THE CINDERELLA MEN

[Demonland 66,977]

by Whispering Jack

There was a fleeting moment in mid June when the fairy tale seemed at long last to be turning into reality for the Melbourne Football Club. The difficult summer had begun with the Indian Ocean tsunami and the loss of a Demon son. The rest of it was a bit of a daze as the Melbourne family came to grips with the tragedy but with autumn, things turned for the better. By early winter, the future looked promising.

At least, that's how it seemed...

The Demons were sitting in second place on the ladder with a win/loss ratio of 9 to 12 after soundly beating the old enemy Collingwood on the Queens Birthday in front of one of the biggest crowds of the season. They loomed as a genuine premiership threat with wins over a number of fellow finals contenders including the ultimate premier in Sydney and the end of season ladder leader Adelaide along with big victories over Geelong and the Kangaroos at Manuka.

They had opened the season in style with a tasteful tribute to their fallen hero in the Troy Broadbridge Memorial Game against Essendon which they won by 46 points. They went from strength to strength until Cameron Bruce's injury and a rousing second half from St. Kilda saw them lose for the first time in round four but by mid season, the momentum was gathering despite some ominous signs in that loss and a poor showing against the lowly Hawks and an unexpected defeat in a home ground shoot-out with the Dockers. By the time they beat the Magpies in round twelve, the Demons were on a roll with four consecutive wins and a top of the ladder confrontation with the Eagles just five days away.

And then it struck. The West Coast game saw a tired Melbourne fall in the end by a mere 15 points - a reasonable result given that the Eagles had a full three days extra to prepare and the Demons were without their skipper David Neitz. After that however, the Dees went into freefall and by the end of round 19 they had fallen into a deep, dark hole of despair with seven losses in a row and a catastrophic drop to 11th place on the ladder. Cinderella's glass slipper was being packed away when Melbourne trailed Geelong by 34 points close to half time of their round 20 encounter at Skilled Stadium. That was when thoughts of that much anticipated fairy tale ending were suddenly and unexpectedly revived.

The Demons dug deep into the well that day and came back from the dead on two occasions to record their first win over the Cats at Skilled Stadium since 1988 in a one point thriller. The following week saw them come from behind again with the last four goals to secure the points against the Bulldogs and, in the final round of the season a bouncing goal from Russell Robertson saw them safely back in the finals. Unfortunately, by then injuries and emotion had taken their toll. The Demons were spent and they went out of the finals race without a whimper - eliminated in the first week of the business end for the second year in a row.

There has been a lot said and written about Melbourne's seven-match black hole in the latter half of the season. There will be a lot of soul searching about what happened and why. Was it the coaching, fitness, skills, leadership, hardness at the ball or lack thereof, the club's culture or some deep psychological reason that defies explanation? Whatever the case, there is little doubt that every aspect of the club is under scrutiny - including, of course, the team list.

One of last year's highlights was the advancement of the club's younger players. It was a fantastic achievement that the Demons managed to produce the first two place getters in the National Rising Star award in Jared Rivers and Aaron Davey. Brad Miller lifted several notches and started to gain recognition as one of the better centre half forwards in the competition and future young guns Brock McLean, Colin Sylvia and Daniel Bell all made their AFL debut.

This year things were different. Chris Johnson, in his second season at the club, was the only player new to the AFL scene and he played only a handful of games. Brent Moloney from Geelong was a gem of a recruit in the midfield while the only other newcomer to get an AFL game was ruckman Paul Johnson who had limited game time but covered himself in glory at Sandringham where he gathered a premiership medallion and won the JJ Liston Trophy for the competition's best and fairest. First year draftees Matthew Bate, Lynden Dunn and Michael Newton were the youngest, second youngest and fourth youngest players drafted in the entire AFL competition last year. From the outset, they were going to spend their initial season developing at Sandringham. The club is clearly mindful of the need to initiate players into the system slowly and deliberately rather than follow the example of Josh Fraser at Collingwood who wasn't expected to play a senior game in first season but ended up playing most of the year. Many observers blame this on his recent serious injury problems of recent times.

There was a dearth of big improvers at the club over 2005. Travis Johnstone and Russell Robertson were models of consistent, improved performance throughout the year. Brock McLean gained ground earlier in the year and Nathan Carroll came good with a rush late in the season. Two players who I had written off for their slow and lumbering performances in the 2004 Elimination Final - Alistair Nicholson and Ben Holland - surprised me with their form. I expected them both to make a minimal contribution to the cause this year. In fact, they were handy players for the club - especially when the chips were down. On the whole however, too many players failed to make the forward strides necessary to ensure that the club would progress further than last year.

One of the players whose form slipped was Jeff White but despite that he remains Melbourne's most important and influential player on my list. Although his output declined (as a result of many factors including the centre circle rule) in 2005, he retained the number 1 placing - a fact that might be regarded as indicative of the club's problems. When I listed him first in 2004 I made the comment that I was "sure that there will be very few who would disagree with my ranking of him as number one although I hope that circumstances allow him to have more ruck support in 2005." Unfortunately, that assistance failed to materialise in 2005 but nevertheless, it still remains a major talking point in any consideration of the Melbourne playing list.

Incidentally, as highly as I rate White, I don't consider him an "untouchable" in the trade talks for next week although the likelihood that he would be traded is remote. Such is the game these days that no player over the age of 23 at a club that has tasted so little success can avoid this tag (I'd even trade the fairy godmother if it could improve the list). But that's another story for another time...

As for the other rankings, I have no doubt that there will be fierce debate about them, so here goes my usual word of warning about these Player Ratings - they are the personal opinion of one individual and I would never expect everybody to agree with them. And here are my end of 2005 player ratings -

1 Jeff White [1 in 2004] - the story of Melbourne in 2004 when he rucked tirelessly throughout most of the season before running out of steam at the end. This year the All Australian ruckman found life a lot harder with the centre circle rule and the fact that, at 195 cm and 28 years of age, it was becoming more and more difficult to cope with the Everitts and the Coxes. Despite all that, he was steady without being prolific throughout the season both as a ruckman and in the midfield before he really showed his true capabilities in those last three home and away games. A kick in the head from Geelong's Stephen King in the Elimination saw him exit the main stage. In a way, that was the story of Melbourne in 2005.

[Number 34, Height 195cm, Weight 98kg, Date of Birth 19.02.77, Debut in AFL, 1995, From FREMANTLE (AFL), Games 2005 - 23, Total Games 207, Goals 2005 7, Total Goals 88]

2 Travis Johnstone [6] - it's been a long time coming but this gifted talent finally turned on the skills on a consistent basis from week to week and throughout whole games. He was the AFL's leading kick getter and the catalyst in many of the club's winning matches. To top it all off, he was also there plugging away when the team was losing, something that can't be said for everyone on the list.

[16, 186, 85, 17.07.80, 1998, DANDENONG U18, 22, 123,15, 94]

3 Russell Robertson [9] - returned to his 2003 form when he was club champion. This time however, his game went up a notch because his kicking, once the subject of great despair as well as derision among Demon fans, improved out of sight. Finished with a career high 73 goals for the season and won a few games off his own boot.

[24, 184, 90, 24.11.78, 1997, TASSIE U18, 23, 167, 73, 299]

4 Adem Yze [2] - opened the season in fine style but injuries curtailed him in the latter half of the season. He played in a forward pocket for most of the season and was not as prolific a ball winner as in previous seasons. Has managed to take his unbroken record of consecutive games played to over 200 and while most of them were pure quality, his game declined dramatically late in the season - probably under the weight of injury. Needs to come back refreshed and fit in 2006.

[13, 187, 87, 21.09.77, 1995, MURRAY U18, 23, 233, 41, 195]

5 Cameron Bruce [3] - polled eight Brownlow votes in the opening three rounds and was being dubbed as the "next James Hird". All that came crashing down when a tackle from Brent Guerra in the first thirty seconds took him out for several weeks. He never recovered the early season magic and injured his knee in the return match against St. Kilda. Came back in the elimination final but it was far too early.

[32, 190, 88, 30.09.79, 2000, MELBOURNE SUPP, 15, 122, 20, 152]

6 Brad Green [5] - I rated him below his 2004 season because he lacked the necessary consistency this year. When he was good, he was very good but he also had some quiet patches.

[18, 184, 85, 13.03.81, 2000, TASSIE U18, 21, 125, 28, 183]

7 David Neitz [4] - had a horror year and was plagued by a number of injuries, which prevented him from having his normal impact both as a forward and as the team's skipper. In his own interests, permit me to repeat what I said about him last year - "Perhaps, the time has come for Neita to consider giving away the captaincy in order to concentrate more on his own game?"

[9, 193, 100, 22.01.75, 1993, PARKMORE, 18, 265, 39, 534]

8 Nathan Brown [7] - struggled for consistency in 2005 but is a fearless competitor giving plenty of run and dash as usual. An important backman who likes to run through the lines and set up opportunities further afield. [25, 180, 81, 14.08.76, 1998, W. ADELAIDE (SA), 22, 118, 4, 30]

9 Brent Moloney [new] - Melbourne's big trade acquisition of the off-season is a player of considerable strength and talent. At 21 years of age, he showed great maturity as a hard nosed midfielder with a prodigious kick. He will be an asset to the club for many years to come.

[22, 181, 88, 28.01.84, 2003, GEELONG (AFL), 21, 44, 2, 8]

10 Matthew Whelan [8] - was outstanding early and then was sorely missed when injured and out for several weeks. On return he soon recaptured his skill and form with some real gutsy performances but seemed to be affected after his involvement in the Nathan Brown's season ending injury against Richmond. A cool and determined defender with plenty of talent.

[45, 180, 83, 13.11.79, 2000, W'VILLE-WT (SA), 16, 104, 1, 10]

11 Aaron Davey [16] - continued on from where he left off in his sensational debut season. His lightning quick pace, sure ball handling and strong defensive play was a highlight and he deserved the recognition he gained in his high placing in the club champion polling.

[36, 177, 72, 10.06.83, 2004, PORT MELBOURNE (VFL), 23, 42, 0, 58]

12 Brad Miller [13] - added aggression to his repertoire but possibly went a little overboard and earned the wrath of the umpires and the match review panel. Worked hard as a key forward and was invaluable on occasion when called upon to go back into defence to take some big forward scalps. Strong leadership potential.

[7, 192, 91, 06.07.83, 2002, MT. GRAVATT (Q), 18, 60, 6, 20]

13 James McDonald [12] - continued to play the role of the hard working unobtrusive midfielder who again didn't get enough credit for his efforts. However, he appeared to be carrying injuries and his effectiveness tapered off late in the season.

[23, 180, 78, 05.10.76, 1997, OLD XAVERIANS, 21, 153, 2, 39]

14 Paul Wheatley [15] - his career is starting to finally blossom after a low patch a couple of years ago. He has size and pace and is a prodigious kick and he is sure to have more responsibility in the backline as his career continues to develop.

[31, 189, 90, 12.04.81, 2000, PRESTON U18, 21, 92, 3, 26]

15 Brock McLean [19] - continued to show great maturity and was unaffected by the second year "jitters". A strong player who uses the ball well, McLean underlined his immense talent with nine Brownlow votes from three best on grounds and could have polled even better but for a nagging groin injury that hampered him in the second half of the season. Fourth in the National Bank Rising Star Award.

[5, 184, 85, 11.03.86, 2004, CALDER U18, 20, 29, 6, 11]

16 Alistair Nicholson [20] - injury curtailed his pre-season and he looked finished as an AFL footballer after some dreadful form in his early games. To his credit, he came back strongly to collect some notable scalps in Fevola and Tarrant as the team's tallest defender. He has convinced the coach but many others remain sceptical about his ability to hold down a key defensive position against all comers.

[8, 197, 102, 04.03.78, 1997, CLAREMONT (WA), 14, 110, 0, 3]

17 Jared Rivers [11] - came down to earth after a stellar 2004 when he was the winner of the National Bank Rising Star award. He still showed courage, skill and maturity but he had a few bad days and a broken wrist against the Dockers at Subiaco ruined his season.

[27, 192, 85, 18.10.84, 2003, N. ADELAIDE (SA), 14, 39, 0, 0]

18 Clint Bizzell [10] - the former "general" of the club's backline was at his best a few years ago when he occupied a key defensive position and took on much taller opponents on a weekly basis. He was disappointing in the latter part of the season as a floating defender and was dropped before the finals. On that basis, the decision to award him a three-year contract at the end of 2004 was not one of the club's best.

[188, 89, 28.06.76, 1996, GEELONG (AFL), 20, 153, 0, 79]

19 Daniel Bell [24] - advanced his career and is now on the verge of becoming a regular in the best 22. He is a player who seems to always get crunched but shows great courage in getting up and going on with it. A solid defender, Bell has plenty of pace and hardness and he might earn a midfield role in the next season or two.

[21, 186, 83, 13.04.85, 2004, GLENELG (SA), 13, 16, 0, 0]

20 Nathan Carroll [34] - surprised by emerging out of the doldrums in the VFL to put in some strong, courageous performances at full back deep into the season. Shows just what a new haircut and a bottle of peroxide can do for your image!

[41, 191, 91, 20.10.80, 2003, CLAREMONT (WA), 6, 17, 0, 0]

21 Mark Jamar [25] - was used sparingly by the Demons as back up ruckman but performed strongly at Sandringham. The club has patience bearing in mind the slow development of most big men and he is certain to gain more game time in 2006.

[40, 198, 98, 09.08.83, 2003, N. ADELAIDE (SA), 8, 20, 1, 3]

22 Ben Holland [31] - after a truly dreadful elimination final at the end of 2004, Holland picked himself up and worked his way back into the senior team. He showed a lot of endeavour and grit to show that he was more than a tall, marking option on the forward line who could pinch-hit as a ruckman. Despite that, his awkward lumbering style and average standard kicking still raises some question marks about his future.

[4, 198, 101, 10.05.77, 1996, RICHMOND (AFL) 17, 163, 18, 163]

23 Colin Sylvia [29] - injuries in his first two seasons at the club have hampered his development but, he showed on a number of occasions during the year that he is a prodigious talent. The pressure will be on him to produce in 2006.

[12, 184, 85, 08.11.85, 2004, BENDIGO U18, 16, 19, 8, 9]

24 Ryan Ferguson [32] - came back well after his 2004 season was ruined by a shoulder injury. Shows courage and coolness in defence but is competing against a number of players for a key backline position.

[35, 195, 87, 29.09.81, 2003, FRANKSTON (VFL), 19, 36, 3, 4]

25 Guy Rigoni [33] - despite his aging legs, Riggers effectively used his experience and football smarts to work his way back into the Demons' side after a hot and cold season and was an effective player coming off the bench and into the midfield late in the year.

[43, 181, 85, 17.07.74, 1998, MYRTLEFORD, 11, 107, 4, 35]

26 Shannon Motlop [new] - plucked out of the Northern Territory summer football competition as a list replacement for Troy Broadbridge, Motlop had no pre season and needed time to get himself right for the AFL after a gap of two or three years. In the circumstances, he adapted well although hampered by some nagging hamstring problems. Showed flashes of brilliance and will no doubt be better with a full pre season under his belt next year.

[44,182, 88, 18.08.78, 1999, N. ADELAIDE (SA), 7, 61, 5, 36]

27 Paul Johnson [new] - didn't set the world on fire in his debut season with Melbourne when he was used mainly as a relief ruckman for Jeff White. At VFL level, he won the JJ Liston Trophy and made great strides as a developing ruckman. Needs to work over summer to build up his strength and marking.

[11, 199, 106, 26.06.84, 2004, WEST COAST (AFL), 8, 9, 0, 0]

28 Simon Godfrey [30] - a hard nut who gives 100% effort every time he takes the field but his lack of skill, particularly in delivery of the football and decision making, and his failure to make significant improvement in these areas has severely limited his potential at AFL level.

[30, 184, 86, 18.10.80, 2000, MELBOURNE SUPP, 12, 72, 4, 12]

29 Chris Heffernan [17] - his form was inconsistent and an injury late in the season didn't help. Despite a fabulous finals series for Sandringham, looks to be on his way out.

[1, 186, 85, 29.01.79, 1997, ESSENDON (AFL), 9, 144, 1, 48]

30 Phil Read [18] - constantly broke down with a number of hamstring injuries during the year and failed to produce much in his rare appearances with the Demons.

[28, 180, 80, 20.10.79, 1998, WEST COAST (AFL), 8, 103, 3, 31]

31 Daniel Ward [21] - a shoulder injury during the pre season curtailed his year and Ward was restricted to a handful of games. With the younger brigade putting their hands up for opportunities in defence, he finished the year at Sandringham where he showed with a spectacular finals series that he still has something to offer.

[10, 185, 84, 09.07.77, 1998, FITZROY (SUPP.), 4, 101, 0, 25]

32 Steven Armstrong [26] - the talented young midfielder who was injured in the Bali bombing of October 2002 after an encouraging debut season has failed to step up to regular AFL status despite some good form in the VFL. His pace has always been suspect and it appears that he will continue his career elsewhere in 2006.

[2, 180, 81, 12.01.84, 2002, PERTH (WA), 6, 43, 2, 21]

33 Chris Johnson [39] - had his share of injuries in 2004 and worked hard to make his debut against the Hawks at the MCG. His debut game wasn't much to write home about - he was reported and narrowly missed suspension - but he made rapid improvement as the season went on and won himself a few more games. A definite prospect.

[17, 189, 79, 25.01.86, 2005, E. F'MANTLE (WA), 4, 4, 0, 0]

34 Luke Williams [37] - played a handful of games with Melbourne and spent the majority of the year at Sandringham. Unfortunately, seemed stuck in that intermediate world between VFL and AFL and his career at Melbourne was in doubt by the end of the year.

[26, 185, 85, 29.12.79, 1999, OAKLEIGH U18, 3, 51, 0, 10]

35 Matthew Bate [new] - showed great promise at Sandringham without settling the world on fire. Melbourne would be happy with his progress and his versatility. As a defender, he shut down Collingwood's Rusling and Geelong's N. Ablett but he was also used as an on baller and a forward.

[6, 191, 88, 24.05.87, *, EASTERN U18, 0, 0, 0, 0]

36 Nick Smith [35] - an injured wrist destroyed his pre season and kept him out of the game early. Then a knee injury wrecked almost all of what was left of the season. If he retains his spot on the list, Smith faces a make or break year in 2006.

[15, 196, 97, 27.08.84, 2003, NORWOOD (SA), 0, 3, 0, 0]

37 Matthew Warnock (rookie) [new] - drafted from Sandringham, Warnock is a tall, rangy defender who showed real improvement at the Trevor Barker Oval and played a vital full back role in the finals where he beat all comers including the VFL's leading goalkicker. Another strong season could see his promotion off the rookie list.

[37, 192, 88, 03.04.84, *, SANDRINGHAM (VFL) 0, 0, 0, 0]

38 Lynden Dunn [new] - tall and athletic, Dunn fluctuated between the interchange for Sandy seniors and the reserves. He was very good at the latter level (kicking 9 goals at FF and CHF in one game) but struggled for game time when promoted. As the objective of his year was development, I don't see that as being problematic at this stage of his career. More importantly, he has grown a few centimetres since being drafted and he has learned a lot by training with the Demons' squad.

[14, 192, 90, 14.05.87, *, CALDER U18, 0, 0, 0, 0]

39 Michael Newton [new] - injury impeded his progress and he never advanced beyond the Sandringham reserves where he showed out on occasion.

[29, 193, 88, 27.04.87, *, MURRAY U18, 0, 0, 0, 0]

40 Cameron Hunter [40] - went backwards in 2005 and played in just one final with the Zebra seniors. Almost certain to be traded or delisted.

[33, 186, 71, 30.03.84, 2003, CALDER U18, 0, 2, 0, 0]

41 Brendan Van Schaik (rookie) [new] - the young beanpole rookie had one senior game with the Zebras down in Tassie early in the season and impressed with his ruckwork. Injuries prevented him from playing much of a role and, being a big man, is still in the early phase of his football development.

[38, 203, 98, 02.07.86, *, MURRAY U18, 0, 0, 0, 0] * yet to make his AFL debut

FOOTNOTE: When I look back at the list of rankings and compare it with what might be a similar list at the top four clubs, the one thing that stands out clearly to me is that Melbourne needs more tough, hard players - particularly midfielders - to step into the top ten rankings at the club. Some of that talent is already there but still in the development phase - players like Moloney, McLean, Sylvia, Bell and Bate. Perhaps a few more players of this ilk gained through the trades and the draft might bring the elusive fairy tale a few steps closer to reality in the near future.