pantaloons

I am staggered that there were 20 legends inducted before Norm Smith. A truly well-deserved honour.

My personal preference is for someone other than Connolly, but I don't think he's the terrible option many do. Grant Thomas referred to him as one of the better match day coaches he had battled against, which is a decent compliment even if you don't value thomas' opinion. I feel that Connolly actually did a very good job with Fremantle. Before he took over, the club was one of the biggest laughing stocks in world sport, and while any club sporting the colour combination of purple, green, red and white may never be a respected force, he at least guided that disgraceful franchise to its only two finals appearance, and finished with a better than 50% winning record. I also feel that Freo's list is one of the most overrated lists I have ever seen. However, some of Connolly's strengths also indicae to me that he's not our best option. Like Daniher, he had some better than expected results with a team largely comprised of soft front-runners. Connolly also had to deal with less than ideal circumstances off field. While Daniher's concerns were more to do with a poor club and wretched facilities, Connolly has a list of wild turkeys. I don't know how much Connolly could have been expected to curtail the woeful behaviour of loose cannons off-field, but it doesn't count as a tick for him. Connolly's lack of finals experience is a concern, and I have doubts over his ability to have the toughness to change the attitude of the Melbourne playing list.

With the implosion of the interstate sides, I'm not happy at all that this was the year that we combusted with injury. We've made Grand Finals in 1988 and 2000 where our GF opponents finished something like 46-4 combined in those seasons, and have suffered the injury plague in the most open season since 1998. Looking at Hawthorn, Collingwood and the Kangas up at the top of the ladder, a fit Melbourne side would be hard pressed not to finsh at or above those sides. No point worrying about that now though.

I have found Geelong and their supporters a despicable combination the last few years, but I hope they win it this year. If the Grand Final was played next week I honestly can't see any side coming close. The way they move the football is a treat to watch, and their not afraid to throw the concrete handbag around when the going gets tough. Joel Selwood is an absolute winner, and Gary Ablett has gone from overrated ponce to genuine star. Their backline is well and truly back in business after the aberration of last year, and they've got most of their players up and running after an injury-riddled 2006. They have given me hope that Melbourne could at the very least storm back into the top 8 in 2008.

When Melbourne is playing poorly, generally Carroll is too. I think he's had two or three really good games this year, and a lot of very poor ones. It's been tougher for him this year with the volume and speed of delivery into the Melbourne backline, but he's had his dacks dropped royally on a number of occasions. He's our best option at full back though, and he's done his best to hold together a patchwork defence without its gun CHB and Whelan for most of the year.

Delightfully written, Jack. You summed it all up so beautifully.

1. Jeff Farmer, Shane Woewodin, Scott Thompson. 2. None, but I'll go with Weetra, Neville and Warnock, the three with the least amount of emotional attachment. 3. Robertson, Neitz, McLean.

Where to begin? Neale, thanks for ten years of wholehearted service. It's been clear that Daniher has put every last ounce of himself into the job, and then some. I couldn't have asked for anything more. During his time at Melbourne, he's had to deal with distractions and difficulties he could have done without. Salary cap penalties in two national drafts, unstable boards, poor facilities, a cash-strapped club. A Premiership is significantly all that's missing from his time at Melbourne. Realistically, I feel this was at its closest in his first season, the only season I can recall when I can honestly say that Melbourne would have been more worthy champions than the eventual premier. Thanks for your efforts, Neale.

I'm wondering why there hasn't been a media ban on players after this latest discussion about Neale in the media. Is it because of our ordinary membership, support and financial state that we have to continually get out and about in the media and drum up positivity for the club? Words without action are very hollow, as others have pointed out.

The thing is though DM, that every player has a price. If you were offered well above market value for anyone you'd have to consider it. Paul Johnson? We offloaded Jolly for a first round pick a couple of years ago. If you got something similar or better for PJ you'd have to be ready to pull the trigger, especially if we land Kreuzer in the draft. Obviously a bloke like Neita isn't going anywhere, and if you traded Robbo you'd probably have about 15,000 members storm the G with torches and pitchforks and level the place, but you have to consider offers for anyone. Some offers you'll spend longer considering than others. For example, any offer for Brock McLean that doesn't include the name Chris Judd would probably be considered for about the time it takes for a soundwave to be processed from the ear to the brain before being rejected. A major problem for us at the moment though is that a lot of players will be at their lowest market value or close to it.

Our opinions on who should be traded will be more formed at the end of the season, but a couple of points: 1. I'm not against trading Bruce for the right price, but if he wins this year's Best and Fairest, how many players have ever been traded immediately after winning a B & F, and how would this reflect on the club? 2. I'm not up for trading Johnstone. In my opinion the most unfairly underrated Melbourne player in my time following the club. Our best finals player of the past decade, and if winning a flag any time soon is our aim, then you don't give those players away.

I don't know if I'm brave enough to say that Barry Hall is finished as a footballer, but he's just about gone. Last night was not an aberration as you noted, JJC. This was just one of his typical performances for 2007, and time is not on his side. The fact that he's a premiership captain probably helps keep the spotlight off him, but his rancid form shows no sign of abating.

If Brad Miller is playing well at Sandringham, this can only be a good thing for Melbourne. Not only as some have mentioned does it keep the forwards currently in the 22 on their toes, but there are other positives. The next 11 weeks will be critical in the football career of Brad Miller. If he sees out the year playing bad fooyt at Sandy then his career is effectively over. If he starts to play every week like he did on Monday, regardless of whether he gets called up to Melbourne or not, he should have earned a reprieve for 2008, whether at the Demons or elsewhere. Playing well will obviously increase his value to us and also to other teams in trade talks. Personally, I think his best value to Melbourne on-field is as a backman, but he's got to be given time to settle down there. Provided he doesn't see out the season meekly, I'd be surprised if there wasn't some interest expressed by other clubs in his services. At the risk of having Ash shortcircuit his computer with projectile vomit at the thought, someone like Kevin Sheedy has been able to make good use of a number of average recycled players at Essendon, and I reckon he'd find a use for Miler down back, particularly given the age of Fletcher and Michael. Even if Miller continues his career at the Dees, I'd prefer it to be as a backman. The likes of Anthony Ingerson show that occasionally players who underperform at one club can excel in another environment.

No worries. In any event, I'm not unhappy we didn't end up with Alwyn. As fun as it would be for a while to see the two Daveys running around the ground like rabid mongeese mowing down opponents together, I don't like the idea of having two so very slightly built players in the one part of the ground doing a very similar job.

If I was handing out the award now, I'd give it to Bell because he has shown the most improvement, regardless of whether I knew he was going to get there eventually or not. However, PJ is not far behind, and if he continues to progress at the current rate and cement a spot in the 22 as our backup ruckman then he'd be a big chance by season's end. Bate, Sylvia and Godfrey would be some chance, but at the moment I'd suspect we're looking at Bell or Johnson for the award.

When you say 'had the chance', our chance was to draft him at 12 (which we used for Frawley) or 30 (Petterd). I wouldn't be giving up either for Davey. Good luck to him at Essendon, but with his older brother, we have the upgrade on Alwyn.

Let me start by saying that raising awareness for prostate cancer is a thoroughly worthy cause and I think its great that they drew attention to it yesterday. I did however find it ironic, that on a day when the world's largest pair of underpants were unveiled onto the MCG before the match, such a largescale bout of "suffering in your jocks" has been heard by Magpie fans at the game and afterwards on talkback radio over yesterday's umpiring.

Until the age of 6 or 7, I was an Essendon supporter. After suffering through the dark ages of the club, my father vowed that he wouldn't force his children to endure the same pain he had been through for 20 years. However, there was no way he was ever going to take me to watch Essendon, and I was desperate to go along to games. My best mate at the time was a Demon supporter who would trot off to the MCG each home game with his dad. He took me along a few times, and I was converted. I still go to the footy with him to this day, 20 years later, along with other family members and friends, almost all of whom are also Demon converts. While the change of club cost me the opportunity to see my side win a couple of premierships, I wouldn't change my decision for anything. Sharing the highs and lows of the Dees with the people closest to me has made the cold winters far more special.

According to The Age, Johnno just has "general soreness".

I know. I'm just acknowledging that we don't hold all of the cards. As unlikely as it is that West Coast would let him walk into the draft, it is still their decision, not ours.

Inferno, I'm just putting it out there because at the end of the day unless Melbourne wins the wooden spoon, which is highly unlikely, we won't have the strongest bargaining position. If we had the number one pick in the PSD, then if Chris Judd really wanted to come to Melbourne then he could ask the Eagles to trade him to Melbourne or go there via the draft. This is all assuming he wants to come to the team he barracked for as a child. There is a long way to go until October. From a West Coast perspective, the understatement of the year would be that you'd hate to lose Judd for nothing, but Port Adelaide sent a message to the rest of their team when they condemned Nick Stevens to purgatory for trying to hold them over a barrel. It can happen.

Even Bell??!! Just remember, folks, that If Chris Judd did pull a Nick Stevens and tell West Coast he only wants to be traded to Melbourne, the Eagles could let him go for nothing in the pre-season draft and play a season or two at a rotten club such as Richmond.

If I could sew, I'd be heading down to th Demon Shop and purchasing the numbers 2 and 1 for my guernsey. I haven't been so excited by the game of a defender since Jared Rivers routinely obliterated opposing forward lines throughout 2004. Chasing, tackling, spoiling, all-round desperation, and twenty touches to boot. I was particularly pleased that it was on Scott Welsh too. The clown usually reserves his one good game of the season for Melbourne. Great job, Belly! The whole defence was sensational yesterday, too. Carroll was very, very good. The amount of pressure applied by the backline was terrific. The all-round pressure applied by the team yesterday has been sorely missing through most of this season.

If you find that strange, you'll enjoy this: 2006: Armstrong 2005: Jolly 2004: Bishop 2003: Pike 2002: Pike 2001: Pike 2000: None, but Heffernan and Moorcroft later played for the Dees 1999: Pike 1998: Sampson Walsh wasn't in Port's Premiership team.

I had a look at an old post from September 2006 on this site and Jamar's contract was due to expire at the end of 2007. I don't know if he's had it extended since then (The contract that is).