Jump to content

CHANGES: Rd 15 vs Essendon

titan_uranus
titan_uranus
in Melbourne Demons

Featured Replies

22 hours ago, Jaded said:

Agreed. We are not a bottom 4 side experimenting during a rebuild for goodness sake.

A PREMIERSHIP is at stake. We won't make any structural changes to the side unless forced to due to injury. It is like for like changes only. Hence if Weideman is out, we either bring in one of the Browns, or revert back to a smaller mobile forwardline like we had in the first 6 rounds. 

AbsolutelyJaded .  The above.

We HAVE a Premiership defence  and defensive strategy (such as langdon running back to help out) now. 

Alter at our peril.

    • Like 2
     
     
    25 minutes ago, binman said:

    Will Captain Jack be replaced by Vice Captain Jack?

    Let’s hope so

    The more I think about this game the more I think it needs to be a “statement”. I feel like every contender apart from us have shown the competition what happens when it ALL clicks and how devastating they can be. That’s not to say we haven’t had great wins but I’m talking beating a team into submission and after losing to the pies the players should be seething (and I’d be worries if they weren’t). 

    Looking forward to seeing Jack back in the team, he adds an aggression and hunger that few can match. 

    • Like 4

    1 hour ago, Pates said:

    The more I think about this game the more I think it needs to be a “statement”. I feel like every contender apart from us have shown the competition what happens when it ALL clicks and how devastating they can be. That’s not to say we haven’t had great wins but I’m talking beating a team into submission and after losing to the pies the players should be seething (and I’d be worries if they weren’t). 

    Looking forward to seeing Jack back in the team, he adds an aggression and hunger that few can match. 

    Yep, I'd love to see a wire to wire top shelf performance.

    One where we are on, bombers play well and stay in striking distance to say 3/4 time. 

    And we keep going and win by 6 plus goals. 

    • Like 1

    Big danger game this. 

    Don't have much confidence at all if I'm honest. 

    They have a lot of X-Factors that we need to keep quiet

    • Like 2

    I presume that May will play on Hooker, Hibbo on Stringer?

    Hopefully Jack comes back this week. He would have been a welcome inclusion v the filth.

    I presume that Sparrow will be dropped and Melksham will come into the side.

    It goes without saying that Weid will be dropped and BBB will come in. (I did say it though.)

     
    6 minutes ago, bingers said:

    I presume that May will play on Hooker, Hibbo on Stringer?

    Hopefully Jack comes back this week. He would have been a welcome inclusion v the filth.

    I presume that Sparrow will be dropped and Melksham will come into the side.

    It goes without saying that Weid will be dropped and BBB will come in. (I did say it though.)

    Stringer played a lot of midfield minutes against Hawthorn. I hope he does the same against us. We may be able to revisit the Jack Viney Made Me Cry thread.

    Viney in for Sparrow

    a Brown in for Weed (which ever one is in better form and is fit)

    The weed is so down on confidence and we are not kicking it to him anyway, so he needs to go back


    I’m hoping that the B Brown mid-season/pre-season story is true, as it helps explain the continued selection of Weideman and Brown’s absence from even being an emergency. 
     

    If there is truth to that, then I’m definitely hoping to see B Brown in and confident he can provide a genuine target. Given Viney has the all clear, he comes in for Sparrow. That equals a strong team. 

    While we are all hoping to see the Dees smash an opposition team, especially those lower on the ladder, I think the reason we haven’t is we actually play a higher risk/reward game style against the top teams. Basically, watching the Collingwood game, we were waiting for their errors, but not taking any risks with ball in hand. One of the commentators noted we were playing on from a mark 7% of the time, and the Pies 37%. We have found ourselves behind in plenty of games against teams outside the 8 because we don’t take as many risks with the ball and back ourselves in. Think about the incredible chains of handball against the Tigers - we saw nothing like that against the Pies. In many other games against bottom clubs our superior fitness and pressure has prevailed. Against the top teams though we look a different side, a genuine contender. 

    This game is once again a test of the demons mindset, of our courage - the willingness to attack from the first bounce - not wait for mistakes. 
     

    Every time a question has been asked we have been emphatic in our response. I’m completely mystified by what will happen Saturday, but I’m more confident than I was 15 mins into the game against the Pies.

    Go Dees!! 

     

    Edited by Wylie

    • Like 1

    Viney for Harmes, under the having a fair crack section, Sparrow had a good game and a merde un, 3rd lets the coaches see where he is at.

    From what I recall, if Harmes has a poor run, it doesn't break until after a reset. I was very confused by his average returns on QB.

    Weid for BBB like everyone else is saying.

    I loathe the Bombers, and would love to see Stringer monstered in a Viney tackle. I think the bombers are sort of like us a few years ago, and they do have some skill. But we are next level, I also think their defence will be opened up by Kozzie.

    7 hours ago, bingers said:

    I presume that May will play on Hooker, Hibbo on Stringer?

    Hopefully Jack comes back this week. He would have been a welcome inclusion v the filth.

    I presume that Sparrow will be dropped and Melksham will come into the side.

    It goes without saying that Weid will be dropped and BBB will come in. (I did say it though.)

    Why will Melksham come in ?

    Viney  Will and BBB and Weid and ??? Will be dropped. 

    If Jv comes in it will be Sparrow out.

    Will the club bite the bullet and drop Weideman is the big one?

    Will it go back to Melksham or roll the dice with one of the Browns?

    This will be an interesting selection.

    Im hoping its Bbb and he comes in and does what he used to....kick bags of goals on a reguliar basis for the rest of the season.

    If he recaptures his form then I will much more confident about winning a flag.

    We can still win games without him but it certainly would make a difference having a third tall that can hit the scoreboard and hold marks.

    Come on Bbb.

    • Like 2

    Ben Brown kicked a bag of four goals against Essendon in his 9th AFL game, from six marks. For good measure, he followed up with another bag of four from six marks against Essendon in his second AFL season. 

    After his 49th AFL match, Sam Weideman has yet to kick a bag of four, and hasn't taken more than five marks in his past sixteen appearances - some of those considered the best games of his career. (Brown took six against Sydney).  

    Ben Brown averages 2.9 goals (and 4.2 scores) against the Dons and six marks per match, 3.2 of those marks taken inside50. Sam Weideman averages 0.6 goals/scores and 0.3 marks inside50 vs. the same team.  

    These are of course selective stats, but one of these blokes is a proven consistent performer at top level (and let's not forget BB only entered the AFL two years before Sam). I'd rather it was him in the team building fitness and form. 

    • Like 4

    15 hours ago, Pates said:

    The more I think about this game the more I think it needs to be a “statement”. I feel like every contender apart from us have shown the competition what happens when it ALL clicks and how devastating they can be. That’s not to say we haven’t had great wins but I’m talking beating a team into submission and after losing to the pies the players should be seething (and I’d be worries if they weren’t). 

    Looking forward to seeing Jack back in the team, he adds an aggression and hunger that few can match. 

    Jack is the epitome of a contagion to play with mongrel across the team. Bring him in - fast! 

    21 minutes ago, Skuit said:

    Ben Brown kicked a bag of four goals against Essendon in his 9th AFL game, from six marks. For good measure, he followed up with another bag of four from six marks against Essendon in his second AFL season. 

    After his 49th AFL match, Sam Weideman has yet to kick a bag of four, and hasn't taken more than five marks in his past sixteen appearances - some of those considered the best games of his career. (Brown took six against Sydney).  

    Ben Brown averages 2.9 goals (and 4.2 scores) against the Dons and six marks per match, 3.2 of those marks taken inside50. Sam Weideman averages 0.6 goals/scores and 0.3 marks inside50 vs. the same team.  

    These are of course selective stats, but one of these blokes is a proven consistent performer at top level (and let's not forget BB only entered the AFL two years before Sam). I'd rather it was him in the team building fitness and form. 

    Convincing and thought provoking - I like the idea of '...building fitness and form...' within the team. He's smart - it comes out in his best games so far - it also is a sign of adaptability and with his footballing experience, such adaptation to the 'new' Dees cannot take long. We just need him fit and in position to turn the tap on, not at a dribble, either.

    On 6/18/2021 at 12:36 PM, Roost it far said:

    Out: Petty

    In: Melksham 

    Weideman moves to the backline, our forward line works better without BBB and Weideman. 

    Yeah that makes sense. Seriously?

    If you really had to do that you would try Weid in the backline at Casey. He doesn't deserve a spot in the side at the moment.

    • Like 2
    On 6/18/2021 at 4:48 PM, demon3165 said:

    And how many clubs has he played for? So let's not get excited about him.

    Mitch Brown has played at 3 clubs, 1 less than Martin Pike who played at 4 clubs and won 4 flags.

    Your point was?

     

    6 hours ago, DEE fence said:

    Viney for Harmes, under the having a fair crack section, Sparrow had a good game and a merde un, 3rd lets the coaches see where he is at.

    From what I recall, if Harmes has a poor run, it doesn't break until after a reset. I was very confused by his average returns on QB.

    Weid for BBB like everyone else is saying.

    I loathe the Bombers, and would love to see Stringer monstered in a Viney tackle. I think the bombers are sort of like us a few years ago, and they do have some skill. But we are next level, I also think their defence will be opened up by Kozzie.

    Harmes is going nowhere - meaning he is not making way for anyone atm

    He will be tagging Parish 

    • Like 1

    I still favour Weideman over Ben Brown but potentially neither are in our best side. That said, Weideman has been disappointing in the last three weeks. If he is going to get such few chances, he needs to convert in front of goal at 70%+. To be fair though, the games have been on smaller grounds meaning he has not had many one-on-one chances and he has had strong direct opponents the last two weeks in Harris-Andrews and Moore.

    I am just not convinced Ben Brown fits alongside our resting ruck. With Jackson in the side and Gawn's endurance, I think Gawn needs to be able to play as a forward for 20-30% of the game. (There are times we benefit from Jackson's energy around the ball.) And our pressure is non-existent with Brown and Gawn in the forward line.

    Viney comes in for Sparrow for mine. Sparrow was excellent against the Lions but just gets caught holding the ball too often.

    Melksham for Weideman would be the other change worth considering but only if we want to make a structural change. That said, Weideman would be expected to perform better on the MCG against a lesser defender.

    • Like 1

    Agree that a “Brown” must come in to replace the Weid. Harsh but fair given he can’t stick his marking and offers little else. 

     

    AFL contested mark ladder 2021:

    Max Gawn (Melbourne) 38

    Aaron Naughton (Western Bulldogs) 35

    Harry McKay (Carlton) 35

    Charlie Dixon (Port Adelaide) 34

    Oscar Allen (West Coast) 28

    Taylor Walker (Adelaide) 27

    Aliir Aliir (Port Adelaide) 27

    Harris Andrews (Brisbane Lions) 27

    Jake Lever (Melbourne) 26

    Jack Darling (West Coast) 26

    https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/melbourne-man-mountain-gawn-rising-to-new-heights-in-demons-boom-season-20210621-p582z0.html

    • Like 2
    • Thanks 1
    3 minutes ago, binman said:

    AFL contested mark ladder 2021:

    Max Gawn (Melbourne) 38

    Aaron Naughton (Western Bulldogs) 35

    Harry McKay (Carlton) 35

    Charlie Dixon (Port Adelaide) 34

    Oscar Allen (West Coast) 28

    Taylor Walker (Adelaide) 27

    Aliir Aliir (Port Adelaide) 27

    Harris Andrews (Brisbane Lions) 27

    Jake Lever (Melbourne) 26

    Jack Darling (West Coast) 26

    https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/melbourne-man-mountain-gawn-rising-to-new-heights-in-demons-boom-season-20210621-p582z0.html

    Nevermind BBB or Weed

    Let's just play Max at FF and let Jacko ruck 75%+ of the game lol 

    • Like 5

    Guest
    This topic is now closed to further replies.
    Go to topic listing

    Featured Content

    • PREVIEW: Essendon

      As the focus of the AFL moves exclusively to South Australia for Gather Round, the question is raised as to what are we going to get from the  Melbourne Football Club this weekend? Will it be a repeat of the slop fest of the last three weeks that have seen the team score a measly 174 points and concede 310 or will a return to the City of Churches and the scene where they performed at their best in 2024 act as a wakeup call and bring them out of their early season reverie?  Or will the sleepy Dees treat their fans to a reenactment of their lazy effort from the first Gather Round of two years ago when they allowed the Bombers to trample all over them on a soggy and wet Adelaide Oval? The two examples from above tell us how fickle form can be in football. Last year, a committed group of players turned up in Adelaide with a businesslike mindset. They had a plan, went in confidently and hard for the football and kicked winning scores against both home teams in a difficult environment for visitors. And they repeated that sort of effort later in the season when they played Essendon at the MCG.

      • 0 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • PREGAME: Essendon

      Facing the very real and daunting prospect of starting the season with five straight losses, the Demons head to South Australia for the annual Gather Round, where they’ll take on the Bombers in search of their first win of the year. Who comes in, and who comes out?

        • Clap
      • 489 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • NON-MFC: Round 05

      Gather Round is here, kicking off with a Thursday night blockbuster as Adelaide faces Geelong. The Crows will be out for redemption after a controversial loss last week. Saturday starts with the Magpies taking on the Swans. Collingwood will be eager to cement their spot in the top eight, while Sydney is hot on their heels. In the Barossa Valley, two rising sides go head-to-head in a fascinating battle to prove they're the real deal. Later, Carlton and West Coast face off at Adelaide Oval, both desperate to notch their first win of the season. The action then shifts to Norwood, where the undefeated Lions will aim to keep their streak alive against the Bulldogs. Sunday’s games begin in the Barossa with Richmond up against Fremantle. In Norwood, the Saints will be looking to take a scalp when they come up against the Giants. The round concludes with a fiery rematch of last year's semi-final, as the Hawks seek revenge for their narrow loss to Port Adelaide. Who are you tipping this week and what are the best results for the Demons besides us winning?

        • Like
      • 179 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • CASEY: Geelong

      There was a time in the second quarter of the game at the Cattery on Friday afternoon when the Casey Demons threatened to take the game apart against the Cats. The Demons had been well on top early but were struggling to convert their ascendancy over the ground until Tom Fullarton’s burst of three goals in the space of eight minutes on the way to a five goal haul and his best game for the club since arriving from Brisbane at the end of 2023. He was leading, marking and otherwise giving his opponents a merry dance as Casey grabbed a three goal lead in the blink of an eye. Fullarton has now kicked ten goals in Casey’s three matches and, with Melbourne’s forward conversion woes, he is definitely in with a chance to get his first game with the club in next week’s Gather Round in Adelaide. Despite the tall forward’s efforts - he finished with 19 disposals and eight marks and had four hit outs as back up to Will Verrall in the second half - it wasn’t enough as Geelong reigned in the lead through persistent attacks and eventually clawed their way to the lead early in the last and held it till they achieved the end aim of victory.

      • 0 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • REPORT: Geelong

      I was disappointed to hear Goody say at his post match presser after the team’s 39 point defeat against Geelong that "we're getting high quality entry, just poor execution" because Melbourne’s problems extend far beyond that after its 0 - 4 start to the 2025 football season. There are clearly problems with poor execution, some of which were evident well before the current season and were in play when the Demons met the Cats in early May last year and beat them in a near top-of-the-table clash that saw both sides sitting comfortably in the top four after round eight. Since that game, the Demons’ performances have been positively Third World with only five wins in 19 games with a no longer majestic midfield and a dysfunctional forward line that has become too easy for opposing coaches to counter. This is an area of their game that is currently being played out as if they were all completely panic-stricken.

      • 0 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • NON-MFC: Round 04

      Round 4 kicks off with a blockbuster on Thursday night as traditional rivals Collingwood and Carlton clash at the MCG, with the Magpies looking to assert themselves as early-season contenders and the Blues seeking their first win of the season. Saturday opens with Gold Coast hosting Adelaide, a key test for the Suns as they aim to back up their big win last week, while the Crows will be looking to keep their perfect record intact. Reigning wooden spooners Richmond have the daunting task of facing reigning premiers Brisbane at the ‘G and the Lions will be eager to reaffirm their premiership credentials after a patchy start. Saturday night sees North Melbourne take on Sydney at Marvel Stadium, with the Swans looking to build on their first win of the season last week against a rebuilding Roos outfit. Sunday’s action begins with GWS hosting West Coast at ENGIE Stadium, a game that could get ugly very early for the visitors. Port Adelaide vs St Kilda at Adelaide Oval looms as a interesting clash, with both clubs form being very hard to read. The round wraps up with Fremantle taking on the Western Bulldogs at Optus Stadium in what could be a fierce contest between two sides with top-eight ambitions. Who are you tipping this week and what are the best results for the Demons besides us winning?

      • 273 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland
    View All