demon25

Obviously I must be missing something that the recruiters are privy to and I am not. From the outside he looks like the single most capable player of kicking 3+ goals in a game It's true you get 1 dud game for every 4 games played, but in those 3 other games you are guaranteed 1+ goals. He has a goal sense that the others simply do not, and causes oppositions to panic just knowing he is around. He also gives away goals and his pressure is no worse than others. This year he had a terrible run with injuries (2 shoulders this year), and when he did get on the ground suffered from our mids bombing the ball into the 50m zone directly to the opposition. This curtailed his ability to get to the drop of the ball at the feet of T McDonald etc. At 30 years old, why wouldn't have we put him on a 1year contract on reduced coin and let him see how he went (hopefully fit after a pre-season). If we really think we're a chance to rebound into the finals then his experience would count. Otherwise delisting him seems to me to reek of a club hitting the "re-build" button

Before today I have never taken pen to paper to discuss a potential trade but the thought of Melbourne trading Jack Watts has me both livid and incredulous. I'll briefly outline my reasons why: There is no one in the team you would rather have shooting for goal after the siren under pressure (a la Pies game this year). His foot skills are equisite He is simply our most naturally gifted disposer/distributor of the ball He and Hogan have an uncanny ability to find each other in the forward line He can pinch hit in the ruck He has handled enormous expectations and pressure over 10 years with a rare courage and dignity He,along with Jones, has been through a dark period in Melbourne's history and deserves to participate in the resurgence I understand he is much loved character within the team We have a dearth of quality players in the 25-30 year old bracket Obviously he has his weaknesses, and is not an in and under mongrel like Viney/Jones/Oliver. But not everyone has to be cut from that cloth. You also need finishers. There are reports his attitude is not at the required level. Well isn't that Goodwin's and the army of assistant coaches job to instill it? Or are they walking away from that responsibility? Loyalty is perhaps a jaded concept in AFL these days, but if anyone has bled red and blue over the past decade it has been Watts (and Jones). I implore MFC to keep him at the club.

We all said the same "back the club" line when the club moved James McDonald, Cam Bruce and Brad Miller on under Needle. And that tore the fabric of the club apart and set us back years. And those guys aren't nearly as talented as Watts. He is much loved within the group and as you rightly point out has improved over the last 18months under Roos/Goodwin. If there is a flaw is in his attitude, then surely it is Goodwin's responsibility as coach to address that and turn it around. Surely he can't put it in the "too hard basket" and simply move on a player of that caliber (and probably the only home grown 25-28 year in the club!)

Message to MFC: Trade Jack Watts - lose my membership Simple People power

So as another top 10 draft pick packs his bag and heads for the door, I note that since the turn of the century we have had 11 Top 10 draft picks. Not one of them has played 200 games for our club. Not one has even won our B&F 5 have indeed left the club and plied their trade elsewhere. In fact between them they average only 89 games (albeit 7 are still current players) Consider the Top 10 list: Year Player Selection Games 2001 Molan 9 0 2002 2003 Sylvia* 3 163 McLean* 5 157 2004 2005 2006 2007 Morton* 4 76 2008 Watts 1 115 2009 Scully* 1 103 Trengrove 2 81 2010 2011 2012 Toumpas* 4 27 2013 Salem 9 22 2014 Petracca 2 0 Brayshaw 3 21 * denotes left the Dees and plays/played elsewhere Whilst the jury is still out on Salem, Petracca and Brayshaw (and haven't we all got our fingers crossed on that lot), you can categorically say none of the others have really become A graders. If we are honest Sylvia has probably got the closest. I'd be fascinated to see if that is the worst average return per player in the league over the last 15 years.

Imagine if everything hadn't gone so pear-shaped over the last couple of years. Imagine players were desperate to stay at the Dees instead of move on when they hit the free-agent stage Imahine Roos was coaching this team instead of the rabble that ran out yesterday......... B: Garland Frawley Grimes HB: Rivers McDonald Howe C: Scully Sylvia Watts HF: Salem Dawes Jurrah F: S Martin Clarke Hogan R: Jamar Scott Thompson Jones i/c: McLean, Dunn, Tompous, Jeddah Do you reckon it'd make any difference or would we still be stuffed?

So here is a quote from Needle after yesterdays game: "Watching the Kangaroos play the other day I heard Scotty (Brad Scott) talking about they're now getting to the 80-plus average game mark, and they're able to go for longer. He's got his boys with some ingrained things that are really good. "We're probably two years behind that so we've got to make sure that's ingrained [by] then." So at the end of last year he basically culled all our 70plus players: Morton, Petterd, Bate, Moloney, Martin And he said he wanted to bring in experience from successful clubs: Rodan, Pedderson, Gillies, Dawes and Byrnes Only one of them got a game yesterday (I appreciate Dawes has been injured). So what was the point of being so cut throat, which I imagine unsettled a lot of the younger kids, and then bring in guys who clearly aren't capable of getting a game even in our train wreck of a team? And what "ingrained things that are really good" are we actually talking about - getting whipped by 10-20 goals every week surely isn't the ingrained behavoir we are are looking for???

2013/14 was supposed to be our "window". We'd taken Watts, Trengrove, Skully all now 50+ games. Morton, Petterd, Martyn, BAte etc over 80. We'd recruited Moloney from Geelong, Rivers was our Rising Star and Sylvia (and McLean) were top 5 picks destined to hold the cup aloft. Jurrah was destined to kick 50-70 goals a year ONLY 3 ARE LEFT!!!!! That's why we are back at bloody ground zero again. And posters here are already talking of Viney/Tompas/Hogan as stars when none of them have even played a game yet. I think we'll look back on 2007-2011 as the greatest wasted opportunity in this clubs history and be amazed that we got some things so right (debt reduction, finance, move to AAMI stadium) and some things so horribly wrong - recruitment. So in a nutshell: no

I'm also flat about this season. I bought into the Bailey years and the recruiting that went with that. The early picks we had around 07-09 should now be at 70+ games and making a real impact. And what's happened? Most of them are gone: Petterd, Bate, Martyn, Scully, Gysbert, Jurrah even McLean. These were the guys we were supposed to be patient for for 70-100 games and then we'd take off. Now we've got to wait for the youngest batch of youngsters to mature and hope the same thing happens and it is difficult to have faith in that story. Whether or not they were duds is not the point, the point is they were selected, invested in and ultimately haven't delivered so we go back to the drawing board yet again. Look at it another way, we will run out in 2013 without our 2011 Captain (Green), 2011 B&F Moloney, 2011 2011 runner up Rivers, 2011 Leading Goalkicker (Jurrah) plus about 10 others. Expecting youngsters like Viney, Tompas etc to carry the can is simply unrealistic. And the expereinced recruits we got were all available for a reason........ A couple of years back I thought 13/14 was our "window" - our kids had matured and the Suns and GWS would still be too young. I suspect they'll now leave us in their dust. Hope I'm wrong and have to eat my words!!

I think you've raised a really good point. If anyone has the stats I'd be fascinated to see Green's conversion rate between 2000-2007 versus 2008-2010. He has long been referred to as one of the most accurate kicks for goal in the competition, but I suspect this has waned over the past 3 seasons. I used to put down the glasses when he marked anywhere within 50m of goals, but I now reckon he'll probably convert about 60%. Can anyone access those stats?

I’ve been amazed at the meek acceptance of Melbourne’s decision to retire/move on Russell Robertson. I know the Demon story is all about the future, but surely it’s also got something to do with trying to win games next year. Here’s my rationale as to why Robbo should stay on and why I can’t believe Melbourne aren’t being more closely scrutinised by the media for the decision: - Despite missing the first 6 or so games this year recovering from an Achilles op, Robbo is our leading goal kicker - Despite missing a proper pre-season he’s our leading goal kicker. Now that he’s starting to get some fitness up he’s kicking bags of goals (5 against the #5 side carlton on the weekend). We all know he can still play at this level. - Despite being dropped for lack of defensive pressure, he grits his teeth, takes his medicine and bounces back up to the ones to kick goals. Surely a good example for younger guys at the club - He still attracts the #1 defender each week. If this changes next year and Jurrah or Watts get the #1 defender, won’t that allow/free up Robbo to kick 40plus goals ? - Robbo is an extrovert. Given our lamentable on field presence and leadership, surely having an extrovert on the ground geeing players up instils confidence in younger players? We’re one of the most introverted clubs going around, and we want to banish an extrovert??? - At 30plus years of age, doesn’t he qualify for veteran status and therefore half of his salary on the salary cap calculations? Why not put him on minimum wage and he’s an absolute bargain (no-one else will pick him up) - Last year he had a career ending injury and yet fought back from it to jump as high and as good as ever. What a great example to the Colin Garlands, Wonnemirri’s of the club. Wouldn’t they benefit from him being around? - He’s absolutely passionate about the club and passionate about playing (compare that to some others). Again, what a great example. - Along with Davey he’s the most marketable guy we have at the club. One of the few joys of the past few seasons has been watching him launch himself for species! Doing a backflip on the announcement could actually be a marketing plus “we had so much support for Robbo, we listened to the fans and we’ll give him another crack...so get behind Robbo and the Dees in 2010” - Imagine if we’d put Garry Lyon out to pasture like Robbo? Robbo’s played just as many games and kicked as many goals, but we’re shunting him off without so much as a question mark! At the end of the day I want to win games and start the upward momentum. If you can identify any other player who will kick us 40 plus goals next year I’d be surprised. Or if we are that good we can’t find a spot for a 40 plus goal kicker I’d be amazed. I know it’s about the future, but surely Watts et al could benefit from learning how to lead, pack mark and kick accurately from a guy who’d die for the club.

I think there is a way to make the MCC membership more attractive. It costs $150 and today is basically a donation. The MFC sells a wide range of merchandise. It sources this merchandise at wholesale. For instance a footy jumper that retails at $120 probably wholesales at $40-60. Solution: Give every MCC member who signs up a voucher for $150 worth of MFC merchandise, expiring by say Round 10. The result is $150 into MFC coffers (at the start of the season and therefore investable) less the cost of the wholesale product, say average $50 = net gain to MFC $100. And added bonus would be those who didn't cash their vouchers before the expirry date = $150 straight to MFC. I don't want another scarf or some ordinary tie, but would like to give my kid a jumper - ie I want choice. ps. I am a signed up MCC/MFC member