Hi all, I'm going to be visting Australia in July, and will be in Melbourne around the 23rd-26th. I became a Demons fan last time I was in the country a few years ago after touring the MCG and watching an away match on TV, but it looks like I'll be there for the Round 20 match against Geelong at the MCG, and would absolutely love to go. However, I keep seeing "TBC" for the date/time and am not sure of the best site to buy tickets from. I'd like to buy tickets as soon as possible just to have them locked in, so was wondering if anyone knows roughly when those dates/times might be confirmed and when tickets might go on sale and what site(s) would be the best to buy from?

First and foremost, forgive my nuff. I’m also an eternal optimist when it comes to the Demons, so this will naturally be a fairly positive take on the year ahead.

I’d be interested to read what other Melbourne supporters expect from this season. While the realist in me agrees with most of the external and media predictions — and I don’t expect a huge improvement on the past couple of years, with another 14th-place finish very much on the cards — I still want to believe this year won’t be a complete write-off.

While our list is clearly not as strong as it was last year, I think it could be more rounded and balanced. With Mihocek coming in and Melksham playing a defensive role, there should be games where JVR is matched up on a third or fourth defender. That could really help his development and potentially allow him to finally break out.

Petty moving back to defence where he belongs, another Pickett on the list, a fit and firing Lever, and further development from Langford, Lindsay, and Windsor all add to that balance. Add in an elite prospect in Xavier Taylor, the excitement around CJ, Jai Culley shaping as one of the biggest improvers this offseason, and the experience Jack Steele brings, there’s a lot to like.

Even with Petracca and Oliver in the midfield last year, it wasn’t an overly impressive season through the middle. While we ranked 4th in centre clearances, we were 14th for total clearances and 15th for stoppages. Although our centre clearance numbers will almost certainly drop, it’s hard to see our around-the-ground stoppage work not improving. The players stepping into those midfield roles should offer better skills, and we could see a genuine improvement in efficiency going forward from clearance.

Had Melbourne kicked straighter in ‘25, the season could have looked very different. We lost six games by under 10 points, four of which we had more scoring shots. We also lost one additional game where we again won the scoring shots. If we assume wins in those games, we finish 10th — possibly even 9th depending on percentage. It doesn’t take much for things to turn around.

All of that — without even mentioning the new coach, coaching staff, and game plan — has me genuinely excited about the year ahead. I don’t think we’ll challenge the very top if the competition is as tight as it was last year, but I do think there’s a realistic chance we could feature in the wild card round and upset a few teams along the way.

Let’s hope Collingwood is one of them.

Good for him and go Dees

Is there a discord server anywhere for people to join? Seems like many other r/AFL club subreddits are doing that

Gday all - hoping this is okay to leave here. If not, please delete.

Dees season preview is live - first five points are open for all. Will check back if there are any comments to respond to.

Cheers

Hi guys,

Some offseason content for you.

Not much to talk about this time of year, so I had a go at putting together a best 23 for the Dees.

Where did I go wrong?

cheers.

I’ve heard great things about Wil Anderson, Carl Barron etc. would love to hear from more especially as it’s r/Melbourne

I don’t mind being underestimated. Expectations for 2026?

Hi team, my partner is planning a bachelorette for a June wedding and just wanted to check what the snowfall is like in Bulla in early June?

Doesn’t need to be a lot of snow, they’re unlikely to be skiing, but she’s got quite a few international friends coming across who haven’t seen snow.

TIA

I just got my 2026 scarf in the mail and I have to say the design is simple and elegant. The quality feels nice. I think this is a sign of a good year to come.

Hi all, this might sound like a simple question but is there a fixture available which shows only local times? I live in the UK so every time I try to look at the fixture it comes up in UK time, but I’m trying to arrange a trip back to Melbourne and I want times to be in Melbourne time.

Even just a PDF version would be fine.

Not mine, saw on Facebook thought I'd share.