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I think he might end up being happy based on this review of the deciding championship game from Rookie Me Central ~ Scouting Notes: 2024 AFL U18s – Vic Metro vs. Vic Country “#3 Xavier Lindsay (Gippsland Power) Midfielder | 183cm | 03/08/2006 Stats: 30 disposals, 11 marks, & tackles, 6 inside 50s Lindsay was absolutely immense and arguably the best player afield on Sunday, operating off the wing before a second half run on-ball. He racked up 11 marks and 20 uncontested possessions on the outside, using his running and powerful left foot as weapons to launch Vic Country inside 50. He was also prepared to do the tough stuff; like shirt-fronting Trainor, winning centre clearances late in the piece, and laying a clutch holding-the-ball tackle in the passage which led to the goal to put his side ahead. If anyone deserved the result to go their way, it was Lindsay.” Xavier Lindsay is no shrinking violent when it comes to standing up in the heat of the contest. I watched that game live and then watched the replay and look forward to being around to see a long career from XL.

Played 12 games with my local club Yarraville when he was returning from his injury , even though he wasn’t 100% gave everything and has a heart as big as Pharlap. My son who played in the twos trained with him and said he was a ripper bloke and very hard trainer. Think Cam Pederson. He will surprise few on here, as he has a great pair of hands, footy smarts and is very aggressive at it.

We're not fighting to minimise the pay out, We're fighting to have more of it paid outside the salary cap.

I [censored] love this thread. I’m fully aware it’s November, and the other 17 clubs probably have the precise same vibe from their trackwatchers right now. I don’t care. Give me Clarry and Trac smiling and hugging. Give me Turner’s determination, and Kolt’s intensity. Give me draftees tackling our premiership players 12-36 hours after not even being on our list. And even give me little nuggets like Petty to defence or Bowey up on a wing. Hook it all into my veins. Thanks to all who go and report back.

It’s a trade that worked out well for both parties. They may have received more if they traded it on the night but that would have been taking unnecessary risks based on the hope that they got a marginally better deal. They achieved what they wanted (ie, Kako points, a future first plus throw ins) and didn’t have to take the risk into draft night. But contrast, Dodoro would have dragged it out and not been able to plan effectively for the draft because of the unknowns going into it, just in case they happened to get a slightly better deal in the night. It’s about winning wars, not battles.

The kind of content I've been pleading for.. Great stuff.

It actually makes no sense that a retired players salary is in the salary cap. They are no longer playing, so why should that affect the ability to pay other players under the cap. Fair enough we have to pay him out of his contract, but just don’t understand the reasoning behind the cap issue

We were told that the amount of trade offers for teams to either get back into the 1st round this year or move up was unprecedented. All the way from the end of trade period to the draft. They were happy to take players up until picks in the mid 50’s as the pool of talent is deep. They were hoping that Hotton was still on the board when they picked. Richmond went way early at 12 compared to where they had him. There were a couple of players that weren’t in their top 30 which was interesting. Reid and Armstrong were the most easily identified. The other thing they talked about was the poor performance of WA in developing players recently. Reflected in the downturn in indigenous players. Somebody asked about the testing of players and they basically said the speed and jumping measurements weren’t much use when compared to agility and endurance. It was pretty good. Ive been to a lot of post draft MFC events and thought that this event was better.

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Sounds like you need a hug Bay

Those boys are genuinely excited! So am I!

Imagine how good he'd be if he changed again

It quiet absurd that payouts in these circumstances have to be included in the salary cap. Illogical & makes no sense.

Payout to Gus of $3.1m and legal fees of $900k put a huge dent in the results.

Nibbla wasn't/isn't a defensive forward. He plays the high half forward role involving all game gut running up and down the ground from arc to arc that ALL teams now employ. Nibbla is the best in the business at that role and I have little doubt he play it at the crows.

Chandler and/or Sharp is my guess. But Langdon might be a left field option as he is the only player who could match nibblas aerobic capacity, ability to cover the ground at speed and repeat sprints.

I was chatting to my neighbour Des Bell (101) played 7 games in the 30's, said he sent a text message to Angus after his speech at the Brownlow, he said he received a wonderful personal message back from him. Angus is truly an amazing human being, hopefully when he gets over the change in not playing we can get him back to the club in some capacity.

Not sure but you can never have too many players that never give up

Good chat. Seemingly a down to earth fella - going to be easy to cheer for.

WE'VE MADE IT!! Quiz in the Age this morning wants to know if demonland is a fan forum, tattoo parlour, seedy nightclub etc

I think that the ‘accounting’ side, and the ‘real FY payment’ side, and the ‘amorphous AFL rules that will be reversed in 2 years time’ are confusing the issue here.

You're 'aving a laugh mate; 4:04; initiates and lays out Trainor with a nice hip and shoulder right down the middle. BOG VIC metro vs country 11 marks, 8 tackles, 30 disposals, 8 score involvents. He was everywhere!

Take the needles out of the eyes of his voodoo doll frappa, do him a favour!

Lindsay may go on to be the replacement for Brayshaw that we need; a runner with high footy IQ who can play multiple positions, read the play and make good decisions. If he can do that - and be a better kick - he'll be a valuable asset.

Sharp. I think they'll turn him into a valuable player (Nibbler style) by putting his best asset to work - running power!

Lindsay has a great footy IQ. Yes, he plays a lot outside (that in itself is not a negative) but he will tackle and be up for the hard ball when required. We have been crying out for on-ballers who think before they dispose of the ball to complement the crash and bash of some of our guns. The positive is that I am going to be happy watching Xavier over the next decade plus in red and blue, and GoodolBartul has already stated he will be happy to be proven wrong. Win/win.

Where new Dee draftee sees himself fitting in and what he considers his greatest strength

Chandler would be ideal as he is a better forward than ANB and that was my only issue with ANB in his incredibly important role. Then Langdon to do it and slide up Bowey or the new kid. One point to reiterate - the role includes having to release CP5 (mainly) to drift forward through blocking in contests and following his opponent into the backline so discipline and footy smarts will be crucial.

CHANGES 2024 Part 3: Building an innings by The Oracle There are still more than a hundred days to go before the bounce of the ball to start the 2025 AFL season but Demon fans certainly have far more reason to be upbeat than they were twelve months ago. Perhaps, the difference could best be explained in cricketing terms given the season we’re into on the sporting calendar. Last year, we were sent in on a sticky wicket. Very little was going right both on and off the field. When it all started, we lost an early wicket up in Sydney, recovered with a couple of handy partnerships but suffered a batting collapse at the end and that was all she wrote. We can claim bad luck with injuries and narrow defeats, even blame the umpires but in the end, we failed to put the score on the board. Some heads have rolled at the top and the selectors have moved to change the line up so reverting to football terms, these were the changes which lead me to feel somewhat more optimistic about what lies ahead for Melbourne. Off the field, the air is clearing and a new leadership is emerging. The coach’s position is in a good place, his integrity affirmed and his mission to restore the club’s position as a premiership contender solidified with new blood supporting him in the coaching ranks. The club didn’t trade very much but at the end, it did retain its star players in Christian Petracca, Clayton Oliver and Kysaiah Pickett, all of who were in danger of being lured away for one reason or another at one stage in the trade period. Indeed, the first two of this group are back training strongly and looking great among the developing group of youngsters at the club along with some of the more seasoned players who also came back early. Further, the expectation is when the full group reassembles next week, the club’s other mature big guns will also be ready for a big preseason. This column is about change and these are the changes that have been made to the Demons’ lists over the trade, free agency and draft period: IN Tom Campbell (free agent, St Kilda), Aidan Johnson (Werribee), Harvey Langford (Dandenong Stingrays), Xavier Lindsay (Gippsland Power), Ricky Mentha (Category B rookie), Harry Sharp (trade, Brisbane) OUT Angus Brayshaw (retired), Ben Brown (retired), Kyah Farris-White (delisted), Lachie Hunter (retired), Alex Neal-Bullen (trade, Adelaide), Josh Schache (delisted), Joel Smith (delisted), Adam Tomlinson (delisted) Langford and Lindsay are the two young guns of the draft picked up by the club on Day One of the 2024 AFL National Draft and covered here. The Demons surprised on Day Two with a further addition in mature aged (24 years old), big bodied Aiden Johnson who is a 193cm athletic brute who imposes himself on the contest. He is a key forward/ruck who spent the past three and a half seasons with Werribee VFL but originally hailed from Lavington in the Ovens & Murray League. When he arrived at Avalon Airport Oval, he was a typical country big man, carrying a bit of weight and throwing it around but he trimmed down somewhat on the way to a VFL flag with the Tigers. After his recruitment, the club’s National Recruiting Manager Jason Taylor said: “We're really rapt to be able to give Aidan an opportunity.” “We're really pleased with the way he's progressed this year, and we feel like he's got AFL talent. “He plays with a real aggressive edge, he's got speed, he can get back on the ball at ground level and he's just going to make things happen.” Yesterday afternoon, the club’s Next Generation Academy player Ricky Mentha, a teammate of Xavier Lindsay at the Gippsland Power, joined the clubs as automatic category B rookie selection under the AFL rules. He is a product of Alice Springs and is the first player from that area signed to an AFL list in over a decade. Like Harvey Langford, the 178cm Mentha trained with the club before the 2024 season. He made the move to Melbourne this year to further his draft hopes and apart from the Gippsland Power, he played with the National Academy, Northern Territory and the Allies in 2024, mainly as a forward. He added a further string to his bow when moved into defence late in the season and showed out with his his footy IQ and skillset. He hit it off with Kysaiah Pickett whilst at the club and his journey at the club promises to be an exciting one. Some lift shuffling occurred with Judd McVee and Jake Melksham moving up to the primary list from the rookie list while Andy Moniz-Wakefield was reclassified into a Category A rookie. So here are the club’s lists as it heads towards 2024 aiming towards building a big first innings in the next test to come. PRIMARY LIST: — Jed Adams Jack Billings Jake Bowey Tom Campbell Kade Chandler Tom Fullarton Bayley Fritsch Max Gawn Blake Howes Matthew Jefferson Aidan Johnson Ed Langdon Harvey Langford Bailey Laurie Jake Lever Xavier Lindsay Shane McAdam Tom McDonald Judd McVee Steven May Jake Melksham Clayton Oliver Christian Petracca Harrison Petty Kysaiah Kropinyeri Pickett Trent Rivers Christian Salem Harry Sharp Charlie Spargo Tom Sparrow Koltyn Tholstrup Daniel Turner Jacob van Rooyen Jack Viney Caleb Windsor Taj Woewodin ROOKIE LIST: CATEGORY A Kynan Brown Marty Hore Luker Kentfield Andy Moniz-Wakefield Oliver Sestan Will Verrell ROOKIE LIST: CATEGORY B Ricky Mentha Jnr

And never gonna let us down?

Everyone's writing us off. Media, betting agencies, fans, the lot. Everyone except us. Suits me i say

Looks like Trac is being attacked by a pair of aggressive poodles - did anyone jump in to help the poor bloke??

We've got the biggest Johnson

I feel the exact same way… let’s stick it up everyone

How lucky are we at Demonland to have this sort of train ing coverage. Thanks to all contributors from my hot office in Preston

Who needs Houston when we have Xavier.

Bomberblitz have a "Melbourne Deathride" thread and their consensus is that we'll finish near the bottom. I'm much more inclined to agree with @WERRIDEE. We haven't lost a game for three months!

Everyone wants us to crumble. Let’s show we are a serious club that can retain stars, build again and win another flag Excellent list management and drafting. Im bloody pumped!!

I spoke to Chunk before training started, as others have observed still looks fit as. Looking forward to working with the full midfield group, like most of us already likes the look of Harvey Langford.

BOOK THE "JEFFO JUGGANAUT" IN FOR ROUND 1 DEBUT🤩

Exactly. He might well end up a key defender . At #70 or whatever we’ve picked up a bloke who kicked 53 goals at Laverton and then played a whole year at Werribee as CHF, and they won the flag. I think it’s a great selection

A few bonuses from attending my first Melbourne training session of the preseason:- • I had heard in the media that most of the players drafted over the previous two nights would not be attending their club training sessions this week but would be joining in next week to give them a break before the start of the hard work of the preseason but it was gratifying to see all three MFC draftees in attendance. We’re not pussies! The two young guns look impressive. Harvey Langford looks a big unit, strong and very much at home with the group having worked with them a year ago as an Academy train on player. I sense that like Clarrie back when he started, Langford is a chance to make his debut in Round 1. Xavier Lindsay is closing in on his recovery from a PCL incurred on the eve of the Coates Talent League finals and ran sprints on the boundary with Charlie Spargo - both ran well and look to be well advanced in their respective recoveries. Aidan Johnson was a surprise attendee given that he was only drafted 12 hours earlier. It seems that not long ago, he was your typical country big man, carrying a bit of weight (and throwing it around) who trimmed down a bit at Werribee on the way to a VFL flag. He wasn’t drafted to continue the journey at Casey but is seriously on a trajectory to continue his physical build up to do what the two young draftees are planning - to be playing AFL football regularly at the elite level. • Christian Petracca was present on the training track with his club for the first time since the Kings Birthday debacle. It took no time at all to show the small group of Demon faithful and his teammates that he has lost none of his class and ability. He’s almost back in town. • And if he’s closing in on town, then Clarry’s in the CBD for the first time in almost two years, give or take a bit of work needed on his blisters. He’s certainly looking determined to make up for lost time and backing that up with a fitter and trimmer body shape than he had at this time 12 months ago • The first weeks of preseason are reserved for the players in years 1 to 4 with Caleb Windsor, Jacob van Rooyen, Daniel Turner and Tracc’s understudy Koltyn Tholstrup with the rockstar looks, standing out. • Despite all the bonuses of the day, I made the big mistake of forgetting the Aerogard and the combination of flies and heat made it difficult to concentrate on each individual training drill. I therefore defer to our regular track watchers who are more onto the ins and outs of today’s preseason training session than I. However, what I can say is that after a tough twelve months for the Demons, I can see plenty of blue sky coming up in the season ahead.

This x 1000. One key aspect of having a decent seconds is being able to replicate the optimal structure and systems used in the ones. It's super important because players who are promoted are better prepared to slot in to an analogous role and adhere to the systems and structures. It means almost having a mirror team in the seconds. So, Campbell is Max. Johnson is roo.

The heat is on and the players didn't take a back step. Goody ran them hard, especially after a sim completion from the back to forward area. They had to sprint back up the field. Tholstrup felt it. JVR was pushing high, though became the last man forward in the non action area. Looked a bit bored, am worried about his training and application. Previous preseasons, he was the aggressive one, only seen him attack it once. Hope it just a bit of being lackadaisical during the early parts of preseason, and he starts getting into it. Some ball movements during the sims were very quick. There was room for a few of them to have multiple bounces down the wing, Windsor and Rivers took my attention. A couple of pressure moments caused them to rush and miss the target. Forgot who the defenders were. Chaplin continues to make his mark on the forwards. We definitely have a “front and centre” more prominent. They are also doing more short passes within the 50 to a dynamic group of leads. Harry Sharp looks a player to me. Well-rounded in his skills. Finding separation and has confidence in his disposals, he was linking out of the halfback area. Johnson looks and moves like Petty. Unsure how Jed Adams is going. Trying to keep it simple, but just not executing well at times? Clarry was being extremely playful out there. Last year he kept his head down, low profile. Now he is back to being stress-free and engaged. Tracc was nervous as he entered the field. Had a longish chat to Goody, then got down to work. Disposals have improved. Fritsch was in boots for the first time. Joined in a couple of sims, outpointed a tall defender with ease and skill. I reckon he is building for a big year. Salem also in boots and in a few sims. He has trimmed down since his first pre-run, and is pushing himself hard in the boundary runs. Lindsay has a mentor in Spargo. Appears to know the routines, and appears well coached through his developing years. Langford, first impression is that of an enforcer. N.Jones had a bib on in the sims. Hasn't lost much, closing speed and surprised a couple of them, then doing beautiful clearing kicks to hit the mark. Leading by example and being humble about it. Put him on the rookie list😄.

I love this selection: big body, consistent, one touch marking, good through traffic, really good kick. But I am not expecting too much from him in 2025. He looks to be one of the most AFL ready first year players we have seen in a while at the Dees, but I also remember the first pre season of Petracca who really struggled prior to the Christmas break. The step up is a BIG step so I watch with huge interest but little expectation. I feel more confident now because our development program is so good. Tholstrup, Windsor, McVee, Kozzie, Luke Jackson all played in their first season. I will watch closely to see if Langford can do the same.

Lindsay you would think would play more of a Nick Daicos type HBF role where he runs to receive and then deliver with precision to teammates up the field Anyone thinking he’s a lock down defender who will win most 1on1 contests might be missing where his skill set is

What you lack in words you make up for with paragraphs