 He sustained injuries that kept him from appearing in another 52 games but he still played 272 out of a possible 324 games and was never omitted from the senior side when available.Towards the end of the 1986 season, as Flower completed his 14th season without playing in a final, the Melbourne Football Club placed newspaper advertisements requesting donations from the public to enable the club to recruit a high-profile player under the headline "Please give Robbie one last chance to play in a final".Despite raising less money than expected, Melbourne did reach the 1987 finals after a dramatic final round.