Leaderboard

Since when are leadership qualities and the ability to remain uninjured and kick few goals, one and the same thing? When he was on the field he showed leadership in spades, when he fronted the media he showed leadership in spades, and no doubt around the MFC between games, he showed leadership as well.

Not sure that saving yourself from Alan Stoneham type injuries, inflicted by a thug, is a DNA flaw. Most smart footballers of today would act in the same way and be praised for it.

I was chatting to Tom Sheridan (has re-signed at Freo) a few weeks ago, and he reckons Viv is a gun. Tom's more an outside midfielder (he captained Calder Cannons three years ago), and reckons Michie is really good inside, with good hands and feet, a good leader, and a top bloke.

Despite a few departures which are par for the course every year, the Casey Scorpions are looking far more settled than they were 12 months ago. At that time, the club was staring in the face of extinction in the wake of the loss of poker machine licences, had no coach and concerns about keeping their playing list together. Senior coach Rohan Welsh has been reappointed for the role in 2014 but gone from the list will be former skipper Kyle Matthews, vice captain Luke Tynan, ex-Magpie Danny Nicholls and Michael Riseley. That's a large pile of experience but the club has been active in re-signing many of its younger guns who have come through the club's local areas and there will be an influx of this year's talent from the under 18s. Some of the names won't be finalised until after this year's drafts but with an earlier date for the rookie draft, the club will have more time to work on its recruiting for next year. Jake Best, the speedster who was such a revelation this year, is a good chance to be drafted but if not, is likely to be back with the Scorpions. One of 2013's big improvers is Mitch Gent who had also signed on again although he might be a rookie chance. The Scorpions have launched a new initiative - an academy for local area youngsters - From Casey to Fremantle, Scorpions new academy a testament to trailblazer Alex Silvagni. Recently delisted Demon Tom Couch has rejoined Collingwood while former players James Wall and Rian McGough have joined Richmond's stand alone VFL team. Demon fans might recall Ryan Ferguson who once famously refused to be traded to Hawthorn in a deal which would have brought Brad Sewell to the club. He is transferring from West Adelaide to the now stand alone Williamstown. Another name in the news that's well known to Demon fans is Nick Sautner who has been appointed CEO of the WA Football Commission.

How anyone - let alone anyone that calls themselves a demons supporter could bag Neita is beyond me. People saying he is Arrogant, Selfish, etc obviously havnt spent more then 1 second with the guy. I've been at the Childrens Hospital many times when my brother was in there for 6 months and he was the most frequent visitor out of any football player I noticed. He would rock up after training sessions still in his training gear and play video games with kids and sit and talk with parents, bring in signed gear for kids. No TV cameras or Jurnos around documenting any of this just out of his on good will. As for on the football feild, he arguably could be considered to be one of the most courageous captians of his era. He would lead from the front, stand up for team mates and would have a crack 100% of the time even if it meant he would get layed out. Sure he didnt kick as many goals as Lloyd, didnt have the polish or number of brownlow votes as Vossy, Hird, or Bucks. But he bled RED AND BLUE and you knew if he was anywhere near a contest he would try his best to make an impact for his team. As for compairing Neita and Hogan. If he can play over 300 games, Kick over 600 Goals and lead from the front like #9 did then i think we should count our lucky stars. With there being less then 70 players in the 300 games club and only 53 players in the 500 + Goals Club I think we should tone down the expectations on the kid. Let him play without the weight of expectation and If he only manages 150 games and 300 goals he will still go down as a success.

Well, at least one of those statements is pretty much correct.

Pull Your Head In

Out of all you've said, this is the one thing I disagree with. I might find a close mates actions vile and reprehensible, but when they made their biggest mistake, or needed me most I'd like to think I'd be supportive. And my support would in no way condone their actions.

I don't know if it's been mentioned here or elsewhere but Billy has been included in the prestigious 2013/4 AIS/AFL Academy Squad along with a number of other highly youngsters who will no doubt figure predominantly in draft calculations next year. In addition, he's been included in Bigfooty on Knightmare's 2014 Power Rankings in tenth place. Here's his top 10 and get used to the names which will appear in phantom drafts in the not to distant future. 1. Peter Wright (VIC - KPF/Ruck) 2. Patrick McCartin (VIC - KPF) 3. Jarrod Pickett (WA - Fwd) 4. Alec Waterman (WCE WA - Mid - F/S) 5. Peter Bampton (SA Mid) 6. Jake Lever (VIC - Def) 7. Hugh Goddard (VIC - KPF) 8. Clem Smith (WA - Util) 9. Christian Petracca (VIC - Fwd) 10. Billy Stretch (Melb SA - F/S)

Every thread that's started about Jurrah dissolves into pointless rubbish. Can we please just get the hell over it.

I don't understand how fans can bag players for having injuries. Dawes has been terrific.

The Punt Road Oval seems a good spot. Perhaps Richmond mightn't mind if we built our own Red & Blue Social Club opposite their stand, after all we have let them play games on our Ground (the MCG) for the last few decades, even if both grounds are in the City of Melbourne? If they don't want to share, maybe they can relocate in their Richmond heartland at Kevin Barker Oval and leave the Punt Road facility to us, it would look much more attractive with a decent coat of Red & Blue paint!

very excited about Michie You dont get highly rated by Paul Roos and Ross Lyon if youre as spud

There are some clear reasons why Roos wants to put Watts in the middle. He has great skills by hand and foot and a very good footy brain - , something which we've lacked in our midfield - often see him do some very clever taps or passes to teammates that allow them to clear congestion and break lines (basketball influence is evident here). Plus you can combine this with speed, particularly the first 20m which he tested at below 3 seconds in the draft combine and his height & strength could make him into a very damaging midfielder that would rest up forward and still be damaging in front of goals. He should have about 5-6kgs at least on most midfielders, so by further adding to his core strength and learning how to use his body correctly he could become very damaging in congested situations. In theory He'll be able to break tackles, use a burst of speed to get clear of everyone else and then provide a pinpoint pass to a leading target up forward. Although his training regime will need adjustment, primarily his fitness base so that he can maintain high speeds for entire quarters and games. Often I noticed he was unable to chase down players and I believe in part this because he lacks the endurance to maintain his speed across the game (similar to Trengove), although it may partly be due to confidence/attitude in believing he can make those tackles. This is impossible to measure though and needs to be addressed outside of the gym and field. Obviously there are concerns regarding his attitude and desire for the contest, I'm not really worried about it personally. Firstly, Watts has shown improvements in this area and this has improved simultaneously with the confidence in his game and belief that he is an AFL player, albeit I don't think either have improved greatly from when he was drafted for various reasons. He has played his best games though when he has been able to get his hands on the ball and in my opinion its during these games he also shows the most desire for the ball. Playing in the midfield, against smaller bodies, he should be getting the ball a lot more and over the year I believe that there will be significant improvement in his hunt, desire and aggression to the ball and player. Although this is assuming he settles into the midfield well and finds some form, builds his confidence and belief. On a side note, I know that this happened in my footy. Like Watts, I'm a tall player that played up forward and was often criticised for not using my size enough but this year I was moved into the first ruck position (normally just a relief ruckman due to my inability to jump very high). I found that even though I was pretty average in the ruck that just playing in the midfield allowed me to get my hands on the ball and it eventually clicked that I was too big for midfielders to tackle effectively, so I could normally get a pass out. I also started just becoming much more aggressive in my game, being able to use my bigger body meant that I was for the first time confident to really attack the game. It also probably helped that I was also the fittest and strongest I've been in my life. At the end of the year I won my first B&F, something that was very unexpected considering that I've never won an award for footy besides participation awards (also lucky with a few well timed injuries and overseas holidays). I only mention this because I'm a similar height and the same age as Watts so I guess we'd be at similar stages of development and maturity (but there might be a bit of a difference to playing AFL footy and playing in the low divisions of Sydney AFL comp).

Usually Moonie, your posts have the effect of either a sedative or a suppository on me. However, this time you piqued my interest by helping me recall a moment from the past. I shall graciously share this with you and [censored]. I was attending a soiree of fellow degenerates during the 70’s. It was a classy affair and the theme required one to dress up as some sort of religious type. As befits my station I, of course, chose the Pontiff as my inspiration. As the evening advanced amid cheap pot and long necks, I made the acquaintance of a particularly fetching nun. To cut a long story short, said nun had a very broad interpretation of the vow of chastity and the evening ended satisfactorily. So whilst I have never joined the priesthood, i have been a Pope. And, as to priestesses, I believe there were some of those at the get together but I had already fallen into a bad habit.

banana fritters !!

And Clark? He's on the park less than Dawes. You can have worth off the field, and you can certainly show leadership there.

The best thing I can say about Dawes is that he feels like a Dees player. He has totally embraced the club from the moment he arrived which is to his credit. Now he just needs to stop getting injured..

Slamming your hand in a door is better fun than the 2013 season Redleg.

No player would ever be given a cast iron guarantee about being best 22, but Michie wouldn't have left a successful club that was trying to retain him if he wasn't pretty certain there was a spot for him in our best 22. Melbourne wooed him and they didn't do it to get him to Casey. To not assume he'll be in our best 22 is pretty dumb.

I like the confidence anyway. I like Jesse Hogan's strut and I like it that Dean Kent told a fan at a family day in last pre-season that he wasn't here to play for Casey. I thought his self belief was a key reason for his relatively successful first year. It showed in the way he played. Players who believe they can match it with the best probably will if they have the work ethic to go with it.

would hope that Hogan starts rnd 1 against a depleted and hopefully confused saints. He has played at Casey all season and showed that he can compete admirably at that level so is facing a different debut to Watts. Hopefully surrounded by Clarke Dawes and more hardened and experienced players he may get some support if required. The Watts debut was most noticeable for the treatment he received not being returned or even recognised by his teammates. He was continually double and even triple teamed and mobbed as his teammates avoided any retalaitory action and played with very subdued vigour. Maybe my memory has dimmed with age but that was the most disturbing feature of his debut . The coaching was obviously negligent and that has now been addressed . I am hoping Roos the experienced coach will prepare and structure the team to get the best out of our squad not just rnd 1 but all season.

If he's any good. Club should commit now. Start getting him ready

maybe the Gisborne one

I have to laugh. In the main most oohed and aaahed that Roos was coming . Roos who has that habit of plucking the less glossy players and melding them into a team and forging a formidable outfit. The second he starts doing it for us a lot of you start moaning and writing off the newbies . Ffs lets enjoy the ride. I reckon PR might just have this trick down.

Surely, we must be due for a season where we suffer less than the average number of injuries? I think that throughout the last 7 years when we've been down and out, we've always had long injury lists to compound our problems. I think the Swans (around 2005/6), Collingwood (2009/10) and North Melbourne (last 2 years) have all benefitted enormously from long breaks with few injuries. I'm sick and tired of us losing crucial players for long slabs of time and having long injury lists.

I'm just hoping that all our recruits from the last 2 years or so can get on the park and finally play some football. Who knows how much we could improve if we have [censored] all injuries for once

It seems that without our partnership the Scorps could soon be facing finito . Just bite the bullet and call them the Casey Demons playing in our former Away jumper of white with large demon motif . The colours would closely match the defunct Springvale Football Club ( Scorpions ) which could be acknowledged in similar vein to Brisbane/Sydney with an " S.F.C. " on the upper reverse side of the jumper.

Joe Daniher turned his back on the Swans and I bet he kicks himself every day. What a move, lol.

All we said was that he was not a superstar, just a very good player. That's just a fact. To say otherwise is just pointless, baised revisionism. He was our banner player, but some of the others running around at the same time being banner players for their club included Buckley, Riccuito, Black, Carey, Voss, Cousins, Goodes, Kirk, Brown, Hird, Judd etc these guys won premierships with their clubs because they were a bit better than what we had to offer.. after 2000 the best we were as a side was to finish 5th in 2006. Of course that it is not on Neita's shoulders, but to me it demonstrates why we never quite good enough in the Daniher era... Neitz, McDonald, White, Johnstone, Yze, Bruce, Robertson, Green, Whelan, Brown - solid group of players but a cut below the best sides of that era. BH said he would be disappointed if Hulk is 'only' as good as Neitz, I don't know how anyone can argue with that. We need Hogan, Viney, Toumpas, Jones, Frawley, Grimes, Watts, Howe, Tyson, Fitzy, McDonald, Trengove etc to be a bit better than the group that preceded them or we will be just also-rans again. At present they are noticeably inferior (younger, of course) to that group, a group that could at best make week 2 of the finals. Of course it is 'silly' to put such expectations on a kid but let's face it, he is in very rare company - in general, but especially for us - when you talk about having runs on the board before even officially being at the club. How many 17-18 year olds have won the reserves best and fairest off 2/3rds of a season, the answer is bugger all, if any.. and it's not like he is some dime-a-dozen midfielder who may well not cut at it the top level, he is a genuine beast key forward, in terms of sheer probability there is very little chance that he for some reason won't perform at AFL level. We have stuffed up a few recently but in this case surely the hype is warranted. Sure, if he equals Neitz and gets a BnF, 2xAll-Australian and a coleman, that will be great. But if we want to see a flag in our lifetimes we need him to be on the level of stars I listed earlier, and get half a dozen all-australian guernseys and up there in the voting for the Chas etc. Of course it is not all on him, we also need some of our other young guns to break through the glass ceiling that has been over our talent for some time. Like I said, as far as 'raw product' goes it really does not get any better than JH so we really need to be able to capitilise fully on this one... and yes, if we don't, I will find it disappointing.

To every so called Dee Supporter who has bagged David Neitz in any way you should be totally disgusted with yourself. Ben Hur & Curry & Beer top of the list of [censored] Neitz provided a contest every time he got near the ball and was a gun. From the moment the big fellow was forced to retire we turned into a crap team Hopefully young Hogan has a career as good but to put pressure on a kid who has kicked 30 odd goals in the VFL is utter stupidity

The latest article is still based on info from earlier in the year! No guess, when a guy looks you in the eye at the same height you just know!

Kinda like BP went for Lucas Cook to pay GCS back for picking Prestia & Tom Lynch..?

Here's a comparison... AFL Games: Neitz - 306 Hogan - 0 I'm excited as anyone, but let's let the kid play.

If Freeman is as quick as what is reported I want him. I think we lack a fair bit of leg speed. If he is gone by pick 9 I'm not worried who Roos will pick as long as its a midfielder wo will get some game time this year and has the size to mix it with the bigger bodies

From what I have seen from two training sessions last week (and I know it is very early in pre season) Evans is slightly ahead of Michie but only because he is not in the rehab group, at least for Friday's session. Toumpas is ahead of both of them, and is looking very much improved on last year's standard, Matt Jones is miles behind them both even though he is in the main training group. At the moment he cannot even beat Spencer and Gawn in the running. He has a very long way to go to get the AFL standard mid field running fitness. My guess with Roos' improved list this year and his standards of excellence, Matt Jones will be no more than a Casey back up in 2014.

On the MFC website. Monday 11th November - Gosch's Paddock - 9:30am

Must be putting it in the piggy bank.

I think he might have said Ben Lennon but I'm reading things a little differently. I get the feeling that much will depend on who Brisbane select because there are some suggestions that the Lions might go for a KP forward which might well change things dramatically for our pick.

I don't know if there is an official session on Monday but if so, I would be interested in how Max Gawn is travelling. This will hopefully be Max's first full and uninterrupted pre season and given his past history of injuries, he will benefit enormously if that happens. The consequence of having so much time missing from the track was that he often didn't have enough in the tank to see out games at AFL level but in the more easy paced VFL, his potential as a ruckman who could do damage when going forward was there for all to see. This preseason will be important for all of our players but none more so than Max. I've heard that he's already been working hard and I'd be keen to hear how he goes on Monday or whenever.

I'm saving up this post...

I think we've been through all the argy bargy about Liam, his rise and fall and his troubles over the past two years. The bloke's just trying to pick up the pieces and get his life in order. I understand he's been cleared to play his first game with the Tiwi tomorrow. Former Melbourne forward Liam Jurrah set to reunite with Austin Wonaeamirri at Tiwi Bombers Why don't we just wish him well in that and leave him be? I'll be looking for the results and supporting him with the hope that he and his community can all find some peace and contentment.

"Godfrey's kick was magnificent" (Eddie at 7.30)..... Not a sentence you heard every weekend Nice vid thanks

Love the 9 goals video. 5 minutes in and Eddie is praising Godders for his foot skills. You always knew we were gonna win when Simon Godfrey was hitting targets regularly.

I didn't say he was better than Neitz. What I said was: "the next David Neitz". This post is as much an appreciation as to exactly how good DN was, as to the potential of Jesse Hogan. I think it is important to point out that particularly in our recent past we had some outstanding teams and some superstars (and Neitz certainly was that). If those same young supporters can get excited about the potential of our current crop to turn into an elite team, then that would be fantastic. Anything we can do to build confidence in that we should. It is not all gloom and doom, and being a demon supporter in the future will be as rewarding as it was in the past for us in the 1990s and early 2000s. Jesse Hogan has the potential to build in the younger generation the excitement we had in watching DN in his prime.

You mean, as you edited above... Can't get anything past ol' rpfc.

With all due respect, you're not exactly the champion of optimism. If there's ever a chance to get a win at Etihad, it's when we don't have a losing record (yet), we have an opponent who ranks near us in terms of awfulness, we have a new coach and unbridled optimism, and any 'surprise' element we have with Hogan is still under wraps.

The price for all the directions is a training report!!

You know people are desperate for footy when they are scrounging to give directions to training!

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/sport/afl/melbourne-football-club-in-talks-with-the-son-of-steven-stretch/story-e6freckc-1226633208382