3183 Dee

They’ve done it since the Sydney game - very little content on the official site. Even Ben Gibson said in Before The Bounce, something along the lines that everyone in the hub is working hard and putting in the effort. It sounded a bit forced from him, maybe he got told/asked to put that message across?

I have to say that I’ve always thought Lyon is constantly negative, but he has been proven right. Unfortunately 2018 was the aberration - we are nowhere near it - and, as he says, not playing as a team.

I would, but my wife would be furious.

I just don’t understand why they can’t get up for these massive crunch games! It surely has to be the coaching? How can you not get players motivated for it? There must be factions within the team - it’s the only reason I can think of as to why it’s so disjointed. Either way, the buck stops with the coach.

I was on L2, on the other side of the goals to Hannan - the noise when that went through, took the roof off! I can watch that over and over and never tire of it. The Melbourne support was sensational that night - it was like a long-lost family getting together after 20 years.

I was initially puzzled at the inclusion of Preuss, but looking at the other inclusions, it makes sense for a few reasons: - Provides a genuine, strong forward target, meaning it’s harder to double team Weideman. - The forward line is now packed with a mosquito fleet, which can feed off Preuss’s crumbs - Crucially, Preuss is a good tackler and puts a fair amount of pressure on for someone his size. - Obviously gives Max a chop out. Not sure how this is going to play out - Tomlinson will obviously play back with Baker on the wing. Brave selections, certainly won’t die wondering!

If the club is coached properly, it could be incredible!

It was, I’m afraid. I get that he, as captain, wants to defend his team but to retort that “They were sloppy as well” wasn’t a great look. Get Steve May on - he tells it like it is.

Just wanted to bump Gibbo up again, after his post-match interview with Max on Thursday. Mentioned to Max that a lot of our ball use was sloppy during the game, which looked to take Maxy off-guard a bit. I've noticed a few times that Ben is quite prepared to ask the hard questions and is certainly a refreshing change from the usual sycophantic approach that many in-house sports media have. Well done Ben, for keeping the barstewards honest!

In a nutshell.

But we’ll break even over the remaining 3 quarters, so at least they’ll be done positives to take out of the game.

Unbelievable - how dumb can you get. First, for going out to a strip club and second, for getting kicked out and fighting the bouncers!

Because MFC is a club with a supporter base traditionally from the ‘top end of town’, who have traditionally had other interests and pursuits as well as football, to occupy them. Clubs like Richmond and Collingwood have grown, because traditionally football was their only release from the frustrations and realities of a hard, daily life. Their footballers were also cut from the same cloth. If those players did not perform, the supporters would let them know about it - not through social media, as it is today, but out and about in public. The club was the badge of the suburb, so no-one was going to let it down. I realise times have changed now and these demographics have moved along, but I believe that these traditions are so deeply cast within sporting clubs, that they transcend time, somewhat. Problem is, there is still a fair bit of Gentlemen vs Players associated with our club and not enough hunger and desperation.

I agree - I think that it will be an exceptionally hard sell after this year. Unfortunately, with the concentration of fixturing, the spotlight is even brighter on clubs this year and our 3 putrid performances are getting the widespread attention they deserve.

Seriously? Brisbane, Port and Richmond (along with Geelong) are just better, more consistent footy teams, that’s all. Every other team has been flaky at different times and on more than one occasion. If you think the AFL, amidst all the moving around, rescheduling and constant logistical changes due to border changes and different state restrictions, have had time to orchestrate a fiendish, fixed finals series, you give them more credit than they deserve! Edited to add: Brisbane have had a distinct home advantage, but they’re in QLD!

Yep - nuff said.

Watch the rest of the season fall away meekly now. In fact, no - watch us get up and beat Freo, scrape past GWS and lose to the Bombers. Repeat ad nauseum. I really have no explanation for these performances. We will most likely miss finals now, and deservedly so. Big problem for the club is: how do you sell hope for next year on the back of that crap?

I turned the TV off halfway through the 2Q. Almost as putrid as vs Port and the Dogs - you can tell with Melbourne from the first bounce, what sort of effort you’ll get. There’s no way that we come back from this.

It’s a day for role playing and sticking to the system: working them over methodically and then going over them in the last quarter. Hopefully ?

I’m the same - it’s been great to read and discuss game plans and strategy: I think it also helps that we have identified 2 clear patterns of play, so I find it quite exciting to look out for those. Of course, it’s impossible not to get emotionally involved, but I’ve found that my frustrations are not as intense: even against the Doggies, I was tempered somewhat by trying to read the play. Much better than the Port game, where I switched off at 3QT, took the MFC app off my phone and swore that was it, for ever!

In the Hun today, Clarkson is venting about the draft being so compromised and unfair, that you can’t rebuild a list from it. Interesting for him to be on the other end of a situation, which enabled his team (along with Geelong) to win multiple flags, whilst other teams (including us) were hampered for years with the draft concessions handed to the expansion teams. Our crappy recruitment didn’t help matters, by the way, but the 2020 draft has nothing on what GWS were handed.

Fantastic podcast as usual, guys - keep up the great work.

Quite a tough nut as well.

His work rate is tremendous - the tackle at the end of the 4Q to put Steele off his kick was fantastic. I’ve loved his work - he also looks like he has a lot of fun when he plays.

He was cracking the sh!ts - literally.