Deeoldfart

Really glad that they are managing these kids conservatively and for the future. It would have been tempting to rush them, but good sense has prevailed. Imagine the buzz it will create if Jack (in particular) makes his senior debut on Queen's B'day weekend.

I think Rhino was suggesting that Robbo might be an immediate candidate for the LTI list. Not a bad thought if he meets the criteria.

lol: Lucky you added the bit in brackets Rhino, or there would have been 500 posters jumping on here to shoot you down!

Great article. You've said it all 'bub.

Maybe 100 including players and staff. It was played in Canberra

Thanks Jack, for another thoughtful piece ... another enjoyable read.

Sorry 45 (and Beamer). I hate it when others do this, and now I'm guilty myself! :angry:

Just love the positivity of this thread as the season draws closer. Dare I say it, but we may even be able to add full seasons from McLean, Rivers and Maloney to Rhino's list of plusses. Couldn't agree more, bring it on!!

Couldn't agree more '45, and I live in Canberra!

I disagree. As my monica suggests, I'm long past being young and fashionable, and the new top will suit me just fine ..... as well as showing my allegiance to the footy club and putting a few $s into their coffers.

Totally agree Tower. The good thing is that it doesn't seem to have had that effect.

This one certainly does!! Being a Canberra resident it's pretty much impossible for me to get to these types of events, and it's great to know I will get comprehensive, reliable and timely advice from WJ about the Club that means so much to me. Thanks WJ.

Thanks DW. In addition to the other requests, I'm really keen to know how Sef. Martin is shaping up. Havn't heard very much about him this year, and based on his promising debut season, I'm really excited about his prospects.

Abso-bloody-lutely! His work ethic, enthusiasm and love for the Dees are unquestionable and infectious.

A couple of fair points and a good question there mo. I'm guessing that these are issues that our Club will be trying very hard to address via the Red and Blueprint, but clearly it will take time. Absolute horse faeces. Surely on-field improvement, leading to sustained success, is critical to raising the saleability of our Club .... and I would have thought (naively perhaps) that appointing the best available captain, who has the unanimous support of the playing group and coaching staff, is essential to making progress on this front in '09. You seem to be arguing that we should have selected the second, third or fourth etc. best captaincy candidate, on the basis of their public profile or potential media credentials. Not for me thanks, and in any event Jimma, CC and CS seem to have been doing the media stuff pretty well for a while now. I doubt that there are very many AFL captains who have 'doors banged down' by the media unless there is a story to tell. Melbourne have to build such a story (for the right reasons of course), and if they can do this (for example, by really surprising the media 'experts' with their on-field improvement in '09) then I'd wager that we'd see plenty of Junior in the media, and what's more, he'd handle that part of his captaincy role very capably.

Thanks for these great reports / photos guys. I've been out of town for a few days and your material was a great 'welcome home'.

Thanks Joe. Great to get these snippets up here in Canberra .... and what's wrong with getting excited at this time of year, especially after the couple of years we've had!

Ditto! Living in Canberra makes Demonland and reports like these critical to my sanity in the off-season (although there are some who doubt that it works).

PLATINUM

Always in our hearts. Rest in peace Broady.

Have a great Christmas fellow Demonlanders, and may 2009 show that our great club has turned the corner, and that we are on the way to football prosperity. Many thanks to those who have contributed to making Demonland the heartbeat of the MFC!! Go Demons!

Time will tell of course, but at this point I wouldn't change a thing.

Thanks for a most enjoyable read. We have an exciting future to look forward to at Melbourne.

Absolutely ... and a happy new year!!!!!!!!!!!

Couldn't agree more. Hopefully the differences can be quickly resolved in our favour.