Jump to content

Players from unusual places

SidVicious
in Melbourne Demons

Featured Replies

Posted

Looking at players from unusual places:-

Contrasting youngsters hope they caught the eye of AFL scouts

These blokes sound like potential rookie draft prospects but another interesting aspect of the article is the reference to the recruitment of Andrew Leoncelli and the McDonalds in the mid 1990s from the amateurs -

James McDonald, Anthony's younger brother, joined Xavs before 1996. In the first round, he ran water for the under 19s. Then he had a few games in the Xavs' under 19s and half a dozen in the reserves.

He was elevated into the seniors only when key forward Nick Bourke was appointed playing-coach halfway through the season. McDonald went on to play in Xavs' 1996 premiership team and was taken by Melbourne in the draft. He's now the club captain.

  • Quote
    •  

    wonder if we were one of the clubs ??? youd have to think we were :)

  • Quote

    Despite the above examples, you don't generally see many players recruited out of the VAFA these days. I suppose it's because many of the ammos are fairly laid back in their attitude. Still, I've seen some terrific footy at amateur games I've attended and every once in a while I wonder why more players at that level don't make it to the elite AFL. Probably because most have prioritised their real professions and they simply don't have the time.

    On the subject of players from unusual places I would really like to see us revive our interest in the Irish experiment. I recently met an Irish gentleman who works in Canberra in the diplomatic area and he knew of Jim Stynes and mentioned there was a lot of interest over there in the Irish players in Australia. Given that we started this in the first place with Sean Wight, Phil Earley and Jimmy and Brian Stynes, surely it's time to bring out another player from over there?

  • Quote
    •  

    Archived

    This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

    Go to topic listing

    Featured Content

    • GAMEDAY: St. Kilda

      It's Game Day and there are only 5 games to go. Can the Demons find some consistency and form as they stagger towards the finish line of another uninspiring season?

      • 566 replies
      Demonland

    • PREVIEW: St. Kilda

      It seems like only yesterday that these two sides faced off against each other in the centre of the continent. It was when Melbourne was experiencing a rare period of success with five wins from its previous six matches including victories over both of last year’s grand finalists.  Well, it wasn’t yesterday but it was early last month and it remains etched clearly in the memory. The Saints were going through a slump and the predicted outcome of their encounter at TIO Traeger Park was a virtual no-brainer. A Melbourne victory and another step closer to a possible rise into finals contention. Something that was unthinkable after opening the season with five straight defeats.

      • 5 replies
      Demonland

    • REPORT: Carlton

      I am now certain that the decline in fortunes of the Melbourne Football Club from a premiership power with the potential for more success to come in the future, started when the team ran out for their Round 9 match up against Carlton last year. After knocking over the Cats in a fierce contest the week before, the Demons looked uninterested at the start of play and gave the Blues a six goal start. They recovered to almost snatch victory but lost narrowly with a score of 11.10.76 to 12.5.77. Yesterday, they revisited the scene and provided their fans with a similar display of ineptitude early in the proceedings. Their attitude at the start was poor, given that the game was so winnable. Unsurprisingly, the resulting score was almost identical to that of last year and for the fourth time in succession, the club has lost a game against Carlton despite having more scoring opportunities. 

      • 3 replies
      Demonland

    • CASEY: Carlton

      The Casey Demons smashed the Carlton Reserves off the park at Casey Fields on Sunday to retain a hold on an end of season wild card place. It was a comprehensive 108 point victory in which the home side was dominant and several of its players stood out but, in spite of the positivity of such a display, we need to place an asterisk over the outcome which saw a net 100 point advantage to the combined scores in the two contests between Demons and Blues over the weekend.

      • 0 replies
      Demonland

    • PREGAME: St. Kilda

      The Demons come face to face with St. Kilda for the second time this season for their return clash at Marvel Stadium on Sunday. Who comes in and who goes out?

        • Like
      • 310 replies
      Demonland

    • PODCAST: Carlton

      The Demonland Podcast will air LIVE on Tuesday, 22nd July @ 8:00pm. Join Binman & I as we dissect the Dees disappointing loss to Carlton at the MCG.
      Your questions and comments are a huge part of our podcast so please post anything you want to ask or say below and we'll give you a shout out on the show.
      Listen LIVE: https://demonland.com/

      • 40 replies
      Demonland
    View All