WHO GIVES A PETRACCA? by Whispering Jack

[Demonland 70,251]

Melbourne's last home game for yet another dismal season could not have been played at a more suitable time for the game it promises to be, nor against a more appropriate opponent.

It happens at the end of a week during which the game itself has been on trial, when the competition has been exposed in a court as having questionable scruples and considering itself in many ways above the law. This is a competition which favours the strong and gives lip service to helping its weak by doing it favours like giving out meagre compensation to those who are drawn to play at times that are unattractive, making it difficult for them to gather the crowds from which they can draw their life blood.

And so it happens that this game which is so important to the clubs, perversely because it will determine how low they will finish and therefore decide the only thing that remains important to them at this time of the season (and how high in draft order), will be played out at the MCG in front of a small crowd in the late afternoon/early evening out of the gaze of a football world that doesn't really care and will shun the game in favour of other potentially more exciting things to watch on their television sets on a late winter's afternoon. Like the test pattern.

Does this game therefore even merit a preview?

Most likely not because if you take a look at the size of GWS Giants' injury list, with so many of its players out for the remainder of the season, you get the feeling that they might barely muster up a squad to make the flight down to Tullamarine for the game. The last time I saw an injury list so extensive was that of Melbourne circa 2009 and we all know how that ended up.

The wags are describing the game as the "Petracca Cup" in honour of the upcoming draft's flavour of the month and the word is that he's the man most wanted by the Giants whose ladder position stunningly dropped below that of Melbourne last week despite the fact that the Dees suffered a 50-point defeat. Now, if they could achieve that in a home game, it's going to be mighty hard not to lose to them on your own dung heap.

That is not to say that the Demons at home and in front of a small but strongly partisan crowd will definitely have their own way in this affair. They demonstrated a fortnight ago how limited their appetite and capacity was for playing attacking football when they had another lowly opponent in Brisbane at their mercy early in the final quarter. Coach Paul Roos was quoted in this weeks Inside Football that the defensive mindset that enveloped his team in the final term of the loss to Brisbane wasn't a direction from the coach's box, but was player driven but surely thats been their focus for most of the year?

And that's why they could easily lose this time against football's babes if they decide to play sloppy pedestrian football in the super defensive style that has marked a team that struggles regularly to kick ten goals in two hours of football.

THE GAME

Melbourne v GWS Giants at the MCG Sunday 17 August, 2014 at 3.20pm

HEAD TO HEAD

Overall Melbourne 3 wins GWS Giants 2 wins

At the MCG Melbourne 2 wins GWS Giants 0 wins

Past five years Melbourne 3 wins GWS Giants 2 wins

The Coaches Roos 0 wins Cameron 1 win

MEDIA

TV Fox Sports Channel 3 at 3.00pm (live)

RADIO - SEN ABC ABC Grandstand

THE BETTING

Melbourne to win - $1.48 GWS Giants to win - $2.65

THE LAST TIME THEY MET

GWS Giants 10.19.79 defeated Melbourne 7.5.47 at Spotless Stadium Round 3, 2014

Bereft of any key forwards and light on for ruck power against a keen opposition in difficult conditions, Melbourne got to within a point early in the final quarter and then simply gave up the ghost against a team inspired by the dominance of Shane Mumford.

THE TEAMS

MELBOURNE

B: Neville Jetta, Tom McDonald, Colin Garland

HB: Jeremy Howe, Lynden Dunn, Jack Grimes

C: Bernie Vince, Jack Watts, Daniel Cross

HF: Viv Michie, James Frawley, Jack Viney

F: Dean Kent, Chris Dawes, Max Gawn

FOLL: Mark Jamar, Nathan Jones, Dom Tyson

I/C: Dom Barry, Matt Jones, Aidan Riley, Christian Salem

EMG: Rohan Bail, Jack Fitzpatrick, Jordie McKenzie

IN: Jack Grimes, Christian Salem

OUT: Rohan Bail, Jay Kennedy-Harris (both omitted)

GWS GIANTS

B: Adam Kennedy, Lachie Plowman, Heath Shaw

HB: Jono O'Rourke, Phil Davis, Matt Buntine

C: Devon Smith, Adam Treloar, Toby Greene

HF: Rhys Palmer, Adam Tomlinson, Will Hoskin-Elliott

F: Joshua Kelly, Jonathon Patton, Tom Boyd

FOLL: Shane Mumford, Callan Ward, Dylan Shiel

I/C: Tomas Bugg, James Stewart, Mark Whiley, Nathan Wilson

EMG: Jon Giles, Tim Golds, Zac Williams

IN: James Stewart, Mark Whiley, Nathan Wilson

OUT: Tim Golds, Jed Lamb, Zac Williams (all omitted)

NEW: James Stewart (Sandringham U18), Mark Whiley (Finley)

If anyone believes that I'm suggesting that Melbourne is even remotely considering tanking they should think again. While the "Petracca Cup" might be how most of the football world perceives a game such as this, where the teams are essentially playing off for 16th spot, Melbourne certainly cannot afford to lose a game that would be its seventh defeat on the way to nine losses in a row to end its first season under coach Roos.

A win means a lot more to a club which needs to retain membership numbers and hope for the future after eight barren seasons without seeing finals action. Their opposition continues to be propped up by its AFL creator and benefactor and can therefore survive on home crowds of six to seven thousand and little local support but the Demons know that, unless they begin to show significant on field improvement, they will remain on the precipice.

Moreover, the draft experts keep saying that there are a number of different candidates for the top four or five draft picks so if it comes down to pick 2 or 3 then it means only that there are some minor strategic differences between success or failure in this game.

The common measure among conspiracy theorists on whether a team is "tanking" or not is the number of players for who stumps have been pulled up early and have undergone season ending surgery. While the Giants qualify under this scenario, with almost half their players missing from their round three win over the club, the opposite applies with the Demons who actually have players returning to the ranks.

Back in round three, the game was dominated and won by the Giants after three close quarters, by a single player in the guise of Shane Mumford who was simply outstanding with 60 hit outs and who thereby set up numerous attacking moves with his outstanding work around the ground and at the stoppages. The Demons have Mark Jamar and Max Gawn working the ruck this time and whilst one simply mustn't underestimate the work of Mumford for the Giants they now have the opportunity to be at least competitive in an area where they were not when they met earlier in the season.

Gawn's major role is expected to be up forward where he will also be partnered by Chris Dawes who is due for a day out after a few quiet weeks. James Frawley will also no doubt play in attack as well. The last time they met he was there for the first time and was the only key in a very undersized, undermanned and dysfunctional attack.

If Roos maintains that his team's recent over the top negativity was player driven and not coach driven then surely, against a lesser side like GWS, his charges will have faith in the players he has selected up forward and they will take the game on to go forward the direct way enough times to kick a winning score?

The Giants' other advantage when they met at Spotless Stadium earlier in the season was its young, fit, running midfield which is now showing signs of fatigue after a long season. They have plenty of their guns now missing and with two newcomers on the field on Sunday, they cannot be expected to perform in front of what will be a small but hostile pro Melbourne crowd willing their players home.

And if they lose the right to Petracca, then so be it. Over the past decade, they have acquired enough first round draft picks for then to be entirely justified in asking, "who gives a Petracca?"

[CBDees 3,165]

A game where a successful tank will be all but nigh impossible. On this basis, [since we forego Petracca], then let's hope that we can follow it up with commanding wins over the Eagles in the West and North at Etihad, with Hogan kicking a bag in the last game of the season.

The above is adopting a "glass half-full" philosophy!

[monoccular 17,314]

I am sure that the AFL and the commentariat will be looking for anything to distract the football world's attention away from one of their "power clubs' travails.

What better could there be than another show trial of MFC for tanking?

Therefore I suspect that the AFL will give instructions to <we all know which threesome regaled in fluro green, yellow or red> to ensure that MFC do not win, enabling them to get on with another distraction.

(Is it being paranoid to say that when the whole world really IS against you?)