Nice pick up Tap.
Always bragged to my Tassie mates that they'd never see the Blues play there because we're ''a big club" ... even though I knew it was bullshite.
It's a telling snapshot of where we are at.

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I just want my old club back ... (edit) maybe I have!

Carlton is now a Vegas act.

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"One of my favorite philosophical tenets is that people will agree with you only if they already agree with you. You do not change people's minds." - Frank Zappa

So this is where the AFL steps in, covers our Princes Park debt (which was gotten into because of their about face on the Legends stand) and lets us pay $1 a year for the venue. Then they let us play all our games at the MCG, with a killer contract. Oh, and lets us make as much from our away games as we do from our home games. And we get to monopolise an entire state.

Oh, sorry, were not brown and gold.

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O say does that star spangled banner yet wave.

Probably closer to Rooty Hill RSL act actually. I wonder if Geoffrey Edelsten went to this Raheen gathering? As someone so very astutely pointed out to me this morning - here they are talking about building a club that stands on its feet without philanthropy and moving away from the old, corporate Carlton, but their first step is to hold a meeting at Raheen presumably with the same crowd?

Wonder if the Gandels were there. Should I enquire as to a guest list? Benefactor Bruce would have been there...past board members....past Presidents...the conversation would have been enthralling. No doubt they are all excited to see more of Marc Murphy's spectacular marking next year.

Richmond play Norf in Tassie often & according to some they are who we should aspire to be.

Still better than Coogee Bay Pub

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"One of my favorite philosophical tenets is that people will agree with you only if they already agree with you. You do not change people's minds." - Frank Zappa

Assets - check, Members - check, Sales - check, Excellent CEO - check, respected President. They have their shit together off-field. You can't even argue that Em! On-field is a slightly different story. Put the focus back on Carlton...stop making excuses for them. The club keeps going back and doing the same thing - let's have a secret meeting with the richest supporters...IT DOESN'T WORK!

The AFL will not let North fend for itself. Funding will not stop. The AFL will ensure that North get a sweet deal in Hobart after next year when it expires. They will hold the meeting in Tasy, try and attract business interest, throw their weight around etc. The AFL media attention given to their "blockbuster" with Richmond in Hobart is a clear indication of the AFL's priorities. When the draw came out one of the leading attractions of the new draw was "North's" blockbuster. Look at the games North has "attracted" this year to Tasy (with no help from the AFL of course..

Carlton, meanwhile, funnels money into helping clubs such as North with "equalisation". Carlton is in NO position to be handing money over to the AFL for their "equalisation" aims.

The AFL want to follow the Hawthorn model with Tasy with North. It is clear. Anything else is diversion.

http://www.themercury.com.au/sport/kang ... 7586504754

Tap...get a hold of your emotions. The North deal has been in play for years. Don't go off half-cocked. Come back to me in 2022. Carlton's not too far behind. You can't mismanage football clubs these days. So many clubs are propped up these - it's a false economy. Let's merge!

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Love it! Same old, Same old...they'll never change. There's a new breed of idiots going to run the place.

You may well be right, but maybe we should wait until the guest list is revealed before we blindly assume that the club has continued trying to bleed dry the old stalwart philanthropic supporters.

Holding it at Raheen may have been a cost minimization measure. Doesn't mean that the targeted new generation of "monied" Carlton supporters weren't present. Until I know for a fact otherwise I want to believe that the club is genuine and has turned over a new leaf.

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A Blues Supporter - not a Blues Bagger.

I would prefer Carlton dies than merges. Thereby this takes away everything that the Carlton players have given the game - eg Jesaulenko, Judd, Johnston etc..so that the AFL can't own it and re-fashion it into something they can use.


Carlton can either joins the VFL (which the AFL would block) or die. No merge ever.

If you think North will merge with Melbourne based on the belief that the extra funding will stop I think you underestimate the relationships North people have created with the AFL head office. They are well on the way to following the Hawthorn model (thanks to the AFL) quite nicely thank you.

The guest list won't be revealed. But I know someone who went and both were present. It was a good mix of new and old money. Real blue blood. The gravlax was a little too salty, but the grilled scallops wrapped in prosciutto was to die for.

I'm somewhat pleased that telling the Carlton elite that they won't be bailed up for a donation anymore puts real pressure on the club to focus on the apathetic Carlton fan. Perhaps lapsed members will be contacted. I for one look forward to being contacted. I won't donate to their cause, but there are other ways to assist that don't involve taking my credit card details. They just need to listen and acquiesce.

...and therein lies their challenge.

That doesn't solve their revenue issues Doc. They're going to have to start creating content, goods and services that they can charge for, and set aside capital for commercial and financial investment.

No amount of free advice is going to solve all of their problems. It's not dire, they just need to look around at what other clubs are doing in the AFL, globally and then make their own strategy. I think that's already begun with the branding of 'Carlton Media' on all new footage coming in.

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29 different attributes,
And only 7 that you like;
20 ways to see the world,
Or 20 ways to start a fight.

If the supposed board challenge is serious, this would provide some pretty good ammunition I would of thought.

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We are on our way back...

What's a board challenge going to change?

We traded in our status as a big club years ago by taking the dollars to play interstate which cost us wins and a place higher up on the ladder.

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In WADA we trust

Most clubs would report $5m in losses for 3 years of poor performance in which they sacked two senior coaches, so while the question of mismanagement is reasonable, it's already been acknowledged and addressed quite transparently.

The debt ceiling is shockingly low for what it is, and probably should be switched to a rolling P/L target, similar to UEFA's financial fair play.

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29 different attributes,
And only 7 that you like;
20 ways to see the world,
Or 20 ways to start a fight.

The board.

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We are on our way back...