Lucifers Hero

Just found these tweets. It seems Tom Browne has backtracked a bit on his comment about our President 'thumbing his nose' at Jackson: And So last night's media ooh, aah stuff was probably just a knee jerk reaction to give themselves something to write about as they missed the scoop. Today, wiser heads prevail

Short answer: No. But it is common to have succession planning in place. Long answer: Ultimately it is still the responsibility of a Board to find the best candidate. Bartlett drove the search process having engaged head hunters: Russell Reynolds. In our case it is our Board and the AFL (who still pull the strings as we are not entirely out of the woods). Caroline Wilson reported a few weeks ago that MFC wanted Mahoney but the AFL had other ideas. No idea if that is true. However, we do know the AFL is not beyond using Machiavellian methods to get its way. If the AFL did lean on our Board to appoint Pert I understand why. It is highly probable they will chip in land and or $ for our new facilities and they want to make sure the CEO can deliver. Pert has a track record of achievement in that area which is our next and critical phase of development. He is definitely the low risk option.

I'm not worried about the three internal candidates who missed out. Two of them would be disappointed regardless of who got the gig. Hopefully, good practice and good sense has prevailed and they were told where their experiences fell short of the requirements. If its all done with goodwill there is no reason for someone to spit the dummy and just leave. After all, to be CEO of an AFL club, or senior staffer in AFL HQ a person needs AFL 'endorsement'. So they need to gain the AFL's confidence and the required experience which may be at the Dees or elsewhere. The person I am more worried about losing is Jason Taylor. Hopefully, he and Pert were good mates at the Pies as I would hate for Taylor to start looking elsewhere. He is a real 'must keep' for mine.

I saw that and thought: not for us. He is 31 in a few weeks and had a plantar fascia injury a few months ago. Came back early and immediately did more damage and now out for at least 2-3 weeks. It sounds similar to our own JV situation so MM could be out a lot longer. At least Jack has time and youth on his side. With Murphy one is never too sure how many he games he would get to play before he retires.

A little bit underwhelmed, Bb?

A few points on overseeing a footy department. 1. Sometimes the CEO and the Board must get involved in list management eg when a player decision will bring much media scrutiny eg Grimes, Trengove, Watts, Lever. Or selection of Captains etc. It s essential everyone sings from the same song book when the media comes calling. 2. Chris Judd recently said on FC that Bolton is rock solid as their coach and they had just extended his contract. Judd's explanation was that the Board had signed off on the List Management strategy and the Game Plan. Bolton was delivering to the Board's KPI's. 3. I would expect the CEO and Board to sign off on any 'outside the parameters' player contracts. etc It is about good governance, so the CEO and the Board must be involved in the football matters but at a strategic level and not a day to day management level. The key is to get the balance right between the Eddie show; the CS/CC level interference and letting the football department do their own thing. Only time will tell if Pert can do that. (I doubt he would have survived for 10 years as a CEO anywhere if he wasn't a very good juggler).

Last year Collingwood was a shambles: Gubby was suspended, Eddie was under pressure on many fronts and nearly cost CFC major sponsors. Pert fell on his sword. There are no secrets in the AFL. Any dirty laundry Pert had would have been well aired and the club would have quizzed him as they did Goodwin when he came from Ess. We have come too far and too much work still to do for our Board to take the chance with someone who can't deliver and keep the solid culture PJ et al have created. Trust Jackson. Trust the Board. They haven't let us down yet. I don't think they have this time.

Quotes from the article: "He was endorsed by the Demons board on Wednesday after being described as the standout candidate from a short-list of five. Pert, who comes with the blessing of the AFL, will replace Peter Jackson, who is contracted until the end of October". "The Demons considered Pert the perfect fit for a club on the rise, as well as his expertise in new facilities as Melbourne is set to announce plans for a new training and administration base away from their current set-up at the MCG and adjacent AAMI Park". For mine, he fits the bill of having a breadth of experience in clubs and the industry, knows his way around the halls of AFL HQ and is our Board's choice. The more I think about it the more I like it. He is a very good operator. No leaks! Well done MFC for keeping it quiet!

To my mind, failing the NDH test means someone does DH type things from time to time but it doesn't mean they are a DH as a person so no I didn't call him such. The last sentence of your post suggests he doesn't fit Goodwin's mantra of players having the right behaviours.

I have a horrible feeling that might be Tyson. He doesn't draw the attention Watts did so the media don't ask too many questions but their are some unsettling similarities.

I guess it wouldn't surprise to know that 2016 was his last OOC year. I have little confidence that he will do the hard work consistently. Seems to like flashy, cameos too much.

Yes, check my post above - I named the more important OOC players to retain: Bugg, Balic, Keilty, Harmes, Johnstone. We shopped Kent around last year. No takers so it isn't a matter of being 'squeezed' out this year as he is probably a better player than most of those I've named. Simply, there is no place for DH's on our list or most AFL lists.

Thanks for giving the gist of the article, Wb. Kent fails the NDH test and is not a team player. There were no takers for him last year. His manager (correctly) is canvassing the options early, this year. Given how Freo and Eagles are playing he would struggle to get a trade to back 'home'. But GCS might take him, maybe even Carlton or StKilda. But I think he has limited options. When it comes down to other players who are OOC this year, I would rather we keep the likes of Bugg, Balic, Keilty, Harmes, Johnstone. We may see more of these articles if players have had a 'mid-season review'. Edit @poitaI'm guessing the 'midfield minutes' is the saving face pitch his manager is putting out there.

Once it was decided to play Tom Mc forward Lewis' job during the preseason was to tutor Lever. Early this year Lewis said "One of the gaps was a little bit of leadership down back...That's not to say that I'll play there next year but certainly throughout the pre-season, I think I'll train the majority of the time in the backline." Once the season started, Lever was marshalling the backs under Lewis' wise eye - watching but not interfering (and I'm guessing there was a bit of post game debriefing). Now that Lever is out the marshalling role has reverted to Lewis and he did a fine job of it yesterday. Very obvious at the ground not sure if so obvious on tv. Yes, Lewis' weaknesses will be exposed but every player has some and every opp coach will work to exploit them. Lewis has more positives than negatives so for me he stays until Lever returns. @DeeSpenceryou are a fine reporter of training sessions and they are much appreciated. From what you've seen if Lewis is dropped who takes over the marshalling role?

When he was drafted Taylor seemed a bit surprised Petty had fallen through to pick 37 and said something like "we have a fair bit of talent in our defence but he is so good we just had to take him".? Clearly our recruiters were impressed with him and I bet everyone is now very pleased that we took him! Given the training and Casey reports he has done everything asked of him. He isn't Jake Lever but he can certainly come in and play a role. He won't be gifted games (no one does anymore, thank goodness) so when he comes in he will be deemed to be ready. Edit: Just saw this in a Team Selection article: Petty modelled his game on Lever before the Demons plucked him with Pick 37 last November". What a game to debut in, if selected this week!

The AFL has lost the hearing to just have failed in their attempt to just have a 'preliminary hearing' (mini trial). It means that McLachlan and Fitzpatrick end up facing trial and could end up giving evidence in court. https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/court-ruling-on-essendon-drugs-saga-edges-afl-boss-nearer-to-trial-20180606-p4zjr8.html They may finally learn that the AFL is not a law unto itself. But the cynic in me thinks they will wheel and deal their way out of it.

Updated for Tom McDonald contract till 2022! Re Tom McD. Lewis said last night he would have been silly to leave. That goes for all our players. Unfortunately, we will have to push some out.

1) Not in the eyes of the AFL and Ch7: membership/supporter numbers are the basis of their fixtures (despite their protestations to the contrary) for FTA premium time slots - Count the Thur, Fri and Sat night FTA slots for Ess, Coll, Rich, Carlt, Hawks even in their non-performing years. Simply, Ch 7 want numbers to sell adv time to their sponsors. Also, check out the venues those clubs play at - you rarely see them at low capacity grounds like Kardinia Park or Docklands when they play each other. They play at our home ground while we have to sell games interstate or play at Docklands. 2) Not in the eyes of sponsors: club sponsors want numbers to market their products to. The more the merrier. The profitability of the members is of little interest to them. We make a lot more more money from sponsors than members so they are critical to our financial well being. Again, look at the sponsorship revenue for the aforementioned clubs. It is big because they have a lot of members! 3) Not in the eyes of clubs: once they have you as a member, even as an Armchair, or 3 gamer they can work to make you a full member and get your family on board. (Without those membership options we may not have any country or interstate members). Also, members buy merchandise, adding revenue to the club and revenue and advertising to our sponsors- anyone buy New Balance gear recently? 4) The more members we have the more people at games and so gate revenue goes up. Looking at 'Net Profit' is a very limited view, especially as club costs are 'fixed' - effectively, any additional member is almost 100% profit (after allowing for making up and mailing membership packs). The club would be ecstatic to break last years record so early and grow our membership by over 30% in 4 years. We fans should share that excitement. So, I don't see the point of introducing 'Net Profit' to this thread. imv it simply isn't relevant to the thread nor to the value of increased membership numbers. Enjoy the ride on and off the field!

A few might already know - Hang on a second, I'll call them ☺️ @Roost It@Grand New Flag@Pennant St Dee @Chook in Perth

Taylor has done a fantastic job, no doubt. In an interview a few years ago he said something like - list management is to build the list over the long term, within the context of the coach's game plan and short term list deficiencies. eg Roos said a a competitive, elite mid-field was a top priority so that is where Taylor put his best chips in the first few years: Salem, Tyson, Petracca, Brayshaw, Oliver, Vince, (Cross free as an UFA). Lesser chips on Harmes, ANB, Stretch, Garlett, Hunt, Vandenberg, Bugg. Lifeline to Jetta. With the midfield sorted they were able to add some KPP's - Weideman and Oscar. At this point we had the core list...we weren't able to get the chip for Lever (but eventually we got our man!). When Goodwin started inputting list requirements he was able to specify players to fill out the core list eg more forwards and backs: Melksham, Hibberd, Lewis and the 2017 recruits. So, like other successful clubs it is a team effort, when there is a cohesive plan. That cohesive plan is the key difference pre and post Taylor. Before that it was random recruiting based on power struggles between CEO, Football Manager, Recruiters and Coach. And we ended up with a dog's breakfast of a list. Jackson, Roos and Taylor all came from premiership clubs and they knew what success looks like. The cohesive plan that all bought into was the foundation for Taylor and co's successes.

No new news. I found their interviews on wanting to stay genuine and convincing. And there is no noise about engaging other offers. And as mentioned by @Blinkybill in another thread some players have made a pact to stick with the club. In that thread I noted that I had heard late last year that players are re signing for unders to be part of our (hoped for) success ala the Hawkes.. So, I just think there is a 95% chance the Mcd's will resign. Will eat massive humble pie if that isn't the case ?

I would agree with those comments. Even then we will still have 11 OOC players this year. Would be surprised if we let more than half a dozen go and the perpetually injured may be first in line: McKenna, Vand and possibly Kent. Also, we need to make calls on the rookies we have had on our books for a couple of years so some of them may be at risk. Then there are the players who have barely played in 2016/2017. Not to mention those that fail the NDH policy ie Jay KH and Kent (disciplined last year for drinking when told not to). The decisions on these may come down to list management and having 'too much depth' for some spots rather than ability and replaced with types we need more back up for. So there is a very good chance that Pedo, Vince, Bugg, Balic, Wagner, King continue.

Updated for the one year extensions to: Spargo, Fritsch and Petty Of the major 2018 OOC playres: The McD's have all but signed. After Gus' emotional post game comments on Sunday I would be staggered if he doesn't sign up. I hope the club gives Jetta a decent contract $ wise as he hasn't had the opportunity to earn good dollars having come back as a rookie just four years ago. He has earnt the right to shore up his family's financial future. Would hate to lose him. Edit: late update for Austin Bradtke - thanks to @red and blue forever

Funny how those most able to do something blame some else- A few weeks ago Hird blamed Ess for lack of support Thompson blames Evans for not stopping it all Now Jobe blames Ess - says the club were negligent, which is true. https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/watson-whacks-bombers-over-supplements-saga-20180523-p4zh2f.html The more people that were involved go back over it (incl Fitzpatrick, Crameri recently) the more likely the truth will trickle out, especially when someone starts defending their patch.

42,218 15 to go! Tomorrow will be the day to break the record. More than two months ahead of last year...