Supreme_Demon

I think Jack Viney would stay. He and his Father are part of the very fabric of the Melbourne Football Club. Plus I think Jack wants to get one up on his old man and win a Premiership for the Demons. Either way, we shall wait and see.

I think Jason Taylor has done a reasonably good job. Some hits and some misses. Need to draft more players who are good kicks and excellent decision makers though. Will need to focus on finding replacements for Jetta, Hibberd, Jones and another good quality tall forward. Will be interesting this year doing the drafting especially for Victoria because of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) situation so I think a lot of the later picks will be very speculative. Let's hope we can get a few smokeys that nobody else knew much about. We will have to wait and see?

Number #24 (Ian "Tiger" Ridley's and Russell "Robbo" Robertson's old number) is proudly being worn again by Trent Rivers. Let's hope he gets the nod for the Rising Star Nomination for this week. Trent Rivers certainly deserves it with an excellent game tonight for the Demons against the Giants.

That was a relief! A hell of a see-sawing game that was! Was very pleased with the young players Baker, Rivers, Pickett and Spargo. In the end, just happy we won and after celebrating tonight the players should be back to normal tomorrow and preparing for another must win game "elimination final" against Essendon next week. Gotta hope a few other results go our way too.

I thought Steven May played a great game tonight and thoroughly deserved winning the Sony Bravia TV for BOG (Best On Ground) from Richo on Channel 7.

I thought I should give my 2 cents worth on this topic. Firstly, I think Glenn Bartlett is doing the best job that he can. I want to see him finish what he started with building a proper home base for the Melbourne Football Club. However, it is correct that he hitched his Presidency on Simon Goodwin as coach by signing off on Simon Goodwin's contract extension. So that certainly puts him under pressure as well. However, I would like to see Glenn Bartlett continue as the Melbourne Football Club President. It doesn't matter if he is not a "traditional" Melbourne person and being originally from WA. The main thing is being passionate and wanting to help make the Melbourne Football Club become successful. As much as I personally cannot stand him, you would love to have a President as passionate and determined as Eddie McGuire is for Collingwood. Almost all the Collingwood supporters love him for doing what he has done for their club. Furthermore, I don't see him being replaced anytime soon. In an ideal world we would have a number of multi-millionaires and billionaires on the board of the Melbourne Football Club. Unfortunately, we might have some, but there are definitely others out there who seem to be too mean to contribute financially to the club. So it is up to us as regular rank-and-file members to help this club. I am proud that that so many Melbourne supporters have generously contributed to the club over the years and done what they have, particularly with the Debt Demolition campaign orchestrated by the late and great Jimmy Stynes a few years ago. Anyway, in hindsight, it would be wonderful to still have Peter Jackson as the Demons CEO but that isn't the case. He was a very popular and shrewd operator. Having said that, I am still willing to give Gary Pert the benefit of the doubt in his role as Demons CEO for the moment. What perplexes me is that I still don't understand the irrational hate towards Gary Pert? Particularly, as he hasn't had much of a chance to do what he has wanted to do due to having a horrible season with injuries in 2019 and the whole Coronavirus (COVID-19) situation for this season in 2020. As for former Demons player and ex Melbourne Cricket Club President Steven Smith (who is busy with his legal firm regardless) coming in to take over from Glenn Bartlett as Melbourne Football Club President. I don't think we need that kind instability at the club....a fair compromise might be for have a Melbourne supporter and MCC representative on the Melbourne Football Club Board perhaps? At this stage this is hypothetical and Steven Smith (if he changed his mind) would have to have a pretty appealing ticket to run against the incumbent Melbourne Football Club board. They would need to have some heavy hitters on their ticket with millionaires who will to contribute to the club, successful business people as well as maybe some other former players such as David Schwarz and/or Garry Lyon. They would have to guarantee an overall culture change at the club and also guarantee the building of a home base and make winning premierships the sole priority on top of this. Additionally, it would be nice to have at least one younger successful business person with passion and drive on the Melbourne Football Club board. There needs to be a very appealing alternative before considering voting out Glenn Bartlett and the current Melbourne Football Club board. Furthermore, I do agree that we need to have a good relationship with the MCC. But I will admit I have a bit of resentment toward the MCC. They are a very wealthy organisation and I know that things were "patched up" by Cameron Schwab when we reunited in 2009. But I feel like they do hold us in contempt and don't care about us. Historically, I feel that they haven't done enough to help the Melbourne Football Club to become great again and prefer to rely more on Collingwood, Richmond and Hawthorn to make their money at the MCG. Why not do more to make the Demons successful so that we can also have big crowds? Would it not be financially beneficial for both organisations? I think historically the MCC and the Melbourne Football Club used to be very close, especially up until the 1960s. But after that, things changed, especially with Richmond becoming a co-tenant of the MCG, and obviously the Melbourne Football Club wanted to become independent in 1980 but I understand that was because the MCC refused to give the Demons much financial support at the time. I think that the Melbourne Football Club deserved a bit better from the MCC, especially in the 1970s. A lot of mistakes were made in the past. Especially with the Demons not having their own home base (besides the MCG) and training ground until we got the lease at Junction Oval in 1981 when Rob Barassi returned to be the Demons coach. We also missed out on Olympic Park which was pretty stupid. Either way, it is important to keep on good terms with the MCC as they own the MCG and it is our home ground. Overall, Caroline Wilson was always expected to write this kind of article as it is easy to kick us while we are down. As others say, if you win games then you don't have to worry. Winning keeps everyone happy.

Yep...sadly Josh Mahoney needs to go too. Been in the position as Football Manager of General Operations for a while now. A total clean out of the football department means out with the old amd in with the new. This needs to be a well thought out process. We need to recruit the best of the best. i highly doubt Neil Balme would leave Richmond to come back to us. Not after we sacked him as coach in 1997. I am under the assumption there is still bad blood there. I would go all out for Brad Scott the former North Melbourne coach to be Football Manager of General Operations. Otherwise, someone from a recent Premiership winning club that has a good culture which is also ruthless and demands high standards. Alan Richardson could also be moved to that role if he is shifted from being Director of coaching Whoever we choose, they need to be a good quality football person who has a hunger to help us win a Premiership at the Demons.

Yes it looks the most likely. It is a more rational approach I guess.... I just think many of us don't want another year of misery and frustration in 2021. It will damage membership numbers as well as sponsorships. Plus I would like Alistair Clarkson to have at least 6 to 12 months away from football to have a holiday and return his passion and desire to coach again. He definitely looks tired and worn out coaching Hawthorn at the moment. A break will do him the world of good. Then he can start fresh at the Demons fully recharged and ready to go with a nice new football department as well.

Really like this suggestion. However, I still think we must get an experienced senior coach in Alistair Clarkson. Adem Yze can come across as an assistant as well as coach of of our VFL side the Casey Demons. This is because I still believe Adem Yze needs to coach a team of his own to have more experience. We definitely need good football people to help with our leadership and culture. Those who are winners and know what it takes to win Premierships. I would also look at getting Luke Hodge involved in a part-time role. Basically, any former AFL players with Premiership experience and wish to be coaches should be considered. Another priority is player development and that is why we need the best in the business in Mark "Choco" Williams. He is very keen to be involved with an AFL club again and would definitely jump at the chance of being involved with improving the Demons. I also like the idea of of keeping Alan Richardson as director of coaching and to assist in a more consultative role. Let him have more of an opportunity to have an impact on the club seeing as Alan Richardson has only been here 1 season so far. Finally we should look at Brad Scott as Football General Manager to take over from Josh Mahoney as he has had long enough and we need a fresh start. I also want Garry Lyon and/or David Schwarz to be more involved with the Melbourne Football Club again. Jason Dunstall and Dermott Brereton have balanced club involvement with media roles. Why can't Garry Lyon or David Schwarz? Basically, I want ruthless people involved at the club who demand high standards from all the players and want to constantly drive for success. In the end the Melbourne Football Club board needs to drive these changes and if they don't then we as members will replace them.

It has to be Alistair Clarkson. Nobody else. He is a 4 time Premiership coach. We missed out on Kevin Sheedy in 2008. We cannot make the same mistake again. Alistair Clarkson's days at Hawthorn are numbered. We can't risk another young and untried coach. Get Alistair Clarkson with Adem Yze as his assistant. Have a clean sweep of the entire Football Department. Give Alistair Clarkson a 5 year contract with free reign to do what he needs to do at the club. We need to start from scratch and build back everything at the club from the ground up.

A very frustrating game in the wet. Freo defended well and played smarter football. The Demons fumbled the ball too much and didn't take enough risks so we could have more scoring opportunities. Sadly I think Simon Goodwin is gone. If his head is not on the chopping block then it will be now. If the Melbourne Football Club board give him the benefit of the doubt for next season then the pressure on him will be immense. Time to start talking to Alistair Clarkson's manager and inquire if he would like a fresh start at the Demons.... The most disappointing part of it all is that it means it is yet another wasted year for the Melbourne Football Club. That's 56 years in a row now.... Either way, we need to make some fundamental changes at the club so we can have success.

Anyone gotta link to the segment on Fox Footy? I don't have it. I am interested in hearing what they have to say. No matter how unpleasant it may be. Either way, we need to face harsh realities head on and fix these fundamental issues with the Melbourne Demons DNA. Otherwise, this cancerous "soft as butter" mentality will kill our club. Demons President Glenn Bartlett needs to make some tough decisions in the near future. I like him as our President, he is different from traditional Melbourne supporters, being originally from Western Australia and played over 150 games for the East Perth Royals and 4 games for the West Coast Eagles. He also seems to have vision and wants to build our new headquarters. I hope he will show strong leadership when things need to either change or stay the same. I actually agree with Robbo that we should definitely give Luke Hodge a call. Fixing this weak culture will help with everything else we need to fix at the club and will allow us to start doing what we need to be doing which is breaking our 55 year Premiership drought. No point sugar coating our problems. We need to drive these changes at the club and support others that also want to do the same. We definitely need to listen to those who provide constructive criticism and look to reflect on ways to fundamentally improve the Melbourne Football Club.

Congratulations on 100 games Christian Petracca! You are having a wonderful year and I feel you can only get better if you keep up the hard work! The sky is the limit for you! I hope you get to wear a few premiership medallions around your neck for the Demons and I look forward to you playing another 200+ games for the club.

Yes, the Demons as an entire club has been mentally weak since 1965. We lost that killer instinct when we let Ron Barassi go to Carlton. The club had grown arrogant from it's success and had too many people on board level that were not willing to make radical changes. The whole of the 1970s was a waste for the Melbourne Demons. We tried to get back our killer edge in 1981 with the return of the prodigal son Rob Barassi as coach, but didn't have the talent. We basically had to build a list almost from scratch and we had to contend with nationalisation of the competition in the late 1980s. Overall, there is a fundamental issue with the Melbourne Football Club's culture and this needs to change. We had an opportunity to do that in 2007 but we foolishly ignored the opportunity to take on Kevin Sheedy as our coach and chose a "nice guy" in Dean Bailey (may he rest in peace). I am still bewildered as to why that huge mistake was made but maybe it had to do the the club being in a difficult financial position at the time and not being able to afford Kevin Sheedy? Either way, it was a sliding doors moment for our club and one that still irks me to this day. If anyone could shed light on this utter failure by the club that happened in 2007 with overlooking Kevin Sheedy as the Demons coach it would be greatly appreciated. Anyway, back to mental weakness. This is a big problem for us and this relates to our "soft as butter" culture. Paul Roos never finished the job in rectifying this issue. If you may recall he was only coach of the Demons for a mere 3 seasons compared to almost 9 seasons at the Swans. That was a lot longer to ingrain their "Bloods" culture up in Sydney. So here at Melbourne it was basically a band-aid fix to a bullet wound which really required in-depth surgery to take that bullet out and patch up the wound. Now we seem to have the same old problems of inconsistency in performance and lack of mental toughness coming back again. Take the disastrous loss to Collingwood in 2017 when a finals spot was on the line in the last game of the home and away season. Another example was the totally embarrassing thrashing by the hands of West Coast in the preliminary final over in Perth. A crucial finals game that should of been thoroughly reviewed but instead was totally ignored and denied. Why did Simon Goodwin sweep this game under the carpet?! As for 2019 the entire season was an utter disaster and a waste as well as one of the most disappointing in recent memory. As for 2020 we needed to play far better than we did against Sydney. We have a chance to redeem ourselves against Fremantle but if we lose this will be another season wasted and flushed down the toilet. In fact we must win all our remaining home and away games to be a chance to make the finals in 2020. I have faith that President Glen Bartlett and the Melbourne Football Club board wants to change the club's culture. The Coronavirus (COVID-19) has thrown a spanner in our works to sort out a proper combined administrative offices and football headquarters with a training oval. Nevertheless, if Simon Goodwin is not up to it ...and we keep having these constant disappointments...we need to go all out to try and get Alistair Clarkson as our next coach on a long-term deal. Preferably a 5 year contract. Alistair Clarkson's time is almost up at Hawthorn (with the likelihood of him surviving a rebuild very low) and if we can sell it to him to become the Demon's next coach and help us break our Premiership drought then he may relish this new challenge and fresh start. Either way, the toxic culture at our club needs to cease and this must be driven by the Melbourne Football Club board downwards. The mental weakness must end or our club will die.

Wow! An excellent effort! Great work there! As other's have said, I don't think they will realign the off-ramp sadly. I would like more room. So we could have a museum for the Melbourne Football Club as well as a social club area. I also think the indoor hall is a great idea but could also be 3 storeys high to include our swimming pool on the first floor as well as the gym. Lastly, I was going to ask if there was enough room to squeeze in a MCG sized oval in that area? Perhaps the small hill can be gotten rid of and just have more trees? What if you had an MCG sized oval at the top across ways and the 2 soccer/rugby pitches below the oval so there is more room? Obviously the walking paths would need to be changed as well as some of the trees but more trees could always be planted too? Nevertheless, a really great mock-up design and I could imagine the buildings painted dark blue with red vees similar to what Richmond have at Punt Road with their jumper style buildings. We could also have a bronze statue(s) of Robbie Flower and/or David Neitz at the facilities.

Good point. I agree. Nobody deserves anything. You gotta earn it.

Thank you, I appreciate the kind words. I totally understand everyone's frustrations. But we need to stick together. I remember how disappointing the year 1999 was. Especially after we beat Essendon in round 7 that year. I thought we were on the rise after that game....but we fell in a heap and ended up finishing 3rd last. 2019 was bitterly disappointing as well. Especially after the highs of 2018. Nevertheless, that has been very much dissected by all of us already. In the end...I won't give up. We deserve Premiership glory....but the team needs to earn it.

I apologise for this thread turning into a slanging match. That certainly wasn't my intention. I simply want to look at new ideas and possibilities to help the Melbourne Football Club become successful again.

I think besides the obvious of winning a Premiership the main legacy of Melbourne Football Club President Glen Bartlett and this current board is being able to sort out this issue of a combined football department, administration and social club headquarters for the Demons close to the MCG. The biggest issue is the feasibility of the Demons headquarters. Where should it be exactly? How much room is required to fit everything we need? Can we have a MCG sized oval? And most important of all, how much will a new Demons headquarters cost?

I understand that it failed. Which is why I asked about it because it basically went down the memory hole. But is it a worthwhile initiative to bring back the Demon Summit? Or best to make a better assessment at the end of the year? If not, that's fine. However, it is a bit disappointing to see so many negative comments. We need to be both realistic but also positive with our attitudes to help the Melbourne Football Club.

Firstly, does anyone remember the Demon Summit? I think Jimmy Stynes organsed it back in 2011 or 2012? I cannot remember exactly what year. Basically, it was a conference or "summit" to look at ideas and strategies to help the Melbourne Football Club to become successful again both on and off the field. At least I think that is what it was for? Besides, asking if anyone here at Demonland remembers it, I was going to ask if it was worthwhile doing again? We could do a Zoom video conference version of the Demon Summit this time? I certainly think it would be worthwhile doing again to see what we can do to help the team we love. It could be something done every 4 or 5 years (or every 10 years at the most) to look at new and clever ideas to grow the Melbourne Football Club and it would also increase members engagement with the Melbourne Football Club. Maybe combine it with our AGM as an option? Anyway, besides being a Melbourne Demons member and supporting the club that I have barracked for my entire I wanted to look outside the box for different ideas and strategies to make the Demons successful again. The more creation of new ideas and brain-storming we can do the better in my opinion.

I am hopeful both Daniel Cross and Max Rooke get re-employed by the MFC once things start going back to normal in the future. But we will have to wait and see I guess?

I definitely think Nathan Jones can play another 2 or 3 seasons. Definitely this shortened season and next season. It will be wonderful if Nathan Jones can break the most amount of games played for the MFC which is currently held by David Neitz with 306 games. Nathan Jones could be very handy playing on the Half-Forward Flank and occasionally thrown back into the midfield. He certainly needs to focus on his delivery inside 50 and goal kicking this year when season 2020 re-starts.

I heard about this. Quite interesting. I will reserve my judgement until after this upcoming court case.

We definitely need another tall forward. I am still keen on Sam Weideman but he needs to keep bulking up. We definitely need either Garry Lyon, David Schwarz or David Neitz back at the club teaching young Sam about forward craft. Additionally, I would look to approach Tom Boyd formerly from the GWS and the Western Bulldogs and see if he is interested in coming out of retirement. Does the hunger to play still burn deep down? Although he may not wish to play AFL any more. However, if his back feels better and his mental health has improved then a fresh start might be good for him? The other fundamental issue is getting more skilled players who are good kicks! We need to start drafting and recruiting players that are excellent kicks that can hit our forwards lace out on the chest.