Supreme_Demon

Can't read it....bloody paywall! The question is....how does it effect the building of the Home Base for the Melbourne Football Club?

An F for Fail?! Ouch! A bit harsh, although a lot of truth in what was written. I would give us a D....for Disappointing and lots of outside Distractions that hindered the Demons. This whole Petracca drama that is currently unfolding is a D too...D for Debacle. The sooner all these issues are resolved the better!

As harsh as it sounds, I somewhat agree. We have gone backwards with our list management since our Premiership in 2021. Our list certainly isn't as strong as we expected it to be. We crowed too early thinking about a "Demons Dynasty" unfortunately. Tim Lamb is certainly under massive pressure now as Demons List Manager. I would definitely be making a phone call to former Magpies List Manager Graham Wright to see if he is interested in a new challenge before the Tasmanian Devils team arrives in the AFL.

Thank you for the link. Some fascinating reading there. While the Demons need to consider the long-term replacement of May (and Lever). I think midfield talent is the priority. Especially after losing Angus Brayshaw (and possibly losing Christian Petracca). The loss of Angus Brayshaw has probably made the most significant difference to us unfortunately missing the finals this year. People might have underestimated this factor, but I certainly didn't. We desperately need more high-end elite talent in our midfield. Particularly young players who are excellent kicks and decision makers. If we can somehow get 2 picks in the top 10 of this year's AFL national draft I will be over the moon! We can then allow Jason Taylor and the rest of the recruiting team to work their magic.

Will desperately need Shane McAdam early next season with Kozzie Pickett missing the first 3 rounds. Hopefully Jake Melksham stays on for another season or two as well. We will absolutely need his leadership in the forward line with Alex Neal Bullen going back to either the Crows or Power.

Really hope our list management team (Tim Lamb and co.) could pull off a bit of a draft coup for 2024. Along with pick 5# if we could get another 1 or 2 picks in the top 15 of this year's draft that will definitely set us up for the future. Alot will depend if we can do a deal to give points to Gold Coast. Especially as they need points for Leonardo Lombard. Take pick #6 and/or #13 would be pretty handy. I am also a fan of Xavier Lindsay. Here is a highlights video for those interested.

I won't go into specific details of the interview but former Demon legend Davud Schwarz is still very angry and calling for an external review of the Melbourne Football Club. Here is the interview: All I will say to David Schwarz is that if he really cares about the Melbourne Football Club then he needs to get involved at Board level. No point making criticisms from afar but not helping the Club and simply making complaints while hungover in radio interviews.

Pretty frustrating that this has been dragging on and on.... As Melbourne supporters and members we should be demanding a progress report and a timeline for completion of our Home Base at Caulfield Racecourse at the upcoming Melbourne Demons AGM.

I agree with David King too. Us Melbourne supporters and members aren't stupid. We know when we are getting spun lies and rubbish. We want to know the truth! We want everything to put on the table so that these problems can be acknowledged and a strategy put in place to resolve them. We also want to know who is going to be held accountable for these failures? Will President Kate Roffey finally make a public statement? Will CEO Gary Pert tell us what is really going wrong? If these problems continue to fester then there will be a significant downturn in Melbourne membership numbers next year too. This then ruins all the hard work of finally breaking our Premiership drought of 57 years in 2021. There is also the lingering issue of club culture and problems which cannot be mentioned here. All those legal matters too that have caused many distractions. Then there's the ongoing situation of our Home Base and what is going on at the Caulfield Racecourse. Has any significant progress been made yet? It just seems to drag on and on... It is time to be honest and fix these problems at the Melbourne Football Club. This starts with the Melbourne Football Club Board showing leadership and getting on the front foot to fix this mess.

No thanks to Tom Lynch. Too expensive. Too injured. Too old. Let Collingwood have him.

Josh Sinn from Port Adelaide we should be inquiring about in my opinion.

I might be laughed off by this suggestion, but due to the midfield talent available, I would offer Gold Coast (or anyone else in the bottom 8 to 10) our First Round pick for 2025. Especially as Gold Coast don't really need their first round pick to get Leonardo Lombard. They just need draft pick points. If we could get BOTH picks #5 and #6 in this year's draft it would be massive. We could take two of either.... Josh Smillie Sam Lalor Finn O'Sullivan Harvey Langford Murphy Reid Xavier Lindsay That would be an awesome coup similar to us getting Christian Petracca and Angus Brayshaw back in the 2014 AFL Draft.

No pressure on Kalani. Let the young fella play and have fun. Still another year or two of development. Hypothetically it would be a very special moment to see his Father Jeff White give Kalani the number 34# guernsey for the Demons and continue the proud tradition of the Father-son rule at the Melbourne Football Club.

Would be happy with any of the following young talented draftees.... 1) Josh Smillie - 194cms midfielder (Eastern Ranges) 2) Finn O'Sullivan - 182cms midfielder (Oakleigh Chargers) 3) Harvey Langford - 190cms midfielder (Dandenong Stingrays) 4) Murphy Reid - 180cms midfielder (Sandringham Dragons) 5) Jagga Smith - 181cms midfielder (Oakleigh Chargers) 6) Sam Lalor - 187cms midfielder (Greater Western Victoria Rebels) 7) Xavier Lindsay - 183cms midfielder (Gippsland Power) I think we should ideally target midfielders with exquisite kicking skills again. That should be our primary focus.

With Greg Stafford now departing the Demons, who should we look for? I definitely think we need a massive shake up of ALL our assistant coaches. Who is currently available or would we endeavour to try to recruit to the Melbourne Football Club? Here's a list of a few names that we should look at considering to get to the Demons. 1) Justin Leppitsch - has done some amazing work at both Richmond and Collingwood after his failed stint as Brisbane senior coach 2) Cameron Bruce - the former Demon has been assistant coach at Hawthorn and now Brisbane with quite a bit of success 3) Daniel Giansiracusa - has a impressive assistant coaching record at both the Bulldogs and the Bombers and might be looking for a fresh start 4) Steve Johnson - the former Cat was a very crafty forward and has done assistant coaching before. 5) Dylan Grimes - has recently retired from the Tigers and may be interested in being an assistant coach 6) Adam Simpson - the former Eagles Premiership coach might be interested in returning to Victoria and doing assistant coaching 7) Tom Hawkins - is about to retire after Geelong's finals campaign and may be interested in a new challenge at a new club 8) Nathan Buckley - is probably happy in the media, but it's always worth at least asking the question if he was interested in becoming an assistant coach again 9) Trent Cotchin - the champion Richmond Captain seems to be mainly doing media work, but it's always worthwhile at least inquiring if he wants to do assistant coaching 10) Brendon Bolton - is highly underrated due to being an unsuccessful coach at Carlton, has done great work at both Hawthorn and now at Collingwood behind the scenes Anyway, these are all merely suggestions. But I am curious to hear what other Demons supporters think we should look at targeting to bolster our coaching group to assist Simon Goodwin once the off-season starts after AFL finals. The primary focus should be to select high quality football people that will make the Demons a better team for next year.

Here are the expected delistings (and tradings)... 1) Angus Brayshaw - sadly forced to medically retire 2) Ben Brown - retired 3) Josh Schache - just not aggressive or competitive enough 4) Joel Smith - for reasons we cannot discuss 5) Alex Neal-Bullen - traded back to South Australia for family reasons 6) Lachie Hunter - unfortunately too many injuries 7) Kyah Farris-White - probably best to just play VFL and bulk up his body more 8) Adam Tomlinson - will probably ask to be traded to seek more senior opportunities 9) Tom Sparrow - he continues to frustrate me with the way he plays and I am not against trading him back to South Australia

If in the highly unlikely possibility that Josh Rachele from the Crows requests a trade to Victoria, then a trade with Alex Neal-Bullen and maybe a draft pick is definitely on the cards. It would be a massive boost to our forward line too. Dan Houston from the Power to the Demons is still a possibility, but maybe not as certain as it was a few months ago. Two first round picks for Dan Houston seems a bit over the top though! But yes, it would definitely be interesting to see who provides the better offer for Alex Neal-Bullen in either the Crows or Power and who actual needs him more? I suspect the Crows do.

It just goes to show how much the loss of Angus Brayshaw affected us. This loss cannot be underestimated. In fact, it left a massive hole in our team in a variety of ways. Especially, in regard to team structure, team strategy and team spirit. Then there's the off field dramas and various distractions. Many of which we cannot discuss. But definitely Clayton Oliver not having a proper full pre-season didn't help. Then you've got the problems we have in our midfield and forward line regarding connection. It goes to show why we were so desperate to try and get Harley Reid in the draft. Although, I have been happy with the development of Caleb Windsor and Koltyn Tholstrup. Plus the injuries to Petracca, Melksham (coming back from an ACL), Ben Brown, etc. The warning signs were there in the first loss to Brisbane at the MCG. The loss against Fremantle in the Northern Territory was humiliating. But I think we all knew that deep down the season was over as soon as Petracca got seriously injured against Collingwood. In the end, we will need to do a serious and thorough review of the entire football department and playing list during the off season. Ideally, I would like an external review, but I think it will just be an internal review. All, I hope is that it is done well and that the issues we have are identified and actions are put in place to resolve them.

Entire team: Soft as butter

We desperately need a smooth moving midfielder with excellent kicking skills. Our field kicking is still atrocious compared to teams like Collingwood and Sydney.

The biggest question to be asked is when are we going to stop letting Collingwood bully us? When will we stand up and fight back? Will Angus Brayshaw ever be avenged and Brayden Maynard put in hospital? An eye for an eye? Or will we continue to be laughed at as a soft and weak football club?

Losing Lever before the game with gastro didn't help. But still very disappointing to end the season in a whimper. Especially with so many vile and disgustingly obnoxious Collingwood supporters gleefully laughing at us. It's very difficult to respect the Melbourne Football Club at the moment too. We really have a soft and weak minded underbelly which needs rectified. I would of liked to see an all-in brawl and for Brayden Maynard the horrid thug to get knocked out. Unfortunate it didn't happen. At least Kozzie got Darcy Moore in accidental contact. A little bit of pay back for Christian Petracca at least.

We were as soft as butter against Collingwood. It was embarrassing. We still haven't avenged Angus Brayshaw and put Brayden Maynard in hospital. Until we grow some balls and learn to fight back we will continue to be walked all over by these thugs at Collingwood.

I also received the email regarding the legal issues between the MFC Board and Peter Lawrence. Seeing as the Court has now handed down it's decision, hopefully it is now over. It's disappointing it could not be sorted without legal action, but it is what it is. The primary focus for the Melbourne Football Club Board now should be to get the Home Base at Caulfield Racecourse up and running. If Kate Roffey and the Board can achieve it and get the Home Base built, then that will be an outstanding legacy for the Melbourne Football Club. It's time to stop being nomads and have a proper Home Base!

It will be interesting to see if the Crows or Power are keener on Alex Neal-Bullen. Dan Houston for Alex Neal-Bullen "seems" a fair trade. But it's probably not that simple. Especially as Port Adelaide want two first round draft picks for him, which is ridiculous. When it comes to the Crows there's a few players that would be worthwhile asking about. Jake Soligo and Zac Taylor would be possible options maybe. Especially as I don't see Josh Rachele leaving the Crows. As for the Power, if we can't get Dan Houston. There's definitely a few others worthwhile inquiring about. Such as, Josh Sinn (who I have been a fan of since his draft days), Miles Bergman, Dylan Williams, Ollie Lord or even Willem Drew.