Demonland

That trip across Bass Strait that produced a cracking game but yet another disappointing loss to North with the oldest man in the ground Boomer destroying us for the last time and booting 6! NORTH MELBOURNE B: M.Firrito R.Tarrant S.Wright HB: S.Atley S.Thompson L.McDonald C: N.Dal Santo D.Wells B.Jacobs HF: J.Ziebell J.Waite B.Harvey F: S.Higgins D.Petrie L.Thomas FOLL: T.Goldstein B.Cunnington A.Swallow I/C: B.Brown T.Garner S.Gibson J.Macmillan EMG: T.Dumont L.Hansen A.Mullett IN: S.Thompson OUT: L.Hansen MELBOURNE B: N.Jetta T.McDonald T.Bugg HB: M.Jones H.Lumumba C.Salem C: B.Vince D.Tyson J.Harmes HF: J.Watts A.Vandenberg B.Kennedy F: D.Kent J.Hogan J.Garlett FOLL: M.Gawn N.Jones J.Viney I/C: C.Oliver L.Dunn S.Frost B.Stretch EMG: J.Grimes C.Pedersen J.Wagner IN: L.Dunn S.Frost B.Stretch OUT: A.Brayshaw C.Garland C. Pedersen

Clayton Oliver's amazing season continues ... 92. Clayton Oliver 57. Jack Watts 52. Nathan Jones 39. Jack Viney 33. Jayden Hunt 28. Michael Hibberd 24. Jeff Garlett 23. Christian Petracca 22. Jordan Lewis 17. Christian Salem 16. Sam Frost 15. Dom Tyson Tom McDonald 11. Max Gawn 9. Bernie Vince 7. Neville Jetta Alex Neal-Bullen 6. Jesse Hogan Cam Pedersen 5. Dean Kent Billy Stretch 2. Jake Melksham

Just in case you wanted to hear the boys belt out the song again.

And now ... your votes please!!!

Go Dees! Never in Doubt.

The way things are panning out, it would appear that Melbourne's season started and ended when Max Gawn's hamstring gave way at Etihad Stadium against Geelong in Round 3. That loss was compounded a little over a fortnight later when his understudy Jake Spencer suffered his shoulder injury during the game against the Tigers leaving the club with only two young ruck talls on its list, both of them a long way away from being ready to take on the AFL's giants. In place of a big ruckman, the 193cm Cam Pedersen has battled manfully against taller opposition and the Demons have conscripted key players away from their normal positions to give him the chop out when he needs a rest but the result has really been a case of robbing Peter to pay Paul. Nothing was more obvious than last week in the heat of battle when the game was there to be lost and won and Hawthorn's 200cm Ben McEvoy amassed 53 hit outs to Pedersen's 16 and took some telling marks virtually uncontested up forward and kicked two goals. That would never have happened had Max Gawn been playing. So this week, with the Melbourne selectors as hamstrung as their big ruckman who won't be back for another six to eight weeks, the team will travel across to Adelaide to face a home side that had the perfect start to its season until it ran into an ill wind in the first quarter against North Melbourne at Blundstone Arena in Hobart. The pride of the Crows was well and truly dented but they are not badly wounded as are the Demons. They have the likes of Sloane, Betts, Walker and a bevy of others, not to mention their tall timber in Jacobs and Jenkins intact. On top of that, their style of play is positive, attacking and direct and if Adelaide can force Melbourne into a pattern whereby it overuses the football as badly as it did for most of last week's game, then the Demons' season could unravel even further than it has to date. THE GAME Adelaide v Melbourne at Adelaide Oval Saturday 13 May, 2017 at 7.40 pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall Adelaide 23 wins Melbourne 12 wins At Adelaide Oval Adelaide 1 win Melbourne 1 win Past five meetings Adelaide 4 wins Melbourne 1 win The Coaches Don Pyke 0 wins Simon Goodwin 0 wins MEDIA TV - Fox Sports 3 Live at 7.30pm RADIO - SEN THE BETTING Adelaide to win - $1.12 Melbourne to win - $6.50 THE LAST TIME THEY MET Adelaide 18.12.120 defeated Melbourne 15.8.98 Round 15, 2016 at the MCG At half time Melbourne led by 11 points after a sensational second quarter inspired by Max Gawn's dominance in the ruck and a typical hard nosed effort from skipper Nathan Jones. The Crows came out fighting in the third quarter with a four goal burst in the opening six minutes and controlled the game from then on to finally run out 22 point winners. THE TEAMS ADELAIDE B: Jake Kelly, Daniel Talia, Luke Brown HB: Rory Laird, Kyle Hartigan, David Mackay C: Rory Sloane, Richard Douglas, Brodie Smith HF: Tom Lynch, Josh Jenkins, Wayne Milera F: Andy Otten, Taylor Walker, Eddie Betts FOLL: Sam Jacobs, Rory Atkins, Matt Crouch I/C: Charlie Cameron, Brad Crouch, Curtly Hampton, Troy Menzel EMG: Jordan Gallucci, Hugh Greenwood, Reilly O'Brien IN: Wayne Milera Troy Menzel OUT: Riley Knight (corked gluts) Jake Lever (hamstring), MELBOURNE B: Michael Hibberd, Tom McDonald, Neville Jetta HB: Jayden Hunt, Sam Frost, Bernie Vince C: Nathan Jones, Jack Viney, Christian Salem HF: Christian Petracca, Jack Watts, Clayton Oliver F: Jeff Garlett, Sam Weideman, Mitch Hannan FOLL: Cameron Pedersen, Jordan Lewis, Dom Tyson I/C: Tomas Bugg, Dean Kent, Oscar McDonald, Josh Wagner EMG: Alex Neal-Bullen, Billy Stretch, Sam Weideman IN: Dean Kent Sam Weideman OUT: Jesse Hogan (ill) Jay Kennedy-Harris (omitted) The Demons decided to take two emergencies over to Adelaide which was a good idea, especially after word filtered out on Friday at mid-afternoon that Jesse Hogan was not on the team flight and had been ruled out of the game due to illness. More bad luck and the worst of it all is that it's happening when the team is up against a Crows side that is expected to be on the rampage after losing to North Melbourne in such emphatic fashion just last week. Adelaide has been virtually unstoppable all season to date and unless the Demons can conjure up a 10 goal breeze for the home team to kick into first up, they will be in big trouble in the City of Churches. At least they are in the right place for them to hope and to pray but I fear that it will do them very little good this week. Adelaide by 45 points

HAMSTRUNG by JVM The way things are panning out, it would appear that Melbourne's season started and ended when Max Gawn's hamstring gave way at Etihad Stadium against Geelong in Round 3. That loss was compounded a little over a fortnight later when his understudy Jake Spencer suffered his shoulder injury during the game against the Tigers leaving the club with only two young ruck talls on its list, both of them a long way away from being ready to take on the AFL's giants. In place of a big ruckman, the 193cm Cam Pedersen has battled manfully against taller opposition and the Demons have conscripted key players away from their normal positions to give him the chop out when he needs a rest but the result has really been a case of robbing Peter to pay Paul. Nothing was more obvious than last week in the heat of battle when the game was there to be lost and won and Hawthorn's 200cm Ben McEvoy amassed 53 hit outs to Pedersen's 16 and took some telling marks virtually uncontested up forward and kicked two goals. That would never have happened had Max Gawn been playing. So this week, with the Melbourne selectors as hamstrung as their big ruckman who won't be back for another six to eight weeks, the team will travel across to Adelaide to face a home side that had the perfect start to its season until it ran into an ill wind in the first quarter against North Melbourne at Blundstone Arena in Hobart. The pride of the Crows was well and truly dented but they are not badly wounded as are the Demons. They have the likes of Sloane, Betts, Walker and a bevy of others, not to mention their tall timber in Jacobs and Jenkins intact. On top of that, their style of play is positive, attacking and direct and if Adelaide can force Melbourne into a pattern whereby it overuses the football as badly as it did for most of last week's game, then the Demons' season could unravel even further than it has to date. THE GAME Adelaide v Melbourne at Adelaide Oval Saturday 13 May, 2017 at 7.40 pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall Adelaide 23 wins Melbourne 12 wins At Adelaide Oval Adelaide 1 win Melbourne 1 win Past five meetings Adelaide 4 wins Melbourne 1 win The Coaches Don Pyke 0 wins Simon Goodwin 0 wins MEDIA TV - Fox Sports 3 Live at 7.30pm RADIO - SEN THE BETTING Adelaide to win - $1.12 Melbourne to win - $6.50 THE LAST TIME THEY MET Adelaide 18.12.120 defeated Melbourne 15.8.98 Round 15, 2016 at the MCG At half time Melbourne led by 11 points after a sensational second quarter inspired by Max Gawn's dominance in the ruck and a typical hard nosed effort from skipper Nathan Jones. The Crows came out fighting in the third quarter with a four goal burst in the opening six minutes and controlled the game from then on to finally run out 22 point winners. THE TEAMS ADELAIDE B: Jake Kelly, Daniel Talia, Luke Brown HB: Rory Laird, Kyle Hartigan, David Mackay C: Rory Sloane, Richard Douglas, Brodie Smith HF: Tom Lynch, Josh Jenkins, Wayne Milera F: Andy Otten, Taylor Walker, Eddie Betts FOLL: Sam Jacobs, Rory Atkins, Matt Crouch I/C: Charlie Cameron, Brad Crouch, Curtly Hampton, Troy Menzel EMG: Jordan Gallucci, Hugh Greenwood, Reilly O'Brien IN: Wayne Milera Troy Menzel OUT: Riley Knight (corked gluts) Jake Lever (hamstring), MELBOURNE B: Michael Hibberd, Tom McDonald, Neville Jetta HB: Jayden Hunt, Sam Frost, Bernie Vince C: Nathan Jones, Jack Viney, Christian Salem HF: Christian Petracca, Jack Watts, Clayton Oliver F: Jeff Garlett, Sam Weideman, Mitch Hannan FOLL: Cameron Pedersen, Jordan Lewis, Dom Tyson I/C: Tomas Bugg, Dean Kent, Oscar McDonald, Josh Wagner EMG: Alex Neal-Bullen, Billy Stretch, Sam Weideman IN: Dean Kent Sam Weideman OUT: Jesse Hogan (ill) Jay Kennedy-Harris (omitted) The Demons decided to take two emergencies over to Adelaide which was a good idea, especially after word filtered out on Friday at mid-afternoon that Jesse Hogan was not on the team flight and had been ruled out of the game due to illness. More bad luck and the worst of it all is that it's happening when the team is up against a Crows side that is expected to be on the rampage after losing to North Melbourne in such emphatic fashion just last week. Adelaide has been virtually unstoppable all season to date and unless the Demons can conjure up a 10 goal breeze for the home team to kick into first up, they will be in big trouble in the City of Churches. At least they are in the right place for them to hope and to pray but I fear that it will do them very little good this week. Adelaide by 45 points

You can subscribe to the Demonland Podcast on iTunes here: https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/demonland-podcast/id1220844996?mt=2

Tonight's Podcast can be streamed or downloaded here.

You did great. It's not easy going live and speaking in front of 50 to 60 anonymous strangers. Good first up effort.

The Demonland Podcast will air LIVE tonight @ 8:30pm. http://demonland.com/Podcast Call: 03 9016 3666 Skype: Demonland31

Rafiki will be joining me tonight but I would definitely welcome a call from Zach Galafinakis or Ethan Tremblay.

Oh yeah. Can you pm me your Skype name. I use a different Skype address to talk to co-host than I do for callers.

Do you have Skype installed on your pc or phone with a headset/mic?

I'm not sure the public is ready for it.

The Demonland Podcast will be LIVE @ 8:30pm tonight IF I can find a cohost. Grapeviney is away this week and is unable to do cohosting duties so I'm throwing it out there to the Demonland public. Inquire within. Must have a Skype connection a decent sounding headset/mic. If you have an apple or android device with skype installed and the earphones/mic that come with them then that should suffice. http://demoland.com/Pocast

Congratulations to Sam Frost and Jack Viney for making the AFL Team of the Week. Surprised the umpire that kept gifting Roughy wasn't nominated. Too soon? http://www.afl.com.au/news/2017-05-09/team-of-the-week-r7-did-we-get-it-right

At the G, we were pretty competitive until the last quarter. MELBOURNE B: Sam Frost, Tom McDonald, Neville Jetta HB: Jayden Hunt, Oscar McDonald, Tomas Bugg C: Aaron vandenBerg, Dom Tyson, Bernie Vince HF: Christian Petracca, Chris Dawes, Billy Stretch F: Jack Watts, Jesse Hogan, Dean Kent FOLL: Max Gawn, Nathan Jones, Jack Viney I/C: Jeff Garlett, James Harmes, Matt Jones, Ben Kennedy EMG: Jack Grimes, Viv Michie, Jack Trengove IN: Jeff Garlett, James Harmes, Matt Jones OUT: Clayton Oliver (omitted), Jack Trengove (omitted), Josh Wagner (knee) ADELAIDE CROWS B: Jake Lever, Daniel Talia, Rory Laird HB: Brodie Smith, Kyle Hartigan, Luke Brown C: David Mackay, Rory Sloane, Rory Atkins HF: Mitch McGovern, Josh Jenkins, Richard Douglas F: Eddie Betts, Taylor Walker, Tom Lynch FOLL: Sam Jacobs, Scott Thompson, Jarryd Lyons I/C: Charlie Cameron, Kyle Cheney, Brad Crouch, Matt Crouch EMG: Ricky Henderson, Wayne Milera, Andy Otten NO CHANGE

Clayton Oliver's great start to the 2017 season continues - 77. Clayton Oliver 57. Jack Watts 44. Nathan Jones 33. Jayden Hunt 24. Jeff Garlett 22. Jordan Lewis 21. Jack Viney 20. Michael Hibberd Christian Petracca 16. Sam Frost Christian Salem 15. Dom Tyson 11. Max Gawn Tom McDonald 7. Alex Neal-Bullen 6. Jesse Hogan Cam Pedersen Bernie Vince 5. Dean Kent Billy Stretch 4. Neville Jetta 2. Jake Melksham

HITTING A WALL by KC from Casey When Dion Johnstone kicked his second goal for Casey Demons to give his team a 19 point lead early in the time on period of the third quarter at Hogans Road Reserve, Hoppers Crossing the visitors appeared poised to win their second game for the season and grab a spot in the top eight of the VFL competition. Unfortunately for the Demons they hit a wall and were swamped by a Lindsay Thomas-inspired Werribee which kicked the last five goals of the match to a miserable four points in the final forty minutes before the final siren sounded with the home side 13 points in front. Thomas had an action-packed game that saw him reported for a head high bump on Corey Maynard early in the second term which saw the rookie stretchered off the ground and out for the game. At the time, Maynard had been playing well and was well on his way to another high possession game. Former Bomber Jake Melksham was also in strife with the men in white after two incidents involving Werribee’s Matthew Hanson. Earlier in the match, Casey took control of the game in the second quarter after an arm wrestle in the first term of the hard fought contest to hold a 15 point lead at half time. The Demons retained that lead for most of the third term with Melksham outstanding in a performance that would have been even more formidable has his kicking for goal been on target - he finished with one goal five behinds for the match. Assisting him among the better AFL listed Demons were Billy Stretch, Jack Trengove and Ben Kennedy (23 touches each) while young ruckmen Mitch King and Declan Keilty worked hard but were overpowered by North Melbourne giant Braydon Preuss who had 71 hit outs. The loss to injury of Melbourne's two talls Gawn and Spencer is cutting deep through to the VFL ranks as well. Youngster Johnstone stood out with some strong tackling along with his two goal effort to indicate he is becoming more comfortable at this level. Bayley Fritsch continues to impress while Dylan Collis played his best game for Casey. In the end, it was Thomas' two final quarter goals that broke the deadlock between the teams after booting his first in the shadows of three quarter time. The Demons have another tough away game coming up this week against the fourth placed Northern Blues at Preston. Casey Demons 2.3.15 8.7.55 10.10.70 10.14.74 Werribee 3.3.21 6.4.40 10.6.66 13.8.86 Goals Casey Demons Johnstone Scott 2 Fritsch Keilty Kennedy Kent Melksham Vander Haar Werribee Larkey 4 Thomas 3 Zurhaar 2 Buykx Cleeland Fordham Williams Best Casey Demons Melksham Collis Munro Keilty Hutchins Fritsch Werribee Hanson Nielson Fordham Mountford Preuss Sodomaco Statistics James Harmes 7 kicks 12 handballs 19 disposals 2 marks 5 tackles 66 dream team points Liam Hulett 11 kicks 1 handballs 16 disposals 5 marks 1 tackle 51 dream team points Dion Johnstone 2 goals 10 kicks 2 handballs 12 disposals 1 mark 7 tackles 77 dream team points Declan Keilty 1 goal 4 kicks 9 handballs 13 disposals 1 mark 8 tackles 11 hit outs 85 dream team points Ben Kennedy 1 goal 2 behinds 13 kicks 10 handballs 23 disposals 3 marks 4 tackles 93 dream team points Dean Kent 1 goal 1 behind 11 kicks 5 handballs 16 disposals 3 marks 8 tackles 93 dream team points Mitch King 4 kicks 8 handballs 12 disposals 1 mark 5 tackles 28 hit outs 74 dream team points Corey Maynard 4 kicks 3 handballs 7 disposals 2 marks 2 tackles 33 dream team points [injured] Jake Melksham 1 goal 5 behinds 26 kicks 9 handballs 35 disposals 7 marks 10 tackles 157 dream team points Billy Stretch 1 behind 12 kicks 11 handballs 23 disposals 6 marks 3 tackles 87 dream team points Jack Trengove 1 behind 16 kicks 7 handballs 23 disposals 5 marks 4 tackles 95 dream team points Mitchell White 17 kicks 4 handballs 21 disposals 7 marks 2 tackles 89 dream team points Sam Weideman 1 behind 3 kicks 3 handballs 6 disposals 3 marks 2 tackles 1 hit out 27 dream team points The Development League team had another unusual clash with Werribee which kicked poorly in the first term allowing them to grab the lead late in the second term and then stream away to win by 34 points. AFL Development League Casey Demons 1.0.6 5.3.33 10.5.65 14.8.92 Werribee 1.11.17 2.14.26 4.15.39 7.16.58 Goals Casey Demons Foote 3 Baker Lefau 2 Ambler Cotte Dwyer Dan Johnston Lewis-Smith Lok Machaya Werribee Liberatore Maishman 2 Cotter Johnson Kershaw Best Casey Demons Dwyer Foote Filipovic Lok Ferreira

When Dion Johnstone kicked his second goal for Casey Demons to give his team a 19 point lead early in the time on period of the third quarter at Hogans Road Reserve, Hoppers Crossing the visitors appeared poised to win their second game for the season and grab a spot in the top eight of the VFL competition. Unfortunately for the Demons they hit a wall and were swamped by a Lindsay Thomas-inspired Werribee which kicked the last five goals of the match to a miserable four points in the final forty minutes before the final siren sounded with the home side 13 points in front. Thomas had an action-packed game that saw him reported for a head high bump on Corey Maynard early in the second term which saw the rookie stretchered off the ground and out for the game. At the time, Maynard had been playing well and was well on his way to another high possession game. Former Bomber Jake Melksham was also in strife with the men in white after two incidents involving Werribee’s Matthew Hanson. Earlier in the match, Casey took control of the game in the second quarter after an arm wrestle in the first term of the hard fought contest to hold a 15 point lead at half time. The Demons retained that lead for most of the third term with Melksham outstanding in a performance that would have been even more formidable has his kicking for goal been on target - he finished with one goal five behinds for the match. Assisting him among the better AFL listed Demons were Billy Stretch, Jack Trengove and Ben Kennedy (23 touches each) while young ruckmen Mitch King and Declan Keilty worked hard but were overpowered by North Melbourne giant Braydon Preuss who had 71 hit outs. The loss to injury of Melbourne's two talls Gawn and Spencer is cutting deep through to the VFL ranks as well. Youngster Johnstone stood out with some strong tackling along with his two goal effort to indicate he is becoming more comfortable at this level. Bayley Fritsch continues to impress while Dylan Collis played his best game for Casey. In the end, it was Thomas' two final quarter goals that broke the deadlock between the teams after booting his first in the shadows of three quarter time. The Demons have another tough away game coming up this week against the fourth placed Northern Blues at Preston. Casey Demons 2.3.15 8.7.55 10.10.70 10.14.74 Werribee 3.3.21 6.4.40 10.6.66 13.8.86 Goals Casey Demons Johnstone Scott 2 Fritsch Keilty Kennedy Kent Melksham Vander Haar Werribee Larkey 4 Thomas 3 Zurhaar 2 Buykx Cleeland Fordham Williams Best Casey Demons Melksham Collis Munro Keilty Hutchins Fritsch Werribee Hanson Nielson Fordham Mountford Preuss Sodomaco Statistics James Harmes 7 kicks 12 handballs 19 disposals 2 marks 5 tackles 66 dream team points Liam Hulett 11 kicks 1 handballs 16 disposals 5 marks 1 tackle 51 dream team points Dion Johnstone 2 goals 10 kicks 2 handballs 12 disposals 1 mark 7 tackles 77 dream team points Declan Keilty 1 goal 4 kicks 9 handballs 13 disposals 1 mark 8 tackles 11 hit outs 85 dream team points Ben Kennedy 1 goal 2 behinds 13 kicks 10 handballs 23 disposals 3 marks 4 tackles 93 dream team points Dean Kent 1 goal 1 behind 11 kicks 5 handballs 16 disposals 3 marks 8 tackles 93 dream team points Mitch King 4 kicks 8 handballs 12 disposals 1 mark 5 tackles 28 hit outs 74 dream team points Corey Maynard 4 kicks 3 handballs 7 disposals 2 marks 2 tackles 33 dream team points [injured] Jake Melksham 1 goal 5 behinds 26 kicks 9 handballs 35 disposals 7 marks 10 tackles 157 dream team points Billy Stretch 1 behind 12 kicks 11 handballs 23 disposals 6 marks 3 tackles 87 dream team points Jack Trengove 1 behind 16 kicks 7 handballs 23 disposals 5 marks 4 tackles 95 dream team points Mitchell White 17 kicks 4 handballs 21 disposals 7 marks 2 tackles 89 dream team points Sam Weideman 1 behind 3 kicks 3 handballs 6 disposals 3 marks 2 tackles 1 hit out 27 dream team points The Development League team had another unusual clash with Werribee which kicked poorly in the first term allowing them to grab the lead late in the second term and then stream away to win by 34 points. AFL Development League Casey Demons 1.0.6 5.3.33 10.5.65 14.8.92 Werribee 1.11.17 2.14.26 4.15.39 7.16.58 Goals Casey Demons Foote 3 Baker Lefau 2 Ambler Cotte Dwyer Dan Johnston Lewis-Smith Lok Machaya Werribee Liberatore Maishman 2 Cotter Johnson Kershaw Best Casey Demons Dwyer Foote Filipovic Lok Ferreira

A loss to Fremantle by two points. Thirteen points to Richmond after it was all tied up as time on began in the last, 29 points to the Cats after leading at the final break and now three points to Hawthorn. In each and every match that Melbourne has lost this year, it has led or been level with the opposition late in the game, and each time it has been unable to put a win on the board. Yes, the Demons are missing an all-Australian ruckman in Max Gawn and more lately his next in line, but they have still outplayed the opposition in his absence, and in this match despite losing the tap-out stats, they still won the clearances. The critical factor missing is the lack of intensity among the players for four quarters. The competition is that even in 2017, that to drop one's guard for even a short period of time can guarantee a loss. In this match it was all to be seen in the first quarter, with the half-hearted efforts from numerous players who thought they just had to go through the motions. Suddenly, the team was four goals down and effectively, given the end result, all but over. Running hard, tackling, and being aggressive at the ball and man wasn’t seen in that first half. It was only after the main break that the Demons produced the football we now know they are capable of, and dragged back the four goal deficit to be within a point at ¾ time. How a team can kick four goals in a half of football and then seven in the next 30 minutes is enough to give the coaching team nightmares. And Simon Goodwin and the coaches can take some credit for that turnaround with their positional moves that produced instant results. Jayden Hunt forward produced two goals in the opening minutes of the second half. Tom McDonals to the backline to bolster and provide a cool head. This not only released Sam Frost to produce some stellar runs and moves, but forced Oscar McDonald to be third man in defence instead of first - a task that was beyond him in the first half of the game. Yet, he became a solid last line and took telling marks and possessions when needed. Despite assistant coach, Troy Chaplin, alluding to it at the ¼ time break, they had to stop overusing the handball, it still took them another quarter until they stopped the frivolous handpass to teammates standing one metre away. Contrast that with the old Hawks, who in a tight situation often put the ball on the boot with accuracy to gain metreage (hope you were watching Clarrie)! And by the way, can one of the defenders stay down in marking contests? It’s becoming a systemic flaw each week now! When those changes were implemented, the Demons returned to dominance and had the Hawks on the ropes. But sadly, some stupid errors and simple mis-positioning in the middle gave them first use of the ball at the critical juncture. With a dominant ruckman in McEvoy, Demon mids left Burgoyne and Mitchell side by side and guess where the ball went and was then delivered to the leading forward? Game over, although Melbourne had one last thrust which again was un-done with stupid handball. It’s a good thing Simon Goodwin has a crew-cut for his hairstyle, because he would be tearing it out when he has to witness that from senior players. All credit must go to the younger players again. Jack Viney led the way for the whole game and despite carrying an injury to his leg ( tape on knee area) 32 touches of which 16 were contested was a true captain's game. Jayden Hunt turned the game on (again) with his speed and toughness. Jesse Hogan deserved more following his return to the game, and if treated as equally by the umpires as Jordan Roughead was in front of goal, his return would have been more than the three goals. Unfortunately JKH, Mitch Hannan and Tom Bugg are probably looking at missing the trip to Adelaide next week, JKH in particular, who managed not to not tackle a single player in 100 minutes of football. Hannan continued to run around without purpose on the forward line and didn’t provide sufficient defensive pressure to stop the ball rebounding for the whole game. Buggy just can’t hit a target when needed and makes silly decisions. For all of them there are easy replacements. So Adelaide it is next week in front of a hostile crowd. There is only one way to silence them, and that is to get off to an early start and take away their momentum. North Melbourne did it to them this week (with the help of a howling wind in the first quarter), but when they failed to score in that quarter, they couldn’t come back. The Demons should learn the lesson from that match and our own. Either bring your best to the contest from the start and play that way for the whole four quarters, or another loss will eventuate. Melbourne 1.1.7 4.2.26 11.6.72 14.7.91 Hawthorn 5.4.34 8.7.51 11.7.73 14.10.94 Goals Melbourne Garlett Hogan 3 Hunt Lewis 2 Jones Pedersen Viney Watts Hawthorn Roughead 4 Gunston McEvoy O'Brien 2 Breust Burgoyne Langford Smith Best Melbourne Viney, Lewis Frost Oliver, Jones Hibberd Hogan Hawthorn McEvoy Burgoyne Roughead Mitchell Langford O'Brien, Hardwick Changes Melbourne Nil Hawthorn O'Meara (knee soreness) replaced in selected side by Langford Injuries Melbourne Hunt (left shoulder) Hawthorn Birchall (right knee) Reports Melbourne Nil Hawthorn Nil Umpires Kamolins Ryan Jeffery Official crowd 38,693 at the MCG

FOUR QUARTERS by George on the Outer A loss to Fremantle by two points. Thirteen points to Richmond after it was all tied up as time on began in the last, 29 points to the Cats after leading at the final break and now three points to Hawthorn. In each and every match that Melbourne has lost this year, it has led or been level with the opposition late in the game, and each time it has been unable to put a win on the board. Yes, the Demons are missing an all-Australian ruckman in Max Gawn and more lately his next in line, but they have still outplayed the opposition in his absence, and in this match despite losing the tap-out stats, they still won the clearances. The critical factor missing is the lack of intensity among the players for four quarters. The competition is that even in 2017, that to drop one's guard for even a short period of time can guarantee a loss. In this match it was all to be seen in the first quarter, with the half-hearted efforts from numerous players who thought they just had to go through the motions. Suddenly, the team was four goals down and effectively, given the end result, all but over. Running hard, tackling, and being aggressive at the ball and man wasn’t seen in that first half. It was only after the main break that the Demons produced the football we now know they are capable of, and dragged back the four goal deficit to be within a point at ¾ time. How a team can kick four goals in a half of football and then seven in the next 30 minutes is enough to give the coaching team nightmares. And Simon Goodwin and the coaches can take some credit for that turnaround with their positional moves that produced instant results. Jayden Hunt forward produced two goals in the opening minutes of the second half. Tom McDonals to the backline to bolster and provide a cool head. This not only released Sam Frost to produce some stellar runs and moves, but forced Oscar McDonald to be third man in defence instead of first - a task that was beyond him in the first half of the game. Yet, he became a solid last line and took telling marks and possessions when needed. Despite assistant coach, Troy Chaplin, alluding to it at the ¼ time break, they had to stop overusing the handball, it still took them another quarter until they stopped the frivolous handpass to teammates standing one metre away. Contrast that with the old Hawks, who in a tight situation often put the ball on the boot with accuracy to gain metreage (hope you were watching Clarrie)! And by the way, can one of the defenders stay down in marking contests? It’s becoming a systemic flaw each week now! When those changes were implemented, the Demons returned to dominance and had the Hawks on the ropes. But sadly, some stupid errors and simple mis-positioning in the middle gave them first use of the ball at the critical juncture. With a dominant ruckman in McEvoy, Demon mids left Burgoyne and Mitchell side by side and guess where the ball went and was then delivered to the leading forward? Game over, although Melbourne had one last thrust which again was un-done with stupid handball. It’s a good thing Simon Goodwin has a crew-cut for his hairstyle, because he would be tearing it out when he has to witness that from senior players. All credit must go to the younger players again. Jack Viney led the way for the whole game and despite carrying an injury to his leg ( tape on knee area) 32 touches of which 16 were contested was a true captain's game. Jayden Hunt turned the game on (again) with his speed and toughness. Jesse Hogan deserved more following his return to the game, and if treated as equally by the umpires as Jordan Roughead was in front of goal, his return would have been more than the three goals. Unfortunately JKH, Mitch Hannan and Tom Bugg are probably looking at missing the trip to Adelaide next week, JKH in particular, who managed not to not tackle a single player in 100 minutes of football. Hannan continued to run around without purpose on the forward line and didn’t provide sufficient defensive pressure to stop the ball rebounding for the whole game. Buggy just can’t hit a target when needed and makes silly decisions. For all of them there are easy replacements. So Adelaide it is next week in front of a hostile crowd. There is only one way to silence them, and that is to get off to an early start and take away their momentum. North Melbourne did it to them this week (with the help of a howling wind in the first quarter), but when they failed to score in that quarter, they couldn’t come back. The Demons should learn the lesson from that match and our own. Either bring your best to the contest from the start and play that way for the whole four quarters, or another loss will eventuate. Melbourne 1.1.7 4.2.26 11.6.72 14.7.91 Hawthorn 5.4.34 8.7.51 11.7.73 14.10.94 Goals Melbourne Garlett Hogan 3 Hunt Lewis 2 Jones Pedersen Viney Watts Hawthorn Roughead 4 Gunston McEvoy O'Brien 2 Breust Burgoyne Langford Smith Best Melbourne Viney, Lewis Frost Oliver, Jones Hibberd Hogan Hawthorn McEvoy Burgoyne Roughead Mitchell Langford O'Brien, Hardwick Changes Melbourne Nil Hawthorn O'Meara (knee soreness) replaced in selected side by Langford Injuries Melbourne Hunt (left shoulder) Hawthorn Birchall (right knee) Reports Melbourne Nil Hawthorn Nil Umpires Kamolins Ryan Jeffery Official crowd 38,693 at the MCG

6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 please