Jump to content

  • IMPORTANT: PLEASE READ BEFORE POSTING

    Posting unsubstantiated rumours on this website is strictly forbidden.

    Demonland has made the difficult decision to not permit this platform to be used to discuss & debate the off-field issues relating to the Melbourne Football Club including matters currently being litigated between the Club & former Board members, board elections, the issue of illicit drugs in footy, the culture at the club & the personal issues & allegations against some of our players & officials ...

    We do not take these issues & this decision lightly & of course we believe that these serious matters affecting the club we love & are so passionate about are worthy of discussion & debate & I wish we could provide a place where these matters can be discussed in a civil & respectful manner.

    However these discussions unfortunately invariably devolve into areas that may be defamatory, libelous, spread unsubstantiated rumours & can effect the mental health of those involved. Even discussion & debate of known facts or media reports can lead to finger pointing, blame & personal attacks.

    The repercussion is that these discussions can open this website, it’s owners & it’s users to legal action & may result in this website being forced to shutdown.

    Our moderating team are all volunteers & cannot moderate the forum 24/7 & as a consequence problematic content that contravenes our rules & standards may go unnoticed for some time before it can be removed.

    We reserve the right to delete posts that offend against our above policy & indeed, to ban posters who are repeat offenders or who breach our code of conduct.

    WE HAVE BUILT A FANTASTIC ONLINE COMMUNITY AT DEMONLAND OVER THE PAST 23 YEARS & WE WOULD LIKE TO CONTINUE TO BE ABLE TO DISCUSS THE CLUB WE LOVE & ARE SO PASSIONATE ABOUT.

    Thank you for your continued support & understanding. Go Dees.


Death Riding Fremantle 2023 - Feathered Cap Edition


adonski

Recommended Posts

2 minutes ago, layzie said:

That I agree with. This mid group needs something a bit extra to go the next step and it is probably that Cripps type that will win a ball when it's there to be won in a crucial moment.

My original point is that I'd find it hard to see them drop off completely and miss finals by a long shot due to this midfield, it still has a fair bit going for it and also a backline that will keep them in games. I don't see top 4 though.

I agree.

When I say I think they might struggle, I didn't mean to say they would be hopeless.

I would be very surprised if they don't make the 8 - they are well coached, were super fit last year and have quality players. 

What I meant to say is they will struggle to make top 4 and I don't think they're a premiership contender. 

And not just because they lack a cripps or tracc. Their forward line also lacks punch.

By the by, I predicted preseason last year that freo would be the bolter. I thought they would finish top 4.

So I've got no bias against them as such.

I just think they didn't address their biggest needs in the trade period.

And i agree with Lampers analysis of their trade period - a net loss.

Most concerning for them, given their forward line was already a worry, is they didn't replace lobb with an equivalent player.

Lobb is inconsitent, but when on he kicks goals. But even when not kicking goals, like tmac is for us, he was super important structurally for freo. Took the best key defender, ran up and down the wing to provide a marking option and if he couldn't mark brought the ball to ground -  which meant their small forwards (which is a strength of theirs) could go to work.

Jackson will provide some of that, but as dees fans know he is not a natural forward. I have little doubt he will improve his forward craft. But he won't be at lobb's level this season.

  • Like 6
Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 hours ago, dazzledavey36 said:

They also have some exciting depth coming through in this department. 

Neil Erasmus 190cm big bodied inside mid. Plays similar to Elliot Yeo.

Nathan O' Driscoll 188cm midfielder who also plays half back if need.

Matthew Johnson 192cm tall inside/outside midfielder who's very similar to David Mundy.

That augurs well for their future, assuming of course one of those players becomes an elite mid.

But it won't help them much this season. 

But perhaps they are prepared to plautue for a year - which would not be unreasonable given their investment in Jackson and the fact they have a young list.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

17 minutes ago, binman said:

I agree.

When I say I think they might struggle, I didn't mean to say they would be hopeless.

I would be very surprised if they don't make the 8 - they are well coached, were super fit last year and have quality players. 

What I meant to say is they will struggle to make top 4 and I don't think they're a premiership contender. 

And not just because they lack a cripps or tracc. Their forward line also lacks punch.

By the by, I predicted preseason last year that freo would be the bolter. I thought they would finish top 4.

So I've got no bias against them as such.

I just think they didn't address their biggest needs in the trade period.

And i agree with Lampers analysis of their trade period - a net loss.

Most concerning for them, given their forward line was already a worry, is they didn't replace lobb with an equivalent player.

Lobb is inconsitent, but when on he kicks goals. But even when not kicking goals, like tmac is for us, he was super important structurally for freo. Took the best key defender, ran up and down the wing to provide a marking option and if he couldn't mark brought the ball to ground -  which meant their small forwards (which is a strength of theirs) could go to work.

Jackson will provide some of that, but as dees fans know he is not a natural forward. I have little doubt he will improve his forward craft. But he won't be at lobb's level this season.

Of course, I was just re-iterating my point for the general public 🙂

There's a lot of question marks about this forward line and I couldn't agree more on Lobb. He had threats that you still had to prepare for even when not firing. 

Gonzo mentioned us in 2019 and it does feel very similar in terms of list changes and pinning hopes on speculative key forwards.

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, binman said:

Lack an ELITE big bodied midfielder.

We have two.

Brodie has played 49 games, half of those at a dysfunctional rabble. If he can continue his trajectory, he's well on his way to being elite. 

Avg. 27 touches last year, same scoring as Clarry (0.2 goals, 0.3 behinds), & same number of tackles. CP/UP ratio (40/60) needs improving if he's to be an elite contested player in the comp (Clarry averaged about 60/40), as does clearances (avg.6 compared to clarry of 9). 5 score involvements per game on average (Clarry 7).

Clarry an extremely high benchmark here...Brodie's stats are very similiar, sometimes exceeding Ollie Wines' stats from last year. An ex-brownlow medallist. 

If we go back to Clarry's 2nd season as a point of comparison given games played, Brodie's stats are superior. The kid can play, don't sleep on him. 

Re. us having two - yes we are blessed. + Viney who plays big bodied even though he's not. Not many teams are blessed with what we have in the middle. Not sure why that diminishes Freo or why its even a valid point of comparison. Brisbane, Collingwood, Sydney, Geelong - none of them quite have a contested midfield like ours and all finished above us.    

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 minutes ago, fr_ap said:

Brodie has played 49 games, half of those at a dysfunctional rabble. If he can continue his trajectory, he's well on his way to being elite. 

Avg. 27 touches last year, same scoring as Clarry (0.2 goals, 0.3 behinds), & same number of tackles. CP/UP ratio (40/60) needs improving if he's to be an elite contested player in the comp (Clarry averaged about 60/40), as does clearances (avg.6 compared to clarry of 9). 5 score involvements per game on average (Clarry 7).

Clarry an extremely high benchmark here...Brodie's stats are very similiar, sometimes exceeding Ollie Wines' stats from last year. An ex-brownlow medallist. 

If we go back to Clarry's 2nd season as a point of comparison given games played, Brodie's stats are superior. The kid can play, don't sleep on him. 

Re. us having two - yes we are blessed. + Viney who plays big bodied even though he's not. Not many teams are blessed with what we have in the middle. Not sure why that diminishes Freo or why it’s even a valid point of comparison. Brisbane, Collingwood, Sydney, Geelong - none of them quite have a contested midfield like ours and all finished above us.    

Lol Brodie was drafted the year after Clarry, why would we compare Brodie’s last year to Clarry’s 2nd season? 

 

  • Like 1
  • Thinking 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, fr_ap said:

Brodie has played 49 games, half of those at a dysfunctional rabble. If he can continue his trajectory, he's well on his way to being elite. 

Avg. 27 touches last year, same scoring as Clarry (0.2 goals, 0.3 behinds), & same number of tackles. CP/UP ratio (40/60) needs improving if he's to be an elite contested player in the comp (Clarry averaged about 60/40), as does clearances (avg.6 compared to clarry of 9). 5 score involvements per game on average (Clarry 7).

Clarry an extremely high benchmark here...Brodie's stats are very similiar, sometimes exceeding Ollie Wines' stats from last year. An ex-brownlow medallist. 

If we go back to Clarry's 2nd season as a point of comparison given games played, Brodie's stats are superior. The kid can play, don't sleep on him. 

Re. us having two - yes we are blessed. + Viney who plays big bodied even though he's not. Not many teams are blessed with what we have in the middle. Not sure why that diminishes Freo or why its even a valid point of comparison. Brisbane, Collingwood, Sydney, Geelong - none of them quite have a contested midfield like ours and all finished above us.    

Fair points.

But he ain't AA elite.

Look at the seven grand final winners since 2016.

Every premier, with the exception of West Coast, had AA big bodied mids.

The dogs had bont.

The tigers had dusty in his pomp. And cotchin for good measure.

The Eagles didn't have an AA big mid, but Shuey, who won the Norm Smith, made the squad twice. And Sheed - also six foot plus, was a pretty handy back up.

We had tracc and clarry.

And the cats had Selwood and Dangerfield.

So recent history suggests to win a flag team need at least one, preferably two elite big mids (ie heavy, strong and at least six foot).

Brodie might get there - though personally I don't think so. But he's not there yet.

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, godees said:

Lol Brodie was drafted the year after Clarry, why would we compare Brodie’s last year to Clarry’s 2nd season? 

 

'Lol' - Hes played 49 games, 24 last year. 

Ergo, it was effectively - at least in terms of experience - his 2nd year when compared to Clarry who played almost full seasons from his very first year after being drafted. 

Yes last year he had the benefit of being older, fitter and probably stronger than Clarry was during his 2nd season; but games played is the only reasonable benchmark.  

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites


  • 2 weeks later...

On 3/2/2023 at 4:30 PM, fr_ap said:

'Lol' - Hes played 49 games, 24 last year. 

Ergo, it was effectively - at least in terms of experience - his 2nd year when compared to Clarry who played almost full seasons from his very first year after being drafted. 

Yes last year he had the benefit of being older, fitter and probably stronger than Clarry was during his 2nd season; but games played is the only reasonable benchmark.  

Sorry, that is just not true. Games played is certainly a strong factor but so is age and number of years in an elite system. Brodie is a solid mid, no doubt and I think he still has a fair bit of upside but comparing him to Clarrie is laughable

  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 3/1/2023 at 12:26 PM, Lucifers Hero said:

They are expecting O'Meara to be the new Mundy and will probably be better.

Wot? O'Meare can only dream of emulating Mundy. Close to the most overhyped/overrated player of the last 10 years. Never won and B&F, never an AA, averages about five BL votes a season and I don't remember him every turning a game. Good ordinary player at best. 

  • Like 3
  • Thinking 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

14 hours ago, Queanbeyan Demon said:

Wot? O'Meare can only dream of emulating Mundy. Close to the most overhyped/overrated player of the last 10 years. Never won and B&F, never an AA, averages about five BL votes a season and I don't remember him every turning a game. Good ordinary player at best. 

i wasn't at all suggesting that O'Meare emulate Mundy or Mundy's achievments.  I was talking about game day roles.  O'Meara is an inside player and extractor as Mundy was and that is what Freo will expect of hiim.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, Lucifers Hero said:

i wasn't at all suggesting that O'Meare emulate Mundy or Mundy's achievments.  I was talking about game day roles.  O'Meara is an inside player and extractor as Mundy was and that is what Freo will expect of hiim.

I haven't taken any notice of the Hawks over the last few years but didn't see O'Meara as an inside extractor in the past.

Maybe he's put this into his game to make up for what injury has taken away???

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, rjay said:

I haven't taken any notice of the Hawks over the last few years but didn't see O'Meara as an inside extractor in the past.

Maybe he's put this into his game to make up for what injury has taken away???

Mitchell did most of the heavy lifting at the Hawks.  With Mundy gone and Fyfe in the fwd line, O'Meara will be doing a lot more of the heavy lifting at Freo.  While excellent players most of the other midfields are still very young and O'Meara can 'protect' them a bit as Mundy did.

Link to comment
Share on other sites


1 hour ago, Lucifers Hero said:

Mitchell did most of the heavy lifting at the Hawks.  With Mundy gone and Fyfe in the fwd line, O'Meara will be doing a lot more of the heavy lifting at Freo.  While excellent players most of the other midfields are still very young and O'Meara can 'protect' them a bit as Mundy did.

I guess my question is...has he done anything in his career to show he's capable of doing the heavy lifting?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just caught myself reading an article on SEN about "why the Dockers will make the eight".
I got halfway before I thought to myself, this is really sick stuff your doing here illbarto.
Could be a tough year for the footy tipping with the Pies and the Purples losing every weekend.

 

  • Haha 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

20 hours ago, rjay said:

I haven't taken any notice of the Hawks over the last few years but didn't see O'Meara as an inside extractor in the past.

Maybe he's put this into his game to make up for what injury has taken away???

I haven't watched O'meara's career very much.  I don't put a lot of store in stats but he has the same average clearances as Tom Mitchell and Jack Viney.  Does well on contested possessions comparisons with them.

He has generally been seen as an inside midfielder.  Certainly, Freo are looking for O'Meara to play that inside role and use his leadership skills and experience as Mundy did especially when Fyfe wan't there.  Whether he succeeds they will find out soon enough but it is not a new role for him. 

He may not be seen as 'elite' like Petracca, Oliver, Neale, Fyfe etc but he is certainly well above average.  There midfield will still be strong.

 

Having said that I still expect them to slide (hopefully out of the 8) as I see cohesion and synergy a real challenge for them with all the list and positional changes.

Edited by Lucifers Hero
  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Unfortunately, your content contains terms that we do not allow. Please edit your content to remove the highlighted words below.
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Demonland Forums  

  • Match Previews, Reports & Articles  

    LEADERS OF THE PACK by The Oracle

    I was asked to write a preview of this week’s Round 8 match between Melbourne and Geelong. The two clubs have a history that goes right back to the time when the game was starting to become an organised sport but it’s the present that makes the task of previewing this contest so interesting. Both clubs recently reached the pinnacle of the competition winning premiership flags in 2021 and 2022 respectively, but before the start of this season, many good judges felt their time had passed - n

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 4

    PODCAST: Kade Chandler Interview

    I'm interviewing Melbourne Football Club's small forward Kade Chandler tomorrow for the Demonland Podcast. I'll be asking him about his road from being overlooked in the draft to his rookie listing to his apprenticeship as a sub to VFL premiership to his breakout 2023 season to mainstay in the Forwadline and much more. If you have any further questions let me know below and I'll see if I can squeeze them in. I will release the podcast at some time tomorrow so stay tuned.

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 25

    TRAINING: Monday 29th April 2024

    Demonland Trackwatcher Kev Martin was on hand at Gosch's Paddock for Monday's training session and made the following observations. About 38 to 40  players down at training.  BBB walking laps.  Charlie Spargo still in rehab, doing short run throughs.  Christian Salem has full kit on and doing individual work with a trainer. He is is starting to get into some sprints. I cannot see Andy Moniz-Wakefield out there. Jack Viney and Kade Chandler have broken away from the

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Training Reports

    DISCO INFERNO by Whispering Jack

    Two weeks ago, when the curtain came down on Melbourne’s game against the Brisbane Lions, the team trudged off the MCG looking tired and despondent at the end of a tough run of games played in quick succession. In the days that followed, the fans wanted answers about their team’s lamentable performance that night and foremost among their concerns was whether the loss was a one off result of fatigue or was it due to other factor(s) of far greater consequence.  As it turns out, the answer to

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 16

    TIGERS PUNT CASEY by KC from Casey

    The afternoon atmosphere at the Swinburne Centre was somewhat surreal as the game between Richmond VFL and the Casey Demons unfolded on what was really a normal work day for most Melburnians. The Yarra Park precinct marched to the rhythm of city life, the trains rolled by, pedestrians walked by with their dogs and the traffic on Punt Road and Brunton Avenue swirled past while inside the arena, a football battle ensued. And what a battle it was? The Tigers came in with a record of two wins f

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Casey Articles

    PREGAME: Rd 08 vs Geelong

    After returning to the winners list the Demons have a 10 day break until they face the unbeaten Cats at the MCG on Saturday Night. Who comes in and who goes out for this crucial match?

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 560

    PODCAST: Rd 07 vs Richmond

    The Demonland Podcast will air LIVE on Monday, 29th April @ 8:30pm. Join George, Binman & I as we analyse the Demons victory at the MCG against the Tigers in the Round 07. You 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. Listen & Chat

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 44

    VOTES: Rd 07 vs Richmond

    Last week Captain Max Gawn overtook reigning champion Christian Petracca in the Demonland Player of the Year Award. Steven May, Jack Viney & Alex Neal-Bullen make up the Top 5. Your votes for the win against the Tigers. 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 54

    POSTGAME: Rd 07 vs Richmond

    The Demons put their foot down after half time to notch up a clinical win by 43 points over the Tigers at the MCG on ANZAC Eve keeping touch with the Top 4.

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 387
  • Tell a friend

    Love Demonland? Tell a friend!

×
×
  • Create New...