Demonland

Why not kick off the young kids' threads with this bloke [from Knightmare on bigfooty] Darcy Parish (VIC MID) Height: 181cm, Weight: 73kg, DOB: 25/07/1997 Recruited from: Geelong Falcons Player Comparison: Marc Murphy Range: 1-10 Best position/role: Midfield combination. Strengths: Inside/outside ability Parish in this draft of all the midfielders has the best inside/outside game balance, and it is unusual for a midfielder to be proficient in both areas. Parish can win the contested footy to a good level and can win some clearances, but then also has the footskills, pace, composure and ability to find the outside ball in bunches. Footskills Parish is a very good user of the footy. He uses it efficiently and can hit his targets over short, medium and long distance. In traffic he is quick getting the ball onto his boot. He has good penetration with a 50m 55m kick on him and can finish when within range from goal. Vision Parish has excellent vision finding some good targets other will often miss. When a guy is in a central position and open hell find them and similarly kicking into the forward 50 he finds the open man and puts it out in front of them for the easy mark. Decision making ability Parish is an excellent decision maker, particularly with time and space on the outside. On the outside he will find his targets up the field but also picks and chooses the right time to go to a target in the centre of the ground or go for a higher risk long target up the field. Run and carry ability Parish is a very good run and carry player consistently showing a real willingness when he has space in front of him to take on the game with his run. He is not freakishly fast, but has above average pace and critically uses it in game. Versatility Parish is a very versatile player. He is able to play both as an inside and outside midfielder to a high standard. He can also play in the back half having spent most of the 2014 season playing off a back flank where he showed he could set up play by foot, provide some run and carry and take some intercept marks. Ability to read the flight Parish reads the flight very well behind the ball, reading the flight early on a consistent basis enabling him to peel off his direct opponent for easy intercept marks. He has clean hands overhead and uncontested is a reliable mark. Contested ball winning ability Parish has developed into a very capable contested ball winner this season, managing high contested possession numbers throughout the season. Inside game Parish has proven that he can win the contested footy and clearances this season, proving that he is able to play as an inside midfielder to a high level. When under pressure after winning the footy he can release the ball quickly by hand and foot, and generally do so reliably, which in combination with his good contested ball winning ability and good tackling ability makes him an effective inside player. Production Parish has the performances behind him as a long time high level performer and accumulator and he has only increased that now that this year he is playing as a permanent midfielder. With his performances on the board with his ability to find the footy inside and outside the contest, provide run and carry, use the footy and the read the flight of the ball, it is fair to assume that he can play as soon as round one, year one as an AFL standard performer today. Athleticism Parish is not a great but certainly a very good athlete. He has excellent agility and very good pace and leaping ability. His endurance is also good. So while he is not elite in any one athletic category and it is not a point of difference for him, he none the less athletically stacks up well in each category. Questionmarks: Height/size As a relatively smaller and shorter midfielder Parish to an extent may be limited as to just how good he can become. At 181cm he is hardly likely to get forward and take contested grabs or lead his team in contested possessions or clearances through the midfield. But its hardly stopping him from being a high level pro. Its more just what probably stops him from being the absolute number one best player in this draft class. Weaknesses: Lack of a point of difference Parish overall is a very well rounded footballer but he lacks that one thing that sets him apart from everyone in the competition which for me suggests he wont be a franchise level player for a team and more likely one of your better 2-3 midfielders. Contested marking ability Parish while a clean and reliable mark overhead is not someone who will take contested grabs or 1v1 marks with frequency as evidenced by the fact that he only took one contested mark through 14 TAC Cup games last season.

We haven't beaten this team since very early in Nathan Jones' career. It's about time. Our last meeting was on 30th August last year when they beat us easily in a high scoring shoot out. NORTH MELBOURNE B: Lachlan Hansen, Scott Thompson, Jamie Macmillan HB: Shaun Atley, Nathan Grima,Sam Wright C: Nick Dal Santo, Andrew Swallow, Ben Jacobs HF: Kayne Turner, Ben Brown, Daniel Wells F: Mason Wood, Drew Petrie, Aaron Black FOLL: Daniel Currie, Ben Cunnington, Jack Ziebell EMG: Trent Dumont, Brad McKenzie, Scott McMahon IN: Daniel Currie, Lachlan Hansen, Jamie Macmillan, Daniel Wells, Mason Wood OUT: Michael Firrito (soreness), Todd Goldstein (soreness), Levi Greenwood (calf), Luke McDonald (back), Lindsay Thomas (knee) NEW: Mason Wood (Geelong Falcons) MELBOURNE B: Lynden Dunn, James Frawley, Neville Jetta HB: Jeremy Howe, Tom McDonald, Bernie Vince C: Jordie McKenzie, Daniel Cross, Rohan Bail HF: Viv Michie, Max Gawn, Christian Salem F: Jack Fitzpatrick, Chris Dawes, Dean Kent FOLL: Mark Jamar, Nathan Jones, Dom Tyson I/C: Matt Jones, Aidan Riley, Jack Viney, Jack Watts EMG: Dom Barry, Daniel Nicholson, Cameron Pedersen IN: Jordie McKenzie, Aidan Riley OUT: Colin Garland (knee), Cameron Pedersen (omitted)

BLOW UP by KC from Casey The Casey Scorpions surrendered a 26 point half time lead over the Werribee Tigers and any chance it might have had of a double chance in the VFL finals on a wild and woolly day at Casey Fields. The game was strongly affected by the weather conditions with a stiff breeze blowing down the ground until three quarter time when the heavens opened and brought torrential rain, making scoring well nigh impossible. It could be argued that the gods conspired against the Scorpions because they missed out on the wind advantage in that final term and that this was a significant factor in the 39 point turn around that led to their demise by 13 points. After all, both sides were able to score seven goals when they had their respective turns of kicking with the wind in the second and third quarters. Casey also lost significant scoring power when goal kicking youngster Jayden Hunt withdrew before the game and another goal kicker in tall forward Max King came off with a hamstring injury in the third term, adding to the team's shortage of key forwards with Tim Smith's absence. To make matters worse, Dean Terlich also came off not long after King, leaving the home side with a reduced bench to deal with playing in the difficult conditions that faced them in trying to catch up in the ensuing slog. However, Casey had itself to blame for its parlous circumstances. It dominated the opening 20 minutes, despite kicking into the breeze but managed a mere four behinds to a single goal, then conceded two goals and pulled one back through Tom Muir who reaped the advantage of some good play by King. Jack Fitzpatrick was dominant in defence in the early stages taking several strong marks and outstretching his smaller opponents whilst not giving anything away when the ball hit the ground. The eight point quarter time deficit was reeled in and, with the ruck combination of Jamar and Spencer well on top, a dominant midfield led by Aiden Riley, Ben Newton and Matt Jones and new-found accuracy in front of goal, Casey dominated the second. The tables turned after half time with the Tigers nullifying the ruck advantage but the clock had ticked past seven minutes before the visitors scored their first for the quarter with the now roaring gale behind it. The wind strength at this stage was enormous ahead of the threatening rain and Werribee took full advantage despite a brief fightback when Angus Scott and Newton goaled to restore the lost lead. However, the quarter dragged on until the 36th minute and three late goals gave Werribee an 8 point lead just as the rains came tumbling down. The Scorpions players who has no doubt been expecting the advantage of the wind to help bring them home were suddenly brought down to earth with a thud. They were outplayed by the Werribee small men who ran out the game brilliantly and tackled strongly against an opposition that looked shot and simply went through the motions unable to score more than a single point in the antarctic conditions that smothered the ground. The Scorpions have now lost two vital games on end against opposition similarly placed on the ladder and their season is in danger of coming to a screeching halt. That this has occurred when it has had more AFL listed players at its disposal is worrying with several careers on the line in coming matches as they confront the top three teams in the competition in the run home. 2015 Peter Jackson VFL Casey Scorpions 1.6.12 8.7.55 10.8.68 10.9.69 Werribee Tigers 3.2.20 4.5.29 11.10.76 12.10.82 Goals Casey Scorpions King Newton 2 Muir Page Salem Scott Terlich Toumpas Werribee Tigers Porter Wood 3 Reid Sodomaco 2 Fordham Harper Best Casey Scorpions Fitzpatrick Riley Salem White Newton M Jones Werribee Tigers Hanson Daw Porter Brett McMahon Conway Statistics Rohan Bail 17 disposals 12 kicks 5 handballs 2 marks 8 tackles 81 dream team points Jack Fitzpatrick 19 disposals 11 kicks 8 handballs 10 marks 77 dream team points Mark Jamar 1 behind 14 disposals 11 kicks 3 handballs 47 hit outs 84 dream team points Matt Jones 29 disposals 25 kicks 4 handballs 5 marks 13 tackles 145 dream team points Jay Kennedy-Harris 6 disposals 3 kicks 3 handballs 9 tackles 48 dream team points Max King 2 goals 1 behind 6 disposals 5 kicks 1 handball 2 marks 1 tackle 41 dream team points Jordie McKenzie disposals kicks handballs marks tackles dream team points Ben Newton 2 goals 1 behind 21 disposals 14 kicks 7 handballs 1 mark 6 tackles 93 dream team points Aidan Riley 29 disposals 13kicks 16 handballs 2 marks 13 tackles 121 dream team points Christian Salem 1 goal 14 disposals 8 kicks 6 handballs 1 mark 5 tackles 65 dream team points Jake Spencer 12 disposals 6 kicks 6 handballs 5 marks 2 tackles 32 hit outs 84 dream team points Dean Terlich 1 goal 9 disposals 7 kicks 2 handballs 1 mark 2 tackles 39 dream team points Jimmy Toumpas 1 goal two behinds 15 disposals 7 kicks 8 handballs 3 marks 7 tackles 79 dream team points Mitch White 18 disposals 12 kicks 6 handballs 3marks 1 tackles 62 dream team points The Development League team made the most of the conditions dominating the first half and coasting to an easy 57 point win. 2015 AFL Victoria Development League Casey Scorpions 4.3.27 8.7.55 9.10.64 12.15.87 Werribee Tigers 0.5.5 0.6.6 3.6.24 4.6.30 Goals Casey Scorpions Rennie 3 Anderson 2 Fisscher Godfrey Lang Pattison Rosier Thwaites Wyatt Werribee Tigers Kolang 3 Wales Best Casey Scorpions Wilson Pattison Hannon Walmsley Rosier Anderson Werribee Tigers Taylor O'Shea Jawad Wales Robinson

The Casey Scorpions surrendered a 26 point half time lead over the Werribee Tigers and any chance it might have had of a double chance in the VFL finals on a wild and woolly day at Casey Fields. The game was strongly affected by the weather conditions with a stiff breeze blowing down the ground until three quarter time when the heavens opened and brought torrential rain, making scoring well nigh impossible. It could be argued that the gods conspired against the Scorpions because they missed out on the wind advantage in that final term and that this was a significant factor in the 39 point turn around that led to their demise by 13 points. After all, both sides were able to score seven goals when they had their respective turns of kicking with the wind in the second and third quarters. Casey also lost significant scoring power when goal kicking youngster Jayden Hunt withdrew before the game and another goal kicker in tall forward Max King came off with a hamstring injury in the third term, adding to the team's shortage of key forwards with Tim Smith's absence. To make matters worse, Dean Terlich also came off not long after King, leaving the home side with a reduced bench to deal with playing in the difficult conditions that faced them in trying to catch up in the ensuing slog. However, Casey had itself to blame for its parlous circumstances. It dominated the opening 20 minutes, despite kicking into the breeze but managed a mere four behinds to a single goal, then conceded two goals and pulled one back through Tom Muir who reaped the advantage of some good play by King. Jack Fitzpatrick was dominant in defence in the early stages taking several strong marks and outstretching his smaller opponents whilst not giving anything away when the ball hit the ground. The eight point quarter time deficit was reeled in and, with the ruck combination of Jamar and Spencer well on top, a dominant midfield led by Aiden Riley, Ben Newton and Matt Jones and new-found accuracy in front of goal, Casey dominated the second. The tables turned after half time with the Tigers nullifying the ruck advantage but the clock had ticked past seven minutes before the visitors scored their first for the quarter with the now roaring gale behind it. The wind strength at this stage was enormous ahead of the threatening rain and Werribee took full advantage despite a brief fightback when Angus Scott and Newton goaled to restore the lost lead. However, the quarter dragged on until the 36th minute and three late goals gave Werribee an 8 point lead just as the rains came tumbling down. The Scorpions players who has no doubt been expecting the advantage of the wind to help bring them home were suddenly brought down to earth with a thud. They were outplayed by the Werribee small men who ran out the game brilliantly and tackled strongly against an opposition that looked shot and simply went through the motions unable to score more than a single point in the antarctic conditions that smothered the ground. The Scorpions have now lost two vital games on end against opposition similarly placed on the ladder and their season is in danger of coming to a screeching halt. That this has occurred when it has had more AFL listed players at its disposal is worrying with several careers on the line in coming matches as they confront the top three teams in the competition in the run home. 2015 Peter Jackson VFL Casey Scorpions 1.6.12 8.7.55 10.8.68 10.9.69 Werribee Tigers 3.2.20 4.5.29 11.10.76 12.10.82 Goals Casey Scorpions King Newton 2 Muir Page Salem Scott Terlich Toumpas Werribee Tigers Porter Wood 3 Reid Sodomaco 2 Fordham Harper Best Casey Scorpions Fitzpatrick Riley Salem White Newton M Jones Werribee Tigers Hanson Daw Porter Brett McMahon Conway Statistics Rohan Bail 17 disposals 12 kicks 5 handballs 2 marks 8 tackles 81 dream team points Jack Fitzpatrick 19 disposals 11 kicks 8 handballs 10 marks 77 dream team points Mark Jamar 1 behind 14 disposals 11 kicks 3 handballs 47 hit outs 84 dream team points Matt Jones 29 disposals 25 kicks 4 handballs 5 marks 13 tackles 145 dream team points Jay Kennedy-Harris 6 disposals 3 kicks 3 handballs 9 tackles 48 dream team points Max King 2 goals 1 behind 6 disposals 5 kicks 1 handball 2 marks 1 tackle 41 dream team points Jordie McKenzie disposals kicks handballs marks tackles dream team points Ben Newton 2 goals 1 behind 21 disposals 14 kicks 7 handballs 1 mark 6 tackles 93 dream team points Aidan Riley 29 disposals 13kicks 16 handballs 2 marks 13 tackles 121 dream team points Christian Salem 1 goal 14 disposals 8 kicks 6 handballs 1 mark 5 tackles 65 dream team points Jake Spencer 12 disposals 6 kicks 6 handballs 5 marks 2 tackles 32 hit outs 84 dream team points Dean Terlich 1 goal 9 disposals 7 kicks 2 handballs 1 mark 2 tackles 39 dream team points Jimmy Toumpas 1 goal two behinds 15 disposals 7 kicks 8 handballs 3 marks 7 tackles 79 dream team points Mitch White 18 disposals 12 kicks 6 handballs 3marks 1 tackles 62 dream team points The Development League team made the most of the conditions dominating the first half and coasting to an easy 57 point win. 2015 AFL Victoria Development League Casey Scorpions 4.3.27 8.7.55 9.10.64 12.15.87 Werribee Tigers 0.5.5 0.6.6 3.6.24 4.6.30 Goals Casey Scorpions Rennie 3 Anderson 2 Fisscher Godfrey Lang Pattison Rosier Thwaites Wyatt Werribee Tigers Kolang 3 Wales Best Casey Scorpions Wilson Pattison Hannon Walmsley Rosier Anderson Werribee Tigers Taylor O'Shea Jawad Wales Robinson

These are the key dates for the 2015 season around club list requirements, AFL Trade Period and the NAB AFL Draft Process:- Friday 25 September 2pm - Draft Eligible Academy Player Nominations Lodged Friday 9 October - AFL Restricted Free Agency Offer and Unrestricted Free Agency Period Commences Monday 12 October 10am - NAB AFL Trade Period Commences Sunday 18 October 5pm - Close of AFL Restricted Free Agency Offer and Unrestricted Free Agency Period. Wednesday 21 October - AFL Restricted Free Agency Matching Offer 3 Day Period Ends Thursday 22 October 2pm NAB AFL Trade Period Closes Friday 23 October 5pm - Application to Relist a Player Close Friday 30 October 2pm - List Lodgement (1) ; Rookie Promotion to Primary List; Retained 2nd & 3rd Year Rookies; International Scholarship Player; Alternate Talent Player Nominations; Club Notification of Rookie Players Not Accepting a Contract of Offer; Nomination of Draft Eligible Father/Son Players Lodged; TPP Pre-Season Estimates (1). Saturday 31 October - AFL Delisted Player Free Agency Period (1) Commences Monday 9 November 5pm - AFL Delisted Player Free Agency Period (1) Closes Monday 9 November 2pm - Out of Contract Listed AFL Primary List Players Draft Nomination Form and Player Request for Removal from List Form Lodged with AFL Tuesday 10 November 2pm - List Lodgement (2); TPP Pre-Season Estimates (2) Wednesday 11 November - AFL Delisted Player Free Agency Period (2) Commences Tuesday 17 November 2pm - Delisted Primary List Draft Nomination Form Lodgement; NonRetained Rookie Players Draft Nomination Form Lodgement; Players Not Registered or Played for Three years Rookie List Form lodgement; New or Expired (after 3 years) Draft Nomination Form Lodgement. Friday 20 November 5pm - AFL Delisted Player Free Agency Period (2) Closes Tuesday 24 November - NAB AFL Draft Selection Meeting (Adelaide Convention Centre) including Father/Son & Academy Players Bidding. Wednesday 25 November - AFL Delisted Player Free Agency Period (3) Commences Thursday 26 November 2pm - AFL Delisted Free Agency Period (3) Concludes; AFL Club List Lodgement (3). Friday 27 November 11am - NAB AFL Pre-Season Draft Selection Meeting (Telstra Webex) Friday 27 November 11:05am - Notification of Pre-Selected Rookies if not selected in the Pre-Season Draft. Friday 27 November 11:10am - NAB AFL Rookie Draft Selection Meeting (Telstra Webex) Tuesday 1 December 2pm - Final AFL Club List Lodgement; Final TPP Pre-Season Estimates Friday 4 December 2pm - International Players Inclusion on Rookie List Form Lodgement

Please feel free to alert us about any additions to be made to the OP. They must be capable of independent verification.

ADELAIDE In: Jonathon Beech ® (West Adelaide SA) Tom Doedee (Geelong Falcons) Dean Gore (Geelong) Hugh Greenwood ® (Category B) Curtley Hampton (GWS Giants) Paul Hunter ® (Redland Q) Alex Keath ® (Category B) Jake Kelly (promoted rookie) Troy Menzel (Carlton) Wayne Milera (Central Districts, SA) Paul Seedsman (Collingwood) Out: Patrick Dangerfield (Geelong) Sam Kerridge (Carlton) Brodie Martin (delisted) Jack Osborn ® (delisted) James Podsiadly (retired) Brent Reilly (retired) Sam Siggins (retired) Anthony Wilson ® (delisted) Matthew Wright (delisted) BRISBANE LIONS In: Ryan Bastinac (North Melbourne) Tom Bell (Carlton) Eric Hipwood (Brisbane Lions Academy) Jarrad Jansen (Geelong) Ben Keays (Brisbane Lions Academy) Rhys Mathieson (Geelong Falcons) Jackson Paine ® (Brisbane Lions) Josh Schache (Murray Bushrangers) Sam Skinner (Gippsland Power) Josh Walker (Geelong) Reuben William ® (Zillmere Q) Out: Jed Adcock (delisted) James Aish (Collingwood) Jordon Bourke (delisted) Mitch Golby (delisted) Matthew Leuenberger (Essendon) Matt Maguire (retired) Luke McGuane (retired) Zac O'Brien (delisted) Jackson Paine (delisted) Jack Redden (West Coast) Brent Staker (retired) CARLTON In: David Cunningham (Oakleigh Chargers) Charlie Curnow (Geelong Falcons) Andrew Galluci ® (Williamstown VFL) Jesse Glass-McCasker (Swan Districts WA) Daniel Gorringe (Gold Coast) Sam Kerridge (Adelaide) Matt Korcheck ® (Category B) Jed Lamb (GWS Giants) Harry McKay (Gippsland Power) Andrew Phillips (GWS Giants) Lachie Plowman (GWS Giants) Jack Silvagni (Oakleigh Chargers) Liam Sumner (GWS Giants) Jacob Weitering (Dandenong Stingrays) Michael Wright (Adelaide DFA) Out: Tom Bell (Brisbane) Andrew Carrazzo (retired) David Ellard (retired) Tom Fields ® (delisted) Cameron Giles (delisted) Lachie Henderson (Geelong) Nick Holman (delisted) Blaine Johnson (delisted) Chris Judd (retired) Troy Menzel (Adelaide) Fraser Russell (delisted) Brad Walsh ® (delisted) Robbie Warnock (delisted) Matthew Watson (delisted) Chris Yarran (Richmond) COLLINGWOOD In: James Aish (Brisbane) Ben Crocker (Oakleigh Chargers) Jack Frost (promoted rookie) Tim Golds ® (GWS Giants) Jeremy Howe (Melbourne) Lachlan Keefe ® (Collingwood) Tom Phillips (Oakleigh Chargers) Brayden Sier (Northern Knights) Josh Smith ® (Redland Q) Josh Thomas ® (Collingwood) Adam Treloar (GWS Giants) Rupert Wills (Collingwood VFL) Darrean Wyatt ® (Category B) Out: Brenden Abbott ® (delisted) Tony Armstrong (delisted) Sam Dwyer (delisted) Nathan Freeman (St. Kilda) Patrick Karnezis (retired) Lachlan Keeffe (delisted) Ben Kennedy (Melbourne) Michael Manteit (delisted) Paul Seedsman (Adelaide) Josh Thomas (delisted) Clinton Young (delisted) ESSENDON In: Craig Bird (Sydney) Mitch Brown (Sandringham VFL) Yestin Eades (North Ballarat Rebels) Aaron Francis (West Adelaide SA) Will Hams ® (Essendon) Matthew Leuenberger (Brisbane) Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti ® (Essendon VFL) Shaun McKernan (promoted rookie) Alex Morgan (Oakleigh Chargers) Gach Nyuon ® (Dandenong Stingrays) Darcy Parish (Geelong Falcons) Mason Redman (Glenelg SA) Tom Wallis (Calder Cannons) Out: Kurt Aylett ® (delisted) Alex Browne (delisted) Jake Carlisle (St. Kilda) Paul Chapman (retired) Lachlan Dalgleish (delisted) Dustin Fletcher (retired) Jonathan Giles (West Coast) Will Hams (delisted) Elliott Kavanagh (delisted) Jake Melksham (Melbourne) Nick OBrien (delisted) Ariel Steinberg ®(delisted) Jason Winderlich (retired) FREMANTLE In: Harley Balic (Sandringham Dragons) Harley Bennell (Gold Coast) Samuel Collins (Box Hill Hawks VFL) Josh Deluca ® (Fremantle) Ethan Hughes (promoted rookie) Anthony Morabito ® (Fremantle) Ryan Nyhuis ® (Nightcliff NT) Darcy Tucker (North Ballarat Rebels) Matthew Uebergang ® (Redland) Shane Yarran (Subiaco WA) Out: Jacob Ballard ® (delisted) Ryan Crowley (delisted) Josh Deluca (delisted) Paul Duffield (retired) Max Duffy (delisted) Luke McPharlin (retired) Craig Moller ® (delisted) Anthony Morabito (delisted) Colin Sylvia (retired) Tom Vandeleur ® (delisted) GEELONG In: Wylie Buzza (Mount Gravatt Q) Jock Cornell ® (Mangoplah Cue NSW) Patrick Dangerfield (Adelaide) Ryan Gardner (Burnie Dockers TAS) Matthew Hayball (West Adelaide SA) Lachie Henderson (Carlton) Michael Luxford (promoted rookie) Sam Menegola (Subiaco WA) James Parsons ® (Eastern Ranges) Tom Ruggles ® (Geelong VFL) Scott Selwood (West Coast) Zac Smith (Gold Coast) Out: Sam Blease (retired) Dean Gore (Adelaide) Brad Hartman (retired) Jarrad Jansen (Brisbane) Steve Johnson (GWS Giants) James Kelly (retired) Hamish McIntosh (retired) Jared Rivers (retired) Dawson Simpson (GWS Giants) Matthew Stokes (retired) James Toohey (retired) Josh Walker (Brisbane) GOLD COAST In: Callum Ah Chee (South Fremantle WA) Keegan Brooksby (promoted rookie) Daniel Currie (North Melbourne) Brayden Fiorini (Northern Knights) Jesse Joyce ® (Palm Beach Currumbin Q) Tom Keough ® (West Adelaide WA) Cameron Loersch ® (South Fremantle WA) Darcy MacPherson ® (Northern Knights) Matt Rosa (West Coast) Adam Saad (promoted rookie) Joshua Schoenfeld (Peel Thunder WA) Danny Stanley ® (Gold Coast) Mackenzie Willis (Kingborough TAS) Out: Harley Bennell (Fremantle) Andrew Boston (retired) Greg Broughton (retired) Charlie Dixon (Port Adelaide) Tyrone Downie (delisted) Jarred Ellis (delisted) Josh Glenn (delisted) Daniel Gorringe (Carlton) Josh Hall (delisted) Louis Herbert (delisted) Andrew Raines (retired) Zac Smith (Geelong) Danny Stanley (delisted) Tim Sumner (retired) GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY In: Matthew Flynn (GWS Academy) Harrison Himmelberg (GWS Academy) Jacob Hopper (GWS Academy)Steve Johnson (Geelong) Matthew Kennedy (GWS Academy) Daniel Lloyd ® (Killarney Vale NSW) Sam Reid ® (UWS Giants NEAFL) Dawson Simpson (Geelong) Out: Dylan Addison (retired) Thomas Bugg (Melbourne) Tim Golds (delisted) Curtley Hampton (Adelaide) Jed Lamb (Carlton) Andrew Phillips (Carlton) Lachie Plowman (Carlton) Sam Schulz ® (delisted) Liam Sumner (Carlton) Jacob Townsend (Richmond) Adam Treloar (Collingwood) HAWTHORN In: Ryan Burton (North Adelaide SA) Jack Fitzpatrick (Melbourne) Conor Glass ® (Ireland INT) Blake Hardwick (Eastern Ranges) Kurt Heatherley (promoted rookie) Kieran Lovell (Kingston Tigers TAS) Kade Stewart ® (South Fremantle) Luke Surman ® (Norwood) Alex Woodward ® (Hawthorn) Out: Jed Anderson (North Melbourne) Sam Grimley ® (delisted) David Hale (retired) Jared Hardisty ® (delisted) Brian Lake (retired) Jonathan Simpkin (delisted) Matt Suckling (Western Bulldogs FA) Alex Woodward (delisted) MELBOURNE In: Thomas Bugg (GWS Giants) James Harmes (promoted rookie) Liam Hulett (Dandenong Stingrays) Ben Kennedy (Collingwood) Mitch King (Murray Bushrangers) Jake Melksham (Essendon) Viv Michie ® (Melbourne) Clayton Oliver (Murray Bushrangers) Joel Smith ® (Category B) Aaron vandenBerg (promoted rookie) Josh Wagner ® (Aspley Q) Sam Weideman (Eastern Ranges) Out: Rohan Bail (delisted) Daniel Cross (retired) Jack Fitzpatrick (Hawthorn) Jeremy Howe (Collingwood) Mark Jamar (retired) Jordie McKenzie (delisted) Viv Michie (delisted) Aidan Riley (delisted) Jimmy Toumpas (Port Adelaide) NORTH MELBOURNE In: Jed Anderson (Hawthorn) Ryan Clarke (Eastern Ranges) Majak Daw ® (North Melbourne) Mitchell Hibberd (Clarence TAS) Ben McKay (Gippsland Power) Declan Mountford (Claremont WA) Farren Ray ® (St Kilda) Corey Wagner (Sandgate Q) Out: Leigh Adams (retired) Ryan Bastinac (Brisbane) Daniel Currie (Gold Bi nCoast) Majak Daw (delisted) Nathan Grima (retired) Kieren Harper (delisted) Scott McMahon (delisted) Eric Wallace ® (delisted) Max Warren ® (delisted) PORT ADELAIDE In: Riley Bonner (West Adelaide SA) Charlie Dixon (Gold Coast) Sam Gray (promoted rookie) Cameron Hewett ® (North Adelaide) Dan Houston ® (Oakleigh Chargers) Aydin Johnson (Bendigo Pioneers) Kane Mitchell ® Port Adelaide) Will Snelling ® (West Adelaide WA) Jimmy Toumpas (Melbourne) Out: Kane Cornes (retired) Daniel Flynn (retired) Mitch Harvey (delisted) Tom Logan (retired) Kane Mitchell (delisted) Andrew Moore (Richmond) Jarrad Redden (delisted) Sam Russell ® (delisted) Mason Shaw (delisted) Johann Wagner ® (delisted) RICHMOND In: Nathan Broad (Swan Districts WA) Mabior Chol ® (Aspley Q) Kane Lambert (promoted rookie) Adam Marcon ® (Williamstown VFL) Oleg Markov (North Adelaide SA) Andrew Moore (Port Adelaide) Callum Moore ® (Calder Cannons) Daniel Rioli (North Ballarat Rebels) Jacob Townsend (GWS Giants) Chris Yarran (Carlton) Out: Matt Arnot (delisted) Matt Dea (delisted) Nathan Foley (retired) Nathan Gordon (delisted) Chris Knights (retired) Matt McDonough (delisted) Chris Newman (retired) Ricky Petterd (retired) Matt Thomas (retired) ST. KILDA In: Jake Carlisle (Essendon) Nick Coughlan ® (Albury), Nathan Freeman (Collingwood) Jade Gresham (Northern Knights) Nick O'Kearney ® (Calder Cannons), Bailey Rice (Dandenong Stingrays) Josh Saunders ® (St Kilda) Jack Sinclair (promoted rookie) Brandon White (Dandenong Stingrays) Out: Farren Ray (delisted) Daniel Markworth (delisted) Ahmed Saad (delisted) Josh Saunders (delisted) Adam Schneider (retired) Tom Simpkin (delisted) Arryn Siposs (delisted) Spencer White (delisted) SYDNEY In: Jordan Dawson (Sturt SA) Kyle Galloway ® (Shepparton VIC) Tyrone Leonardis (Northern Knights) Harry Marsh ® (Sydney Swans) Callum Mills (Sydney Academy) Sam Murray ® (Wodonga Raiders) Sam Naismith (promoted rookie) Colin O'Riordan ® (Ireland INT) Tom Papley ® (Gippsland Power) Callum Sinclair (West Coast) Michael Talia (Western Bulldogs) Out: Craig Bird (Essendon) Adam Goodes (retired) Lewis Jetta (West Coast) Harry Marsh (delisted) Sean McLaren ® (delisted) Lloyd Perris ®(delisted) Mike Pyke (retired) Rhyce Shaw (retired) WEST COAST In: Matthew Allan (Glenelg SA) Tom Cole (Bendigo Pioneers) Brant Colledge ® (West Coast) Jonathan Giles (Essendon) Lewis Jetta (Sydney) Kurt Mutimer (Dandenong Stingrays) Luke Partington (Norwood SA) Jack Redden (Brisbane) Jordan Snadden ® (East Fremantle WA) Simon Tunbridge ® (West Coast) Alec Waterman ® West Coast) Out: Brant Colledge (delisted) Rowen Powell ® (delisted) Will Maginness ® (delisted) Dylan Main (delisted) Matt Rosa (Gold Coast) Scott Selwood (Geelong) Callum Sinclair (Sydney) Beau Waters (retired) WESTERN BULLDOGS In: Marcus Adams (West Perth WA) Jed Adcock ® (Brisbane Lions) Kieren Collins (Dandenong Stingrays) Josh Dunkley (Gippsland Power) Bradley Lynch ® (Swan Districts WA) Matt Suckling (Hawthorn FA) Bailey Williams (Glenelg SA) Out: Ayce Cordy (delisted) Sam Darley (delisted) Matthew Fuller (delisted) Brett Goodes ® (delisted) Jarrad Grant (delisted) Jordan Kelly ® (delisted) Daniel Pearce ® (delisted) Michael Talia (Sydney) FUTURE PICKS BRISBANE LIONS Second-round pick (received from Collingwood in Aish trade, previously received from St Kilda in Freeman trade) Third-round pick (received from North Melbourne in Aish trade) CARLTON Third-round pick (received from Western Bulldogs in pick swap) COLLINGWOOD Second-round pick (received from North Melbourne in Aish trade) GEELONG Third-round pick (received from Brisbane in Walker, Jansen trade) Fifth-round pick (received from GWS in Johnson trade) GOLD COAST First-round pick (received from Melbourne in pick swap) Second-round pick (received from Richmond in Dixon trade) Second-round pick (received from Port Adelaide in Dixon trade) Second-round pick (received from Fremantle in pick swap) GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY First-round pick (received from Collingwood in Treloar pick) First-round pick (received from Carlton in Plowman, Lamb, Phillips, Sumner trade, previously received from Geelong in Henderson trade) Second-round pick (received from Adelaide in Hampton trade) WESTERN BULLDOGS Fourth-round pick (received from Carlton in pick swap) Fourth-round pick (received from Sydney Swans in Talia trade)

A nice spread of votes this week sees Bernie Vince consolidate his lead. 130. Bernie Vince 114. Nathan Jones 103. Tom McDonald 96. Jesse Hogan 78. Max Gawn Jack Viney 63. Daniel Cross 53. Angus Brayshaw 52. Jeffrey Garlett 44. Colin Garland Aaron vandenBerg 30. Christian Salem 28. Cam Pedersen 25. Jack Watts 22. Neville Jetta 21. Jack Grimes 19. Jimmy Toumpas 17. Lynden Dunn 13. Jeremy Howe 6. Dom Tyson 4. Mark Jamar Heritier Lubumba Viv Michie Ben Newton 3. Chris Dawes 2. Jake Spencer 1. Alex Neal-Bullen

EBBS AND FLOWS by Whispering Jack For a tiny bit over three quarters it was a game of ebbs and flows with Melbourne holding the ascendancy for the most part after dominating the opening stanza with four goals to one. It should have been more but Jack Viney and Dom Tyson missed easy shots late in the term after Jesse Hogan nailed his second goal for the game after just 23 minutes. That was the sort of thing that we've seen before this season with the game against the Crows at the Adelaide Oval a case in point so it came as no surprise that Collingwood was able to hit the front at the midpoint of the next quarter when Travis Varcoe goaled. At that point, we feared the worst - that the tide was turning the game in the direction of debacles like the GWS and Port Adelaide games but the Demons surprised us, regrouped and went into the main break with an eleven point lead thanks to the brilliance of Bernie Vince and emerging big man Max Gawn. The Demons' dominance continued into the what they call the premiership quarter which for Melbourne is a concept so far embedded in its distant past as to be rendered almost meaningless. But there's a new kid on the block who might just change that one day and his name his Jesse Hogan. After a wide kick at goal spoiled what would have been a dream start to the second half, he had the presence of mind to tickle the ball of the ground after a spillage and the Demons were away. The Pies fought back but goals to Vince and another to Jack Watts who keeps getting better and better, opened up a 23 point lead before the flow of the game changed once more. It was all Collingwood in the second half of the third term leading to heart flutters among the Demon faithful in the crowd. It was as if the fact that the team had hit the magical 60 point mark meant that everything came to a grinding halt. The tide ebbed as Collingwood clawed the deficit back to a manageable 8 points by the final break and narrowed it further thanks to a rushed behind early in the last. Then Vince re-entered the scoring fray and it was over. Goals flowed and the opposition capitulated in a reversal of the situation when the teams met on Queens Birthday. Of course, back then it was Melbourne that was ravaged with injury. Now it was Collingwood whose main weapons were missing. No Cloke meant no seven straight goals and Tom McDonald was able to play the monster on young Darcy Moore. Once Neville Jetta shut Alex Fasolo down, the Pies had very little potency up forward. Nathan Jones did his job as usual but the most pleasing aspect of recent weeks for Melbourne is the emergence of Max Gawn towards the fringes of the elite among the competition's ruckmen and Jack Viney's growth in the midfield. The defining aspect was that despite the presence of five first year players, Melbourne was the more experienced team in terms of games in legs - a vast difference to the week before when St. Kilda's match winners were all on the other side of thirty. That's exactly why the lamentations of many supporters and independent observers were a bit off the mark with their panic stations wrist slashing of last week. The form of young sides will always ebb and flow from week to week. The main thing is that the tide is taking you in the right direction. Melbourne 4.4.28 6.5.41 9.6 .60 13.13.91 Collingwood 1.4.10 4.6.30 7.10.52 7.12.54 Goals Melbourne Hogan Vince 3 Garlett 2 Harmes Howe N Jones vandenBerg Watts Collingwood Fasolo 3 Adams Pendlebury Varcoe Witts Best Melbourne Vince Jones Gawn Viney Garland Watts Cross Collingwood Swan Fasolo Varcoe Williams Adams Langdon Changes Melbourne Nil Collingwood Matt Scharenberg replaced Tyson Goldsack (tight quad) in the selected side. Injuries Melbourne Nil Collingwood Nil Reports Melbourne Nil Collingwood Nil Substitutions Melbourne James Harmes replaced Viv Michie in the third quarter. Collingwood Jamie Elliott replaced Paul Seedsman in the third quarter. Umpires Donlon Kamolins Jeffery Official crowd 37,894 at the MCG.

For a tiny bit over three quarters it was a game of ebbs and flows with Melbourne holding the ascendancy for the most part after dominating the opening stanza with four goals to one. It should have been more but Jack Viney and Dom Tyson missed easy shots late in the term after Jesse Hogan nailed his second goal for the game after just 23 minutes. That was the sort of thing that we've seen before this season with the game against the Crows at the Adelaide Oval a case in point so it came as no surprise that Collingwood was able to hit the front at the midpoint of the next quarter when Travis Varcoe goaled. At that point, we feared the worst - that the tide was turning the game in the direction of debacles like the GWS and Port Adelaide games but the Demons surprised us, regrouped and went into the main break with an eleven point lead thanks to the brilliance of Bernie Vince and emerging big man Max Gawn. The Demons' dominance continued into the what they call the premiership quarter which for Melbourne is a concept so far embedded in its distant past as to be rendered almost meaningless. But there's a new kid on the block who might just change that one day and his name his Jesse Hogan. After a wide kick at goal spoiled what would have been a dream start to the second half, he had the presence of mind to tickle the ball of the ground after a spillage and the Demons were away. The Pies fought back but goals to Vince and another to Jack Watts who keeps getting better and better, opened up a 23 point lead before the flow of the game changed once more. It was all Collingwood in the second half of the third term leading to heart flutters among the Demon faithful in the crowd. It was as if the fact that the team had hit the magical 60 point mark meant that everything came to a grinding halt. The tide ebbed as Collingwood clawed the deficit back to a manageable 8 points by the final break and narrowed it further thanks to a rushed behind early in the last. Then Vince re-entered the scoring fray and it was over. Goals flowed and the opposition capitulated in a reversal of the situation when the teams met on Queens Birthday. Of course, back then it was Melbourne that was ravaged with injury. Now it was Collingwood whose main weapons were missing. No Cloke meant no seven straight goals and Tom McDonald was able to play the monster on young Darcy Moore. Once Neville Jetta shut Alex Fasolo down, the Pies had very little potency up forward. Nathan Jones did his job as usual but the most pleasing aspect of recent weeks for Melbourne is the emergence of Max Gawn towards the fringes of the elite among the competition's ruckmen and Jack Viney's growth in the midfield. The defining aspect was that despite the presence of five first year players, Melbourne was the more experienced team in terms of games in legs - a vast difference to the week before when St. Kilda's match winners were all on the other side of thirty. That's exactly why the lamentations of many supporters and independent observers were a bit off the mark with their panic stations wrist slashing of last week. The form of young sides will always ebb and flow from week to week. The main thing is that the tide is taking you in the right direction. Melbourne 4.4.28 6.5.41 9.6 .60 13.13.91 Collingwood 1.4.10 4.6.30 7.10.52 7.12.54 Goals Melbourne Hogan Vince 3 Garlett 2 Harmes Howe N Jones vandenBerg Watts Collingwood Fasolo 3 Adams Pendlebury Varcoe Witts Best Melbourne Vince Jones Gawn Viney Garland Watts Cross Collingwood Swan Fasolo Varcoe Williams Adams Langdon Changes Melbourne Nil Collingwood Matt Scharenberg replaced Tyson Goldsack (tight quad) in the selected side. Injuries Melbourne Nil Collingwood Nil Reports Melbourne Nil Collingwood Nil Substitutions Melbourne James Harmes replaced Viv Michie in the third quarter. Collingwood Jamie Elliott replaced Paul Seedsman in the third quarter. Umpires Donlon Kamolins Jeffery Official crowd 37,894 at the MCG.

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EBBS AND FLOWS by Whispering Jack For a tiny bit over three quarters it was a game of ebbs and flows with Melbourne holding the ascendancy for the most part after dominating the opening stanza with four goals to one. It should have been more but Jack Viney and Dom Tyson missed easy shots late in the term after Jesse Hogan nailed his second goal for the game after just 23 minutes. That was the sort of thing that we've seen before this season with the game against the Crows at the Adelaide Oval a case in point so it came as no surprise that Collingwood was able to hit the front at the midpoint of the next quarter when Travis Varcoe goaled. At that point, we feared the worst - that the tide was turning the game in the direction of debacles like the GWS and Port Adelaide games but the Demons surprised us, regrouped and went into the main break with an eleven point lead thanks to the brilliance of Bernie Vince and emerging big man Max Gawn. The Demons' dominance continued into the what they call the premiership quarter which for Melbourne is a concept so far embedded in its distant past as to be rendered almost meaningless. But there's a new kid on the block who might just change that one day and his name his Jesse Hogan. After a wide kick at goal spoiled what would have been a dream start to the second half, he had the presence of mind to tickle the ball of the ground after a spillage and the Demons were away. The Pies fought back but goals to Vince and another to Jack Watts who keeps getting better and better, opened up a 23 point lead before the flow of the game changed once more. It was all Collingwood in the second half of the third term leading to heart flutters among the Demon faithful in the crowd. It was as if the fact that the team had hit the magical 60 point mark meant that everything came to a grinding halt. The tide ebbed as Collingwood clawed the deficit back to a manageable 8 points by the final break and narrowed it further thanks to a rushed behind early in the last. Then Vince re-entered the scoring fray and it was over. Goals flowed and the opposition capitulated in a reversal of the situation when the teams met on Queens Birthday. Of course, back then it was Melbourne that was ravaged with injury. Now it was Collingwood whose main weapons were missing. No Cloke meant no seven straight goals and Tom McDonald was able to play the monster on young Darcy Moore. Once Neville Jetta shut Alex Fasolo down, the Pies had very little potency up forward. Nathan Jones did his job as usual but the most pleasing aspect of recent weeks for Melbourne is the emergence of Max Gawn towards the fringes of the elite among the competition's ruckmen and Jack Viney's growth in the midfield. The defining aspect was that despite the presence of five first year players, Melbourne was the more experienced team in terms of games in legs - a vast difference to the week before when St. Kilda's match winners were all on the other side of thirty. That's exactly why the lamentations of many supporters and independent observers were a bit off the mark with their panic stations wrist slashing of last week. The form of young sides will always ebb and flow from week to week. The main thing is that the tide is taking you in the right direction. Melbourne 4.4.28 6.5.41 9.6 .60 13.13.91 Collingwood 1.4.10 4.6.30 7.10.52 7.12.54 Goals Melbourne Hogan Vince 3 Garlett 2 Harmes Howe N Jones vandenBerg Watts Collingwood Fasolo 3 Adams Pendlebury Varcoe Witts Best Melbourne Vince Jones Gawn Viney Garland Watts Cross Collingwood Swan Fasolo Varcoe Williams Adams Langdon Changes Melbourne Nil Collingwood Matt Scharenberg replaced Tyson Goldsack (tight quad) in the selected side. Injuries Melbourne Nil Collingwood Nil Reports Melbourne Nil Collingwood Nil Substitutions Melbourne James Harmes replaced Viv Michie in the third quarter. Collingwood Jamie Elliott replaced Paul Seedsman in the third quarter. Umpires Donlon Kamolins Jeffery Official crowd 37,894 at the MCG.

COLD AS ICE by JVM Two teams whose recent records have been disappointing meet on Saturday afternoon at the MCG. The Magpies are on a five game losing streak, their last win coming against the GWS Giants in the week after Queens Birthday. That was the day that Mummy, Phil Davis and Joel Patfull all got injured and the Giants fell apart conceding eight final quarter goals in what became a 42 point defeat. A week earlier, it also took a resounding final term for the Magpies to prevail over their old rivals, the Demons. For its part, Melbourne has also been disappointing with two wins (Geelong and Brisbane), some narrow defeats (St. Kilda and Essendon) and a couple of beltings (West Coast and St. Kilda, the second time around). Both teams can lay claim to being young and inexperienced and use that to explain away their indifferent form. You could also say that the form of both teams is as cold as ice (or snow in the case of the MFC ) However, most people would still see the Magpies' form as more encouraging than the Demons. Whilst Collingwoods run of losses has been disastrous to its finals prospects, the defeats have in the main been gallant as they have struggled with injury and still come close to beating some of the competition's leading lights like Fremantle and Hawthorn. Recently, they have had to soldier on without Travis Cloke and Jamie Elliott who between them kicked 10 goals straight and registered 200 dream team points on Queens Birthday. With both players highly in doubt to take their places in their team this week, you would have thought Collingwood might start underdogs but hey ... the opposition is Melbourne, a team that's flakey and never too comfortable with the prospect of being the favourite. In fact, the Demons are more likely to perform well when they're down and out ... so perhaps there's hope for them. THE GAME Melbourne v Collingwood at MCG Saturday 1 August 2015 at 2.10pm (AEST) HEAD TO HEAD Overall Collingwood 146 wins Melbourne 79 wins 5 drawn At the MCG Collingwood 79 wins Melbourne 54 wins 3 drawn Last Five Meetings Collingwood 5 wins Melbourne 0 wins The Coaches: Buckley 2 wins Roos 0 wins MEDIA TV - Fox Sports 3 at 2.00pm (live) Radio - Triple M 3AW THE BETTING Collingwood $1.31 to win Melbourne $3.45 to win LAST TIME THEY MET Collingwood 17.8.110 defeated Melbourne 13.7.85 at MCG in Round 10, 2015 It was a game where both teams played in fits and starts but the Demons were forced to play catch up footy for most of the afternoon after Travis Cloke burst out of the blocks with a bang and smashed the previously untouchable Tom McDonald. Melbourne made a good fist of catching up, doing so twice in the space of the afternoon before a goaless final quarter finished them off. TEAMS COLLINGWOOD B: Tom Langdon, Nathan Brown, Marley Williams HB: Alan Toovey, Jack Frost, Brayden Maynard C: Paul Seedsman, Dane Swan, Steele Sidebottom HF: Sam Dwyer, Darcy Moore, Jordan De Hoey F: Alex Fasolo, Brodie Grundy, Jamie Elliott Foll: Jarrod Witts, Jack Crisp, Scott Pendlebury I/C: Tyson Goldsack, Levi Greenwood, Paul Seedsman, Travis Varcoe EMG: Jarryd Blair, Jonathon Marsh, Matthew Scharenberg IN: Taylor Adams, Sam Dwyer, Jamie Elliott, Paul Seedsman OUT: Jarryd Blair (omitted), Ben Kennedy (omitted), Adam Oxley (rested), Jesse White (omitted) MELBOURNE B: Colin Garland, Lynden Dunn, Neville Jetta HB: Daniel Cross, Tom McDonald, Jeremy Howe C: Jack Grimes, Dom Tyson, Heritier Lumumba HF: Angus Brayshaw, Chris Dawes, Bernie Vince F: Jeff Garlett, Jesse Hogan, Jack Watts Foll: Max Gawn, Nathan Jones, Jack Viney I/C: James Harmes, Viv Michie, Alex Neal-Bullen, Aaron vandenBerg EMG: Mark Jamar, Matt Jones, Jordie McKenzie IN: Alex Neal-Bullen OUT: Billy Stretch (omitted) There are two games of AFL being played on Saturday afternoon and historically at least, you would have thought a Collingwood v Melbourne clash would easily overshadow the one down the highway between Geelong and the Brisbane Lions. After all, the two teams doing battle at the MCG were once the biggest show in town when they clashed, they're won plenty of premierships between them and they've produced some fascinating and famous past contests. Not so these days. The Pies are facing their sixth defeat in a row - something they haven't done since 2005 when you could have sworn they were tanking for draft picks. Melbourne is looking at a fifth consecutive game in which it has been unable to exceed 60 points and its opposition in its three past games have occupied the bottom third of the ladder, a fact that is so completely damning of its playing style, skills and the decision-making of those who make up its team, that some of its staunchest and most loyal supporters are wondering whether it's really worthwhile turning up to the game. If there is a silver lining for the Demons, it's the fact that the two players instrumental in destroying them on Queens Birthday, Cloke and Oxley, will be watching from the stands and another in Elliott was looking proppy earlier in the week and even ruled out of this game by some at the club. However, it may not matter because the Pies seem to have discovered a new goal kicking ace in Darcy Moore who booted five last Sunday against the Bulldogs and, let's face it, anyone can fill the role that Oxley played if they're allowed to play the extra man in defence while their presence goes completely ignored by an opposing side that continually bombs the ball up making it all the more difficult for its own forwards to take marks and outnumbered if the ball hits the ground. Melbournes midfield led by Nathan Jones, Bernie Vince and Jack Viney can be relied upon to toil away and work hard but that's not enough. Apart from the possibility of a few sparks of excitement from Jesse Hogan and Angus Brayshaw and another strong ruck performance from Max Gawn, there's little for the Demon fans or anyone else for that matter to get excited about in what was once billed as one of the great clashes of traditional rivals of our game. Collingwood by 42 points in a low scoring, dull affair that will make many wish they were in sleepy hollow or just home by the fireside.

Two teams whose recent records have been disappointing meet on Saturday afternoon at the MCG. The Magpies are on a five game losing streak, their last win coming against the GWS Giants in the week after Queens Birthday. That was the day that Mummy, Phil Davis and Joel Patfull all got injured and the Giants fell apart conceding eight final quarter goals in what became a 42 point defeat. A week earlier, it also took a resounding final term for the Magpies to prevail over their old rivals, the Demons. For its part, Melbourne has also been disappointing with two wins (Geelong and Brisbane), some narrow defeats (St. Kilda and Essendon) and a couple of beltings (West Coast and St. Kilda, the second time around). Both teams can lay claim to being young and inexperienced and use that to explain away their indifferent form. You could also say that the form of both teams is as cold as ice (or snow in the case of the MFC ) However, most people would still see the Magpies' form as more encouraging than the Demons. Whilst Collingwoods run of losses has been disastrous to its finals prospects, the defeats have in the main been gallant as they have struggled with injury and still come close to beating some of the competition's leading lights like Fremantle and Hawthorn. Recently, they have had to soldier on without Travis Cloke and Jamie Elliott who between them kicked 10 goals straight and registered 200 dream team points on Queens Birthday. With both players highly in doubt to take their places in their team this week, you would have thought Collingwood might start underdogs but hey ... the opposition is Melbourne, a team that's flakey and never too comfortable with the prospect of being the favourite. In fact, the Demons are more likely to perform well when they're down and out ... so perhaps there's hope for them. THE GAME Melbourne v Collingwood at MCG Saturday 1 August 2015 at 2.10pm (AEST) HEAD TO HEAD Overall Collingwood 146 wins Melbourne 79 wins 5 drawn At the MCG Collingwood 79 wins Melbourne 54 wins 3 drawn Last Five Meetings Collingwood 5 wins Melbourne 0 wins The Coaches: Buckley 2 wins Roos 0 wins MEDIA TV - Fox Sports 3 at 2.00pm (live) Radio - Triple M 3AW THE BETTING Collingwood $1.31 to win Melbourne $3.45 to win LAST TIME THEY MET Collingwood 17.8.110 defeated Melbourne 13.7.85 at MCG in Round 10, 2015 It was a game where both teams played in fits and starts but the Demons were forced to play catch up footy for most of the afternoon after Travis Cloke burst out of the blocks with a bang and smashed the previously untouchable Tom McDonald. Melbourne made a good fist of catching up, doing so twice in the space of the afternoon before a goaless final quarter finished them off. TEAMS COLLINGWOOD B: Tom Langdon, Nathan Brown, Marley Williams HB: Alan Toovey, Jack Frost, Brayden Maynard C: Paul Seedsman, Dane Swan, Steele Sidebottom HF: Sam Dwyer, Darcy Moore, Jordan De Hoey F: Alex Fasolo, Brodie Grundy, Jamie Elliott Foll: Jarrod Witts, Jack Crisp, Scott Pendlebury I/C: Tyson Goldsack, Levi Greenwood, Paul Seedsman, Travis Varcoe EMG: Jarryd Blair, Jonathon Marsh, Matthew Scharenberg IN: Taylor Adams, Sam Dwyer, Jamie Elliott, Paul Seedsman OUT: Jarryd Blair (omitted), Ben Kennedy (omitted), Adam Oxley (rested), Jesse White (omitted) MELBOURNE B: Colin Garland, Lynden Dunn, Neville Jetta HB: Daniel Cross, Tom McDonald, Jeremy Howe C: Jack Grimes, Dom Tyson, Heritier Lumumba HF: Angus Brayshaw, Chris Dawes, Bernie Vince F: Jeff Garlett, Jesse Hogan, Jack Watts Foll: Max Gawn, Nathan Jones, Jack Viney I/C: James Harmes, Viv Michie, Alex Neal-Bullen, Aaron vandenBerg EMG: Mark Jamar, Matt Jones, Jordie McKenzie IN: Alex Neal-Bullen OUT: Billy Stretch (omitted) There are two games of AFL being played on Saturday afternoon and historically at least, you would have thought a Collingwood v Melbourne clash would easily overshadow the one down the highway between Geelong and the Brisbane Lions. After all, the two teams doing battle at the MCG were once the biggest show in town when they clashed, they're won plenty of premierships between them and they've produced some fascinating and famous past contests. Not so these days. The Pies are facing their sixth defeat in a row - something they haven't done since 2005 when you could have sworn they were tanking for draft picks. Melbourne is looking at a fifth consecutive game in which it has been unable to exceed 60 points and its opposition in its three past games have occupied the bottom third of the ladder, a fact that is so completely damning of its playing style, skills and the decision-making of those who make up its team, that some of its staunchest and most loyal supporters are wondering whether it's really worthwhile turning up to the game. If there is a silver lining for the Demons, it's the fact that the two players instrumental in destroying them on Queens Birthday, Cloke and Oxley, will be watching from the stands and another in Elliott was looking proppy earlier in the week and even ruled out of this game by some at the club. However, it may not matter because the Pies seem to have discovered a new goal kicking ace in Darcy Moore who booted five last Sunday against the Bulldogs and, let's face it, anyone can fill the role that Oxley played if they're allowed to play the extra man in defence while their presence goes completely ignored by an opposing side that continually bombs the ball up making it all the more difficult for its own forwards to take marks and outnumbered if the ball hits the ground. Melbournes midfield led by Nathan Jones, Bernie Vince and Jack Viney can be relied upon to toil away and work hard but that's not enough. Apart from the possibility of a few sparks of excitement from Jesse Hogan and Angus Brayshaw and another strong ruck performance from Max Gawn, there's little for the Demon fans or anyone else for that matter to get excited about in what was once billed as one of the great clashes of traditional rivals of our game. Collingwood by 42 points in a low scoring, dull affair that will make many wish they were in sleepy hollow or just home by the fireside.

They went down by 25 points after a goalless final quarter. The Queens Birthday game promised a lot - especially the beginning of Max Gawn's ruck dominance but two months down the track, we simply can't score goals any more. MELBOURNE B: Colin Garland, Tom McDonald, Jack Fitzpatrick HB: Jeremy Howe, Lynden Dunn, Neville Jetta C: Daniel Cross, Aaron vandenBerg, Heritier Lumumba HF: Ben Newton, Cam Pedersen, Jack Viney F: Jeff Garlett, Jesse Hogan, Aidan Riley FOLL: Max Gawn, Nathan Jones, Bernie Vince I/C: Angus Brayshaw, Matt Jones, Jimmy Toumpas, Jack Watts EMG: Jack Grimes, Viv Michie, Jake Spencer IN: Max Gawn, Ben Newton, Aidan Riley OUT: Rohan Bail, Jack Grimes, Jake Spencer (all omitted) COLLINGWOOD B: Tom Langdon, Nathan Brown, Marley Williams HB: Alan Toovey, Jack Frost, Tyson Goldsack C: Travis Varcoe, Dane Swan, Paul Seedsman HF: Jamie Elliott, Jesse White, Steele Sidebottom F: Alex Fasolo, Travis Cloke, Jarryd Blair FOLL: Brodie Grundy, Jack Crisp, Scott Pendlebury I/C: Tim Broomhead, Jordan De Goey, Adam Oxley, Jarrod Witts EMG: Sam Dwyer, Ben Kennedy, Brayden Maynard IN: Tim Broomhead OUT: Taylor Adams (toe)

BAD AND UGLY by KC from Casey It was a day for the bad and the ugly and very little good for the Casey Scorpions on a day when they had a season high 16 Melbourne listed players, started favourites over Collingwood VFL at Victoria Park in miserable conditions and finished with a 23 point loss that could so easily have been much more. The signs were bad early when the Scorpions kicked with the advantage of a stiff breeze but broke down in front of goal to score only three points in the first 15 minutes before a long goal off the boot of rookie Mitch White gave them a lift. However, when Magpie AFL premiership defender Ben Reid goaled well into time on, Casey's domination around the ground had been wasted. An after the siren goal by Ben Newton was much needed and then Max King booted another early in the second term to give them a 15 point buffer but from there, the Pies took over. Although Mark Jamar and Jake Spencer dominated the hit outs as usual, there was no spring in their step and the Collingwood on ball brigade sharked much of their work, outrunning and outrunning the visitors who were lucky to be just one goal in arrears at the break. The Scorps had the wind but put in an absolute shocker in the third quarter, allowing the Magpies to kick five goals straight outscore them for the term. They trailed by three goals but the game was virtually all over and even though the bitingly cold conditions moderated, the home team dominated but kicked poorly in the end. The final scoreboard did them little justice. For Casey, Jordie McKenzie was easily the team's best and his disposal looks to have improved. The Demons' forgotten man would be looking at a comeback to AFL ranks on that performance. Alex Neal-Bullen with 40 touches was a prolific ball magnet and definitely has a future in the Melbourne midfield. Rohan Bail was busy and there were flashes of good play from others but generally it was not good enough. Despite some good flashes of play from Jayden Hunt, Max King and Mitch White, all are still a way off. Casey was also hampered by injuries to Jack Fitzpatrick, Jimmy Toumpas and Ed Morris, all of who had opened brightly and the limited ground time of Christian Salem coming back from hamstring problems. The Scorpions find themselves in seventh place and with a tough final month return to Casey Fields next Sunday in a must win match up against eighth placed Werribee. 2015 Peter Jackson VFL Casey Scorpions 2.4.16 3.4.22 6.5.41 9.6.60 Collingwood 1.1.7 4.4.28 9.4.58 12.11.83 Goals Casey Scorpions Hunt King White 2 McDonald McKenzie Newton Collingwood Reid 3 Matheson Young 2 Cox Gault Hellier McKeown Williams Best Casey Scorpions McKenzie White Neal-Bullen Hunt Panozza Terlich Collingwood Dwyer Marsh Seedsman Borthwick Hellier Young Statistics Rohan Bail 1 behind 30 disposals 10 kicks 20 handballs 5 marks 9 tackles 120 dream team points Jack Fitzpatrick 7 disposals 3 kicks 4 handballs 3 marks 1 tackle 31 dream team points Mark Jamar 16 disposals 11 kicks 5 handballs 3 marks 4 tackles 48 hit outs 119 dream team points Jayden Hunt 2 goals 1 behind 11 disposals 8 kicks 3 handballs 1 mark 1 tackle 49 dream team points Jay Kennedy-Harris 14 disposals 4 kicks 10 handballs 1 marks 7 tackles 63 dream team points Max King 2 goals 13 disposals 9 kicks 4 handballs 7 marks 1 tackle 1 hit out 73 dream team points Alex Neal-Bullen 40 disposals 18 kicks 22 handballs 5 marks 8 tackles 140 dream team points Oscar McDonald 1 goal disposals kicks handballs marks tackles dream team points Jordie McKenzie 1 goal 1 behind 30 disposals 17 kicks 13 handballs 6 marks 2 tackles 111 dream team points Ben Newton 1 goal disposals kicks handballs marks tackles Aidan Riley 21 disposals 8 kicks 13 handballs 1 marks 6 tackles 68 dream team points Christian Salem 8 disposals 4 kicks 4 handballs 4 marks 2 tackles 37 dream team points Jake Spencer 1 behind disposals 2 kicks 7 handballs 1 mark 4 tackles 20 hit outs 60 dream team points Dean Terlich 25 disposals 11 kicks 14 handballs 3 tackles 70 dream team points Jimmy Toumpas 12 disposals 6 kicks 6 handballs 1 tackle 31 dream team points Mitch White 2 goals 17 disposals 9 kicks 8 handballs 5 marks 4 tackles 83 dream team points

It was a day for the bad and the ugly and very little good for the Casey Scorpions on a day when they had a season high 16 Melbourne listed players, started favourites over Collingwood VFL at Victoria Park in miserable conditions and finished with a 23 point loss that could so easily have been much more. The signs were bad early when the Scorpions kicked with the advantage of a stiff breeze but broke down in front of goal to score only three points in the first 15 minutes before a long goal off the boot of rookie Mitch White gave them a lift. However, when Magpie AFL premiership defender Ben Reid goaled well into time on, Casey's domination around the ground had been wasted. An after the siren goal by Ben Newton was much needed and then Max King booted another early in the second term to give them a 15 point buffer but from there, the Pies took over. Although Mark Jamar and Jake Spencer dominated the hit outs as usual, there was no spring in their step and the Collingwood on ball brigade sharked much of their work, outrunning and outrunning the visitors who were lucky to be just one goal in arrears at the break. The Scorps had the wind but put in an absolute shocker in the third quarter, allowing the Magpies to kick five goals straight outscore them for the term. They trailed by three goals but the game was virtually all over and even though the bitingly cold conditions moderated, the home team dominated but kicked poorly in the end. The final scoreboard did them little justice. For Casey, Jordie McKenzie was easily the team's best and his disposal looks to have improved. The Demons' forgotten man would be looking at a comeback to AFL ranks on that performance. Alex Neal-Bullen with 40 touches was a prolific ball magnet and definitely has a future in the Melbourne midfield. Rohan Bail was busy and there were flashes of good play from others but generally it was not good enough. Despite some good flashes of play from Jayden Hunt, Max King and Mitch White, all are still a way off. Casey was also hampered by injuries to Jack Fitzpatrick, Jimmy Toumpas and Ed Morris, all of who had opened brightly and the limited ground time of Christian Salem coming back from hamstring problems. The Scorpions find themselves in seventh place and with a tough final month return to Casey Fields next Sunday in a must win match up against eighth placed Werribee. 2015 Peter Jackson VFL Casey Scorpions 2.4.16 3.4.22 6.5.41 9.6.60 Collingwood 1.1.7 4.4.28 9.4.58 12.11.83 Goals Casey Scorpions Hunt King White 2 McDonald McKenzie Newton Collingwood Reid 3 Matheson Young 2 Cox Gault Hellier McKeown Williams Best Casey Scorpions McKenzie White Neal-Bullen Hunt Panozza Terlich Collingwood Dwyer Marsh Seedsman Borthwick Hellier Young Statistics Rohan Bail 1 behind 30 disposals 10 kicks 20 handballs 5 marks 9 tackles 120 dream team points Jack Fitzpatrick 7 disposals 3 kicks 4 handballs 3 marks 1 tackle 31 dream team points Mark Jamar 16 disposals 11 kicks 5 handballs 3 marks 4 tackles 48 hit outs 119 dream team points Jayden Hunt 2 goals 1 behind 11 disposals 8 kicks 3 handballs 1 mark 1 tackle 49 dream team points Jay Kennedy-Harris 14 disposals 4 kicks 10 handballs 1 marks 7 tackles 63 dream team points Max King 2 goals 13 disposals 9 kicks 4 handballs 7 marks 1 tackle 1 hit out 73 dream team points Alex Neal-Bullen 40 disposals 18 kicks 22 handballs 5 marks 8 tackles 140 dream team points Oscar McDonald 1 goal disposals kicks handballs marks tackles dream team points Jordie McKenzie 1 goal 1 behind 30 disposals 17 kicks 13 handballs 6 marks 2 tackles 111 dream team points Ben Newton 1 goal disposals kicks handballs marks tackles Aidan Riley 21 disposals 8 kicks 13 handballs 1 marks 6 tackles 68 dream team points Christian Salem 8 disposals 4 kicks 4 handballs 4 marks 2 tackles 37 dream team points Jake Spencer 1 behind disposals 2 kicks 7 handballs 1 mark 4 tackles 20 hit outs 60 dream team points Dean Terlich 25 disposals 11 kicks 14 handballs 3 tackles 70 dream team points Jimmy Toumpas 12 disposals 6 kicks 6 handballs 1 tackle 31 dream team points Mitch White 2 goals 17 disposals 9 kicks 8 handballs 5 marks 4 tackles 83 dream team points

The field at the top remains bunched up. Can Bernie knock Nathan off his perch. Will Tom McDonald get that second breath of wind he needs to carry himself back to the top? 114. Bernie Vince 110. Nathan Jones 103. Tom McDonald 91. Jesse Hogan 74. Jack Viney 66. Max Gawn 63. Daniel Cross 53. Angus Brayshaw 52. Jeffrey Garlett 44. Colin Garland 42. Aaron vandenBerg 30. Christian Salem 28. Cam Pedersen 21. Jack Grimes 19. Jimmy Toumpas 17. Jack Watts 15. Neville Jetta 13. Jeremy Howe 12. Lynden Dunn 6. Dom Tyson 4. Mark Jamar Heritier Lubumba Viv Michie Ben Newton 3. Chris Dawes 2. Jake Spencer 1. Alex Neal-Bullen

FIFTY YEARS IN THE WILDERNESS by George on The Outer During the week the MFC marked the 50th anniversary of the ignominious sacking of Norm Smith by the MCC committee. Fifty years in the wilderness for the Club. No premierships since 1964 and the curse of Norm continues to haunt the club. And what an almighty curse it must be, because the Israelites were banished to the wilderness for only 40 years, for their indiscretions. We have seen various prophets come and go, all promising to take us to the Promised Land, but after the performance against the Saints, we are no closer to reaching that target than we have ever been. The false dawn of improvement we saw against Geelong, was crushed by a totally insipid demonstration of ineptitude by numerous Melbourne players. It started in the first quarter when Dawes couldn’t kick straight while running into an open goal to set the tone, and followed that with a series of failed marking attempts and turnovers gifted to the Saints. He wasn’t alone as Grimes, Watts and Jetta fed plenty of their possession directly the opposition. Instead of relieving the pressure by taking control of the situation and booting it down the field, they sought to handball to others under pressure. It is better to see the ball 50 metres away from the opponent’s goal, than giving it up to them. The usual apologists will point to the number of possessions this trio had, but fail to look at their combined efforts of 16 clangers! Sixteen straight turnovers to the opposition, and that doesn’t count the ones where they give it to someone who had no chance of disposing of it properly and is themselves the cause of the clanger. What would the score board look like with 16 less direct turnovers? There were some players who could hold their heads high. Jack Viney 20 contested possessions with 31 disposals. Max Gawn 32 hit outs. But beyond those two there weren’t many others who could say they beat their opponent on the day, or provided anything positive toward the team. This was against a bottom of the ladder type side. They are no Hawthorn or West Coast. This was against a side that had won the same number of games as we had. The result should have been a close contest, but never was. Where was the improvement we have been promised? How can the fans be expected to watch the absolute and utter cr@p that is being served up to them at the moment? Seven goals is all they have seen from their side in the last 7 quarters of football. A solitary goal for each quarter played! We were at the bottom of the ladder when Richmond were last there. We were at the bottom of the ladder when the Bulldogs and GWS were there. We were there when Port and Gold Coast were there. And when St. Kilda were the cellar dwellers. Now each of those sides has gone past us and left us still languishing at the bottom. We have reverted to the game style from 2 years ago! 195 handballs in a game where we only had 178 kicks. The result is we go around in circles until it is coughed up. And to top it off we have ridiculous player placement. McDonald up forward isn’t working, with no score to his name again this week. Meanwhile the player he has taken apart in the past, Riewoldt, on one leg, manages 3 goals and 13 marks! So how long will it be before Jesse Hogan, Angus Brayshaw and Jack Viney give up? It won’t be long because the Melbourne fans are giving up themselves. We have spent 50 years supporting the club in the Wilderness, these talented kids only a couple of years. If we have had enough, then they will stop trying and go elsewhere to get some satisfaction playing the game. They will leave to play with others who care, who are prepared to put in when needed, who want to do the hard work. At the moment all they see is further wilderness before them. Melbourne 1.2.8 3.6.24 5.9.39 6.10.46 St. Kilda 4.4.28 4.7.31 10.8.68 12.11.83 Goals Melbourne Dawes Garlett Gawn Hogan N Jones Tyson St. Kilda Riewoldt 3 Dunstan 2 Bruce Lonie McCartin Newnes Savage Sinclair Weller Best Melbourne Viney Gawn Grimes, Cross, Vince, Watts St. Kilda Riewoldt, Roberton, Gilbert, Geary, Dempster, Fisher, Montagna Changes Melbourne Nil St. Kilda Nil Injuries Melbourne T McDonald (left eye) St. Kilda Armitage (shin), Webster (ribs), Riewoldt (corked calf) Substitutions Melbourne Viv Michie replaced Aaron vandenBerg in the third quarter St. Kilda Eli Templeton replaced Hugh Goddard at three-quarter time Reports Melbourne Nil St. Kilda Nil Umpires Rosebury, Mollison, Wallace Official crowd 22,945 at the MCG

Votes anyone?

I am not sure that it's a good idea for Melbourne players to spill their guts out when talking about the coming week's opposition. I still carry the painful memories of Chris Dawes' comments before the Hawthorn game in Round 7 to the effect that the Hawks were "really gettable". It sounded good at the time because Hawthorn was sitting on a 3-3 record, had suffered a shock 10-point loss to GWS Giants, and had yet to win two games on end during the season so Dawes opined: "The Hawks are really gettable. They're not at their best yet, definitely, so I'm going to be planning to win this week and be expecting to win on Saturday." Great expectations but he was 106 points out for the match because that's what it would have taken to win that day and which proves the old adage about silence being golden. However, not to be deterred, young Demon tough nut Jack Viney came out saying that Melbourne "owes St Kilda" after Melbourne lost the Saints by two points when the teams met a little over a month ago. I feel like we owe St Kilda one. I feel like we shouldve won last time we played them and they ended up sneaking over the line in the end, he said. Personally, I feel like we owe them one and Im going to be going out there to try and take it off them. Melbournes closest loss of the season was pretty devastating because the team lost so late in the game but it will be even more devastating if we simply expect that the game at the MCG this weekend is going to be a repeat of the toe to toe slugfest that could easily have gone Melbourne's way had the players kept their wits in that ¾ of a minute after Jeremy Howe put them in front in the dying stages of that fateful round 11 clash at Etihad Stadium. Had they done that, the club would have wiped out two long standing hoodoos - the Etihad curse that goes back to 2007 and the 11 game losing streak against St. Kilda that goes back all the way to the elimination final of 2006. The reason for the trepidation is that since that game, the Saints form has been far more impressive. A few weeks ago they prevailed over Essendon by 110 points and a week later Melbourne lost to the same opposition by nine. Even in defeat, the Saints were impressive in almost running down Richmond last Sunday as compared with the lacklustre way in which the Demons performed in the last half against the Brisbane Lions. If Melbourne gets up this week, it will be the end of a long march in to a victory against St. Kilda, almost as long as the one it broke last month against Geelong at the Cattery. THE GAME Melbourne v St. Kilda at the MCG Sunday 26 July, 2015 at 3.20pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall Melbourne 118 wins St. Kilda 88 wins 1 drawn At MCG Melbourne 58 wins St. Kilda 34 wins Past five meetings Melbourne 0 wins St. Kilda 5 wins The Coaches Roos 0 wins Richardson 2 wins MEDIA TV Fox Sports 3 at 3.00pm (live) RADIO SEN, ABC, ABC Grandstand THE BETTING Melbourne to win - $1.92 St. Kilda to win - $1.92 THE LAST TIME THEY MET St. Kilda 12.13.85 defeated Melbourne 12.11.83 in Round 11, 2015 at Etihad Stadium In a game that ebbed and flowed all day, the Saints were narrowly in front for most of the final quarter until Jeremy Howe goaled with a mere 47 seconds left on the clock. The Demons will forever rue their failure to get numbers down back which resulted in Leigh Montagna's winning goal kicked some 20 seconds before the final siren. THE TEAMS MELBOURNE B: Colin Garland, Lynden Dunn, Neville Jetta HB: Daniel Cross, Tom McDonald, Jeremy Howe C: Bernie Vince, Dom Tyson, Heritier Lumumba HF: Aaron vandenBerg, Chris Dawes, Angus Brayshaw F: Jeff Garlett, Jesse Hogan, Jeff Watts Foll: Max Gawn, Nathan Jones, Jack Viney I/C: Jack Grimes, James Harmes, Viv Michie, Billy Stretch EMG: Mark Jamar, Matt Jones, Alex Neal-Bullen IN: Jack Grimes, Viv Michie OUT: Jay Kennedy-Harris (omitted), Alex Alex Neal-Bullen (omitted) ST. KILDA B: Jarryn Geary, Sam Gilbert, Sean Dempster HB: Shane Savage, Sam Fisher, Dylan Roberton C: Jack Newnes, David Armitage, Leigh Montagna HF: Luke Dunstan, Nick Riewoldt, Jack Sinclair F: Jack Lonie, Josh Bruce, Paddy McCartin FOLL: Billy Longer, Jack Steven, Maverick Weller I/C: Hugh Goddard, Adam Schneider. Eli Templeton, Jimmy Webster EMG: Tom Hickey, Tim Membrey, Farren Ray IN: Adam Schneider OUT: Farren Ray THE SEASON SO FAR - 40 PLUS 4 by Sam the Stats Man It's that time of year again when I look at the facts and figures around Melbourne's primary list of 40 players plus the 4 rookies:- BAIL, Rohan MFC 5 games, 1 goal, CSFC 7 games 6 goals - in and out of the team and currently just going at Casey. BRAYSHAW, Angus MFC 15 games, 4 goals - the highly rated youngster is having an exciting debut season but was slowed by a neck injury a couple of weeks ago against the Eagles. CROSS, Daniel MFC 15 games, 0 goals - a steadying influence and a great team leader. DAWES, Chris MFC 9 games, 5 goals CSFC 1 game 1 goal - season interrupted due to a calf injury and probably played his best game on Sunday against the Lions. DUNN, Lynden MFC 15 games, 0 goals - continues to be solid as a leader in the back line. FITZPATRICK, Jack MFC 3 games, 2 goals, CSFC 9 games 0 goals - being groomed as a key defender. FROST, Sam MFC 3 games, 0 goals - versatile tall man with pace broke his toe in round three and is unlikely to return until next year. GARLAND, Colin MFC 13 games, 1 goal - solid and reliable defender. GARLETT, Jeffrey MFC 15 games, 29 goals - goal sneak who adapted well at the club and leads the goal kicking. GAWN, Max MFC 6 games, 29 goals CSFC 6 games 1 goal - has risen to the occasion in the ruck after struggling to break into the team in the early going. GRIMES, Jack MFC 5 games, 0 goals, CSFC 5 games 3 goals - struggled to hold a place but has been showing good form at Casey recently. HARMES, James ® MFC 2 games, 0 goals CSFC 10 games, 5 goals - worked hard to win an AFL berth after showing good fork with the Scorpions. HOGAN, Jesse MFC 13 games, 28 goals - hard to keep a lid on this exciting young key forward. HOWE, Jeremy MFC 15 games, 8 goals - has been inconsistent among speculation that he may play elsewhere next year. HUNT, Jayden CSFC 3 games, 9 goals CSFCDL 5 games, 1 goal - youngster making his mark at Casey on the comeback trail after a long term back injury. JAMAR, Mark MFC 5 games, 2 goals, CSFC 9 games, 5 goals - the lion hearted ruckman was good early but has seemingly fallen out of favour while playing well in the VFL. JETTA, Neville MFC 11 games, 1 goal - missed a few games after a few bouts of concussion but has regained confidence in recent weeks. JONES, Matthew MFC 6 games, 4 goals, CSFC 7 games, 3 goals - another who has struggled to maintain his place in the AFL team. JONES, Nathan MFC 15 games, 7 goals - despite one or two quiet ones he continues to set the example of courage through great leadership. KENNEDY-HARRIS, Jay MFC 7 games, 1 goal, CSFC 1 game, 2 goals, CSFCDL 1 game, 0 goals - seems tentative on coming back from injury. KENT, Dean MFC 4 games, 2 goals - suffered a bad hamstring injury in the Anzac Day eve game against the Tigers and returned in the VFL development league at the weekend. KING, Max ® CSFC 4 games, 7 goals, CSFCDL 6 games, 17 goals - after regularly kicking bags of goals in the Casey development team, he booted five goals in his first game with their seniors. Will take time. LUMUMBA, Heritier MFC 14 games, 2 goals - showing great passion and leadership without starring at any time. McDONALD, Oscar CSFC 10 games, 1 goal, CSFCDL 2 games, 0 goals - following in his older brother's footsteps, Oscar is learning the ropes at Casey. McDONALD, Tom MFC 15 games, 5 goals - after producing All Australian form in defence in the early part of the season, his form dropped off and recently he has been playing up forward. McKENZIE, Jordie MFC 1 game, 0 goals, CSFC 10 games, 3 goals - restricted to only one AFL game, his questionable disposal has kept him in the cold despite some good form in the VFL. MICHIE, Viv MFC 4 games, 0 goals, CSFC 8 games, 3 goals - struggling to establish himself in senior midfield ranks. NEAL-BULLEN, Alex MFC 5 games, 5 goals, CSFC 5 games, 0 goals, CSFCDL 2 games, 1 goal - a hard nut midfield extractor who has played the last five games at Melbourne and looks a player. NEWTON, Ben MFC 8 games, 7 goals, CSFC 4 games, 3 goals - looked good in the midfield early but now back at Casey. PEDERSEN, Cameron MFC 7 games, 6 goals, CSFC 2 games, 5 goals - played some handy games as a forward/ruckman before breaking his hand. Out for the season. PETRACCA, Christian - an ACL put paid to an AFL debut in the 2015 for this boom youngster. RILEY, Aidan MFC 4 games, 0 goals, CSFC x games, 3 goals -hard at it player on the fringe of selection. SALEM, Christian MFC 7 games, 1 goal - was in outstanding form before a hamstring injury put him out two months ago. SPENCER, Jake MFC 6 games, 3 goals, CSFC 7 games, 4 goals - had a purple patch in the ruck but now back at Casey. STRETCH, Billy MFC 7 games, 2 goals, CSFC 3 games, 0 goals - father-son pick who has shown some promising signs in his debut season. TERLICH, Dean CSFC 11 games, 1 goal - had an injury interrupted pre-season and has been unable to break into AFL ranks this year. TOUMPAS, Jimmy MFC 9 games, 4 goals, CSFC 5 games, 1 goal - still unable to establish himself in the AFL and needs to lift. TRENGOVE, Jack - unlucky to have a recurrence of the break in his foot and is out until 2016. TYSON, Dom MFC 12 games, 5 goals, CSFC 1 game, 0 goals - has not recaptured last year's stellar form and has also missed time with a knee injury. VANDENBERG, Aaron ® MFC 12 games, 4 goals - the revelation who came off the rookie list and cemented his spot in the team as a big-bodied midfielder. VINCE, Bernie MFC 14 games 7 goals - has been outstanding in a tagging role after an interrupted preseason. VINEY, Jack MFC 9 games, 2 goals - it took a broken foot to stop this young hard nut earlier in the season but has come back with some solid, tagging performances. WATTS, Jack MFC 14 games, 5 goals, CSFC 1 game, 1 goal - lifted in recent weeks with some consistently good efforts. WHITE, Mitch ® CSFC 10 games, 1 goal, CSFCDL 1 game, 1 goal - promising rookie with a penetrating left foot.

GOLDEN by The Oracle I am not sure that it's a good idea for Melbourne players to spill their guts out when talking about the coming week's opposition. I still carry the painful memories of Chris Dawes' comments before the Hawthorn game in Round 7 to the effect that the Hawks were "really gettable". It sounded good at the time because Hawthorn was sitting on a 3-3 record, had suffered a shock 10-point loss to GWS Giants, and had yet to win two games on end during the season so Dawes opined: "The Hawks are really gettable. They're not at their best yet, definitely, so I'm going to be planning to win this week and be expecting to win on Saturday." Great expectations but he was 106 points out for the match because that's what it would have taken to win that day and which proves the old adage about silence being golden. However, not to be deterred, young Demon tough nut Jack Viney came out saying that Melbourne "owes St Kilda" after Melbourne lost the Saints by two points when the teams met a little over a month ago. I feel like we owe St Kilda one. I feel like we shouldve won last time we played them and they ended up sneaking over the line in the end, he said. Personally, I feel like we owe them one and Im going to be going out there to try and take it off them. Melbournes closest loss of the season was pretty devastating because the team lost so late in the game but it will be even more devastating if we simply expect that the game at the MCG this weekend is going to be a repeat of the toe to toe slugfest that could easily have gone Melbourne's way had the players kept their wits in that ¾ of a minute after Jeremy Howe put them in front in the dying stages of that fateful round 11 clash at Etihad Stadium. Had they done that, the club would have wiped out two long standing hoodoos - the Etihad curse that goes back to 2007 and the 11 game losing streak against St. Kilda that goes back all the way to the elimination final of 2006. The reason for the trepidation is that since that game, the Saints form has been far more impressive. A few weeks ago they prevailed over Essendon by 110 points and a week later Melbourne lost to the same opposition by nine. Even in defeat, the Saints were impressive in almost running down Richmond last Sunday as compared with the lacklustre way in which the Demons performed in the last half against the Brisbane Lions. If Melbourne gets up this week, it will be the end of a long march in to a victory against St. Kilda, almost as long as the one it broke last month against Geelong at the Cattery. THE GAME Melbourne v St. Kilda at the MCG Sunday 26 July, 2015 at 3.20pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall Melbourne 118 wins St. Kilda 88 wins 1 drawn At MCG Melbourne 58 wins St. Kilda 34 wins Past five meetings Melbourne 0 wins St. Kilda 5 wins The Coaches Roos 0 wins Richardson 2 wins MEDIA TV Fox Sports 3 at 3.00pm (live) RADIO SEN, ABC, ABC Grandstand THE BETTING Melbourne to win - $1.92 St. Kilda to win - $1.92 THE LAST TIME THEY MET St. Kilda 12.13.85 defeated Melbourne 12.11.83 in Round 11, 2015 at Etihad Stadium In a game that ebbed and flowed all day, the Saints were narrowly in front for most of the final quarter until Jeremy Howe goaled with a mere 47 seconds left on the clock. The Demons will forever rue their failure to get numbers down back which resulted in Leigh Montagna's winning goal kicked some 20 seconds before the final siren. THE TEAMS MELBOURNE B: Colin Garland, Lynden Dunn, Neville Jetta HB: Daniel Cross, Tom McDonald, Jeremy Howe C: Bernie Vince, Dom Tyson, Heritier Lumumba HF: Aaron vandenBerg, Chris Dawes, Angus Brayshaw F: Jeff Garlett, Jesse Hogan, Jeff Watts Foll: Max Gawn, Nathan Jones, Jack Viney I/C: Jack Grimes, James Harmes, Viv Michie, Billy Stretch EMG: Mark Jamar, Matt Jones, Alex Neal-Bullen IN: Jack Grimes, Viv Michie OUT: Jay Kennedy-Harris (omitted), Alex Alex Neal-Bullen (omitted) ST. KILDA B: Jarryn Geary, Sam Gilbert, Sean Dempster HB: Shane Savage, Sam Fisher, Dylan Roberton C: Jack Newnes, David Armitage, Leigh Montagna HF: Luke Dunstan, Nick Riewoldt, Jack Sinclair F: Jack Lonie, Josh Bruce, Paddy McCartin FOLL: Billy Longer, Jack Steven, Maverick Weller I/C: Hugh Goddard, Adam Schneider. Eli Templeton, Jimmy Webster EMG: Tom Hickey, Tim Membrey, Farren Ray IN: Adam Schneider OUT: Farren Ray THE SEASON SO FAR - 40 PLUS 4 by Sam the Stats Man It's that time of year again when I look at the facts and figures around Melbourne's primary list of 40 players plus the 4 rookies:- BAIL, Rohan MFC 5 games, 1 goal, CSFC 7 games 6 goals - in and out of the team and currently just going at Casey. BRAYSHAW, Angus MFC 15 games, 4 goals - the highly rated youngster is having an exciting debut season but was slowed by a neck injury a couple of weeks ago against the Eagles. CROSS, Daniel MFC 15 games, 0 goals - a steadying influence and a great team leader. DAWES, Chris MFC 9 games, 5 goals CSFC 1 game 1 goal - season interrupted due to a calf injury and probably played his best game on Sunday against the Lions. DUNN, Lynden MFC 15 games, 0 goals - continues to be solid as a leader in the back line. FITZPATRICK, Jack MFC 3 games, 2 goals, CSFC 9 games 0 goals - being groomed as a key defender. FROST, Sam MFC 3 games, 0 goals - versatile tall man with pace broke his toe in round three and is unlikely to return until next year. GARLAND, Colin MFC 13 games, 1 goal - solid and reliable defender. GARLETT, Jeffrey MFC 15 games, 29 goals - goal sneak who adapted well at the club and leads the goal kicking. GAWN, Max MFC 6 games, 29 goals CSFC 6 games 1 goal - has risen to the occasion in the ruck after struggling to break into the team in the early going. GRIMES, Jack MFC 5 games, 0 goals, CSFC 5 games 3 goals - struggled to hold a place but has been showing good form at Casey recently. HARMES, James ® MFC 2 games, 0 goals CSFC 10 games, 5 goals - worked hard to win an AFL berth after showing good fork with the Scorpions. HOGAN, Jesse MFC 13 games, 28 goals - hard to keep a lid on this exciting young key forward. HOWE, Jeremy MFC 15 games, 8 goals - has been inconsistent among speculation that he may play elsewhere next year. HUNT, Jayden CSFC 3 games, 9 goals CSFCDL 5 games, 1 goal - youngster making his mark at Casey on the comeback trail after a long term back injury. JAMAR, Mark MFC 5 games, 2 goals, CSFC 9 games, 5 goals - the lion hearted ruckman was good early but has seemingly fallen out of favour while playing well in the VFL. JETTA, Neville MFC 11 games, 1 goal - missed a few games after a few bouts of concussion but has regained confidence in recent weeks. JONES, Matthew MFC 6 games, 4 goals, CSFC 7 games, 3 goals - another who has struggled to maintain his place in the AFL team. JONES, Nathan MFC 15 games, 7 goals - despite one or two quiet ones he continues to set the example of courage through great leadership. KENNEDY-HARRIS, Jay MFC 7 games, 1 goal, CSFC 1 game, 2 goals, CSFCDL 1 game, 0 goals - seems tentative on coming back from injury. KENT, Dean MFC 4 games, 2 goals - suffered a bad hamstring injury in the Anzac Day eve game against the Tigers and returned in the VFL development league at the weekend. KING, Max ® CSFC 4 games, 7 goals, CSFCDL 6 games, 17 goals - after regularly kicking bags of goals in the Casey development team, he booted five goals in his first game with their seniors. Will take time. LUMUMBA, Heritier MFC 14 games, 2 goals - showing great passion and leadership without starring at any time. McDONALD, Oscar CSFC 10 games, 1 goal, CSFCDL 2 games, 0 goals - following in his older brother's footsteps, Oscar is learning the ropes at Casey. McDONALD, Tom MFC 15 games, 5 goals - after producing All Australian form in defence in the early part of the season, his form dropped off and recently he has been playing up forward. McKENZIE, Jordie MFC 1 game, 0 goals, CSFC 10 games, 3 goals - restricted to only one AFL game, his questionable disposal has kept him in the cold despite some good form in the VFL. MICHIE, Viv MFC 4 games, 0 goals, CSFC 8 games, 3 goals - struggling to establish himself in senior midfield ranks. NEAL-BULLEN, Alex MFC 5 games, 5 goals, CSFC 5 games, 0 goals, CSFCDL 2 games, 1 goal - a hard nut midfield extractor who has played the last five games at Melbourne and looks a player. NEWTON, Ben MFC 8 games, 7 goals, CSFC 4 games, 3 goals - looked good in the midfield early but now back at Casey. PEDERSEN, Cameron MFC 7 games, 6 goals, CSFC 2 games, 5 goals - played some handy games as a forward/ruckman before breaking his hand. Out for the season. PETRACCA, Christian - an ACL put paid to an AFL debut in the 2015 for this boom youngster. RILEY, Aidan MFC 4 games, 0 goals, CSFC x games, 3 goals -hard at it player on the fringe of selection. SALEM, Christian MFC 7 games, 1 goal - was in outstanding form before a hamstring injury put him out two months ago. SPENCER, Jake MFC 6 games, 3 goals, CSFC 7 games, 4 goals - had a purple patch in the ruck but now back at Casey. STRETCH, Billy MFC 7 games, 2 goals, CSFC 3 games, 0 goals - father-son pick who has shown some promising signs in his debut season. TERLICH, Dean CSFC 11 games, 1 goal - had an injury interrupted pre-season and has been unable to break into AFL ranks this year. TOUMPAS, Jimmy MFC 9 games, 4 goals, CSFC 5 games, 1 goal - still unable to establish himself in the AFL and needs to lift. TRENGOVE, Jack - unlucky to have a recurrence of the break in his foot and is out until 2016. TYSON, Dom MFC 12 games, 5 goals, CSFC 1 game, 0 goals - has not recaptured last year's stellar form and has also missed time with a knee injury. VANDENBERG, Aaron ® MFC 12 games, 4 goals - the revelation who came off the rookie list and cemented his spot in the team as a big-bodied midfielder. VINCE, Bernie MFC 14 games 7 goals - has been outstanding in a tagging role after an interrupted preseason. VINEY, Jack MFC 9 games, 2 goals - it took a broken foot to stop this young hard nut earlier in the season but has come back with some solid, tagging performances. WATTS, Jack MFC 14 games, 5 goals, CSFC 1 game, 1 goal - lifted in recent weeks with some consistently good efforts. WHITE, Mitch ® CSFC 10 games, 1 goal, CSFCDL 1 game, 1 goal - promising rookie with a penetrating left foot.

It seems like only yesterday ... THE TEAMS ST. KILDA B: Jarryn Geary, Sean Dempster, Sam Gilbert HB: Jack Newnes, Luke Delaney, Jimmy Webster C: Leigh Montagna, David Armitage, Blake Acres HF: Sebastian Ross, Nick Riewoldt, Darren Minchington F: Tim Membrey, Josh Bruce, Jack Lonie FOLL: Billy Longer, Luke Dunstan, Jack Steven I/C: Farren Ray, Dylan Roberton, Shane Savage, Maverick Weller EMG: Hugh Goddard Daniel McKenzie, Cameron Shenton IN: Luke Dunstan, Sam Gilbert, Tim Membrey, Darren Minchington, Maverick Weller OUT: Jack Billings (shin soreness), Tom Hickey (omitted), Adam Schneider (omitted), Cameron Shenton (omitted), Jack Sinclair (omitted) MELBOURNE B: Daniel Cross, Tom McDonald, Jack Grimes HB: Jeremy Howe, Lynden Dunn, Neville Jetta C: Jimmy Toumpas, Dom Tyson, Heritier Lumumba HF: Jack Watts, Cam Pedersen, Jack Viney F: Jeff Garlett, Jesse Hogan, Angus Brayshaw FOLL: Max Gawn, Nathan Jones, Bernie Vince I/C: Viv Michie, Alex Neal-Bullen, Aidan Riley, Billy Stretch EMG: Jack Fitzpatrick, Jake Spencer, Dean Terlich IN: Jack Grimes, Viv Michie, Alex Neal-Bullen, Billy Stretch, Dom Tyson OUT: Jack Fitzpatrick (omitted), Colin Garland (hand), Matt Jones (omitted), Ben Newton (omitted), Aaron vandenBerg (hamstring) NEW: Alex Neal-Bullen (Glenelg) .

Melbourne wrapped up this low scoring game against a very kinky bottom-of-the-ladder Brisbane Lions in the first quarter when it kicked five goals, three of them off the boot of Jesse Hogan, the Demons' brightest shining light on the horizon in several years. In fact, 20-year-old Hogan who kicked his fourth in the last quarter is more than just on the horizon - he's getting close to taking over centre stage. Given that the Lions also scored a major in the opening stanza, half of the game’s paltry total of twelve goals had been kicked by quarter time, leaving plenty of time for boring, defensive and ugly football in what was certainly not an exhibition of the finer points of the great Australian game. Fortunately, the administrators of our indigenous sport can also point to the fact that on the same ground, on the night before, the best exponents of the world game, produced a similarly lifeless and scoreless effort. It's probably gone largely unrecognised because the Demons haven't exactly put enough results on the board but the past month or two have seen some definite signs of improvement. Leaving aside, the last 40 minutes of the game against the Eagles in Darwin, the Melbourne has been in winning positions in all of its games since the Queens Birthday clash against Collingwood. Last week, it was a burst of accuracy by the Bombers in the third quarter (and inaccuracy all day by the Dees) that cost it the game, a few weeks before that, a defensive brain fade in the dying moment that deprived them of the points at Etihad against the Saints. In light of that, who could argue with an ugly 24 point victory against an opponent kept to only four goals? (in fact, the team has kept its opposition down to just 8 goals in 7 of the last 8 quarters played) This defensive mindset is reminiscent of last year but it's certainly becoming more effective and efficient. How long before a breakthrough sees the team record another significant win like that against Geelong four weeks ago? The selectors persevered with the same side that lost to the Bombers and are giving more game time to their young players while signaling to the likes of Mark Jamar and Jack Grimes that their time may still come. The young kids tried and showed promise and, of course, Hogan was the standout but the kudos from this game will go to the likes of Jeremy Howe who excelled in defence in what might have been his last chance before a stint at Casey. Bernie Vince and Jack Viney were the pick of the midfielders but there really wasn’t much excitement in the club’s engine room. Max Gawn is winning in the ruck on a weekly basis but the men at his feet are still not capitalizing on his dominance. Apart from in the first quarter, Brisbane won at the clearances and stoppages and hence, the struggle on the part of the team to score after the first break. Its little wonder therefore that in the post-match press conference, Paul Roos said that the aim is to recruit an A list midfielder into the ranks for next year. That’s wonderful but Dangerfield and Treloar appear out of his grasp so, unless he can pull a rabbit out of his hat, Roosy might have to rely on some of the youngsters in his own ranks to continue to improve and for Jack Trengove and Christian Petracca to make full recoveries from the injuries that kept them out this season. Next week, Melbourne takes on St. Kilda which continues to be impressive although, like the Dees, isn’t getting enough wins on the board for the effort expended. A victory would see the team on course for its highest placed finish in four years, perhaps a springboard for the future. Melbourne 5.4.34 7.7.49 7.10.52 8.12.60 Brisbane Lions 1.2.8 1.5.11 3.8.26 4.12.36 Goals Melbourne Hogan 4 Garlett McDonald 2 Brisbane Lions Andrews, Christensen, Robinson, Zorko Best Melbourne Howe, Gawn, Hogan, Viney, Cross, vandenBerg Brisbane Lions Christensen, Zorko, Taylor, Beams, Andrews Changes Melbourne Nil Brisbane Lions Nil Injuries Melbourne Nil Brisbane Lions Hanley (hamstring) Substitutions Melbourne Alex Neal-Bullen replaced Jay Kennedy-Harris in the third term Brisbane Lions James Aish replaced Pearce Hanley in the third quarter Reports Melbourne Nil Brisbane Lions Nil Umpires Bannister, Harris, McInerney Official crowd 25,149 at the MCG