Jaded No More

I agree, I think that tactically Riley does look very capable, and he reacts quickly. As for Newton, can't expect him not to have a dirty night when he's thrown into the midfield in his third AFL match. He got molested by the bigger, more experienced Brisbane midfield, and was lost in the heavy traffic. I still maintain that for the sake of our future, he should play FF or as close to goal as possible for the rest of the season.

I'd be happy if it's Thommo! Still one of my favourite players, despite the fact that he's apperantly a sook and a traitor

Nice article on the Melbourne site: McLean narrows focus but widens appeal He labelled his last 3 weeks as 'crap'... how can you not love him? Also spoke very well about lack of discipline. “If you are angry, just walk away or take it out on a strong tackle or something like that. It can be frustrating but you have to think of the team first. It can be the difference between a good game or a bad game or a close win or close loss.” Great minds think alike

That is completely untrue. For starters, Kent Kingsley is still on an AFL list. Also, Miller worked hard after half time and kept his head up. He shut down his new opponent, made some good decisions and was typically aggressive. We won't gain anything from a trade, and there are plenty of others who should be delisted ahead of him. He's still young (Carroll was 25 when he started to show signs of being a capable player), and if he is given adequate time and training, he could be a good defender. He has reasonable pace, he is big, he is aggressive, and IMO he is far better following a forward, than making the play. Also, Nathan Brown kicked the ball to the opposition in the goal square this year. Is he the worst player on an AFL list?

They should have made the effort to turn up. I've been to post match-functions in Adelaide, where we normally get spanked, and most players eventually make their way in and out of the function. They don't stay long as they fly back the same night, but at least they make the effort. Really disappointing for the Brisbane supporters who wait all year to watch Melbourne play and meet the players... but hey, at least you got to be in the presence of greatness, given Newton turned up

These are completely separate issues. Our players should abide by the rules of the AFL, and laws of our society. The rules of the AFL clearly state that smacking, punching, hitting etc... is unacceptable. Davey is likely to get suspend for what he did, and even if he doesn't, he gave away needless free kicks. He was wrong. Again, if the shoe was on the other foot, people would scream for Selwood to get suspended. Sylvia didn't break any laws by going out and drinking. It was our mid-season break as well. Do I think it's good that he goes to seedy clubs to get drunk and pass out? No. Do I care what he does with his spare time? Not as long as it doesn't affect his playing ability or the club's reputation. In Sylvia's case, it didn't. He was only mentioned because he was with Didak for a period of time. Not because he did anytning wrong. But then we're talking about our players in the context of playing, and as davey_magik said, if you think that what Davey did was ok, you're clueless. It served absolutely no purpose, and if Davey needs to hit someone to get fired up, he should find a different occupation.

I'll probably get abused for this, but as per usual, when Melbourne are out of the running (so say Round 4), I barrack for The Crows to win the flag. Adelaide for the premiership, Scotty Thompson for Brownlow If not Adelaide, than I'd be happy for one of Geelong or Kangaroos to win it. My least preferred option is for the Coke Sniffers to win it.

How can you say that Frawley had no influence?? He was probably the only winner we had in the backline last night. Kept a very dangerous Brennan quiet, after he had his best match last week with 7 shots on goal and 4 goals. Frawley was very good. He's improving with each game and each task he is set. As for Miller, there isn't a defender on this planet who can stop Jonathan Brown when the Brisbane midfield are under no pressure to deliver the ball to him. Not to mention that like the Sydney game, he was left one-out with their big man. We have learnt NOTHING, and Miller is the one who cops the blame. Thought he did well after he was moved, both with his defensive pressure and his attack on the ball. He deserves a year to learn the ropes down back.

True, but I'm still confused with his decision to play Newton anywhere but FF! Surely, after having 8 shots at goal last week, he deserved to start and stay in the goal square. At least he made the move on Brown early....

One of his handballs was sneaky and got us the goal. He worked hard to try and get into the game, unlike in his first match when the poor kid got stuck in no-mens land up forward. But I agree that he is very VERY raw. He needs a lot of time to develop, possibly another full year at Sandringham. He also needs muscle, and lots of it!

Yeah, let's give stupid free kicks away, get reported, get suspended, and have points hanging over our head going into next season. Awesome plan! If Davey is frustrated, he should take it out on the ball, and attack in. Smacking a guy in the guts is not the answer, and if the situation was reversed and Selwood punched Davey out of frustration, you'd be calling for him to get a 3 week suspension. There is nothing tough about what Davey did. It was just dumb. Players need to learn to shut their mouth when a decision goes against them, and keep their hands close to their own bodies when things are not going their way. You achieve nothing but more frustration for the supporters and the coaches when you give away unnecessary free kicks. On a side note, Davey needs to learn to break a tag or work around it. He's been playing long enough and getting a lot of attention for a couple of season now. He nearly cost us a final last year against the Saints, and he still hasn't learnt. I love Davey and he brings a lot to the side. We know what he's capable of, but when he's not having a good day, he actually hurts the side with his brain fades.

Those turnovers were the stuff Brownlow medals are made of Ward hit about 3 targets all night, all under no pressure. Pickett is not fit and not committed enough. It speaks volumes that we're down to about 25 fit men and Pickett is playing at Sandy. As for Yze, 2008 will be his last season and he'll struggle to get a game every week.

Fair enough. I think his form throughout his career has been very consistent. 3 or 4 bad games out of 55 is not exactly a bad return! He'll lead from the front regardless, as he does each week. I just think that giving him the role next week will be a just reward for bouncing back from a bad patch of games. But it's just one game, and it doesn't make a huge difference to his overall captaincy aspirations. He will captain the club sooner or later.

It's a rotation policy. Junior had it for two weeks, Green won't play, Bruce will be coming back from injury if he does. Why shouldn't McLean, on the back of being our best performer the week before, be given the role on the day? Of course, if Neita plays, it won't be an issue.

What was with their complete refusal to call 'play on advantage'? Stuffed us up at least 3 times, when we had the ball nearly inside 50!

Judd's Groin >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Sandringham >>>>>> Melbourne Team footy requires you to have a team. Given that we're currently a side thrown and sticky-taped together, I don't know that you can expect much more. We are basically playing the last 22 fit men we have, and most of them are no good or very very raw. Those who are no good will be gone shortly, those who are raw, will learn from the experience and be better for it next year.

That's what happens when you play guys like Ward and Brown and give them plenty of space to run forward. Compare CJ's disposal when going forward, with the usual suspects who deliver the ball in Ward and Brown. Also, given how much pressure Brisbane applied on our midfield, it was hard for our ball carriers to pick targets and kick the ball in quickly and to target. You only need to look at the way Brisbane was pumping the ball into Brown, to realise how important it is to win the clearances and win them well. McLean, Jones and McDonland get their hands on the ball in the middle, but have little support and often get tackled, or handball into a pack of players. It's very rare that we have a clean take-out, and it's killing our forward movement! I think we're 15th in the league for clearances, and it shows.

Only a matter of time before he bounced back. Brisbane didn't tag him heavily, but it was still good to see him get a lot of the ball and use it well. Plenty of contested possessions, which is what you want from your hard ball-winners. If Neita doesn't play next week, McLean should be stand-in captain.

Brisbane beat West Coast at Subiaco last week. What made you think we possibly had a chance, when better Melbourne sides couldn't get a sniff in Brisbane in years? You can't expect to win games with the side we're fielding at the moment. We're one kid short of a happy meal FFS. The fact that we made a contest of it and didn't lie down and get done by 100 points, is something to hang our hat on.

Why would you drop him? Why is he always the first one in the gun? Has done very well with his limited ground time and possession count. No youngster deserves to get dropped while our injury list is so long. We have nothing to gain by dropping them. The home-game experiment earnt us a lot of money, but not a lot of points. Good riddance Brisbane!

Our players have lost the plot tonight. So many undisciplined frees given away, which is unacceptable, even from a young side. Brock- 31 touches, 13 contested possessions, 1 goal. The champ is back! :D

McLean and Jones have been very good. McLean is the leading possession getter on the ground, which is a fair effort after 3 poor weeks. Oh, and nice work from Bate and Sylvia to combine for the goal How good is CJ's disposal today? Doesn't get a heap of the ball, but he makes the possessions count.

I saw him in the midfield, and a few forward flank cameos. Great goal from Jonesy. What a champ! P.S.- Pathetic umpiring tonight!

Nice handball from Garland. Godfrey was excellent too, punched the ball down back, and ran down to kick the goal. Oh, and look, Newton finally in the forward line and he creates a contest from which we score.

No chance. White is a hopeless forward. Great kick, good mark, no idea where to lead. He's better off floating across the forward line and taking marks. That's because he isn't playing up forward! Was excellent last week, yet hasn't seen the goal square all night. Robbo and Davey key forwards, and we've taken something like 5 marks inside our forward 50. Anyone shocked? McLean with 29 possessions. :D