Demonland

Any news on Balic's hamstring?

Looks like The Age [censored] up.

Surely this is an oversight? If not he should be stripped of his media credentials. ?

? Don't get me wrong I love love love Jets but ..... ?

Melbourne takes on Hawthorn in a crucial match up on Sunday afternoon at the MCG. Both teams are sitting on a 2/1 record so, even at this early stage of the season, a win is crucial because the victor gets a little separation from the main pack challenging for a berth in the competition’s top echelon. The Demons, who have in the past year or so, made an art form out of letting opportunity slip from their grasp, badly need the win because it has an appointment with reigning premier Richmond coming up on Anzac Eve. Win both games and they are in a rarefied atmosphere for this football the club and off to their best start since 2005. And, in a similar vein to last week when Melbourne broke a long-standing losing streak against North Melbourne, the club is aiming to overturn a huge disparity between wins and losses in its recent history against Hawthorn. The Hawks have won 14 out of 15 against the Demons, the only exception being their Round 20, 2016 contest when they were top of the ladder and went down in a surprise loss that sent them hurtling from premiership favouritism for what would have been a fourth consecutive flag. Hawthorn bottomed out remarkably quickly last year and seem to be on the up and up just as quickly off the back mainly of their master stroke in the recruiting of midfielders Tom Mitchell and Jaeger O’Meara but Melbourne’s midfield is more multifaceted and adaptable including a wide range of players with varying degrees of size and experience. One of those midfielders is in form Christian Petracca to who I look for both inspiration and an omen in this game. The omen is drawn from Petracca’s former basketballing teammate Philadelphia 76ers rookie Ben Simmons who has been creating a storm in NBA circles. The 76ers were a struggling team until Simmons made his debut late last year. They began their season slowly but suddenly moved into play off contention and now, after their 15th consecutive win yesterday, they are nicely placed in third place on the Eastern Conference ladder. Their latest victim? The Atlanta Hawks. THE GAME Hawthorn v Melbourne at the MCG Sunday 15 April 2018 at 3.20pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall Hawthorn 86 wins Melbourne 75 wins At MCG Hawthorn 45 wins Melbourne 36 wins Last 5 meetings Hawthorn 4 wins Melbourne 1 win The Coaches Clarkson 1 win Goodwin 0 win MEDIA TV - Fox Sports3, Seven Mate live at 3.00pm RADIO - Triple M 3AW THE LAST TIME THEY MET Hawthorn 14.10.94 defeated Melbourne 14.7.91 in Round 7, 2017 at the MCG The Hawks skipped away to an early lead and were never headed although the Demons made a desperate lunge in the latter stages of the game. After Jeff Garlett’s third goal close to the three quarter time reduced the margin to 1 point, the teams traded goals until Jordan Lewis goaled with less than a minute remaining to reduce the margin to 3 points, but it was all too late. THE TEAMS HAWTHORN B: Conor Glass, James Frawley, Blake Hardwick HB: Taylor Duryea, Ben Stratton, James Sicily C: Ricky Henderson, Jarman Impey, Isaac Smith HF: Luke Breust, Jack Gunston, Tim O’Brien F: Paul Puopolo, Jarryd Roughead, Cyril Rioli Foll: Ben McEvoy, Tom Mitchell, Liam Shiels I/C: Daniel Howe, David Mirra, Harry Morrison, Jaeger O’Meara Emg: Ryan Burton, James Cousins, Mitchell Lewis, Brendan Whitecross In: Conor Glass, David Mirra, James Sicily Out: Kaiden Brand (omitted), Ryan Burton (omitted), Will Langford (omitted) New: David Mirra (Box Hill Hawks) MELBOURNE B: Christian Petracca, Oscar McDonald, Neville Jetta HB: Michael Hibberd, Jake Lever, Bernie Vince C: James Harmes, Nathan Jones, Jordan Lewis HF: Alex Neal-Bullen, Sam Frost, Tom Bugg F: Jake Melksham, Jesse Hogan, Dean Kent Foll: Max Gawn, Christian Salem, Clayton Oliver I/C: Angus Brayshaw, Bayley Fritsch, Jeff Garlett, Josh Wagner, Emg: Mitch Hannan, Jayden Hunt, Billy Stretch, Sam Weideman In: Angus Brayshaw Out: Dom Tyson (ill) The Hawks caused an upset when these two teams met but, in a way, it was on the cards. In the absence of injured big men Max Gawn and Jake Spencer and before Simon Goodwin could work on his ruck plan B, Ben McEvoy dominated the ruck with 53 hit-outs and gave his onballers an armchair ride. Even back then, Tom Mitchell was starring as a midfielder and with Jarryd Roughead, on the comeback trail from his illness, able to flush out every ounce of sympathy available from the umpires, the Hawks opened up an early lead that was a smidgeon beyond the Demons’ comeback challenge. Things are different this time on two major fronts. Firstly, there’s the Max Factor. The Melbourne big man is not only back but he’s showing the same, if not better, standard of mastery of his craft that won him All-Australian honours two years ago. Then there’s Jesse Hogan who took place in the equivalent game last year but was in the wrong space, recovery from the recent loss of his father and about to receive a cancer diagnosis. He’s in a much better place this time around and I suspect that he will prove a difficult opponent to overcome for whoever draws the short straw to oppose him. And that Hawk midfield might be leading the field in terms of centre clearances at 16.7 (a tremendous achievement given their opposition this year has included the Cats’ triumvirate and the reigning premiers’ on ball combinations) but the Demons are not that far behind at 16.0 with their multifaceforted engine room that includes the experience of Nathan Jones and Dom Tyson and the rapidly coming on Clayton Oliver and Christian Petracca who are both in great early-season touch. Around the ground, I think the Demons will be too solid for the Hawks who will be missing Shaun Burgoyne (hamstring) as well as a couple of other handy defenders. The result is that Hawks will lower the colours to the Dees for only the second time in a dozen years. Melbourne by 29 points.

OMEN by The Oracle Melbourne takes on Hawthorn in a crucial match up on Sunday afternoon at the MCG. Both teams are sitting on a 2/1 record so, even at this early stage of the season, a win is crucial because the victor gets a little separation from the main pack challenging for a berth in the competition’s top echelon. The Demons, who have in the past year or so, made an art form out of letting opportunity slip from their grasp, badly need the win because it has an appointment with reigning premier Richmond coming up on Anzac Eve. Win both games and they are in a rarefied atmosphere for this football the club and off to their best start since 2005. And, in a similar vein to last week when Melbourne broke a long-standing losing streak against North Melbourne, the club is aiming to overturn a huge disparity between wins and losses in its recent history against Hawthorn. The Hawks have won 14 out of 15 against the Demons, the only exception being their Round 20, 2016 contest when they were top of the ladder and went down in a surprise loss that sent them hurtling from premiership favouritism for what would have been a fourth consecutive flag. Hawthorn bottomed out remarkably quickly last year and seem to be on the up and up just as quickly off the back mainly of their master stroke in the recruiting of midfielders Tom Mitchell and Jaeger O’Meara but Melbourne’s midfield is more multifaceted and adaptable including a wide range of players with varying degrees of size and experience. One of those midfielders is in form Christian Petracca to who I look for both inspiration and an omen in this game. The omen is drawn from Petracca’s former basketballing teammate Philadelphia 76ers rookie Ben Simmons who has been creating a storm in NBA circles. The 76ers were a struggling team until Simmons made his debut late last year. They began their season slowly but suddenly moved into play off contention and now, after their 15th consecutive win yesterday, they are nicely placed in third place on the Eastern Conference ladder. Their latest victim? The Atlanta Hawks. THE GAME Hawthorn v Melbourne at the MCG Sunday 15 April 2018 at 3.20pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall Hawthorn 86 wins Melbourne 75 wins At MCG Hawthorn 45 wins Melbourne 36 wins Last 5 meetings Hawthorn 4 wins Melbourne 1 win The Coaches Clarkson 1 win Goodwin 0 win MEDIA TV - Fox Sports3, Seven Mate live at 3.00pm RADIO - Triple M 3AW THE LAST TIME THEY MET Hawthorn 14.10.94 defeated Melbourne 14.7.91 in Round 7, 2017 at the MCG The Hawks skipped away to an early lead and were never headed although the Demons made a desperate lunge in the latter stages of the game. After Jeff Garlett’s third goal close to the three quarter time reduced the margin to 1 point, the teams traded goals until Jordan Lewis goaled with less than a minute remaining to reduce the margin to 3 points, but it was all too late. THE TEAMS The Hawks caused an upset when these two teams met but, in a way, it was on the cards. In the absence of injured big men Max Gawn and Jake Spencer and before Simon Goodwin could work on his ruck plan B, Ben McEvoy dominated the ruck with 53 hit-outs and gave his onballers an armchair ride. Even back then, Tom Mitchell was starring as a midfielder and with Jarryd Roughead, on the comeback trail from his illness, able to flush out every ounce of sympathy available from the umpires, the Hawks opened up an early lead that was a smidgeon beyond the Demons’ comeback challenge. Things are different this time on two major fronts. Firstly, there’s the Max Factor. The Melbourne big man is not only back but he’s showing the same, if not better, standard of mastery of his craft that won him All-Australian honours two years ago. Then there’s Jesse Hogan who took place in the equivalent game last year but was in the wrong space, recovery from the recent loss of his father and about to receive a cancer diagnosis. He’s in a much better place this time around and I suspect that he will prove a difficult opponent to overcome for whoever draws the short straw to oppose him. And that Hawk midfield might be leading the field in terms of centre clearances at 16.7 (a tremendous achievement given their opposition this year has included the Cats’ triumvirate and the reigning premiers’ on ball combinations) but the Demons are not that far behind at 16.0 with their multifaceforted engine room that includes the experience of Nathan Jones and Dom Tyson and the rapidly coming on Clayton Oliver and Christian Petracca who are both in great early-season touch. Around the ground, I think the Demons will be too solid for the Hawks who will be missing Shaun Burgoyne (hamstring) as well as a couple of other handy defenders. The result is that Hawks will lower the colours to the Dees for only the second time in a dozen years. Melbourne by 29 points.

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The Demonland Podcast will be LIVE TONIGHT (11/4) @ 8:30PM Listen and Chat LIVE: http://demonland.com/podcast I'm still on the road so I can't take calls or have more than one cohost. We'll resume normal broadcasting next week.

At the time, the Hawks were playing like pox and we were trying to push for a place in the finals. Predictably, we lost ... MELBOURNE B: Michael Hibberd, Tom McDonald, Neville Jetta HB: Jayden Hunt, Sam Frost, Jordan Lewis C: Nathan Jones, Clayton Oliver, Tom Bugg HF: Christian Petracca, Jack Watts, Mitch Hannan F: Jeff Garlett, Jesse Hogan, Jay Kennedy-Harris FOLL: Cam Pedersen, Bernie Vince, Jack Viney I/C: Oscar McDonald, Christian Salem, Dom Tyson, Josh Wagner EMG: Dean Kent, Alex Neal-Bullen, Billy Stretch IN: Jesse Hogan, Josh Wagner OUT: Jake Melksham, Alex Neal-Bullen HAWTHORN B: Grant Burchall, James Frawley, Ben Stratton, HB: Ryan Burton, Josh Gibson, Shaun Burgoyne C: Isaac Smith, Tom Mitchell, Jaeger O'Meara HF: Luke Breust, Tim O'Brien, Jack Gunston F: Paul Puopolo, Jarryd Roughead, Cyril Rioli FOLL: Ben McEvoy Liam Shiels Luke Hodge I/C: Blake Hardwick, Billy Hartung, Daniel Howe, Brendan Whitecross EMG: Kaiden Brand, Will Langford, James Sicily IN: Grant Birchall, Cyril Rioli OUT: Kaiden Brand, Will Langford

The 2018 VFL premiership season campaign opened up on a bright note for the Casey Demons when they demolished the stand-alone Coburg Lions on their home turf at Piranha Park yesterday. The plucky Lions were out of the blocks early with the opening goal of the game, but in an omen of what was to come, Sam Weideman crunched his way through a pack, gave the ball off to former Docker Harley Balic who leveled the scores. The pair would each kick another five goals in their team’s massive first up win and, of course, they put their hands up for higher selection in the near future. Weideman, who had ankle surgery over the off season, was in exquisite form both in front of goal (he had four goals at the main break) and helping out in the ruck. Balic appears to have left the homesick blues behind him and was right at home in his first official game back in Melbourne. By quarter time, Casey held a 20 point lead and, while Coburg maintained its resistance against a strong defence led by Declan Keilty, Mitch White and young Adelaide recruit Harry Petty, it cracked in the latter half of the term as the likes of Corey Maynard, Mitch Hannan and Jayden Hunt were lively around the ball. By half time, the Casey lead had stretched out to 55 points. The Demons would have been pleased with the performances of their younger guns in Petty, Oskar Baker and Charlie Spargo although the latter’s name ended up in the umpire’s notebook after an indiscretion in the opening term. Some observers might have been scratching their heads when Melbourne drafted the 197cm Norwood, SA key defender Petty in light of their depth in that part of the ground particularly after recruiting All Australian Jake Lever, but the youngster was all coolness and class in his debut at this level and promises big things in the future. Baker is a pacy jack-in-a-box who needs to work on his awareness as he backs himself with his run, but will excite when he gets his chances at a higher level. Spargo, who kicked two goals for the game, might lack in height but has all of the skills and will also be worth watching as he develops through the season. The procession continued after the main break with Angus Brayshaw overcoming a heavy tag and demonstrating his quality. Cam Pedersen was in awesome form with his marking and strong play setting up attacking opportunities for Balic, Jay Kennedy Harris and Hannan as the Demons strolled to the easiest of wins. VFL-lister Angus Scott worked hard for his two goals from limited opportunities and North Launceston recruit Jay Lockhart was steady on debut pushing forward for a goal in the third quarter. The other excitement for spectators was the sight of the Casey Radio truck bogged in a ditch at the ground before the game which effectively curtailed transmission for the day. Fortunately, it didn’t prevent the team from trucking away to a 107 point victory. It was difficult to assess the full impact of Casey’s win because of the opposition’s lack of high calibre players. The visitors had 18 AFL listed players plus two others with previous experience at the highest level and their dominance was inevitable. They are way from home again next week as they travel to Werribee on Saturday night to play against another stand alone team although the Tigers gave Geelong VFL a fright in their opening round game. Casey Demons 5.2.32 13.4.82 19.9.123 28.12.180 Coburg Lions 2.0.12 4.3.27 6.5.41 11.7.73 Goals Casey Demons Balic 6 Weideman 5 Hannan 3 Kennedy Harris Scott T Smith Spargo 2 Bradshaw Johnstone Lockhart Maynard Pedersen Stretch Coburg Lions Mellington Svarc 2 Cannolo Fox Goodwin Hunt Kerbatieh Lentini Mitchell-Russell Best Casey Demons Brayshaw Pedersen Hannan Weideman Balic Petty Coburg Lions Exon Dickson Mellington Lowson Guthrie Murphy Statistics Oskar Baker 1 behind 12 kicks 8 handballs 20 disposals 3 marks 2 tackles 65 dream team points Harley Balic 6 goals 1 behind 16 kicks 4 handballs 20 disposals 10 marks 3 tackles 126 dream team points Angus Brayshaw 1 goal 11 kicks 16 handballs 27 disposals 5 marks 6 tackles 104 dream team points Lachlan Filipovic 3 kicks 7 handballs 10 disposals 2 marks 13 hit outs 42 dream team points Mitchell Hannan 3 goals 1 behind 16 kicks 9 handballs 25 disposals 5 marks 1 tackle 100 dream team points Jayden Hunt 8 kicks 12 handballs 20 disposals 2 marks 7 tackles 83 dream team points Dion Johnstone 1 goal 4 kicks 4 handballs 8 disposals 1 marks 3 tackles 38 dream team points Declan Keilty 4 kicks 6 handballs 10 disposals 3 marks 34 dream team points Jay Kennedy-Harris 2 goals 1 behind 16 kicks 8 handballs 24 disposals 6 marks 4 tackles 114 dream team points Mitch King 6 kicks 3 handballs 9 disposals 2 marks 1 tackle 26 hit outs 56 dream team points Mitchell Lewis 1 behind 4 kicks 6 handballs 10 disposals 3 marks 2 tackles 40 dream team points Jay Lockhart 1 goal 7 kicks 6 handballs 13 disposals 3 marks 1 tackle 1 hit out 49 dream team points Corey Maynard 1 goal 10 kicks 15 handballs 25 disposals 9 marks 1 tackle 91 team points Cameron Pedersen 1 goal 20 kicks 5 handballs 25 disposals 15 marks 5 tackles 138 dream team points Harrison Petty 7 kicks 6 handballs 13 disposals 4 marks 42 dream team points Angus Scott 2 goals 1 behinds 14 kicks 4 handballs 18 disposals 4 marks 76 dream team points Joel Smith 4 kicks 5 handballs 9 disposals 3 tackles 39 dream team points Timothy Smith 2 goals 4 behinds 12 kicks 12 handballs 24 disposals 6 marks 2 tackles 100 dream team points Charlie Spargo 2 goals 0 behinds 8 kicks 9 handballs 17 disposals 5 marks 3 tackles 75 dream team points Billy Stretch 1 goal 1 behind 15 kicks 10 handballs 25 disposals 4 marks 5 tackles 102 dream team points Corey Wagner 10 kicks 5 handballs 15 disposals 1 mark 3 tackles 55 dream team points Samuel Weideman 5 goals 1 behind 8 kicks 8 handballs 16 disposals 5 marks 1 tackle 12 hit outs 98 dream team points Mitchell White 7 kicks 4 handballs 11 disposals 2 marks 2 tackles 40 dream team points

CASEY DEMONS KEEP ON TRUCKING by KC from Casey The 2018 VFL premiership season campaign opened up on a bright note for the Casey Demons when they demolished the stand-alone Coburg Lions on their home turf at Piranha Park yesterday. The plucky Lions were out of the blocks early with the opening goal of the game, but in an omen of what was to come, Sam Weideman crunched his way through a pack, gave the ball off to former Docker Harley Balic who leveled the scores. The pair would each kick another five goals in their team’s massive first up win and, of course, they put their hands up for higher selection in the near future. Weideman, who had ankle surgery over the off season, was in exquisite form both in front of goal (he had four goals at the main break) and helping out in the ruck. Balic appears to have left the homesick blues behind him and was right at home in his first official game back in Melbourne. By quarter time, Casey held a 20 point lead and, while Coburg maintained its resistance against a strong defence led by Declan Keilty, Mitch White and young Adelaide recruit Harry Petty, it cracked in the latter half of the term as the likes of Corey Maynard, Mitch Hannan and Jayden Hunt were lively around the ball. By half time, the Casey lead had stretched out to 55 points. The Demons would have been pleased with the performances of their younger guns in Petty, Oskar Baker and Charlie Spargo although the latter’s name ended up in the umpire’s notebook after an indiscretion in the opening term. Some observers might have been scratching their heads when Melbourne drafted the 197cm Norwood, SA key defender Petty in light of their depth in that part of the ground particularly after recruiting All Australian Jake Lever, but the youngster was all coolness and class in his debut at this level and promises big things in the future. Baker is a pacy jack-in-a-box who needs to work on his awareness as he backs himself with his run, but will excite when he gets his chances at a higher level. Spargo, who kicked two goals for the game, might lack in height but has all of the skills and will also be worth watching as he develops through the season. The procession continued after the main break with Angus Brayshaw overcoming a heavy tag and demonstrating his quality. Cam Pedersen was in awesome form with his marking and strong play setting up attacking opportunities for Balic, Jay Kennedy Harris and Hannan as the Demons strolled to the easiest of wins. VFL-lister Angus Scott worked hard for his two goals from limited opportunities and North Launceston recruit Jay Lockhart was steady on debut pushing forward for a goal in the third quarter. The other excitement for spectators was the sight of the Casey Radio truck bogged in a ditch at the ground before the game which effectively curtailed transmission for the day. Fortunately, it didn’t prevent the team from trucking away to a 107 point victory. It was difficult to assess the full impact of Casey’s win because of the opposition’s lack of high calibre players. The visitors had 18 AFL listed players plus two others with previous experience at the highest level and their dominance was inevitable. They are way from home again next week as they travel to Werribee on Saturday night to play against another stand alone team although the Tigers gave Geelong VFL a fright in their opening round game. Casey Demons 5.2.32 13.4.82 19.9.123 28.12.180 Coburg Lions 2.0.12 4.3.27 6.5.41 11.7.73 Goals Casey Demons Balic 6 Weideman 5 Hannan 3 Kennedy Harris Scott T Smith Spargo 2 Bradshaw Johnstone Lockhart Maynard Pedersen Stretch Coburg Lions Mellington Svarc 2 Cannolo Fox Goodwin Hunt Kerbatieh Lentini Mitchell-Russell Best Casey Demons Brayshaw Pedersen Hannan Weideman Balic Petty Coburg Lions Exon Dickson Mellington Lowson Guthrie Murphy Statistics Oskar Baker 1 behind 12 kicks 8 handballs 20 disposals 3 marks 2 tackles 65 dream team points Harley Balic 6 goals 1 behind 16 kicks 4 handballs 20 disposals 10 marks 3 tackles 126 dream team points Angus Brayshaw 1 goal 11 kicks 16 handballs 27 disposals 5 marks 6 tackles 104 dream team points Lachlan Filipovic 3 kicks 7 handballs 10 disposals 2 marks 13 hit outs 42 dream team points Mitchell Hannan 3 goals 1 behind 16 kicks 9 handballs 25 disposals 5 marks 1 tackle 100 dream team points Jayden Hunt 8 kicks 12 handballs 20 disposals 2 marks 7 tackles 83 dream team points Dion Johnstone 1 goal 4 kicks 4 handballs 8 disposals 1 marks 3 tackles 38 dream team points Declan Keilty 4 kicks 6 handballs 10 disposals 3 marks 34 dream team points Jay Kennedy-Harris 2 goals 1 behind 16 kicks 8 handballs 24 disposals 6 marks 4 tackles 114 dream team points Mitch King 6 kicks 3 handballs 9 disposals 2 marks 1 tackle 26 hit outs 56 dream team points Mitchell Lewis 1 behind 4 kicks 6 handballs 10 disposals 3 marks 2 tackles 40 dream team points Jay Lockhart 1 goal 7 kicks 6 handballs 13 disposals 3 marks 1 tackle 1 hit out 49 dream team points Corey Maynard 1 goal 10 kicks 15 handballs 25 disposals 9 marks 1 tackle 91 team points Cameron Pedersen 1 goal 20 kicks 5 handballs 25 disposals 15 marks 5 tackles 138 dream team points Harrison Petty 7 kicks 6 handballs 13 disposals 4 marks 42 dream team points Angus Scott 2 goals 1 behinds 14 kicks 4 handballs 18 disposals 4 marks 76 dream team points Joel Smith 4 kicks 5 handballs 9 disposals 3 tackles 39 dream team points Timothy Smith 2 goals 4 behinds 12 kicks 12 handballs 24 disposals 6 marks 2 tackles 100 dream team points Charlie Spargo 2 goals 0 behinds 8 kicks 9 handballs 17 disposals 5 marks 3 tackles 75 dream team points Billy Stretch 1 goal 1 behind 15 kicks 10 handballs 25 disposals 4 marks 5 tackles 102 dream team points Corey Wagner 10 kicks 5 handballs 15 disposals 1 mark 3 tackles 55 dream team points Samuel Weideman 5 goals 1 behind 8 kicks 8 handballs 16 disposals 5 marks 1 tackle 12 hit outs 98 dream team points Mitchell White 7 kicks 4 handballs 11 disposals 2 marks 2 tackles 40 dream team points