Cranky Franky

ANB & Spargo (like Melksham last year) certainly benefited from the coach backing them to the hilt & giving them every opportunity and good luck to them. Spargo has had a golden run. If Chandler or Bedford had got the same opportunities I reckon they could have had Premiership medallions as well.

Neiter is 46 years old - doubt he would have got in ahead of BBrown

This was about players who over the last 10-12 years left the Club for whatever reason but had they stayed might have played in a Premiership side. I reckon the cut off age is 35 therefore Brock Mclean & Jeremy Howe is are the ones I missed.

Sounds like you're well qualified to judge morons.

I made a list of former players who could have a premiership medallion if they had made different choices and/or if things had turned out differently for them: Tom Scully, Jack Trengove, Jack Grimes, Jack Watts, Mitch Clark, Liam Jurrah, Jeff Garlett, Harry Lumumba, Jessie Hogan, Dean Kent, Mitch Hannan, Sam Frost, Stefan Martin. Special mention to Isaac Smith for picking Geelong.

Yes he did. Wrote that senior players came to him requesting Skilton be removed. He passed this on to the committee, Skilton found out, blamed Alves & demanded he be sacked. The Club backed the coach & that was it. I loved Alves, my favourite player till Robbie came. A champion & regular state rep.

Misspelling both his first and last name is surely a new Demonland record.

Fully agree - undisciplined, gives away stupid frees trying to show how tough he is.

He was lucky to be in the starting 22 for the second half of 2020. Has been ordinary for over 12 months. Can't see us extending him after 2022.

In recent years the only team that's had salary cap problems was Collingwood.

Let's just hope this is the start of an era of competent Presidents, Boards & CEO's for the Club as they have been few & far between in my time. Kate has certainly been impressive so far. I'll change to Less Cranky after we get a 3peat.

I think that's quiet a sexist comment. I'd have thought supporters would be wrapped if we got an outstanding person regardless of gender or any other particular classification.

Rubbish. Last year Bartlett said exactly what needed to be said at the time.

Well done, balanced & well written something you don't always get on Demonland when anything racial is involved.

The second verse is a shocker. Maybe we could ask Paul Kelly to write a new one.

One of the gutsiest ever.

Lets leave this matter for historians. I'm a bit concerned at the timing. It's got the potential to shift the focus from the GF. This week let's concentrate on the best of Melbourne.

Cancel culture is hardly a right wing term, its a real thing and happens far too often. You disagree with someone and instead of arguing your position you ban them from appearing and boycott them.

Fully agree QB - to call Barassi and by implication Norm Smith "non thinking" coaches is patently absurd. Sure it was a different era where discipline was king & coaches were much tougher on players in particular Kennedy, Jeans & Hafey but both Smith & Barassi were acknowledged as great motivators, creative and innovative and brilliant tactical coaches.

Agree - the number of decent players that left from late 60's to the late 70's didn't help - Kenneally, Jacobs, Groom, Dillon, Parke, Kerley, Thorne, Keenan, Callery, Fitzsimmons, Hardeman, Alves, Wells, Elshaug.

Not sure where you got this from ?? Farmer was sought after by almost every Club in the VFL. Did you confuse him with Doug Wade ? whom we did knock back. Ditto for Baldock another champion sought after by most VFL clubs at the time. There is a story Melbourne signed him when he was young but there is no actual evidence about this.

I think your theory is a bit simplistic. Smith was certainly tougher on his top players including Barassi but also on the others like Spencer, Ridley, Williams, Mithen etc. He won 6 flags because he had great teams & coached well. Ditto with North - they won because they had a great team. In fact Blight wasn't in the best players in either of their flag sides.

+1

Agree Oliver is clearly the RDB of today. A clearance beast who goes all day. Not the most polished player going round but a relentless pressure machine.

One of my all time favourites Ross Dillon left in his prime & went to Norwood. Part of the reason for our decline was that in the late 60's & 70's lots of promising players left for greener pastures. Stephen Kerley also left Melbourne for Norwood & Greg Parke also had a stint there.