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Have a look at Tracs speed in this clip. That’s Hunt he chases down! He’s running like an absolute Jet and with his power, he’s going to absolutely dominate this year.

Go for the bigger picture. Firstly, it's the club with apparently the biggest problem in racial matters and therefore on that metric most in need of his counsel. Secondly, most coaches become better at their craft if exposed to alternative processes. Should Jetta wish to move to coaching adding a second (and possibly more) clubs to his CV will be good for him.

Nup, that’s not me….but I still do have my front door (photo attached) and front gate painted in demons colours!!

I had the good fortune to attend all the suburban grounds. Its was footy in the raw. Honest, gritty and hard. For fans the conditions could be cold, wet, muddy and damn well inhospitable. But on a dry day, you were up close and personal to both the play and the spectators. You could see and hear the whacks and the intensity of play. As a kid, it was an education. The first time I heard men swearing, the first time I witnessed punch ups in the crowd, , got showered with beer, taken to the game. A kid with grown men. Treated as an equal. A ritual and an initiation. Watching the footy gods stride the turf. And don’t ever say that the Demons of the 64 era were soft. They were tough and ruthless. Of course, we would not stand for the playing and spectator conditions today. However it was exciting then and memorable now. Favourite ground was probably the Lakeside. Swans fans were not too bad. The outer at other grounds could be frightening. But it was an education, an exercise in growing up. Of becoming a man. The game has become professional but has lost so much character.

I pity the poor player who lines up against vandenBerg in the Amateurs.

Love those colours….

Please tell me this was done in slow motion, running towards each other with outstretched arms, before twirling around and falling into the sand together, as waves washed over the two of you.

I think the design is brilliant https://www.melbournefc.com.au/news/1048431/melbourne-launches-inaugural-pride-guernsey - keeps our traditional colours an weaves the Pride colours in too. Am fascinated to see what it looks like from the back.

Part 4: Dees top 100 of the past 50 years 21-40 In my second part of the series, I made the point that while we struggled to produce flags, we have been the home of quality ruckman. The following list makes it clear that we also have been a great nursery for wingmen. Based on Ed Langdon’s and Angus’ effort last season, the gut-running role is now regaining the status it once had, even if the All-Australian selectors keep overlooking true wings for midfielder masters. But how can four outside runners – Stretcher, Stinga, Stanley and Trappa - make our top 30 and there’s still two more to come next week? As we near the finish, the quality of the players on the list continues to rise and in one sense that makes it easy to rank players. But one player many of you will query is Allen Jakovich. Let us know what you think. 21 Steven Stretch 86-93 164 games, 71 goals Ok, so we all have heard about how he almost jumped the fence to avoid a Dipper tackle in the 1988 grand final. But don’t let that fool you, Billy’s dad was a ripping talent and one of the key reasons why we had success under Northey. Drafted as a 22-year-old from West Torrens, he arrived in 1986 and immediately gave us outside dash and run in a manner that Ed Langdon has in the past two seasons. He was good in the air and a long drop punt kick to boot – a bit of a Craig Bradley type. He won our B&F in 1987 and had been in our best against Dipper and Pritchard in our win against the Hawks early in 88, but come grand final, Swooper got panicky about Dunstall on Danny Hughes and with Strawb suspended, sent Stretch to full-back. To this day I have no idea why you’d want to mess with a winning line-up. He played five more seasons for us and was always prolific, even when playing off half-back on occasions and then with his numbers and influence falling, he was traded to Fitzroy. 22 Cameron Bruce 00-10 224 games, 210 goals I still wonder what he might have been had we spotted him a bit earlier than we did as a 19-year-old playing amateurs with Melbourne High Old Boys. I mean he just had this elegant way of turning and baulking out of traffic. He kicked a goal with his first kick in Rd 1 of 2000 and only an injury in our preliminary final cost him a spot in our grand final line up. He had an amazing tank, which is why the Reverend often employed him as a “gentlemen’s’ tagger, but by 2005 he was just so hot as an onballer that he had eight Brownlow votes in the first three rounds, before Brent Guerra injured him in a tackle. Built a bit like Robbie Flower, he just oozed class and was at his best in our 2006 elimination final win against St Kilda. He won our B&F in 2008, but by 2010, things at the Dees had got messy and even though he was then our highest-paid player, he opted to transfer to the Hawks, where he was plagued with soft-tissue injuries. 23 Russell Robertson 97-09 228 games, 428 goals It’s hard to believe that a video of him taking hanger for Burnie that appeared on the Footy Show led to Robbo being drafted in 1996. A dismal finish to 97 saw Robbo gifted the last three games that year and he showed a penchant for kicking goals, even back then as a half-forward. In ensuing years, “Robbo, keep your feet” became Daniher’s catchcry as he flew for everything before invariably falling to the ground, but by 2000 he’d become indispensable snagging 44 goals playing third fiddle to Neiter and Schwarter. He won our B&F in 2003 and kept getting better at his craft and if you want to see him at his finest, watch a replay of how he almost single-handedly took down Geelong at Kardinia Park with seven goals in 2005. He kicked 73 goals for us that year. By 2008 his body started breaking down a bit with his achilles tendon snapping and he retired in 2009 with a Rd 21 cameo five goals against Carlton. 24 Brad Green 00-12 254 games, 350 goals A Launceston boy who oozed sporting talent being a member of Australia’s under-15 cricket team and trialling with Manchester United as a 15 year old. But after a couple of years with the Tassie Mariners, footy took priority and we took the brash youngster with pick 19 and it paid immediate dividends with his awareness around goal in the 2000 qualifying final leading us to an upset of Carlton. Such was his rising celebrity, that Sheeds sent Dean Wallis to brutally wipe him out in the first minute of the granny. He loved goals, especially ones soccered off the ground and he was a beautiful left-foot kick. Daniher sent him to the wing in 2006 in order to get him more in the play, but he probably was a yard short of pace to really make it there and at 182cm, not tall enough to play a key post, although he did a pretty good job of it in 2010 when he converted 55 goals mainly from full-forward in a Bayley Fritsch style role. He won our B&F that year, narrowly missing an AA spot. He was made captain in 2011 and then somewhat rudely cast aside by Mark Neeld for the role the following year. Maybe it was the way he celebrated, but he always seemed to have a smile on his face. 25 Stan Alves 65-76 226 games 174 goals He was skipper for four years from 73-76 and won two B&F in that time and was part of the most amazing centreline of all time – Alves, Wells and Flower – I only caught the tailend of Clay, Barrot and Bourke and our guys were more skillful. Stan’s 1975 was amazing, he even kicked five against the Tigers one game and finished runner-up to Gary Dempsey by one vote in the Brownlow, although he didn’t win our B&F that year. The problem was that the rest of our side was flawed at that stage and he ended up realising that at 30, if he didn’t jump ship to the Roos for 1977, then a flag wasn’t going to be on his resume and starting in 1965, he’d just missed our golden era. He was ahead of his time when it came to fitness and his battles with the likes of Schimma, Keith Greig and Ricky Barham were invigorating back then. 26 Allen Jakovich 91-94 47 games, 201 goals Ok, so I’m sure Gen Ys and X’s will be saying how can you rate a player with just 47 games so highly. But Jako was special. He was our version of Phil Carman, except that it took Swooper nine weeks to realise it. Jako was the older, smaller brother of Glen, and after two stunning seasons at Woodville in the SANFL kicking 101 goals in 1990, the 23-year-old played round 1 of 1991 for us against a niggardly, nasty Eagles side under Mick Malthouse that won their first 12 games. We only kicked two goals in Subiaco that day, and Jako was sent to the reserves where his freak show at the lower level began. His second game in Adelaide came in Rd 10 and it wasn’t much better so back he went to the magoos. But after 60 goals in 10 games back there, he was promoted for a third time and was handy against the Hawks and then the show began with successive hauls of 8,6,6,8,7 and 11 against the Roos that included a scissor kick goal and one from the boundary and a fine for backchatting from the umps. Like Willow, he had bigger than normal hips and that meant that even at 193cm he could outbody opponents and he could turn on to either foot and kick 50m on the run. He ended up with 71 goals from just 14 games in 1991 including eight in our elimination final win against Essendon, but from then on he had the odd issue with injuries, the occasional suspension from umpires and even a few dressing downs from Northey who clearly felt he was way too selfish for his liking. His final game in 1994 was an eight-goal effort against the Hawks in Rd 17, but injuries meant he missed the finals that year and we didn’t renew his contract so he took his show off to Footscray, which only lasted seven more games. 27 Travis Johnstone 98-07 160 games, 111 goals The grandson of Lions great Norm Johnstone lived in Chelsea and was taken with pick No.1 in 1997 and clearly could play – he had amazing vision and could hit targets with such ease. But he wasn’t noted for training his heart out and while part of that could be attributed to groin and hamstring injuries, it’s probably more true that Trappa never really had the work ethic because he was naturally so good and depending on your rumour file, liked a bit of the green stuff. He played in our 2000 GF but it was his four-goal final in 2002 against Adelaide that was truly memorable – what a precocious talent. It wasn’t until 2005 that he really put a good season together for the Reverend and won the Bluey Truscott, but in 2006 he was back to his lazy, laconic ways. Our demise in 2007 led to him being traded, heading to Brisbane to get his Lions jumper. His final game for us was against Carlton in the Kreuzer Cup and he compiled 42 disposals, so you can imagine what he could have been had he embraced hard work. 28 Sean Wight 85-95 150 games He arrived at the club in 1984 as part of Barry Richardson and Barassi’s Irish experiment and did a year playing with such talents as John Fidge in our Under 19s. He got a handful of games in 1985 and 86 and to much laughter from fans, kicked three goals against the reigning premier Bombers at Windy Hill in his first year. But a knee injury and his somewhat weird manner of tapping the ball backwards in the air, meant that it wasn’t until 1987 that Northey put faith in his dash and played him down back. He was unbelievable in our win against Footscray that year and a cult hero throughout that finals campaign. He was toyed with as a forward in 88 and kicked four goals in our prelim win over the Blues, but when fit he became our pack-crashing full-back from 1991. In 94 he enjoyed a memorable victory at the MCG over Gary Ablett keeping him to six touches. Payback from Gazza came later that year with 10 down at Kardinia Park. 29 Stephen Tingay 89-00 162 games, 84 goals I am not sure Melbourne initially thought Stinga was that good. Firstly after drafting him from Shepparton with pick 50 they made him play a season with our under-19s and then gave him No.52. He came off the bench in Rd 1 of 89 and had just one kick – but it was the matchwinner against Fitzroy so he knew how to get attention. Later he expanded things to a weight-room induced six-pack and peroxide locks and a bit of nude modelling – hate to think what he’d have done nowadays with Instagram and TikTok. By 1990, he’d became a very confident, dashing wingman who loved taking a bounce and thumping the ball into our forward 50. He played a starring role in our Rd22 win over the Hawks. His battles with Collingwood’s Darren Millane back then were pretty special, and off-season he suffered similar adversity falling through a plate glass window and severing tendons in his right wrist that almost ended his career. It wasn’t until 1994 that he really came of age, wearing Robbie’s No.2 and making the All-Australian side and finishing behind only Garry Lyon in the Bluey. Freo tried to steal him and he often hit the news for the wrong reasons. A lingering hip/buttock problem from his window accident seemed to limit his involvement, although he was a key member of our 98 finals campaign under the Reverend. Injuries cost him in 2000 and it’s fair to say he didn’t quite achieve what he could have. 30 Shane Woewodin 97-02 138 games Ok, so let’s get one thing straight. Woey had an outstanding 2000 and it wasn’t just because he’d started dying his hair. He’d been diligently building his game since being taken pre-season as a dour defender from East Fremantle. He played every game that year and in our bounce back 1998 and was one of our best in our loss to the Roos in the prelim. In ’99 when thing went awry, Daniher threw him into the middle for the last few games and realised he had something and a star of the new millennium was born. If you happened to be at the MCG in our come from behind win over the Cats in 2000, you would have probably backed him for the Charlie. He had 35 disposals and kicked four goals as he became an elite member of our running brigade with his ability to baulk on to his left. He probably hadn’t slept for five days come the granny given the number of interviews he did post Brownlow night, so 19 disposals against the Dons wasn’t that bad really. I think his numbers plummeted like the Twin Towers in 2001 and I still recall him going back with the flight in our QB Pies clash and getting crunched on the wing by a pack that included Sav. Like many I was shocked when we traded him to the Pies at the end of 2002 as the club tried to squeeze out of its contract with him – it put me off drinking my Woey Brownlow port bottle for some time. 31 Aaron Davey 04-13 178 games, 174 goals Everyone loved Aaron from the moment we were able to snaffle him via the rookie draft. He’d come from Darwin and North Melbourne had got him to play a season at Port Melbourne just to be sure, but on the back of a shocking season we had pick 3, well before North’s pick 7. The Reverend knew straight away he was on a winner promoting him for round 1 against the Dawks. Nicknamed the Flash (the Whiz was already taken), he was just so lively from the outset bouncing this way and that way and then turning on to his left foot and snagging the goal of the week. But it was his amazing chase down tackles on unsuspecting defenders that rejigged coaching methods and forced all clubs to search for similar prototypes. He probably should have won the Rising Star in 2004, but he did win our B&F in 2009 when Bailey sent him down back, possibly to reduce his susceptibility to hamstring strains. 32 Laurie Fowler 75-81 140 games A tough, old school defender, Fowler achieved infamy in four years at Richmond by knocking out Carlton ruckman John Nicholls soon after the bounce of the 1973 grand final, but he was left out of the Tigers 1974 grand final side and casted off to Melbourne, where he became a fixture in the back pocket and even had the odd game as ruck rover kicking three goals in a gritty win over the Saints in 1976 and winning our B&F in 1979 and 80, ahead of a cast that included Robbie Flower and Greg Wells. He played for Victoria a couple of times as well. His career-high 29 kicks came against the Tigers in 1977 and the umps loved the way he put his body (and head) on the line, giving him more free kicks than Joel Selwood. By the end of 1981, he surprisingly left to go to the VFA – not sure if his departure was ever fully explained but Barassi’s style did have its detractors. 33 Jake Lever 18- 61 games It’s rumoured that he would have been taken by us with Angus in 2014 if not for the Saints decision to opt for McCartin ahead of Petracca. And it’s not his fault that he proved a costly recruit when we had to give up two first-rounders for the Adelaide grand final youngster. Our footy department was obviously always keen on the Romsey lad so picking up a then 21-year-old with a moustache was no big deal. He was coming off a great season with the Crows and he was useful in the 2017 grand final against the Tigers, even though his defection meant he was spitefully told to skip their B&F count. Initially a lot of us wanted him to be the tall key defender that May currently is but he’s not that sort of player – he just reads the game so well and is the master of the intercept mark having amazing aerial judgment on top of being courageous. He was a big part in us making the 2018 finals but when he went down with knee issues against the Dogs, it probably cost him two years as it wasn’t until 2020 that he started looking super confident, baulking when needed and directing traffic. He didn’t miss a game in 2021, won an All-Australian spot, and set an AFL record for most intercepts. He’s 33 here, but two more seasons like he’s just had and he’s top 10 all-time material. 34 Steven Febey 87-01 258 games 40 goals One of only nine Dees to play more than 250 games, I used to wonder if Febes could have made the Australian Olympic team as a middle-distance runner. The boy from Devonport came via the No.3 pick in the first official draft and played in two grand finals – 1988 and 2000, although I’m not sure he’ll care to remember too much about them. But as a half-back he was incredibly reliable – always getting back to help – he and twin brother Matthew once combined for 74 disposals against Brisbane in 1994 and yes, they did look for each other as all twins do. Post career hasn’t been easy on Febey, he was caught up in the aftermath of the Bail bombings with Steven Armstrong and has had to battle depression but it was nice to see him back cheering on the lads in 2021. 35 Christian Salem 14- 130 games He started out as a small forward and memorably kicked the matchwinner after the siren against Essendon in his first season but with his ability to quickly put the ball so precisely on his left foot, there was only one spot for him as our defensive safety net. He had a couple of years being taught the tricks by Jordy Lewis, but what he worked on more than anything is his one-on-one defence – he’s now more than capable of shutting down his man as well and let’s face it, most of the time he’s up against a taller, quicker opponent – yet he reads it so well and that’s why Salo can’t be exploited going the other way, unlike fellow quarter-back Daniel Rich who often is at Brisbane. He had a career-high 39 disposals against Richmond this year and snagged an early goal against the flow, so as good as Trac was that evening, I think the wrong “Christian” got the Anzac medal. 36 Bayley Fritsch 18- 85 games 118 goals – 59 in 2021 It’s going to be hard now separating the true Bayley Fritsch and the one who kicked six goals in our epic grand final win. He kicked 59 goals for the year, only Tom Hawkins kicked more for the year. And he lifted for the finals, kicking four including a memorable mark and conversion in our win over the Lions. Only six years earlier he was playing at Coldstream and looked likely to follow in his father’s 360-game footsteps at the Eastern Footy League club. After missing out on the draft, thankfully he decided to try his luck at Casey and the Dees realised the lovely left-footer had a fair bit of talent and flair. But with no early picks and his reputation growing after 42 goals in the Frosty Miller VFL medal, we had to offload Jack Watts for a second-rounder and It’s fair to say it paid off big time. Fritta wears No.31, Ron Barassi’s famous guernsey that appeared jinxed until he was given it. Remember Tom Scully among many abject failures. 37 James McDonald 97-10 251 games It’s hard to downplay a 251 gamer who became skipper at an incredibly unstable time, but here goes - Junior was never a star of our club. But he was incredibly loyal and hardworking and that’s why he featured in the guts for almost all of his games, the exception being his first three years when he came off the rookie list and was plonked on a flank and told to give the Wiz some room to move. As with brother Anthony, he had to travel a hard road to AFL via Old Xavs, but once he got his tank up to speed he became very useful as a tagger and in 2000 became a regular, even starring against the Swans before a knee injury cost him a spot in the finals – would he have done a better job on James Hird than Brent Grgic … rhetorical question. He set a then AFL record for tackles (143) in 2006 and claimed the first of two Bluey Truscott Medals. He was also All-Australian that year and averaged 23 touches so he was no hack. But such was his work ethic that he was captaincy material, taking over from David Neitz in 2008. He was pushed out of the club at the end of 2010 in a manner that still irks many today. 38 Colin Sylvia 04-13 157 games, 129 goals So here’s a player who’s hard to rate. I mean on his day he was everything that Christian Petracca is nowadays – like the time he slammed home five against the Tigers in 2010. He was thickset and should have become a Dusty type, but he never seemed to have quite the training application – being a bit of a country lad. He’d played in Merbein’s flag side as a 15-year-old and I reckon he would have drunk quite a few beers that night. It’s unfair to Junior and Cam Bruce to say that he didn’t have the right role models around him back then, but there was definitely an issue of trust and he always seemed the one blamed for not applying the zone defence correctly or for failing to man up when needed and he also had a habit of turning up sozzled at training sessions. As a result he didn’t achieve anywhere near the carnage on the field that he looked capable of when drafted from the Pioneers with pick No.3 in 2003. Eventually management got jack of him and we sent him to Fremantle as part of the Bernie Vince deal. His death in a car accident near Mildura in 2018 was a sad end. Those that knew him reckon Col was a loveable, knockabout character. I prefer to remember him on song nailing 55m drop punts or the day he kicked three goals in three minutes on his way to 37 touches and three Brownlow votes in our loss to the Hawks in 2009. 39 Steven May 19- 48 games There is a case to be made that he’s our best true full-back … full stop. I mean Tassie Johnson had stints up forward while Sean Wight began as a livewire half-back and up forward before replacing Danny Hughes. But best FB in history is a big call given he only came to our club as a 27-year-old in 2019 and in his first season copped a whack from Goody for being unfit and “beer’ prone. But given he’s one of our highest paid players – his original deal is said to have been $750K a year – a few questions were being raised, especially given Ben King looked so good. But Maysie got down to working hard to reduce weight and is now so revered that he’s a member of our leadership group. He’s also the most classy full-back we’ve ever had, with a measured left-foot that can travel 60m or 25m bang on target. On top of that he seems to relish shutting down the star forwards – it’s just so nice to have someone who can play on Hawkins, Lynch and Dixon and win most of the time. He’s just turned 30, so hopefully he can be just as frugal for a few more years yet. If so a spot in our Best Team of 150 years awaits. 40 Steven Smith 74-85 203 games, 144 goals He was still 20 in 1976 when he seemed destined for greatness as our CHF, part of a spine that included Ray Biffin, Greg Wells and Gary Hardeman. At that stage he appeared to glide through the air and take marks all over the ground - a bit like Garry Lyon in his heyday. But 1977 was a bad year for everyone and he missed half of it with injury and he never really developed into a star up forward, so Barassi sent him down back where he won our B&F in 1981. Being a nice kick and a smart player he was pretty useful as our full-back, but he also infamously became another Leigh Matthews victim at Princes Park in 1984. A bit of a surprise choice of opponent that day given his size, Smith had aerial superiority and outplayed the champ before being dispatched in Lethal fashion. Not sure he was awake for the club song that day but given wins against the Hawks were a bit of a rarity back then, I’m sure it was a rousing one. He's one of four players to have played over 200 games that never appeared in a final along with Saints Trevor Barker, Geoff Cunnighman and our own Gary Hardeman. https://demonland.com/forums/topic/52027-part-3-top-100-demons-of-the-past-50-years/ https://demonland.com/forums/topic/51988-part-2-top-100-players-of-the-past-50-years-61-80/ https://demonland.com/forums/topic/51962-top-100-demons-of-past-50-years/

FoxSports have an article - What every delisted and retired AFL player has planned for 2022 These snippets on a club by club basis are of interest as far as the Melbourne Demons and Casey Demons are concerned ~ BRISBANE LIONS Brock Smith (delisted) – TBC, but likely to play in the VFL and has been linked to the Casey Demons. {Note: Brock Smith 20 189cm 92kg “Brock Smith was selected at Pick 33 at the 2019 NAB AFL Draft and is a defender who can play both defensive and offensive roles. The Gippsland Power Captain can also provide offensive run rebounding off the half back. Smith is known for his terrific character and ability to defend various opponents.”} FREMANTLE Reece Conca (delisted) – Player Development Manager at Melbourne (AFL) GWS GIANTS Matt Buntine (delisted) – Casey Demons (VFL) and Caulfield Grammarians (VAFA) {Note: Matt Buntine 28 189cm 85kg Matt Buntine was selected by the GIANTS at pick five in the 2011 NAB AFL Draft and made his AFL debut in round eight, 2012. The defender, from the Dandenong Stingrays in Victoria, was named in the GIANTS’ emerging leaders group before the 2014 season and joined the official leadership group in 2016 for a season. A knee reconstruction in 2017 interrupted his career before he fought back into the side, playing in the 2018 finals series. Buntine is studying a Bachelor of Education, completing a coaching course and has ambitions of becoming a PE teacher post-football.“} HAWTHORN Tom Scully (retired) – Will continue his work in the police force 😵‍💫 MELBOURNE Austin Bradtke (delisted) – TBC, but was training with Frankston (VFL) prior to Christmas and took part in match simulation. Kye Declase (delisted) – Werribee (VFL) Marty Hore (delisted) – Given permission to train with North Melbourne (AFL) over summer in the hope of being selected in the SSP Neville Jetta (retired) – Development coach and VFL player at Collingwood (AFL) Nathan Jones (retired) – TBC, but has been linked to a part-time role at an AFL club Jay Lockhart (delisted) – Southport Sharks (VFL) Aaron Nietschke (delisted) – Central District (SANFL) Aaron vandenBerg (delisted) – Old Xaverians (VAFA)

Daniel Talia (delisted) – TBC, but unlikely to play as he recovers from foot and ankle injuries. He’s exploring whether to hop into the real estate and/or stockbroking industries. Somebody's got a sense of humour!

Today I was listening to the 3AW call while in the shed. Got into the 3rd qtr and Bont just kicked his 3rd. I think Lloyd stated that the dogs had kicked 8goals to 1 since qtr time. How often had we got off to a good start over the years to be dominated for the rest of the game. Man ... No wonder I was in a dark tunnel at the time watching the game live. "C'mon .... Not in the forkin' Grand Final." I turned it off. Will listen to the rest tomoz when I start weeding the yard. Hope we make a comeback.

I consider myself luck to have been to these grounds and the good fortune of being at Princes Park in 85 to beat hawthorn, and 98 when we beat Carlton. Was at Windy hill in 90 for the comeback, Moorabbin in 91 for the Jako show and 1 pt win and his other show in 92 at Vic Park to knock them off top spot. Western oval 87 (my favourite day until 25/09/2021) and even had the good fortune to watch us beat Fitzroy at the Junction oval in 85 and Geelong at Kardinia Park in 88 (the country train travelling as 13 year olds alone was awesome). Never got to Lakeside or Arden S., they finished just before I started going regularly as a kid. The one thing I miss about those grounds was winning at those venues was always much tougher and when you did win it always felt like a win against the odds with a bit more meaning and excitement to a MCG win. I can also say that I never really felt unsafe at any of the grounds, although I do kunderstand the mid 80's were different to the mid 70's from all reports at these venues. Always was worse going to Waverley and catching the bus and then train to Flinders ST to then back up on train 2 on the broady line and walking home from Glenroy station was always a far bigger risk. Walking home in recent years from Denis station and then Eaglemont station to the house hasn't felt right without the need to look over the shoulder to see if the 3047 boys are about to try and decapitate you! Miss those days

This is actually quite useful as I happen to be calibrating an old CRT TV at the moment...

My brother had a paper round and back in the day he loved selling the Herald on a Saturday if North had a win as all the old blokes at the pubs after the match would tip really well. He used to take me with him because he would make way more in tips with a little sister in tow. One pub in particular, the Shakespeare, iirc in Dryburgh Street, had the same bunch of regulars. The old blokes would give my brother extra tips if he could get me to sing for them. So I’d (reluctantly) bust out a few lines of Oh My Darling Clementine, it was the only song I knew. And the tips would instantly double. Years later, as adults, we were reminiscing and I said, “I can’t believe you used to pimp me out like that!” He says, “Hey! You never had a problem with it while eating your weight in Eskimo Pies!” 😆

Hi Demonland I received my Demonland Beanie today all the way from Charlotte USA. It is a superior quality and I think that my wife has claimed it. Great Product.😀❤️💙

I was talking about Brock Smith. But in regards to your question yes I think Buntine and Tom Bugg were two players that was rumoured to be the pick 2 swap.

The Round 23 Geelong game was as outlandish a period of Geelong dominance as you'll ever see. What they did simply wasn't sustainable (that game, and the PF, proved it). Everything went their way, in a period of quite literal perfection. I put very, very little stock in that run. If sides want to try to repeat it, good luck to them. As to the Dogs, yes, they were on top for a fair part of the GF through the second and third quarters. The way they played that game, and Round 19 when they beat us, is far more indicative of how I expect opponents to approach us in 2022. But it has to be remembered that the Dogs are the only side to bat deeper than us in the middle. No other side is as stacked in that part of the ground as they are, not to mention with a top 5 player (Bontempelli) in there to boot.

Gotta love the number 14 Lily Mithen. She’s a dynamo both on field as she plays with great intensity but also her fun vibrant fast thinking personality off field. Daisy. Lily. Libby. Such great teammates and leaders for this Dees team.

I'd still back Hunt.

I didn’t think Conca was brought in to play at Casey but if Covid19 makes it necessary for clubs to temporarily list add on players from second tier affiliates, this trio could prove handy.

done Conti's was a ripper goal too

view from the back here: https://www.melbournefc.com.au/news/1048529/aflw-round-3-game-day-guide

You need to sack your IT guy 😅

Smith was at 18 on our draft board. Smith, Buntine and you’d have to assume Conca would be a decent trio of experience to add to Casey. Conca in particular could be a nice break in case of emergency recruit. Lockhart might be a sneaky chance to play for the Suns if covid rages and he’s at Southport

thanks WJ ,I enjoy posts that provide an information content rather than just opinion .This post managed to encapsulate all relevant player movement both at The Dees and Casey so it is a very handy reference source .

Sorry...it may have seemed that I was being critical. That was not my intent. I love a criticism of anything to do with Collingwood as much as the next person. I also wanted to praise Jetta for going where it seems he's most needed at the moment.

Well George on the Outer was on the outer again at Casey this morning, since the gates are locked to prevent the plague ridden populace from entering... Still got to observe through the fence, which is as good as we football starved individuals can get, so we will take it. I counted 40ish players on the track, with Harmes and Rosman doing rehab of some sort, mainly running, stopping and restarting type of exercise. What sort of injury that means...perhaps more of the medically trained posters can help. Now it was difficult to see who wasn't there, due to this fence previously mentioned, and the wearing of bibs at times. However these days they all have numbers on their backs, apart from one unidentified player. Still I couldn't see Ed Langdon out there, although he does wear an invisibility cloak, which prevents opposition players from seeing him during the game. Perhaps he was wearing it today? Not sure if Melksham was there, but given the numbers of Covid expemptions reported from other clubs this week, it was quite literally a healthy list on the ground. Observations: God awful music being played through the loudspeakers. Screaching girl bands and moaning rejects from the Voice, Idol or repetitive rap could only make the players listen intently to the coaches. You sure as Hell couldn't listen to that other rubbish! Apart from the usual warm-ups, kicking drills with the Mark Williams striped ball, and another with huge foam goal posts erected mid-ground to do what I don't know, there was one which really took the eye. It was virtually a full match type game, with umpires, but the speed was simply incredible. Switch, switch back and then some more saw the ball move at lightning speed around the ground and from one end to the other. If this style is introduced through an already Premierhsip side, watch out opposition teams. There was little fixed position as players roamed wide to create opportunity, and then even more. Difficult to describe, but the team with the ball would rip right through the defenders and only a misplaced kick would see possession lost...then that opposition would do the same in return. The poor umpires never caught up with the speed and were trying to whistle 20, 30, 50 metres behind where the ball was. The only downside was the goal-kicking , but I suspect it wasn't the aim of the drill. Still an excuse could be they have moved the goal-posts at Casey, and players seemed to be kicking to where they used to be. Standouts were Oliver, Salem and May. Oliver just steps through defenders and just keeps going and going. Just when he looks cornered, he just bursts out again. Salem the same, how no-one can tackle him is amazing, and he always keeps bobbing up with ball in hand to deliver accurately. May is well over his hamstring injury from the PF, and just kept dragging down mark after mark. Another that took the eye was Majak Daw, playing forward. Really strong marking and leading, he was a challenge to be able to control in the air for May, Petty and Lever. All the new recruits were there, but with the viewing curtailed it was difficult to focus on what they were doing or not. And when the rain started, this wimpy reporter thought better of standing alone and headed for home, leaving the players to finish the session in peace.

Don't get me wrong, I'm very happy for him and Collingwood needs his influence way more than any other club. I just always pictured him around our club post retirement.

apparently they will then move onto naming them after universes..........infinite number 😪

He was also highly rated by our recruiters in his draft year due to his high leadership qualities. Would be a great pick up for Casey.

As a kid I had Steven Smiths number on my back. Every game the players would kick a footy or 2 into the cheer squad on the outer wing. One game Steven Smith headed over with a footy. I turned around to show him his number on my back. He sent it straight too me. Bloke in front of me marked it. Was spewing.

Lucky the Greek alphabet only has 24 letters so there's only 9 more variants to go 🤣

Paraphrasing Aristotle, and / or Erasmus' translation, But this particular Sparrow makes me very happy, and makes my whole year, not just the spring of 2021; and that (not really brief but ongoing) period of happiness does in fact make me supremely blessed and happy (though also very hungry for more).

I really do not like the thought of the last touch OOB free - IMO it would only encourage a player shepherding the ball OOB without even trying to keep it in play, and also unfairly penalise the spoil by a deep defender or a disputed marking contest. But deliberate needs to be actually deliberate - I know the R 23 Brayshaw absolutely absurd penalty ultimately worked in our favour, but the [censored] who made that call clearly had zero feel for the game or the situation.

We hadn't moved here yet in 1976 but I remember a story someone told me about that last game of the season in 1976 at Victoria Park. There was a group of Melbourne diehards than we in the cheer squad named the grog squad and they used to hang around just behind us at away games just incase any trouble kicked off. From memory I think they were John Hartman, Ian Ball, a guy that was just called Animal who wore a brown oilskin coat and akubra hat ensemble plus one or two others. Anyway, after the game one of these guys tapped the nearest Collingwood supporter on the shoulder and said, "here, I believe this is yours" and handed him a wooden spoon. I think that might be the only one they've ever won in their history.

Just voted. Easily the best mark and the best goal. ❤️💙 COME ON EVERYONE… VOTE!

It's been done six times in the last 23 years. It's almost negligent not to do it.

88 Prelim. Garry Lyon Torp that went 80 metres. Pissing down with rain, cold and 5th row from the fence and didn't care.

I know people get a bit antsy about the Afl and causes for want of a better word. However this and mental health are definitely worth rallying around. And so often these two things are sadly connected.The suicide rate in Oz is becoming a national tragedy. Reach out anyone, I beg you if you are struggling.

Looks great. Seems to have a few triggered on the socials which is a bonus.

In relation to the delaying tactics, I want that stupid school-boy looking act of standing on top of the player where the mark would be meaning the player who’s earned the free-kick/mark had to either crawl out or be ridden like a horse be penalised immediately. Firstly it looks pathetic, the player doing it looks like a 5 year old doing play fighting with his 7 year old brother. Secondly it is easily the most deliberate act of time wasting that every team does. It looks childish and it’s a blight on the game. The umpire should communicate immediately “step back, let the player up” as soon as their up “there’s your mark, stand”. If the player doesn’t move, 50m penalty. It won’t happen but I would’ve also like to see the protected area/stand your mark rule reduced to 25m instead of 50m. Seems like such a harsh penalty for a relative innocuous rule breach. Comparatively it’s the same penalty as doing something deliberately dangerous and late. Doesn’t feel right to me.

I'm a 40 year plus supporter who suffered through the horrible 70's 80's .......yeah, until now, and thought I was a broken, negative viewer, but this list and its MFC support staff have convinced me that we are about to enjoy the success that only a power club can bring. We have been set up brilliantly by our recruiters and developed perfectly by our coaches. It's been said that when the Dees win flags, it is in multiples, and I see absolutely zero reason to doubt that this will be the case with our current list, provided the hunger remains as consistent as our injury list. I'm looking forward to a few more flags before this bunch begins to disband.

Still seems hard to fathom at times, even if I have watched the replay over forty times.

http://images2.naharnet.com/images/187054/w460.jpg?1466172426 Great report by George but before I get onto it, Adjacent Casey fields is a large lake which I'm reliably informed contains plenty of fish and I just wonder if the sign above presents as an even more challenging scenario. Agree with George re music, just and endless cacopheny of mind numbing techno crap. Dont know what it gives the players but who am I to argue given that,last year it resulted in a Premiership. One other thing George didn't add was the plague of Flies hundreds of them! Anyway on with the report! Weather was shizzen about 10 seasons in one day and like George under cover accomodation outside the ground is harder to find than Rocking Horse Sheeit! REHAB ROSMAN, SPARGO ( in Parts) HARMES and during training it appeared CHANDLER may have done a groin? SKILLS DRILLS AND MANOEVERS. Well covered by GEORGE but agree the match simulations were a thing of beauty, players are intinctively now confident to KNOW 1 Where to go 2 Who to go to as in selecting correct option 3 Skillful enough to execute precisely DRILL A WARM UPS DRILL B MATCH SIMS DRILL C KAMIKAZE PLAYER BLITZSKILL ( Players zone of have a couple of harrasers and deliverers need to pick correct target from multiple options and kick to player on lead DRILL D MORE MATCH SIMS DRILL E CLOSE CONTACT TACKLES DRILL F ONE ON ONE MARKING SIMS PLAYER WATCH Competition for places will be and is WHITE HOT!! Not only do the current 23 continue to train to high standards but the second tier are also training the house down, players such as MAJAK, MELKY, DEAKIN S, J SMITH, ADAM T, MITCH B, J JORDAN, TOBY B, are displaying the type of improvement that drives up standards. Perhaps the guy I'm most looking forward to seeing is LUKE DUNSTAN, Wow what a pile driver he is just relentless in his ball hunting ability, think Stephen Powell and youl get the picture. Jayden hunt looks lean and hungry as does Adam Tomlinson. THE NEWBIES In some drills I can just see why we chosse these guys all are profficient with skills and already seem to know and appreciate the work required to make it in an elite Football Club which is not only the oldest club in Australia but one where standards are being continually stretched , redefined and enhanced. One bloke who I didn't know had no number on his back but by Gee was he nippy and elusive with some KOSSY like tendencies. HIGHLIGHTS. 1 Tom Sparrow outmarking MAX in a one on one 2 Clarry recreating his victory salute with a uncannily similar goal which literally had a couple of players doing cartwheels TRAING VOTES 3,2,1 3 Clarry , honestly he just does what he likes at traing and is a class above 2 Jack Viney, gees has he improved as a footballer in my eyes 1 Tom Sparrow wow what a huge talent this kid is honerable mentions, Salem, Max, Bowey, Dogga, Kossy, May and others et al, just no passengers just all wheel drive turbo's that just do not let up everyone just shows something , what a Lovely sight to behold! cheers PF