beelzebub

Possibly the most logical thought regarding him. He has his moments...has his fades ( not alone ) Definitely among the elite thinkers with the ball. His vision is exemplary. Doesn't always get the desired result. He might find selection getting even more crowded at Melb. So he might well pull the trigger.

You know what... maybe own it. Maybe some humble mea culpa. He's the bloody head coach... Maybe " we stuffed up... we need to do much better ... " Maybe ... "an opportunity lost etc" He needs to understand its on HIM HE guides the ship... onto the rocks again...and again. 21 is history. He's letting things slip. He totally ballsed up the Grundy fiasco and even when the opportunity to do something a bit maverick presented.. he squibbed. He's an employee...he's accountable... to US !!

Go well and good luck Brodie. I personally think you did your level best in the circumstances. I also believe the club totally stuffed this up from day one...and right through. Not Melbourne's finest hour(s). This could have played out much better. Certainly shows which camp has no capacity for lateral thinking. We're not that clever at times...especially when we think we are.

We stuffed up

All very good... And all too late. If you dont think he's not answerable to 70k odd disenchanted ... well...

A good 3 to 4 years probably. Ideal.

Grundy wasn't si much a mistake...though i can only agree an argument can be made ( a la rpfc ) that we never should have entertained it...better other options/deals. But , imo, where we truly [censored] up was not reappraising where we were and the talent on offer and rethinking how to use. Exhibit A .. the last game .. We needto be far more astute and inventive.

They were argy bargy from the get go. We dont have nearly enough mongrel . We get dudded every single time. No prizes for being nice

exactly

as would I....but is it a peculair scenarion then.... Dew was set to get the top job until nobbled by Colless...

I think there was a period of greater delegation but not so much into the finals and /pr esp this year I guessing.. Not saying the OOze isnt professional but he's human.... Might not have been 100% focused on us...what is...is.

As such good. Doesn't guarantee him anything. Will still have to earn spot. Just means he's one of a pool to draw upon. I read it as nothing more than that tbh.

For those that have not already done so I highly recommend, ne implore you to read @george_on_the_outer report "Learning or Burnings" @Dr. Gonzo et al Defence. Without doubt the standout quality of our teams playing. Has kept us in many a game where quite possibly we should have already been put to the sword. Yep , we're getting this right. We need to groom replacements for down the line. A++ Midfield...Here I have a quandary....as the talent on hand ( brilliant ) when combined imo simply doesnt equal the results we get...or should get. We should be clearing oput of the middle like we did in that Granny far more often than we do. For all of Max's work and the abilities of the mids.. I just don't get it..Something NQR about us there.. but thats possibly just my take.. We do well , but are we getting it right ?? Give it a C..it passes..thats all.. Forward line.... I'm seriously tempted to simply reply...WHAT forward line. We have any number of Forwards though lack a few key elements there. The composition and effectiveness is somwhere between abysmal and adequate.. Anyone who sees this as anything far short of a dogs breakfast half the time has very powerful red and blue glasses on. We need a new coach here, we need an entirely different approach ...I can only suggest actually playing attacking forward footy instead of employing fwds to be defenders in our own arc might be a start. A lot of work here. I concur Tmac ( disappointing ) and Benny should probably concentrate on their futures. We thankyou for all youve done. Be proud Forward Line F We have a coach who did indeed leaad us to a flag. Thats to be appluaded and yep, thankyou very much. That was then , this is now......right now we're trending backwards. Many a selection ,gameplan etc has left more than me just a little perplexed. For someone who seemed active in thinking and doing outside of box tactics he ()SG) seems firmly rooted inside a very limited design. There is practically NO team more predictable than Melbourne.. I disagree with how sound our gameplan is... it once worked quite OK... it is now used AGAINST us...What made us inpenetrable now can be our achilles heel. Our accuracy is a steady line declining through the year. We HAVE had the opportunity....ahh but that barn is elusive eh... Something I think needs to change is the total bias on defence. Thats all we do really defend. Doesnt matter where on the ground we seem focused on defending...defending space, territory. Don't let there back get the ball oout etc etc. Ostensibly there is sound rationale to this, but it ought to be the second string..not the first..Once you pass teh square on to the goals is about ATTACK, it's about forward patterns, skills,craft. In short it's about kicking GOALS...... nothiing more really as thats the whole point of the game. Ouur game needs to flow, it needs to transition fromnegative to positive as it moves down the field. We need some line coaches. Only defence is working. Will be interesting to see who does , or wants to come on board. Will we be pragmatic enough to let Stafford go?? I do wonder...I have to think that Simon is quite ok with him....otherwise surely there would have been many changes already...but we still play mainly as we always do. A major concern for me. It worries me that glaring in abilities seem to go on unchecked/unchanged. It is easy enough to suggest that we are there or there abouts having only lost by small margins. That to me only masks over the cracks . We've had ample opportunites. All four finals were there to be one...and we managed to LOSE all of them. It's often rolled out that we have the ideal gamestyle for finals footy.. guess what ; we DONT. I would have thought last years debacle was sufficient lesson to spur us on this year.....and now they're saying exactly the same...for next year. Meh.... It looked like we choked..If thats the case...then why...and thats another thing we aren't getting right. Off field. Memeberships up..Fantastic...and maybe a home...well when that becomes a definite...another 'Fantastic' Yes it is arguably hard to finish top 4 ...or win multiple Premierships.. but..if we look at the Cups just this Century: 2000 Ess 2001 Lions 2002 Lions 2003 Lions 2004 Port 2005 Syd 2006 Eagles 2007 Geel 2008 Haw 2009 Geel 2010 Col 2011 Geel 2012 Syd 2013 Haw 2014 Haw 2015 Haw 2016 Dogs 2017 Rich 2018 Eagles 2019 Rich 2020 Rich 2021 DEES 2022 Geel I think it's fair to say that some clubs took full advantage of 'windows" being open Not us, but we are getting very good at just staring out of them.

You've nailed it

A bit there.. ill reply later. Cheers

Ill play devils advocate. Not being a pedant, but genuinely curious. In your view....what DO we have right ? ( not for a moment suggesting there's nothing right )...but what is ??

Ask yourselves this question. What good is it really changing all the line coaches ( though of itself not a bad move ) if the guy devising " the plan" is the same ? Defence is good.. could still use refinement Without doubt the forward 'whatever' is dysfunctional at best or simply shambolic. Needs major work. The midfield.. we have talent but it's not the clearance machine it ought to be All that aside if we maintain our current style.. it'll be same same The thinking of ol' S.S. Simon has to change otherwise changing coaches is just deckchairs... Let's hope we get a vastly better output from the F.D . In 24 we're going nowhere

Probably didn't review........

He was there.

It was a warm evening ,the 28th Dec 1964. Dusk had come and gone as passengers disembarked the FairSea at Port Melb.. Many families made their way to the special liveried Dog box Swing Door Train that awaited us 10 pounders. We were picked up by distant rellos. This 5 year old wee lad had no idea that evening about Footy, who Melbourne were or who "Barassi" was. That was all to change the first day of school the following year. I won't bore you with the full story of that as has been told a few times. Suffice I became a Dee and started my footy journey in that schoolyard. My first bit of kit was a Melbourne jumper... my mum knitted that. That was done in those days. I needed boots. A rather.."quirky" Sports/ Hardware ( opposite Malvern station) was visited. I became the proud recipient of a pair of "Ron Barassi" leather boots .. not the 'plastic things'... yes they did exist. These were Black leather with wooden stops. A far cry from the soft slippers worn today. I floated on air and beamed widely.. I had Barassi Boots... what could be better. Later , much later,indeed this century, i was asked to attend and participate in a number of MFC think tanks. We were divided into small groups...each with a mentor/ facilitator. I drew the man himself. They were interesting times and the great Barrasi regaled his times at the club and offered his understanding of the malaise that then beleaguered our club. They were interesting sessions. He genuinely seemed to take on board many of our thoughts. Subsequently i believe some fruit was borne of those talks but for me the greatest takeaway was to get an insight, if brief, as to what made him tick. Barassi, for mine, shares a distinct quality with that which adorns our Coat of Arms. Neither a Roo nor an Emu can take a backward step. Ron didn't either. He struck me as not only someone who attacked things with passion and gusto but not affraid to make mistakes. Life to lived... don't go wondering. Ron, I only got to meet and speak with you but a number of times but always felt I came away better for them. Im not convinced you'll "rest" wher'ere you are as I'm sure you'd much rather get a game happening. And I'm absolutely positive you'd be wearing a Red and Blue guernsey... 31 on the back. You're a Champion. All Demons should play like you, fearless and determined. Ronald Dale Barassi. Legend RIP

Before i ride off into a beautiful Spring day and shutter up Dland until next season I wish to pose a question. And I ask it in all seriousness as I'm increasingly unable to pinpoint the answer. We DO have elements of a very good game. But elements only. Our defence is stoic. Not much to do there bar find the ongoing replacements. Our mids are individually a very talented brigade.. but we lose a lot of clearances ( effectively). Other teams often better at working with our rucks than we are.. Bizarre really. Our fwd line.. hmmmm. Yes that forward line. Then there's the glue that binds... ball movement. Occasionally slick, often haphazard and seemingly futile approaching that.....fwd line. Now.. it would seem to this observer, in the cheap seats,that S.S.Simon is quite content to delegate...to his 'line specialists' of which it's glaringly obvious some know what they're doing...others not so much. Now, that question. It may seem glib to some but i ask it as there are so many areas we fall down, there is so much disconnect and uncertainty in scoring structure and application that i continually ask myself how can this be. It all stands out like the proverbial. It has done for years....and it's still there. So... What does Simon Goodwin actually do?

Yep.. thanks Brodie. You handle yourself with class and aplomb. Good luck.

I agree Putrid maybe over critical Less than affective...yes

Not according the win to the maggots.... but maggots they were...well 2 especially. Some decisions were unwarranted and game affective. Just is.

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