Hot as Hell

Amongst a solid backline, Lord Nev kept Eddie in his back pocket. Pure defensive magic.

A season defining win. No question. We'll done to our 22 warriors who have brought pride back to our club.

Good coverage, all you guys at the ground. Many of us unable to get to the VFL games get very good service. Thanks. Great to hear many players are stepping forward. They put pressure on those in the senior side. How long has it been since we can say that. Very pleased that Declan K bounced back hard from last week's head knocks. Now we all wait to see what tomorrow will bring.

And some ideas are not popular because they are right and the mob don't like them. In nearly all forms of social opinion, popularity is often the line of least resistance, not the pathway of greatest truth. Politicians bank on it, very securely. On topic, MFC has cruelled by injury in recent years. With limited depth, its impact was heavier on us than others. One of the few upsides for MFC is that Jesse's injuries forced us to experiment with Tom up forward. It was a stumbled success to rival 3M's "sticky note".

It's been a long time since Melbourne has methodically and intently destroyed the spirit of another side. Being the hunter instead of the hunted. And what a sweet feeling it is. Everyone in the field today did what they needed to do all the way until the final bell. This win will let every player know they are part of a group capable of writing their own history. The Demons of the recent past have been laid to rest. This is a strong collective of talent that in a few short years can achieve what has not been achieved for over 50 years as long as they remain committed to each other. We'll done Dees this one goes in the record books. To all long suffering fans, you have waited long enough. Enjoy.

Tough conditions for clean footy. Let's hope we can finish off the game strongly. 100 points should be a team lifter

Depending on whether Bernie wants to do another pre-season, on current form he is in our best 22 or very close to it. We all know he has lost a yard or 2 in pace but he brings 2 sided disposal skills to the team lacking them, can still shut down an opposition utility and knows how to kick a goal. Even if he were to play in the 2s to make way for a younger player, his availability on the list may be a pretty cheap back up/depth player. Subject to what club and player are looking for, l would keep an offer on the table.

Dom had a stinker last night. One of the worst games l recall him playing. Failed to cover the ball deep in the backline and conceded a goal, dropped a mark and kicked poorly leading to a turnover goal, missed targets all night. I don't know where his training skills go, but under pressure on game day he falls short of the required level of a not quick, not big player. He really needs to get his mojo back or he may not be on our list in 2019. AFL footy can demand a high price.

I don't think so Wiseblood. One should keep things in context. Hawthorn is not Gold Coast. They haven't been since the late 60s. It is a little premature to compare us with a side with 10 flags in 35 years l would have thought. Maybe it is just me though. My memory of Froggy kicking his goal is a little dim.

You reckon? We did well tonight, but last night's battle between Swans and Hawks was worth watching. 2 very good sides. We are not there yet,regrettably.

I will take any 11 goal win we can muster. There was a very solid contribution from most players but still plenty of upside if we can use the ball better. We can and we should. We absolutely must keep it going next week. Good game in the end but not without the traditional Melbourne moments.

Good game Jordan Lewis. Some smart decision making when we needed it.

Playing like a bottom 8 side tonight. Pretty ugly and pretty dumb when we have had clear possession.

It appears the players have little respect for the Suns. Too much fancy play handing the ball around dinky kicking and 2 feet handballs. I never like us when we play like it is just going to happen. We are the better team on paper but Suns working much harder and cleaner in open spaces.

You must see something different every time the coach reviews a game and then what he does the following week. Time will tell and after waiting 54 years l am happy if this coach succeeds and will be happy to get the vision of a new one if he fails. Supporting this club for 6 decades has taught me mantra "facta non verba". Actions not words.

You could be onto something here beelzebub. Goody appears to be a person of intense focus and narrow vision. If he likes what he sees, he will cut players more slack than he should. But if he doesn't, it bodes very poorly for the player. We have many players but only 1 coach and he calls the shots. Hunt may well be in his sights to be traded for another hard nut. We are so one paced with hard nuts it isn't funny any more. ANB Salo Harmes Trac Jones Tyson not to mention Bernie and Lewis are all lacking in pace. We get opened up easily partly because opposition teams can out run us and then open up the forward space. It seems the coach does not mind that, as long as we can get the ball inside 50 and score. His predecessor taught the players a very different approach. I really don't mind Goodwin putting his stamp on us, but he will not get the 6 years Hardwick got to make it work. The coach's favorites syndrome concerns me because it may lead a different type of player to be undervalued. Hunt may fall into that bracket. Watching the Hawks and Swans last night simply reinforced my view of how far away we are from Top 4. Both sides had plenty of both grunt and speed. We focus on one, at the expense of the other. Will be disappointed if we can't put away Gold Coast today, but beating bottom 6 teams hardly makes us special when we get smacked by the top teams. Hunt and Jeff's pace can have a role to play for the side. Whether that role is required in the 29 match coaching box is an entirely different question. ANB does not have this burden.

Not a lot of people on the Sandy train or at the stadium. Those Saints fans more fickle than us considering they were playing Grand Finals within the last 10 years. Never really confident before a game, but would be very annoyed if we don't put the Saints away. Dees by 37 plus.

Me too Jibroni. Bayley moves a lot like Brad and seems to possess the same dead eye dick left foot. A classy young footballer, totally at ease with the pressure and intensity of AFL level football and blossoming there.

Congrats Chas. One of our sparks when we needed them most. Great debut to remember for life.

I feel unusually confident about this match. Essendon are in more doubt about themselves than we are. We need to hold Joe D and minimise the impact of the bummers small brigade of quick mids. The Return of Bayley and Mitch will add some punch up forward to feed off Tom the Weide and Jesse. I like the inclusion of Charlie Spargo to revitalise the group. A debutante can spark all players to lift with the enthusiasm of youth. Looking forward to our mid field group working more effectively with Max and hopefully a game plan than will leak less easy goals to the opposition. Dees by 33 points.

Very few would say he is not skilled l would imagine. Quick? Maybe not, but able to break lines.?Yes. That is just one of the things we need. As for Sloane and the others mentioned, we are whistling Dixie. Many clubs have both money and draft picks to offer, we have neither.

I would be chasing the No 4 pick we should have taken years ago. He has toughness, skill, leg speed, awareness and composure. Would easily complement our midfield strengths in Clarry and Jack V, giving Max 3 targets. I would imagine this guy would replace Bernie, Jordy and Dom in one powerful hit and ease the burden on Chunk. Jack spoke of him in this week's podcast. I suspect correcting a past error will not be an option available to us, as the young lad will be as dedicated to Port as our interstate recruits are to us. But boy wouldn't that be a ruck/rover/midfield to envy. Ahhh to dream. Where's that empty glass of single malt. Time for a refill.

Trac probably injured his finger giving the bird to Goody's default Plan A. Infection from sticking it up Goody's ___ when he saw Plan B. Whoever thinks we can cover a guy of his talent must be looking at another Melbourne Football Club. This hurts big time against depleted Bummers.

I will attempt to be measured in response to the question of what a loss to Essendon will mean. I expect that they will bounce back with ferocity and speed and leave us languishing with a forward line holding 18 of our players. My response therefore is... l will want changes to the "game plan". It will have simply been the greatest reason we have gone backwards this year. The players have not bought into it and are unable to execute it and us supporters are bloody sick of it.

On a other point, these humiliating losses have stopped our membership drive in its tracks. It will be hard to count the cost of th every last 2 weeks, but on field failure has probably reduced our turnover by between $150,000 and $300,000. More poor performances will see this cost mount.