Lucifers Hero

There is an article on HS website titled 'The stats which damn melbourne's midfield' which is about two-way running. I only saw a glimpse of it as it is behind a paywall. I think it says that at the meeting Oliver and Brayshaw were told by senior players they had to work harder. Can anyone get behind the paywall to check what it says, please.

The Dusty hearing is under way and the Tribunal members are similar to those in the May case. Given that the grounds are identical: optics, medical report, player reaction, potential to damage, hopefully we the Tribunal upholds the MRO decision. It will not be pleasant for the MRO if every time a 'big' club goes to the Tribunal that his decision is overturned ie Cox last week (with a totally different Tribunal).

The value of honesty sessions is often who facilitates them and who attends. Ideally, it would be an external facilitator (are we still using Leading Teams?) who is experienced in setting the right tone so everyone feels comfortable in participating and can manage the dynamics. Sometimes without coaches, players can give honest feedbackabout game plan, role, demands etc to an external person if they can't say tehm directly to a coach. Doesn't need to be a sinister reason, could be opportunity, experience etc. Player only meetings have another benefit - they take ownership of the issues and commit to each other a course of action/behaviours. Remember after our first final Lewis took only the players aside to say 'well done but we've done nothing yet'. They went out the following week and knocked off the Hawks. AFL 360 with Lewis might make interesting viewing tonight.

Fwd flank? Jones doesn't chase, tackle or do the 1%. We have enough problems with lack of forward pressure to keep the ball i50 and his lack of defensiveness would make it worse. In the middle he doesn't run both ways or apply mid-field pressure. Its a case of where does he do least damage to see out the year...tough choice for coaches. I thought it significant that yesterday Ben Guthrie wrote that Jones' position this week could be under review. He wouldn't make up stuff like that about a much loved player and co-captain. Maybe Goodwin will get ruthless sooner rather than later and tbh Goodwin has a duty to put the team and the club first. Nonetheless, can't see Jones' being dropped but expect his defensive game to lift.

Not sure why folks think SCG is a 'small ground': 155m L x 136m W. As a reminder: Round 2, 2019 @ gmha: 170m L x 115m W. We lost by 80 points. It is the wider grounds that trouble us because opp spread wide and stretch our defences on the outside. SCG has more room for this play than gmha had. If we can't win on a ground that is 115m wide I can't see it happening on one that is 20m wider.

For the last three weeks we have been crying out for that but it hasn't happened. Would desperately love to see it but its not how he rolls. Just yesterday Viney said it will be good to get Lewis' leadership back on the field. Not sure he noticed the elephant(s) in the room implied in that statement...

On the plus side: Much loved champion of our club. Loyal, a demon forever. Sets off-field standards Works hard Plays tough football On the negative side: Can't or won't run both ways. Does not chase opponent, instead goes ball chasing or 'hands-over' his opp to a team mate who has to leave his man to cover Jones' opp, leaving a free player or sometimes two if he doesn't cover Jones' opp in time. Defensive skills are now limited: stats this year for tackles and 1% are woeful. When attacking into fwd 50 he rarely hits a target. Poor reader of the state of game so is limited in effectiveness as an on field general. I see someone who is aging, who is showing more 'individual' rather than 'team-first' behaviours. He may be preserving himself (purely speculation) or he may just be physically worn out from almost single handed carrying our club. Do the negatives outweigh the positives? In the past a resounding 'No'. For the future I fear they do. We need senior players and especially captains to set an example for expected on-field behaviours and to engender confidence in their charges that if we get into a hole during a game the captains know how to digs us out of it. I can't see Jones overcoming the negatives so I feel it is time to hang up the boots. When? End of this year. It means he ends his wonderful career about 15 games short of 300 and without a flag. Sadly, just like a former #2. He will always be an immortal at mfc. I imagine Jones will have to be dragged kicking and screaming into retirement but I trust Goodwin to have the hard conversations, like Clarkson has.

Jesse is yet to play 22 games in a season and has played up the ground at times. He has been very consistent averaging a little over 2 goals per game in each year. ie 45 goals a season if played every game. I don't know if he will ever become the champion forward he could be but to think he can't/won't exceed 50 if played as a forward is a bit off the mark.

Great post. That is exactly what Dew is doing at GCS. It is perfect for a young and inexperienced team. I watched the last qtr of GCS game and when the opp had the ball and going forward, GCS players stuck to their man like glue. They are shaping up to be a good side. Coaches often say they build a game plan to suit the team available. We seem to be doing the opposite and make the players play a zone and team defence even if they aren't capable of doing so effectively, be that for experience, understanding, attitude or fitness reasons. So indecision and confusion reigns then the system breaks down. Not sure it is realistic to expect junior players in the system for 5 minutes or just a couple of years to learn the subtleties of zone defence and the required decision making to make it work. It is especially hard when senior players aren't doing their part to make it work. As you say, keep it simple. We are a relatively young team so 'back to defence basics' would be a good theme in the coming weeks.

The post I originally responded stated our 2018 pick #16 was used for Mc Henry. It wasn't. It was #19 traded/swapped to Carlton. That is simply fact. It is a trade we could have done had we kept it. People look at trade value differently. Some look at trade points. I can't be bothered doing that to fully value the lever trade. Not sure the value of pick #19' is simply a foregone right in 2018. imv we won't know the full value of the Lever trade until this year's trade period. But it isn't as simple as considering just the 'pure picks traded'. btw, no hyperbole was intended. I've edited my original post to indicate Adelaide traded their 2019 1st pick back to Carlton.

A good observation by Ben Guthrie in this article Round 3 Observations that our back 6 are all at sea. " ...forwards are not doing a good enough job of containing the ball inside 50 ...too many {defence} players are getting caught in no-man's land, unsure whether to "smash the ball" (press the ball carrier) or fold back and contain opposition numbers forward of the ball. To play in the manner Melbourne expects, players must have total trust in their teammates to make the right decision in whether to leave their man or not and it's clear over the first three rounds of the season that that understanding and confidence is not there at the moment." 5 of the current back 6 played our finals. The other is Lewis. I find it staggering that he is the difference between a cohesive backline and a group all at sea. Hibberd and Jetta are experienced enough and knowledgeable enough of the game plan to marshall the troops in Lewis' absence. Alas, it is not so. I see the backs talk to each other after an opp goal. Maybe Hibberd and Jetta need to also talk to Jones and Viney to get them to sort out the mid-field.

I know but I had to draw the line somewhere re the permutations. My point was that by leaving out the trade of our 2018 first round pick for Carlton's 2019 first round pick the Lever trade is not being correctly valued.

Firstly to clarify: #16 for McHenry was from Carlton in the McGovern trade. It started life as Sydney's first round pick (#13) and slid to #16 because of matching bids beforehand. Our 2018 first round pick (slid to #19) Adelaide traded to Carlton during the live trade period for Carlton's 2019 first round pick, likely to be in the top 5. Effectively, Lever cost us a top 5 pick (2019) and a top 10 pick (2017). So, imv he is looking very expensive! So, as it stands I don't see our recruiting looking so great. Edit: Adelaide gave Carlton their 2019 first round pick in return for its first. Even so, Lever still looks expensive.

Good feedback, thanks. Would be interested in your thoughts why do they do a jekyll and hyde from training to game day? Also have you noticed changes in set-ups at training for the new rules?

There is no shortage of clubs looking for a KPH: Hawks need to replace Roughead. Reported over the weekend they are looking at Patton, despite his injury as they have proven to have great medical staff (O'Meara, Scully, Burgoyne). Geelong need to replace Hawkins. A poster here late last year reported their very keen interest in Sam which he was considering. Pies have only Cox as a tall forward. They would love the Weideman name back on their list. Essendon have only Daniher, sometimes. So let's not get to cocky - we must sign him and his management know it. All parties know the interest in Sam from other clubs. If we don't contract him sooner than later and our poor form continues he may ask for a trade! Then where will be be?

I was a bit surprised we took Lockhart with our last pick. It was a golden opportunity to recruit someone with speed, especially as there had been a few practice games to test our game plan and watch others' with the new rules in play. That is not a knock on Lockhart, he will probably be a good player but speed doesn't seem to be his strength. I can only conclude the coaches/recruiters think we don't need speed or that someone is already on our list. If the former I'm worried. If the latter I would love to see him play. Gift him games if necessary. But with speed the person needs to have very good disposal skills. You can tell by my avatar I'm a huge Hunt fan but I'm not sure he is the answer. He has the speed but hasn't developed the composure to complement it.

That is what is scary. For so long we have had potential but haven't managed to extract the talent, nor recruit a team with a balanced set of skills/talent. I'm holding firm in trust of Goodwin and the club to do so with the current group plus a few more. Not sure my trust extends to assistant coaches. If we can't quickly convert the potential to talent this time then we will tread water or go back to being underachievers. Too sad too contemplate...

I was wondering the same thing after Richmond lost by 8 goals. Like us they were missing their first choice defenders (Rance, Houli, Grimes). Certainly they and our Lever, May, Lewis are greatly missed but one would think a solid game plan should still stand up, albeit not as well as with those guys playing. So, I'm thinking with 6-6-6 and longer space to kick in hurt the 'chaos' game plan as its harder to create congestion in the center and harder to trap the ball into your i50. As a result there are a lot less stoppages in which to create congestion and ground balls, important requirements for 'chaos' football. Chris Scott on Thursday: New Rules Help With fewer players floating in the defensive area, the new regulation also appears to have afforded veteran superstar Gary Ablett renewed freedom at half-forward. "Our observation is, with the new rules in particular, there's a few more one-on-one battles in the forward half," "Some of the good players were getting clamped by plus two or three, behind the ball at centre bounces. Given that Scott has done a brilliant job of changing their game plan and recruiting for the new rules, it is worth listening to what he says. It will be interesting to watch the Bulldogs as they also won a GF with 'choas' style. Haven't watched Bulldog's games so don't know to what extent Beveridge has adapted. If they start to struggle like Demons and Tigers then it is time to really worry about our game plan. Goodwin seems very committed to our style but he is very astute and will quickly realise where changes need to be made. Nothing major can happen in season but small things can. Certainly we seem to be behind other teams in adapting to the new rules. From what I've seen Geelong and Lions are the front runners so far in adapting to the new rules. (WCE, Hawks, Pies already had 'control' style game plans that work well with the new rules). Port also seem to have done a good job of adjusting and moving to control and possession.

Can't believe people think extending Goodwin's contract was a bad idea. Imagine the media outcry if he was uncontracted and 0-3. The media would be baying for blood and the pressure immense. They just love sticking the boots into mfc; any excuse will do. They would pressure the CEO not on when the contract would be renewed but if. We would have the usual media circus waiting for the death knell comment: He has the full support of the Board. I've heard that far too many times at mfc this decade and tbh I never want to hear it again. Remember the instability caused by coaches being out of contract and uncertainty among players' current and prospective? No, I don't want my beloved club to go back to those dark, dark days. I'm delighted Goodwin's contract was renewed. At least he and the players can get to work to improve without worrying about his tenure.

In his pre-game press conf two days ago Goodwin wouldn't buy into May's fitness on arrival at the club. Change of tune now: Goodwin on SEN today: “He certainly won’t be coming back to pre-season in that nick again, that’s for sure,” Goodwin throws down the gauntlet to May Happy for Goodwin to give a senior player a bit of a public bake.

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Not sure what you mean by crook but it wasn't Demetriou who created this. It was Andrew Anderson who decided to investigate while Demetrious was overseas. Had AD been here the case would never have got off the ground. He knew where all the skeletons were in the media and at the clubs so would have shut it down quick smart. But Anderson decided to make a name for himself as he was being touted as AD's successor. Instead, the investigation cost him his job at the AFL.

Jake Niall's article above states the reasons: the parlous state of the club Melbourne lawyered up and disputed the charges. Their resistance, which ended in negotiation, discouraged a "tanking'' conviction, which isn't as easy to prove as the all-purpose, "bringing the game into disrepute''. the problem of the AFL's and Melbourne's relationship with gambling. Arguably, a conviction for tanking would cause fall-out with betting agencies, with whom the AFL was increasingly enmeshed. could impact on Melbourne's own lucrative gaming operations there was a widespread view that the Demons weren't the only club that had tied one hand behind their back in an effort to minimise victories Glad someone printed the last item. That article should be sent to Warner so he can see how to present the facts and write a balanced story.

Is that recent? I ask only that Daniher is out there and I thought he wasn't training for a while. Could be wrong. If it is recent why would Daniher be doing training drills if he isn't playing tonight. It would make sense to have the selected forwards train their drills...

A bit of Captain Obvious in McQuane's commentary. No amount of words matter two hoots if we don't start winning. I and most others on here have no doubt we can fix some things. The questions for many of us are: 1. Can we fix them fast enough to give us a fighting chance of making finals ie win several games in the next few weeks, starting with tonight. 2. Can we play at a higher level consistently enough to make finals. Of course, we won't know this for a month or two. Tonight is a must win game. Coming back from 0-3 with a terrible percentage and our very difficult fixture will make it near impossible to make finals. The time to fix things is now. Tonight!