Melbourne Football Club
- This article is about the Australian rules club, for the Football (soccer) club, see Melbourne Victory FC.
| Melbourne Football Club | |
|---|---|
| File:MFCLogo2008.jpg | |
| Names | |
| Full name | Melbourne Football Club |
| Nickname(s) | The Demons, The Dees |
| 2007 season | |
| Leading goalkicker | Russell Robertson |
| Best and fairest | James McDonald |
| Club details | |
| Founded | 1859 |
| Colours | Navy Blue and red |
| Competition | Australian Football League |
| Chairman | Paul Gardner |
| Coach | Dean Bailey |
| Captain(s) | David Neitz |
| Ground(s) | Melbourne Cricket Ground (capacity: 100,000) |
| Other information | |
| Official website | www.melbournefc.com.au |
Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed The Demons, is an Australian rules football club playing in the Australian Football League, based in Melbourne, Victoria.
The club has an unusual claim in international sport: in 1859, some of its members invented the code of football that it still plays. The club has therefore played at the highest level of its sport longer than any other sporting club. It was a foundation member of the Victorian Football Association (1877), the game's second-oldest governing body and competition. In 1897, it was a foundation member of the competition now known as the Australian Football League, which remains the most elite in the code.
Club history
The MFC was an offshoot of the Melbourne Cricket Club (MCC), established in 1834 and occupiers of what many consider to be Australia's finest sporting arena the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG, known as "The G"). The club was formally established on May 14 1859. On May 17 that year, at the Parade Hotel in East Melbourne, Tom Wills, W.J. Hammersley and J.B. Thompson (some sources also include Thomas Smith and/or H.C.A. Harrison), wrote the first set of written rules for Australian rules football. By 1866, several other clubs had also adopted an updated version of Melbourne's rules.
After a visit to England by one of the club's officials, the colours of red and blue were officially adopted by the club. Shortly following, the club began wearing a predominately red strip and became informally known by supporters as the "Redlegs".
The name "Redlegs" was coined after the Melbourne Official returned from his trip to England with one set of red and another of blue woolen socks. Melbourne wore the red set whilst the blue set were, allegedly, given to the Carlton football club. This may be the cause of Carlton's nickname, 'The Blueboys'.
Founders of the VFA
In 1877, the club became a foundation member of the Victorian Football Association. During this time, the club was known as the "Fuchsias".
In 1889 the MFC was reincorporated into the MCC, and for many years the two organisations remained unhappily linked. The MFC's close association with the MCC allowed it to claim the MCG as its home ground and have it access to a wealthy membership base, but Melbourne's reputation as an "establishment" club was not always an advantage. The MCC members' automatic right to attend all events at the ground, including Demons' games, also meant that many potential members had a reduced incentive to join the club - thus, Melbourne's membership is currently among the lowest in the competition.
Entry to the VFL
The MFC joined the breakaway Victorian Football League at its formation in 1897, and has been a part of the competition ever since. The team became known as the "Redlegs". This nickname is still used by certain membership and supporter groups within the club.
In 1900 Melbourne won its first VFL premiership (traditionally known as "The Flag," although since 1959 it has been complemented annually by a premiership trophy), defeating Fitzroy. Melbourne's greatest player of these early years of the VFL was Ivor Warne-Smith, who in 1926 won the club's first Brownlow Medal (the League's annual award for the fairest and best player). In that year Melbourne won its second flag. Warne-Smith won the Brownlow again in 1928.
Age of greatness
In 1933, the club changed their moniker to the "Demons".
F.V. "Checker" Hughes became Melbourne's coach in 1933, and under his leadership the club entered its era of greatness. In 1939 Melbourne won its third flag, against traditional rivals Collingwood, and in 1940 and 1941 it went on to win two more. In 1946 Melbourne finished second and Don Cordner became the second Demon to win the Brownlow. In 1947 Fred Fanning kicked a record 18 goals in the last game of the season. The following year Melbourne played in the first ever drawn Grand Final, against Essendon. The next week Melbourne came back and won the replay.
Norm Smith became Melbourne's coach in 1952, and the following year Ron Barassi played his first game. These two were to take Melbourne to new heights in the coming years. The Demons won the flag in 1955, 1956 and 1957, narrowly lost to Collingwood in 1958, and then won again in 1959 and 1960 (where they avenged their loss against Collingwood). With Smith as coach and Barassi as captain, Melbourne dominated the competition.
In 1964 Melbourne won its 12th flag, beating Collingwood again, and seemed set for a new era of domination. But at the end of the season, in one of the greatest shocks in the history of the game, Barassi left the club to become captain-coach of Carlton. The following year Norm Smith was sacked after a dispute with the club. Although he was soon reinstated, things were never the same again for the Demons. They had appeared in every Grand Final from 1954-1960 and every Finals' Series from 1954-1964, but have not won a flag since.
After the 1954 Grand final loss to Footscray, no team was able to score 100 points against the club until Collingwood in round 5 1963. The next team was Geelong with 110 in round 1 1964. The 1965 season started with 8 wins but only two wins from the next 10 games saw the end of the era. They would have to wait until 1971 before Melbourne ended a season with more wins than losses, and 1987 for Melbourne to make the finals again.
Decades of disappointment
Poor recruiting zones and management meant that Melbourne, under coaches John Beckwith (1968-70), Ian Ridley (1971-73), Bob Skilton (1974-77), Denis Jones (1978) and Carl Ditterich (1979-80), languished at the bottom of the League ladder throughout the 1970s. However, in 1971 the club started the season at the top and maintained that position until it lost to Collingwood in round 6. Melbourne was still in second place at the start of the second half of the season but within five weeks was out of the top four and finished with only two more wins and a draw.
Melbourne collected Wooden spoons in 1974 and 1978, but narrowly missed the finals in 1976, the club's fate depending on Carlton beating Footscray in the final round, but the game ended in a draw. In his only season as coach in 1978 Denis Jones oversaw a wooden spoon but remarkably his team participated in the highest scoring match ever. In 1979 Ditterich came to the club as Captain-Coach but although the team won more games it finished second last.
In 1980 the MFC finally legally separated from the MCC, becoming a public company, in an effort to attract more members and improve the club's finances. The season produced one less win than 1979 (five) but the club finished higher - 9th. It became evident that drastic action was needed for a club that had missed 16 finals series in a row the return of former star Ron Barassi was seen as the cure. When Barassi had left in 1965 it was felt that he would eventually return and his arrival caused much excitement and an expectation of immediate success.
In 1981, under the chairmanship of Sir Billy Snedden, Barassi returned to Melbourne as coach and immediately appointed Robert Flower as captain. In Barassi's first year the team finished last, but this was attributed to working out who the willing players were and the club won some powerful victories in the next three seasons. But although Brian Wilson won the Brownlow in 1982, and Peter Moore won it in 1984, Barassi was unable to get the club back into premiership contention.
In 1986 Barassi was replaced by John Northey. Under Northey, Melbourne made the finals in 1987, for the first time since 1964, losing the Preliminary Final to Hawthorn on the last kick of the game after the final siren. It was also the last game played by the team captain Robert Flower. In 1988 the Demons did even better, reaching the Grand Final, only to be defeated, again, by Hawthorn.
From 1987 to 1991 Melbourne had five positive win-loss ratios in successive seasons which the club had not been able to achieve since the 1954-65 era. Thereafter things went downhill for Northey, although Jim Stynes won the Brownlow in 1991. In 1992 the club finished 11th, and Northey was replaced by Neil Balme as coach. Balme got Melbourne into the finals in 1994, but a last game loss to Brisbane saw them drop out of the top eight in 1995, and the club lingered at or near the bottom of the ladder for most of the 1996 season.
Facing Oblivion
By 1996 the club was also in dire financial straits. The board, headed by past player Ian Ridley decided on the desperate step of a merger with Hawthorn. In the ensuing weeks, a passionate debate was fought between pro and anti merger supporters. In the first few days of this debate, life long supporters Mark and Anthony Jenkins met with coterie member George Zagon to form the Demon Alternative - an anti merger group that was to signifiacntly impact on the plans of the incuimbent board.
The Demon Alternative recruited members from a wide range of areas but the two most recognised were former player and politician Brian Dixon and Rabbi Joseph Gutnick. The group quickly organised itself into a creditable option for Melbourne supporters however given the support of the AFL and other factors, when the merger issue was put to a vote, slightly more than 50% of Melbourne members supporter the Board. In a meeting run on the opposite side of town, the Hawthorn members had rejected their boards proposal and eventually the merger was defeated.
In the aftermath of the merger meetings, Ridley focused on a compromise with the Demons Alternative to ensure that Melbourne could continue as a viable business. His board co-opted Gutnick and Mark Jenkins onto the board and a truce of sorts was struck between all parties.
In the months following the 1996 merger vote, the Orthodox rabbi and mining tycoon Joseph Gutnick, became president. He put $3 million of his own money into the club, and sacked Balme as coach midway through the 1997 season. In 1998, under new coach Neale Daniher, the club spent most of the season in the top eight and beat the eventual premiers Adelaide in the Qualifying Final. Melbourne also eliminated St Kilda, but lost to North Melbourne in the Preliminary Final. In 1999 Melbourne finished in the bottom three.
Partial revival
 |
In 2000 Daniher took Melbourne to the Grand Final, where however the Demons were convincingly beaten by a rampaging Essendon. The members had expected a new era of success, but in 2001 it was same old story: Melbourne finished 11th. In 2002, although Melbourne again made the finals, Gutnick was voted out by the members, who had tired of his autocratic ways.
In 2003 Melbourne plunged into a new crisis, winning only five games for the year and posting a $1 million loss. President Gabriel Szondy resigned and it seemed that Daniher's tenure as coach was under threat. But, continuting the recent trend, in 2004, Melbourne climbed the ladder again, winning 14 games and leading the competition, albeit for one round only, in Round 18. And although the team lost its remaining four games, the club still made the finals, only to lose narrowly to Essendon.
During the 2004 post-season the Demons tragically lost defender Troy Broadbridge in the Asian tsunami, when he was swept off Phi Phi island in Thailand. He was walking along the beach with new wife Trisha Broadbridge when the tsunami struck. He was found on January 3, 2005, and brought home. A funeral was held on January 20, 2005 in recognition to the No. 20 guernsey he wore during his playing days. During the 2005 off-season, the whole team travelled to the island in which Broadbridge was killed to build a new school for those struck by the tsunami. The No.20 jumper was then rested for two years.
Melbourne started 2005 strongly, being in second place after Round 12, however Melbourne soon lost momentum. Going into Round 20, Melbourne looked all but gone for a spot in the finals, yet thanks to two miraculous wins against the Bulldogs and the Cats in Geelong(where Melbourne had not won since the late 1980s), and a defeat of Essendon in the final round, they finished seventh, granting them a spot in an elimination final. Unfortunatley, Melbourne was eliminated from the premiership race in the opening week of the finals by Geelong.
In 2006, after a slow start, Melbourne again performed well, and were in the top four by the middle of the season. In a very closely contested tussle for prime ladder positions (i.e.: "top four") Melbourne missed out on the crucial double chance by half a game, leaving them to rue two defeats against last-placed Carlton during the season. Daniher had become the second longest-serving coach in the AFL, and the longest-surviving in the entire history of the VFL-AFL not to have won a premiership. The Demons managed to defeat St Kilda in the first Elimination Final and proceed to the Semi-Finals, but a subsequent loss to Fremantle in Perth put an end to the Demons' finals campaign.
Membership base
Melbourne Football Club has listed a record amount of members in 2007, but still has one of the smallest membership bases in the AFL competition. This is partly because many traditional Melbourne supporters are already members of the Melbourne Cricket Club (around 23% of MCC members have Melbourne Football Club nominated support[1]), which gets them privileged access to the MCG, so they don't see the need to pay for a separate MFC membership. With approximately 21,850 MCC members supporting the football club, if these members were to become full members, the Demons would have one of the largest memberships in the competition. Although previously not allowed, for the 2007 season, the Melbourne Football Club are offering MCC members the chance to become official members of the club for a heavily reduced cost, in order to entice members to join. This helped the club to achieve a membership of over 28,000 - well over the club's previous record - even with a poor season on-field.
| Year | Members | Finishing position² |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 17,870 | 4th |
| 1999 | 19,713 | 14th |
| 2000 | 18,227 | 2nd |
| 2001 | 22,940 | 11th |
| 2002 | 20,152 | 6th |
| 2003 | 20,555 | 14th |
| 2004 | 25,252 | 7th |
| 2005 | 24,220 | 8th |
| 2006 | 24,698 | 5th |
| 2007 | 28,077 | 14th |
| 2008 | 24,382 | 16th* |
³ Club Record. * As of 21 April, 2008
Current dilemmas
|
The underlying problem for Melbourne and the other older clubs is that the new Australian Football League, a 16-team national competition, has ten clubs in Melbourne, a city which despite its great tradition of passionate support for Australian rules football, cannot financially support ten clubs competing against wealthy and successful interstate newcomers[citation needed].
Like other struggling Melbourne based clubs, the Demons have sold games to interstate venues, including 1 game to Brisbane in 2005 and an extra game to the Gold Coast, Queensland in 2006 which was transferred in 2007 to Canberra. Some observers wonder about the long-term future of the club, with its thin membership and supporter base, political instability, and lack of consistent on-field success. The AFL's current TV deal requires a 16-team competition and thus it is highly unlikely a team will be allowed to fold in the next few years, however the AFL's failed push for the North Melbourne Kangaroos to relocate to the Gold Coast and threats of a 17th team have increased speculation over the Demons future in Melbourne.
Prominent Fans
- John So Lord mayor of Melbourne (No. 1 ticket holder)
- Terry Bracks wife of Steve Bracks (No. 1 female ticket holder)
- Rob Sitch comedian
- Derryn Hinch news presenter
- Max Walker former cricketer and TV presenter (who played for MFC from 1967-1972)
- Brad Hodge Australian cricketer
- Victor Perton former Victorian State Liberal MP
- Joseph Gutnick businessman and former club president
- Beverley O'Connor journalist and club vice-chairman
- Philip Davis Victorian State Liberal MP
- Peter Berner comedian/radio presenter (No.2 Ticket Holder)
- Alan Stockdale Former Victorian Kennett Liberal Government Treasurer
- Peter Hayes Deceased Lawyer
- Mike Sheahan Herald-Sun Football Writer
- Mal Walden Television News Presenter
- Ron Walker Fairfax Media Chairman
- Noong Arr Prominent Media Commentator
- Don Argus Chairman of BHP Billiton
- Graeme Samuel Chairman, ACCC
- Ian Johnson Managing Director, Channel 7, Melbourne
Current squad
As of October 1, 2007:
Premierships
1900, 1926, 1939, 1940, 1941, 1948, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1959, 1960,1964
Coaches
- George Haines 1919-1920
- Percy Wilson 1921-1923
- Gordon Rattray 1924
- Albert Chadwick 1925-1927
- Ivor Warne-Smith 1928-1932
- Frank 'Checker' Hughes 1933-1941
- Percy Beames 1941-45
- Frank 'Checker' Hughes 1945-1948
- Allan La Fontaine 1949-1951
- Norm Smith 1952-1967
- John Beckwith 1968-1970
- Ian Ridley 1971-1973
- Bob Skilton 1974-1977
- Denis Jones 1978
- Carl Ditterich 1979-1980
- Ron Barassi 1981-1985
- John Northey 1986-1992
- Neil Balme 1993-1997 (Sacked mid-season)
- Greg Hutchison 1997 (caretaker)
- Neale Daniher 1998-2007 (retired after R13)
- Mark Riley 2007 (caretaker)
- Dean Bailey 2008-
Captains
- George Haines 1919-1920
- Percy Wilson 1921-1923
- Albert Chadwick 1924-1927
- Ivor Warne-Smith 1928-1931
- Percy Beames 1941-45
- Norm Smith 1945-47
- Don Cordner 1948-49
- Shane McGrath 1950
- Denis Cordner 1951-53
- Geoff Collins 1954
- Noel McMahen 1955-1956
- John Beckwith 1957-1959
- Ron Barassi 1960-1964
- Hassa Mann 1965-1968
- Tassie Johnson 1969
- Frank Davis 1970-72
- Stan Alves 1973-1978
- Carl Ditterich 1979-1980
- Robert Flower 1981-1987
- Greg Healy 1988-1990
- Garry Lyon 1991-1997
- Todd Viney 1998-1999
- David Neitz 2000-present
Team of the Century
Stan Alves, Ian Ridley, Bob B. Johnson and Greg Wells were all named as emergencies
Individual awards
Best and Fairest
Brownlow Medal winners
- Ivor Warne-Smith (1926, 1928)
- Don Cordner (1946)
- Brian Wilson (1982)
- Peter Moore (1984)
- Jim Stynes (1991)
- Shane Woewodin (2000)
Leigh Matthews Trophy
- Jim Stynes (1991)
Coleman Medal winners
- David Neitz (2002)
Mark of the Year winners
- Shaun Smith (1995) (also informally dubbed Mark of the Century)
- Michael Newton (2007)
Goal of the Year winners
- Jeff Farmer (1998)
All-Australian players (since 1990)
- Jim Stynes (1991, 1993)
- Gary Lyon (1993, 1994, 1995)
- Stephen Tingay (1994)
- Todd Viney (1998)
- Jeff Farmer (2000)
- Adem Yze (2002)
- David Neitz (1995, 2002)
- Jeff White (2004)
- James McDonald (2006)
National team representatives (since 2003)
- Clint Bizzell (2003)
- Aaron Davey (2005, 2006)
- Brent Moloney (2005)
- Russell Robertson (2005)
- James McDonald (2006)
Club Mascot
The current club mascot is Rotten Ronald Deeman.
He carries a trident, has devil horns and has a pointed Devil tail.
See also
References
- ^ November MCC news. pg 11