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You may be new to Demonland and are unsure how to proceed or have been here for a while but still don't feel confident about posting on the gameday threads. I have prepared the following guide to make it easier for everybody to have their say while fitting in with the mood of the board. First thing you must do is take your angry pills and ensure that you post in a negative, pessimistic, illogical and reactionary manner. Defeatist is good, as is hysterical over-reaction, whining and sooking. Don't forget to assume the worst and always look for the dark cloud around every silver lining. As a memory aid, it helps to keep in mind the Five C's: criticise, complain, catastrophise, carp and castigate. For added fun, you might like to pick out a whipping boy and make sure to pot him at every opportunity. Here are some scenarios that may occur during the game and suggested responses. Other team kicks the first goal of the match. "Game over" "We're screwed" Other team wins the match. "Season over" "We're screwed" "Sack the coach" "The players are drinking their own bathwater" Player X has quiet game. "Recruiting blunder" "Should have picked player Y" "Trade him" "Send him back to Casey" "Delist" Player start limping. "We're screwed" "Out for season" "Sack fitness/medical staff" "Bring back Burgo" Player goes down into rooms. "We're screwed" "Out for season" "Will never play again" "Bring back Burgo" MFC player involved in incident. "It's Melbourne, they'll suspend him for multiple weeks" Opposition player involved in incident. "It's not Melbourne, he'll get off" Player misses shot at goal. "Such inaccuracy is typical" "Who's the forward coach?" "This will cost us a Grand Final" Melbourne kicks 3 or 4 goals clear. "We'll go to sleep now and rest on our laurels" Melbourne wins. "Should have won by more" "Percentage will cost us top spot" Poster is happy with win. "Stop embracing mediocrity" "We're getting ahead of ourselves" MFC is losing the free kick count. "AFL/umpires/broadcasters are corrupt" "They're biased against us" MFC is winning the free kick count. Do NOT comment under any circumstances.

Don't.

Here’s something I prepared earlier. Guess which team (other than Geelong, of course) has played the most times at Kardinia Park this century? Melbourne. 18 times. Guess which team has played the least times? Collingwood. Zero. (Oh and Essendon once, Hawthorn and Carlton thrice.) The lack of integrity and fairness in the fixture is, to me, the biggest blight on our great game. What elite, professional sporting league in the world would allow such a discrepancy to occur, where an ‘away’ team, a so-called big club, doesn’t play at another team’s home venue for over 20 years, while another team plays there almost every friggin’ year? It infuriates me. It’s like telling Manchester United they don’t need to play at Bournemouth, ever, while Liverpool does. I am sick to death of the fixture’s inherent inequity, and our collective acceptance of it (or is it apathy). If we can’t have a pure 34-game home-and-away season (which would be fair and ideal for an 18-team comp), then let’s have a 17-game season. Play each team once, alternate between playing at home one season and away the next, no questions asked, no compromises entertained. Collingwood plays down at Geelong, it’s a sell-out, so be it. People forget that for the first 90 years of the VFL, the fixture was built on playing each team twice, home and away. There were 8 teams and 14 rounds in the first VFL season in 1897. This nonsense that we have to be wedded to a 22-round season no matter the number of teams we have is, well, nonsense. The 22-round season only came into effect when the league had expanded to 12 teams in 1925. When the league moved to 14 teams in 1987, the season inexplicably remained at 22 rounds. Now, of course, the fixture is a complete mess having strayed more and more from first principles, leading to the quite absurd scenario pointed out at the top of this post and illustrated in the attached table.

I hate Geelong.

haven't we gone over this umpteen dozen times on this board? our entire successful structure is predicated on the tall triumvirate of may - lever - petty being in place down back the coaching dept is, quite right, not going to mess with a good thing

Forget curing diseases and flying to Mars, I want to invest in virtual reality technology that allows us to play classics like Melbourne 2013 vs North 2022. I think we'd just win but it would be a ripper. Neeld very lucky to get three of his five wins against GWS when they were rubbish. If nothing else - and there isn't much - he can say he was 3-0 against Kevin Sheedy and coached our highest scoring fourth quarter of all time.

This anonymous Twitter account which I think is run by a former AFL umpire rates every game from an umpiring perspective and also comments on controversial decisions. This was his take on Saturday’s game.

It was a lot different when we weren't very good ... we were in that lower bracket of Melbourne teams shunted around everywhere. Like it or not we had to cop it until we came good But we're coming off a flag and despite what the naysayers would have you believe, our crowd numbers have been more than acceptable this season We are pushing 65,000 members yet only 500 Demon supporters can attend the game played on a wintry Thursday night. Terrible scheduling I'm all for more prime-time FTA games But they need to get the right match-ups in the right city's on the right days Demons at Cats on a wintry Thursday night doesn't come into 2 of those categories It wasn't so long ago that maximising crowd numbers was no.1 on the agenda So we get to watch a game at home or at the pub when the venue is 1 hour away Play the game at Docklands under the roof and compensate the Cats home ground loss with a higher dividend when they hand out the cash at year's end Mind you, anywhere, anytime, anyway still applies with regards to the winning of the game. But that's not my point It's the people's game so allow the supporters to attend a blockbuster fixture Rant Over!!!

This is being discussed in the Welcome to Demonland...thread but I feel Disco's new contract deserves more widespread exposure and recognition.. Already shown he works hard, has the right attitude and is very courageous. A real keeper! The club announcement says he will remain on the Rookie list for 2023 then promoted to the Seniors in 2024. TURNER EXTENDS CONTRACT WITH DEES Mods, please merge with the 'Welcome' thread if you think more appropriate.

The 'reasoning' for this would appear to be the large crowd drawing clubs don't play at Geelong because crowds would miss out. Also in the early part of this century these clubs were quite strong This hands Geelong an enormous advantage because they avoid the big clubs there, they play the 'weaker' clubs here virtually handing them 8 or 9 wins a year. We got belted there for years. So when people laud Geelong for being so 'competitive' year in year out it a crock of bulldust. On the other hand its probably why they fail at the pointy end of the season which isnt a bad thing. Either way though it is appalling that such an imbalance exists .

This week’s banner is the first “regular” banner since I’ve been here. No Big Freeze, no Pink Lady, no milestone matches. Just red letters on a blue background. Simple… but magnificent nonetheless. 😁 Amirite?! You bet your a$$ I am. 😜

If you asked me 3 months ago, I'd be all in for Amon. But JJ's form stacks up against Amon. JJ averages only 1.5 possies less per game but has kicked more goals. I'd much rather keep Gus than pursue Amon.

Even if it was on Saturday there would still be only 500 MFC Supporters there It is a disgrace that we have been sent down there 18 times this century, whilst other teams NEVER play there. it is Corrupt

This honestly needs to be made a bigger issue but the fact is that the "newsbreakers" and those who like to control the agenda are fans or have investment in the "bigger" Victorian clubs. There is absolutely no reason these days why there shouldn't be a rotation policy for all Victorian clubs to be sent down there. The AFL fixture is the most compromised, inequitable, and unfair draw of any professional code in the world. It's amateurish. Tell it to ANY fan of any code around the world and they would laugh. They are using the fixture to cheat the system. Once the new stand opens up there is no reason why all Victorian teams can't go down there, and the AFL should be forcing the cats to allocate more seats to opposition fans. If nobody snaps the tickets up by a certain time then by all means make it available to all.

If you are replying to the reply of a reply of a reply of a reply of a reply ......of a reply give me a break and do not use the word 'He'. Use the effing players name and no obscure nick names please. (This applies to all postings). FMD

As an engineer, I believe if it ain't broke, it doesn't have enough features yet

We've beaten them the last 3 times we've played them including a prelim shellacking. And don't forget we fixed em up in the 2018 elimination final too. These bastards loved sinking the boot in when we were rubbish. Let's them make our bunnies for a decade.

It is a pathetic joke. Melbourne, St Kilda, North and Bulldogs get dragged down to that shizen hole every year. Why can't sides like the filth, Hawthorn and Essenscum play down there. And to think Geelong had a home game against Richmond at the MCG a couple of weeks ago is beyond belief. Every year when the draw comes out I read it and have multiple fits over the kryptonite park situation.

Not really team related, but what a massive stuff up by the AFL holding a 1 v 2 clash at GMHBA stadium, while it is also going through a renovation and isn't even near full capacity. Probably would have got 60-70k at the G minimum. Farcical.

I love our defence and I love Petty in defence. So I wouldn't move him. We just have to hope that our outstanding defence and outstanding midfield is enough (to win a flag) to offset our average forward line. We've averaged 106 points in the last fortnight so things aren't that dire up forward.

Speculation about Lobb wanting out due to Jackson wanting in is off the mark. Lobb already wanted out.

For any bloody Geelong supports in your life

Drove by this evening on my way home from work tonight and our AFLW team were training on it.

If you want to be clever about it, you could probably remove Jeremy Cameron as a key forward because he's basically a tall flanker. He's not even in the top 50 for contested marks in the league, behind such behemoths as Callum Wilkie. We play Joel Smith on him. Most importantly, he can do that because Tom Hawkins exists, who is able to do the big man work whilst Cameron plays as a medium. Curnow is a bit different, but is greatly benefited from getting the second defender after Harry McKay. That allows Curnow to be one on one a lot more because McKay is doing the pack work. It's the same with Riewoldt and Lynch, or Membrey and King, or Fritsch and Brown. Whatever the case, the most functional forward lines tend to be built around a really tall forward who can create opportunities from the long kick forward (to the wing or inside 50) because defences are so good at forcing long kicks to outnumbered forwards. That's the role JVR is probably going to do but like TMac, he's going going to have to fight very hard to impact as a shorter key forward in that role. The style of the game is what's trending the requirement for taller key forwards, rather than vice-versa. Just in the same way that the 'switch everything' style of NBA defence has made wings and tall, long guards (like Giddey) more valuable.

Am I allowed to be a bit serious and ask that the opposition team be called by its real name or real nickname? The faux naming linking the opposition with a past event or a deliberate misspelling probably seemed amusing when we were 13 years old*, but today... really? *If you are 13 years old, go ahead. You're excused.

Deedubs' point isn't wrong, you've just misinterpreted it. If you're talking about key forwards then it's disingenuous to include small or medium forwards in that number too (like Charlie Cameron and Bayley Fritsch). The top 10 key forwards goalkickers (plus ties) are: J Cameron (196cm), C Curnow (192cm), Hawkins (198cm), Naughton (195cm), Lynch (199cm), M King (202cm), Wright (203cm), T Marshall (198cm), Franklin (199cm), Chol (200cm), H McKay (204cm), M Lewis (198cm). That's an average height of 198.7cm and a median of 198.5cm. Only one of them is a smaller key forward (Curnow) who is also the most mobile one. The other interesting thing there is that the top 2 goal kickers are 2 of the 3 smallest on the list (Cameron and Curnow) and play the least like the big key forwards we would be asking Van Rooyen to play like. But what those two do have do have is a second key forward who fits the definition of the taller key forward (Hawkins and McKay) that can do the heavy pack work whilst they play as a second tall. There is a definite trend towards very tall key forwards because the role of those forwards has changed. They are now asked to be able to halve contests whilst being outnumbered without being able to jump at the ball. This is different from the Neitz era where he was afforded leading space and played a lot one on one. Tall key forwards play better than smaller ones against zone defences, which Neitz (and Ablett, Dunstall and Lockett) never had to play against. Van Rooyen is a big boy who competes hard and attacks the ball, but he's going to have to work hard to play above his height against zone defences. That's not to say that he won't be able to do it, but he may be more Brody Mihocek than Max King.

Must always ask yourself "is he the right guy?"

There is an AFL rule that says that the MFC must play at the Cattery every year. It has been in existence for decades.

The stories I will tell about that game: Grandad, why is there no one at the game? ‘Well, Pfizer, it’s because the whole town of Geelong were locked out of events because they were a feral people. Terrible body odour and behaviour to match.’

Great post - this is, as we already know a complete and utter farce from a fixturing perspective I would really like our CEO to forcefully put to the AFL that our annual trip to this dung heap should be replaced by Rich, Carl, Haw, Ess and of course the filth until such time as they all rack up 18 appearances down there

It’s Geelong’s home game so they should be able to play it where they want. The issue I have is that only certain teams have to play there. Oh, and that their stadium is totally tax payer funded.

A mixed bag from bigfooty: Expecting to win this. Go cats. This is the game. Without Stewart, potentially without Stanley. I’m for once, not confident at all. Can't show our full hand but Scott needs to do something different. This team has our number in recent years. We will also see how some of the inexperienced players hold up to the pressure. Z. Guthrie, Holmes, De Koning, Close, Stengle . Demons are going ok but not as formidable as the back end of last year. I reckon we are in this up to our ears on current form. If we spend half the game kicking it down lever and May’s throats like we did against Richmond we are going to be in all sorts of trouble I can’t forget the nightmares of last year. Both games V Melbourne. I can see us getting to a decent lead early and them then reeling us back in. Melbourne by 25 points. We are due for a loss and they are too good. Would like to win but quite happy to lose and take some learnings out, hopefully we can be better come finals. While a lot of the names are the same I think we are better placed to face Melbourne than last year. We could have played a couple of kids last night and still won the game. Now Dad's Army will have to front up again on Thursday night. Not expecting a win here. I just want to see if our midfield is any chance of holding it together later in the year. They should smack us in the middle. We are a good chance, but so are they, and they will almost certainly bring their best footy and they play K.Park pretty well. Ii would love this upcoming game against Melb to be at the MCG - to see how Geel would measure up against the reignining premiers on the All those years of handing them out a hiding. They will never forget it. They rested Jackson for a reason. This is the game they want. I don't see us beating them for a while yet. I wouldn't care if we lose but if we could possibility unearth 1 or 2 flaws in their game so that if we meet again in the finals, we can try to expose that weakness. Melbourne are beatable. Put pressure on and get good ball to our forwards. Big game to show we are not just a top contender but we are here for the main course. Yep. That round 23 defeat imo gave them the belief to win the flag. Massive sliding doors moment. My favourites: I knew i shouldnt have tried to have a proper discussion with you. Because honestly it is like dancing with a Cobra snake Memo to players and coaches: if the game is close in the final minute and we have possession of the ball, DO NOT : Kick out on the full Punch the ball into the stand giving away a 50m penalty Fail to man up on Max Gawn at the top of the goal square

The problem isn't posting on it but rather opening it up expecting ACTUAL news on the situation. Just to be sure I fully blame Jack Watts

At least now we are getting random bits of information about open houses in Malvern rather than hyperbole and baseless speculation

More than happy to say this wont be happening. Even happier to say it wont be trialed when it is 1st v 2nd against a team with two monster Key forwards.

But defense wins flags. We won a flag with a similar forwardline last year and we scored heavily in finals. Forwardlines are overrated. Haven't helped Brisbane or Geelong win flags recently.

Just as a quick reference, the last time Collingwood played the Cats in a non 'blockbuster' slot (not friday night etc), with crowds permitted, was Round 8, 2018; a Sunday 3.20pm game. Magpies were 4-3 and on their way to a top 4 finish. The crowd of 44k was the smallest of the 8 games Geelong played at the MCG that year. Including the Demon's v Cats MCG game in round one, sunday 3.20pm, with 54,000, and our Elimination final win in front of 92,000. In 2017 the Magpies played the Cats at the MCG twice (yup), for crowds of 46k and 48k. Again, the Cats two smallest crowds at the MCG that year. Out of just 5 games they played there int he H&A season. It keeps going. Not only have Collingwood routinely been the only team to play Geelong at the 'G, they have also routinely been the Cats smallest crowd at the G - happened again on both points in 2015, 2012, and... actually I decided I'd had enough by then, but I think any debate is over. Anyway, Collingwood sucks and we're going to beat Geelong at Goomba stadium anyway.

And an analysis of scoring efficiency from F50 entries - I'd be shocked if we were high on that measure - our defence and midfield pump the ball in more than most teams

refuse to believe forward line is an issue personally scores in wins: rd 1 vs footscray: 97 rd 2 @ gc17: 82 rd 3 vs peptides: 99 rd 4 @ pear: 68 rd 5 vs gw$: 120 rd 6 @ tiggas: 76 rd 7 vs hawks: 91 rd 8 vs aints: 93 rd 9 @ meth coke: 112 rd 10 @ north: 100 rd 15 vs bears: 117 rd 16 @ crom: 94 that's some decent scoring

My understanding about Lobb is that his desire to move relates to his partner? i.e. unrelated to Jackson

Tomlinson really blotted his copy book on Reid vs Sydney. Was all at sea. Sulked each time Reid beat him. Hasn't stood out at Casey since. He will only be depth. I wouldn't be surprised if he (OOC 2023) gets a chat along the lines of: 'we are not sure what the future holds re senior games so you might like to look for new opportunities this year'. iirc he came on a very good $ package so it would free up cap space for next year's contract renewals. On Petty: He is a defender. He is May's understudy. Leave him there.

There is every chance that the late 50m penalty paid to Lever would not have been paid had there been a coercive full house of feral cats

The 'virus' is always mentioned followed by "Not that they're using it as an excuse".

Geelong not really blaming a virus for last year's prelim final but actually are still, today's sun.

I saw this action by Clarrie and I thought it was fantastic. I love this breed of young man that is coming through the Melbourne footy club under Simon Goodwin. Tough competitors, elite aspirations, enjoy each other’s company and a laugh, have love and respect for each other, humble in victory and gallant in defeat. The self confidence and camaraderie amongst this group, together with a mindful attitude, sets us apart from the rest. I think, on so many levels on and off the pitch, we are leading the way in the competition. A year or two ago, in one of Goody’s pressers, a journalist brought up a quote from some meat head ex player (it might even have been Leigh Matthews) that Melbourne players were ‘too gentlemanly”. Goodwin replied something along the lines of “There’s nothing wrong with being a gentleman: but you can be a gentleman and a killer - look at James Bond!”

Three times old mate!

I think LJ will stay from what i am hearing from inside MFC The Media are right off course and it’s not about money. Sorry i can’t say anymore at this point, i was asked not too

Barring the GF victory, This was the happiest moment of my supporting life. Unexpected, unbelievable, after the siren, Geelong at Geelong and for top spot! Will never forget this...and I imagine neither will they.

Happy memories