Just now, spirit of norm smith said:

Young guns 2025 draftees

Tommy Matthews. He’s a little pocket rocket. Had time in the midfield but often ran around without getting near the footy. Seems more comfortable as a stay near goal high pressure small forward. Loves a goal.

Xavier Taylor. Had two important intercept marks. Showed glimpses but still lots of development before a debut game. I like his composure with the footy.

Riley Onley. Like to see him run and kick more. Good penetration with his kicking. Good size kid. Likely we will mark him as “developing” this year.

Onley may find himself in the backline with Adams really struggling. Onley struggles to win his own ball but could be crafted into a similar role Howes plays in the 1s.

Not sure about …

Ricky Mentha. Played small forward last year. Now playing more half back. Looks a little lost at times and was pushed off the ball too easily in a contest for the footy. Footskills are good so need to find ways to get him into the game.

Jed Adams. Was all at sea early and beaten by Schubert then McLaughlin. Battled on but he’s along way from being an AFL full back. Hasn’t developed physically over the last 2 years.

Edited yesterday at 05:191 day by spirit of norm smith
M

Just now, Dingo said:

Hearn played like Max.

Heath !

5 hours ago, KC from Casey said:

Monster efforts from skipper Riley Bonner and big ruckman Max Heath have enabled the Casey Demons to their first win for the season and earned them another week’s break 😊

Are you serious? We are starting the season with a match, then a bye, then our second match, and another bye????

This needs to be put on the agenda asap, it's a deadset joke and it compromises development and competition integrity.

5 hours ago, At the break of Gawn said:

His lack of awareness to get caught HTB before was pretty awful. Will need a fair bit of time I think.

This is the thing, he's had a lot of time out of the game. Realistically let's give him a good block of games and consistent performance before he breaks into the 23. Something that is definitely not helped by the ludicrous fixturing.

Perhaps Casey should try Onley as a ruck rover. Rucking can improve your confidence and stamina.

The discussion around AJ, Luker and Jeffo needs to take into consideration transferring VFL form and skills into the AFL.

AJ is a brute and has major impact but his decision making and physicality don't naturally transfer to AFL level.

Luker is on a steep improvement arc, and is a seriously good set shot but I reckon he isn't quite ready for AFL defenders like Harris Andrews, Tom Stewart etc...

Jeffo is mobile and takes marks at a very high point, but continually lets himself down by poor kicking or lack of 2nd efforts. I think he is closer to an AFL recall than the other two.

However, Luker's quick progress might have him moving past Jeffo in the pecking order.

He isn't on the list yet but I like Toby Sinema, who plays like Eric Gulden.

1 hour ago, Pates said:

Are you serious? We are starting the season with a match, then a bye, then our second match, and another bye????

This needs to be put on the agenda asap, it's a deadset joke and it compromises development and competition integrity.

Settle down. KC’s being sarcastic about it because there are no VFL games at all next week due to the State Game between the VFL and SANFL associated with the Gather Round.

1 hour ago, Older demon said:

He isn't on the list yet but I like Toby Sinema, who plays like Eric Gulden.

A good call … I was disappointed last year that we didn’t give Sinnema a rookie position. He has excellent run, skills and hits targets inside 50. Watch him at Casey as he develops into a very good player. Still must be on JTs list.

Really liked Stanley's game - who is he?

final game stats...

11 hours ago, seventyfour said:

I've been saying for years that we needed to draft and develop another KPD. It'll hold back our return to finals unless we can find some trades or free agents like the Hawks did with Battle and Barrass.

Butts, crows have a logjam when keane is fit again

8 hours ago, MrFreeze said:

Onley may find himself in the backline with Adams really struggling. Onley struggles to win his own ball but could be crafted into a similar role Howes plays in the 1s.

we call this doing a tommo

2 hours ago, spirit of norm smith said:

A good call … I was disappointed last year that we didn’t give Sinnema a rookie position. He has excellent run, skills and hits targets inside 50. Watch him at Casey as he develops into a very good player. Still must be on JTs list.

from memory new rules stipulate u can still be NGA nominated until 21yo, to promote those pathways, so feasibly he could take Mentha's spot at EOS as cat b? if he goes undrafted through MSD and ND which seems a reasonable equation

2 hours ago, Ungarieboy said:

Really liked Stanley's game - who is he?

Former Box Hill and Freo player who trained with the Hawks over summer.

His space is special at times just a matter of whether he can do enough of other stuff to be back on a list

I've chosen my Casey team for 2 weeks time against Brisbane expecting there would be no change to the side that should beat Essendon easily. This weeks senior team has Kentfield and Fritsch in and Petty and Laurie out.

Casey

B: Moniz-Wakefield, Adams, Berry

HB: Taylor, Petty, Mentha

C: Stanley, Bonner, Onley

HF: Henderson, Johnson, Matthews

F: McAdam, Jefferson, White

FOLL: Heath, Rivers, Laurie

IC: Sinnema, Gatt, Craven, Cheffers, Scapin

EMERG: LaPlanche, Pipicelli, W.Lual

Edited yesterday at 18:181 day by WERRIDEE

I didn’t catch the game unfortunately, but a great result to get a win with a team missing a few AFL listed players.

A couple of questions:

How did Taylor play? Do we think he will debut early this year or in the back half?

Where do we see Luker playing his debut? Is he a back or forward?

With some vulnerability down back in the key defender position, who could potentially come in and play Mays old role? AJ or Luker?

Cheers.

12 hours ago, Pates said:

Are you serious? We are starting the season with a match, then a bye, then our second match, and another bye????

This needs to be put on the agenda asap, it's a deadset joke and it compromises development and competition integrity.

A Million percent agree! AFL clubs need to make a stand on this fruit loop competition!

3 hours ago, WERRIDEE said:

I've chosen my Casey team for 2 weeks time against Brisbane expecting there would be no change to the side that should beat Essendon easily. This weeks senior team has Kentfield and Fritsch in and Petty and Laurie out.

Casey

B: Moniz-Wakefield, Adams, Berry

HB: Taylor, Petty, Mentha

C: Stanley, Bonner, Onley

HF: Henderson, Johnson, Matthews

F: McAdam, Jefferson, White

FOLL: Heath, Rivers, Laurie

IC: Sinnema, Gatt, Craven, Cheffers, Scapin

EMERG: LaPlanche, Pipicelli, W.Lual

I thought Petty did some good things. Luker with 4 Goals was good, but to me looks a tad slow. Had a day out though but limited possesions. Did very little first quarter and a half. Will get his chance at some stage!

17 hours ago, titan_uranus said:

Didn’t see the game but hugely promising result and reports on here.

I’m a Kentfield fan so I’m rapt to see so many glowing posts about him. But had I just looked at the stats (obviously not a substitute for actually watching the game) I’d have imagined Johnson or Jeffo would have had the better games - both had more disposals, scoring shots and marks.

Jeffo was the best of the three as he was involved more and could have kicked 6.

Kentfield received a downfield and another free that gave him 2 of his 3.

Kentfield will play seniors, but Jeffo on that game was easily the best of the three named.

MOMENTUM SWINGS by KC from Casey

The Casey Demons secured their first win of the season by the narrow margin of four points against the Box Hill Hawks at Casey Fields on Easter Sunday morning.

It was the first win for the club’s newly appointed VFL Senior Coach Rhett McLennan and his strategy of focusing on local recruitment in the Gippsland region, where he has previously been instrumental in developing players through the Coates Talent League program.

It was a thrilling game marked momentum shifts and a dramatic finish with the result in doubt until the final seconds when Casey’s ruckman Max Heath took a game saving pack mark in defence late in the match with Box Hill making a final surge for victory.

The Hawks started brightly to hold a 15 point lead at quarter time with key forward Aidan Schubert scoring four out of their five goals. They held Casey goalless until deep into time on when Matt Jefferson and Aidan Johnson hit the target with successive goals in the space of a minute. At this stage Casey had few winners with the exception of Heath who had a stand out game dominating in the ruck. He was to continue in that vein all day winning a total of 42 hitouts, three clearances, 20 disposals and six marks

The first half of the second term saw the teams trading goal for goal until Nate Pipicelli scored a rare double goal after some undisciplined play by a Box Hill defender resulted in a free kick for a push after the Casey recruit had scored a goal. The result was a dramatic change of the lead with the Demons holding sway until a late two goal surge by the Hawks saw them regain the lead by four points at the main break.

Box Hill came out full of confidence in the third quarter with three early goals to give them a game high 22 point lead before the momentum swung again. Casey fought back to regain a narrow one point lead at three quarter time. They extended their advantage in a frenetic final term with the Hawks fighting back to be outlasted by the home side. Melbourne youngster Tom Matthews who had a relatively quiet day scored a significant goal late in the day when he bored in hard for a free and converted from close in after a 50 metre penalty.

A pleasing aspect of the win was the work of Casey’s three key prongs in attack, Johnson  (12 disposals, five marks, four goals), Luker Kentfield (four goals from just seven touches and four marks) and Jefferson (16 disposals, five marks, three goals) who, between them kicked 11 goals on the day.

Xavier Taylor got among the action with 14 disposals and six marks and improved as the game progressed and while Andy Moniz-Wakefield was also solid in defence, he was not  as prolific a ball winner as in the opening round. Jack Henderson who spent most of the  pre-season managing a stress fracture to his sacrum amassed 14 possessions till half time when he was taken off to head up the highway to the MCG for AFL emergency duty.

The Casey-listed contingent played a prominent role in the victory with skipper Riley Bonner heading the way with 33 touches including ten in the opening term when the team was under enormous pressure from the outset.

Bonner received strongly support from a couple of newcomers playing against their old club Ethan Stanley and Luis D'Angelo, the latter a product of Traralgon and the Gippsland Power coached by McLennan. Toby SInnema showed some of his class and composure and was prominent in a number of attacking moves during those periods when the momentum was swinging his team’s way. Jarrod Gatt, Jobe Scapin and Luke Cheffers all had their moments, the latter featuring in a crucial piece of play late in the third quarter when he effected a smoother to steal the ball off a defender’s boot and score a goal to restore Casey’s lead.

As much as the momentum swings of the game worked to the benefit of Casey, it’s season momentum comes to another stop next weekend throughout the competition as a result of the interstate match between the VFL and SANFL in Adelaide in conjunction with the Gather Round.

CASEY DEMONS 2.4.16 9.6.60 14.6.90 17.8.110

BOX HILL HAWKS 5.3.33 10.4.64 14.5.89 16.10.106

GOALS

CASEY DEMONS Johnson Kentfield 4 Jefferson 3 Pipicelli 2 Cheffers Craven Laplanche Matthews

BOX HILL HAWKS Schubert 5 McLoughlin 4 Hill Nairn 2 Dear Farrer McCabe

BEST

CASEY DEMONS Heath Johnson Bonner Kentfield D'Angelo SInnema

BOX HILL HAWKS Horner Maginness Declase Ryan Schubert McLaughlin

Just as 2 asides, Adams was incredibly listed amongst Casey’s best in this morning’s HS, whilst Billings kicked 5 goals for Footscray’s VFL side 😳

1 hour ago, Redleg said:

Jeffo was the best of the three as he was involved more and could have kicked 6.

Kentfield received a downfield and another free that gave him 2 of his 3.

Kentfield will play seniors, but Jeffo on that game was easily the best of the three named.

1 hour ago, Redleg said:

Jeffo was the best of the three as he was involved more and could have kicked 6.

Kentfield received a downfield and another free that gave him 2 of his 3.

Kentfield will play seniors, but Jeffo on that game was easily the best of the three named.

44 minutes ago, joeboy said:

Just as 2 asides, Adams was incredibly listed amongst Casey’s best in this morning’s HS, whilst Billings kicked 5 goals for Footscray’s VFL side 😳

Um if Jed Adams was in the Best, whoever wrote this must be Mr. Magoo. He had 7 maybe 8 goals kicked on him and was really found out big time.

Agree re Jeffo and I was there. A.J was good and so too Luker. HEATH WAS BOG, and I was seriously impressed by the Home Theatre System!

HTS = Sinnema

@SPC

Xavier Taylor was ok v hawks. Showed glimpses but is still developing and would be unlikely to debut in the first half of the year. Showed good composure with the footy. He’s a good mark and had a good intercept late in the game. With Lever, Turner & Howes ahead of him for the role, I’d say let’s see XT develop at Casey.

Luker Kentfield is a key forward. I like his aggressive style and has good marking. Simple goalkicking style. Likely to debut this year if he stays fit and healthy. Although Mihocek and JVR are ahead of him.

Key defender. With May retiring, we have the need for another big key defender. Adams struggled again and hadn’t physically developed. He needed a summer in the gym but doesn’t look like he’d bulked up. I’m not sure he will make it.