jnrmac

Last time we played these goons in the final round of the year was 2024. The Daicos boys had 80 disposals between them I'm tipping there were no useful learnings for the Demons brains trust..... A similar game style to the Hawks so expect the same

CPs aren't the stat they used to be. Post clearance possession is more important. And i50s don't mean squat anymore. The Pies won the i50 count by 34 (!!!) against the Crows - although it helps when you are allowed the throw the ball to your teammate. Have a look at how fast Hawthorn transitioned the ball against us. We were better in the last 3 qtrs but they cut us with their precise kicking and sticking their tackles. Something we don't seem to be able to do. I really do hate their smugness and will be happy to see them fall flat in finals.

That doesn't stack up. We have had 5 losses under 10 points (coll, GWS, Dogs, StK, Carl). Should have beaten Ess and North (and St Kilda twice!). That makes us competitive with finals teams. The players are clueless about game plan, particularly with ball in hand. Watch the game on the weekend. The number of times we had players take a mark and then go backwards despite having a player up the field in a decent position was infuriating. We consistently bomb the ball to contests in the pockets. There is so much wrong with our game plan. Their brains are fried trying to implement Simon's game plan. A new coach will change the dynamic and free them up significantly. We still have 15 premiership players on the list. They're not total spuds. They are totally bereft of confidence and instinct. A new voice is exactly what we need.

'Clearly' Must be true then

Just watched 15mins of that qtr. Demons playing all over the Hawks. They look switched on with high pressure football and decent disposal Not something we are used to seeing. Great stuff

Talk about being specious - Clarkson is not coaching a premiership list. You defend Goodwin to the death yet its beyond doubt the last two years are some of the worst football we have played for a decade Get rid of the blinkers Simon. Its all over for you.

This We need a total revamp of who plays where and how we play.

I'll start by saying Max is phenomenal but it's also a major reason we're no good Our midst have been useless for a few years and one of the reasons is the Max is generating these kinds of stats. Our miss rely on Max too muchto do grunt work they should be doing And Max should be kicking less. When he gets it it should've be hand balled to a distributor that can kick like Bowey We have an unhealthy reliance on Max

This has been an issue for a long time. We simply do not kick to the 30-40m area in front of goal. We have been drilled for years to bomb the ball to a pack or the fwd pocket to try and minimise turnovers

Collingwood won the i50s by 34 and lost Winning the i50s is becoming irrelevant

The opening goal gifted to the hawks was a disgrace. All the players said it was touched. But no camera angle Fix this miss you morons at the AFL

Clearly operating to instruction to kick backwards. We refuse to kick it forward and take the easy hit up kicks. Jesus H Christ could coach this mob and they wouldn't win a game playing like this.

Missed tackles dropped chest marks What a complete rabble

I have counted at least 8

So obvious how they play. Fast movement, we go backwards Pathetic

What a clown show, turnover city broken tackles and Gunstan FFs

7 current coaches have won a flag and I think 17 separate coaches since the year 2000. Not sure it is a rare as you think.

On balance I think so too but I still have doubts. He has 'failed' on both counts before.

I think many confuse support for the MFC with support for individuals. Individuals come and go. But he club remains regardless and its that we ultimately support. I think you're misguided about the post premiership celebrations. The first premiership in 57 years Away from melbourne where we were in lockdown missing out on the live game, the gf parade, the post GF party etc A great opportunity to share the cup with tens of thousands of supporters across the State that have worn pain almost like no other club - the stories of Alan Richardson driving past houses with Melbourne flags and randomly stopping to go and say hi with the Cup were fantastic A great opportunity to cement the next generation of Dee supporters - remembering we have one of the lowest Auskick representations and support amongst young people generally Totally understandable. And if anything the players were too focused on driving standards/performance in 2022. To the extent they were burnt out by round 11

Disgraceful piece of trash from Wilson. I have always thought she cops a bad rap but this is pure garbage from her.

I'm not so sure about that. You have: Simon accepts his original contract expiring in 2024 Simon accepts his original contract expiring in 2024 but is not 'happy' the club hasn't offered an extension Simon is actively annoyed they haven't offered an extension and fields offers from other clubs with a view to leaving in 2025 I'm not sure that any of these outcomes is necessarily bad. Potentially it would have meant us looking for a coach at the end of 2024 where at least 6 potential coaches would have taken the job given Melbourne's list profile. Aside from Lyon I can't think of too many coaches that have gone down the path of ditching their club at the last minute for a tempting new offer. Maybe Hardwick but I think it was clear he was done and he had won 3 flags. As a coach its not easy going to a new environment and starting again. Usually better to stay where you are and where you know the landscape/admin etc. The threat of poaching I think is overated.

It's like running business. If you are standing still you are going backwards because your competitors and still moving forward. We're doing worse than standing still, we're demonstrably going backwards (ie: on the W/L front not your 'game style' measures). Buckley may not be the answer but we'll know a lot more about what our boys can or can't do whereas with Simon he has been unable to get our guys to change. Witness 4m to go against the Dogs - game in the balance - where Viney gathers the ball on the wing, baulks around a Dogs player and ignores a short hit up to one of two free Melbourne players. Instead he bombs the ball to a 3 on 1. Turnover. Infuriating. And its been happening for years. Now that's on Viney but its also on the coach because he hasn't been able to get Viney to change - either through education or through dropping him for breaching team rules etc. Same for Oliver and his blind kicks. It took nearly 2 years of crud performances for Goodwin to drop Fritsch. And the results since have been great. Fritsch is playing a much more hard-edged team game. Why did that take so long? As for Petty well his confidence is absolutely shot. 9 goals in 2024 as our key fwd and 1 goal in the first 5 weeks this year? Seriously? Our problems are coaching in the main. We have cauterised the wound and now we move on for better or for worse. Absolutely the right decision My fear is that Buckley's ego will be too big for the club. And that 2nd time coaches do not have the hunger or success than 1st time coaches do in the past - since 2000 only Leigh Mathews and Mick Malthouse and won coaching at a 2nd club

No game day thread started yet? Has it come to this? Melbourne supporters checked out?

So a hypothetical. If we continued with our win loss trajectory for 2026, what position would the club be in? I suspect the Board said 'we cant afford that with the current list we have. And we cant sit here and do nothing and lose sponsors, supporters and probably players. As well we won't attract all of he above if it continues' The Board has access to way more info than we have. They know exactly what parameters were put on Simon, exactly what he had committed to delivering, exactly what the commercial issues were including terrible fixtures and TV coverage and falling membership. They would have received lots of feedback from players, supporters etc. You have to give them some credit. Doing nothing was not an option. You have argued that our game style was evolving but it was still a disaster. Basic problems like 666 infringements, 50m penalties, last 2 minute drills, losing close games, fwd connection, selection integrity, poor kicking were getting worse not better It seems to me that Simon had his own vision of what he wanted to play like and relentlessly focused on that. Hence the disaster in the last qtr of the St Kilda game where he appeared incapable of making any changes. I can see why he wasn't not necessarily focused on the immediate W/L for the good of the long term but he had been there 9 years and this was a premiership list. A coach has to balance the short term with long term when managing the game plan and players. Not easy. But to me Simon seemed to sacrifice the short term W/L on the alter of being stubborn about his decisions like Petty playing fwd. Our by having Viney tracc and Oliver in the centre despite stating he wld run other players through there like rivers, Langdon, Bowey etc. We lost a lot of games in the last few years because he refused to change things until it was too late Like petty being moved in the last 2 minutes of the Brisbane finals game The club has moved on. Great i say Get behind them. Go Dees

Thanks Simon