hardtack

If that's how you interpret it, then I would think the odds are pretty good that you are the one with the problem.

You'll be watching it whether you're signed up or not... my youngest son and I are both signed up and traveling down to Melbourne from Sydney to watch the opening round (my son's birthday present). The club needs members in order to survive when it is going through rough times, so fair-weather supporters just don't cut it in my book; you're either in for the whole journey or you may as well find another club to follow.

Wasn't there a post on here somewhere about attracting more members to these forums? It seems now we're trying to kill them off.

As for the 5 most important players, I would not include players who we know will be effective (Jones, Tyson, Vince, Dunn etc), but consider the next 5 to step up to be our most important. They are the ones that will help to fill in the blanks we currently have, creating a more cohesive team; so... Gawn, Hogan, Garlett, La, La, La, La mumba and Watts.

Funny isn't it... just maybe 4 years ago many were saying similar things about a young midfielder named Nathan Jones. Now one of the most reliable kicks in the team.

I'd like to see a banner comprising Enyaw, Tonatopia, Ben Hur and Range Rover

Maybe he just couldn't work out how to open it, or he was just too mentally exhausted after he had finally worked out how to open the locker.

I write letters to them but never get responsed (sic)... I can't understand why not. I even sign off with my name and age, Timmy age 62 and a half. I just don't think they're as friendly as they used to be when I was 10. Must be a generational thing.

As I read it he returned to the fray before later seeing the trainers and finishing up for the day, no doubt as a precautionary measure... hardly splitting hairs hemlack

Gee, that's a bit rough DD36!... looking at him I'd say he's only about 12 years old.

sorry, I must have missed the post that said he "broke down".

There's a fantastic little NZ mocumentary being released on DVD/Bluray this week called What We Do in the Shadows. It's about a share household in the suburbs of Auckland, with the sharemates all being vampires. Very very funny and one I'll be purchasing some time during the week.

Let's not go there. Memories of our performance against an undermanned Saints in round 1 last year are still clearly etched In my mind.

I like Asahi, but my favourite Japanese beer (and one of my favourite beers full stop) is...

What does the "number killed" have to do with #illridewithyou? The originator had done this to offer some support (more moral than physical) based on her encounter with a woman who was afraid to wear her headscarf as she was concerned she would become a target of misguided anger. The originator did not set this up as a campaign, but rather it grew organically as a result of enough other like minded people adopting the hashtag in a show of support. It only became a "campaign" after the press got onto it and a few "celebrities" got on board. The original idea was a good one and it is a fact that it is generally women wearing the islamic headwear that are targeted as they are easily identified. I would think that the reason the Cronulla riots were raised above was because it showed that events such as the siege and its subsequent deaths can have violent repercussions and that it is often innocent people who are the victims purely because of some misguided sense of outrage.

Sad to see no-one saying anything positive about Kholi's superb knock. I actually took some pleasure from him not taking a backward step against both Johnson's bowling and aggression. The match is set-up for a very interesting final two days... a draw is obviously the most likely outcome now, but if either side collapses in a heap in their second innings (something both have proven that they are very capable of doing), there could still be a result.

I recall a couple of decades ago they had a few issues with their "I can feel a Four-X coming on" campaign in Europe... apparently it's a popular brand of condom.

He wasn't sharing with Raymond and Connie Marvel perchance? (any John Waters fan worth their salt will understand).

Of the higher profile brewers, I would rate James Squire ahead of Cascade, Boags and Coopers. But I prefer to try the smaller "boutique" (god I hate that description) beers that I stumble on in the bottle-o... not always great, but always an adventure with the occasional pay-off. Pear cider is another favourite these days.

Well, I wouldn't be putting too much faith in that since Jesus is thought to have been born on or about June 17th

And to you too Biffo... hope you're enjoying a christmas nip... err, I mean tipple.

For mine, this is one of the greatest xmas songs ever written...

Bernie Vince just tweeted: "Nearly 25000 members for @melbournefc already. A pre Christmas record! Good to see everyone is as excited as I am about 2015!!"

I think now is a good time to reflect on the 12 days of christmas:

Still think that Mad Dogs and Englishmen was one of the great concert films along with Woodstock, Rust Never Sleeps and Stop Making Sense. Don't knock Kylie... she's made the occasional foray into the world of good music... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbcTp6hvhsU