Macca

I'd rather remember Cameron for the good footy he played for us - over 200 games is a fair effort - as is often the case , the last year or so of a player's career is focused on way too much - Hope he does well in his future endeavers .

I like your tall backline - seems that the good sides do this a fair bit - Pies , Cats and others The game changed a fair bit this year with more long kicking and taller forward lines ( Cats ) If the trend continues then we need to find more marking options in the forward line - Clark obviously helps but who else have we got that can consistently take contested marks in the fwd line - week in , week out . Hopefully Howe gets even better and if Watts and Jurrah can learn how to play in front and take some heat then we'll be alright - Green and Petterd are good at times - my team had Martin at CHF cos I think he can handle it - But if Watts can hold down CHF we are cooking with gas .

You've got the same 7 talls in your team ! OK so you've got Martin on the bench but not a lot of difference hey - 6 v 7 in the starting 18 - In fact nearly every team posted has the same 7 talls in it ! The difference being I have Martin in the team at CHF - As I said earlier maybe Grimes for Rivers ( who I've seen play on mediums / smalls quite a lot ) A tallish backline is usually needed against Pies , Cats , Hawks and Eagles ( esp if we're getting towelled up by their talls ) Anyway , it's ok to agree to disagree !

Watts is not equiped for CHF yet - you may have a point about the backline though ( against small forward lines ) Grimes for Rivers for that case - Not sure that my backline is "amazingly" tall in any case . Watts plays like a utility and has good leg speed - Don't get the "Wrecked team balance" bit either - how ?

FB : Garland Frawley Bartram HB : Rivers Watts Tapscott C : Blease Sylvia Bail HF : Trengove Martin Jurrah FF : Green Clark Howe FOLL : Jamar Moloney McKenzie INT : Grimes Petterd Jones SUB : Gysberts EMG : Davey Bate Nicholson We really do possess a good list that underperforms too often - Neeld should be able to get the best out of them . I tried to put as many "Goers" as I could find in the team - Usually that's what a new coach does as well .

Well that's where he has played most of his career but ..... he's not elite and he could be - I do like the idea of a "General" type in the centre and we do have a lot of medium / small type forwards that can fill the bill - Pettard , Jurrah , Green , Howe , Jetta , Wonna , Davey (?) Dunn and Bate ( though I'd rather see him on the wing ) . And lets face it , we have to change our structure a fair bit cos the one used this year and in the previous few years simply doesn't work . It's a bit off subject I suppose but it's all related - interesting times ahead and I can't ever remember feeling as confident about a new coach - Maybe Barassi though 1981 was a tough year ( 1 win !!! )

Yeah - you could swap Martin and Watts around - Sylvia is the one that has to become elite player - he has loads of ability - in the middle is where this might happen .

Yeah he's not up to it but so were quite a few more ( this year ) . There's some on the list that can count themselves lucky to be contracted next year .

FB - Frawley CHB - Watts Centre - Sylvia CHF - Martin FF - Clark Now there's a talented spine - Reckon that's what Neeld might be thinking anyway .

Bate played his best footy on the wing and has mostly been played out of position in the last 4 years - Neeld want's to keep him so let's give him a go hey !

Yeah and I like the way The Ox had a dig at the "Defector" as well - great stuff !

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/melbourne-great-david-schwarz-rates-mitch-clark-better-than-tom-scully/story-fn69a32t-1226167931549 David Schwarz welcomes you too Mitch !

Yeah , it always amazes me how some people can get away with ridiculous "big statements" . However , some of us have long memories ! I still haven't forgotten Quartermain calling Melbourne a rabble in the early 2000's .

Agreed - there might be another twist as well - just a gut feeling !

http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/demons-boys-club-will-rue-bailey-sacking-20110804-1idk5.html Here's another Melbourne hater - Robert Walls - reckons we will have 5 years of regret for sacking Bailey ! 5 Years ! Not even 5 minutes for me esp with how Mark Neeld has hit the ground running !

Yep , we were terrible this year and the biggest underachieving team of the year . So , the upside is that we can play a whole lot better . I'm also in the camp that NEVER rated Bailey as a Coach . My gut feel is that Neeld will be so good that even the most ardent Bailey fans will see the light . There has been zero emphasis on the fundamentals of the game in the last 4 years Play in front of your man , First in for the ball , Don't panic when you get hold of the pill , Beat your opponent , Old school stuff I know , but the things that all good teams do FIRST ............................Game plans , Zones , Forward line pressure etc are flow on effects from the fundamentals of the game (as you well know). I'm an old( ish ) Dee myself so I know that we probably think alike anyway "old dee" ! Anyway , Isn't it better to spend the next 5 - 6 months believing that we're gonna get somewhere next year - we've got loads of untapped talent haven't we ?

Don't reckon we need a "Favourable Draw" . If Neeld can get the best out of our llist and lose the "Bruise Free" part of our game then the sky's the limit ! He's nailed Clark in the last day or so and I'm suitably impressed . In fact , a reasonably tough first 6 - 8 games would give us all a better indication of whether Mark has "Got it" or not . Soft early season wins can cloud your thinking . I reckon we play finals next year regardless of our draw . Sydney first up and then the Hawks ( just like this year ) is what I'd like to see . We need to be tested under our new Coach .

Well sounds like we've got a few options then - dare we say it - " A nice problem to have ! "

He's not exactly a tall ! We've seen him kick heaps of "crumbing" type goals over the years so he fits the bill . One of his strengths is his ability at ground level - He kicked 55 goals in 2010 - he was played up the ground this year which didn't work . Don't write him off yet . Watch for the redemption year from him .

Are we forgetting Brad Green - he's played his best footy as a small forward - and he has been scapegoated this year as well as played out of position up the ground . Captaincy or no Captaincy he will bounce back this year or least we should hope he does .

Mark Neeld , the difference maker ! Green has played his best footy as a forward so that's where you play him . Alongside Clark . And Stef Martin for Centre Half Forward - he reminds me of Earl Spalding . Jurrah to have a roving commission and Watts as a Utility .

How about we all bombard SEN with text messages the next time Denham is on ! Monday ? Tuesday ? Fairly sure the no. is 0433981116 - Can't wait for KB to open up with "And Greg , we've had quite a number of text messages from what I can only assume are Demon fans !"

Just fight fire with fire - all Clubs and their supporters have an "Achilles heel" Collingwood with their insane optimism and choking in GF's , Tigers sacking their coaches and constantly finishing 9th , Hawks with their sewerage colours , Bulldogs with their "Tragic" history , Ditto Saints , Carlton purchasing their Flags , Essendon with their arrogant fans and the way they sook when they lose , North with their pitifully low crowds , can't think of anything with the Cats but their fans are generally ok - and don't get me started on the "Interstate" teams !! Cheers !

It wasn't the rank and file members who voted to merge the Club out of existence - it was the 12 Committee members with their thousands of proxy votes - we were railroaded by Ridley and his pathetic "Give up" Committee - just setting the record straight !

Pre Clark thread that I posted up in the wrong area of the site .