Bluelegs
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Mainly if Caufield falls through we don’t want to be between homes with nowhere to go.
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Lord Nev
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Yeah 100%. It's definitely all eggs in the Caulfield basket by the sounds of it.
Bluelegs
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Which is fine if we don’t see Waverley being good enough to be a permanent home (We missed the boat on that regardless)
Main thing I liked from the interview is the continued focus on being an entertainment brand which has been a stated direction from the club since Guerra has started.
The big club international brand stuff was just more Yankees waffle.
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Like a warm blanket
Gysberts2Bate
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The players will spend more time hunting for parking at Waverley than driving to Casey
Bluelegs
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Lord Nev
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Caufield confirmed
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I'm glad someone is finally asking the important questions
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Is anyone else getting the impression Lord Nev doesn't like Guerra?
MarcMaverick
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Cage Match
Lord Nev vs Paul Guerra.
Lord Nev vs Paul Guerra.
Lord Nev
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I'm actually on the fence, but I'm wary that he's been all over the place with things he's said so far.
I don't like Guerra either.
His CV reads like a role call of once-great brands. Companies that just didn't lose marketshare but got rinsed by the competition. Yet somehow he became the standout candidate for the MFC despite having zero sports administration experience. And the board waited five months for this bloke to turn up because he had to finish up at some 'World Chamber of Congress'?
Then look at his track record at the Chamber of Commerce. Rumours of a $6 million deficit in his final year while his own salary somehow soared to $700k. How is that good value for VCCI members? If he can't keep a tax exempt lobby group in the black, how is he going to handle a footy club that is bleeding members?
Spotlight falls on Paul Guerra’s track record
Melbourne Demons fans have endured a tough season. No wonder they’re keen to make sure their new CEO is up to scratch.
He is just a schmoozer. His appointment is peak MFC - a CEO who specialised in running a lobby group that can't keep its own books in the black once he took the wheel, all the whle the club's proposed home base plan has a $70 million funding gap that no one seems to know how to fill.
The plan is to convince the government and the AFL to cough up the cash, and our closer is a guy who spent the last five years complaining that Victorian government is a "heavy burden"and making it "difficult to run a business". Good luck getting a $70 million favour from the people you've been sniping at in the press, dickhead!
MarcMaverick
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Change the booking
Handicap match
Lord Nev and TheBoss vs Paul Guerra.
Handicap match
Lord Nev and TheBoss vs Paul Guerra.
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The impression I got was that he wasn't the standout candidate, he was the only one left who was willing to take the job.I don't like Guerra either.
His CV reads like a role call of once-great brands. Companies that just didn't lose marketshare but got rinsed by the competition. Yet somehow he became the standout candidate for the MFC despite having zero sports administration experience. And the board waited five months for this bloke to turn up because he had to finish up at some 'World Chamber of Congress'?
Then look at his track record at the Chamber of Commerce. Rumours of a $6 million deficit in his final year while his own salary somehow soared to $700k. How is that good value for VCCI members? If he can't keep a tax exempt lobby group in the black, how is he going to handle a footy club that is bleeding members?
Spotlight falls on Paul Guerra’s track record
Melbourne Demons fans have endured a tough season. No wonder they’re keen to make sure their new CEO is up to scratch.www.afr.com
He is just a schmoozer. His appointment is peak MFC - a CEO who specialised in running a lobby group that can't keep its own books in the black once he took the wheel, all the whle the club's proposed home base plan has a $70 million funding gap that no one seems to know how to fill.
The plan is to convince the government and the AFL to cough up the cash, and our closer is a guy who spent the last five years complaining that Victorian government is a "heavy burden"and making it "difficult to run a business". Good luck getting a $70 million favour from the people you've been sniping at in the press, dickhead!
Gysberts2Bate
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people here have the nichest grievances honestly it’s so difficult to keep up sometimes
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Personally I find it easier to hate everyone equally. We should all be equal opportunists.
Lord Nev
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TOM MORRIS recounts all that has plagued the Melbourne Football Club since the 2021 premiership win and discusses the massive changes made with the new men in charge - president STEVEN SMITH, chief executive PAUL GUERRA and senior coach STEVEN KING.
To move forward into a new era, the Melbourne Football Club first had to accept the pitfalls of the previous one. And as former chief executive Gary Pert demonstrated with his now infamous "best culture in 40 years" gaffe in October 2023 -and his declaration a year later that he was taken out of context - acceptance was not straightforward.
For four years, senior Melbourne figures rejected any assertion that something in the club's DNA was amiss, rubbishing claims that individual indiscretions reflected broader issues while the house they built was burning around them.
Instead of putting out the flames, Pert pretended they didn't exist. Only alter Pert's exit, the sacking of premiership coach Simon Goodwin, the resignation of president Kate Roffey, and the departures of premiership stars Clayton Oliver and Christian Petracca, have the Demons finally acknowledged the truth: yes, there was a huge cultural problem within the four walls.
"We had guys fighting, guys on drugs, internal legal battles with ex-directors and it was just a mess," newly-elevated Melbourne president Steven Smith told the AFL Record in an exclusive interview ahead of Sunday's season-opener against St Kilda at the MCG.
"It was important that we claim that and reset our culture." New chief executive Paul Guerra, who arrived with a mandate for change, agreed.
"We know the dressing room issues that perhaps have been here over the past couple of years have gone. When new people come in, it's probably easier to reset. It can be like a breath of fresh air," he said.
At the time of Pert's public blunder on SEN in October 2023, club insiders were taken aback.
With Pert now gone, they openly laugh at the absurdity of his claim - which came at a time of division within the playing group (most infamously highlighted by the much-scrutinised Entrecôte dinner), uncertainty at board level, and drug controversies casting a dark shadow over the AFL's oldest club.
The Demons needed a clean slate, a ground zero from which to rebuild. But to begin that process, they first had to acknowledge where things had gone wrong.
The first step toward clean air? Removing the senior coach.
GOODWIN'S SACKING
Sacking Goodwin was a decision the board moved swiftly on once it determined his time was up.
As recently as a week before his dismissal, Goodwin had told close confidantes he was determined to bulldoze forward into 2027- the final year of his lucrative contract.
Even after two mediocre seasons, he remained bullish that his team could contend again.
That mix of stoicism, blind faith and determination had made him a great player for Adelaide and a premiership coach for Melbourne. But those same traits ultimately proved his undoing; the club was broken, and his message had become tired.
And while there was deep appreciation for his achievements - coupled with unshakeable loyalty from core senior players - key decision-makers knew change was the only option.
"It was really important for us to have a reset because our culture got to a point in the past three to four years where it wasn't acceptable," Smith said.
"It was a hard call because Simon had been a premiership coach. He's the only living premiership coach. That was tough, but after nine years we needed a fresh voice."
Guerra, the initial architect of the move, called interim president Brad Green and told him bluntly that they needed to part ways with Goodwin.
The directors, horrified by the round 20 collapse against St Kilda - when the Demons blew a 46-point three-quarter time lead - agreed. "The easy thing would have been to do nothing, but every member and every fan must know we're making decisions to build towards the next premiership," Guerra said.
Guerra had not officially started as CEO, watching the carnage on his iPhone while sitting outside the White House in Washington.
Goodwin coached one more game - a clash with West Coast at Marvel Stadium - but his fate was sealed.
The board met that Monday evening and unanimously agreed to sack him, and Green, director Angela Williams, football boss Alan Richardson and interim CEO David Chippendale drove to his house to deliver the news.
Goodwin felt betrayed by Richardson, but nobody - not even the players who adored him - could argue with the decision. It was time. Goodwin, now living in Sydney, has since conceded as much.
WHY KING?
Melbourne was in a rush to replace Goodwin, quickly assembling a panel including former Essendon star Jobe Watson and Melbourne Storm football boss Frank Ponissi to build a shortlist.
Ken Hinkley, Adam Simpson, John Longmire, Corey Enright, Cameron Bruce and Danny Daly declined to present, but James Kelly, Brendon Lade, Daniel Giansiracusa, Hayden Skipworth, Nathan Buckley and Steven King progressed.
"I'd heard the noise about Nathan Buckley and naturally wanted to know if it was an actual process or a boat race," King admitted ahead of his senior coaching debut. "Once I found out it was legitimate, I decided to have a go. "It felt natural, and I felt like the fit was right; the list is a bit untapped and I saw that potential."
The panel was immediately impressed by King's authenticity. He spoke about playing under Gary Ayres, Mark Thompson and Ross Lyon and working with Brendan McCartney, Luke Beveridge, Chris Scott and Stuart Dew.
He said he'd cherry picked the best elements from all of them while ditching traits that didn't suit his own personality.
When asked to assess the list, King told them he couldn't do it without GPS data for each player. "He needed to see each player's top end speed and how many kilometres they could run at certain intensities. There was clear intellect in where he wants to take this football club," Guerra said. "His affability probably hides how smart he is."
At 6:30am on September 11, King's phone rang. It was Guerra offering him the job. "At the end of his final interview, I asked what it would mean to be appointed coach," Guerra said.
"He said, word for word, that it would be the proudest day of his life alongside getting married and having kids. That clinched it - that connection to family is us."
ROCKING THE BOAT
King's first task was list management.
King was open to keeping premiership stars if list boss Tim Lamb - who recently recommitted after interest from Adelaide - wanted to, but Lamb made it clear that moving on Oliver, Petracca and Steven May, even messily, was best for the club.
"It was a fair initiation. I was in the job a couple of weeks, and it was a significant shift. A big deal internally as well as externally," he said.
Melbourne is paying almost half of Oliver's seven-figure salary at GWS for the next five seasons but refused to pay any of Petracca's four-year Gold Coast deal.
The Demons let Oliver go for a future third-round pick but wanted a suite of 2025 and 2026 selections for Norm Smith medallist Petracca, who chose the Suns over Adelaide. May couldn't find a new home and retired earlier this month after being told he would spend the season in the VFL due to off-field issues.
In total, Melbourne traded or delisted 11 players last year - 12 including May.
That clean-out spared King what Adem Yze endured in year one at Richmond, where senior players still wedded to Damien Hardwick's approach struggled to adapt. Petracca posted a farewell on Instagram, but Oliver was initially furious about being traded.
Three weeks ago, Guerra signed letters confirming both as life members and texted them before sending. Both responded.
"People come and go. In this case two champions move to different clubs, and we wish them all the best, but we're focused on our future - and we believe it's brighter without Christian and Clayton," Guerra said.
"It's a clean slate," King added. "Now we can get on with it together."
THE GAME-PLAN
Melbourne did almost no tactical work in the three-week block before Christmas, focusing on freeing players up and building fitness. "The issue isn't teaching the new game-plan, it's giving them the freedom to unlearn the old one. It's removing components and letting them play instinctively," he said.
"I told them the only mistake they could make before Christmas was not making a mistake." Since January, King and his coaching group- including Troy Chaplin, who knocked back an offer from Collingwood - have rolled out a new style they hope will endure.
They call it "Demon Football, built on buzz words such as 'ruthless", connected", 'selfless', and the mantra comfortable in chaos'. "I guarantee we'll be a better team this year," King said.
"Wins, losses and ladder position will take care of themselvesm but already I'm seeing no ego. "Players doing the things that go unnoticed to help us connect. There's an appetite now to do what's best for the team.
There are questions, of course. "Can we stay the course and embed our game-plan? And when we're challenged, will we revert to the past or have the courage to keep moving forward together?" he said. King can't wait to find out.
KING'S PROMISE TO GAWN
Over wine and food at Max Gawn's Hawthorn restaurant before Christmas, King made him a promise: there would be no rebuild.
"Every player has the right to believe they're in an environment that can challenge," King said.
"My promise to Max is that I think we can challenge any team on any given day.
"If we stay brave and aggressive with how we want to play, we'll be OK."
Melbourne has been brave off the field. The time has come to match that endeavour on it.
To move forward into a new era, the Melbourne Football Club first had to accept the pitfalls of the previous one. And as former chief executive Gary Pert demonstrated with his now infamous "best culture in 40 years" gaffe in October 2023 -and his declaration a year later that he was taken out of context - acceptance was not straightforward.
For four years, senior Melbourne figures rejected any assertion that something in the club's DNA was amiss, rubbishing claims that individual indiscretions reflected broader issues while the house they built was burning around them.
Instead of putting out the flames, Pert pretended they didn't exist. Only alter Pert's exit, the sacking of premiership coach Simon Goodwin, the resignation of president Kate Roffey, and the departures of premiership stars Clayton Oliver and Christian Petracca, have the Demons finally acknowledged the truth: yes, there was a huge cultural problem within the four walls.
"We had guys fighting, guys on drugs, internal legal battles with ex-directors and it was just a mess," newly-elevated Melbourne president Steven Smith told the AFL Record in an exclusive interview ahead of Sunday's season-opener against St Kilda at the MCG.
"It was important that we claim that and reset our culture." New chief executive Paul Guerra, who arrived with a mandate for change, agreed.
"We know the dressing room issues that perhaps have been here over the past couple of years have gone. When new people come in, it's probably easier to reset. It can be like a breath of fresh air," he said.
At the time of Pert's public blunder on SEN in October 2023, club insiders were taken aback.
With Pert now gone, they openly laugh at the absurdity of his claim - which came at a time of division within the playing group (most infamously highlighted by the much-scrutinised Entrecôte dinner), uncertainty at board level, and drug controversies casting a dark shadow over the AFL's oldest club.
The Demons needed a clean slate, a ground zero from which to rebuild. But to begin that process, they first had to acknowledge where things had gone wrong.
The first step toward clean air? Removing the senior coach.
GOODWIN'S SACKING
Sacking Goodwin was a decision the board moved swiftly on once it determined his time was up.
As recently as a week before his dismissal, Goodwin had told close confidantes he was determined to bulldoze forward into 2027- the final year of his lucrative contract.
Even after two mediocre seasons, he remained bullish that his team could contend again.
That mix of stoicism, blind faith and determination had made him a great player for Adelaide and a premiership coach for Melbourne. But those same traits ultimately proved his undoing; the club was broken, and his message had become tired.
And while there was deep appreciation for his achievements - coupled with unshakeable loyalty from core senior players - key decision-makers knew change was the only option.
"It was really important for us to have a reset because our culture got to a point in the past three to four years where it wasn't acceptable," Smith said.
"It was a hard call because Simon had been a premiership coach. He's the only living premiership coach. That was tough, but after nine years we needed a fresh voice."
Guerra, the initial architect of the move, called interim president Brad Green and told him bluntly that they needed to part ways with Goodwin.
The directors, horrified by the round 20 collapse against St Kilda - when the Demons blew a 46-point three-quarter time lead - agreed. "The easy thing would have been to do nothing, but every member and every fan must know we're making decisions to build towards the next premiership," Guerra said.
Guerra had not officially started as CEO, watching the carnage on his iPhone while sitting outside the White House in Washington.
Goodwin coached one more game - a clash with West Coast at Marvel Stadium - but his fate was sealed.
The board met that Monday evening and unanimously agreed to sack him, and Green, director Angela Williams, football boss Alan Richardson and interim CEO David Chippendale drove to his house to deliver the news.
Goodwin felt betrayed by Richardson, but nobody - not even the players who adored him - could argue with the decision. It was time. Goodwin, now living in Sydney, has since conceded as much.
WHY KING?
Melbourne was in a rush to replace Goodwin, quickly assembling a panel including former Essendon star Jobe Watson and Melbourne Storm football boss Frank Ponissi to build a shortlist.
Ken Hinkley, Adam Simpson, John Longmire, Corey Enright, Cameron Bruce and Danny Daly declined to present, but James Kelly, Brendon Lade, Daniel Giansiracusa, Hayden Skipworth, Nathan Buckley and Steven King progressed.
"I'd heard the noise about Nathan Buckley and naturally wanted to know if it was an actual process or a boat race," King admitted ahead of his senior coaching debut. "Once I found out it was legitimate, I decided to have a go. "It felt natural, and I felt like the fit was right; the list is a bit untapped and I saw that potential."
The panel was immediately impressed by King's authenticity. He spoke about playing under Gary Ayres, Mark Thompson and Ross Lyon and working with Brendan McCartney, Luke Beveridge, Chris Scott and Stuart Dew.
He said he'd cherry picked the best elements from all of them while ditching traits that didn't suit his own personality.
When asked to assess the list, King told them he couldn't do it without GPS data for each player. "He needed to see each player's top end speed and how many kilometres they could run at certain intensities. There was clear intellect in where he wants to take this football club," Guerra said. "His affability probably hides how smart he is."
At 6:30am on September 11, King's phone rang. It was Guerra offering him the job. "At the end of his final interview, I asked what it would mean to be appointed coach," Guerra said.
"He said, word for word, that it would be the proudest day of his life alongside getting married and having kids. That clinched it - that connection to family is us."
ROCKING THE BOAT
King's first task was list management.
King was open to keeping premiership stars if list boss Tim Lamb - who recently recommitted after interest from Adelaide - wanted to, but Lamb made it clear that moving on Oliver, Petracca and Steven May, even messily, was best for the club.
"It was a fair initiation. I was in the job a couple of weeks, and it was a significant shift. A big deal internally as well as externally," he said.
Melbourne is paying almost half of Oliver's seven-figure salary at GWS for the next five seasons but refused to pay any of Petracca's four-year Gold Coast deal.
The Demons let Oliver go for a future third-round pick but wanted a suite of 2025 and 2026 selections for Norm Smith medallist Petracca, who chose the Suns over Adelaide. May couldn't find a new home and retired earlier this month after being told he would spend the season in the VFL due to off-field issues.
In total, Melbourne traded or delisted 11 players last year - 12 including May.
That clean-out spared King what Adem Yze endured in year one at Richmond, where senior players still wedded to Damien Hardwick's approach struggled to adapt. Petracca posted a farewell on Instagram, but Oliver was initially furious about being traded.
Three weeks ago, Guerra signed letters confirming both as life members and texted them before sending. Both responded.
"People come and go. In this case two champions move to different clubs, and we wish them all the best, but we're focused on our future - and we believe it's brighter without Christian and Clayton," Guerra said.
"It's a clean slate," King added. "Now we can get on with it together."
THE GAME-PLAN
Melbourne did almost no tactical work in the three-week block before Christmas, focusing on freeing players up and building fitness. "The issue isn't teaching the new game-plan, it's giving them the freedom to unlearn the old one. It's removing components and letting them play instinctively," he said.
"I told them the only mistake they could make before Christmas was not making a mistake." Since January, King and his coaching group- including Troy Chaplin, who knocked back an offer from Collingwood - have rolled out a new style they hope will endure.
They call it "Demon Football, built on buzz words such as 'ruthless", connected", 'selfless', and the mantra comfortable in chaos'. "I guarantee we'll be a better team this year," King said.
"Wins, losses and ladder position will take care of themselvesm but already I'm seeing no ego. "Players doing the things that go unnoticed to help us connect. There's an appetite now to do what's best for the team.
There are questions, of course. "Can we stay the course and embed our game-plan? And when we're challenged, will we revert to the past or have the courage to keep moving forward together?" he said. King can't wait to find out.
KING'S PROMISE TO GAWN
Over wine and food at Max Gawn's Hawthorn restaurant before Christmas, King made him a promise: there would be no rebuild.
"Every player has the right to believe they're in an environment that can challenge," King said.
"My promise to Max is that I think we can challenge any team on any given day.
"If we stay brave and aggressive with how we want to play, we'll be OK."
Melbourne has been brave off the field. The time has come to match that endeavour on it.
Lampers
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The most interesting/surprising thing for me was how much the moving on the big three was driven by Tim Lamb.
There is also more of the gratitude to those departed players, followed up by statements about locker room disharmony now resolved.
It’s not hard to read between the lines.
There is also more of the gratitude to those departed players, followed up by statements about locker room disharmony now resolved.
It’s not hard to read between the lines.
Lord Nev
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Don't think many realize how much sway Goodwin had over decisions about the list, and was backed up Pert & Roffey. I haven't been a Richo fan, but apparently he was basically put in his box by Pert and wasn't really able to do his job. Wouldn't be surprised if Lamb had been in a similar situation. This was all the Goody show, despite how it's meant to work and we've seen now how that works out long term now.
Bluelegs
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I don’t use the word “hero” very often but Paul Guerra is the greatest hero in MFC history.
PerfectFooty
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I know i'm super late replying to this.
But big missed chance by the club to rile up the Bulldogs with 'Freed from desire'
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