george_on_the_outer

I was fortunate enough to say that I watched him play. For me he was the most talented person to pull on a pair of football boots for this club. You went to the game just to watch him. And you never knew whether he would kick 1goal 10 points or 10goals 1 point! The amazing thing was how many possessions he crafted from absolutely nothing. Just look through the list that BBP has provided. When did you last see a forward getting 16 or 17 shots on goal? Or with Jackovich, if he got 5 goals for the day it probably meant he only collected 6 touches. Such a great waste of talent, because he simply wouldn't do ANY work on the training track. Gary Lyon provides some insight in his book "Demon Within", and the frustrations of trying to convince him to get off his bum and train with the rest of them. He had the talent, flamboyance and charisma of Ablett, without the dedication, concentration and work ethic.

One of the great things about winning the pre-season cup is that it gives clubs who may not be in the main race to establish a winning culture. Gibbs and Murphy have already tasted success.....have Brock and Jones? There is absolutely nothing like winning SOMETHING. There are no positives to finishing 2nd,3rd.... When was our last success of any form? Yes you have to go back to the late 80's, which also coincided with a couple of serious cracks at the main event. The young players from then learnt something about winning, the feeling and the work required. It almost translated into the big prize. Finally, isn't it strange how one of the clubs who compete in the pre-season GF seem to finish in the end of year GF as well? And for our club the supporters would relish some show of positive hope at an early stage in the season, following the debacle of 2007 ( not to mention the financial stimulus ) One thing is for sure...North Melbourne will be going full tilt at it in 2008.

Spot on Rhino. Mergers are by far the most sensible option, but noone will stomach them. I was listening to SEN the other night when this first arose, and the most poignant call was from an old Fitzroy fan who wished that his club had relocated when it was first mooted. They didn't and then spent years being flogged on and off the field, before the skeleton of the side was finally taken over by Brisbane. He encouraged North to do the same, before their club died through uncompetiteness.

Check out the train tracks shot. Buckley second from the left...look at the size of the arms!

To play finals you only have to win just over 50% of your games. We were blighted last year by the Daniher "run and carry" debacle, that finally was exorcised with his sacking mid-year. How many games did that piece of stupidity cost us? We lost 3 games (North, Essendon, Bulldogs ) because the team was unable to hold onto a lead with less than 1 minute in the game to go. We were ultimately decimated by injury, and had Godders, Ward and Brown selected on a regular basis. So with the first 2 items gone next season, we can be knocking on the door. With luck with the 3rd we can be a lot better. Trouble is that the disaster of last season has scarred players and supporters. Can the new coach engender some hope? If we ARE to make it we need to see something bright and shining very early on in the piece, to bring the team back together and the supporters through the gate.

try this in the forum: http://demonology.midnight.net.au/Index.iH...amp;BoardType=0

No we will not be training on Gotschs paddock. There is a new oval to be built alongside our facility. Collingwood will share that with us. Until that time Collinwood has to train on the paddock, and when the new one is operational, they will have to walk past our home to use it.

There is NO relation between a clubs wealth and the ability to pay its players because of the salary cap. Each club is entitled to pay $6.94M to its players under the cap. How it distributes the money is up to it through the player contracts. However, NO club can pay below $6.38M ( 92% of the cap ). So the club paying the lowest amount to its players only has a "spare" $500K or so to throw at a Chris Judd type. A top paying club has ZERO. The fortunate thing for Carlton is that Koutifides and Lappin retired in a lowly side who would probably be paying toward the lower point in the salary cap. Those 2 players would probably free up $750K alone. Add the 500K for paying only 92%, and Judd can be paid $1.2M straight away. That is probably why Collingwood was not in the race either at the end. They would pay 100% of the cap and unless they could offload or "retire" some players ( say like Rocca ), they couldn't find any spare cash. And they are one of the richest clubs. The dangerous game for Carlton, is like what happened to Collingwood when they got Buckley, is that they now pay 100% of the cap, with a single player commanding 20%. How do they pay for any more players? How do they keep the likes of Gibbs, Murphy, Kruezer into the future as they command higher salaries? Or do they follow the Carlton tradition of rorting the cap again? But this time the AFL is keeping a very,very close eye on their activities, and I suspect they know it as well. So unless the addition of Judd to a team that finished last can create a Premiership in the very near future with the list that they currently have, then they are destined to wallow in the lower reaches of the ladder until he approaches retirement. Finally, the money that pays the admin and football department etc basically comes from you and me and the sponsors. The salary of the players is basically paid for by the AFL as part of their distribution to all clubs. If we want to improve our position off the field, it is up to YOU and ME!

I have just spoken with Tim_ about the problem. Unfortunately for Tim_ a tree had blown down from his neighbours and took out all his power and telephone connections ( and a bit of his house to boot!). So until my call he knew nothing, and was otherwise preoccupied with trying to keep warm in the cold weather we have been experiencing. I am attempting to call the ISP on his behalf, and hopefully we will get the problem sorted, prior to the Judd announcement.......

No horses running?.....I'll be there ( she who must be obeyed permitting )

Cooney is rapidly becoming a disappointment. A monster in the under-age competition, he stood out. Now that he has to play with the big boys, he isn't the matchwinner any more. Certainly will not get his own ball, and appears not to work hard enough for the team. Players in subsequent drafts have long passed him in terms of output. Is he Footscrays version of TJ?

and from Bealzebub: "Instead of constantly wrapping these guys in shiny shiny glitter, look at them in the cold hard reality of where we are and what they achive. pretend for a moment they were players from another team and critique them as such." Absolutely spot on both of you! It is about time this club and its supporters woke up and stopped the adulation of mediocre players. I know - it is a fault of all football club supporters, but to suggest that any of the players mentioned is untradeable is ludicrous. WE TRADE TO IMPROVE OUR LIST. If we don't our only avenue to improve is through wiser drafting. And don't pretend ( again like most myopic fanatics do ) that a fringe player at our club will be worth a 1st or 2nd round pick or that we can trade Wheatley for Judd. Apart from the fools at Richmond every other club has a strong recruitment and knowledge network. So let's get real....you can only trade something of value in the hope of getting something probably of equal value. However both clubs would be looking to fill a need in their own lists. And whether the myopics like it or not, our truly tradeable players are Bruce, Johnstone and maybe White. Sheedy had the guts to trade Salmon to Hawthorn years ago and with the draft picks got Lucas, Lloyd and Wellman. The result probably gave them the 2000 Premiership. He traded something special to fulfil the needs of his team. As others have said" have we got the cohunas to do the same?" And by the way if they can't win a Brownlow in our side this year, then they never will at another club. Remember Woey?

Bazza: firstly the Richmond fanatic ( Phantom from the Punt Road End )who tried for an EGM gave up when it was pointed out to him what it would cost his club. To others who think footballers are great Board members, I can't find any on the Sydney, West Coast or Essendon boards. And I think Brisbane and Adelaide are the same.....now when did another club outside that group last win a Premiership?

The kid is doing really well. He has a "footy" brain, is willing to run through the lines and despite an awkward kicking style, actually hits the targets. He is still skinny, but definitely has the body which will fill out. At the moment he is getting no help from others around him, including some disgraceful efforts from 2 of the senior players last week, he still hasn't dropped his head. In a couple of years we will be saying how glad we were to pick him up as a KPP when available in the draft. Richmond would give their right arm to have him on their list today.

Dean, while the club only gets 50% it is better than nothing. This arrangement means the club does not have to use volunteers or pay for people to do this job. It has meant a HUGE increase in income for the club from the "chook raffles" we used to run before on game day. However, I agree that donating to the club directly is a better outcome....providing you do that!

One of the early competitors in Big Brother was Millsy, who was reputed to have spent the night with Paris when she was here.

Nothing different that we did. Collingwood ran a huddle with NO outriders. As a result we had players who would break free eventually. Very, very different from what other teams have thrown at us.

I wasn't able to get to that famous match in '87, and I have only ever been to 1 AFL match at the Western Oval ever! That is despite all the nostalgia about suburban footy, the place was and still is an absolute disgrace. Let's remind ourselves about it: 1. A wing on the eastern side that was about 100M in a straight line, western wing not as bad, but the ground is not an oval. 2. Planks of wood holding the dirt in terraces around the ground, which became mud piles at the slightest hint of rain. 3. Toilets? were there any to be found. 4. Food? There was that horrible beer stand at the southern end 5. Parking? Non-existent 6. The Williamstown brass band for entertainment at half-time 7. The cheer-squad and their blanket at half time begging for donations No I have no nostalgia for the "good old days". They weren't all that good at the Western Oval. I do have fond memory of the peanut man who could throw a bag across rows of spectators...who would think of eating peanuts at the footy today?

The turnout is not all that difficult to understand. Count the Port supporters there, perhaps a couple of hundred? If every single Melbourne member had turned up we still wouldn't have got 30,000 through the gate. If we were playing another Melbourne side there would have been 30,000 there and not a single extra Melbourne supporter would have been needed to get that number.

Good News....the meeting with Clint is ON. 12.00 for a 12.30 start see you there, and last chance to join the group if you are not already in...... P.S. Tim H could you pass this on the Bernie again, thanks

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Hi everyone, We have been trying to organise a meeting with Clint Bartram, which will also serve to kick-start our season for 2007. We have a history of winning after these events, so we thought now was the best time...... Anyhow, we have contacted the club and are trying to organise a get together this Sunday at 12.00 at the Mountain View Hotel, Bridge Road Richmond. ( upstairs bar ) Problem is that Clint has gone home for a couple of days to Geelong, and the club will not be in contact with him until Friday. So at this point we are asking that everyone "pencil in" this as a meeting, and we will have a definitive answer on Friday, when I will e-mail everyone who has signed up to date. For those yet to sign up for the 2007 sponsorship, this will be the last opportunity, so hope to see you there. Tim....could you let Bernie know about this....thank you

Agree Classy Dee.....and Browns injury is probably a corkie....another collision injury. It is also amazing how TJ is now supposed to have a hamstring problem, right after he had x-rays for a broken hand. Whelan is another that I would question as he left the field after bumping Sandilands and came off second best. Opposition players can't target a hamstring but they can "test out" a shoulder or hand if they know about it.....

I saw a fair bit of the pre-season training when Alwyn was with us. Not ever did he do anything in any of the sessions that I saw, that would warrant even a rookie spot. He was ( and probably still is slower than Flash ), didn't seem to have any enthusiasm about what he was doing, and not surprisingly was passed over. Not only by us, but by 15 other sides as well...including Essendon! He went back to the SANFL where he apparently excelled for the season, and Essendon took a big gamble in selecting him. He is an obvious standout in a side of sloths and oldies. Will he continue to shine, when other sides take notice of his performances...we'll see... But even though he is doing well with the Dons, do we really need another small crumbing forward in our side? Better the selection used on a promising mid or a KPP, as we did last year.