bing181

.... and they all lived happily ever after.

Don't be a tease, it's hard enough being a Dees supporter as it is.

And pitchforks, every lynch mob has pitchforks.

You speak for all the members?

Why not ask the players?

They already have a plan. Which the players aren't following.

After 186 we'd just suffered one of the most humiliating losses in the history of the AFL. And we were never a hope in hell of getting into the eight. Port, Brisbane, Richmond, North ... they all beat us. Us a finals team? Stop kidding yourself, we were utterly hopeless whenever it counted.

The lack of self belief and confidence surely comes from being told that the way they've been playing isn't working - or even from being there on that fateful 186 day? Change, especially change at a fundamental level, takes time. According to what Misson is saying (and others it seems), the players don't even know how to train properly, they've had such an easy ride. Agree that it's really serious though, and that indeed, perhaps the worse is yet to come.

Potential finalists? When? Not in the last 5 years in any case, not even close. You're another of these delusional supporters, who thought that everything was rosy when we were losing by 186 to the genuine finalists, and picking up cheap wins against the likes of GC. Neeld hasn't turned us into anything - though maybe for the first time, in pealing back the layers of BS and refusing to continue to give the players an easy ride, he's exposing the soft underbelly for all to see. And it's ugly. But necessary. Go read the Kennelly article, then the Misson one on the MFC site. Forget about not knowing how to play - half our team doesn't even know how to train.

No, the duds were duds last year. And the year before that.

There were a LOT of insipid performances last year, and normal service has been continued this year - though with a few additional absentees, that probably aren't helping. Maybe read the Tahdg Kennelly article if you haven't already. Nothing to do with the coach if the players aren't prepared to do the hard work.

We lost to Geelong last year, by 186 points. Half the problem here, we need to be judging the team by their losses, not by the odd win. Those wins were one-offs, not typical of our season. Or the one before.

i don't understand why people keep saying this, none of those wins were against anything but easybeats. We were mostly absolute rubbish last year, and folded like a pack of cards whenever real pressure was applied - including the worst loss in the club's history. I also don't accept the "same team" line. Scully and Gysberts both played important roles in most of the wins you refer to, Green and Davey are obviously on the way out (age catching up with them), Jurrah (also an important contributor in the wins) has been injured etc, Sylvia has been out and/or playing, but with no pre-season has Buckley's of making any real impact, Martin has been injured etc. etc. We're missing a number of the key performers from those wins, such as they were.

Did you not watch the match, and Neeld's quick quarter time interview? He's frustrated as all hell - as I imagine all the coaching staff are - that the players are not doing what they're being asked and instructed to do.

Along similar lines, revealing post from another site, by a non-Dees supporter: "I know one of the assistant coaches at the club. Said Neeld is still flogging the players like its pre-season to try and teach them how to train. Blokes like Watts who have been in a system for 4 years apparently still trains with no intensity, under Bailey him, and many other were always going to get games. Some of the players have reacted badly to this (not hard to tell which ones), and he admitted they'll be 0-12 most likely, but second half of the year they'll ease the work load and (I think) win a few games. This year is about getting rid of all the bad habits the young blokes gained over their time with Bailey, and pretty much re-teaching everything. One of those "take one step back to take two steps forward" things. Neeld knows what he's doing."

You don't know that.

!!! It says nothing about the club, but says everything about the players. Or enough of them for the damage to be done.

Like the things they were doing well when we lost by 186? And, let's not forget, every game since except an unconvincing win to GC.

Losing was hard enough, but wading through this tripe is just as bad. JW: 34 possessions and 11 marks - how many did Morton get? Or Green? Or Garland? Not enough for you? You want 10 tackles? Did Robbie Flower EVER lay 10 tackles in a game?? For his last season, Flower managed 47 goals ... and 25 tackles. Total. You do the maths - but it's clear there were games when Flower probably didn't lay a tackle at all. Yet alone 10.

It's the players, because they're the ones who run onto the field each week. Roos was spot on with his comments in this regard. Especially the "senior" players. Unaccountable. Just not prepared to do the hard things. Unless they feel like it. They're shell-shocked, they're confused, their (self) confidence is shot. Howe takes mark of the year .. and then doesn't know what to do with the ball. Handballs to Morton under pressure, turnover. I feel sorry for the likes of Tom McDonald, when the ball is coming in 70 odd times a game because of problems further up the field.

Not for me. We could start with the massive fall-off in form from the "senior" players: Sylvia, Green, Davey, even Jamar and Moloney. As Paul Roos said in his commentary, you can have all the team meetings etc. you want, but the players are just NOT putting it together out on the field, under pressure.

I think people sometimes underestimate the importance of the pre-season. Just saying.

My god, some ordinary posts around. No-one here ever made a mistake? It's a complex situation, legally and culturally, about which we have very little factual information or experience. FWIW, the club has my support in the decisions it has taken so far.

You were at his interview for the job? You know how he rated the list?

There aren't too many youngsters who turn into genuine stars in under 50 games. Maybe we should let some of these guys get through a couple of full seasons, not to mention a couple of pre-seasons, before we start sticking the boots into the club.