rufus

The commentators are still running the company line of excuses for the MFC? Why??? Why won't anyone just call this club out for what it is? I guess it's because we are a nice play thing for other clubs in the competition, and you wouldn't want to disrupt that. If you're struggling and want an opponent that you can beat on pure effort, circle the Demons on the fixture. It's a nice fallback for other clubs.

My favourite part was when the players just decided to start trying to take hangers at the end (Harmes especially). I guess they have busted their guts up to this point so they were due a little bit of fun. Liked the Lever acquisition but he has zero ability to compete in a one on one. Nathan Jones has been a great servant but he is no longer AFL standard and he has gotten very lazy. Time to move on. The kicking for goal I have no words for. Viney maybe just isn't a good league footballer. The overall ability to compete in the air is an embarrassment to everyone linked to the club.

This club is a disgrace. It's just the lack of pride that confuses me the most. The way these guys routinely let their opponents embarrass them in contests. We would have to be the worst one on one contested side in recent AFL history. We don't even appear to want to establish body position to be able to compete when the ball is coming into our areas.

Was hoping Viney would be a catalyst in changing the player culture of the club. Unfortunately it doesn't look that way. It was a lot to hope for though given the long and distinguished history of shirking the work within our club. Starting to wonder whether there's ever been a leader in the AFL who could get consistent competitiveness out of a modern MFC playing group.

No we don't turn over the list at all. We have talent. We've always had talent. Don't know how you do it, but somehow we need to change the expectations applied to our players. For example, no excuses for last years prelim debacle. We looked petrified and the players should have been called out for it. There's no excuse, injury/pre season or otherwise for winning less games than Haw/Ess/car/stk/syd for example. The day before playing the Demons a few weeks ago, I asked an assistant at another club which Melb players they have specific plans for. He said 'honestly, we don't plan much for their individuals. We've approached them the same for many years...physical pressure and run both ways for long enough and they give up.' Had to laugh.

Why would we want Roos? We were crap under him. We got better at flooding back in numbers, but our players made little to no gains offensively or defensively under him. And he seemed as befuddled as anyone as to what it would take to get our players to compete physically for more than 30 minutes per game. Right now our players routinely look like scared teenagers playing against men. Just like we used to under Roos, under Neeld, under Bailey, on and off under Daniher, and so on. The coach isn't the problem. This club isn't up for the fight. Starts at the heart of the club (i.e. the supporters) who have low expectations and accept the unacceptable. Those advocating for a coaching change are gonna be disappointed again in 5 years time when we have a different coach but still serve up the same old thing when under any pressure.

We could go close tonight if we tackle, defend hard and play with pride. We won't as we don't and we're looking at a 15+ goal hiding here. Odds on us having a significant number of tackles and winning the count (easiest part of the game and probably the most important to your chances of competing)? Zero chance. Despite having way more posession the Tigers will have way more tackles. It's how our club rolls.

We're looking at a 20 goal plus loss next week. The intensity with which Richmond are playing coupled with our apathy for hard competition is an ugly combo. They made a club with pride look very ordinary yesterday...they are going to love seeing the red and blue next week.

Seeds were sown with last year's Prelim effort. Apparently that kind of insipid effort is acceptable to most fans of this club. There is no expectation and therefore things will never change. You can see how today's game will go. Demons players will go in thinking they are so much better than Blues players that it's going to be an easy outing...and will refuse to tackle or compete with defensive intensity. We'll fall behind and the game will be decided by whether Goodwin can somehow extract some pride out of the group and get them to play like competitive grown ups in the 2nd half.

The lads showed how desperate they are to salvage something from the season. A cracking 36 tackle effort. Very proud of the team again. It is, and always has been, a bridge too far for people playing for this club to scrap and fight for wins to drag this club up from being a genuine embarrassment.

Yeah it was definitely these 3 guys' fault last September when our players went over to Perth and took about 45 minutes to undo 5 weeks of work towards regaining some respect in the football world. I wouldn't be surprised if they disliked a coach who was trying to push them too hard. Digging in and working hard just doesn't seem to be something our playing group sees as the highest priority. There's always an excuse. It goes deep with this club, all the way to the broader supporter base. Crap efforts have always been brushed over and excused, and have therefore continued. MFC needs to look at Collingwood for an example of where crap efforts aren't tolerated and being competitive is the number 1 priority (including when their list has been ordinary).

Add him to the long list of players who build a good reputation and get paid by the MFC approaching their peak years, only to regress (in terms of what they contribute to to the team). The list is huge. It's hard to fathom how inconsistent the output is from players with solid experience. The whole idea of experienced players is that you're supposed to get a solid baseline. So when they're out of form, you at least still get a contribution to the team from them. For my entire time watching this club, we get performanes from experienced players that look like they've never played a league game before. This is one reason i will always love the contribution Nathan Jones has made to this club. He is an exception in that through his peak years he seemed to work harder and harder and get better and better.

The MFC players dont get it...but then they never have really. It's quite funny that the Dogs, Tigers and almost the Pies won flags with lesser talent but great defensive pressure, yet we've once again decides it's just not for us. Your defensive intensity drives your offence. It does so for pretty much every team ball sport in the world. The Golden State Warriors have more talent than any basketball team in history, yet when they get lazy on defence their offence stalls and they can get beat by anyone. Once again the supporters have contributed to the state of affairs. The adulation for this group after last years run, despite it finishing with a 'half 186' on preliminary final day obviously had to contribute to the chest puffing that has accompanied a playing group that actually look like a bunch of new born giraffes at times. The crap people are spouting about Goodwin is also counter productive. Yeah his plan may not be great and he needs to make changes. I'm sure he knows that and he's working on it. I have more faith in him than the players given he doesn't have a history of shirking his responsibilities. All the talk about him just once again provides the players an excuse for being uncommitted chest puffers. Let's change the coach. Definitely a great idea...it's worked before hasn't it??? Players were crap at the end of Daniher when they decided they knew better than he did, and they've been utter crap under every coach since (including Roos who had to go into legacy protection mode by flooding the backline when he pretty quickly realised that the work isn't something our playing group feel is expected ).

Oliver basically won us the game imo. He lifted his intensity in the second half and his ability to move through a contest at speed and be clean in doing so is brilliant. The contrast between him and his fumbling teammates could not be more stark. Try to sign him for 6+ years next contract...he needs to be the pillar around which we grow.

Regardless of the outcome here...that half was an out and out disgrace. Minus 10 in contested possessions. Only 4 more tackles despite 50 less possessions. Behind at every single contest. Fumbling every time we go near the ball with any pace and any opportunity to break it open. Key defenders who would be poor in state league. Constantly taking opponents high as we're second to the ball and re-actively aggressive. Hard to see this ending well.

Their kickout...they are in their f50 within 15 seconds...our kickout...deep into the pocket and everyone static...

We are literally trailing behind in every single contest. Bizarre.

How about that space around the stoppage for that goal...we don't get afforded that kind of space...

At least 15 shoves on the opponent though...which is good because it looks like we're getting back to the Frawley/Rivers days of elbowing our opponents in the back before the opening bounce...only to go bruise free once the game starts.

The Nathan Jones effort to grab the Tom McDonald kick across the backline, albeit a crap kick, really is a great example of where we are at. Didn't seem to care about getting the ball...was more focused on giving McDonald a stare down.

We look a bit scared again. Don't want contact and crapping ourselves and going to ground constantly. Hate to say it but we've reverted to type this season...back to the bruise free Demons. Last year was an aberration on the physicality front (even then it wavered at times).

The point about our inability to defend in one on ones is spot on. It goes back to the Paul Roos days. We never learnt how to defend properly...just a modern flood. Obviously right now we need to get more numbers back...all teams still get numbers back. However, realistically we aren't winning anything meaningful with defenders who can't win, or even neutralize a contest. Our defenders just aren't very good. May and Lever will hopefully help. The FD must know how bad our talls are down back, evidenced by the price we were willing to pay in getting May last year.

Thankyou Zac Clarke. We have finally found someone in the AFL that Oscar Mac can match up on. Seriously though, regardless of which way this one goes, surely we cannot play him again. Enough is enough. The one on one beat downs are one thing...but I'm sure our defensive coaches teach these guys how to try to make their opponent lead into spots they don't necessarily want to lead into...I've never seen a player stand on the side of their opponent that basically invites them into the most giant open space in the direction of the ball carrier...

This x 1000. We pulled a half 186 in our last game...in a prelim no less. Undid a lot of good work in 60 minutes. This club still has a long way to go to gain respect...it would be staggering if they entered this season complacent.

I don't hate Collingwood like most seem to. I quite admire the way they display pride in the club and give unconditional effort. My favourite thing in sport i seeing seemingly outclassed teams beat their opponents on effort. Collingwood have been doing that for many years.