spalding

Sat next to his tiger supporting uncle a couple of weeks ago at the tigers v swans game. he said that Dom was loving where the club was at and completely invested in Goodwins coaching and game-plan - which includes having "squads" of midfielders on rotations (Dom tends to spend more time in the middle in the second half), as it is too hard and physical for a smaller number of players to play totally in the middle. I think this is a real strength for us. It will be interesting to see how it plays out on Friday - where they probably have more A graders but we have more depth.

Some of the crap on this site is unbelievable. were not that good people - yet. Get used to it. We will lose games we should win, and win games we are not expected to. we lack quality leaders - but can oliver, Petracca, hunt, Viney ect be these guys when they have played 100 games? Weiderman hasn't got the tank or strength to be a reliable key forward- yet. I wonder if he will. But then I saw him work his guts out to provide a leading option on the members wing with about 5 minutes to go when he was stuffed - and now at least I think he has the desire to make it. ANB and harmes have issues with disposal now - but they are progressing as really good depth mids ( our 5-8 best). Compare them to what Geelong have in the same position - if they are still making the same mistakes after 50 games then get worried. i m [censored] of after watching us get big heads and play like millionaires in the first 10 minutes of the 3rd quarter. But then I think about the last 45 years where we had no hope and look at the following in two years time. fwds - watts, hogan, weiderman, Garlett, Kent, pertracca, mids Gawn, spencer, Oliver, Viney, brawshaw, Tyson, stretch, Anb, harmes, jones, lewis, ( yes we need more depth here!), Salem backs tmac, omac, frost, nev, hunt, hibberd, smith, and depth like melksham and vince. not perfect - but not many I would swap with. what I want to see, and I'm expecting, is to see us show how much this hurt by putting the tigers to the sword. and a final comment - for all those who think finals are over when we have a 2-2 record, are you serious?

IMHO it would make no sense to delist him at the end of this year. Surely the one year contact for 2016 was to see if his foot could cope with regular games (irrespective of whether this was at MFC or Casey). Given that it seems he has hit this KPI, I would think he will get another 1 year contract and the chance to see what he can do at AFL level next year on the back of a full pre-season where he participates in pretty much all the drills and loading.

5 weeks ago the equation looked like this: Reasons to go - - $ (possibly, although MFC might be able to match) - Returning to Perth - Maybe going to a better team (at the moment) Reasons to stay - - Future of MFC vs Freo? - Do you want to fly every second week (given you missed a season with a bad back). - any loyalty to MFC, existing friendships etc? Update Now: It appears we have the answer that the immediate/mid-term likelihood of success is with the MFC. Freo can probably offer more $ than MFC now that another target is off their list, but like Hooker re-signing with Essendon, will it be enough? So seems like it comes down to whether Jesse wants to go back to Perth to live (which probably will be detrimental to his footy career, given the amount of time he will spend in a plane vs playing for MFC). Even If he does go, it would seem that Freo will be able to offer much better draft picks than we thought likely a month ago!

capable of a great mark, went missing for periods of time (possibly due to the lack of ball in the forward line), and averaged around a goal a game. seemed capable of so much more. 70's version of an ex-Demon who was MIA on Sunday

Besides the obvious ones already mentioned, I am really keen to see whether VdB and Stretch take the next step. I am very bullish on both, given that other teams will not be focussing on either of them at all. I also think it would be great to see what Kent can do if he stays injury free and gets a good run of games.

forgot Hunt - who provided a bit of run and goal-kicking for Casey at the end of 2015

Obviously injuries will be a major factor during the season, but gee Casey should be strong - particularly the backline. I reckon the following will be Casey players: Backline: Grimes, Terlich, Lumumba, Oscar M, Frost, White, Wagner (assuming MFC of Jetta, Dunn, Garland, Salem, Tmac, Melksham) Centre: Trengove (maybe), Michie, ANB, (MFC Stretch, Jones, Vince) Fwds: Weideman, JKH, Pedersen, King, Newton, Hulett, Smith (MFC Petracca, Dawes, Kent, Garlett, Hogan, Watts) Ruck Spencer (MFC Gawn) Mids M Jones, Oliver, Kennedy (vs MFC Tyson, Viney) MFC interchange VdB, Brayshaw, Harmes, one other of Kennedy, Frost, Tengove, ANB etc). Casey probably need a bit more run and goal-kicking, but should be challenging for the flag provided injuries are not too brutal for both MFC/Casey

not sure he makes it, but last year I thought he showed some really solid ball handling skills under pressure (but seemed to fumble more in 2015) - and I was really impressed with his work rate in the last game vs GWS. I thought it was easily his best game for the year, even if his stats weren't that high. He is not explosive quick, but in the GWS game he showed speed for a distance to make position on the lead, or to man up or provide pressure on GWS when they had the ball. Happy to see how he goes in 2016 with another pre-season under his belt before casting judgement. I'm sure the footy dept probably has the same view.

Whilst Howe is good to watch I'm happy for him to go. It is clear that besides Jones, leadership is a weakness in our 24+ year old group, and it will only be when Viney, Brayshaw and maybe Hogan etc are in this age group that it might be a strength. In fact many of the older players are probably somewhat damaged by what they have gone through. I reckon Frawley was a case in point and him moving on was a win for both parties. Others such as Grimes, Watts and Garland are probably in the same boat - but at least these guys are desperate to be at MFC, so even if they may not be able to provide leadership they will do what they can to help the new generation that is our hope (note Garland's comments in re-signing were more about team than himself - unlike Frawley and Howe). I also reckon that Howe and Watts are too similar to have both in the same team - in that they are a 3rd forward tall, or intercept half back, but as neither are hard enough in the contest its a risk to play both. I would rather Howe's marking and Watt's kicking - and if it comes down to one or the other I would take the kicking skills given this is an obvious weakness for us.

I forgot Salem - absolute lock for All Australian off the half back in the next few years when we are closer to the right end of the ladder.

I thought this week was encouraging for our young/new guys and future depth (ie replacements for M Jones, Bail, Riley, Terlich, etc) I didn't think that Newton, Michie and possibly JKH offered much for the future, but they all showed something this week. Newton - I am still concerned about his speed and endurance (especially when chasing), but more encouraging than his goals was the fact that he was in the right place quite a few times when the ball spilled from a forward line marking contest. A couple of his points came from roving the packs for quick snaps. Has a high goal/game average so could be a reasonable HFF/occasional midfielder if he can improve his defensive actions. Michie - some really good quick hands gave us some good clearances. ran to good places and was clean around the ground. His game reminded me Sam Mitchell (obviously a poor man's version) Pace and defensive pressure is again where he needs to improve, but there might be something worth keeping to complement Dom Tyson and to be ready for the post Jones/Vince midfield JKH - I worry that he is not quick enough, but last year he had really clean hands which gave him some time. Has been a bit fumbly this year (confidence?) which has reduced his impact.However It was really noticeable at the game on Sunday how hard he worked to make position. He took a couple of the marks in the last quarter where he sprinted 70 metres to give and option. Given our issues with quick ball movement guys who work this hard to provide an option are keepers for me. Harmes - moreso than the marks were the attack on the ball and player. He won a couple of contests that he had no right to. Bulk him up a bit, and a bit of work on his disposal and he and VDB could be Freo style big midfielders who can go forward and take a grab and kick a goal. White - was more noticeable on the replay than the game, but he looked like a pretty decent footballer. Good one on one, got to the right places and was good by foot. Could be a good servant. I think Stretch is great. Works really hard without the ball, tackles hard despite his size, and doesn't panic with the ball but takes a bit of time to take a good option. Although it was a dead rubber, the game was a good mix of contest and ball movement for us. Really feel like we are on the verge of a 1987 style period where a whole lot of kids come through together. When all the kids have played 100 games together we will be a decent chance. I have really been emotionally invested in Watts/Garland/Howe and Grimes, but I don't think they are our future and should be moved on quickly so we can get better kids to bring in with the likes of Hogan, Brayshaw, Petracca, McDonald, Gawn, Viney - plus all the others

totally agree. Interestingly Dermott Brereton on SEN had a caveat on the Saints that while he ranked their season better than Melbourne's (which seemed more based on the fact that we are paying our coach a truckload more money so we should have performed better), he was not sure that the up and coming players will be any better than the old players that they will be replacing. At least we know the Demons wont have the same problem as with the exception of Jones and Vince our best players are already all 23 or younger. I don't get all the love for Collingwood either. It seems to be common media view that they will be a powerhouse in the next couple of years. I don't see it, as I'm yet to see who on their list is going to replace and be significantly better than Swann, Pendlebury and Cloke.

I reckon Matt Jones would be one of the first picked. Sure hands, probably in the top3 for ground covered per minute on the ground (would love to see his GPS), and learns from his mistakes (like the goal he kicked this week - taking it on and drilling it low from 50 after the disappointment of last's weeks couple of opportunities versus the dogs). Bet you wont see another turnover like the backline pass from him on Saturday again for quite a while. I wouldn't say the same about Jack Grimes or Tom McDonald - even if the other parts of their games were really serviceable.

now a lifetime member (no-one tell my wife!) keep up the good work

Ron - I have a late challenge!. My daughter, who turns 10 in mid July, has a membership card that says she has been a member for 11 consecutive years! She was a question mark as part of a family membership renewed at the end of 2003/start of 2004 (which apparently was enough for her to count as a member) - so she was a 1 yr member before she was born. The miserable time she has had a Demon supporter so far (along with my 3 other kids) is part of the reason I am starting up a supporters group in Bendigo for Central Victoria - if anyone out there is interested the details are on the MFC website and our first function is at the Foundry Hotel on 14th Feb.

Some of you may have received this email from the Club last night. I am trying to do what I can to help the club in an hour of need. If any of you are in the region and want to be involved please contact me as per the details below. The Melbourne Football Club have a fantastic group of members and supporters all over the country. As a result we have a number of supporters groups throughout Victoria and interstate. These supporter groups run a variety of activities and functions and raise valuable funds for the Club as a result. In Victoria the two key supporter groups are the Ballarat Demons and the Casey Demons. Both of these groups have a small committee that engage members and supporters in their local area, run family days and other events including trivia nights and breakfast functions, organise buses to the MCG for home games and provide a location for members and supporters to get together to watch games along with general positive promotion of the Club. We have a large number of supporters in the Bendigo and Central Victoria region and as such are looking at the possibility of developing a supporter group in the area, the Central Victoria Demons. The objectives of such a group would include: Provide access to games (by bus) for those who otherwise may not be able to attend from the region Provide a Bendigo based location where all games are televised so people can meet and watch with similar minded supporters whilst creating an environment to encourage and facilitate a new generation of MFC supporters Fundraise for the club In order to facilitate a supporter group such as this we would need to determine the levels of interest from the region, not only to form a committee of highly engaged individuals but also determine if there is an appetite in the region for such a group. If you are interested in being involved in the committee or you would simply like to be involved in the activities that such a supporter group would run, please contact MFC member and Bendigo resident James Everist via email [email protected]. Your feedback will allow James and the Club to determine if a support group in your local area is viable in 2014 and beyond. Thanks for your support this season and go Dees! Melbourne Football Club

I don't think there is. I checked into this last year when I moved to Bendigo - there wasn't anything on the MFC website, and I didn't get a reply to my email. I was wondering if there was a bus to games or a meeting place to watch games on TV etc. Is there is enought interest in Bendigo to get something up and running (Melbourne supporters either keep a pretty low profile, or are scare in this part of the world!)? I wouldn't have thought that Bendigo would be much different from Ballarat - so if ballarat can put together a successful supporters group (and it is my guess that this was actually the supporter group referred to in the report from the Casey match on Saturday), is it possible in Bendigo?