Grapeviney

Sorry Webber, I already bought a similar painting from Ricky Nixon.

Yep. One-third of his goals for the year were kicked in round 22 and beyond. 7 - 1 - 4 - 2 - 6 Brilliant return at the business end of the season but not the 16th best player in the comp.

As far as I know, Ivor Warne-Smith's 2 medals are still missing. The family made a public appeal for them a few years back.

I've merged this thread with an earlier one started by a WCE fan who was at the GF and is looking for the Dees corresponding to his / her badges. See the opening post above yours.

No-one's being rude. Just pointing out that getting a package quickly from Auspost these days is the exception, not the rule. It's been 8.5 business days since the GF - nothing was ever going to arrive this quickly. At some point in the past few years, Auspost basically decided they weren't going to do their core business anymore. They're like a restaurant that doesn't do meals.

You’re all getting mixed up between the GF DVD and the Victory Pack; the latter has all MFC finals, not just the GF, and the alternate commentary. https://www.dvdland.com.au/products/AFL-Premiers-%2d-2021-Victory-Pack.html

I've moved discussion about the bar owner to a separate thread. Let's keep this one focussed on our glorious triumph 🏆

I wish I had something more meaningful to contribute to this wonderful thread but I'm still a bit stunned and lost for words. After the Prelim win, I lamented only half-jokingly to friends that we'd produced our best a week early. Things ran hot and we were scintillating. To back it up in the GF with what many are calling the most devastating 45 minutes of footy in finals history beggars belief. We could win the next 10 flags but we're unlikely to see anything like that ever again.

Did what they’ve done all year - kept the opposition to 10 goals. We win the game. Rinse. Repeat.

Max Gawn. I get the feeling he's due for a breakout game.

It's been a massive few days for former MFC skipper Jack Trengove. Won the Keith Sims OAM Medal (the Brownlow equivalent) in the Adelaide Football League on Thursday night. He was then BOG in a premiership victory as his Prince Alfred Old Collegians beat Payneham Norwood Union in the Div 1 Grand Final on the weekend. Said it's the most enjoyable season of football he's ever played. Congrats Trenners!

Anyone checked in on Will Schofield this morning? Poor bloke has probably got a bunch of fresh new mental scars to deal with.

Jones flying home tomorrow morning, according to The Australian newspaper.

Hello everybody, first time poster, but I'm a massive fan of Aussie rules and especially the Melbourne Demons team. I'd really like to go to the play-offs this weekend if you can lend me a membership. I promise to cheer loudly and make sure the ref doesn't cheat for Geelong Cats. Go Melbourne Demons AFL !!

Outside of a handful of Demonlanders, it's not a view shared by anyone in the football world. I've never seen a single criticism by anyone of note that Viney's a limited player, or over-rated, or a one-dimensional 'rugby player'. Not once. I do, however, remember when our preliminary final opponent - ie a good club - tried to poach him not that long ago. He's played under 3 coaches (Neeld for just his debut year) One coach gave him a b&f. The other has him finishing 2nd or 3rd in every year since, bar one when he was injured. That's a lot of people supposedly 'blinded by love'.

Looking at the rules and regulations to get into Perth, and it says military personnel can get an exemption. In completely unrelated news, I've just joined the army!

An interesting insight into Goodwin and the team this year, in particular our ability to reset - within the season, within games, and even quarters. After a standout regular season, Goodwin has preached to his players about the need to reset and start all over when it comes to the finals. As a way of getting his message across to his players, the 44-year-old decided to use tennis star Andre Agassi and NBA champion Giannis Antetokounmpo as prime examples to motivate and inspire his troops. “The ability to reset, whether it be within games, within weeks, within seasons has been really important,” Goodwin said. “We’ve used a lot of examples in that space, Andre (Agassi) has been one of them, and that happens again this week. “The ability for our club to deal with situations, reset ourselves, whether it be from week to week, in-game or even in-quarter are really important for us." ---------- Agassi, who won his first Grand Slam at Wimbledon aged 22 and won his last Grand Slam at the Australian Open when he was 32, had a strong ability to reset himself in tennis as he enjoyed a career at the top for decades. It’s a method that Goodwin is in awe of. “It was a theme that we used and grabbed an example of a player that’s been at the top of his game for a long, long time,” Goodwin said. “How he (Agassi) broke down his opponent, he didn’t have to be the best for that tournament, he needed to be the best on that day and he needed to beat the opponent seven times to be champion. “He broke it down really simply into sets and games and opponents to win championships. -------- Giannis Antetokounmpo, who won his first NBA championship with the Milwaukee Bucks in 2021, was cited by Goodwin as a key example of a player that knows how to reset and succeed. More specifically, Goodwin is a fan of the Bucks star’s key trait displayed throughout his young career: “The never being satisfied part of it.” “He’s done a few interviews and talks about the ability to continue to push and stay in the moment and never be satisfied with where he sits,” Goodwin said. “Whether it be from an individual perspective or team perspective. “Our players were really captivated and learnt from those stories and the storytelling involved in those things.”

All-Australian team will be announced this Thursday, and while he's unlikely to get a spot in the final 22, surely Kozzy Pickett deserves to be part of the conversation. Has had the odd quiet patch, but finished 3rd in the league for tackles inside 50, and put 35 goals on the board. Outstanding effort. PS: ANB was #1 in the comp for tackles inside 50. Also outstanding.

Being managed apparently, rather than injury.

May out, Smith in ? That's what I'm hearing, and no, I don't know any more re: May

This is going to sound absolutely nuts, but I foresee a game where we’re 6 goals up in the final quarter, and then the match gets delayed by a freak lightning storm, giving our opponents time to rest and launch a comeback! Probably never happen I guess..

That term is anachronistic at best. More broadly - and i say this knowing that many people don’t punctuate properly online - the word ‘Indigenous’ should always be spelled with a capital I when referring to people. It’s great to see @Colin B. Flaubert, @deanoxand others articulating the case so clearly, and not giving up on the discussion - this is what Eddie Betts is imploring all of us to do as allies. Repeating empty platitudes and saying the right thing isn’t enough; it takes persistence and patience and hard work to change hearts and minds.

Cannot fathom this attitude at all. Think of the many older fans who’ve been waiting a lot longer for a flag than 1990, some of whom might not even be around next year. RDB is getting on, as are the other remaining champions from that era, and the Rev is on borrowed time. Besides, bird in the hand and all that. This is our season and I don’t care if we have to play on the moon to win it.

I think he meant it keeps happening in the game, rather than to Kozzy. Agree with you though - it was hard watching Eddie tonight. He was really hurting, and at times like this, must feel like all his work and words over the years count for nothing.

It's happened again - this time to one of our players, on social media following last night's game. The club has just released this statement. There is no room for racism, ever. The hurt and trauma caused by racism has sadly, once again been at the forefront of our game in recent times. Despite the best efforts of many, we continue to see people subjected to racial abuse on the football field, in the stands and increasingly, on social media. We have heard so many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people talk about the pain, the hurt, the exhaustion and the anger inflicted by racism. This is not okay; we must do better. This week Eddie Betts said, “no matter who you are or what you do, when it comes to racism, everyone should be held accountable.” It is not enough to simply condemn racism when it occurs, we must work as a club, an industry and as individuals to be anti-racist, and to educate those around us on how they too can play a proactive role in stamping out racism. We may not be able to silence every person who hides behind their keyboard or a fake profile, but we can utilise our own voices and platforms to proactively and consistently, educate people on and celebrate Aboriginal and Torre Strait Islander culture. This week and beyond we ask you to join us in being an active ally for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people through education, the amplification of Indigenous voices and in calling out racism whenever you may witness it. As part of the club’s commitment to ongoing education and allyship, our coaches, players and staff will sit down together this week and watch ‘The Ripple Effect’. A powerful documentary primarily centred around St Kilda legend and proud Noongar Nicky Winmar's generation-defining stand against racism at Victoria Park in 1993. We encourage people to join us in watching the documentary here.