The Tackle: Should Mark Neeld stay or go as Melbourne coach? Robbo and Scott Gullan offer their opposing views

ROBBO and Scott Gullan argue about whether Mark Neeld should be sacked plus all the weekend highs and lows. Replay live chat.

Mark Neeld

FOOTBALL writers Mark Robinson and Scott Gullan have differing views on whether Mark Neeld should be sacked by Melbourne:

MARK ROBINSON: TIME FOR NEELD TO GO

IF we are to believe Melbourne president Don McLardy, a decision on coach Mark Neeld's future won't be announced today.

It doesn't mean a decision won't be made.

The Demons board meets today, a meeting Neeld has called a "regular" monthly meeting. It can't be anything of the sort.

If Neeld is not front and square on the agenda, the board is kidding itself and Dees fans.

Stand-in chief executive Peter Jackson will present his recommendations for a restructure of the football department and, despite Neeld saying in the past month he had the support of the board and was confident he would keep his position, few would agree.

Neeld's team yet again failed on a Sunday afternoon at the MCG, this time by 95 points.

Agree with Robbo? Join his live chat below from 11.30am AEST

On a mobile device? Click here for a better viewing experience

To its credit - which is getting harder to write - it won the third quarter.

Always, we praise the Demons for their effort in quarters, or periods of a game, but it's wearing thin.

No one is under more pressure in the competition than Neeld.

The club has to back him or sack him, and if the decision today is the latter, then they best pull the trigger immediately. It doesn't look as if that is the plan.

"I can assure you our board is working very closely with Peter Jackson to effect a turnaround as soon as possible and put in place a structure that will get us some sustained success," McLardy said yesterday.

"You can expect to hear the first steps in that process over the next couple of weeks."

McLardy backed former chief executive Cameron Schwab in the days before he sacked him, so who knows what will happen by the close of business today?

At such a time, it would be a brave board to continue with the incumbent.

We said two weeks ago it was a matter of when, not if.

It shouldn't surprise anyone that when might be today.

SCOTT GULLAN: KEEP HIM FOR NOW

WHY sack Mark Neeld if there is no ready-made replacement?

Putting in a caretaker with more than half a season to go makes no sense.

So Todd Viney or Jade Rawlings is going to turn Melbourne around in the next couple of months? Please.

If anything, sacking Neeld now shows any prospective coaching candidate that he would be joining a club where the board is swayed by popular opinion and trigger-happy.

From Day 1, Neeld said turning the Demons around was a long-term gig. He came in with a big stick and whacked some senior players.

They didn't like it, some left, some stayed, and if you believe everything you hear, many sooked.

Does that say more about Neeld or the players?

While there have been a couple of horrible performances recently, on which the anti-Neeld group has thrived, yesterday the Demons had a crack for the most part and won the third quarter against the premiership favourites.

The bottom line was they simply didn't have the class to stay with Hawthorn.

Neeld hasn't had a lot of luck go his way.

Put Mitch Clark, Jack Grimes, Tom McDonald, Colin Sylvia and young guns Jack Viney and Jimmy Toumpas in this team and they're significantly better.

The problem for Neeld is his moneyball approach in getting Tom Gillies, Shannon Byrnes, Cameron Pedersen, David Rodan and James Sellar has backfired.

He has to live with that, but what about Neil Craig, who was brought in to guide the rookie coach? Surely he is as culpable as Neeld.

What sitting on its hands now does for Melbourne is give it four months to persuade a big name to take on the job.

Plus it gives Neeld the opportunity to show if he is the right man for the job.

Come the end of August, at least there will be a two-year body of work to make a proper assessment.

***

WHEN THE SAINTS GO LURCHING ON

Call it a rebuild, rejuvenation or a bloody re-jig, but the Saints are in pain.

After beating Carlton on Monday Night Footy in Round 7, the Saints have lost to Adelaide, the Bulldogs and yesterday to North Melbourne.

They are 16th on the ladder with two wins from 10 starts and sit behind the Bulldogs and Lions, who have been smashed by critics this season, and are two games behind the Gold Coast Suns.

They face the West Coast Eagles in the their next game and will go into their bye break as a broken team.

The confidence pre-season has been swapped for a stark realisation the team needs a major overhaul.

Yesterday's first quarter was an embarrassment for a team which not so long ago prided itself on playing anywhere at any time.

Early in the third quarter, they had 100 less possessions than North Melbourne.

Even though they evened the contest after the first quarter, they couldn't buy a goal. North had 38 shots, and the Saints just 15.

It's accepted their great run under Ross Lyon robbed the club of early draft picks, and that the Saints are in a unique situation where their best players are those at the end of their careers.

It points to several years of pain.

Nick Riewoldt was again meritorious against mostly two opponents, Steven was very good again and... and... that was about it.

The leaders disappeared.

Nick Dal Santo's stats flattered, Ben McEvoy was poor, Sam Fisher's career suddenly looks like it will end in a month, Sean Dempster was down, Milne couldn't get into it, David Armitage was out of sorts and Leigh Montagna in his 200th game got the ball, but butchered it.

The up and comers like Tom Hickey, Arryn Siposs, Jimmy Webster, Jack Newnes and Seb Ross followed their leaders.

Seriously, it was one of the more unflattering performances under coach Scott Watters.

When kids should be the go, the second highest-possession winner yesterday was Farren Ray.

A good bloke and a solid AFL player, but Ray is one of those players who should be fighting for his spot in the team.

Watters is in an intriguing position.

He has to publicly maintain hope but realises the next premiership won't carry three-quarters of this team, if any.

He has champs to retire or trade, and needs to play kids to find out if they can play.

They all won't make it, so the next three drafts are crucial.

He needs more draft picks, so trading is an option.

The Saints are not at the crossroads. They are worse than that. They are on a long road back to the top four, and the journey might be longer than some Sainters would care to admit.

***

RYAN'S EXPRESS

Ryan Griffen's past month might be the most brilliant month of his career.

The midfielder suffered a shoulder in Round 4, missed two weeks, and has returned 33, 29, 30 and on Saturday night 40 touches against Port Adelaide.

In three of those games he won nine clearances.

SuperCoach Round 10 studs and duds

Griffen is the ultimate two-way midfielder with rare qualities.

He has explosive speed on the outside, a willingness to fight for the ball at the coalface, and the endurance to work from first siren to last.

At the weekend, he had 20 contested possessions, nine tackles, eight clearances and eight inside 50s.

They are elite numbers.

His gut-running to defend is often missed because of his offensive power.

Teammate Robert Murphy recently described him as an amazing footballer, and Murphy isn't one to exaggerate.

And all of this happens when he is tagged.

Coach Brendan McCartney talks of leaders almost every week and with Griffen he probably has his next captain.

***

LIKES

1. Gaz

On a so-so weekend for the code, one astonishing goal - and a running battle with Steve Johnson - was the memorable moment.

Apologies to the Swans, and the Bulldogs and Dockers on the road for outstanding victories, but they didn't make me smile like Gazza did. The guy is a genius.

He went head to head with Johnson and was the clear winner, capped by his remarkable across-the-body snap from near the boundary line. 

Don't know which one I liked better this year: Franklin's jump over an opponent in the middle of the MCG and goal from 70m, or Ablett's on Saturday night.

What I do know is no-one except those two could've kicked those goals.

2. Swans

It has been referred as the ''Adam Goodes Game'' but it was more than that. Goodes is a champ, and he responded like one.

No, the Swans as a whole were terrific, led by Josh Kennedy and Jarrad McVeigh. The Bombers were confident, and the Swans were emphatic.

They assumed control early and never lost it, and put the foot on the throat in the final quarter to win by seven goals.

In other words, a professional kill from the premiers.

3. Fremantle

This unassuming and undermanned team from the west is clearly a premiership fancy, and if they manage to finish top two, a home final would be a scary destination for the visitors.

Of all the players who reflect what Fremantle stands for, it is midfielder Michael Barlow who leads the way.

Against the Crows, in what was a ripper contest, Barlow finished with 32 touches (22 contested), eight tackles and 11 clearances.

He does his job week in week out, which aptly describes Fremantle, and if you're a long-term Brownlow Medal investor, Barlow might require a sneaky “fiddy”.

4. Brad Sewell

Always against lowly opposition, you have to hit them early and destroy any belief, and Sewell was the battering ram in the first quarter.

He had 14 possessions in the first quarter - which was equal to 12 Melbourne players for the match - and closed out with 31 and a game-high eight inside-50s. #oneforthefamily.

5. Nathan Vardy

What is Geelong going to do with their big men? Vardy returned from long-term injury and kicked four goals, and played ruck, and you would assume that sort of game will get him another game next week.

The Cats, however, have Pods to come back, Blicavs playing very solid footy in the ruck (he had a team-high seven clearances) and West as a ruckman.

When everyone is available, they can't play them all.

Vardy is an X Factor and might push West, the club's no.1 ruckman at the start of the year, out of the team.

6. Aaron Black

Started the season as the fourth key forward behind Petrie, Tarrant and Hansen and is now clearly the No.2 and with Petrie coming to the end of his career, Black will soon enough be the club's No.1 forward.

With Petrie, they dominated the Saints yesterday. Black did have first-gamer Jackson Ferguson as an opponent for a period, which makes it an easier assignment, but you have to be impressed with the positioning and foot skills.

He has tricks which you need as a forward. He kicked 5.3 from 10 kicks, and took seven marks, and probably is the best of the bunch of young key forwards in the game.

7. Jack Stevens' goal

Different to Gazza's but brilliant all the same.  It was St Kilda's first and should've been something inspiring, but not to be.

He took the ball in the pocket, broke two tackles, ran towards the boundary line, broke another tackle, and then came inside and screwed it across the body.

If it was Cyril, or Gaz, we'd still be talking about it today.

8. Tom Mitchell

This was tweeted by @stephenconiglio last week: ''Good luck to adopted WA boy Tom Mitchell on his debut this week for the swans. Fair to say he may not ever play reserves footy again.'' Yep, that's fair to say.

In just over two quarters, he had 18 touches and six tackles, and displayed a body-type which is quintessential Sydney: Strong through the core.

9. Courage

It comes in many forms.  Firstly, Courtney Dempsey who found himself in that dark hole, backing back to take the mark and exposing the body to a huge hit from an opponent coming to meet the ball.

Dempsey went to get up straight away, but when he realised he was coughing blood, thought it a good idea to get back on the ground.

Secondly, Rory Laird throwing himself head-first to apply a smother is the sort of commitment which wins friends and respect. He put more price on a goal and than he did his own safety.

Honourable mentions

Drew Petrie in Boomer's 350th, Boomer himself, Bartel's adaptability, Ibbitson for the fourth week in a row, Hibberd in the wet, Malceski in AA form, Callan Ward's fight, Walker again, Jolly in Brisbane, Liberatore's clearance work, and the Saints shaking hands with the little legend.

***

DISLIKES

1. Goal review

How ridiculous that the boundary umpire can overrule the goal umpire, one man being two metres from the post and another somewhere between 20m and 40m away.

The video reviewers said footage was inconclusive, so Patrick Dangerfield's kick for goal was ruled as a point, despite the goal umpire believing it to be a goal.

Apparently, the boundary umpire was more confident than the goal umpire. And the review went for three minutes.

Bernie Vince called it a ''joke''. Many would agree.

2. St Kilda

What was that rubbish in the first quarter? Down by 10 goals in the first quarter suggests the players weren't mentally ready for the contest, and the fact they evened the contest after quarter-time suggests my first suggestion was on the money.

As for coach Scotty Watters saying he doesn't believe in the emotion of the game, well, it worked yesterday. Very very poor from the Saints.

3. Port Adelaide

Will the real Port Adelaide stand up? Won first five and lost their next five, this one after opening up a sizeable lead in the second quarter. The third quarter was putrid, kicking just four behinds to the Bulldogs' 5.4.

It's a shame really because the Port on the bounce in the early part of the season was exciting. Now they are being exposed as being young, inexperienced and not able to compete for four quarters.

They should've won this one in the Top End and they know it.

4. GWS

Clearly have more excuses than any other team, but getting jack of the 100-point blow outs.

The most exciting discussion about the club this year is whether they will go after Buddy Franklin. It will happen, and the money offer will be obscene.

5. Essendon's forward structure

Clear problems - too tall at weekend, Leroy Jetta doesn't do enough, Kommer defends but has kicked two goals in seven matches, and they badly miss Alwyn Davey which is a sentence rarely written about the hack-in-the-box small forward.

Meanwhile, Gumbleton was next to useless in the rain and Winderlich is more of a hit-up forward than a roving forward. The Swans defensive skills are first rate, but the Bombers led the inside-50s 61-56, yet were beaten by 44 points.

6. Brisbane

Insipid on Friday night and, yes, accept they had a bunch of kids go in against Collingwood.

Let's be honest, that was the pits that game and even Leigh Matthews, the top dog in the telecast box, said it was boring.

Brisbane attacked Essendon with ferocious pressure three rounds back, and then slapped the Pies with a feather. That was the most disappointing thing.

At half-time, the Lions had 11 players who had one or zero tackles. Although undermanned, the effort had to be better.

The rollercoaster ride for Michael Voss is painful. It is one step forward and two steps back and in a contract year, most boards want answers.

7.  Hypocrites

Fair enough if Mick Malthouse wants to have a crack at Eddie McGuire for his comments about Adam Goodes and King Kong, but don't forget Malthouse called a Stephen Milne  a ''f---ing rapist'', which did nothing but give Collingwood fans the green light to do the same for the next five years.

8. Tom Williams

Footy must be doing his head in after yet another injury to shoulder which forced him to be subbed out of the game.

"He was a sad soul at the end,'' coach Brendan McCartney said in the post-match. Bet he was. It was his first game of the season after having played just thee in 2012.

All up, he has played 78 games since being drafted in 2004. Hate to say it, because you always want a player to get a crack at it, but Williams' future is at the crossroads.

The Dogs have to draft as if Williams is not at the club because his body unfortunately cannot be relied upon.

9. Abuse

Think a lot of Australians had a review of their stance on racism this past week, and it's incredible a section of society believes Adam Goodes to be a sook, and that the majority response to Michael Long's views in Saturday's Herald Sun was: Are we still talking about this? #Sadtimes.

***

BEST TWEETS

@benjjk: Dislike: Matt Smith leaving Dr Who. Yeah, I'm a St Kilda supporter, don't want to talk about AFL

@_eFactor: L: StK players waiting to congratulate Boomer. D: Group of ignorant StK fans abusing/booing umpires entire game. Grow up.

@theclintnesbitt: like robustness of Lyon game plan, even with injury and changing personnel and conditions

@sam_eggo22: What are the chances of Gary Ayres getting a look in at melbourne? He's done great things at the Borough.

@Rayka7:  dislike Hirdy playing 33 talls in a rain soaked SCG against the best contested side going around.

@mattpsmith73:  like:GC effort v Cats Dislike:umpires treatment towards Buddy how his opponent can scrag,push & jump all over him,No free !

@Crooksy18:  like long sleeve jumpers-Bartel, dislike Melbourne games, not even evil voyeuristic pleasure watching anymore

@thespide81:  Dislike: number of 1 sided results. Damaging the AFL brand. Like: Lions supporters demanding change of guernsey

@ihateupants:  L: Ablett and the Suns. look out comp. D: Paul Roos - Every swans player is "the master" of something

@leighdavies14: Like Tom Mitchell's debut. 18 possies, a goal, 3 goal assists & 6 tackles in just over 2 quarters

@hadijoge:  worst round of footy this year.

@TMacDonald_: Like - Geelong finally getting night footy. Was an amazing experience. Dislike - Geelong fans cheers Gaz.

@kjk0406: L: Goodes performance D: Eddie Everywhere (still calling, etc) he should have taken time out, come back after the byes.

@RawlingsAdam:  Like: Rory Laird tough, hard & that smother Dislike: Goal line technology and a poor process when using it

@casadelresaca:  dislike: people bagging wet weather footy. A good game in the rain is life-affirming!

@matthew_howard1: North Melbourne fans booing Nick Riewoldt #disrespectful #whatdidhedotoyou

@recordspinna: Like: Countdown clock @ Skilled Stadium being busted so we didn't know when quarters were ending. Good old days!

@howarewefellas:  Like: Duryea's hunger for the contest. Dislike: drongo behind me using homophobic language to abuse Franklin

@bobalski: Ryder down from FF, Dempsey from HB and Jobe in the centre. All 3 shook Goodes hand before the bounce. #class

@footytroof: like - Geelong fans standing up and applauding GAJ's amazing goal.

@WoodyJ64: Likes: the umpires put the whistle away this week. Dislike: bye rounds. They dont stop clubs from resting players

@Elmi_R09: L: Aaron Black D: Every week tweeting how good Black is and Robbo giving me donuts in.

@jason_oswald: like: Ben Reid snagging goals up forward. dislike: more boring blow outs on Sunday

@LuisOrdonez64:   hate rules being adjudicated diferently week to week. Jobe Watson seeks out Goodesy a simple handshake all respect.

@ACM1984: like - yabbbbblettts goal... Dislike - lack of pressure on Watters

@vandilands: Like- N.Vardy. Dislike- His haircut.

@MickLeGrand1:  L- Ryan Griffin, absolute elite. D- the fixture next weekend. Byes for most local footy and no games in Melb on Sat/Sun

@akoner: like: Bartel, Duncan, Blicavs could be anything, Suns for 3Q's, Gaz snap goal dislike: reports of racism @  simonds stadium

@leoniew27:  L: Koby Stevens effort to play on he could barely move, doggies 3rd qtr, Minson's hit out display continues

@TedMclean:  I loved Stevie J thinking he could go head to head with Gazza #mansgottoknowhislimitations

@ports74:  dislike Lions lack of hardness Friday night when they were on big show. Like members getting together 2 get old jumper back

@craigjames78:  like: Boomer Harvey's running goal, what a champ. Dislike: just didn't know I had so many racist mates.

@MrChrisRedman: Jack Watts having a laugh with Hawks players after the game... Save it for your teammates.

@m_mitch28:  Watters subbing the first gamer off at half time was a disgrace! He left Saad out there who didn't register a kick!

@Conners17: Combined margin on the 4 channel7 games this weekend was 290 points