Jump to content

Featured Replies

Posted

Today’s game against North Melbourne is one of those make or break games for Melbourne. With both Max Gawn and Jack Viney out of the side, others will be expected to step up, be counted and show leadership all over the ground.

A couple of weeks ago the pundits were describing them as ā€œirrelevantā€ but aĀ win today could see the Demons in a position to proveĀ them wrong and remainingĀ in the mix to challenge the top sides as we move towards the business end of the seasonĀ 

Ā 

We take on the side that has beaten us 18 of the last 19 times. Their last four wins against us have been by 5 points, 4 points, 14 points and 5 points. They are missing a few, but so are we. Never has the expression "We owe this mob!" been more apt.

This is a game we simply must win. Win today and we can have 6 days off to prepare for a huge game against Collingwood that could see us get the W column ahead of the L column. Lose, and I'd say finals are beyond us.

I think Simon Goodwins coaching career will effectively be over by the end of this game.

We have a laughable record against Norf, who physically smash us every time we play.

Hoping Brayshaw gets the Viney role on-ball, as he is a much better player in the guts. Also hope that T-Mac rucks all day to allow Jackson to stay up forward. Seems to be developing something with Weed.

 

It'll be an interesting game. It will either prove or disprove those posters who think we need to let Viney go through free agency, while also potentially showing (or not) how important having a dominant ruck man is.

I think it will be close but I don't really see where their goals are going to come from, especially with May in suchĀ good form. Their smallsĀ and mids will really need to step up.

9 minutes ago, Mickey said:

IĀ think it will be close but I don't really see where their goals are going to come from, especially with May in suchĀ good form. Their smallsĀ and mids will really need to step up.

They found a way to score goals against Adelaide.


That 1/18 win/loss stat against, what has been, a mid table teamĀ for most of that time has been stuffing with my mind.

At least if we move to 1/19Ā todayĀ I can join the ā€˜this year doesn’t count’ crowd. I’ll thenĀ spend the next 8 months trying to work outĀ if there is any chance I could still be alive before we could hope to even the ledger.Ā 
Ā 

PS. CunningtonĀ normally bullies usĀ and then shows us how to play football. HeĀ is a huge out

Ā 

I think we will win this one.

Trac and Oliver to have a big night.

Weid and young Jackson also.

Ā 

Edited by leave it to deever

A few reasons to be excited about tonights game

-Ā  A win takes us to 5-5 and 9th on the ladder, leapfrogging Essendon and he Dogs who both have a garbage %

-Ā  We will beat North, who sadly owned us for 10+ years despite being crap themselves a lot of the time

- We will have a 2 game win streak and some confidence going into the Pies game with Gawn and Viney to return

-Ā  Luke Jackson, enough said

- Kozzie Pickett... should be fresh and ready to cause havoc.. would love to see a few goals

- Trent Rivers, best kick at the club

- Sam Weideman, will he continue to improve, take marks, crash packs

- Angus Brayshaw, finally playing a full game in his natural position on the ball

- The Petracca-Oliver combo

Ā 

Ā 

Lets win this by 40+.

Edited by Pickett2Jackson

Ā 

I have attended only one game of AFL football this season and it happens to have been the scratch match against North Melbourne back in February. We creamed them back then and even though it was virtually a seconds game with a few VFL players thrown in, I’m confident that we can beat them again this time.


35 minutes ago, Leopold Bloom said:

They found a way to score goals against Adelaide.

Yep, and it was their smalls and mids who did. 11 separate goal kickers.

Hopefully it's not a repeat of that game.Ā We're bad butĀ we're not Adelaide.

22 minutes ago, Mickey said:

Yep, and it was their smalls and mids who did. 11 separate goal kickers.

Hopefully it's not a repeat of that game.Ā We're bad butĀ we're not Adelaide.

North’s goalkickers likely.Ā 
Ā 

smalls - Anderson Zurhaar Hall

talls - Daw Larkey

but they always seem to beat us through their mids kicking goals. Higgins Polec Dumont Simpkin. Ā 
Ā 

Really have to stop Higgins. I’d give Harmes this assignmentĀ 

While I'm not overly enthused about team selection, I reckon we'll win.Ā  In fact, I'm going to put a modest amount of my no longer hard earned on the Dees.

Well ... we just have to win ,to stay in the main game and make something of our season. Looking at the latest membership figures gives a sense of urgency to finishing this season strongly. We need to make the finals at the very least to start undoing the damage of 2019 and our poor start to thisĀ  ****ty season.

Norf have had Richmond like grip on us for years and it's time to shake that off.Ā 

21 point winners

  • Author
40 minutes ago, Elwood 3184 said:

I have attended only one game of AFL football this season and it happens to have been the scratch match against North Melbourne back in February. We creamed them back then and even though it was virtually a seconds game with a few VFL players thrown in, I’m confident that we can beat them again this time.

Thanks for the reminder - it was my only AFL game this year too.Ā 

That’s good news for a few of today’s players. Jake Melksham and Angus Brayshaw were the standouts and Charlie Spargo was good both up forward and in the middle. Kozzie Pickett was exciting and Trent Rivers and Tom Sparrow showed out.Ā 

Rhyce Shaw was experimenting with a crazy game plan that involved moving the ball any way but forward and our kicking for goal was pathetic. We need to be on target tonight.

Ā 

How on earth can goodwin justify picking Tmac certainly not on form.Everyone forgets he was an ordinary chb ,had lucky few games as a forward but since then is back to being ordinary(very) over weight and slow


30 minutes ago, Whispering_Jack said:

Thanks for the reminder - it was my only AFL game this year too.Ā 

That’s good news for a few of today’s players. Jake Melksham and Angus Brayshaw were the standouts and Charlie Spargo was good both up forward and in the middle. Kozzie Pickett was exciting and Trent Rivers and Tom Sparrow showed out.Ā 

Rhyce Shaw was experimenting with a crazy game plan that involved moving the ball any way but forward and our kicking for goal was pathetic. We need to be on target tonight.

Ā 

Thanks for reminding me that I went to Arden St that day too. If we lose 2day, then North really do own us.

15 minutes ago, forever demons said:

How on earth can goodwin justify picking Tmac certainly not on form.Everyone forgets he was an ordinary chb ,had lucky few games as a forward but since then is back to being ordinary(very) over weight and slow

So it’s TMac’s big test today. He’s good enough to prove the doubters wrong.

I hope its Tomlinson that helps TMac in the ruck rather than Jacko.Ā 

Jacko doesn't yet have the body nor the strength to go up against Goldstein or Majak.Ā  And I recall a coach saying something like you don't put a thoroughbred in the ruck, which to me is what is.Ā  It may have Roos about Goodes after he did his knee playing in the ruck.

And the Tomlinson and TMac ruck pair allows Jacko to stay fwd and develop his relationship with Weideman and other fwds.Ā 

Am rapt we have stopped playing Weideman in different positions and allowing him to settle into FF.Ā  If the coaches let him he will own that spot for the next decade.

Just hope the umpires are on the looking out for the brutal off the ball tactics North use.

Nonetheless, I'm confident we will win.

Just saw the match preview article on nfc website:

McDonald has been in stellar form in the defensive half, could a return to a tagging role he was so successful in earlier in the year be on the cards?Ā 
McDonald shut down Dustin Martin and Marcus Bontempelli among several big-bodied midfielders, so Oliver could be the perfect matchup.Oliver was brilliant in the Demons’ win over Adelaide, racking up 34 disposals, 11 clearances and six tackles, so North will no doubt be looking to quell his impact.

Oliver is in for a tough day.Ā  We will need VdB to ride shotgun for him!

I reckon we will play one good half and that will enough to win by 52 points.Ā 


What we do in the ruckĀ will go aĀ long way in deciding this game.

Looks like TMac will playĀ there and supposedly drop back to fill the hole down back, effectively playing Max’s role to a Tee.

Jacko/Dogga will probably give him a chop out.

Edited by DeeZee

Whilst I personally would have played Preuss against Goldy they are clearly backing in LJ and TMac from aĀ mobility POV over Preuss from a strength POV. LJ is smart enough as he showed against OBrien whenĀ ruckingĀ to not get in a body on body but I worry that North will target him physically at every opportunity. Viney out will allow us to get our best midfield dynamic together with Brayshaw more in the pivot to build on his second half. I also hope that Harmes goes to Higgins in a hard tag whether that be midfield or half forward. Hoping that Oliver (full game) and Brayshaw (second half) build back into their 2018 form, May and Lever continue their improvement together and that Kozzie, SpargoĀ and Rivers bring the youthful energy we will need off a 4 dayĀ break. Bring strong effort and good connection and the result will look after itself.Ā 

Does anyone have a comparison of the average age/games played of our team vs Norths?

I see we have three teenagers (Pickett, Rivers, Kozzie) and two guys who are barely out of their teens (Spargo, Sparrow).Ā Ā Ā  Curious how Norths team compares.

Ā 

North will win easily. Hope I am wrong.

16 minutes ago, Pickett2Jackson said:

Does anyone have a comparison of the average age/games played of our team vs Norths?

I see we have three teenagers (Pickett, Rivers, Kozzie) and two guys who are barely out of their teens (Spargo, Sparrow).Ā Ā Ā  Curious how Norths team compares.

Look at Footywire.com but the desktop not the mobile version.


Guest
This topic is now closed to further replies.

Featured Content

  • PREVIEW: Brisbane

    And just like that, we’re Narrm again. Even though the annual AFL Sir Doug Nicholls Round which commemorates the contributions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture to our game has been a welcome addition to our calendar for ten years, more lately it has been a portent of tough times ahead for we beleaguered Narrm supporters. Ever since the club broke through for its historic 2021 premiership, this has become a troubling time of the year for the club. For example, it all began when Melbourne rebranded itself as Narrm across the two rounds of the Sir Doug Nicholls Round to become the first club to adopt an Indigenous club name especially for the occasion. It won its first outing under the brand against lowly North Melbourne to go to 10 wins and no losses but not without a struggle or a major injury toĀ  star winger Ed Langdon who broke his ribs and missed several weeks. In the following week, still as Narrm, the team’s 17 game winning streak came to an end at the hands of the Dockers. That came along with more injuries, a plague that remained with them for the remainder of the season until, beset by injuries, the Dees were eliminated from the finals in straight sets. It was even worse last year, when Narrm inexplicably lowered its colours in Perth to the Waalit Marawar Eagles. Oh, the shame of it all! At least this year, if there is a corner to turn around, it has to be in the direction of something better. To that end, I produced a special pre-game chant in the local Narrm language - ā€œnam mi:wi winnamun katjil prolin ambi ngamar thamelin ambā€ which roughly translated is ā€œevery heart beats true for the red and the blue.ā€ >y belief is that if all of the Narrm faithful recite it long enough, then it might prove to be the only way to beat the Brisbane Lions at the Gabba on Sunday. The Lions are coming off a disappointing draw at Marvel Stadium against a North Melbourne team that lacks the ability and know how to win games (except when playing Melbourne). Brisbane are, however, a different kettle of fish at home and have very few positional weaknesses. They are a midfield powerhouse, strong in defence and have plenty of forward options, particularly their small and medium sized players, to kick a winning score this week after the sting of last week’s below par performance.

      • Thanks
      • Like
    • 2 replies
    Demonland
  • REPORT: Hawthorn

    There was a time during the current Melbourne cycle that goes back to before the premiership when the club was the toughest to beat in the fourth quarter. The Demons were not only hard to beat at any time but it was virtually impossible to get the better them when scores were close at three quarter time. It was only three or four years ago but they were fit, strong and resilient in body and mind. Sadly, those days are over. This has been the case since the club fell off its pedestal about 12 months ago after it beat Geelong and then lost to Carlton. In both instances, Melbourne put together strong, stirring final quarters, one that resulted in victory, the other, in defeat. Since then, the drop off has been dramatic to the point where it can neither pull off victory in close matches, nor can it even go down in defeatĀ  gallantly.

      • Clap
      • Thanks
      • Like
    • 0 replies
    Demonland
  • CASEY: Footscray

    At twenty-four minutes into the third term of the game between the Casey Demons and Footscray VFL at Whitten Oval, the visitors were coasting. They were winning all over the ground, had the ascendancy in the ruck battles and held a 26 point lead on a day perfect for football. What could go wrong? Everything. The Bulldogs moved into overdrive in the last five minutes of the term and booted three straight goals to reduce the margin to a highly retrievable eight points at the last break. Bouyed by that effort, their confidence was on a high level during the interval and they ran all over the despondent Demons and kicked another five goals to lead by a comfortable margin of four goals deep into the final term before Paddy Cross kicked a couple of too late goals for a despondent Casey. A testament to their lack of pressure in the latter stages of the game was the fact that Footscray’s last ten scoring shots were nine goals and one rushed behind. Things might have been different for the Demons who went into the game after last week’s bye with 12 AFL listed players. Blake Howes was held over for the AFL game but two others, Jack Billings and Taj Woewodin (not officially listed as injured) were also missing and they could have been handy at the end. Another mystery of the current VFL system.

      • Thanks
    • 0 replies
    Demonland
  • PREGAME: Brisbane

    The Demons head back out on the road in Round 10 when they travel to Queensland to take on the reigning Premiers and the top of the table Lions who look very formidable. Can the Dees cause a massive upset? Who comes in and who goes out?

      • Thanks
      • Like
    • 134 replies
    Demonland
  • PODCAST: Hawthorn

    The Demonland Podcast will air LIVE on Monday, 12th May @ 8:00pm. Join Binman, George & I as we dissect the Demons loss to the Hawks. 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. If you would like to leave us a voicemail please call 03 9016 3666 and don't worry no body answers so you don't have to talk to a human.

      • Clap
      • Thanks
      • Like
    • 52 replies
    Demonland
  • POSTGAME: Hawthorn

    Wayward kicking for goal, dump kicks inside 50 and some baffling umpiring all contributed to the Dees not getting out to an an early lead that may have impacted the result. At the end of the day the Demons were just not good enough and let the Hawks run away with their first win against the Demons in 7 years.

      • Clap
      • Love
      • Like
    • 375 replies
    Demonland