wmth

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/news/melbourne-demons-board-dispute-worksafe-victoria-launches-probe-as-simon-goodwin-hires-top-lawyer-over-drug-claims/news-story/72ce7365ac4c2ebb658e6f3d7a06a0ef

Another nicely timed hit piece before Max's 200th and a finals campaign 

I went along.

Some really good patches where we linked up well, and also some broken plays due to a fumble or poor skill error. Overall there were some good signs.

Viney, Watts (swapped teams with Harmes at half time), Hogan, Salem were the best for me. Dunn was very vocal and screaming at players all day. Got pretty frustrated as the white team started to fade. 

Hogan could've kicked 6 or 7. Gave a couple away and was the best option a few more times. 

Not sure the Frost up forward experiment is working. 

looked a little nervous to me

Agreed. Looking down. Body language wasn't great. I don't buy into the panic much, but I hate the circus this creates. Supporting is stressful enough.

He's no longer the key post we once had, with the way Roosy's structured things. If he goes, it won't hurt as much it would've last year or before.

http://www.afl.com.au/video/2014-06-05/frawley-contract-latest-tigers-talk-cheap-and-more

None of this breeds any confidence. He has every right to hold out, but as a leader of the club it's a poor look.

Interesting comment from Demetriou. Clearly gives the appeals board an opportunity to overturn the Tribunal's decision

One of the most insipid and ill-thought out articles I've ever read. Thankfully, there is no comments function on afl.com

He has failed to grasp that, faced with the same situation again, Viney will be in the same place. Because it's unavoidable!

If we are pandering to mothers who are worried about their sons, then it's game over. It will be unrecognizable.

There's been very little wrong with the game for over 150 years, before this sudden spate of rule changes. I just don't understand. It's an identity crisis that is incredibly amateur for a professional sport.

Scully, Trengove, Watts and Toumpas didn't surprisde me when they were selected, i was fine with those decisions

But looking at it now, Trengove, Morton, Gysberts, Tapscott, Blease, Strauss, should all be guns approaching the best part of their career, if you add even 6 B grade players to our side we suddenly look alot better, it's dissapointing.

Agreed. This is what's killing us. While the Shey's, Ziebell's, Zaharakis etc become frontlines and keys to their club's success, none of ours have fired a shot. Almost has to be a product of environment. The urgency on the field is just deplorable and seemingly contagious.

We are in this mire largely because we stuffed the draft and now lack a 'generation' of solid senior players (26 and above - left with Dunn etc). It looks as if it's happening all over again, with very little progress from draftees of 5-6 years ago.

Far out that video is embarrassing. I hope they watch it.

We would be 50% better if we ran like an AFL standard side (in both ways). Killed on the overlap all day, and turned it over partly to do with poor skills / decisions but also because of lack of options / separation (running!).

I feel for watts. he starts to build in the mid field and roos decides he has to go forward. I know he is tall and quick, but the kid can't play that position - that much has been demonstrated time after timer after time... it frustrates me seeing him there. its just crushing any hope he has to develop a skill set in any area of the ground, he's been swapped around so much, what hope has he had?

The guy's a professional footballer. Versatility, at that height, should be his strength. I don't feel sorry for him at all. Him, with many others, should be dragging us out of this heap we're in. Some hardness would go a long way to changing both his fortunes and perceptions.

He failed to impose himself on a single contest. Just not good enough and he doesn't need any pity.

Just want to point out for the record the idiocy of equating basketball with lack of intensity. Come up with a decent analogy if you want to hang it on Watts for jogging around without any direction.

Some of you heroes couldn't hold a candle to most of the basketballers I know.

Righto. Sorry to offend the basketballer in the house. While basketball is not football, my point was is that he lacked any modicum of ferociousness and appeared to be playing a non-contact sport.

However, as you rightly point out, perhaps at the very least he could embody a spirited basketball player when he pulls on the jumper. At the moment, his intensity is not fit for a field or a court.

Reluctant to criticize Roos' game plan (at all), but while acknowledging the lack of forwards, why is it that no one is actually playing forward??

Pedo and Fitz are no doubt useless, but too often they just weren't there (seemingly under instruction). Reminded of me - respectfully - the Bailey days where we ran into space but simply had no options presenting (Beamer's long bombs to no one, anyone?)

Must be infuriating for Jones, Tyon etc to look up and have to stop and prop. The only times we looked remotely decent was when there was at least a contest and a presence.

Secondly, we would be at least 50% better if we ran like an AFL side. Token efforts all day and no separation from opponents. Skills were poor, but they were made poorer by very few options. Sprint FFS! The intensity was completely unacceptable. To watch Nat Fyfe and then Watts (similar position, build etc) is embarrassing. Watts is more skilful, but the attack and want is miles apart. That was a basketball game from Watts, and he got away with against St Kilda. Broken record, but he need to be told. So much potential .

Don't mind the 'Ratten rumour'. The last time our midfield was any good, was when he was coaching. Don't think he did a bad job with Carlton at all either.

At least 2-3.....

http://www.melbournefc.com.au/news/2014-03-07/hogan-sidelined-with-back-injury

One of the most pathetic responses I've ever heard. It was feeble and I wouldn't be fussed if the club put him up for trade now. What a passenger.

There was an opportunity to show some strength, and he passed. Winning doesn't just happen Jack, and it would be nice if you acknowledged some responsibility.

Turning Melbourne around is a competitive persons job and football's full of them. See ya, Jack.

I am one of them, but I feel sorry for the supporters. It's bloody hard.

Noticed a few have retweeted Scott Pendlebury's positive note. Even Jess Hogan: https://twitter.com/jesseBhogan

the wrong choice? Absolutely, but not necessarily because he can't coach but for the task at hand. Too big of a job for him and it should've gone to someone with experience. Never stood a chance.

Decision justified. Complete and utter [censored].

He would merge us at the first chance.

Tne MFC has become the laughing stock way beyond not only its immediate supporter base, even the AFL base, but is now in the general community. If you don't believe me, check out this item which is now going viral in the Victorian public service , and this comes from a friend of mine who is near the top of the Victorian public service, but also has next to zero interest in the AFL. She is however very much aware of the demons plight, perhaps through her friendship with me.

Melbourne, Victoria

A seven year old boy was at the centre of a Melbourne courtroom drama yesterday when he challenged a court ruling over who should have custody of him.

The boy has a history of being beaten by his parents and the judge initially awarded custody to his aunt, in keeping with the child custody law and regulations requiring that family unity be maintained to the degree possible. The boy surprised the court when he proclaimed that his aunt beat him more than his parents and he adamantly refused to live with her. When the judge suggested that he live with his grandparents, the boy cried out that they also beat him.

After considering the remainder of the immediate family and learning that domestic violence was apparently a way of life among them, the judge took the unprecedented step of allowing the boy to propose who should have custody of him.

After two recesses to check legal references and confer with child welfare officials, the judge granted temporary custody to the Melbourne Football Club, whom the boy firmly believes are not capable of beating anyone.

Mmmmm. What can one say except in the face of this sort of ridicule why would the likes of Jesse Hogan, jack Viney, jack watts, chip Frawley, want to stay at the club? No one wants to be ridiculed, including me.

A greater argument for immediate action in tipping out Neeld I cannot think of, but not only him, we need desperately to get the Club back on track and hire the best administrators and coaches available to not only turn the ship around, but to seem to do so by the general football community. We desperately need to give players and supporters some confidence in the future.

As we go into the next two weeks when we are likely to be beaten by 200+ points - I would not be surprised if we even got to 300 point margins, we simply have to act - for all our sakes.

How many agree?

Besides Hogan for obvious reasons, they could get a kick and drag the club out of this mess. Yes, we're in a poor state, but they must acknowledge the opportunity they have to turn it around. As competitive people, surely they must have some sense of responsibility.

I am not sure there is any argument that Beamer (and Rivers) would be in a our first 18 now. However, the decisions weren't made for season 2013. Neeld's trying to rebuild a mess and it involves some cleaning out.

I don't know what sort of presence Beamer had, but it's the environment at Melbourne that is more toxic than the list.

If anyone's interested: http://www.backpagelead.com.au/afl/9448-for-fuchsias-sake-play-like-demons#comment-898779279

My weekly column is invariably about the Dees, although I wish it wasn't.

Some may notice some stats dragged from here.

cheers,

wmth

Nice article. Unfortunately I suspect it's a little more complex than that though.

Simple messages always appeal more to the masses though - I get that. Doesn't mean they're right. Or wrong for that matter. They're just compelling, albeit on a superficial level - such is 'journalism' today.

People were saying much the same thing about Sanderson last year - however his name's not in lights thus far this year.

Why not? Has he become a different man/coach in the past few months?

Probably not - I suspect it's all to do with the win and loss ratio of the Crows.

That Hinkley's doing well is not a surprise to many - he's always enjoyed an extremely good reputation, but the cattle he's working with aren't irrelevant. For instance, I don't expect he could coach the Scotch College Firsts to beat WCE.

And the very people who used to bag me for arguing that the worst thing the club did was to cut Junior McDonald prematurely (ie, b/c of his soft tissue injuries, good young mids coming through etc) are the very same people who are now saying that Neeld doesn't have sufficient respect for the senior players. And there might be some truth to this - the appointment of the two young Captains and his apparent treatment of Moloney, Rivers and Davey did concern me at the time - but the chorus of complaint wasn't as unified then as it's become recently.

Bloody unbelievable really. More blowing in the breeze.

Some here seem to think Napolean or Spartacus, great people leaders, could just walk into the MFC and start winning AFL games.

Neeld may or may not be a great communicator to the players - I don't know - but I think our issues were far greater than this, and the systems and structures that are now being introduced needed to happen. I suspect he lacks EQ, but I also think he understands football in a technical sense.

IMO we didn't have a list in 2011 that any great communicator could simply come in and consistently extract top four performances out of.

To the contrary, it seemed to me that some fundamental changes needed to be made. In that, perhaps some poor decisions were made - although, in a macro sense, I think the methodology has been sound.

The football department struck me as entirely amateur prior to Nov 2011. Not irrelevant to this debate.

Thanks for the feedback.

I don't think Sanderson has lost any respect or admiration just yet. He still says all the right things and is quite demanding. I quite like how we called out his ruckman (Jacobs) recently. He seems to have responded reasonably well. Injuries will cruel his year though.

It's not so much having your name in lights, but I worry about the public things Neeld says (even if they may be true). You would almost start believing that we're not expected to win and go out happy with a reasonable effort. Put some responsibility on the players, put expectations. If we're to be any good, it must happen.

Not sure Scotch and West Coast are a fair comparison, but Hinkley's cattle (most of them) won only eight games in the last two years.

No doubt Melbourne's problems are deeper, and it's a factor. Without knowing any specific, Neeld has walked into a horrible place. Perhaps it's about time we started putting some blame on the players. After six years or rubbish, what right do they have to rebel against a coach (if true).

Yes well, an opinion piece, let's see what happens if now Port suddenly lose six on the trot as Essendon did last year after a flying start, must be nice having an easy target to shoot at

All coaches are easy targets when they lose. There is a clear difference in style between other coaches - I just don't see his comments building any confidence among supporters or players.

The way Melbourne lose is opening up Neeld to criticism. It's positioning, run etc more so than skill.

If anyone's interested, my column this week looks at Neeld and Hinkley. I think Neeld is on borrowed time.

http://backpagelead.com.au/afl/9305-no-limits-port-a-model-lesson-for-dees

Cheers

Good piece. Is this you William?

It is indeed. I am actually writing a weekly column for BPL this year.

Given my allegiance, and the fact the club is continuously a topic of interest, I dare say there will be a few more Demon pieces.

Cheers

If anyone's interested: http://backpagelead.com.au/afl/9163-watts-with-all-the-attention#