sue

Surely the AFL can't do this retrospectively? It goes against natural justice. It would be like announcing that if you had 3 jay-walking fines in the last 5 years and got another one next year, you would be jailed. If you knew the newly announced consequences, you might have been more careful to not jay-walk all those years ago.

I'd be a little more inclined to believe that the location of Casey is not an issue to players if about the first thing Goodwin said when sacked was to express relief he didn't have to travel there any more.

Might be true. But maybe they are in no position to insist. Let's hope.

They probably thought the same about playing us. But it makes sense to play teams in a similar state to your own.

Very good. But to seriously treat the issue of "why does he bounce the ball after only a few steps": I expect it gives a little time to steady, look ahead when not yet under pressure and then take a full 15 before the next bounce or disposal. Of course it could also just be a bad habit.

OD, there are ways of making tunnels that are not ditch & fill. But as many earlier posts state, there are other ways of getting players across the track without a tunnel. I prefer shooting players out of cannons. We'd have massive crowds at training sessions. Now maybe your last 2 sentences are true - but all we can do from the outside is guess if that is true. And then guess whether their supposed opposition would be enough to scuttle things. But I see no point in guessing on the gloomy side at this point.

Sadly those here sufferring from MFCSS will instantly believe anything negative without checking the facts. To be fair, unless one has detailed knowledge about the operations of the racecourse, it is difficult to check the facts.

I was half joking when I suggested a bridge, but as others posted, if for some unimaginable reason a tunnel is impossible, a retractable/swingable bridge doesn't sound silly. Well, really a walkway rather than a bridge. It doesn't have to be more than 30cm above the turf - a couple of steps at each end would do. But even that sounds unncessary. I gather the weights of players are no longer publised. But I suspect our players weigh less than iron-shod horses. 40 blokes crossing the track a few times a week can surely be managed to ensure no rabbit run develops across the track.

how did you arrnage that PF?

I'm no engineer, but I can't for the life of me see why construction of a tunnel would mean no racing for a year no matter how it was done. But if true, how about an overpass - extra exercise for the players going up and down.

I didn't see anything in the email from the club about Kayo showing the game tomorrow vs North? But the mail I got was a bit of a mess and semed to link to mfc website). WIll it be on Kayo?

It would provide some substance to Cornes self-congratulatory remarks if he had mentioned a club which had internal issues and admitted them to him. There are 3 possibilties: A. Club has no problems, so says 'all is well' B. Club has problems and still says 'all is well' C. Club has problems and tells the world. I expect the number of cases of C can be counted on the fingers of a mutilated hand. But picking on MFC is his hobby.

I'm not into booing. But I'm in some stage of grief because I can't bring myself to watch the 2021 GF.

I wonder if it be a tactic for less-agile rucks to run over the line to contest the ball and clean up the jumping ruckman early in a match. Gives away a free but have the jumping ruckman hesitating for the rest of the game.

Impressive.

If that is true, who would ever trust the word of the AFL again. Come to think of it, I don't trust them to run a fair competition which should be their most basic principle, so I wouldn't be surprised.

That sounds like having it both ways. Looks like we dodged a bullet in the end.

Not true. I gave a reason in an earlier post. You may think it is not a great reason, but ...

The difference is that in a practice match players are playing with their teammates to practice team tactics etc. Whereas that can't happen tonight. So the loss of a player tonight results from a risk with no value for the team unlike the same risk in a practice game.

True, but it occasionally breaks news (for me at least) e.g. Greene's injury.

I asked AI what should MFC do to win the premiership this year. Response appended, but I am surprised it doesn't recommend infecting all opppo players with a lingering disease. Melbourne’s best path to a 2026 flag is to double‑down on their contest/defence DNA but fix their ball movement and forward-half efficiency, while aggressively refreshing the list and game plan around that core identity. 1. Clarify list build for 2026Lock in the genuine A‑graders as the untouchable core, then be ruthless around the edges (fringe talls, depth mids, small forwards) so every best‑22 spot is either star power or clear system role. Use list spots freed by recent delistings to target two areas: a powerful marking forward who can play high and a two‑way small forward who applies frontal pressure and finishes chances. Prioritise draftees and VFL‑developed players who already show AFL‑standard decision‑making and speed, not just “upside,” to impact in 2026 rather than a long build. 2. Fix ball movement and inside‑50 connectionKeep the strong contest base but move away from slow, predictable long bombs; aim for a more aggressive handball‑receive and overlap run style that was a strength when Melbourne played well. Systematically train forwards and mids on leading patterns, shallow entries and hit‑up kicks to 35–45m, rather than constant deep dumps that made scoring inefficient in recent seasons. Build repeatable mechanisms for exiting D50 (shorts, switch, corridor burst) so they arrive inside 50 with time and separation rather than under pressure and outnumbered. 3. Sharpen contest and defensive systemMaintain a top‑tier stoppage and clearance profile, using ruck dominance to control field position and time in forward half. Drill a “layered” contest structure: one layer at the ball, one at the fall, one holding shape defensively so panic doesn’t collapse the zone and expose the backline. Emphasise fast defensive transition after turnover, with forwards responsible for immediate pressure and denying easy exits to avoid being sliced on rebound. 4. Game‑day strategy and flexibilityGo into 2026 with clearly rehearsed Plan B and Plan C: e.g., a faster, corridor‑heavy mode when chasing, and a territory/lock‑in mode when in front. Be willing to change match‑ups and structure early (swing a defender forward, extra behind the ball, tag hot mids) instead of waiting until games are effectively gone. Use the VFL (Casey) as a tactical laboratory, running the same systems so call‑ups slot seamlessly into roles rather than being “just depth.” 5. Culture, cohesion and preparationLean into the player‑led leadership and connection that drove the strong VFL second half of 2025, and replicate that environment at AFL level. Run a demanding but targeted pre‑season: high focus on repeat efforts, defensive running, and skill execution under fatigue to support a high‑tempo style. Set non‑negotiables around effort, defensive buy‑in and role discipline; selection and contracts should reward players who consistently execute the system rather than just talent. If you want, I can sketch what a best‑22 and specific role tweaks for 2026 could look like based on their current list and VFL performers.

I expect I am in a minority of 1 (or maybe 2) but I don't see the point of these sort of 1/2 time shows. While some artists may have a big following, a lot of people attending an AFL GF might prefer other music (or even hate what the AFL has chosen). But there is one thing people attending an AFL GF have in common (leaving aside some in the corporate boxes). Guess what that is. They like footy! How about 20 minutes of some footy related competitions beyond a sprint. Surely the geniuses at AFL HQ could think up some entertaining comps involving players, goalposts and a few footballs.

I wish he would (but doubt he would).

I think you only have a limited time after making the post to edit it.

You don't get to where King was at Geelong without being experienced and familiar with what a coach does. So if you want to nitpick, perhaps I should have said 'an experienced person in coaching circles'. He was even interim coach at GC for 7 games and his cv indicates he has had more senior coaching related experience than probably anyone here. And sure, if anyone makes a blunder, its a blunder, uppercase or not. In the absence of independent evidence that King is blunder-prone, I'd assume he did not make such a blunder given the circumatnces I outlined. As I said it was of course possible Oliver was given the Casey ultimatum since we had no direct evidence either way. I just doubted it. As for May, ageing players during a rebuild are always going to be told that as part of caring remarks such as "maybe you should look somewhere else". His circumstances were different than Oliver's so it doesn't add much weight to our guesses as to what was said to Clarrie.