by people wildly speculating about people's motives and intentions.

Let's face it. This is a forum and, as long as people stick within the rules, for better or worse we're going to have to put up with reading stuff that's untrue and with opinions we don't like. It's up to all of us then to use our own judgement and make up our own minds about a particular issue.

Getting back to one G Lyon, I agree with the view of many here that under his watch and with the help of others, the club is in a much better place than it was six months ago.

Lucas Cook may become a good player in a few years time but Darling will probably have 50 games up before Lucas has one. Pick 12 was such an important pick and I wonder whether Barry P would still be at the club if we had picked Darling or even Billy Smedts.

And remind me please of the number of games that Billy Smedts has played at this point in time.

Yep, I agree that communication ... the media stuff is so much shared around these days that it doesn't really matter, so long as the captain can give the 'strait bat' answers during intrusive trouble-making inteviews where journos try to get them to say something bad about the coach/administration/neighbour's cat.

Subliminally, you're telling us that Brad Green should remain the captain.

We all know that Brad is a multi-talented sportsperson who excelled in cricket and soccer before settling on AFL and that he comes from Tasmania which is on the other side of the Bass Strait.

Hence, your reference to a 'strait bat'.

Elementary really!