iv'a worn smith

Read my lips. Neeld should not shoulder all the blame for where we currently find ourselves, but in the current market, we must be seen to be doing something. We cannot wait another 3 plus years for a discernible improvement. Any business needs to protects its revenue base. If you reckon we are doing that now, then I must be in the wrong business.

You can editorialise as much as you like Bossdog, but that is not what I said.

Which bit don't you get? Of course the AFLPA wanted free agency. No secret there. The difference is, whether a player wants to stay at a club or not. Let's say all of the players named go. What do they take with them? I can assure you, they take more than just talent or even a lack of it. If you think, in our current position, the football world is going to sit idly by while we contemplate our navels yet again, then you are sadly mistaken. People can malign sports journalists on here as much as they like, but they can't all be wrong. The football media universally condemn us. That cannot be good for current and future sponsors, let alone maintaining and attracting an on-going membership/supporter base. Many Foundation Heroes and Debt Demolition contributors are right royally [censored] off right now. The well is getting deeper and becoming dryer as we kangaroo the wallaby. Adversity provides opportunity. For goodness sake, let's not miss it this time.

"Five years to fix, no matter the coach, which bit don't you get?" "Sat", you might find this hard to believe, but I am no dill. I understand the realities of the market place. I have said many times on here, no coach will bring Nirvana to us. But we need to be seen to be doing something. A new face, new ideas, a new way of selling the message can do remarkable things, in terms of reviving what appears to be a carcass. "BIFF is back that should make it more attractive weve been marginalised for years anew coach wont change that" Sorry, but I am not dwelling in the past, but looking to the future. I'll say it again, Mark Neeld should not shoulder the entire blame. There needs to be a complete overhaul of the FD. But if we continue on the current path, we will lose experienced players, who will want out of this toxic culture and grasp at a chance of playing finals or even a premiership before their career ends. We then lose our core once again, erode the very fabric of this footy club, continue not to develop the stocks we have internally and the spiral will see us disappearing up our own ought. Simple as that.

Precisely why things have to change and quickly. We are marginalising ourselves in the market place. The MFC needs to be seen as an attractive place to be. Clearly, we aren't at the moment.

We do business in an 18 team market. 2 of them are so-called "expansion" teams with concessions given to them by the AFL, which you could drown in. The big 4 Victorian teams are cashed up and ready to pounce on free agents or for that matter, buy out a targeted player's contract - see Frawley. That is not to mention the cashed up WA teams. With this stark reality, we have to be seen to be moving in a positive direction. The "market" certainly does not see us that way. Effort and commitment is what we need to see and we just aren't. As I have said before, we cannot afford the luxury of persisting with re-build after re-build. We and the football world need to see discernible improvement. We are realistic enough to understand that with the current list, we will not threaten finals for sometime, but commitment, accountability and demonstrated effort is the very least you would expect from any AFL team. As for expectations!!!!!!!!!!! Just read the litany of comments from MN's own mouth since he has been at the MFC. He built the expectation. As paying members and supporters, it is not unreasonable for us to believe we would see tangible improvement. We are in fact in reverse at present.

Where is the evidence? Sorry, but just look at the scoreboard and the stats.

See my second post above.

Also, I reckon even some of our guys would look good with the likes of Beams, Ball, Swan, Pendlebury, Goldsack and Welligham helping out.

If we ever make a Grannie, I would love to have him. Unfortunately, by that stage, he may be on his gold card.

No it doesn't. We get smashed on the clearances. Sure, Daisy is a great link man, but if you are not getting the ball out to the so-called spread players, it doesn't matter how talented your link man is.

Yep, but we have to get it out to him first.

We need inside midfielders with grunt and pace. As good as Daisy's skills may be, he is not an inside mid and plays a sweeping role between the HB and HF arcs. Word is he won't play again this season, so he might now be chronically injury prone. Don't want to go down that path again. There will be some kids up north who will be home sick. I would be looking more closely at them.

Que?

Regardless, we still have gone backwards.

so 21 months is not unreasonable but let this post stand long enough and the statistic family will come out of the woodwork in droves with more figures than you can shake a stick at 21 months is very unreasonable when the team is actually going backwards. And your criticism of those who dare to challenge Neeld's performance does imply that you consider our current situation is unique, as you continue to defend the indefensible.

My weekend was fine, except for a few hours on Sunday afternoon. Very nice of you old chap.

So the MFC is unique? Unlike any other team in the AFL, we are immune from scrutinising the coach, because of a set of reasons, which no other AFL club has or will experience.

Harsh, but so painfully true. However, while I believe Neeld should go, I do not believe he is solely to blame. I think he inherited the culture which currently exists and has not been able to deal with it. But for those apologists for Neeld who believe in a re-build of a re-build, put our meek performances down to an inadequate list, who think we can survive a full 5 years of a so-called plan, that is at best obscure, then I ask you to take this on board. If we continue on the "5 year" pathway, we will be consigned to oblivion in today's current market. If you are happy to take that risk, then you do not comprehend the realities of today's football world, which is being run more and more on tried and true business models. Simply, we can no longer afford such a luxury and we need to be seen as at least having a red hot go. As others have said, right now we are perceived as the biggest joke in the AFL. I for one will not tolerate a tail spin into oblivion and can't, in all good conscience, keep putting my hard earned into a club which will not even recognise its gross inadequacies. I am more than willing to put money into the club, if I can see some substantial and identifiable contingency plan put in place. That some take consolation from 6 goal losses, simply because that loss was not as catastrophic as previous losses in 2013, then we are indeed at a very low ebb.

I didn't say he did. That was my word, but the import of his message has the same meaning.

Epiphany!!!!! The difference between Neeld's "silly" statement and Hinkley's is that Neeld read his from a prepared and written speech he delivered to the faithful at last years B&F. This was not some off the cuff, thinking out aloud comment.

Mate, if I said what I really thought, in plain English, I would not be on the forum for much longer I reckon,

Seems he's not on his own in the football media world. Of course, they're all wrong so we should not be worried about anything they say.

Uggghhh

Sorry, I am obviously dumb. My argument about Neeld and the worth of keeping him, is not based on one statement he made. The statement you refer to, is to me, only but one symptom of the ailment, not the cause of the overall malaise.