IRW

Maybe the lure of getting a game and usually on the MCG, might lure a couple of fringe players from top clubs.

That would be a lure to join the Magpies more than the Demons

It takes cash to get a player here (Mitch) and a good footy department or at least selling the fact that we have a good FD. With Neeld's hard ass approach it would appeal to the elite minded players. The easy going footy player may not be such a fan. I'm not saying everyone would love to be a dee but it could be worse they could be a power or a bulldog.

I saw Robert Murphy give a impressively genuine "I'm never going anywhere else" answer on 360 tonight.

Find me one Demon who could sound so honest.

I cant see why anyone would want to come to MFC myself but no doubt if the deal was ok or two clubs had done a deal,or the talk around the traps with other fotballers was that The Demons under Neeld was the place to be then ,...........

Of course that would require that MFC had players they wanted to get rid of and that other clubs wanted them and....................

that the talk amongst footballers was that training on a windswept oval next to Punt Road and sharing digs with NRL bogans,losing most every game (except against the Dons )and being abused by a school teacher was the way to go forward while collecting a few extra bucks (because Tom Scully deals aside) thats all it would be.

Get real its going to be much harder this year than it was last year.

Neeld was suprised ? You must be kidding.

The attraction of Neeld,Craig,Rawlings and brown plus cash would make me want to be a dee.

HA HA good one.

Cash eh? A minute ago everyone was talking "buy in" "elite professionalism" now suddenly you all want mercenaries.

For the record could you tell me what is so fantastic about playing under Neeld?

Craig...you have to be kidding..ony robots need apply

Rawlings seems ok I guess but out of interest why is he such a draw card in your mind?

Of course that assumes they all want to stay on board

Its hard to fathom isnt it?

Disapointment overwhelming better judgement I guess, but at the end of it all its just his job and we pay for them to entertain us.

The only knock on Liam is that if he's prepared to take the money then he's obliged to conform to some of the standards of whitefella sporting professionalism. It is a two way street

Plenty of players dont though,not just LJ.

Thats why they have managers

OK Thats it for me.................

.I'm going to watch "In Bruges", then

"The Big Lebowski", then

I'm off to bed.............

............................... with Townes Van Zandt playing background music...."Waiting round to die"

That, like everyone else, he can lead a horse to water...................

.

actually I was referring to the 'raised eyebrows' thing.

Lying about your intentions is one definition of professionalism in the AFL....Thomson,Hird,Malthouse .etc...now LJ or his manager

I remember an interview Neeld gave earlier in the year, and he was saying how Liam had just told him he wasn't ready to play yet (despite being given the all clear). Neeld related this "news" with raised eyebrows as if to say it was not the way he'd expect a professional player to act.

fair enough... it could be said that LJ just couldnt go the extra yard to the professionalism required for AFL..

What does that story say about the coach?

I have my opinion.

You're blaming this on Neeld? Seriously? FFS our supporters can be utter morons some times - how about recognising the historical issues Liam had to deal with? How about some responsibility for the fact he has "allegedly" hacked someone in the head with a machete? This was a no-win situation for Neeld & the club, no matter what they did they would have been potted in a situation not of their own making.

I'm not blaming it on Neeld I'm saying each player has to be fitted into the club ethic in a way that is appropriate to their situation.

LJ, because he has a lot of unique issues, would seem to be in need of support and training regimes that would differ markedly from blokes like Jones (for example),or Watts. Its not really clear whether this has happened.In fact the public impression is that everyone at MFC is given the same treatment......despite the talk of tailored programs

I have noticed that in the past that Neeld has never addressed LJ's situation publicly.

This possibly may be appropriate though perhaps just one comment would have indicated he was treating each player in the way he felt was most likely to get 'results'.

I cant tell myself but his public performances dont make me warm to him and as I said thus far he's batting zero.

We'll see in due course.

In 5 years he may have the team of his liking and we'll all think he's a bit of a hard nut but he's doing the job.

I wonder how many of the list will be there.

5 years? I wonder if Neeld will be there...for the record I've said here and on Ology that I hope he has the total support of the Board and his coaching group.

I agree that it was pretty much a no win situation and that isnt Neelds fault. I noted that the Pies werent keen to take the risk even before the alleged attack. I wonder where Neeld was when that decision was made?

Everyone knows Liams situation and the difficulties he's had to deal with before and after the current matter. Do I have to include that in every post? I think its a given....obviously.

I am questioning Neelds judgement though.

NO player at the Melbourne Football Club can be given latitude from requirement to meet elite fitness standards.

Its how you introduce the player to his personal elite finess that matters.

If a bloke doesnt have a big 'tank' you get him to where you can and use him to your/his best advantage.

Thats why MFC's top notch high performance state of the art team led by Guru Craig, who knows some cyclists from 2000, has tailored programs.

Is this too hard for you to understand or is only just the steely eyed schoolteacher who reckons whip them all until they come on board or crack is the way forward

And yet still nothing from MFC. [censored] me, how long does it take to put something up?

(Spoiler: about 30 seconds.)

Who cares, if he isnt locked up, and I doubt he will be, he's playing for Port Adelaide.

btw Eddie will go to Carlton

and no one cares what MFC thinks despite the Coach defending what it stands for to his last breath.

If he took off his goggles he might notice that he's lost the players completely,next it will be his assistants.

The way we have treated LJ with kid gloves is the real story here. He injured himself (wrist) in Rd 20 last year wasn't fit enough to play and requested another game at Casey. FInally played rd 11 and injured himself. We let him go home to NT and he wasn't sanctioned despite being out drinking during rehab and getting into appalling trouble with a machete (allegedly).

The club needs to weed out this soft c*** approach. Its truly pathetic.

People like Jurrah and even Moloney who don't want to be here should get TF out now, We don't want em. The club needs to start getting tough.

Actually he wasnt treated with kid gloves; he was put out to run around ovals endlessly on his own.

Not once did the tough man in charge speak about him as far as I recall and on that alone its no suprise that the lure of family is strong for a bloke so far out of his natural comfort zone.

If there was ever a player who should have been given latitude from the 'toughen up of F off ' it was LJ.

As a passing point of interest Adelaide is basically a country town,which might be more attractive to him and he already knows Bailey is sympathetic to him and brought out his best qualities (should he go to them),Collingwood doesnt play there and probably this is why,with all the Rudeboy Industrial Magpie connections Collingwood werent going to pick him up

Geez its a shame though...he was poetry in motion .

Frankly Neeld is batting zero at present...10 games from Clark who is good but how good over time we dont yet know, and Jones was clearly on the improve before the new regime took power. Watts is same old same old same old. Howe still cant kick straight and we cant even beat Port any more..... No contract coz he was making a statement...goodbye LJ and Riv for nought

Epic fail...except of course Viney is going to turn it all around...phew

LJ was something special

Frankly I opened this thread hoping he'd said that this morning at a presser with Craig sitting next to him......and then had outlined what the Club stood for in his mind while taking a shot at the journos who are white anting the place.

IK've said this on another thread, but the 'fact' the MFC is on the nose with player agents is absolute bollocks. I know a few who would sue the arse off anyone that suggested they wouldn't deal with ANY club.

. Gee if only MFC had known that it could have had Luke Ball in the midfield.. Obviously if two clubs are talking then the agents have to respond....if ONE club is putting out feelers during the season its easy for an agent to say he's just not interested

Thanks for the clarification. Disappointing if true but its quite possible we will have to pay overs to attract anyone at this stage for obvious reasons.

neeld said recently that the only answer to our predicament was a harder preseason (which I took to mean for existing players). But then said today that the club had to be ruthless in relation to the list review.

geez creative sort of guy isnt he?

A couple of weeks ago we all had the wrong gogles on and everything was coming along ok.

Now having whipped them into exhaustion and given them the steely eye look for absolutely zero result he's going to go harder down what appears to be a dead end road..

It wouldnt kill him to mention the 4 or 5 guys who might be the basis of a good team and suggest that the plan was to build one around them.

It will be interesting to see how many free agents(restricted or not) want out and whether all his coaching team reckon things are tickety boo..

If I was Rivers I'd be heading down the Geelong Road as fast as I could go.

Almost gave this a "like" for sheer effort BH.

You're opinion of Jack Watts will change when he matures. This will take time just the same as it will take time for Mark Neeld. References of what peoples "day jobs" are display you can't grip the discussion with relevant analogy. Do you think Jack's the only young player not to make a huge impact at the age of 21? Do you honestly believe Watts to quote you "hopes he won't get there".. Crazy comment.

to quote our Coach MN ..."Take off your 7 day goggles". Watts will surprise you.

You missed the point pal Instinct doesnt change. Jacks instinct is "soft" and and that means he'll never maximise his abilities even if he finds a team that can fit him in somewhere on the perifery.

He may ,like Travis,even play a couple of stand out games ( hopefully in finals for MFC) but he isnt going to be what he was drafted for; the main man up forward.....bummer bummer bummer.

Now, don't take this as doubting either you or Robbie F, but how does being a foundation member equate to knowing the interactions between the club and player managers?

Ah, just shorthand to indicate that Robbie (who detests me and I imagine I'm on his ignore list) is a very committed supporter and does have conversations with blokes who are closer to the action than most on supporter chat groups.

His observations are unusually blunt,remarkably inflexible but usually not without substance when he's talking MFC footy matters

His primary interests in life appear to be his family,MFC and his business.

IMO Geez I hope I'm on his ignore list or I'll get a bollocking for being presumptuous.

More to the point I guess do you not think its credible? Imagine the conversation....Agent "ok xyz hows it going?"

Player " I hate the coach ,he wants me to play out of position and keeps making me the sub.I know I'm better than that"

Agent " fair enough I'll ask around and see who might be interested"

Player " great..only thing is no GWS and please no Demons,I want to play AFL not the f#ck up league, and even a Prelim before I retire would be good.'

Agent "ok I see your point..Beamer cant get out quick enough and Flash says the vibe out next to Punt Road is the worst he's ever seen,he's really depressed about it."

ive just looked right through that thread and I cant see that anywhere. Can you refer me to the post number? thanks.

ive just looked right through that thread and I cant see that anywhere. Can you refer me to the post number? thanks.

Robbie F #44

Robbie F # 44. He's a Foundation Member and I have no doubt his statement is true. Of course it doesnt mean that no one will come to the Dees but it isnt a good sign.

Gee if they beat the Lions next year then the bloke should get a bonus and a renewal ahead of time

Its always good to be positive but I think you are being a little kind to some players and perhaps havent read the "due diligence" thread where a poster who does know what he's talking about say that player managers are flatly refusing to talk to MFC recruiters. MFC is on the nose from more than spuds like Mark Robinson

I was considering the STFU line myself DA ...its worked on me before

Crikey. I guess one bloke is going to make all the difference after all,which quite clearly was point. ”..my bad" as they say. This is the first time since the Tour de France I 've put in any serious time on this board. I guess it takes a while until you know who is a genius and who to ignore . I see myself in the misunderstood generalist category. And for the record I reckon BH's opening post in this thread is spot on

A bit kind,I didnt notice any/many skilled passages of play last night but I have in other games. Lack of forwards,goal kickers,marking tarkets,crumbers or even defensive forwards means the team is crepe and Clark isnt the saviour on his lonesome