Pates

So I don't mind our selections, and I feel like I'm a lone wolf in feeling like Sharp isn't a total flop of a player.

What I am struggling with is the balance within the team and like for like selections.

JVR out for Jeffo? Forward for forward, but one plays as a back up ruckman and can crash packs (supposedly) while the other is more a lead up forward with more craft about his patterns. I would have far preferred Jeffo come in TO PLAY WITH JVR.

Windsor for Kolt? Young for young, I'm ok with it but they're different positions.

Lever out, and Sharp in? Clearly not like for like. Howes will have to play in the Lever role, which I don't mind him being given that chance.

I just feel like this isn't maximising our available list (and really we have a good injury list). Petty being played as a forward is killing him, get him back as a defender swing man. This was a golden chance to do it with Lever out. Jeffo and JVR need to have a block of playing AFL together, if the coaches really think they're our future then given them that chance.

The season is cooked so I just want to see development, I just have question marks over whether they are selecting players in the best way to achieve that.

If (big if) he was interested in coming to us we should be pursuing it. Now it's not going to solve the problems we have entering the 50 but it would mean we actually have someone to target that can take a mark and kick a goal.

Look at the one time our forward line actually functioned, Big Benny Brown was our key pillar. It wasn't just what he did with the ball coming his way it was the fact he took the main defender and we could build around it.

On 23/06/2025 at 07:47, Demonstone said:

Not quite, Mr Round Objects.

We swapped our 2025 first rounder for their 2024 first rounder and used that pick on Xavier Lindsay.

Bomber fans are enjoying the death ride this year and look like gaining a high draft pick out of the deal.

However, in an apparently weakish draft with many Academy/NGA selections, we already have Lindsay on our books with a year of development under his belt.

Honestly I don't think enough credit has been given to our draft/trading team for this, they knew this year was going to be highly compromised and by all reports weaker. Compare that to last season where it was a well rated draft, and we picked up Langford and Lindsay. I obviously want us to finish as high as possible to diminish Essendon's position, but the truth is that it makes little difference to us.

Ultimately, I just want us to get as many wins as possible and launch into next season with some solid foundations.

6 hours ago, Ghostwriter said:

“OUR Dynasty”

Such entitlement. Premierships are extremely hard to win, and winning one doesn’t mean it’s a given that there are more to immediately follow. “Oh, but with that 2021 list we should’ve won another flag… or two.” I’m sure supporters of every premiership-winning club say the same; more often than not it doesn’t happen.

When do we start saying Geelong’s “dynasty” has been “stopped”? If they don’t win the flag this year (which they won’t coz Collingwood), that’s three “failed” seasons. “Oh, but Geelong are consistently in the mix for finals.” Well, so were we in 2022-23 yet folks on here were already bemoaning having only one premiership.

End of rant. Have at me, anyone who thinks I’m talking a load of 💩. But beware…. I’ve not yet had a coffee. Consider yourself warned. 😁

I do actually agree with this statement in that the way things are covered with this list and this period at Melbourne, that's it's been a failure. It's absolutely glass half empty.

But we hadn't won a premiership since 1964, we'd had a few decent chances (87 probably is the one that sticks out even if I wasn't a fan at the time) but we'd never made it to the top of the mountain. The fact the we HAVE won a premiership needs to be celebrated more rather than the years following that we didn't. Now does that mean I give them passes for the mistakes we made over 2022/23? No, but I do come at it with a recognition that we bloody well did it!

I think the only thing that irks me is that the previous periods we have been in the mix we've either had some bad luck fall our way, or we've come up against teams that were clearly better than us. For me I look at 2022 as a failure of player management, and arrogance leading into the finals. 2023 I saw as a missed opportunity on our end through poor execution, that said we had some bad luck as well with Petty and Melk's late season injuries, and Gus getting taken out by that thug.

I want there to be serious conversations about our mix in the midfield because right now it is definitely not balanced with bulls and finesse. Viney's time attending bounces should be halved, and he should be played more as a pressure forward/tagger than a midfielder. Trac and Oliver can attend bounces together but only when we have the likes of Langford, Lindsay, and Koz around them to be the designated kickers inside. They also need to be told, "if you can't spot a direct pass, look for a lateral kick".

Oh and the way we used Rivers last week set him backwards in development, play him as a midfielder.

We should be doing everything we can to avoid seeing Viney, Trac, and Oliver in the centre at the same time.

On 19/06/2025 at 03:10, GS_1905 said:

Yes they were up for the entire game, but we dominated all facets of the game except conversion.

Their scoring from back half was the only way they could have any sort of impact - we knew this coming and in the end if you told me we would limit Collingwood to 60 points in that game - i and the whole of MFC would have taken it without question.

69-37 i50
+ 1 Uncontested
+14 Contested
+4 clearances
+6 Frees
+6 Contested marks (+1 Marks i50)
-32 Rebound 50s. We knew this coming into the game

in the end the one that matters was scoring / conversion accuracy:

9.6 - 7.11 (2.5 vs 4.1 in the 3rd)... was where the game was ultimately lost.

So respectfully disagree. This was the game that got away.

Yeah my memory (although biased I would admit) was that they blitzed us early but from quarter time onwards we beat them in most areas. They just kept being able to snag that "against momentum" goal to slow us down and ultimately our inability to convert that bit us in the bum.

I will also always maintain that Gus getting taken out was the biggest difference. He plays out the game then Trac goes forward more, where he was in excellent form, and our scoring ability is greatly improved.

Following on the next week I reckon we lost it at selection by not playing Grundy. Baffling and shocking decision by Goody and Co for which I will never understand.

Urgh I had to give up on this article, too painful and just makes me angry seeing other teams being crazy accurate while we miss standard chances.

It's been such a frustrating theme for way too long.

Can I ask a silly question, how is it that Hawthorn (who already had a "home" in Glenferrie Oval) were able to get into one new training ground that was state of the art at the time, and then be able to move into another while we have been essentially homeless for decades.

Is it incompetence on our part? Is it us being too stuck with trying to be in the heartland of the MCG? Is it funds? Is it size of club, and therefore desirability for governments to help out?

I just can't work out how this has been going on for the entirety of my following Melbourne (30 years).

I've genuinely tried to come at my opinions on Goody as calmly and as rationally as possible. After round 5 I was not calm and rational, I was beyond fed up, I was livid with what I was seeing.

Now since that time I have seen enough to say that around the ground the game plan is developing and growing, but there are players entrenched in the old style and old instincts, and they go straight towards them when things are falling apart.

So where do I land on Goody now? I think he stays at the very least until the end of the year, he is given the opportunity for the board to see tangible signs that a bounce back is coming, and I would even say should be presenting to them to outline it all. I think beyond the end of this year my gut is that he will stay and see out his contract.

But here's the caveat; there has to be a plan to change our forward line, and he should be implementing that plan NOW. He can't keep doing the same thing and expect it to magically change. Petty is a handy swingman but he is a defender first, and a forward second. I would say the same thing about Disco but he at least seems more natural as a forward. We have to give JVR and Jeffo proper time as forwards, and have them combining together. JVR should not be rucking, it's hurting his development and we won't know whether they've got something unless we give them a proper body of games to prove it.

Casey are playing well, we have players putting their hands up for selection. It's time for us to be ruthless about some of our older dogs, and offer them the opportunity to be tried in different roles. If they don't like it, they get moved on for us to get draft capital.

The positive is that I still (maybe I'm delusional) believe we are a few tweaks and a couple of really solid recruits away from being back to top 6 and beyond. But right now we are close but still so far away.

1 hour ago, Romey said:

It looks like our most accurate goal kicker is less accurate than the entire Geelong team average.

That is embarrassing, to have our best kick be hitting just a tick over 50%. Honestly our players should be filthy with themselves and be doing something about it.

I've said it before I'll say it again, they should be paying fines (going to Jim Stynes charity) for missed shots until this problem is resolved. I'm absolutely fed up with this now.

On 14/06/2025 at 06:28, Howard_Grimes said:

This should put to bed for good the excuse that in the past our lack of efficiency came from having shots from 'lower percentage areas' like the pockets. Sure that could be factored in.

But.

The overarching reason we are so poor in this area and bottom of this particular list is down to having a a large group of players who lack composure overall. And it'd be fair to say most of that comes from open play shots on goal. And it's been this way for years.

Kicking ourselves out of games, literally. All over the ground but especially going inside 50 and at having shots on goal.

This is the thing, this whole theory of has having shots in low percentage areas is flawed. Because even from those "low chance" shots we should be getting them 40-50% of the time. The killers are the 25-40m kicks that are either in front of goal or on a slight angle, we suck at them and would miss them far more than we kick them. These are shots that for an AFL player should be bread and butter. Hell even Sparrow's snap is a great example, most players in other teams kick them, we don't.

This issue with goal kicking has been slowly killing us for a while, now we are in the bottom 4 because of it.

On 17/06/2025 at 01:35, DiscoStu17 said:

JHF and Rozee

Rozee, that was the one. It was in our forward 50 and evern the FF commentators mentioned he was given all day to get rid of it and failed to dispose of it correctly.

It's those moments that infuriate when they are hot on Jack with his incident, there has to be better consideration on how they make their decisions.

On 15/06/2025 at 13:31, GS_1905 said:

AFLPA limit training time is what I’ve heard. The players would have to do it on their own accord and own money.

I'm sorry but they are earning enough to be able to say they'll take it on themselves to improve this fundamental part of the game.

10 hours ago, DeeZone said:

Should have been a free to JV in the 1st case shoved face first into the turf both arms pinned. Then 50m, even the commentators disagreed for once. Daylight robbery for a mean spirited act. Well done umpire, atrocious decision layzie.

My first thought was ball it up. You see them paid for a dangerous tackle but he had literally no prior opportunity to get rid of it, but for whatever reason they were hot on it then. Funny they weren't hot on it earlier in the game when a port player, can't remember who, was given an eternity to dispose of it, didn't correctly dispose of it but somehow that was play on.

As for the 50, I hate to say it but that was Viney's fault. Players know, and it felt so much the same as Kozzie's brain fart last week. We give up a lot of stupid 50m penalties.

I'm just tired and exhausted. Maybe I was always this way but the last few weeks seem to have really sapped some life out of me. Listening to the DeeBrief poddy right now Caden McDonald summed it up perfectly; it's death by a thousand self inflicted cuts. Watching us lose the same way over and over, watching the same issues rear their head every week without change, watching a game and knowing that we should be in front (sometimes significantly) but we trail by 15-20 points, and just knowing that a team doesn't need to beat us they just need to wait for us to beat ourselves.

Now I was really dirty on Goody earlier in the year and was on the wagon of time for change. I have calmed my stance on that since the 5 wins from 6 run, but he needs to be asked the question point blank by the board; what's being done to fix these ongoing issues that have existed FOR YEARS!

I have no confidence in any of out players to bin a set shot (though Fritta is winning me back slowly). We have lost massive games because of dumb football, ill-discipline, and failing at the basic fundamentals. Now we are at the bottom of the pile for the same reason.

I'm done, as I said I'm tired and exhausted of this. FIX IT!!!!!

There has to be a fining system set up within the club:

• behinds from within 30m on easy angles = $75

• behinds from 30-40m no angle = $50

• all other behinds or misses (out on the full included) = $25

All fines go directly to the Jim Stynes foundation and I would have it be retrospective from the start of the season. I'm sick of us paying our hard earned towards these guys getting paid extremely well, only for them to fail at a basic fundamental part of the game.

I think we need to make the switch, send him to defence and he only goes forward as a switch. But he should be a defender first always. Disco on the other hand I think should be forward first and defender second.

7 hours ago, Lou C. Fur said:

In this video Matthew Lloyd (who kicked 926 goals in his career as an AFL footballer) is directly asked whether he would coach set-shot goal-kicking at Melbourne. He actually seems quite frustrated with Melbourne's inability to kick accurately from set shots in front of goal.

He responds to the questions of whether he would coach Melbourne at set-shot goal kicking accuracy, by recalling the year he coached Joe Daniher when he was at the Bombers, to help him with set-shot accuracy, he remembers that players and staff would ignore him when he walked into the club due to things that he had said. Sounds like he was badly burnt by his old club whilst trying to help them...He doesn't go any further with his response. Watch the video...

Lloyd's response implies that if Melbourne were to welcome him into the club and treat him with dignity, not ignore him like players and staff from his old club Essendon did when he was coaching Joe Daniher, and instead embrace him for his knowledge and guidance on set-shot gol kicking (which he is an expert!), the Dees might just have a coach on their team that WILL help with goal kicking accuracy.

Goody's links with the Bombers might just get this over the line.

I think that Matthew Lloyd (926 AFL goals) would be an excellent coach for set-shot goal kicking at Melbourne and strongly advocate for this to happen.

...or get David Neitz back as goal kicking coach for the Dees. Neitz kicked 631 AFL goals - the most by a Melbourne player - EVER - I'd take him as goal kicking coach for Melbourne in a heart beat. Is Neita available?

Watch the video and let me know what you think...

I'll gladly have Lloyd at the club in a goal kicking capacity, but I firmly believe that this is more between the ears than technique and ability. There are some that maybe don't have great technique, but then there are others (Melksham, Fritta) who have great technique but are missing relatively easy shots. When someone takes a mark inside 50 they all seem to look petrified, they're already picturing them missing it.

There needs to be a hypnotist of sports phycologist who can get inside their minds and change this. It's the total opposite of clutch, they've failed before they've even kicked it.

1 hour ago, spirit of norm smith said:

AFL website

Mason Cox's second goal with just minutes remaining helped seal a nine-point win for the Magpies over Casey.

The 211cm big man, who was dropped for last week's AFL win over Hawthorn, also had nine disposals, three clearances and 22 hitouts rotating through the ruck.

This is hilarious, I started on the final page of the thread and saw this. Thought oh damn we lost!

This is too funny, I mean I know they pay university students to write up these articles but this is next level embarrassing.

16 hours ago, Demon Dynasty said:

That's a complete myth. Started off on Neale at bounces / ball ups as a reference then they went their separate ways.

Clayton was back to his best (in terms of his best form this year which is pretty good but still a fair way off his top end from 21 - 23) because he did not play a close checking role he was asked to play last week and which resulted in a decent gain to the Hawks / Newcombe on the day.

Most player ratings had Newcombe a fair way in front last week and Clarry just pipping Neale this week, even though it wasn't a head to head shut down this week like last week.

"Shut down" may have been the wrong wording but it was a run with role to try to curtail Neale's influence. The thing I liked about the way he did it was that it allowed Clarry to be more of his normal competitive self, there was more about beating Neale and hurting him the other way than just stopping him. The fact that Neale was way down on clearances was in no small part to Clarry in his role.

1 hour ago, Sir Why You Little said:

Looking at this Video, it will be hard to drop players

Jeff White is a Coach in Waiting….

I mean if Kalani comes to the Dees next season, why doesn't Jeff come on board as a ruck/midfield coach?

If I'm being critical of Goody (and I think there are still valid criticisms) of Goody when we lose, I goota give him credit when we get good wins. Tactically I think Goody used all the pieces on his chess board correctly. From Clarry doing a run with role on Neale, to Melk blanketing Andrews. I also saw that our gameplan of using the hands to move with pace rather than bombing long coming out stronger. I also notice we are going back to using the get out chip kick when we can.

I'm still not 100%if Goody will be our coach next season, but for now he is turning things around and that's all we can ask of him.

6: Max
5: Bowey
4: Melksham
3: Oliver
2: Petracca
1: Kozzie (would be higher if he took more of his chances)

These are the harder ones to determine. Viney for Sharp feels obvious, if Brown put in another good performance I'd like to see that rewards and have Spargo dropped. If Lever is fit he comes in, Disco goes forward, AJ (very unlucky) goes out.

Fritta stays as the sub. He had an impact and that's what we need from the sub.

2 hours ago, GS_1905 said:

Apparently Freo are unhappy that Melbourne FC are driving the narrative surrounding Dogga.

You can’t make this stuff up.

I honestly love this, and to be honest it shows us fighting a little dirty for once. They have been in the ears of Hogan when he was a teen, Jackson when he was a teen, and been teasing about Kozzie. About time they got a taste of their own medicine.

1 minute ago, seventyfour said:

I'll forever be convinced that we win the flag in 2023 if he didn't get injured.

We were one forward short and he was in fine form. He shows up in big games too.

I'm in with your theory on that. We lacked the ability to kick goals, it's exactly what he does.

We lose Petty, Melk, and Brayshaw. All three impact our ability to score (Gus going down meant Trac couldn't play forward).