Match Preview and Team Selection - Round 1

[rolling fog 1,208]

Just now, Dr. Gonzo said:

Didn't Tyson play JLT vs Saints? Could be mistaken but I thought he did.

He played JLT 2 vs Saints.

Missed JLT 1 vs North due to calf

[Demon Dynasty 17,109]

1 hour ago, Demons11 said:

Players improve, give the kid a chance. 

I remember Jones in his first 5 years use to turn it over more than anyone. 

 

1 hour ago, faultydet said:

Ive been confused about this bloke in particular since his first game, and as much as I look for positives regarding development, I just cant see anything in Wagner. I don't understand his selection at all.

Wagner needs to step up to justify his spot over Frost unless of course we are choosing him for a specific role they prefer Wagner for in this match.  In general I feel we need more height down back now that t-Mac isn't in to assist in ruck (and see Max drop back at times) or drop back himself.  Would need to be a very strong argument for mine to be going with Wags over Frost (fitness aside) from here.

[Demon Dynasty 17,109]

34 minutes ago, goodwindees said:

Why is Tyson as emergency a surprise?  Many on here have said for some time that we won’t be a serious competitor until players with the limitations of Tyson’s disposal & one-sidedness and Bugg’s disposal, particularly goal conversion are seen as simply depth players. 

 

Stop talking sense goodwind.... It's doing my head in!

[Demons11 7,051]

5 minutes ago, Rusty Nails said:

 

Wagner needs to step up to justify his spot over Frost unless of course we are choosing him for a specific role they prefer Wagner for in this match.  In general I feel we need more height down back now that t-Mac isn't in to assist in ruck (and see Max drop back at times) or drop back himself.  Would need to be a very strong argument for mine to be going with Wags over Frost (fitness aside) from here.

I think Wagner showed more in the JLT, than what Frost did 

[Demon Dynasty 17,109]

19 minutes ago, ignition. said:

Reminds me of the start of last season where we lost games at the selection table.

Wagner is a liability. He misses tackles and turns it over too often.

I also question how we're going to curb the strength of Hawkins. I don't think O.Mc can take him, and Lever will be best when given more opportunity to leave his man to intercept. Frost over Wagner would have been a much better option.

Maynard over Brayshaw and Tyson is question. But so are the selections of Lewis and Vince. Those two need to be accountable for their actions and be placed under the microscope this year; I'm sick of their instant and free selection.

Frost over Wags to cover Tomahawk and run off him....every day of the week.  You have to have significant assets to handle Tom.  Frost has at least three he can bring provided he doesn't kill some of the good work off with the disposal / decision making. 

[Demon Dynasty 17,109]

14 minutes ago, the rolling fog said:

He played JLT 2 vs Saints.

Missed JLT 1 vs North due to calf

Another player brought back too early for a game that meant very little?  Just saying

[Dr. Gonzo 24,297]

16 minutes ago, the rolling fog said:

He played JLT 2 vs Saints.

Missed JLT 1 vs North due to calf

That's what I thought.

[Demon Dynasty 17,109]

6 minutes ago, Demons11 said:

I think Wagner showed more in the JLT, than what Frost did 

Fitness aside I'm more interested in what I see in the heat of AFL matches Demons and based on previous AFL performances I rate Frost a marginal rung or so above Wags when he's on (at this point).  Frost also has assets that Wagner doesn't have IMHO that he can impose on opponents as he improves and matures.  Height being an important one and something that we are lacking down back, especially vs tall forward line ups.

[rolling fog 1,208]

10 minutes ago, Rusty Nails said:

Another player brought back too early for a game that meant very little?  Just saying

You may be right, Rusty. But by all reports he tore the Casey practice match to shreds last weekend...

[Demon Dynasty 17,109]

9 minutes ago, the rolling fog said:

You may be right, Rusty. But by all reports he tore the Casey practice match to shreds last weekend...

Fair enough RF

[brendan 3,437]

Anyone questioning the selections only need to watch tonight’s game, need to be 100% fit ready to go, crows look tired in the last and the result shows it 

[Juicebox 628]

1 hour ago, Demons11 said:

So because he is on big money, he should be able to play every role in a team.

May as well take Gawns spot then 

I said “I’d expect him to be able to handle any forward in the comp”

Dont twist my words.

[deelete my account 1,194]

1 hour ago, ignition. said:

Reminds me of the start of last season where we lost games at the selection table.

Wagner is a liability. He misses tackles and turns it over too often.

I also question how we're going to curb the strength of Hawkins. I don't think O.Mc can take him, and Lever will be best when given more opportunity to leave his man to intercept. Frost over Wagner would have been a much better option.

Maynard over Brayshaw and Tyson is question. But so are the selections of Lewis and Vince. Those two need to be accountable for their actions and be placed under the microscope this year; I'm sick of their instant and free selection.

Maybe Frost is a more valuable team member while on the sidelines as a valuable season long back up like Pedo would've been if TMAC wasn't injured. Why risk a key position player in a half forward role that he probably hasn't been training for all summer? The game won't be won or lost there. We'll just have to rely on Lever/OMac to get it done. That's what they're payed for.

Edited March 23, 2018 by Doodle Dee

[Watts Jurrah Dunn? 735]

Pleased to see they've finally woken up to Tyson. 

Bit surprised by Brayshaw but he was poor in aflx and ordinary in jlt1. He just fumbled so much.

It's naive to think they were left out because they are not quite 100% when they are listed as emergencies, meaning they're ready to play if something goes wrong.

Suspect Wagner frees up Vince or Lewis to play midfield. Hopefully some of the stuff coaches must be seeing Wagner do at training starts appearing in games. I'm yet to see a single thing to suggest he's anything more than a neat VFL player. 

[deelete my account 1,194]

4 minutes ago, Watts Jurrah Dunn? said:

Pleased to see they've finally woken up to Tyson. 

Bit surprised by Brayshaw but he was poor in aflx and ordinary in jlt1. He just fumbled so much.

It's naive to think they were left out because they are not quite 100% when they are listed as emergencies, meaning they're ready to play if something goes wrong.

Suspect Wagner frees up Vince or Lewis to play midfield. Hopefully some of the stuff coaches must be seeing Wagner do at training starts appearing in games. I'm yet to see a single thing to suggest he's anything more than a neat VFL player. 

The MFC has always had a spot in it's 22 for a neat vfl player though  It looks as though injuries will continue that tradition.

Edited March 23, 2018 by Doodle Dee

[bing181 9,328]

1 hour ago, the rolling fog said:

You may be right, Rusty. But by all reports he tore the Casey practice match to shreds last weekend...

He's not right.

[demonmerv 92]

Leaving Tyson out is a strange decision. We lost games last year at the selection table. When they dropped frost. Salem and Watts late in the year at the same time  was when the rot set in. As I have said before I don't think we can play Fritsch and Hannan in the same team. Maynard is strong and in and under but he is not Tyson. Maybe brayshaw's teeth keep him out. I still think we will win but strongly believe Tyson should be playing. Missing Viney, Mcdonald andTyson is a lot of skill to cover.

[bing181 9,328]

Interesting the Tyson/Brayshaw omissions.

If we assume both are fit (even if slightly underdone), perhaps it says something about the mindset of the coaches, especially after shipping out Jack W. Playing well isn't enough, having ability isn't enough - it's about doing everything that you're capable of doing to get the most out of yourself. Are we seeing the bar for Tyson and Brayshaw set very high because that's what the coaching staff think they should be achieving? After all, they were both drafted pick 3 as gifted juniors.

[bing181 9,328]

2 minutes ago, demonmerv said:

When they dropped frost. Salem and Watts late in the year at the same time  was when the rot set in.

Rot setting in or not, it was the right decision. Frost himself admitted that his form was down, and you only have to see the work Salem has put in over the off-season to see that he realised he needed to do more. As for Watts, well we know what we know, and when he was dropped he deserved to be, he was playing like shite.

[dee-tox 4,835]

Apart from one scrubby goal, did not see Maynard do a thing in the JLT. Looked a long way away from being AFL standard.

Wagner has some decent attributes but makes too many mistakes.

Don't really like these ins. Prefer Bugg actually. Early in season the elite runners come to the fore.

[demonmerv 92]

7 minutes ago, bing181 said:

Rot setting in or not, it was the right decision. Frost himself admitted that his form was down, and you only have to see the work Salem has put in over the off-season to see that he realised he needed to do more. As for Watts, well we know what we know, and when he was dropped he deserved to be, he was playing like shite.

with due respect that is rubbish. Those three helped to get us where we were at the time. Simon Badloss panicked and dropped all three.  I was very confident when I seen the team last night. Tonight I still think we can win but am concerned with final selection.

[Dee Zephyr 19,268]

Goodwin stated he will field the fittest 22 and judging by all the training reports over the summer Bugg was labelled as the fittest player, yet he misses out. That’s probably more a case of being down the pecking order behind, Fritch, Hannan, ANB and Melksham. 

In regards to Brayshaw, is it as simple as his mouth/teeth issue the reason for naming him  as an emergency? Why not name him and if it’s still a problem on Sunday just withdraw him. 

Is Tyson really underdone? He’s had a full summer until the calf niggle, missed a couple of weeks and has played well in two consecutive weeks since. Lewis has played one quarter of football in the pre season. Maynard before Tyson is perplexing.

[McQueen 17,867]

I see this as a sign of significant progress.

No longer do we select a ‘best 22’ in general... we select a best 22 for the opposition on the weekend.

It’s a clear indicator of the depth now within the list and a constant reminder to players that you’re not an automatic inclusion.

The competitive nature of even getting a game is now becoming very evident to our list.

This, as supporters, is what we’ve been waiting a long while for.

Ego’s are out the door.

Team first.

[Lou C. Fur 1,009]

On 22/03/2018 at 7:14 AM, Demonland said:

AND IT STARTS AGAIN ... by The Oracle

Melbourne goes into the 2018 season full of the usual hope that fills up an coming teams that are starting to show maturity and it comes up against the perfect opponent to show its wares against in Sunday afternoon’s blockbuster at the MCG.

Aside from Richmond which by far exceeded everyone’s expectations in 2017 including its own, Geelong is a club that certainly surprised many with its third placed finish and a home and away record of 16 wins and 6 defeats that paved the way for a Preliminary Final appearance after beating the Swans in a Semi Final. They weren’t supposed to go that far but the Cats ended up a mere whisker away from a grand final and their fans are adamant that they could have gone all the way had they been given a chance.

But the Demons were the real coulda, woulda, shoulda team of the competition as they failed to put away some of the competition’s lowly sides and stumbled late when the opportunity was there to build on percentage lost in the last-round to Collingwood who had nothing to gain while Melbourne had everything to lose. The result was that they not only missed September action by a record 0.5 percentage but had to wait an agonising 24 hours to brood over their fate.

The team had a bad year with injury losing Jack Viney and others at the end and Max Gawn  and Jesse Hogan for half a season soon after the start but they had a place in the finals all but wrapped up halfway through the last quarter of the penultimate game of the season only to permit 45 minutes of game time to destroy the dream.

Along the way, there were a few missteps apart from the injury problems. The Demons were in the wars from day one with Bernie Vince reported in round 1 and Jordan Lewis copping three weeks and Jesse Hogan two in round 2 against Carlton. Clayton Oliver was involved in some uncomfortable on field incidents and then there was Tomas Bugg ...

In light of the above, the controversial cancellation of the pre season training camp and the PR fiasco that followed has the football world wondering whether the Demons are made of the right stuff to step into what is for them, the unfamiliar territory of finals football.

THE GAME

Melbourne v Geelong at the MCG on Sunday 26 March 2018 at 3.20pm

HEAD TO HEAD

Overall Melbourne 84 wins   Geelong 128 wins 2 draws
At MCG   Melbourne 51 wins Geelong 52 wins
The last five meetings   Melbourne 1 win Geelong 4 wins
The Coaches Goodwin 0 wins Scott 1 win    

MEDIA

TV -   Channel 7 and Fox Sports Live
RADIO - TBA

LAST TIME THEY MET Geelong 20.6.126 defeated Melbourne 13.19.97 at Etihad Stadium in Round 3, 2017

In what was a disastrous game for the Demons’ 2017 aspirations, Max Gawn tore his hamstring, the team dominated for much of the middle part of the game but bad kicking is bad football.

THE TEAMS

MELBOURNE  

B: Michael Hibberd, Jake Lever, Neville Jetta
HB: Jayden Hunt, Oscar McDonald, Nathan Jones
C: Bernie Vince, Jordan Lewis, Christian Salem
HF: Christian Petracca, Cam Pedersen, James Harmes
F: Bayley Fritsch, Jesse Hogan, Jeff Garlett
Foll: Max Gawn, Clayton Oliver, Alex Neal-Bullen
I/C: Jake Melksham, Mitch Hannan, Corey Maynard, Josh Wagner
Emg: Angus Brayshaw, Dom Tyson, Sam Frost, Tom Bugg

GEELONG

B: Jake Kolodjashnij, Harry Taylor, Zach Tuohy
HB: Mark Blicavs, Tom Stewart, Jed Bus
C: Cam Guthrie, Joel Selwood, Mitch Duncan
HF: Cory Gregson, Esava Ratugolea, James Parsons
F: Daniel Menzel, Tom Hawkins, Brendan Parfitt
R: Zac Smith, Gary Ablett, Sam Menegola
I/C:  Lachie Fogarty, Zac Guthrie, Tim Kelly, Mark O’Connor,

 

 

Emg: Charlie Constable, Jordan Cunico, Jordan Murdoch, Rhys Stanley

 

 

 Dees. Every reason to believe.

[Pates 9,660]

1 hour ago, dee-tox said:

Apart from one scrubby goal, did not see Maynard do a thing in the JLT. Looked a long way away from being AFL standard.

Wagner has some decent attributes but makes too many mistakes.

Don't really like these ins. Prefer Bugg actually. Early in season the elite runners come to the fore.

Totally agree, I can’t recall a single time where I thought Maynard was going to get a round 1 call up.