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Drowning out the Collingwood boos of Grundy was one of my more prouder moments of being a Dees fan.

What this one.

Loved them all but left out Hibbo's 1 v 1 win vs Lipinski (?) out of the pocket. Think that's the quickest ive seen Hibbo run since ... The crowd went nutz. My other fav was Smithy's run down tackle of Maynard. Could've easily tackled from behind and probs ITB but went alongside instead to make sure there was only one outcome. Clever boy.

Agree, but it's very hard to notice if the only opportunity to view games is via TV. What the hard runners like Neal-Bullen do isn't really observable on TV. On the other hand it was very noticeable at the ground on Monday, particularly in the last quarter. At one moment Neal-Bullen is in the back pocket and the next on the wing; he's chasing an opponent and then is suddenly providing an attacking option. It's actually quite enthralling watching him play, just for the way he switches so quickly from defence to attack and back again. And he's not the only one.

No.

Dangerfield took a mid year preseason last year and really this year too. We did the same with BBB in 2021. For someone like Rich who’s had a very disjointed season it makes sense to get some work in to the legs. Gunston might be more of a mental toll of a forward in poor form. But no doubt his body is crying out for a freshen up too. I could certainly see it becoming a trend for teams that are up the ladder but in patchy form. Obviously you risk missing the top 4 but if you can dip down a little over the next month you’ve still got 6 weeks to catch up. As we showed last year, there’s really no point limping in to a top 4 spot and hoping you can get hot. You need to carry some form in to finals for the last month or so of the home and away season.

One less competitor to worry about

This has a very strange feel about it - that both players would go to the coach simultaneously. I can imagine one player might do that but I struggle a little to see how the situation evolved where both do. Maybe they both received a post-game bake and got together to discuss the way forward and came up with this.

Other: Favourite: The final siren and being able to breathe again!! Honourable mention: when we out cheered the Collingwood boos of Grundy.

Alright. I’ll retract this.

Hi Andy, I apologise, but 50 years of journalism has made me something of a pedant. There is no such road as the Princess Freeway. The road between Melbourne and Geelong (indeed, between Sydney and Adelaide, of which Melbourne to Geelong is but a portion) was, when the various existing roads were linked up in 1920, originally named the Prince's Highway in honor of the visit of the Prince of Wales (later Edward VIII the Abdicator). Subsequently the name was bastardised by the bureaucracy (NSW 1993, Vic 2010) to the Princes Highway (as if there were more than one prince involved) and, more recently, following upgrades, the Princes Freeway. Not a girlie in sight, I'm afraid. I see this as another slight on the important but humble apostrophe, which is succumbing to the old Death by 1000 Cuts. Hardly anyone knows how to use the apostrophe these days, which can't help when people are trying to make themselves understood in posts on Demonland. Wouldn't you agree? GoDees!

Craig McCrae is all class. Compare his reply of "zero" effect of illness on his team with Chris Scott's whiney performance after the 2021 PF. I grew up to hate Collingwood but there isn't a more likeable pair of leaders than McCrae and Darcy Moore.

Had Grundy kicked the goal after that it would have been the biggest lift ever. Gave me goosebumps similar to Neitz on McCabe or Whelan on Hird. There's nothing in my view that fires you up as a fan more than when you goal straight after these moments.

Last year after the game and I queued for the toilets behind the cheer squad bay, I had Collingwood supporters jumping, yelling, one jumped in my face "Go home, Dees!" and I felt like saying to him, "We are home, it's been our home since 1858", but I didn't. Just wasn't in the mood. This year, totally different affair. Queued for the toilet, and engaged in a very pleasant conversation with a Pies supporter in front of me who said, "you guys deserved to win that". We discussed who could play each other in the finals and agreed it would be cool if it was Melbourne and Collingwood. Afterwards she said to me, "Thank you for being so nice, we don't often get that."

A lot of anti Filth sentiment on this thread. Two of my best mates are pies supporters and very knowledgeable about the game. I went to the game with one on Monday and was telling him that I hoped his feral mates would behave. He just smiled and said, “you know it’s not fair that all pie’s supporters are tainted. It’s 99% that give the other 1% a bad name!”

The highlight for me, or should I say highlights, was seeing so many pies players on the ground in pain as we relentlessly hunted and hurt them. We got tougher as the game went on.

Hunter has literally gone from one of my most hated players to one of my most loved. He is everything I hated him at the Dogs for and more.

Mixed emotions Love Cats being thumped Hate Port stretching ahead on ladder

Geelong getting reamed

Tom Hawkins looks like a baby someone inflated with air and rolled in a tub of oil.

Fancy a number 1 pick going to the worst team in the comp err that's kind of the idea

When was the last time they missed the finals with their soft draws? Must be a while. With losses against GWS, Tigres and Fremantle in recent weeks they are definitely questionable. Interesting odds atm with Cats 1.72 and 2.10 Dees. I have a Cats friend who is OS atm and says hes not bothering with the H&A and will just get the AFL App for the finals. Oh the arrogance. Love it. (I should ask him who he will be following?). :)

looks like most here have a negative view of this. I actually read it as a positive for the club that its leaders are taking responsibility for losses. Sure, selection committee should have pulled them out earlier maybe, but I'd rather senior players make a call then not make a call. They are senior players, basically on-field assistant coaches, they'll know they're not doing well. A few weeks out, a bit of a training block and one or both will probably make a difference later in the year.

For all the ANB haters, I note that in a theoretical State of Origin team for South Australia presented in today's The Age, he's been picked on the bench. That team was selected by Kane Cornes.

It's an odd qualifier to say "indefinitely". Surely, they will simply return to the VFL and until their form aarrants selection, play there. "Indefinitely" implies that they may not return to the VFL either, but take time off. Or is that just me?

In the lead-up to Fritta's goal in the third he also bullied Adams out of the way like he wasn't even there. He had so many Jack Viney moments.

there's a reason jake lever ends every game hoarse he is constantly instructing people where to run and when

Twice I think. One from a set shot first quarter. One from a snap in the last

I’m watching the replay. When they kicked 3 goals Hamish Mclachlan had the nerve to yell ‘bang, bang, bang’. Yuck. Let’s not tarnish the greatest moment in sports history. Also, is BT on the payroll at Collingwood? Did he realise 2 teams were playing? I feel sorry for people who can’t get to the G.

I don't think this gives enough credit to Goodwin and co. Our press was highly sophisticated. It wasn't merely a frenzied press (ala 2018), it was denying corridor and pressuring into wide areas. When they did get it into the corridor, we sweated on them for the turnover. As for corridor style and attacking game plan being the best strategy for winning games, the best strategy for winning games is the strategy that is able to be replicated under intense pressure in finals. And good defence always beats good offence in finals, because the games are often arm wrestles that have less open space and more pressure. Relying on handball chaining like the Bulldogs do will only get you so far. Collingwood have at least four elite ball users (Daicos, Daicos, Sidebottom and Pendlebury) who can also do damage, but it's the forward handball that enables quick ball movement. Because they run and gun, it's a hard thing to replicate in finals without costly turnovers back the other way. I guess we'll see in due course though.

Can close this thread with the Chandler contract signing. Well done to everyone who bought the shares at a low price. And particularly well done to Kade who has delivered some excellent games and consistent level of pressure and attack at the contest.

Jvr coming in to stick up for Smith after so called dangerous tackle was a good thing too.

Hunter running through WHE really did have me out of my seat. It was the moment I realised we were starting to put our game together. Having said that, my favourite moment from the KB game did not come until earlier this week when it dawned on me that in consecutive weeks we had knocked off Carlton and Collingwood. For decades post our flag in 1964 these two lorded it over us and the competition. To send the Blues into an even bigger tailspin and to nail the Pies both within 10 days was sensational.

They just need to enforce the rules as they are. When you get tackled you have to make an attempt to dispose of the ball. Just because you have one arm held doesn't negate that. I don't think that discriminates against the ball winner too onerously. If the umps blow their whistles quicker you wont have tacklers spinning guys around in 360 degs and ball winners will try to dispose of the ball more quickly But while we are at it. These are just as frustrating: Holding a player while he is trying to get the ball Happens to Clarry and Tracc all the time. Particulalrly in the centre bounces Push in the back? WTF is going on with that Jumping on a players back when he is on the ground? WTF Kicking the ball as its crossing the line. The McCreery decision was terrible. It used to be your foot could not be in contact with the ball as it crossed the line. When did that change? Handballs over the head. How is that a stationary palm as it used to be Front on contact is now paid for the slightest of touches - in some case for no contact at all just getting in the players face as it were - and yet it was brought in to stop people being shirtfronted whilst they were in a vulnerable position Shepherding off the ball. You are allowed to bump a player within 5m of the ball. This is paid randomly - such as Oscar bakers ridiculous decision on the weekend - yet Max was shepherded off the ball every single time the ball went into our 50m. And Collingwood had two shots at goal because of it. Sliding the knees. This was the Adam Goodes rule brought in to stop the dangerous sliding when approaching from the opposite direction - ie when you could break a players legs. Now its paid for anyone going for the ball and the oppo player dives over the top of them. ANB does this quite often to milk a free. Tackles that slip down low and players get tripped. Rarely paid as a trip Most of these rules modifications are designed for TV and faster play - supposedly more goals and more commercial breaks. But the lack of consistency and rule of the week is infuriating. When was the last time a player got pinged for being in the 'protected zone'? Yet you now see it all the time. As for the 'standing the mark rule. The variation in intrpretation is mind boggling. AFL are idiots.

Another fantastic podcast boys. The drive to Shep this morning just flew by. Spot analysis of the game and well done to all the fabulous posters on this site who provided some excellent topics and questions. It is a wonderful format. We have to get the caller Beau/Bo (?) onto Demonland. I'm sure he could add a lot to this website. I don't post much but I'm an avid daily reader.

Well done Kade, well done MFC. How the MFC has changed. Players used to 'wait until season's end' blah, blah, blah... but now they are lining up to re-sign. We are recent premiers, a destination club, and a genuine contender for the flag in 2023. Good times. These kind of signings are a great indicator of internal cohesion and confidence. Although we can probably fit only 2 small forwards into our 22, Chandler is most likely sitting in 1st place at the moment, with Spargo and Kozzie in such poor form. I also like the fact he often plays well in the last quarter. After the bye, hopefully his fatigue has levelled out, and he has enough recovery energy to kick the goals he was kicking earlier in the season.

We had a few like that. Thats why the Roo one was so good, young player finished off the good work.

So myself and Mrs Fence ventured out for a spot of Dinner and a few frothies at picturesque Husskison Beach club South NSW Coast of course wearing my club windcheater. A bloke wearing Filth regalia sidles up to me at the bar and says how lucky we were to win we had Jordy out, Ginnivan out yadda yadda yadda, when he finished I said just this...... yeah but we had 6 Ace PREMIERSHIP players out. End of conversation as he fumed and searched in vain for a response, I smirked. Scoreline...? Fence game set match... Nuffy...zero Nuffin.😇

17 years. 👍

Other: The final siren.

Hope it was a loooong train ride and they had to sit there with you for most of the journey. A little smirk every now and them would keep them ticking over. Haha I promised myself not to have a go at Collingwood when we won BUT I just cannot help myself. Ingrained since birth a long time ago.

In 2021 it may sound strange, but I feel our team had a fairy tale run of sorts. It appeared that they were not fazed by not having crowds attending games for a lot of the home and away games that season (due to Covid lockdowns etc). This did not seem to phase them. They were galvanised and on a mission. Got the minor premiership, can’t ask for much more. Come finals time, particularly those held in Perth, they got the best rent a crowd support you could hope for. A significant majority of the football loving state adopted Melbourne as their team in the finals. The crowds were electric and loud! Make no mistake, that really lifted our boys untold. They certainly got the job done and did it with style. I was so proud. 2022 was such a struggle year on so many levels. Premiership hangover, the draw, being the hunted, injuries etc. In the scheme of things we did well but it wasn’t a great year if that makes sense. In my opinion although our crowd numbers were reasonable, for the most part lacked real passion. Lesser opposition crowds at times were louder than us! That’s how I saw it. This year we seem to be disregarded as serious contenders by media, opposition fans. I get it, we lost a few close games and didn’t have too many big scalps. Such is. That was until the Collingwood game. The boys lifted and our crowd got behind our lads (eg. cheering matching the boos Grundy received - I was so proud). Not only did our players step up, so did our supporters. I know it was a big crowd but it was different. Although we were outnumbered, our supporters stood up and showed real passion. I have no doubt our players would have noted this also. I am optimistically thinking this is a turning point of sorts for the rest of the season and hopefully for many years to come. I like it how the media are critical of us. I actually love feeling the hate other supporters from some clubs seem to have for us. The doggies, Hawthorn, Collingwood and Geelong supporters come to mind. I hope there are others. Most people only seem to think that Collingwood, Brisbane and Port are the only serious contenders. We are disregarded by a lot of people. Again, I love this. I hope the crowd reaction for the Collingwood game was not a one off. I want our mob to galvanise, I want us to feel as if it is us versus the world. I want our passionate supporters to turn up and back in our boys for the rest of the season. Goody at his press conference pretty much said words to this effect. It is the least we can do to help our boys. I am looking forward to see the ‘disregarded’ demons become the team that everyone fears. Same for our supporters. Rather than being ridiculed, I want people to be amazed at our size and more importantly our passion. For over half a century we by and large were on struggle street. It is time for us to morph into being a football powerhouse, players, support staff and supporter base. I want us to be feared, hated and respected all at the same time. Life is too short. I hope we smash Geelong next game, although a close win will do. GO DEES!

I was very impressed how he competed for the most part of the game against 203 cm Darcy Moore. He made himself look taller and stronger, like a 2nd tall not just our superstar medium tall. 👌🏻

Underrated part of that play was Viney smashing Noble just after his hand off to Judd.

I pick the Hibberd 1-on-1 win, break away pace (at 31 or whatever he is, thank you very much), kick to Smith, kick to a contest (Roo holding free kick), wheel and Grundy mark + goal. 2nd is any of the numerous Jack Viney clearances.

Odd little quirk - against Collingwood on monday Fritsch did not leave the ground - 100% game time. First time he has ever done that, with the usual figure being somewhere in the mid-80 range. Suspicion - we've been working on his tank, and noticeably using him more up the ground (17 inside-50s in the previous 4 weeks, which is easily double his usual) but the purpose of that is that also he can be pulled back closer to goal and play maximum game time there when it suits the tactical needs. The theory grows that the Demons are calmly using the whole season to sharpen their axe.

Talk of dropping Neal-Bullen is always a good laugh. He’s one of the first picked by the coaches every week because he fronts up and does the thankless hard stuff that the general footballer watcher doesn’t appreciate because it’s not flashy etc. He was our 8th best overall rated player on the weekend. He was rated the best player on the ground overall defensively. We beat Collingwood because we had applied immense pressure on the ball carrier. Nibbler had 26 pressure acts, the most of anyone on the ground with Viney second at 24. Nibbler had 6 effective tackles, third behind Viney and Trac. He had 5 tackles inside 50, the most of any player on the ground. He was a key part of our victory and I’d go as far as saying if he didn’t play we would have lost that match. What he brings in pressure and running to link up or block space is immense, and as long as he keeps fronting up and busting his gut he will rightly never be dropped.