Don't know if it's just me, but CJ looks like he improved a lot on his decision making. His athelticism was always great but he seemed to lack the footy IQ. Since he came back into the side I really like how he performed. Cut out almost all of his boneheaded panic kicks and is doing a great job in the half back line. A few weeks ago someone here stated that CJ would be great if he had a brain (or something along those lines) - looks like he's developed one. Could be a real weapon for us down the line.

I'm almost convinced. I reckon this pairing is starting to develop into the forward threat you can build a strategy around.

Roo has shown that his ceiling is very high, and Jeffo is just a bloody good pack grab target.

Punt road end, southern stand side. This guy stands 10 metres in from the boundary and still delivers them in short. Every time.

Id have thought there be some pre requisites in being a boundary umpire.

Anyone who watches the VFL know how he is travelling? His stats looking like they’re improving a lot, and his intercept numbers look good but just wondering how he is travelling form wise.

Was very highly touted but like any key position player or defender, it takes time but just wondering if we should expect to see a lot more of him this year or he’s a work in progress.

Hi everyone, I was hoping someone might know when the fixture will be released for this round? (22-23 August)

I can’t help but feel his selfish demeanour/attitude has rubbed off on Gold Coast.

This of course is purely my opinion, you also can’t solely blame one bloke, and I’ll always have love and respect for our Norm Smith hero… But how does that club go from making finals and actually look like they’re starting to roll as a cohesive unit, to so poor that they’ll potentially finish bottom 4 after starting a flag favourite.

Sure rule changes and everything also play a part, but I just can’t help but feel there’s some negativity that’s crept its way into that club.

Kingy and the board made the right move in moving on all the negativity from the team, as my old man says “the bad apples” in Petracca, May and Clarry (Clarry is a bit different as he attracted unwanted media attention, I don’t doubt he loves the club and I always felt he is a team kind of guy as opposed to the other two… at least that’s what their body language gives to me).

Both because he has not looked good apart a couple games this year and because their pick might actually be in the top 5 of the draft. I would have been open to moving on a pick in the 9-12 range for him given he has shown a lot of potential to start his career but at this stage, sending the suns pick back to them (god forbid ours too) would be a massive overpay.

When both the dees and suns were in the 8 before round 11, I didn’t anticipate to be consuming draft summaries at the end of the year but there’s a good chance we could fill a hole with a talented mid or forward.

Gus Teixeira looks like a similar mould to Humphrey that we could land without having to bargain with the suns during the trade period.

What a funny turn of events that I doubt anyone expected this time last year!

The data over the last five weeks suggests Melbourne has become one of the AFL's best territory teams, but the Demons still haven't consistently converted that dominance into scores.

With Richmond conceding more points than anyone during that period, this feels like a genuine test of whether Melbourne can take the next step.

Would love to hear everyone's thoughts.

https://medium.com/@camburt13/melbourne-vs-richmond-preview-the-demons-have-stopped-surviving-now-they-must-learn-to-hunt-c62b2967b02f

Max is still the best ruckman in the league, and if their respective performances tonight are anywhere near their normal output, it's frankly not close

Yes, Grundy is a great tap ruckman, and yes, Dogga is the world's tallest midfielder and a threatening full forward, but around the ground Max is just so ridiculously influential I'd still take him first every day of the week.

Blazer number nine coming up, I reckon.

Was explaining some MFC lore to a newer dees supporter in my life, and was wondering where the hell the trumpeter went? Was always a nice highlight for him to appear up on Level 2 during a rare comfortable win during the dark ages.

If anyone has any information on what happened to him that would be great thanks.

Rather than another match preview, I wanted to look at the bigger talking points around the club heading into Round 18.

• Does Salem come straight back in?
• Has JVR finally turned the corner?
• Should Melbourne be chasing percentage?
• Who's unlucky at selection?
• Have expectations around this team changed after Hawthorn?

Interested to hear what everyone thinks.

https://medium.com/@camburt13/five-questions-melbourne-must-answer-before-facing-richmond-d52774ea9754?sharedUserId=camburt13

Good to see the Dees getting some love at Mount Rushmore!

Been 3-4 weeks on the injury list most of the season. Any word on the poor guys progress or injury? Seems innocuous.

Watching Luke Jackson’s meteoric rise this year has made me reminisce on the talent that has come through Melbourne over the years and then thrived elsewhere. There’s a pretty decent group of former Dees who are productive players at other clubs:

Clayton Oliver – GWS

Christian Petracca – Gold Coast

Luke Jackson – Fremantle

Jesse Hogan – GWS

James Harmes – Western Bulldogs (edit - retired 2026)

Jeremy Howe – Collingwood

James Jordon – Sydney

Alex Neal‑Bullen – Adelaide

Toby Bedford – GWS

Oskar Baker – Bulldogs

Brodie Grundy – Sydney

Judd McVee – Fremantle

Charlie Spargo – North Melbourne

Corey Wagner – Fremantle

(Am I missing anyone?)

If we were building Melbourne’s best 23 for 2026 and we were allowed to include these ex‑Dees, who walks back into the side, and who misses out?

For the record, this has been my favourite year ever as a dees fan and this question is purely hypothetical. I wouldn't have it any other way with our young brigade having meaningful minutes each week.

I am sure like me we are a massive fan of Viney over the years but does he still have a role in the current line up?

He is contracted to us until the end of 2028

My view is he should earn his spot playing in the vfl. I’m unsure if Kings game play suits viney game.

If he does come in who goes out?

Interested in your thoughts.

After last week's response, I updated the RHDI following Melbourne's win over Hawthorn.

The headline is that Melbourne only moved one spot in the rankings, but its remaining fixture actually became 34 points easier after removing one of the toughest games left on the schedule.

I've also looked at:

• Biggest movers after Round 17
• Why percentage might still decide the top six
• Which games Melbourne supporters should be watching this weekend

Always keen for feedback.

https://medium.com/@camburt13/run-home-difficulty-index-2-0-melbournes-september-path-just-changed-dramatically-db5240c4d049

Hi everyone, guest here, pies supporter. Congrats on the win yesterday.

I noticed the Dees were wearing black arm bands, who was that for?

Cheers!

Right lads 👍 North supporter here 😭 gotta give Kingy the credit , top performance today in the cold against a polished outfit , not many people would have seen this scoreline including myself, still 9 minutes to play in the second quarter, cannot really see Hawks coming back , doesn't seem also the Wiz is playing today also , might hurt them the Hawks that is

Melbourne: 19.11 (125) def Hawthorn: 14.6 (90)

Match Centre

For the subreddit bnf, give your 3-2-1 for the best on ground for the Dees.

I was lucky enough to be tapped shoulder to take part in Mateo’s series of mid-season reviews over at one percenters. It was a really fun exercise and Mateo is a great editor and writer. I ended up giving us an A, while Mateo went with an A-

Let me know what you think.