2008

Coach: Dean Bailey
Captain: James McDonald
Finishing Position: 16th
Best and Fairest: Cameron Bruce
Leading Goalkicker: Brad Miller (26 goals)
Best First Year Player : Cale Morton
Major Sponsor: Primus Telecommunications
Members: 29,619

Matches

Ladder

Playing List

Best and Fairest

After the demise of Neale Daniher midway through 2007 former Essendon player and Port Adelaide assistant Dean Bailey came from nowhere to secure the coaches job, beating a field including Kevin Sheedy and Chris Connolly.

Bailey endured a horrific induction to AFL coaching when his side lost the first two games of the year by a combined 199 points. Expected to suffer a similar massacre against the reigning premiers Geelong in Round 3, and entering the game as one of the longest betting outsiders in history, the Dees shocked the Cats with the first three goals on route to a respectable loss.

The Demons broke through for their first win of the season in remarkable fashion when a 51 point half-time deficit was overturned in defeating Fremantle by 7 points in Round 7. The next win would come in no less dramatic fashion in Round 14 when three late goals delivered a surprise win over Brisbane.

Off-field things weren't going particuarly well either. AFL CEO Andrew Demetriou told the club their brand was 'meaningless', despite the AFL being in the midst of 150th anniversary celebrations traced directly back to the foundation of the club and Hawthorn President Jeff Kennett was telling anyone who would listen how the club would need to move to the Gold Coast to survive.

The board of Paul Gardner was replaced by a Jim Stynes led administration, and Stynes held a "Debt Demolition" month in August which aimed to wipe a substantial portion of the money the club owed. A "Debt Demolition" Dinner was held and player Brock McLean donated $10,000 to the cause. More than a million dollars was raised for the cause.

A lifeless late season win over an equally disappointing West Coast would be their last and the season limped to a close with two heavy defeats.

Jim Stynes assumed the presidency halfway through the year when Paul Gardner resigned.

Jeff White and Adem Yze left the club at the end of the season, while the last place finish enabled the club to have selection #1 at the 2008 National Draft where they picked forward Jack Watts

NAB Cup

Round	Opposition	Result
1	Geelong	LOSS

Practice Matches

Opposition	Result
Richmond	LOSS
Western Bulldogs?	LOSS
North Melbourne?	LOSS

Premiership Season

Round	Opposition	Result
1	Hawthorn	LOSS
2	Western Bulldogs	LOSS
3	Geelong	LOSS
4	North Melbourne	LOSS
5	Carlton	LOSS
6	Brisbane Lions	LOSS
7	Fremantle	WIN
8	Adelaide	LOSS
9	Hawthorn	LOSS
10	St. Kilda	LOSS
11	Collingwood	LOSS
12	Richmond	LOSS
13	Sydney	LOSS
14	Brisbane Lions	WIN
15	Western Bulldogs	LOSS
16	Fremantle	LOSS
17	North Melbourne	LOSS
18	Essendon	LOSS
19	Geelong	LOSS
20	West Coast	WIN
21	Port Adelaide	LOSS
22	Richmond	LOSS

Ladder

	W	D	L	%	P
Geelong	21	0	1	161.8	84
Hawthorn	17	0	5	131.9	68
Western Bulldogs	15	1	6	118.7	62
St. Kilda	13	0	9	110.6	52
Adelaide	13	0	9	109.7	52
Sydney	12	1	9	112.5	50
North Melbourne	12	1	9	97.0	50
Collingwood	12	0	10	111.2	48
Richmond	11	1	10	97.4	46
Brisbane Lions	10	0	12	98	40
Carlton	10	0	12	94.2	40
Essendon	8	0	14	81.7	32
Port Adelaide	7	0	15	95.9	28
Fremantle	6	0	12	93.7	24
West Coast	4	0	18	65.9	16
Melbourne	3	0	19	62.6	12

Senior List

Number	Name	Games	Goals
1	Simon Buckley	14	2
2	Nathan Jones	21	9
3	Clint Bartram	21	5
4	Ben Holland	2	4
5	Brock McLean	14	3
6	Matthew Bate	15	13
7	Brad Miller	19	26
8	James Frawley	11	0
9	David Neitz	5	3
10	Cale Morton	19	12
11	Paul Johnson	16	7
12	Colin Sylvia	18	16
13	Adem Yze	6	5
14	Lynden Dunn	16	6
15	Ricky Petterd	2	0
16	Jack Grimes	1	0
17	Chris Johnson	10	2
18	Brad Green	20	20
19	Addam Maric	5	2
20	Colin Garland	17	2
21	Daniel Bell	18	0
22	Brent Moloney	8	2
23	James McDonald	19	1
24	Russell Robertson	10	20
27	Jared Rivers	6	0
28	Isaac Weetra	2	0
29	Michael Newton	6	9
31	Paul Wheatley	19	2
32	Cameron Bruce	22	13
33	Stefan Martin	8	0
34	Jeff White	15	7
36	Aaron Davey	15	11
37	Matthew Warnock	17	0
40	Mark Jamar	14	4
41	Nathan Carroll	9	0
43	Jace Bode	5	0
45	Matthew Whelan	12	1

Rookie List

Number	Name	Games	Goals
35	Trent Zomer	0	0
39	Austin Wonaeamirri	18	24
42	Jake Spencer	0	0
44	Shane Valenti	9	3

Best and Fairest

After each round, the five members of the match committee rate the best players with a score out of four. There is no limit on the number of players who can receive votes. The maximum amount of votes a player can receive per round is 20.

	Player	Votes
1st	Cameron Bruce	75
2nd	Brock McLean	60
3rd	Brad Green	57
4th	Matthew Warnock	47
5th	James McDonald	46
6th	Brad Miller	40
6th	Cale Morton	40
8th	Clint Bartram	39
8th	Paul Wheatley	39
8th	Austin Wonaeamirri	39
10th	Matthew Bate	38
11th	Lynden Dunn	37
12th	Colin Garland	30
13th	Chris Johnson	25
14th	Paul Johnson	24
14th	Jeff White	24
16th	Matthew Whelan	23
17th	Nathan Jones	22
17th	Colin Sylvia	22
19th	Aaron Davey	20
20th	Daniel Bell	19
21st	Mark Jamar	18
22nd	Brent Moloney	16
23rd	Simon Buckley	14
24th	Stefan Martin	12
25th	Russell Robertson	10
26th	Jared Rivers	9
27th	Nathan Carroll	8
28th	James Frawley	6
28th	Addam Maric	6
28th	Adem Yze	6
31st	Ben Holland	5
31st	Shane Valenti	5
33rd	Michael Newton	4

Other awards
Norm Smith Memorial Trophy - Coaches Award - Matthew Warnock
Ian Ridley Club Ambassador Award - Clint Bartram
Ron Barassi Jnr Leadership Award - Brad Green
Troy Broadbridge Memorial Trophy - Adem Yze

Media
"Bruce wins Best and Fairest" - melbournefc.com.au 02/10/08

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