bush demon

it's only a flesh wound...

We have had a total change of personnel - to replace previous personnel who were previously replaced - so it ain't something in the players' heads, it never was. I would go further and say if Luke Beveridge was at Melbourne or Alistair Clarkson was at Melbourne the team would be in absolutely no better position. The 'groupthink' on Melbourne in Victorian football is that we are a failed club. You can't buy the jumpers in kmart, kids don't support them in primary school and snide comments abound in the workplace. pLayers that make a difference won't come to Melbourne, and players who could make a difference and are at Melbourne say, 'they will get back to you' when it comes to signing on for long-term contracts. it's a bit galling to see footscray come out of nowhere and zoom right to the top of the ladder while we trudge through Yarra park after another never-ending loss, or listening on the tranny to yet another interstate thrashing, knowing that next year and the year after will be no different. we are subject to forces greater than us, the comp. can't really hold this many vic. clubs so our holding position is in the lower reaches of the table.

2002! Wow, that's a long time. I can remember gearing up for my third season, round one 1966 on my little boy radio. We were in the match of the day, and supposed to be bouncing back (re-build?) from '65 collapse. Alas the saints bolted in the second half and we win a paltry three games for the season. Had big hopes for 1967.

I would go further and say that the last ten years mark a new ratcheting down of the club. since 1965 we have become an ordinary average team with occasional good seasons. in the last ten years we have become serial cellar dwellars. if roos can get us out of there ie into the top 12, we should have a gala night at the melbourne town hall with free tarax and coca cola thrown in for the kiddies.

I was there in the 70's, and the southern stand had a deafening roar of demons, plus thumping and stomping when the Dees got a rattle on. Two great seasons were '71 and d'76. We had Alves Wells Flower which tops anything since. We had Dillon and Parke as forwards and we had the fantastic Gary Hardeman at centre half back taking massive grabs and spraying the ball 60 metres high into the air (lol). We were unlucky not to make the finals under Bobby Skilton ('76) and big Carl gave us some inspiring efforts when he took over as coach. the late 70's were lamentable, esp when dennis jones was in charge. otherwise, the 70's cacks all over the last ten years. DEMONS! DU DU DU DEMONS! DU DU DU. DU DU DU DU DU DU DU DU DU DU DU ...............DEMONS. Who could forget. That's when we had a fan base.

Amazing how North went to water against a team we dominated.

This game was the 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th quarters of the last time Essendon clobbered us on the G, albeit this time with their second XVIII. We were even sitting in the same spot. Essendon treated us as journeymen fools and could/ should have won by 50 points. I lost count of the set shots they missed.

Just going up the steps at the Punt Rd and saw/ heard Jeff Farmer take an absolute screamer in first 30 seconds, then miss an absolute sitter.

ironically he saved our bacon with a punch away after gawn handed it to gws

nhac i wouldn't mind Freo's win/loss ratio for the last two seasons, their fanatical crowds and i'm guessing, their bank balance.

Just want to see MElbourne of old. That means forget about neutral expressions through the coaching window. Goodwin needs to get a clipboard in one hand and point a biro in Hogan's face at the 3/4 huddle. He needs to get purple in the face. we need some theatrics and some emotion. i am over the mind numbing 'getting the process' right stuff. another poster said they knew we were in trouble when mcdonald started talking about going two-up. i knew we were in trouble when - i think it was Clayton Oliver - said he was told by the coaching fraternity at the club we were finally 'back on track'.

It's laughable calling them essendrug. i feel sorry for the essendon supporters who have been hoodwinked by certain administrators and coaches in their club. the whole club from supporters, past players and players play and support with a passion that we could only guess at. our players give the impression of being indentured labourers clocking on and off.essendon plays like they love football, we act like we army conscripts trying to push through the dardanelles. this roos-goodwin transition thing is starting to look far too cute and precious. whose game style are we running? the former or the latter, or a hybrid of neither? why was gawn not used more on their 'no.6'? daniher had free run wherever he ran. never the slightest attempt to run him under the ball, nudge him off the ball or double-team him. honourable exception to nev jetta for some of his efforts.

His limitation at the moment is his kicking range. has the mojo of a latter-day kelvin templeton. as such he won't lead out for shots from the 50. this boxes him in to the square allowing the defence to easily counter the bullocking which was so successful last year, and for Casey before that.

It's laughable calling them essendrug. i feel sorry for the essendon supporters who have been hoodwinked by certain administrators and coaches in their club. the whole club from supporters, past players and players play and support with a passion that we could only guess at. our players give the impression of being indentured labourers clocking on and off.essendon plays like they love football, we act like we army conscripts trying to push through the dardanelles. this roos-goodwin transition thing is starting to look far too cute and precious. whose game style are we running? the former or the latter, or a hybrid of neither? why was gawn not used more on their 'no.6'? daniher had free run wherever he ran. never the slightest attempt to run him under the ball, nudge him off the ball or double-team him. honourable exception to nev jetta for some of his efforts.

easy to blame Garland and McDonald all the time, BUT NO ONE running into spaces to provide options. this lack of t.e.a.m meant that the backs had to kick to 50/50's or try to pick off ridiculously difficult targets.

Sure sign of our 'culture' is the way we pander to Jesse Hogan. All this love and understanding about putting off his negotiations so he can concentrate on his run-up. Very afraid to say that he is looking like a one-trick, goal square pony. Or maybe just knows this is not the main game, his next contract is. If other less renowned full forwards had put in his non-contests they would have copped their usual spray; Pederson, Watts to name a couple. We should have lost today by 30-40 points. the ball was just catapaulting off our forward line all afternoon.

this. this. this. this. this. this. this. this. ps it's a wonder the afl don't mandate us singing 'the team of the white and the blue' for 'away' games.

For the common Essendon supporter who was held hostage by Hird's failure to negotiate an honourable, face-saving outcome for the club and the players now cast adrift. the competition needs Essendon, it doesn't need their 'what it takes' façade, whether it be supplements or king-hitting players in grand finals.

I used to watch him at Casey when he was much lighter and he moved fluently. And could kick over a jam tin.

Am referring to Walker's unorthodox bowling action. IMO Hogan has done too much weights and walks like a body builder this has made his running action too wobbly. He is trying to counter this with a 'tangled' release.

No wonder Jesse Hogan was given Maxie Walker's old number 1: they both bowl off the wrong foot.

Picked us for the wooden spoon = Mark McClueless.

Jealousy, schaudenfreude. The guy is an elite athlete, securing his life doing what he loves doing. He was put in an invidious position at Melbourne, and his manager should have handled it better.

"The mail" on Jesse Hogan: http://m.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/brad-hardie-west-coast-and-fremantle-in-2016-and-the-future-of-jesse-hogan-20160321-gnnyui.html

Buried in the NAB pre-season hoopla was mention of (another) Jimmy Bartel concussion. No wonder, the stakeholders of our great competition now rely ever more on the massive media dollars holding our pig skin up above the brawling, baying pack And that's only the spectators. What I want to know is, will Jimmy be offering his brain to medical science this season, post-season or someway into the future. Secondly, does the AFL have a brain, or at least a conscience? Somehow along the way, commentators - not to mention self-published internet authors - became obsessed with football as 'head over the ball football', with the disclaimer that any blunt trauma suffered could see a player 'base-lined', or as post-fact precaution, cotton-woolled from competition before leading their heads again into battle. Time for football as a true sport to assert itself. Get rid of the casual elbow, get rid of the head collisions and get rid of these manly discussions which uphold the more violent aspects of our great game. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/sports/wp/2016/03/15/nfl-stands-by-safety-officials-acknowledgement-of-cte-link-to-football/ http://www.news.com.au/sport/breaking-news/benn-robinson-reveals-shocking-xray-of-broken-nose/news-story/78e84b024b30573d28062122dc067172#itm=newscomau%7Csport%7Cnca-sport-plmnt-trending%7C1%7Csection-sport%7Cindex%7Cnrl&itmt=1458233900398