What was the other option and why didn't we do it? I thought we had a major cashflow problem and held off asking as long as we could.

We were actually told by virtually the same board that was in place when we asked for the money that we would be cashflow nuetral by 2006. What happened?
My question to you is why did we need that option? What went wrong?
I hope the answer is not because we were 5,000 members short.

Smorgon could have contributed a bit from his $ 100 M + wealth

To help pay a debt created by a stupid decision made by Elliott?

How is Elliot responsible for this cash flow crunch ? This board has had 4 years to steady the ship but somehow we seem to be worse off.

I don't believe we are worse off. The debt has been reigned in to an extent or at least frozen, outstanding contracts paid out ... we have no idea how much mess they inherited. They just haven't cleaned it up as well as we would have hoped.

The key words are somehow we seem to be worse off without any regards as to wheather we are better or worse off. If it can be pointed out as to how we are either better off or worse off, it would make more sense, but no it's "we seem worse off".

Would be nice if people could actually pinpoint why we have cashflow problems, and how they originated.

Totally agree with you Verbs yours has been the most logical and clear response to the issues at hand thus far.

Where is the club now in all aspects?
(honestly and clearly)

What are the objectives of the administration concerning the Carlton Football club heading into the future regarding all aspects ie financial, cultural, on field resources, off field resources etc ?
(openly and honestly )

What are the current and possible future obstacles that can be reasonably identified and anticipated by an expected professional administration associated with achieving itsidentified objectives?
(openly and honestly )

Sparing us a speech based on broad visions how does the current administration PLAN to achieve its objectives in spite of these obstacles.what strategic Business plan does it have that is directing all its decisions and actions?
( honestly and factualy).

If Collins wanted the Pratt ticket to take over why didn't he make it happen while he had the tools to make it happen?

In our current predicament I'm thinking they all want the priority pick in the first round in 2007, and need the scapegoats to blame....

After that we will show heaps of improvement, with things begining to finaly work out.

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Circumstance has no value. It is how one relates to a situation that has value. All true meaning resides in the personal relationship to a phenomenon, what it means to you.

It’s all about restoring the winning mentality.

We’ve been kicked and trodden on for 5 years now and it has to have taken its toll on not only the players but everyone who has been involved with the CFC in that time.

For those sporty type TCers here who have experienced this type of ‘down cycle’ within their own sports and have come out the other end we know that the only way to get back that winning mentality is to change the messenger and learn new and modern ways of improving each individual aspect of your sport until you regain that lost confidence in yourself so that you feel you are consistently the best at what individual skills you do.
This is the reason I was very happy to see the addition of Ratten & Bradley in particular to the coaching staff. These two players know what it takes to achieve the respect of their peers as elite craftsmen of their trade. They know what it takes to gain the respect and grow the confidence to consistently perfom at the elite level.
That’s what our younger players need to redevelop.
I think of naturally talented players like Waite, Fisher, Fevola, Thornton, etc. who have experienced beating after beating. The addition of Ratten & Bradley to help these players especially to develop that winning mentality & confidence is the best thing currently happening at the club by a mile.

Do we need to take it further and redevelop the winning mentality in other areas of our club? BLOODY OATH WE DO!!!!

We need an influx of new board members with a REAL positive outlook and achievable plan to restore the OFFIELD greatness of the CFC as quickly as possible.

We need an influx of new board members who are capable of increasing revenue IN THE SHORT TERM to terminate non-performing existing contracts (Denis Pagan) and to take the pressure off the overworked & under-resourced staff at CFC by adding more beneficial resources.

All Carlton people NOW need an influx of new board members with a short and long term vision to initiate new ways of setting this club up for a consistant period of ultimate onfield & offield success over the next 20 years so we ALL regain THE WINNING MENTALITY & confidence that naturally goes with following the Carlton Football Club!!!

We currently have a number of Directors who have had 4 years to turn the offield fortunes of the CFC around.
Have they done so?
I don’t think so!

“In order to improve you must change!â€

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There's so much I could say...

Exactly.

We had Fitzy sitting in on board meetings, Watts helping the CEO. We sacked the coach, made the prospective new coach make a presentation to the board and then re-instated the old coach we just sacked within the space of 24 hours. We have had the President of this club publicly make statements and then have to retract them all on prime time television.
If you had money would you give it to them?
WE ARE FLYING, WE ARE NOT WORSE OFF .... TRUST ME.

Wouldn't it be great? Add another Gibbs and another Murphy to our current group - by far the best young talent on any list in the AFL. Then we can look forward to the rest of the competition hating us again and being furious at how we worked the system. Multiple premierships would follow, not just 'a chance' at fluking one over the next ten years which is the type of system the AFL are trying to set up.

Those who bleat on and on about 'a winning culture', I hate to tell you but it's a load of crap. One more year isn't going to destroy us, today in football you plan in 5 and 10 year cycles. In 2002 St Kilda won a meaningless game late in the season against Freo I think it was and it cost them Daniel Wells, they were going on with this rubbish about a 'winning culture' and not deserving a priority pick as well.

It's perfectly natural to want to win at all costs though, most people don't care enough to want to sit through the pain of loss after loss, it's just human nature. It's like going out and deciding to buy a plasma tv or deciding to invest the money for a rainy day - most people go out and buy the plasma tv while those who don't get rich.

2007 is a unique opportunity that most likely will be flushed down the toilet by CFC as we win 5 or 6 games. You'd think where we have been as a club, and no club in the modern era have been where we have, you would do whatever you could to win the ultimate prize and not cut corners. No one cares how many preliminary finals you make, it's about winning premierships.

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"Davies could eventually become a player of Judd's ability" - Paganite03 Click here to see for yourself!

These only had to be paid out due to the current board's decision to leave PP before those contracts had concluded.

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░L░I░N░K░I░N░B░I░O ░

But they got Goddard off us and then with all those high dtaft picks from finishing on the bottom for so long won how many premierships? Well isn't that all we have to do to join them in winning premiership after premiership?

Firstly let me be clear - I am not satisfied with our current plight and I hope something can be done to get rid of the current board....I feel I had to write that so I am not accused of being happy with the way things are going - or having my head in the sand etc etc

But - how the flower a rival ticket falls through because of a change of date is beyond me......

Fraser Brown started stirring things up in August or September and alluded to a ticket being formed then. Regardless of whether the Pratt ticket is the same ticket as mentioned by Fraser Brown or not - all potential challengers have had at least 3 months to organise a ticket (assuming they started talking about a ticket in mid Sep).

Surely this is enough time (regardless of the busy lives these people lead) to get together and talk about a forming a ticket. Surely by now they should have had a potential list of candidates willing to form a ticket - and all that would be required in the last week would be to finalise things.

I'm not saying they must be incompetent cos they haven't done it - BUT COME ON......they've had plenty of time to organise something.

Hopefully Tom Elliott is a quick organiser and can do something in 7 days......

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That's right. Gather the nector my little drones and make honey. Honey for your children.......Fools!!!

You forget that Elliot is the scapegoat for Carlton internet fans. They need someone to blame.

That's all well and good but weren't we talking about cash flow and the claim the finances are worse off? I'm not choosing sides here at all, I just want the money paid out. However I'm not going to resort to hysterical reaction when discussing individual aspects of the current board. I don't have the figures but I'm not sure that our debt is greater than when they came in. Coaches, AFL, presidential speeches etc are different issues.

I hate to tell you but St Kilda having/not having Daniel Wells is not why they have not won a flag

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This type of slight is alien in the more cultured part of the world - Walsh. Its up there with mad dogs, Englishmen and the midday sun!

Your absolutely right Danny - their are other more manifestly more obvious reasons.


But I wish Carlton God would stop giving his User Id to people who make sense.

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"Hence you will not say that Greeks fight like heroes but that heroes fight like Greeks"?

Winston Churchill