Demonland

THE TRADING CHRONICLES by The Oracle WHERE HAVE ALL THE FLOWERS GONE? There was a pall cast over the start of this year's AFL trade and draft period with the passing on Thursday evening of Demon legend Robert Flower. In the place where I was at the moment when I heard the news, there were gasps and silence and, though it's said that silence is the greatest praise, it can never be enough when one speaks of club legends of the ilk of Robbie - a loyal clubman to the very end. Others have praised him for his excellence as a player and as a person both during and after his playing days. His poise and his balance, those majestic skills, the marking and the way he would leave opponents flat-footed and grasping at vacant space while he was off and away in their wake. Robbie was gone. And now, he is gone and our condolences go out to family and friends. When I reflect upon the immediate future on a club level, what is our task when the end of another barren year comes, but to search to find another Robert Flower, another Ron Barassi or another Hassa Mann for our club so that it can enjoy a better future and for our young fans to be able to appreciate greatness in the red and the blue? We used to have so many great teams and great players but it all seemed to stop fifty years ago ... except of course in the case of Robbie and a handful of others but none of who ever approached his lofty heights of excellence and majesty. The free agency trades officially started yesterday and on Monday, the trade period takes off with the father/son selections and the meetings of the clubs' recruiting people. Behind the scenes, it's been going on for some time and while there will never be another Robbie, the question on the lips of all of Demonland is whether now is the time when we find our next champion (or two). The Oracle will come back from time to time over the next couple of weeks with his observations ...

There was a pall cast over the start of this year's AFL trade and draft period with the passing on Thursday evening of Demon legend Robert Flower. In the place where I was at the moment when I heard the news, there were gasps and silence and, though it's said that silence is the greatest praise, it can never be enough when one speaks of club legends of the ilk of Robbie - a loyal clubman to the very end. Others have praised him for his excellence as a player and as a person both during and after his playing days. His poise and his balance, those majestic skills, the marking and the way he would leave opponents flat-footed and grasping at vacant space while he was off and away in their wake. Robbie was gone. And now, he is gone and our condolences go out to family and friends. When I reflect upon the immediate future on a club level, what is our task when the end of another barren year comes, but to search to find another Robert Flower, another Ron Barassi or another Hassa Mann for our club so that it can enjoy a better future and for our young fans to be able to appreciate greatness in the red and the blue? We used to have so many great teams and great players but it all seemed to stop fifty years ago ... except of course in the case of Robbie and a handful of others but none of who ever approached his lofty heights of excellence and majesty. The free agency trades officially started yesterday and on Monday, the trade period takes off with the father/son selections and the meetings of the clubs' recruiting people. Behind the scenes, it's been going on for some time and while there will never be another Robbie, the question on the lips of all of Demonland is whether now is the time when we find our next champion (or two). The Oracle will come back from time to time over the next couple of weeks with his observations ...

I just want to remind everyone that any comments wishing physical harm on a player are totally unacceptable and will result in a forced holiday from Demonland. I know we are all angry at the situation but think before you post.

Done. I had it loaded and ready to go.

I think it means give up one of its first round picks for a quality player in the mould of a Tyson type in a separate deal, not for Lumumba who will be traded possibly for Mitch Clark?

Thankfully, the footy is officially over and from now until the end of March, we don't have to concern ourselves with the distraction of the game itself but rather the more important aspects of our great national sport. Things that come to mind are players ingesting drugs, be they recreational or performance enhancing, players getting into brawls, beating up their partners, the gender of their partners, smashing their cars and other property, getting speeding and parking tickets, and the really important stuff like the battles in and out of the courtrooms and what they wear when they get into them, drunken behaviour at the races, cricket and other public events, sacking boards, coaches and dud players, fixtures and draft concessions, trading players, free agency, drafting the next big thing, lousy commentators and incompetent journalists, funding for sports stadiums and their facilities, the importance in our game of lawyers, accountants and bean counters, being the moral arbiters of every aspect of societal behaviour, rule changes and their interpretation, indigenous players, beating the salary cap, whether beheading will take on in world sport, corporate governance, the COLA, international rules, the threat of soccer, Thursday or Sunday night games and abolishing Saturday afternoon games altogether, balance sheets and annual general meetings, spreading our game across the world, Foxtel's crummy summer programming, nasty rumours and much, much more. The beauty of it all is that from today onward, everybody is equal as far as the AFL ladder is concerned. For the next six months there is no ladder, no wins, losses or percentage and those like us who support a downtrodden club can look their counterparts in the eye without any feeling of inferiority because next year we will conquer the world. Today, we are all Demons!

TODAY WE ARE ALL DEMONS by Whispering Jack Thankfully, the footy is officially over and from now until the end of March, we don't have to concern ourselves with the distraction of the game itself but rather the more important aspects of our great national sport. Things that come to mind are players ingesting drugs, be they recreational or performance enhancing, players getting into brawls, beating up their partners, the gender of their partners, smashing their cars and other property, getting speeding and parking tickets, and the really important stuff like the battles in and out of the courtrooms and what they wear when they get into them, drunken behaviour at the races, cricket and other public events, sacking boards, coaches and dud players, fixtures and draft concessions, trading players, free agency, drafting the next big thing, lousy commentators and incompetent journalists, funding for sports stadiums and their facilities, the importance in our game of lawyers, accountants and bean counters, being the moral arbiters of every aspect of societal behaviour, rule changes and their interpretation, indigenous players, beating the salary cap, whether beheading will take on in world sport, corporate governance, the COLA, international rules, the threat of soccer, Thursday or Sunday night games and abolishing Saturday afternoon games altogether, balance sheets and annual general meetings, spreading our game across the world, Foxtel's crummy summer programming, nasty rumours and much, much more. The beauty of it all is that from today onward, everybody is equal as far as the AFL ladder is concerned. For the next six months there is no ladder, no wins, losses or percentage and those like us who support a downtrodden club can look their counterparts in the eye without any feeling of inferiority because next year we will conquer the world. Today, we are all Demons!

Do we need another Jones at the club?

Look at the line up of past winners:- 2002 Jared Crouch (Sydney Swans) 2003 James Walker (Fremantle) 2004 James Walker (Fremantle) 2005 Brett Deledio (Richmond) 2006 Brendan Fevola (Carlton) 2007 Jake King (Richmond) 2008 Matt White (Richmond) 2009 Rhys Stanley (St Kilda) 2010 Luke Miles (St Kilda) 2011 Patrick Dangerfield (Adelaide) 2012 Patrick Dangerfield (Adelaide) 2013 Patrick Dangerfield (Adelaide)

As he does in every year, WJ looks for a draft prospect from left field ... A BIG POINT ON THE COMPASS by Whispering Jack Legend has it that back in the 1840s, South Australian Governor Gawler lost his compass in a spot south of Adelaide on the Fleurieu Peninsula and as a result the town that was established nearby came to be known as Mount Compass. The small community of less than a thousand people is known for little more than market gardens and dairy farms but all that may change with the AFL drafts later in the year. Mount Compass is the town where 23-year-old Norwood ruckman Sam Baulderstone was plying his trade as a lumbering country footballer three years ago. The former North Adelaide reserves player weighed in at around 150kg during 2011 but a year later and 10kg lighter, "Bauldy" was contacted by Essendon recruiting officer Merv Keane and found himself at Windy Hill trying out for a possible rookie spot but nothing eventuated on that score. Undeterred, the 200cm Baulderstone knuckled down, eschewed his favourite fast foods, changed his diet, lost 28kg and made his SANFL debut for the Norwood Redlegs against Central Districts in Round 3, 2013. Although he spent much of the early part of the season in the reserves, by year's end, he was the SA feel good story, gaining elevation to the seniors to become the 2013 premiership ruckman. Among his teammates in the grand final victory was current Melbourne rookie lister Alexis Georgiou and former Demon Jace Bode. Rated an outside chance of being drafted at the end of last year, Bauldy missed out again but put in a good preparation for 2014 with running and weight work to the point where his body shape now stands up to AFL comparison. Early this month he polled 15 votes to finish equal fourth in the Magarey Medal and last week, he played in his second consecutive premiership for the Redlegs and is widely regarded as the competition's leading ruckman. Left footer, Baulderstone has been acclaimed by many good judges in South Australia who believe this late bloomer, whose tale of huge weight loss matching great sporting improvement echoes that of GWS Giant ruckman Shane Mumford, is a certainty to be drafted before the end of the year. The Footy Almanac review of the game, SANFL Grand Final Norwood v Port Adelaide: The Greatest Win of All acclaimed his role in the premiership, NORTH: Baulderstone at 145kg+ "Bauldy" is likely to be taken with a late draft pick or as a rookie and might be of interest to Melbourne. Regular ruckman Mark Jamar is reaching veteran status, the club appears to have lost troubled big man Mitch Clark who was earmarked for the ruck by Paul Roos earlier in the year. Max Gawn and Jake Spencer both have a lot of development in them but have had injury worries while Max King has a long way to go. Could big Sam be the answer to the Demons' ruck problems and, at the same time, convert the red and blue success in his home state onto the national football scene in the same colours? SOUTH: Baulderstone now

As he does in every year, WJ looks for a draft prospect from left field ... A BIG POINT ON THE COMPASS by Whispering Jack Legend has it that back in the 1840s, South Australian Governor Gawler lost his compass in a spot south of Adelaide on the Fleurieu Peninsula and as a result the town that was established nearby came to be known as Mount Compass. The small community of less than a thousand people is known for little more than market gardens and dairy farms but all that may change with the AFL drafts later in the year. Mount Compass is the town where 23-year-old Norwood ruckman Sam Baulderstone was plying his trade as a lumbering country footballer three years ago. The former North Adelaide reserves player weighed in at around 150kg during 2011 but a year later and 10kg lighter, "Bauldy" was contacted by Essendon recruiting officer Merv Keane and found himself at Windy Hill trying out for a possible rookie spot but nothing eventuated on that score. Undeterred, the 200cm Baulderstone knuckled down, eschewed his favourite fast foods, changed his diet, lost 28kg and made his SANFL debut for the Norwood Redlegs against Central Districts in Round 3, 2013. Although he spent much of the early part of the season in the reserves, by year's end, he was the SA feel good story, gaining elevation to the seniors to become the the 2013 premiership ruckman. Among his teammates in the grand final victory was current Melbourne rookie lister Alexis Georgiou and former Demon Jace Bode. Rated an outside chance of being drafted at the end of last year, Bauldy missed out again but put in a good preparation for 2014 with running and weight work to the point where his body shape now stands up to AFL comparison. Early this month he polled 15 votes to finish equal fourth in the Magarey Medal and last week, he played in his second consecutive premiership for the Redlegs and is widely regarded as the competition's leading ruckman. Left footer, Baulderstone has been acclaimed by many good judges in South Australia who believe this late bloomer, whose tale of huge weight loss matching great sporting improvement echoes that of GWS Giant ruckman Shane Mumford, is a certainty to be drafted before the end of the year. The Footy Almanac review of the game, SANFL Grand Final Norwood v Port Adelaide: The Greatest Win of All acclaimed his role in the premiership, NORTH: Baulderstone at 145kg+ "Bauldy" is likely to be taken with a late draft pick or as a rookie and might be of interest to Melbourne. Regular ruckman Mark Jamar is reaching veteran status, the club appears to have lost troubled big man Mitch Clark who was earmarked for the ruck by Paul Roos earlier in the year. Max Gawn and Jake Spencer both have a lot of development in them but have had injury worries while Max King has a long way to go. Could big Sam be the answer to the Demons' ruck problems and, at the same time, convert the red and blue success in his home state onto the national football scene in the same colours? SOUTH: Baulderstone now

International rookie from New Zealand who returned home late in the season after spending most of his time with the Casey Development League team. Games CSFC 2014 2 Goals CSFC 2014 0 Games CSFC DL 13 2014 Goals CSFC DL 2014 0

The tall forward/ruckman was concussed early in the first game against St. Kilda and lost his place in the side the following week. Spent most of the year in the wilderness at Casey and only came back to play the last few AFL games. Games MFC 2014 5 Career Total 19 Goals MFC 2014 4 Career Total 22 Games CSFC 2014 14 Goals CSFC 2014 16 Keith "Bluey" Truscott Memorial Trophy 36 votes

Rookie ruckman who was impressive in the NAB Challenge. Still lightly built and needing time to develop, his season was hampered by injury. Games CSFC 2014 5 Goals CSFC 2014 0 Games CSFC DL 2014 3 Goals CSFC DL 2014 3

ASADA to present evidence to Essendon players after requests from AFL Players Association

Another player who struggled to emulate his fine debut season form and spent some time in the VFL. Games MFC 2014 15 Career Total 35 Goals MFC 2014 2 Career Total 2 Games CSFC 2014 4 Goals CSFC 2014 0 Keith "Bluey" Truscott Memorial Trophy 96 votes

Couldn't match the form he displayed in his excellent debut season but showed some flashes of good form mixed with some disappointing performances that saw him dropped to Casey around mid-season. Games MFC 2014 20 Career Total 42 Goals MFC 2014 3 Career Total 6 Games CSFC 2014 2 Goals CSFC 2014 2 Keith "Bluey" Truscott Memorial Trophy 129 votes

Cemented his place as a regular in the team after battling problems with concussion in 2013. Games MFC 2014 21 Career Total 65 Goals MFC 2014 10 Career Total 7 Keith "Bluey" Truscott Memorial Trophy 139 votes

Young medium sized midfield rookie who showed plenty of promise at Casey this year. Games CSFC 2014 15 Goals CSFC 2014 2 Games CSFC DL 2014 1 Goals CSFC DL 2014 1

Held the ruck division together early before succumbing to injury after just five games and missing the rest of the season. Games MFC 2014 5 Career Total 29 Goals MFC 2014 0 Career Total 3 Keith "Bluey" Truscott Memorial Trophy 36 votes

Promoted off the rookie list at the start of the season to plug gaps in defence but spent the latter part of the year at Casey. Games MFC 2014 7 Career Total 7 Goals MFC 2014 0 Career Total 0 Games CSFC 2014 12 Goals CSFC 2014 1 Keith "Bluey" Truscott Memorial Trophy 34 votes

The Russian had no pre-season and made a late start due to injury but was influential once he got going. Impact declined in the last month or so perhaps as a result of limited early preparation. Games MFC 2014 17 Career Total 150 Goals MFC 2014 7 Career Total 54 Games CSFC 2014 3 Goals CSFC 2014 2 Keith "Bluey" Truscott Memorial Trophy 109 votes

Revived his career and became one of the top stories of the season, after being delisted by the club at the end of the 2013 season. Started 2014 as a rookie and by the seasons end was an important member of the team as a defender. Games MFC 2014 16 Career Total 57 Goals MFC 2014 1 Career Total 20 Games CSFC 2014 2 Goals CSFC 2014 2 Keith "Bluey" Truscott Memorial Trophy 191 votes

Played every match in 2014 and transformed into an impressive defender, after making the switch from attack early in the year. Howes rebound and drive out of defence was a highlight, as was his durability he played every match in 2014. Games MFC 2014 22 Career Total 78 Goals MFC 2014 5 Career Total 70 Keith "Bluey" Truscott Memorial Trophy 220 votes

Had an interrupted pre-season and couldn't maintain sufficient form when he received the opportunity to break into the senior team as a regular ruckman despite some good form at Casey (where he won the best and fairest). Survived yet another knee scare when injured in the last game of the season. Games MFC 2014 9 Career Total 26 Goals MFC 2014 4 Career Total 12 Games CSFC 2014 8 Goals CSFC 2014 8 Keith "Bluey" Truscott Memorial Trophy 49 votes