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Congratulations to Jack Viney on 200 games bleeding Red & Blue for the Demons. From arriving at a club in crisis to raging like a bull to help lead us to a flag. A true club champion & the player you want right beside you in the trenches. Jack’s heart beats true ❤️💙 Here’s to 100 more Vines 🔴🔵😈

This might have occurred as a result of him pulling his finger out. I'll show myself out.

Well you know what the rumours are going to be now…

Good on him, hope he proves his doubters wrong.

Clarry's hands are so fast, I'd be surprised if a scan showed up as any more than a blur

Articles have appeared in daily newspapers about a statement in the Senate from independent MP Andrew Wilkie covering allegations by former Melbourne club doctor Zeeshan Arain, ex-club president Glen Bartlett and Shaun Smith, father of Melbourne player Joel Smith. According to Wilkie, the trio had alleged players who tested positive had faked injuries and withdrawn from games to avoid match-day drug testing by Sports Integrity Australia (SIA), and that details of the "off-the-books" tests were never shared with SIA or the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Wilkie said Arain alleged it was not a Melbourne problem but an "AFL problem" with a number of players arriving at the club with pre-existing cocaine dependencies. Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin is reported today as saying he has "no line of sight" on allegations of secret drug-testing of players facilitated by the AFL. The AFL has defended what it calls “intervention” drug testing, backed its privacy policy and issued its statement on Illicit Drug Policy (AFL statement on Illicit Drug Policy) We have not seen evidence of the allegations referred to by Senator Wilkie and are not able to comment further on them. We are cognisant of the fact that some of the issues covered in the allegations might relate to matters under litigation and in order to pay respect to all parties, we have decided not to publish any further comment on the subject. We also refer you to the notice entitled on our Home Page ”IMPORTANT: PLEASE READ BEFORE POSTING”.

The jubilation on the coach’s face as he danced a celebratory jig by the playing bench after the final siren sounded to record his team’s four-point victory over the Demons when the teams last met, said it all. On that rainy Friday night at the Adelaide Oval, Ken Hinkley’s young midfield secured much more than four points on offer. The victory over one of the big dogs of the competition after a succession of wins over some of its lesser lights gave his team respect and validation for their 2023 premiership campaign. Saturday’s rematch promises much the same for the winning team — respect and validation for that which lies ahead. We know such things mean very little at this early stage of the year but the confidence and momentum gained can make a difference as a season unfolds. Melbourne’s quest to achieve validation after a turbulent summer that left its list short by two primary list players was made even more difficult by the end of Round 2 with two All Australian key position defenders under an injury cloud. Steven May was in hospital with two broken ribs and a small transverse process fracture while Jake Lever was sitting on the bench wearing a tracksuit top on the bench, nursing a sore knee that turned out to be not as bad as first thought. But the injury list is long and a five day break before the Gather Round clash against the Crows will test the club’s depth. You can take it straight from the coach’s mouth that the possible absence of the two keys on top of the Bowey injury from Round Zero isn’t the end of the world. The coach, Simon Goodwin, spoke immediately after the Hawthorn game and maintained that he has plenty of material necessary to cover the loss of players: “I thought Harrison Petty, Tom McDonald, and Marty Hore did a great job down back for us. “We’ve got guys that can play those roles. Clearly Harrison’s done it previously. We’ve got some other guys, Adam Tomlinson will play tomorrow in the VFL.” (Tomlinson worked hard under adversity for Casey and did well enough to be considered if required). “So, we’ve got some options in that space which is pleasing, so we’ll assess that during the week.” And while the issue of depth (especially in the big man department) will be crucial against Port Adelaide, I think it could be a double-edged sword for the home team on a hot Autumn night. They have key forwards Dixon, Finlayson and Marshall, at one end with tall defenders in Aliir, Ratugolea and Zerk-Thatcher. They have plenty of height, but their issue might be one of having to handle the Demon small brigade, particularly if the Melbourne midfield gains the initiative. The engine room will, as usual, be the place where the game will ultimately be won and this is where things get interesting. Melbourne’s ace is Max Gawn who should beat Ivan Soldo even if the Demon skipper is subjected to the usual roughhouse tactics that are emblematic of Port’s routine strategy against him. Problem with that is the umpiring fraternity is onto this and paying greater attention to such an approach these days. Then there are the midfield pieces on both the inside and outside. Melbourne has the advantage of the bulls in Clayton Oliver, Christian Petracca, Tom Sparrow and (congratulations to 200 gamer) Jack Viney with occasional appearances from Kozzie Pickett, Christian Salem, Trent Rivers and the peripatetic Alex Neal-Bullen and, on the outside, Ed Langdon, Caleb Windsor and Jack Billings adding class. Port’s equivalent is led by Butters who took the game by the throat last year to bring home the bacon for a rampant Port Adelaide assisted by Rozee and Horne-Francis (who has a hamstring injury and in doubt to play). They also have Brownlow Medallist Wines, Drew, Farrell, Houston and the evergreen Boak. In the final analysis, I put the Demon engine room ahead by a small margin, perhaps one per cent. There are a few other one percenters that should work in Melbourne’s favour. Despite last year’s Gather Round fiasco and the loss to Port Adelaide in Round 10, both can be considered as outliers because of the conditions in which they were played. Otherwise, the Demons have a good record at the Adelaide Oval including a strong finals win over the Lions in the club’s premiership year. The club is treating the next week or so with far more thought for the playing group than it did last year. Sticking around the City of Churches for an extended period will galvanize the group, and partially offset home ground advantage. And the bottom line is that the Demons not only have the depth, but they have an extra charge in terms of greater all-round flexibility. This will be a major factor in a game where whoever is available, you must play well enough on the day to beat your opponent in your next game. And beat them is what Melbourne will do. By 27 points. THE GAME Port Adelaide v Melbourne on Saturday 30 March 2024 at 7.30pm at Adelaide Oval. HEAD TO HEAD Overall Port Adelaide 22 wins Melbourne 16 wins At Adelaide Oval Port Adelaide 4 wins Melbourne 3 wins Past five meetings Port Adelaide 2 win, Melbourne 3 wins The Coaches Hinkley 4 wins Goodwin 4 wins THE LAST TIME THEY MET Port Adelaide 11.14.80 defeated Melbourne 11.10.76 in Round 10, 2023 at Adelaide Oval The game was a slog in wet conditions. Port dominated early but the Demons came back strongly to lead by 17 points only seconds before the final break. The game that was there to be won was to be prelude to Melbourne’s end of season issues. Clayton Oliver’s hamstring pinged in its frenetic latter stages. Lachie Hunter’s backside collision with Connor Rozee led to his suspension and a Port Adelaide goal. This happened late in the third term just after a controversial umpiring decision against Tom McDonald (his opponent was suspended in the aftermath) - potentially caused a twelve point turnaround. The home side took the initiative and a late goal sealed the deal for them. All things considered, the four premiership points would have seen Melbourne finish with a home qualifying final against Brisbane rather than Collingwood, perhaps a better outcome given the way things panned out for them. THE TEAMS PORT ADELAIDE B R. Burton, E. Ratugolea, B. Zerk-Thatcher 
HB L. Jones, A. Allir, D. Houston
 C M. Bergman, W. Drew, T. Boak
 HF D. Byrne-Jones, T. Marshall, C. Rozee 
F J. Finlayson, C. Dixon, W. Rioli 
FOLL I. Soldo, O. Wines, Z. Butters 
I/C F. Evans, K. Farrell, J. McEntee, J. Mead
 SUB J. Burgoyne EMG T. Clurey T. McKenzie, D. Visentini, IN J. McEntee OUT D. Williams (omitted) MELBOURNE B J. McVee, J. Lever, B. Howes HB T. Rivers, T. McDonald, C. Salem C E. Langdon, C. Petracca, C. Windsor HF T. Sparrow, B. Fritsch, K. Pickett F A. Neal-Bullen, J. Van Rooyen, K. Chandler FOLL M. Gawn, J. Viney, C. Oliver I/C J. Billings, B. Brown, M. Hore, H. Petty SUB T. Woewodin EMG T. Fullarton B. Laurie, A. Tomlinson IN T. Woewodin OUT S. May (ribs) Injury List: Round 3 Jake Lever — knee/ Test Clayton Oliver — hand/ Test Ollie Sestan — concussion/ Test Lachie Hunter — calf/ 1 week Steven May — ribs/ 1 week Daniel Turner — hip/ 2 - 3 weeks Charlie Spargo — Achilles/ 2 - 4 weeks Shane McAdam — hamstring/ 3 - 5 weeks Jake Bowey — shoulder/ 7 weeks Jake Melksham — knee/ 12 - 14 weeks

Our recruiters haven’t put a foot wrong in a loooong time. I trust their judgement over DL pundits.

Ta. I was looking for that. Judd went from aprox 6% of the kick outs in the first game, 60% second and 100% third game. He's super reliable and a better short kick than may. And better on the run and at changing the target late. He's playing a role similar to Nick daicos in his 2022, but more defensively accountable one on one. Kid's a jet.

Hate to say it, but that is an excellent read. Hard to imagine there wasn't some coordination with the club. If so, credit where it is due, that's good comms.

Sadly, it’s well hidden.

This is what happens when the media pre-writes obituaries

You can use the above post for any laughing or angry reactions but to all posters please don't post any more about the illicit drug policy.

No one better at having a punt each way than Ralphy

There’s no hits — In fact just opposite with Mayesy running round and Lever tipped to play alongside Clarry for that matter so I’d say it’s been an extremely positive day

I swear Oliver gets his hands kicked at least 4-5x per season and rarely ever gets a free for in danger.

Melbourne star Clayton Oliver was sent for a scan after suffering a dislocated finger at training on Wednesday, but the Demons still expect him to face Port Adelaide on Saturday. The Demons confirmed Oliver left Casey Fields for a scan following the incident but do not have concerns over his availability ahead of the blockbuster Adelaide Oval clash.

HE’S IN NO HARRY Adelaide will launch a full-on assault to lure Harrison Petty back to South Australia once more, but don’t be surprised if he stays at Melbourne to chase a second premiership. It has been reported in Adelaide that the Crows expect him to be in their colours next season after offering him a five-year $4 million deal that was heavily front-ended. Petty was keen to go home when he saw that he could be part of the Shane McAdam trade. Adelaide will hope Petty’s status as an unrestricted free agent in 2025 means the Demons might trade him as a pre-agent this year rather than accept a mid-teens free agency compensation pick next year. So expect them to throw a considerable trade package at the Demons to turn their heads, with Demons great Garry Lyon suggesting on Friday only a Riley Thilthorpe swap would be acceptable. But even six months on much has changed for Petty, who has made clear he is totally committed to the Demons and intent on focusing on their flag campaign. When the Demons aborted that trade it was a very different climate at Melbourne as Clayton Oliver’s health battles continued. The Demons got around Petty through captain Max Gawn and coach Simon Goodwin, who have both remained in constant touch with their swingman. Expect Port Adelaide to have some interest in Petty’s future given Charlie Dixon is getting towards the end. So while Petty is in no mood to consider a contract extension just yet, he is a long way from out the door at year’s end.

Laurie extends deal Personally, not sure on this 🤷‍♂️

What a magnificent Promo. That’s one of the best i have seen. whoever edited that together got it right 100% JV7 is a true Legend of the MFC Wow. That pumped me right up i am picking us to win on Saturday

Congratulations Jack. Had the great pleasure of attending games at the ‘G and seeing your Dad play and later captain the side. Not so much of your good self. Living in the periphery at Darwin. But l do strongly recall the first time at Marrara probably in your first season. One committed, courageous act intercepting an opposition pass with fierce determination. Where angels fear to tread. Another chip off the Viney block. Fast forward to September 2021 Preliminary Final in Perth. Max put on the show but IMM you were best on the ground. When complimented at training later in the campaign you were not only appreciative but humble to boot. Long May You Run.

Be okay Oliver plz

Didn't he cop a a kick to the hand against the Doggies? Or someone this season, it's already a blur.

Finally back to normality

Aww gee WCW. I didn’t know you fancied me but you’ll have to join the queue

That's it in a nutshell. Not that Laurie would be delisted, but he's definitely worth more to us over the next two years than what we'd get in a trade or from a late draft pick replacement Not to be a draft revisionist, but there few after his selection that have done significantly more. Gulden, obviously, but he was Sydney Academy, always going to them. McCreery at Collingwood as well.

You can add me to the "Jack Viney made me cry" thread - one or two tears after watching that. I know Jack will play his 200th the same as his first 199 - there is just no other way.

No one here is claiming to be better at picking players than JT or TL. But bloody oath we can have an opinion, otherwise this place would be unreadable vanilla. I think Laurie will improve gradually. We are used to seeing players like Oliver, Bowey and Kossie look good from game 1 (or nearabouts). Not with Bill. There's certainly something about him to work with, two years should be enough to find out.

Jack has well and truly lived up to the early hype placed on him. Unlucky not to have an AA blazer and has all the other accolades. Hopefully he can get to 300!

He wasn’t too bad in The Grand Final either!❤️

Absolute warrior of our club, wish we had a couple more of him

Yes, it was obvious to everyone at the ground except the umpires

I thought Trac would have been the one with a bung hand from his brilliant spoil with a dislocated finger

Not quite. He said we're confident in Lever playing. He will train today but I wouldn't be surprised if the position is "he has to get through training". May is doing some running today which is probably a good sign.

Or just pay her a weekly "Shopping / Travelling / Pampering / Butler & Nanny allowance" in exchange for signing a "No return requests or nagging me to come back... i'm here to enjoy me footy with me Demon mates and try n win another flag and i'll come back when i'm ready" contract.

Mods, sure this warrants a 1-week ban at least. We can't have people on here saying such horrible things about each other. What if some kids saw it and thought it was okay to go around calling people Tom Morris in the playground?

This week and next is actually christmas in March/April, two games in one week in Adelaide. For somebody who has not grown up with going to watch the Dees week in week out. I have become thoroughly appreciative of hearing all the stories of past tales and happenings of the club I love over the years reading demonland and demonology. I've actually never attended a traditional milestone game so for myself it's a pretty big deal and it so happens to be a player close to the heart. (Well if you include Neita's 273rd record breaking game in 2006 as a milestone game then I'm lying) This week no other man deserves the plaudits more than our very own blood and soul of the MFC. First to come last to leave when it comes to signing autographs smiling for photos with the kiddies and the big kiddies in all of us. Through thick and thin the man has stuck fat with this football club and no one hurt more when the club was down on its knees and 5 hit out of luck. Lead us to the promise land once again our midfield wrecking bull, we salute you for your never say die attitude and commitment to the MFC. Congratulations Jack Viney on 200 courageous games for the MFC. fitting its in SA where the bloodline made its start in the game. JV7#200 Carn the Dees, the charge to the flag starts in the city of churches⛪️ win both and we will be dreaming of Christmas in September once again.

Not many tougher players in the game's history. Love your work, Jack. Grew up in the 1990s Dees changerooms, drafted at our lowest ebb, willed us back to competitiveness, and reached the summit in 2021. Yet still seems to be getting better somehow. Hope he plays forever.

Tough, Courageous, Loyal, most importantly a Premiership Player. Congratulations Jack. Onwards to 250 and above in the 🔴🔵

$2.65? Getting around that. Gamble responsibly.

Surprising to me. I just don't see it in him. Hope I am very wrong. Good luck Bill.

How can we stay calm, when Oliver's finger is at stake

What I have also loved seeing from BBB over the last couple of weeks is the pure enjoyment he is getting from seeing his teammates’ success. He cheers and celebrates everything with them - it brings a smile to my face each time I see it ❤️💙

I do think he had a fairly quiet year last year ( by his standards) but It's fair to say he wasn't alone He is well and truly back on track with his tackling, running and pressure acts. I reckon he has been a substantial underrated player in the AFL. He's a constant lock in a premier and twice top four team. And for good reason. Not many work harder than him. Ive noticed he seems to have gotten stronger lately. Many moons ago he was a fairly unreliable shot at goal but in the last few years has become very effective in this department. I also love his passion for the club which he wears on his sleeve. His pressure acts are huge and while he doesn't often rack up huge disposal numbers, he is still more often than not a big impact player. Looks bound to have a great year.

Agree, from what I've seen so far this season he's been given more liberty to burst forward, I hope this continues. I would love to see him get more of the footy, to be looked for as the outlet like Daicos and Sheezel are. He has all the attributes to be that high-possession half back for us, and I love that he is far more under the radar than those two just mentioned.

If Petracca, Oliver, Sparrow, kossi, get off the chain, it will be over very quickly.

From discussion recently about Goodwin's coaching style - is he a good strategist and planner but not a good gameday tactician, if plan A doesn't work there's no plan B etc, it raised a thought in my mind. I wanted to see how many times over the past three seasons where we were well out of games and knew we would lose well before the final siren. This is somewhat subjective but the parameters I used to determine when this occurred were: If we were four goals down by the halfway point of the last quarter. I also included games where the score was slightly closer (around 20/21 points down) at the same mark, but momentum and scoring was very much with the other team Probably not surprising to @binman, even though we lost 21 games over that period, there was only 5 games that met the above parameters: Fremantle, Round 11 2022 (May was subbed early with concussion, TMac was injured in the warmup, Petracca had the flu, and others were missing due to COVID) Sydney, Qualifying Final 2022 Brisbane, Round 2 2023 (Max went down early with a knee injury, and while we got within 10 points after the lights came back on, we deserved to lose by 40 points) Essendon, Round 5 2023 (Gather round) Sydney, Round 0 2024 Essentially, if Goodwin only has a Plan A, it either works or goes pretty close to working 72 times out of 77. P.S. I meant to add to this the game plan and tactics thread but I was having issues with the search function loading any results.

Tough test against Port this Saturday. A big night at the selection table as well with the injuries we have. I have to say that I would bring Tomlinson in to replace May and keep Petty in the team as a swing player for either forward or back as required. The interesting part to that is that we also have TMac able to swing between the two ends of the ground depending on requirements. There might be some interesting mixes in the personnel making up defence and attack on Saturday evening. Looks likely that Lever will be available. this is good. What we do need to see is our midfield really turned on and bringing the defensive pressure and fast twitch turnover reactions. While I do not see us putting a hard tag on Butters I do see the coaches putting a bit of work into how to curb his game. Maybe Sparrow to run with him at some stage or maybe to utilise ANB to have a role with him around the ground. I am sure we will need a Plan A, B and C. I think we have the depth and well drilled structure in defence to cover the loss of may for a week or two. It is a critical time for May not to be available with the two games in Adelaide just with a 5 day break but it is what it is. I love the fact that the young players back there have stood up and slotted in so well over the past few seasons. It is a testament to the structures that are in place and the training and development that is going into the players. While Ben Brown just kicked a point last week I think he has been of great value to the forward group. the opposition just cannot afford to cover him and pay respect to the potential damage he is capable of. It gives a lot of freedom to the rest of the forwards and in particular the smaller forwards at the drop of the ball. I would look to the same personnel this week as long as there are no niggles. Chandler has been heavily strapped during the week but is not mentioned in the injury list so I assume he is good to go. Midfield is looking deep and strong. Petracca is on song, Oliver is getting there and Viney is in great form. We have variety and flexibility to rotate through there so I am confident we can play our game through the midfield and not theirs. I do want to see them putting the pressure on and hunting the ball and the ball carrier. Not give an inch. Just on the injury list, There are seven names on it at present including Lever and Mc Adam that I would say are first team 18 capable. That is a pretty long list and is set to test our depth and flexibility over the next three weeks. given we have a bye the week after that, we should have back 5 of them after the bye. I see the game this way. Port to dominate the first quarter with us taking the next two quarters to lead by 2 or 3 goals. A tight last quarter with us winning by 20 points. Go Dees!

He can be terrific, committed, yet sometimes, unlucky. I really like the way he can take the 'busy' ball, simultaneously assessing the traffic about and ahead, stop the game with such details, enforce a ball-up without losing too many decisions against him, all in the process of enabling (during such interruptions to play) his teammates to catch up, cover their opponents, make space upfield and win the resulting clearances. Clever, adept, reliable. Plus, ANB can kick some very nice goals unexpectedly; on the run, from the pockets or from a timely, well-read intercept in the Demons' hot zone. Combined with his fitness and running, he is a Demon great!

Trying to find info on any evolution in the Port Adelaide gamestyle, Seems like Wines it taking more stoppages and spending less time forward which is hardly surprising or radical. Marshall is taking a ton of marks (10 and 9) and creating many more goal assists than previous seasons, but both Marshall and Dixon have barely 50/50 goal accuracy. Maybe playing further out and taking their marks and set shots from further out? Then again, maybe their forward stats are just skewed by the bizarre game against the Eagles. Finlayson 0.4, Dixon 3.3, Marshall 0.3, Bergman 0.3. Could and probably should have been a 100 point win despite letting West Coast score 70. Which brings up the next point - West Coast 70 and Richmond scoring 92 despite both games being dominated by Port suggests that Port are pretty leaky defensively, and all that despite no tall forward scoring more than one goal against them. Hard to get much of a read on them other than that, with just two games to look at and against what is basically the second-last and third-last teams (with only Collingwood below). Did I mention only Collingwood is below then. Because Collingwood is last - clearly 0-3 is lower than 0-2. Just recapping, Collingwood; the worst.