Demonland

Clayton Oliver is back in the lead - 42. Clayton Oliver 40. Nathan Jones 31. Jack Watts 19. Jeff Garlett 17. Jayden Hunt 16. Christian Salem 11. Max Gawn Dom Tyson 9. Christian Petracca 7. Alex Neal-Bullen 6. Jordan Lewis Bernie Vince 5. Dean Kent Billy Stretch 4. Jesse Hogan Neville Jetta Tom McDonald 2. Jake Melksham

For the second week in a row, the Demons weren’t beaten by the opposition: they gave the game away and now sit at 2-2 for the 2017 season. Last week it was inaccurate kicking, this week simply a complete lack of football nous. These are the scenario’s that require leadership and calmness under pressure, but when called upon, Melbourne's senior players were the culprits rather than what could be expected from a young developing side. Bernie Vince in the last three minutes was a serial offender. Dinky kicks that didn’t manage to hit targets, uncontrolled Hail Mary bombs into the forward line when a cool head was required, standing too far from an opponent and then defending grass out the back when the game required all hands on deck at the ball. These can be expected from a rookie, not someone of his experience. The real danger for him is that with the return of Hibbert and Lewis, two dependable characters under pressure, that he will be exited from the senior side. The Melbourne fans have every right to feel aggrieved after a last quarter comeback finally saw them in front. That they should have never been behind in the first place is a serious question to be asked of the coaching and selection panel. A half-time lead of 21 points was turned into a 22 point deficit at 3/4 time as the Demons failed to score a major for that period. That the Dockers had scored 5 of their 6 goals to half-time from Melbourne turnovers, meant something needed to be changed. Melbourne were simply too cute and overusing the ball, particularly in the middle. Possessions are hard to get in that space yet we continue to favour a handball over a kick. Despite 28 touches Dom Tyson was simply ineffective with those possessions. He fails to scan the field when he has the ball in his hands as he always turns in the one direction. Does he not think the opposition know that? With 28 touches, more than three clearances and seven contested possessions is necessary, yet this is all he gave. Contrast that with Clarrie Oliver who with 26 touches had 10 clearances and 17 contested possessions. Not bad for a 19 year old. Jake Spencer performed admirably in the absence of Max Gawn. Taking on the biggest ruckman in the league he held his own and kicked a couple of goals to boot. We weren’t missing anything in the ruck contests, and if he keeps this up, he may find a more permanent role upon Gawn's return. Jayden Hunt and Christian Petracca tried their hearts out, turning the game back into a contest, and then eventually getting the Demons nose in front. It was these young players who hadn’t given up and Petracca with a couple of bombs showed others what responsibility really is in these situations. Up forward Jack Watts was a solitary standout target, although Jeff Garlett played his role to perfection crumbing, leading and harassing to finish with three goals of his own. Sadly, once again Sam Weideman was way, way out of his depth, and ran around in pointless circles for most of the match. A bandage on his knee appeared at half- time, so combined with only 5 touches for the match, he will surely be confined to Casey or the rehab group next week. While the official reports listed no injuries, Nathan Jones took a heavy head knock and his 18 touches was well below his par. Jack Viney is likewise well down from his best with 16 touches, and isn’t spending as much time in the middle as could be expected. There must be a reason which, we the fans are not told about. They say that good teams win games like this, so on that basis Melbourne aren’t good enough. Our wins have hardly been convincing as well, and we could have easily been 0-4. Yet we will be middle of the pack at the end of this round, with the task of wanting to be really serious or just giving it away. It is true that in previous years, a Melbourne side would have not got themselves back into the game from that ¾ time position, so they are doing something right. Trouble is that they are doing too much wrong, and off-setting all the fine work being done by our young players. The Demons certainly don’t need any more "senior" moments in coming weeks. Melbourne 2.5.17 9.7.61 9.10.64 15.14.104 Fremantle 3.2.20 6.4.40 13.8.86 16.10.106 Goals Melbourne Garlett 3 Harmes Petracca Spencer Watts 2 Kent Neal-Bullen Salem Viney Fremantle Neale 4 Mundy 3 McCarthy 2 Balic Crozier Fyfe Grey S Hill Kersten Walters Best Melbourne Oliver Petracca Garlett Watts Hunt Spencer Fremantle Mundy Sandilands Fyfe Weller Neale S Hill Changes Melbourne Nil Fremantle Nil Injuries Melbourne Nil Fremantle S Hill (corked thigh) Langdon (migraine) Reports Melbourne Nil Fremantle Nil Umpires Stevic Harris Mitchell Official crowd 27829 at the MCG

6, 5 4, 3, 2, 1 ...

SENIOR MOMENTS by George on the Outer For the second week in a row, the Demons weren’t beaten by the opposition: they gave the game away and now sit at 2-2 for the 2017 season. Last week it was inaccurate kicking, this week simply a complete lack of football nous. These are the scenario’s that require leadership and calmness under pressure, but when called upon, Melbourne's senior players were the culprits rather than what could be expected from a young developing side. Bernie Vince in the last three minutes was a serial offender. Dinky kicks that didn’t manage to hit targets, uncontrolled Hail Mary bombs into the forward line when a cool head was required, standing too far from an opponent and then defending grass out the back when the game required all hands on deck at the ball. These can be expected from a rookie, not someone of his experience. The real danger for him is that with the return of Hibbert and Lewis, two dependable characters under pressure, that he will be exited from the senior side. The Melbourne fans have every right to feel aggrieved after a last quarter comeback finally saw them in front. That they should have never been behind in the first place is a serious question to be asked of the coaching and selection panel. A half-time lead of 21 points was turned into a 22 point deficit at 3/4 time as the Demons failed to score a major for that period. That the Dockers had scored 5 of their 6 goals to half-time from Melbourne turnovers, meant something needed to be changed. Melbourne were simply too cute and overusing the ball, particularly in the middle. Possessions are hard to get in that space yet we continue to favour a handball over a kick. Despite 28 touches Dom Tyson was simply ineffective with those possessions. He fails to scan the field when he has the ball in his hands as he always turns in the one direction. Does he not think the opposition know that? With 28 touches, more than three clearances and seven contested possessions is necessary, yet this is all he gave. Contrast that with Clarrie Oliver who with 26 touches had 10 clearances and 17 contested possessions. Not bad for a 19 year old. Jake Spencer performed admirably in the absence of Max Gawn. Taking on the biggest ruckman in the league he held his own and kicked a couple of goals to boot. We weren’t missing anything in the ruck contests, and if he keeps this up, he may find a more permanent role upon Gawn's return. Jayden Hunt and Christian Petracca tried their hearts out, turning the game back into a contest, and then eventually getting the Demons nose in front. It was these young players who hadn’t given up and Petracca with a couple of bombs showed others what responsibility really is in these situations. Up forward Jack Watts was a solitary standout target, although Jeff Garlett played his role to perfection crumbing, leading and harassing to finish with three goals of his own. Sadly, once again Sam Weideman was way, way out of his depth, and ran around in pointless circles for most of the match. A bandage on his knee appeared at half- time, so combined with only 5 touches for the match, he will surely be confined to Casey or the rehab group next week. While the official reports listed no injuries, Nathan Jones took a heavy head knock and his 18 touches was well below his par. Jack Viney is likewise well down from his best with 16 touches, and isn’t spending as much time in the middle as could be expected. There must be a reason which, we the fans are not told about. They say that good teams win games like this, so on that basis Melbourne aren’t good enough. Our wins have hardly been convincing as well, and we could have easily been 0-4. Yet we will be middle of the pack at the end of this round, with the task of wanting to be really serious or just giving it away. It is true that in previous years, a Melbourne side would have not got themselves back into the game from that ¾ time position, so they are doing something right. Trouble is that they are doing too much wrong, and off-setting all the fine work being done by our young players. The Demons certainly don’t need any more "senior" moments in coming weeks. Melbourne 2.5.17 9.7.61 9.10.64 15.14.104 Fremantle 3.2.20 6.4.40 13.8.86 16.10.106 Goals Melbourne Garlett 3 Harmes Petracca Spencer Watts 2 Kent Neal-Bullen Salem Viney Fremantle Neale 4 Mundy 3 McCarthy 2 Balic Crozier Fyfe Grey S Hill Kersten Walters Best Melbourne Oliver Petracca Garlett Watts Hunt Spencer Fremantle Mundy Sandilands Fyfe Weller Neale S Hill Changes Melbourne Nil Fremantle Nil Injuries Melbourne Nil Fremantle S Hill (corked thigh) Langdon (migraine) Reports Melbourne Nil Fremantle Nil Umpires Stevic Harris Mitchell Official crowd 27829 at the MCG

I think they may have stolen your headline. Spencil was better IMHO.

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The Demons are making it very hard for anyone to tip them to win with any confidence these days. Key players are falling over injured, getting themselves reported and horror of horrors being photographed at music festivals puffing away at cigarettes. On the field, they continually miss easy shots at goal while their opponents never miss their targets. Meanwhile, Fremantle, their opponent this week in the big game at the G, just shrugged off the easy beat tag by giving last year's premiers a right royal touch up in Perth. Before the game against the Bulldogs, Ross Lyon re-assessed his position and decided that as a coach he was basically in the position that when you've got nothing, you've got nothing to lose. So he ditched half a dozen passengers from his team and brought in players who were determined to have a dip. The rest is history and the Dockers are on the road to revival. Who would have thought only a week ago, that Melbourne would be going into this week's game as the underdog? Well, not actually THE underdog but possibly, the hunter rather than the hunted? All of a sudden the weather's turned cold for the Red and Blue while the Purple Haze has sprung to life again - returned from the dead in one of the AFL's greatest reincarnations ever witnessed (at least until the Gold Coast performed an even greater one less than 24 hours later on the other side of the country). That's the trouble with football these days. One day, you're motoring along with an All Australian ruckman hitting your midfielders on the chest, a tall forward prodigy running everywhere kicking and setting up goals and a hard nosed midfielder with four AFL premierships under his belt. Next thing you know, you've got nothing. Worse still, you're coming up against the AFL's tallest ruckman Aaron Sandilands and he's in full flight with a resurgent Nat Fyfe back to his brilliant best picking up 33 disposals and the likes of Lachie Neale, Stephen Hill and Michael Walters awaking from a long slumber causing havoc to opposition defenders. Meanwhile, it's Melbourne that's on the horns of a dilemma. Who will shoulder the ruck duties? Does the back half need stiffening up? Is it time to bring some more experience and strength into the forward line set up? Are we at the point where we have nothing to lose? The more I look at it, the more concerned I become that the unthinkable might happen on the club's own territory. Round 3 has turned the entire AFL competition on its head and one wonders how one can find a way to select Melbourne to win this week. After team selection on Thursday night, I'll come up with a way. THE GAME Melbourne v Fremantle at the MCG Saturday 15 April 2017 at 1.45pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall: Melbourne 14 wins Fremantle 21 wins At MCG: Melbourne 7 wins Fremantle 6 wins Last five meetings: Melbourne 1 win Fremantle 4 wins The Coaches: Goodwin 0 wins Lyon 0 wins MEDIA TV - Fox Footy at 1.30pm live Radio - THE BETTING Melbourne $1.32 to win Fremantle $3.45 to win LAST TIME THEY MET Melbourne 12.15.87 defeated Fremantle 8.7.55 at TIO Stadium, Round 16, 2016 The Demons dominated against a dispirited Dockers outfit which only twelve months earlier was threatening to win the flag. These things happen when you lose your ruckman, a champion midfielder and a bevy of other important players. THE TEAMS MELBOURNE B: Jake Melksham, Tom McDonald, Jayden Hunt HB: Neville Jetta, Sam Frost, Nathan Jones C: Bernie Vince, Clayton Oliver, Billy Stretch HF: Dean Kent, Sam Weideman, James Harmes F: Jeff Garlett, Jack Watts, Christian Petracca FOLL: Jake Spencer, Dom Tyson, Jack Viney I/C: Tomas Bugg, Mitch Hannan, Alex Neal-Bullen, Christian Salem EMG: Oscar McDonald, Tim Smith, Jack Trengove IN: Tomas Bugg, Sam Frost, Jake Spencer OUT: Max Gawn (hamstring), Oscar McDonald (omitted), Tim Smith FREMANTLE B: Ethan Hughes, Joel Hamling, Lee Spurr HB: Garrick Ibbotson, Michael Johnson, Connor Blakely C: Stephen Hill, Lachie Neale, Bradley Hill HF: Lachie Weller, Cam McCarthy, Ed Langdon F: Michael Walters, Shane Kersten, Brady Grey FOLL: Aaron Sandilands, Nat Fyfe, David Mundy I/C: Harley Balic, Hayden Crozier, Griffin Logue, Tommy Sheridan EMG: Jonathon Griffin, Danyle Pearce, Matt Taberner NO CHANGE THE YEAR OF THE SNAKE The world's worst kept secret was exposed on Thursday morning when Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin confirmed that ruckman Jake Spencer would play in place of the injured Max Gawn, who will miss at least 12 weeks with a hamstring injury. The loss of Gawn, coupled with the suspensions of Jesse Hogan and Jordan Lewis from the Carlton game have left gaping holes in the Demon line up, already hampered by a number of injuries especially to players like Michael Hibbberd, Josh Wagner and rookie Joel who would otherwise be expected to hold down are at least be in contention for defensive positions in the team. Cometh the hour ... cometh the men. The minute that Max hit the Etihad turf and then later as he hobbled off the ground clearly in distress, Melbourne fans knew that a call was about to go out for the man affectionately known as "Jake the Snake" The man has been around the club for what seems forever. He was 35th selection in the 2008 Rookie Draft and spent his first season playing with the club's then VFL affiliate club Sandringham where he played seven games at reserves level and 10 in the seniors. He made his NAB Cup debut on 21 February 2009 to encouraging reviews and played his first AFL game in Round 1 2009. Jake managed six games for the season and was finally upgraded from the rookie list at the start of 2010. Never the epitome of the classic modern ruckman, the ungainly Spencer has been a battler throughout his time at the club, spending much of his time as understudy to the All Australian ruckmen of his time at Melbourne - Mark Jamar and more lately Max Gawn. He's also had long stints on the sidelines with injury - missing more than a whole year through a ruptured ACL suffered in 2011 while playing with the Casey Scorpions. Entering his 10th season at the club, Jake had only 36 games for six goals to his name, his last match being in Round 22, 2015 – ironically against Fremantle at Domain Stadium. The good news is that this is precisely what he's been working diligently for in the interim - an opportunity to take the main stage and shoulder the club's ruck burden in the event of Gawn’s absence and what better first up assignment than Aaron Sandilands? Not only has he been waiting for this - Jake's fully prepared, having played well in all three JLT Community Series matches and continued in dominating form playing for Casey in VFL practice matches. Now, the Snake is about to turn into the Viper - Gawn himself is telling all and sundry that, when he's ready to return from that injury, he will find it hard to regain his place and he's not kidding! The inclusion of a deadly reptile is not all the selectors have done to change the mix following the final quarter breakdown against Geelong. They've introduced pure speed into the backline with the return of Sam Frost into defence in the place of Oscar McDonald and hardness in the guise of in-your-face pest Tom Bugg. Meanwhile, the rejuvenated Dockers have gone into the game with an unchanged line up to the one that beat the reigning premiers on their home turf last week. They are however, still a young side that has had difficulty in traveling over the Nullarbor in recent times and will struggle to contend with the Demons who, despite the missing faces, still have the structures in place to give them the winning edge at their own snake pit in this game. Melbourne by 35 points.

WHEN YOU'VE GOT NOTHING, YOU'VE GOT NOTHING TO LOSE by Whispering Jack The Demons are making it very hard for anyone to tip them to win with any confidence these days. Key players are falling over injured, getting themselves reported and horror of horrors being photographed at music festivals puffing away at cigarettes. On the field, they continually miss easy shots at goal while their opponents never miss their targets. Meanwhile, Fremantle, their opponent this week in the big game at the G, just shrugged off the easy beat tag by giving last year's premiers a right royal touch up in Perth. Before the game against the Bulldogs, Ross Lyon re-assessed his position and decided that as a coach he was basically in the position that when you've got nothing, you've got nothing to lose. So he ditched half a dozen passengers from his team and brought in players who were determined to have a dip. The rest is history and the Dockers are on the road to revival. Who would have thought only a week ago, that Melbourne would be going into this week's game as the underdog? Well, not actually THE underdog but possibly, the hunter rather than the hunted? All of a sudden the weather's turned cold for the Red and Blue while the Purple Haze has sprung to life again - returned from the dead in one of the AFL's greatest reincarnations ever witnessed (at least until the Gold Coast performed an even greater one less than 24 hours later on the other side of the country). That's the trouble with football these days. One day, you're motoring along with an All Australian ruckman hitting your midfielders on the chest, a tall forward prodigy running everywhere kicking and setting up goals and a hard nosed midfielder with four AFL premierships under his belt. Next thing you know, you've got nothing. Worse still, you're coming up against the AFL's tallest ruckman Aaron Sandilands and he's in full flight with a resurgent Nat Fyfe back to his brilliant best picking up 33 disposals and the likes of Lachie Neale, Stephen Hill and Michael Walters awaking from a long slumber causing havoc to opposition defenders. Meanwhile, it's Melbourne that's on the horns of a dilemma. Who will shoulder the ruck duties? Does the back half need stiffening up? Is it time to bring some more experience and strength into the forward line set up? Are we at the point where we have nothing to lose? The more I look at it, the more concerned I become that the unthinkable might happen on the club's own territory. Round 3 has turned the entire AFL competition on its head and one wonders how one can find a way to select Melbourne to win this week. After team selection on Thursday night, I'll come up with a way. THE GAME Melbourne v Fremantle at the MCG Saturday 15 April 2017 at 1.45pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall: Melbourne 14 wins Fremantle 21 wins At MCG: Melbourne 7 wins Fremantle 6 wins Last five meetings: Melbourne 1 win Fremantle 4 wins The Coaches: Goodwin 0 wins Lyon 0 wins MEDIA TV - Fox Footy at 1.30pm live Radio - THE BETTING Melbourne $1.32 to win Fremantle $3.45 to win LAST TIME THEY MET Melbourne 12.15.87 defeated Fremantle 8.7.55 at TIO Stadium, Round 16, 2016 The Demons dominated against a dispirited Dockers outfit which only twelve months earlier was threatening to win the flag. These things happen when you lose your ruckman, a champion midfielder and a bevy of other important players. THE TEAMS MELBOURNE B: Jake Melksham, Tom McDonald, Jayden Hunt HB: Neville Jetta, Sam Frost, Nathan Jones C: Bernie Vince, Clayton Oliver, Billy Stretch HF: Dean Kent, Sam Weideman, James Harmes F: Jeff Garlett, Jack Watts, Christian Petracca FOLL: Jake Spencer, Dom Tyson, Jack Viney I/C: Tomas Bugg, Mitch Hannan, Alex Neal-Bullen, Christian Salem EMG: Oscar McDonald, Tim Smith, Jack Trengove IN: Tomas Bugg, Sam Frost, Jake Spencer OUT: Max Gawn (hamstring), Oscar McDonald (omitted), Tim Smith FREMANTLE B: Ethan Hughes, Joel Hamling, Lee Spurr HB: Garrick Ibbotson, Michael Johnson, Connor Blakely C: Stephen Hill, Lachie Neale, Bradley Hill HF: Lachie Weller, Cam McCarthy, Ed Langdon F: Michael Walters, Shane Kersten, Brady Grey FOLL: Aaron Sandilands, Nat Fyfe, David Mundy I/C: Harley Balic, Hayden Crozier, Griffin Logue, Tommy Sheridan EMG: Jonathon Griffin, Danyle Pearce, Matt Taberner NO CHANGE THE YEAR OF THE SNAKE The world's worst kept secret was exposed on Thursday morning when Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin confirmed that ruckman Jake Spencer would play in place of the injured Max Gawn, who will miss at least 12 weeks with a hamstring injury. The loss of Gawn, coupled with the suspensions of Jesse Hogan and Jordan Lewis from the Carlton game have left gaping holes in the Demon line up, already hampered by a number of injuries especially to players like Michael Hibbberd, Josh Wagner and rookie Joel who would otherwise be expected to hold down are at least be in contention for defensive positions in the team. Cometh the hour ... cometh the men. The minute that Max hit the Etihad turf and then later as he hobbled off the ground clearly in distress, Melbourne fans knew that a call was about to go out for the man affectionately known as "Jake the Snake" The man has been around the club for what seems forever. He was 35th selection in the 2008 Rookie Draft and spent his first season playing with the club's then VFL affiliate club Sandringham where he played seven games at reserves level and 10 in the seniors. He made his NAB Cup debut on 21 February 2009 to encouraging reviews and played his first AFL game in Round 1 2009. Jake managed six games for the season and was finally upgraded from the rookie list at the start of 2010. Never the epitome of the classic modern ruckman, the ungainly Spencer has been a battler throughout his time at the club, spending much of his time as understudy to the All Australian ruckmen of his time at Melbourne - Mark Jamar and more lately Max Gawn. He's also had long stints on the sidelines with injury - missing more than a whole year through a ruptured ACL suffered in 2011 while playing with the Casey Scorpions. Entering his 10th season at the club, Jake had only 36 games for six goals to his name, his last match being in Round 22, 2015 – ironically against Fremantle at Domain Stadium. The good news is that this is precisely what he's been working diligently for in the interim - an opportunity to take the main stage and shoulder the club's ruck burden in the event of Gawn’s absence and what better first up assignment than Aaron Sandilands? Not only has he been waiting for this - Jake's fully prepared, having played well in all three JLT Community Series matches and continued in dominating form playing for Casey in VFL practice matches. Now, the Snake is about to turn into the Viper - Gawn himself is telling all and sundry that, when he's ready to return from that injury, he will find it hard to regain his place and he's not kidding! The inclusion of a deadly reptile is not all the selectors have done to change the mix following the final quarter breakdown against Geelong. They've introduced pure speed into the backline with the return of Sam Frost into defence in the place of Oscar McDonald and hardness in the guise of in-your-face pest Tom Bugg. Meanwhile, the rejuvenated Dockers have gone into the game with an unchanged line up to the one that beat the reigning premiers on their home turf last week. They are however, still a young side that has had difficulty in traveling over the Nullarbor in recent times and will struggle to contend with the Demons who, despite the missing faces, still have the structures in place to give them the winning edge at their own snake pit in this game. Melbourne by 35 points.

Congratulations to Jayden Hunt for his nomination.

1 Week for this. Hogan and Lewis are turning over in their suspension graves.

Remember when it was easy to beat the Dockers? MELBOURNE B: Sam Frost, Tom McDonald, Neville Jetta HB: Jayden Hunt, Oscar McDonald, Matt Jones C: Christian Petracca, Dom Tyson, Bernie Vince HF: Jeff Garlett, Jack Watts, Billy Stretch F: Aaron vandenBerg, Jesse Hogan, Dean Kent FOLL: Max Gawn, Nathan Jones, Jack Viney I/C: Jack Grimes, James Harmes, Ben Kennedy, Mitch White EMG: Viv Michie, Alex Neal-Bullen, Jake Spencer IN: Jack Grimes, Matt White OUT: Tomas Bugg, Chris Dawes FREMANTLE B: Garrick Ibbotson, Zac Dawson, Cameron Sutcliffe HB: Hayden Crozier, Sam Collins, Lee Spurr C: Stephen Hill, Lachie Neale, Tommy Sheridan HF: Chris Mayne, Matt Taberner, Michael Walters F: Lachie Weller, Matthew Pavlich, Hayden Ballentyne FOLL: Jonathon Griffin, David Mundy, Danyle Pearce I/C: Connor Blakely, Ed Langdon, Nick Suban, Darcy Tucker EMG: Josh Deluca, Jack Hannath, Tendai Mzunga IN: Jonathon Griffin, Garrick Ibbotson, Ed Langdon OUT: Michael Barlow (broken finger), Zac Clarke (omitted), Jack Hannath (omitted)

The leader board shows that the man at the top is one who has been there before. 40. Nathan Jones 34. Clayton Oliver 16. Jayden Hunt Christian Salem 14. Jack Watts 11. Max Gawn 8. Jeff Garlett 6. Jordan Lewis Alex Neal-Bullen Dom Tyson Bernie Vince 5. Dean Kent Billy Stretch 4. Jesse Hogan Neville Jetta Tom McDonald 2. Jake Melksham Christian Petracca

This doesn't sound good.

SLIP, SLIDING AWAY by George on the Outer Geelong dedicated the third round match against Melbourne to the 1980’s and, in doing so, featured some of the worst music to come out of that era with their fans stupidly dancing around to Brian Mannix and other such forgettables. It was cringeworthy but has the desired effect because it provided their opposition with another 80’s song as backdrop- Paul Simon's "Slip Sliding Away". For those born in more recent times, the lyrics of the song include this line:- "You know the nearer your destination, the more it slips slides away”... And that was true for the 19 shots on goal that the Demons had which failed register a six point outcome and included in that were no less than ten set shots from inside a distance of 40 metres that resulted in not a single major! As a consequence of that factor alone, for the Demons, this very winnable game was slip sliding away... At ¾ time there were a bare three points in the match, but Geelong had scored 14 majors with only two behinds. In the second and third quarters combined, the Cats had kicked nine straight goals to 10.13 - they were in the game because of their accuracy, and the Demons failed to hold a match winning lead because of their inaccuracy. Tellingly, in the warm-up before the game, Melbourne ran their usual drills. In contrast Geelong spent the majority of their time with goal kicking. Etihad stadium is different to the MCG or Kardinia Park and the extra time spent finding out the difference was critical in front of goal for both sides. For Melbourne the game turned significantly in the second quarter, when Max Gawn left the ground with what the early reports indicate was a hamstring injury. Before that, he was truly fired up and was urging his team to overcome the three goal deficit at the first break. His efforts were working, but unfortunately, he was unable to carry them through as he hobbled from the field. Desperate times called for desperate measures and Jack Watts was called upon to ruck against Clarke and Blicavs, a monumental ask. But he responded and while they continued to dominate the taps, the differential to advantage wasn’t great. He became an extra mid and Melbourne led the clearances out of the centre. When guts was required, it brought out the best from Nathan Jones, who produced one of his best games with 36 touches and his toughness around the packs was telling, especially when facing off against Dangerfield and Selwood. Clayton Oliver had another 28 touches to keep his star shining brightly, but there was a fairly dim effort from Dom Tyson when we needed more. His 57% kicking efficiency is deplorable, but his unwillingness to run when the opposition mids were streaming forward told in multiple Geelong goals. He must do better and needs to lift soon. The backs held their own given the height of the Geelong forwards and their ability to drop one of their rucks into the spot as well, once Gawn had departed. However, there were too many occasions when the half backs simply didn’t get back far enough and quickly enough to help out. As a result we often saw Neville Jetta having to try to out mark Hawkins or Blicavs. The coach fortunately gave up on part of the zone defence at half time and stuck Tom Macdonald onto Hawkins, who then kept him quiet. Bernie Vince was uninspiring after his return from suspension. Even when thrown forward in the last quarter, he didn’t put in the required effort to have an impact. His position will also be in doubt for the future once more efficient ball distributors like Lewis and Hibberd return. The loss of Gawn in itself wasn’t the cause of the loss. The poor kicking and the loss of forward structure when Watts was press-ganged into ruck service left Melbourne severely stretched. Sam Weidman was all at sea, without big bodies like Hogan's around him, and there is a direct comparison to Darcy Moore who hasn’t had a touch since Cloke left Collingwood for Footscray. When younger-bodied players get the best defender they struggle. This was a game that got away. It WAS the game that Melbourne had the opportunity to stamp its mark on the competition to say it had arrived. It didn’t happen, and in one fell swoop, the team has even slipped out of the top eight - a sign of danger is that if the Demons of the recent past resurface, then the season itself will start "slip sliding away ..." Melbourne 2.4.16 7.11.53 12.17.89 13.19.97 Geelong 5.2.32 9.2.56 14.2.86 20.6.126 Goals Melbourne Kent Watts 2 Garlett Hannan Harmes Hunt Jetta Petracca Neal-Bullen T. Smith Stretch Geelong Hawkins 5 Menzel 4 Dangerfield 3 Blicavs Motlop 2 McCarthy Parfitt Selwood Smith Best Melbourne Jones Hunt Watts Viney Stretch Kent Jetta Geelong Selwood Dangerfield Menzel Hawkins Blicavs Ruggles Parfitt Changes Melbourne Nil Geelong Nil Injuries Melbourne Gawn (right hamstring) Kent (cut head) Geelong Selwood (cut head) Hawkins (corked quad) Reports Melbourne Nil Geelong Nil Umpires Hosking, Ryan, Mollison Official crowd 29,733 at Etihad Stadium

There are days when you can't hit the side of a barn door and days when you can't miss. Each of the team's had one of those days today. SLIP, SLIDING AWAY by George on the Outer Geelong dedicated the third round match against Melbourne to the 1980’s and, in doing so, featured some of the worst music to come out of that era with their fans stupidly dancing around to Brian Mannix and other such forgettables. It was cringeworthy but has the desired effect because it provided their opposition with another 80’s song as backdrop- Paul Simon's "Slip Sliding Away". For those born in more recent times, the lyrics of the song include this line:- "You know the nearer your destination, the more it slips slides away”... And that was true for the 19 shots on goal that the Demons had which failed register a six point outcome and included in that were no less than ten set shots from inside a distance of 40 metres that resulted in not a single major! As a consequence of that factor alone, for the Demons, this very winnable game was slip sliding away... At ¾ time there were a bare three points in the match, but Geelong had scored 14 majors with only two behinds. In the second and third quarters combined, the Cats had kicked nine straight goals to 10.13 - they were in the game because of their accuracy, and the Demons failed to hold a match winning lead because of their inaccuracy. Tellingly, in the warm-up before the game, Melbourne ran their usual drills. In contrast Geelong spent the majority of their time with goal kicking. Etihad stadium is different to the MCG or Kardinia Park and the extra time spent finding out the difference was critical in front of goal for both sides. For Melbourne the game turned significantly in the second quarter, when Max Gawn left the ground with what the early reports indicate was a hamstring injury. Before that, he was truly fired up and was urging his team to overcome the three goal deficit at the first break. His efforts were working, but unfortunately, he was unable to carry them through as he hobbled from the field. Desperate times called for desperate measures and Jack Watts was called upon to ruck against Clarke and Blicavs, a monumental ask. But he responded and while they continued to dominate the taps, the differential to advantage wasn’t great. He became an extra mid and Melbourne led the clearances out of the centre. When guts was required, it brought out the best from Nathan Jones, who produced one of his best games with 36 touches and his toughness around the packs was telling, especially when facing off against Dangerfield and Selwood. Clayton Oliver had another 28 touches to keep his star shining brightly, but there was a fairly dim effort from Dom Tyson when we needed more. His 57% kicking efficiency is deplorable, but his unwillingness to run when the opposition mids were streaming forward told in multiple Geelong goals. He must do better and needs to lift soon. The backs held their own given the height of the Geelong forwards and their ability to drop one of their rucks into the spot as well, once Gawn had departed. However, there were too many occasions when the half backs simply didn’t get back far enough and quickly enough to help out. As a result we often saw Neville Jetta having to try to out mark Hawkins or Blicavs. The coach fortunately gave up on part of the zone defence at half time and stuck Tom Macdonald onto Hawkins, who then kept him quiet. Bernie Vince was uninspiring after his return from suspension. Even when thrown forward in the last quarter, he didn’t put in the required effort to have an impact. His position will also be in doubt for the future once more efficient ball distributors like Lewis and Hibberd return. The loss of Gawn in itself wasn’t the cause of the loss. The poor kicking and the loss of forward structure when Watts was press-ganged into ruck service left Melbourne severely stretched. Sam Weidman was all at sea, without big bodies like Hogan's around him, and there is a direct comparison to Darcy Moore who hasn’t had a touch since Cloke left Collingwood for Footscray. When younger-bodied players get the best defender they struggle. This was a game that got away. It WAS the game that Melbourne had the opportunity to stamp its mark on the competition to say it had arrived. It didn’t happen, and in one fell swoop, the team has even slipped out of the top eight - a sign of danger is that if the Demons of the recent past resurface, then the season itself will start "slip sliding away ..." Melbourne 2.4.16 7.11.53 12.17.89 13.19.97 Geelong 5.2.32 9.2.56 14.2.86 20.6.126 Goals Melbourne Kent Watts 2 Garlett Hannan Harmes Hunt Jetta Petracca Neal-Bullen T. Smith Stretch Geelong Hawkins 5 Menzel 4 Dangerfield 3 Blicavs Motlop 2 McCarthy Parfitt Selwood Smith Best Melbourne Jones Hunt Watts Viney Stretch Kent Jetta Geelong Selwood Dangerfield Menzel Hawkins Blicavs Ruggles Parfitt Changes Melbourne Nil Geelong Nil Injuries Melbourne Gawn (right hamstring) Kent (cut head) Geelong Selwood (cut head) Hawkins (corked quad) Reports Melbourne Nil Geelong Nil Umpires Hosking, Ryan, Mollison Official crowd 29,733 at Etihad Stadium

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