GOOD MORNING by Meggs

[Demonland 72,176]

If you are driving or training it to Cranbourne on Saturday, don’t forget to set your alarm clock. The Melbourne Demons play the reigning premiers Brisbane Lions at Casey Fields this Saturday, with the bounce of the ball at 11:05am.  Yes, that’s AM.

 

The AFLW fixture shows deference to the AFL men’s finals games.  So, for the men it’s good afternoon and good evening and for the women it’s good morning.  

 

The Lions were wounded last week by 44 points, their highest ever losing margin.  North Melbourne really did a number on Brisbane kicking six goals in the third quarter to dominate the match 

 

Meanwhile the Dees had a confidence boosting 2-point hard-fought victory over the Cats at GMHBA Stadium. Here’s hoping we repeat last weeks contested running game style and win.

Mick Stinear and Craig Starcevich (Brisbane coach) are the only remaining AFLW foundation coaches (since 2017), and this will be their 10th meeting. Stinear leads the way with 6 wins and 3 losses. 

 

BANNO'S BANNER

 

Fan favourite and highlight reel, Alyssa Bannan, plays her 50-game milestone match this weekend.  

 

To celebrate there will be a banner for Banno on Saturday.  The notorious Casey Fields wind will no doubt test the @deearmy’s expertise in holding it in place.  

 

Our premiership forward has had some memorable moments since blasting onto the scene in 2021 after being selected fifth in the 2020 draft.  Banno was a Rising Star nomination in Round 2 of 2022 and finished 5th overall behind the winner, Mimi Hill from Carlton.  

 

No goal of the year but she has kicked many excellent ones including that classy running goal at Punt Road Oval in 2022 against the Tiges. What an entertainer!

 

Her match winning display in the 2022 preliminary final at the MCG against Brisbane with three exhilarating goals, stands out to Meggs as her most brilliant career performance to date. She was awesome.

 

In the 70-points thrashing of cellar-dweller West Coast Eagles in R7 2023, Alyssa earned 10 coaches votes and kicked 5 goals. While Eagles coach Michael Prior lost his job after publicly complaining about having to play top-placed Melbourne in a 10-week fixture.  

 

It wasn’t all bad for the Eagles as they replaced him with Daisy Pearce, while Banno got to upgrade her jumper number this year to Dais’ iconic number 6.

 

Stats-wise, Bannan has kicked a solid 41 career goals in 50 games but her recent ability to sustain performances against the top teams could be questioned. In her last six games played against the 2023 preliminary finalists, she has averaged just six touches per game and only kicked seven points in total.  

 

Fingers are crossed that in our upcoming matches against heavyweights, Brisbane and North Melbourne, the new number 6 delivers a couple of home crowd stunners.  Go for it, Banno!

 

SELECTION THIS WEEK

 

Tayla Harris will miss weeks with a shoulder, so Georgia (Campbell or Gall) the likely inclusion.

 

Meggs senses a team imbalance, with one too many talls.  

 

Prefer to see one of the new recruits Lily Johnson, Jemma Rigoni or Alyssia Pisano debut and show off their pace and good skills. 

Brisbane will make one forced change for the injured former Eagle, Shanae Davison.

 

MEGGS VIEWS

 

Expect a strong rebound from Brisbane’s premiership stars who lacked their usual intensity last week.  

 

Brisbane has tall forward weapons to quell in Dakota Davison and Taylor Smith.  Dangerous small Courtney Hodder usually has Heathy match up on her.  

 

The Demons rejigged backline looked solid in its first outing. Gillard, Chaplin and Paxman led the way and performed really well building connections with the others.  

 

The new-look Demons midfield functioned well with Goldrick and newcomer Beasley fitting in alongside Hanks, Mithen and Lampard.  It’s fair to say that Brisbane’s midfield with Anderson, and tough nuts Dawes and C Svarc will provide plenty of physical challenges during the match.

 

The Lions wingers Conway and O’Dwyer are dangerous and kick goals. The Demons wingers Blaithin Mackin and Eliza McNamara look in great early season touch.

 

Loz Pearce v Tahlia Hickey will be a ruck battle royale. Hickey was quiet last week while Loz was in fine form.

 

Brisbane’s defenders Koenen, Campbell, Ellenger, and Grider are recognised as some of the best in the competition and arguably stronger than their Geelong counterparts.  

 

No easy goals this week for Hore, Zanker and Bannan.  

 

Let’s bring our intensity from the outset and kick straight please.

 

Go Dees!

 

Melbourne by 5 points

 

THE GAME

 

Round 2: Melbourne v Brisbane Lions

Saturday 7 September 2024 at 11:15am (Melbourne time) at Casey Fields, Melbourne - Wurundjeri/ Boon Wurrung

 

HEAD TO HEAD

 

Overall Melbourne 6 wins Brisbane 3 wins

At Casey Fields Melbourne 2 win Brisbane 2 wins

The Coaches Stinear 6 wins Starcevic 3 wins

 

MEDIA 

 

TV - Fox Footy, Kayo.  

Mobile – AFL Live Official App

Radio – Casey Radio.

 

THE LAST TIME THEY MET - Season 8 Round 10

Brisbane 8.5 (53) defeated Melbourne 4.4 (28) at Brighton Homes Arena, Springfield, 4 November 2023

 

For this Season 8 Finals-eve Top 4 match, Brisbane had certainly come to play.  They outmuscled, outran, and ultimately overwhelmed us.  In doing so they exorcised their 2022 grand final loss, running away with the match in the second half, defeating the Demons comfortably by 25 points.

 

It was a pre finals glimpse at how powerful the Lions had become while conversely a reality check for the out of form reigning premiers who were to sadly exit the finals in straight sets.

 

There was one brief moment, at the 13-minute mark of the second quarter, when Melbourne skipper Kate Hore temporarily put the Dees in front.  Alas, it was the last Demon goal for the game.  

 

For the Dees, a willing group bravely resisted the fierce and physical Brisbane team, but a more even contribution was required to win.  

 

FINAL SCORES

 

BRISBANE LIONS 2.2 4.3 8.4 8.5 (53)

MELBOURNE 1.0 4.0 4.1 4.4 (28) 

 

GOALS

Brisbane: Davidson 2, Conway 2, R.Svarc, Smith, Mullins, Hampson

Melbourne: Sherriff, Hore, Harris, Hanks 

 

BEST 

Brisbane: Ellenger, Koenen, Hodder, Conway, Anderson, Dawes

Melbourne: Pearce, Hore, Purcell, Hanks, Gillard

 

INJURIES 

Brisbane: Nil

Melbourne: Watt (concussion) 

 

REPORTS 

 

Brisbane: Nil

 

Melbourne:  Nil 

 

CROWD 3,004 at Brighton Homes Arena

 

THE TEAMS

 

MELBOURNE

B Colvin Gillard
HB Chaplin Heath Paxman
C McNamara Lampard Mackin
HF Zanker Mithen Fitzsimon
F Bannan Pisano
FOLL Campbell Hanks Hore
I/C Beasley Goldrick Hill Watt Wotherspoon
EMG Gall Taylor

IN Campbell Pisano

OUT Harris (shoulder) Pearce (scaphoid)

BRISBANE LIONS

B Dunne Campbell 
HB Koenen Grider Ellenger
C O'Dwyer Anderson Conway
HF Postlethwaite Hodder R Svarc
F Smith Davidson
FOLL Hickie Dawes C Svarc
I/C Boltz Hampson Hartill Lutkins
EMG Crozier Peters Yoshida-Martin

IN Hartill 

OUT Davison (wrist)

Injury List: Round 2

 

Melbourne

 

Lily Johnson Achilles Available

Saraid Taylor Calf 2-3 weeks

Tayla Harris Shoulder TBC

Olivia Purcell Face TBC

Jemma Rigoni Groin TBC

Jacinta Hose ACL Season

Aimee Mackin ACL Season

 

Brisbane

 

Dee Heslop  Calf Strain  3 weeks

Shanae Davison Wrist 6 weeks

 

[Timothy Reddan-A'Blew 5,120]

57 minutes ago, Demonland said:

If you are driving or training it to Cranbourne on Saturday, don’t forget to set your alarm clock. The Melbourne Demons play the reigning premiers Brisbane Lions at Casey Fields this Saturday, with the bounce of the ball at 11:05am.  Yes, that’s AM.

 

The AFLW fixture shows deference to the AFL men’s finals games.  So, for the men it’s good afternoon and good evening and for the women it’s good morning.  

 

The Lions were wounded last week by 44 points, their highest ever losing margin.  North Melbourne really did a number on Brisbane kicking six goals in the third quarter to dominate the match 

 

Meanwhile the Dees had a confidence boosting 2-point hard-fought victory over the Cats at GMHBA Stadium. Here’s hoping we repeat last weeks contested running game style and win.

Mick Stinear and Craig Starcevich (Brisbane coach) are the only remaining AFLW foundation coaches (since 2017), and this will be their 10th meeting. Stinear leads the way with 6 wins and 3 losses. 

 

BANNO'S BANNER

 

Fan favourite and highlight reel, Alyssa Bannan, plays her 50-game milestone match this weekend.  

 

To celebrate there will be a banner for Banno on Saturday.  The notorious Casey Fields wind will no doubt test the @deearmy’s expertise in holding it in place.  

 

Our premiership forward has had some memorable moments since blasting onto the scene in 2021 after being selected fifth in the 2020 draft.  Banno was a Rising Star nomination in Round 2 of 2022 and finished 5th overall behind the winner, Mimi Hill from Carlton.  

 

No goal of the year but she has kicked many excellent ones including that classy running goal at Punt Road Oval in 2022 against the Tiges. What an entertainer!

 

Her match winning display in the 2022 preliminary final at the MCG against Brisbane with three exhilarating goals, stands out to Meggs as her most brilliant career performance to date. She was awesome.

 

In the 70-points thrashing of cellar-dweller West Coast Eagles in R7 2023, Alyssa earned 10 coaches votes and kicked 5 goals. While Eagles coach Michael Prior lost his job after publicly complaining about having to play top-placed Melbourne in a 10-week fixture.  

 

It wasn’t all bad for the Eagles as they replaced him with Daisy Pearce, while Banno got to upgrade her jumper number this year to Dais’ iconic number 6.

 

Stats-wise, Bannan has kicked a solid 41 career goals in 50 games but her recent ability to sustain performances against the top teams could be questioned. In her last six games played against the 2023 preliminary finalists, she has averaged just six touches per game and only kicked seven points in total.  

 

Fingers are crossed that in our upcoming matches against heavyweights, Brisbane and North Melbourne, the new number 6 delivers a couple of home crowd stunners.  Go for it, Banno!

 

SELECTION THIS WEEK

 

Tayla Harris will miss weeks with a shoulder, so Georgia (Campbell or Gall) the likely inclusion.

Meggs senses a team imbalance, with one too many talls.  

 

Prefer to see one of the new recruits Lily Johnson, Jemma Rigoni or Alyssia Pisano debut and show off their pace and good skills. 

Brisbane will make one forced change for the injured former Eagle, Shanae Davison.

 

MEGGS VIEWS

 

Expect a strong rebound from Brisbane’s premiership stars who lacked their usual intensity last week.  

 

Brisbane has tall forward weapons to quell in Dakota Davison and Taylor Smith.  Dangerous small Courtney Hodder usually has Heathy match up on her.  

 

The Demons rejigged backline looked solid in its first outing. Gillard, Chaplin and Paxman led the way and performed really well building connections with the others.  

 

The new-look Demons midfield functioned well with Goldrick and newcomer Beasley fitting in alongside Hanks, Mithen and Lampard.  It’s fair to say that Brisbane’s midfield with Anderson, and tough nuts Dawes and C Svarc will provide plenty of physical challenges during the match.

 

The Lions wingers Conway and O’Dwyer are dangerous and kick goals. The Demons wingers Blaithin Mackin and Eliza McNamara look in great early season touch.

 

Loz Pearce v Tahlia Hickey will be a ruck battle royale. Hickey was quiet last week while Loz was in fine form.

 

Brisbane’s defenders Koenen, Campbell, Ellenger, and Grider are recognised as some of the best in the competition and arguably stronger than their Geelong counterparts.  

 

No easy goals this week for Hore, Zanker and Bannan.  

 

Let’s bring our intensity from the outset and kick straight please.

 

Go Dees!

 

Melbourne by 5 points

 

THE GAME

 

Round 2: Melbourne v Brisbane Lions

Saturday 7 September 2024 at 11:15am (Melbourne time) at Casey Fields, Melbourne - Wurundjeri/ Boon Wurrung

 

HEAD TO HEAD

 

Overall Melbourne 6 wins Brisbane 3 wins

At Casey Fields Melbourne 2 win Brisbane 2 wins

The Coaches Stinear 6 wins Starcevic 3 wins

 

MEDIA 

 

TV - Fox Footy, Kayo.  

Mobile – AFL Live Official App

Radio – Casey Radio.

 

THE LAST TIME THEY MET - Season 8 Round 10

Brisbane 8.5 (53) defeated Melbourne 4.4 (28) at Brighton Homes Arena, Springfield, 4 November 2023

 

For this Season 8 Finals-eve Top 4 match, Brisbane had certainly come to play.  They outmuscled, outran, and ultimately overwhelmed us.  In doing so they exorcised their 2022 grand final loss, running away with the match in the second half, defeating the Demons comfortably by 25 points.

 

It was a pre finals glimpse at how powerful the Lions had become while conversely a reality check for the out of form reigning premiers who were to sadly exit the finals in straight sets.

 

There was one brief moment, at the 13-minute mark of the second quarter, when Melbourne skipper Kate Hore temporarily put the Dees in front.  Alas, it was the last Demon goal for the game.  

 

For the Dees, a willing group bravely resisted the fierce and physical Brisbane team, but a more even contribution was required to win.  

 

FINAL SCORES

 

BRISBANE LIONS 2.2 4.3 8.4 8.5 (53)

MELBOURNE 1.0 4.0 4.1 4.4 (28) 

 

GOALS

Brisbane: Davidson 2, Conway 2, R.Svarc, Smith, Mullins, Hampson

Melbourne: Sherriff, Hore, Harris, Hanks 

 

BEST 

Brisbane: Ellenger, Koenen, Hodder, Conway, Anderson, Dawes

Melbourne: Pearce, Hore, Purcell, Hanks, Gillard

 

INJURIES 

Brisbane: Nil

Melbourne: Watt (concussion) 

 

REPORTS 

 

Brisbane: Nil

 

Melbourne:  Nil 

 

CROWD 3,004 at Brighton Homes Arena

 

THE TEAMS (to be loaded when available)

 

MELBOURNE 

 

BRISBANE

 

Injury List: Round 2

 

Melbourne

 

Lily Johnson Achilles Available

Saraid Taylor Calf 2-3 weeks

Tayla Harris Shoulder TBC

Olivia Purcell Face TBC

Jemma Rigoni Groin TBC

Jacinta Hose ACL Season

Aimee Mackin ACL Season

 

Brisbane

 

Dee Heslop  Calf Strain  3 weeks

Shanae Davison Wrist 6 weeks

 

Very nicely done, Meggs!

Thanks for the AM reminder. Head Office could  just as easily have scheduled 11.05 PM...

And, perhaps the weather gods will be kinder than 'the Casey usual': only 'light winds' are forecast (also with only a slight chance of minimal rain). Some contrast to that memorable ⛈️⛈️⛈️ first ever game for the Dees, against the same opposition at the same venue*. Hopefully the result will be in like contrast!

 

(* It is my badge of honour that I was there AND stayed to the end...)

Edited September 4 by Timothy Reddan-A'Blew

[Craig T 179]

1 hour ago, Timothy Reddan-A'Blew said:

Very nicely done, Meggs!

Thanks for the AM reminder. Head Office could  just as easily have scheduled 11.05 PM...

And, perhaps the weather gods will be kinder than 'the Casey usual': only 'light winds' are forecast (also with only a slight chance of minimal rain). Some contrast to that memorable ⛈️⛈️⛈️ first ever game for the Dees, against the same opposition at the same venue*. Hopefully the result will be in like contrast!

 

(* It is my badge of honour that I was there AND stayed to the end...)

Yep, hot to start, then a lightning storm, then very cold and wet heading home on PT after a loss.  Not a great introduction to our AFLW team, but they've more than made up for it since then. 😃

Edited September 4 by Craig T

[Meggs 595]

BOM weather forecast for the Cranbourne area at 11am tomorrow:

A fine and sunny 14 degrees (but feels like 11), with winds gusting up to 24 km/hr.

Now doesn't that sound enticing?    See y'all there at Casey Fields for Banno's 50th and a huge game!

ps: hopefuly the M1 traffic is flowing