Demonland

Please yourself.

I defy anyone to come up with six good players.

And just to round the day off the Casey development league team lost by 154 points No doubt KC will be back with the details.

Half time stats: Dawes 2 kicks 2 handballs Frawley 1 kick 1 handball

Friday August 1, by 2pm - Draft-eligible Academy player nominations lodged Friday October 3 - NAB AFL restricted free agency offer and unrestricted free agency period begins Friday October 3, by 2pm - NAB AFL father/son bidding nominations; Academy bidding nominations lodged with AFL Monday October 6, 10am - Father/son and Academy players bidding meeting; NAB AFL Trade Period begins Sunday October 12, at 5pm - Close of NAB AFL restricted free Agency offer and unrestricted free agency period Wednesday October 15 - NAB AFL restricted free agency matching offer three-day period ends Thursday October 16, at 2pm - NAB AFL Trade Period closes Friday October 31, by 2pm - List lodgement (1); Rookie promotion to primary list; Retained second and third-year rookies; Scholarship players; Alternate talent player nominations, Total player payment (TPP) estimates. Saturday November 1 - NAB AFL delisted player free agency period (1) begins Wednesday November 12 - NAB AFL delisted player free agency period (1) closes; Out of contract listed AFL primary list players draft nomination form and player request for removal from list form Lodged with AFL; New or expired (after three years) draft nomination form lodgement. Thursday November 13, by 2pm - List lodgement (2). Friday November 14 - AFL delisted player free agency period (2) begins Wednesday November 19 - Delisted primary list draft nomination form lodgement; Non–retained rookie players draft nomination form lodgement; Players not registered or played for three years rookie nomination. NAB AFL delisted player free agency period (2) closes Thursday November 27 - NAB AFL Draft selection meeting (Gold Coast Convention Centre). Friday November 28 - NAB AFL delisted free agency Period (3) begins Monday December 1 - AFL delisted player free agency period (3) ends. AFL club list lodgement (3) and TPP estimates. International players inclusion on rookie list form; Scholarship players rookie list form lodged; Father/son and Academy pre-selected rookie nominations. Wednesday December 3 - NAB AFL Pre-Season Draft selection meeting (11am); Notification of pre-selected rookies nominated on Monday November 25 if not selected in the pre-season draft (11.05am); NAB AFL Rookie Draft selection meeting (11.10am) Monday December 5 – Final club list lodgement Friday December 12, by 2pm - International players inclusion on rookie list

Young Sydney Swan, Tom Mitchell (age 21) was recruited under the father/son rule (pick 21 in 2011) and has shown promise but injuries and the Swans' enormous midfield depth have held him back. He had a number of injuries in his first season at the club and didn't make his debut until almost halfway through his second year (Round 10, 2013 v Essendon) but he was good enough to get an AFL Rising Star nomination for his performance against Adelaide - his second AFL game. This year has also been injury interrupted but in a Round 9 NEAFL game for the Swans reserves, Mitchell picked up a world record 64 disposals (23 contested and 41 uncontested) four goals. He must be looked at, surely?

ROUND 1: ROUND 2: ROUND 3: ROUND 4: ROUND 5:

Is Christian Petracca the big-bodied beast we need?

Please feel free to alert us about any additions to be made to the OP.

ADELAIDE In: Kyle Cheney (Hawthorn) Harry Dear (Sandringham Dragons) Jake Lever (Calder Cannons) Luke Lowden (Hawthorn) Mitch McGovern (Claremont WA) Reilly O'Brien ® (Calder Cannons) Keenan Ramsay ® Port Adelaide SA) Harrison Wigg (North Adelaide SA) Anthony Wilson ® (Norwood SA) Out: James Battersby ® (delisted) Angus Graham (delisted) Lewis Johnston (delisted) Shaun McKernan (delisted) Jared Petrenko (delisted) Jason Porplyzia (retired) Ben Rutten (retired) Alex Spina ® (delisted) Luke Thompson (delisted) BRISBANE LIONS In: Harris Andrews (academy selection) Dayne Beames (Collingwood) Hugh Beasley ® (Oakleigh Chargers) Allen Christensen (Geelong) Josh Clayton (father-son) Liam Dawson (academy selection) Billy Evans ® (Bendigo Pioneers) Matthew Hammelman ® (Morningside QLD) Clan Hanley ® (Mayo IRE) Jaden McGrath (Bendigo Pioneers) Josh McGuinness (Lauderdale TAS) Mitch Robinson (Carlton) Josh Watts (Glenorchy TAS) Out: Jonathan Brown (retired) Isaac Conway ® (delisted) Jack Crisp (Collingwood) Nick Hayes ® (delisted) Jordan Lisle (delisted) Ash McGrath (retired) Sam Michael ® (delisted) Brent Moloney (retired) Joel Patfull (GWS Giants) James Polkinghorne (delisted) Andrew Raines (delisted) Patrick Wearden (delisted) CARLTON In: Blaine Boekhorst (Swan Districts WA) Matthew Dick (Sydney) Tom Fields ® (South Adelaide SA) Jayden Foster (Calder Cannons) Billy Gowers ® (Oakleigh Chargers) Kristian Jaksch (GWS Giants) Liam Jones (Western Bulldogs) Fraser Russell ® (unregistered) Clem Smith (Perth WA) Dillon Viojo-Rianbow (Western Jets) Bradley Walsh ® (Peel Thunder WA) Mark Whiley (GWS Giants) Out: Josh Bootsma (delisted) Jaryd Cachia ® (delisted) Nick Duigan (retired) Jeff Garlett (Melbourne) Kane Lucas (delisted) Andrew McInnes (delisted) Brock McLean (delisted) Luke Reynolds ® (delisted) Mitch Robinson (Brisbane) Heath Scotland (retired) Tom Temay (delisted) Jarrad Waite (North Melbourne) COLLINGWOOD In: Brenden Abbott ® (Claremont WA) Tony Armstrong ® (Collingwood) Mason Cox ® (Oklahoma State USA) Jack Crisp (Brisbane) Jordan De Goey (Oakleigh Chargers) Matthew Goodyear (Calder Cannons) Levi Greenwood (North Melbourne) Brayden Maynard (Sandringham Dragons) Michael Manteit ® (Sandringham Dragons) Darcy Moore (Oakleigh Chargers, father-son) Travis Varcoe (Geelong) Out: Tony Armstrong (delisted) Luke Ball (retired) Dayne Beams (Brisbane) Marty Clarke (delisted) Ben Hudson (retired) Heritier Lumumba (Melbourne) Quinten Lynch (retired) Kyle Martin (retired) Nick Maxwell (retired) Caolan Mooney (delisted) Peter Yagmoor (delisted) ESSENDON In: Kurt Aylett ® (Essendon) Adam Cooney (Western Bulldogs) Jonathan Giles (GWS Giants) James Gwilt (St. Kilda) Kyle Langford (Northern Knights) Jayden Laverde (Western Jets) Jake Long ® (St. Mary's NT) Conor McKenna (Tyrone IRE) Shaun McKernan ® (Adelaide SA) Out: Kurt Aylett (delisted) Cory DellOlio ® (delisted) Sean Gregory (delisted) Kyle Hardingham (delisted) Leroy Jetta (delisted) Johnny Rayner ® (delisted) Patrick Ryder (Port Adelaide) Fraser Thurlow ® (delisted) Dylan van Unen (delisted) FREMANTLE In: Connor Blakely (Swan Districts WA) Josh Deluca-Cardillo (Subiaco) Ethan Hughes ® (Swan Districts WA) Sean Hurley ® (Kildare IRE) Ed Langdon (Sandringham Dragons) Tanner Smith ® (Fremantle) Lachie Weller (Southport/Broadbeach Q) Out: Kepler Bradley (retired) Scott Gumbleton (retired) Josh Simpson (delisted) Tanner Smith (delisted) GEELONG In: Sam Blease (Melbourne) Mitch Clark (Melbourne) Nakia Cockatoo (NT Thunder) Jordan Cunico (Gippsland Power) Cameron Delaney ® (North Melbourne) Dean Gore (Sturt SA) Cory Gregson (Glenelg SA) Padraig Lucey ® (Kerry IRE) Tom Read ® (Sturt SA) Rhys Stanley (St. Kilda) Out: Nick Bourke (delisted) Mitch Brown (delisted) George Burbury (delisted) Allen Christensen (Brisbane Lions) Joel Hamling (Western Bulldogs) Taylor Hunt (Richmond) Jordan Schroder (delisted) Jackson Sheringham (delisted) Jesse Stringer (delisted) Travis Varcoe (Collingwood) GOLD COAST In: Keegan Brooksby ® (South Adelaide SA) Greg Broughton ® (Gold Coast) Tyrone Downie ® (Bendigo VFL) Jarrod Garlett (South Fremantle WA) Josh Glenn ® (Central District SA) Mitch Hallahan (Hawthorn) Nick Malceski (Sydney) Touk Miller (Calder Cannons) Andrew Raines ® (Brisbane Lions) Adam Saad ® (Coburg VFL) Peter Wright (Calder Cannons) Out: Jackson Allen (delisted) Nathan Bock (retired) Greg Broughton (delisted) Campbell Brown (delisted) Karmichael Hunt (retired) Jack Hutchins (delisted) Tom Murphy (retired) Leigh Osborne ® (delisted) Jeremy Taylor (retired) Matthew Warnock (delisted) GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY In: Paul Ahern (Calder Cannons) Jeremy Finlayson (academy selection) Ryan Griffen (Western Bulldogs) Patrick McKenna (Gisborne VIC) Caleb Marchbank (Murray Bushrangers) Joel Patfull (Brisbane) Jarrod Pickett (South Fremantle WA) Jack Steele (academy selection) Out: Tom Boyd (Western Bulldogs) Sam Frost (Melbourne) Jonathan Giles (Essendon) Stephen Gilham (retired) Josh Hunt (retired) Kristian Jaksch (Carlton) Jono O'Rourke (Hawthorn) Mark Whiley (Carlton) HAWTHORN In: James Frawley (Melbourne) Sam Grimley ® (Hawthorn) Jared Hardisty ® (Claremont WA) Daniel Howe (Murray Bushrangers) Lachlan Langford ® (Melbourne Grammar) Teia Miles (Geelong Falcons) Jermaine Miller-Lewis ® (South Fremantle WA) Jono O'Rourke (GWS Giants) Marc Pittonet (Oakleigh Chargers) Out: Kyle Cheney (Adelaide) Dayle Garlett (delisted) Mitch Hallahan (Gold Coast) Jordan Kelly (delisted) Luke Lowden (Adelaide) Ben Ross ® (delisted) Brad Sewell (delisted) Derick Wanganeen ® (delisted) MELBOURNE In: Angus Brayshaw (Sandringham Dragons) Jeff Garlett (Carlton) Sam Frost (GWS Giants) Neville Jetta (Melbourne) Heritier Lumumba (Collingwood) Oscar McDonald (North Ballarat Rebels) Alex Neal-Bullen (Glenelg SA) Ben Newton (Port Adelaide) Christian Petracca (Eastern Ranges) Billy Stretch (Glenelg SA, father-son) Aaron Vandenberg ® (Ainslie ACT) Mitchell White ® (Dandenong Stingrays) Out: Dom Barry (retired) Sam Blease (Geelong) Shannon Byrnes (retired) Mitch Clark (Geelong) Mitch Clisby (delisted) Michael Evans (delisted) James Frawley (Hawthorn) Alex Georgiou ® (delisted) Dan Nicholson (delisted) James Strauss (delisted) Luke Tapscott (delisted) NORTH MELBOURNE In: Sam Durdin (West Adelaide, WA) Will Fordham ® (Sandringham Dragons) Shaun Higgins (Western Bulldogs) Daniel Nielson (Eastern Ranges) Brayden Preuss ® (Mt Gravatt, QLD) Ed Vickers-Willis (Sandringham Dragons) Jarrad Waite (Carlton) Max Warren ® (North Melbourne) Out: Liam Anthony (delisted) Tom Curran (delisted) Cameron Delaney (delisted) Levi Greenwood (Collingwood) Taylor Hine (delisted) Tim McGenniss ® (delisted) Robin Nahas (delisted) Max Warren ® (delisted) Mitch Wilkins (delisted) PORT ADELAIDE In: Logan Austin (Belconnen) Billy Frampton (South Fremantle WA) Dougal Howard (Dandenong Stingrays) Nathan Krakouer ® (Port Adelaide SA) Tom Logan ® (Port Adelaide) Jesse Palmer (North Ballarat Rebels) Paddy Ryder (Essendon) Johann Wagner ® (Central District SA) Out: Dom Cassisi (retired) Campbell Heath (delisted) Cam Hitchcock (delisted) Tom Logan (delisted) Ben Newton (Melbourne) Brent Renouf (delisted) Lewis Stevenson (delisted) RICHMOND In: Matthew Arnot ® (Richmond) Dan Butler (North Ballarat Rebels) Jason Castagna ® (Northern Knights) Nathan Drummond (Murray Bushrangers) Corey Ellis (Western Jets) Taylor Hunt (Geelong) Kane Lambert ® (Williamstown) Connor Menadue (Western Jets) Reece McKenzie (Northern Knights) Jayden Short ® (Northern Knights) Ivan Soldo ® (unregistered) Out: Matt Arnot (delisted) Todd Banfield ® (delisted) Ben Darrou ® (delisted) Aaron Edwards (delisted) Brad Helbig (delisted) Daniel Jackson (retired) Jake King (retired) Brett O'Hanlon (delisted) Orren Stephenson ® (delisted) Cadeyn Williams ® (delisted) ST. KILDA In: Hugh Goddard Geelong Falcons) Jack Lonie (Dandenong Stingrays) Patrick McCartin (Geelong Falcons) Daniel McKenzie (Oakleigh Chargers) Tim Membrey (Sydney) Brenton Payne ® (Western Jets) Ahmed Saad ® (St. Kilda) Adam Schneider ® (St. Kilda) Jack Sinclair ® (Oakleigh Chargers) Out: Trent Dennis-Lane (delisted) Sam Dunell (delisted) James Gwilt (Essendon) Clinton Jones (delisted) Lenny Hayes (retired) Beau Maister (retired) Terry Milera (delisted) Adam Schneider (delisted) Rhys Stanley (Geelong) SYDNEY In: Abe Davis (academy selection) Jordan Foote ® (UNSW-Easts NSW) Isaac Heeney (academy selection) Jack Hiscox (academy selection) Sean McLaren ® (Sandringham Dragons) Lewis Melican ® Nic Newman ® (Frankston) (Geelong Falcons) James Rose (Sturt SA) Out: Shane Biggs (Western Bulldogs) Matthew Dick (Carlton) Jordan Lockyer (delisted) Nick Malceski (Gold Coast) Tim Membrey (St. Kilda) Patrick Mitchell ® (delisted) Ryan O'Keefe (retired) Lewis Roberts-Thompson (retired) Tommy Walsh (delisted) WEST COAST In: Corey Adamson ® (unregistered) Paddy Brophy ® (Kildare, IRE) Damien Cavka (Calder Cannons) Liam Duggan (Western Jets) Tom Lamb (Dandenong Stingrays) Kane Lucas ® (Carlton) Jackson Nelson (Geelong Falcons) Alec Waterman (father-son) Out: Jacob Brennan (delisted) Adam Carter (delisted) Dean Cox (retired) Darren Glass (retired) Ashley Smith (delisted) Blayne Wilson (delisted) WESTERN BULLDOGS In: Shane Biggs (Sydney) Tom Boyd (GWS Giants) Zaine Cordy (father-son) delisted) Bailey Dale (Dandenong Stingrays) Brett Goodes ® (Western Bulldogs) Declan Hamilton (Port Adelaide SA) Joel Hamling (Geelong) Jordan Kelly ® (Hawthorn) Toby McLean (Oakleigh Chargers) Daniel Pearce ® (Western Bulldogs) Roarke Smith ® (Calder Cannons) Lukas Webb (Gippsland Power) Out: Adam Cooney (Essendon) Daniel Giansiracusa (retired) Brett Goodes (delisted) Shaun Higgins (North Melbourne) Christian Howard (delisted) Liam Jones (Carlton) Daniel Pearce (delisted) Tom Young (delisted) Tom Williams (retired)

I've created a dedicated board for trade and draft discussion. Please discuss all relevant topics here rather than on the main board. http://demonland.com/forums/index.php?/forum/35-its-the-midfield-stupid-drafting-and-trading-board/

Surely that could mean anything. It could be interpreted by either side as being in their favour.

Melbourne's last home game for yet another dismal season could not have been played at a more suitable time for the game it promises to be, nor against a more appropriate opponent. It happens at the end of a week during which the game itself has been on trial, when the competition has been exposed in a court as having questionable scruples and considering itself in many ways above the law. This is a competition which favours the strong and gives lip service to helping its weak by doing it favours like giving out meagre compensation to those who are drawn to play at times that are unattractive, making it difficult for them to gather the crowds from which they can draw their life blood. And so it happens that this game which is so important to the clubs, perversely because it will determine how low they will finish and therefore decide the only thing that remains important to them at this time of the season (and how high in draft order), will be played out at the MCG in front of a small crowd in the late afternoon/early evening out of the gaze of a football world that doesn't really care and will shun the game in favour of other potentially more exciting things to watch on their television sets on a late winter's afternoon. Like the test pattern. Does this game therefore even merit a preview? Most likely not because if you take a look at the size of GWS Giants' injury list, with so many of its players out for the remainder of the season, you get the feeling that they might barely muster up a squad to make the flight down to Tullamarine for the game. The last time I saw an injury list so extensive was that of Melbourne circa 2009 and we all know how that ended up. The wags are describing the game as the "Petracca Cup" in honour of the upcoming draft's flavour of the month and the word is that he's the man most wanted by the Giants whose ladder position stunningly dropped below that of Melbourne last week despite the fact that the Dees suffered a 50-point defeat. Now, if they could achieve that in a home game, it's going to be mighty hard not to lose to them on your own dung heap. That is not to say that the Demons at home and in front of a small but strongly partisan crowd will definitely have their own way in this affair. They demonstrated a fortnight ago how limited their appetite and capacity was for playing attacking football when they had another lowly opponent in Brisbane at their mercy early in the final quarter. Coach Paul Roos was quoted in this weeks Inside Football that the defensive mindset that enveloped his team in the final term of the loss to Brisbane wasn't a direction from the coach's box, but was player driven but surely thats been their focus for most of the year? And that's why they could easily lose this time against football's babes if they decide to play sloppy pedestrian football in the super defensive style that has marked a team that struggles regularly to kick ten goals in two hours of football. THE GAME Melbourne v GWS Giants at the MCG Sunday 17 August, 2014 at 3.20pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall Melbourne 3 wins GWS Giants 2 wins At the MCG Melbourne 2 wins GWS Giants 0 wins Past five years Melbourne 3 wins GWS Giants 2 wins The Coaches Roos 0 wins Cameron 1 win MEDIA TV Fox Sports Channel 3 at 3.00pm (live) RADIO - SEN ABC ABC Grandstand THE BETTING Melbourne to win - $1.48 GWS Giants to win - $2.65 THE LAST TIME THEY MET GWS Giants 10.19.79 defeated Melbourne 7.5.47 at Spotless Stadium Round 3, 2014 Bereft of any key forwards and light on for ruck power against a keen opposition in difficult conditions, Melbourne got to within a point early in the final quarter and then simply gave up the ghost against a team inspired by the dominance of Shane Mumford. THE TEAMS MELBOURNE B: Neville Jetta, Tom McDonald, Colin Garland HB: Jeremy Howe, Lynden Dunn, Jack Grimes C: Bernie Vince, Jack Watts, Daniel Cross HF: Viv Michie, James Frawley, Jack Viney F: Dean Kent, Chris Dawes, Max Gawn FOLL: Mark Jamar, Nathan Jones, Dom Tyson I/C: Dom Barry, Matt Jones, Aidan Riley, Christian Salem EMG: Rohan Bail, Jack Fitzpatrick, Jordie McKenzie IN: Jack Grimes, Christian Salem OUT: Rohan Bail, Jay Kennedy-Harris (both omitted) GWS GIANTS B: Adam Kennedy, Lachie Plowman, Heath Shaw HB: Jono O'Rourke, Phil Davis, Matt Buntine C: Devon Smith, Adam Treloar, Toby Greene HF: Rhys Palmer, Adam Tomlinson, Will Hoskin-Elliott F: Joshua Kelly, Jonathon Patton, Tom Boyd FOLL: Shane Mumford, Callan Ward, Dylan Shiel I/C: Tomas Bugg, James Stewart, Mark Whiley, Nathan Wilson EMG: Jon Giles, Tim Golds, Zac Williams IN: James Stewart, Mark Whiley, Nathan Wilson OUT: Tim Golds, Jed Lamb, Zac Williams (all omitted) NEW: James Stewart (Sandringham U18), Mark Whiley (Finley) If anyone believes that I'm suggesting that Melbourne is even remotely considering tanking they should think again. While the "Petracca Cup" might be how most of the football world perceives a game such as this, where the teams are essentially playing off for 16th spot, Melbourne certainly cannot afford to lose a game that would be its seventh defeat on the way to nine losses in a row to end its first season under coach Roos. A win means a lot more to a club which needs to retain membership numbers and hope for the future after eight barren seasons without seeing finals action. Their opposition continues to be propped up by its AFL creator and benefactor and can therefore survive on home crowds of six to seven thousand and little local support but the Demons know that, unless they begin to show significant on field improvement, they will remain on the precipice. Moreover, the draft experts keep saying that there are a number of different candidates for the top four or five draft picks so if it comes down to pick 2 or 3 then it means only that there are some minor strategic differences between success or failure in this game. The common measure among conspiracy theorists on whether a team is "tanking" or not is the number of players for who stumps have been pulled up early and have undergone season ending surgery. While the Giants qualify under this scenario, with almost half their players missing from their round three win over the club, the opposite applies with the Demons who actually have players returning to the ranks. Back in round three, the game was dominated and won by the Giants after three close quarters, by a single player in the guise of Shane Mumford who was simply outstanding with 60 hit outs and who thereby set up numerous attacking moves with his outstanding work around the ground and at the stoppages. The Demons have Mark Jamar and Max Gawn working the ruck this time and whilst one simply mustn't underestimate the work of Mumford for the Giants they now have the opportunity to be at least competitive in an area where they were not when they met earlier in the season. Gawn's major role is expected to be up forward where he will also be partnered by Chris Dawes who is due for a day out after a few quiet weeks. James Frawley will also no doubt play in attack as well. The last time they met he was there for the first time and was the only key in a very undersized, undermanned and dysfunctional attack. If Roos maintains that his team's recent over the top negativity was player driven and not coach driven then surely, against a lesser side like GWS, his charges will have faith in the players he has selected up forward and they will take the game on to go forward the direct way enough times to kick a winning score? The Giants' other advantage when they met at Spotless Stadium earlier in the season was its young, fit, running midfield which is now showing signs of fatigue after a long season. They have plenty of their guns now missing and with two newcomers on the field on Sunday, they cannot be expected to perform in front of what will be a small but hostile pro Melbourne crowd willing their players home. And if they lose the right to Petracca, then so be it. Over the past decade, they have acquired enough first round draft picks for then to be entirely justified in asking, "who gives a Petracca?"

WHO GIVES A PETRACCA? by Whispering Jack Melbourne's last home game for yet another dismal season could not have been played at a more suitable time for the game it promises to be, nor against a more appropriate opponent. It happens at the end of a week during which the game itself has been on trial, when the competition has been exposed in a court as having questionable scruples and considering itself in many ways above the law. This is a competition which favours the strong and gives lip service to helping its weak by doing it favours like giving out meagre compensation to those who are drawn to play at times that are unattractive, making it difficult for them to gather the crowds from which they can draw their life blood. And so it happens that this game which is so important to the clubs, perversely because it will determine how low they will finish and therefore decide the only thing that remains important to them at this time of the season (and how high in draft order), will be played out at the MCG in front of a small crowd in the late afternoon/early evening out of the gaze of a football world that doesn't really care and will shun the game in favour of other potentially more exciting things to watch on their television sets on a late winter's afternoon. Like the test pattern. Does this game therefore even merit a preview? Most likely not because if you take a look at the size of GWS Giants' injury list, with so many of its players out for the remainder of the season, you get the feeling that they might barely muster up a squad to make the flight down to Tullamarine for the game. The last time I saw an injury list so extensive was that of Melbourne circa 2009 and we all know how that ended up. The wags are describing the game as the "Petracca Cup" in honour of the upcoming draft's flavour of the month and the word is that he's the man most wanted by the Giants whose ladder position stunningly dropped below that of Melbourne last week despite the fact that the Dees suffered a 50-point defeat. Now, if they could achieve that in a home game, it's going to be mighty hard not to lose to them on your own dung heap. That is not to say that the Demons at home and in front of a small but strongly partisan crowd will definitely have their own way in this affair. They demonstrated a fortnight ago how limited their appetite and capacity was for playing attacking football when they had another lowly opponent in Brisbane at their mercy early in the final quarter. Coach Paul Roos was quoted in this weeks Inside Football that the defensive mindset that enveloped his team in the final term of the loss to Brisbane wasn't a direction from the coach's box, but was player driven but surely thats been their focus for most of the year? And that's why they could easily lose this time against football's babes if they decide to play sloppy pedestrian football in the super defensive style that has marked a team that struggles regularly to kick ten goals in two hours of football. THE GAME Melbourne v GWS Giants at the MCG Sunday 17 August, 2014 at 3.20pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall Melbourne 3 wins GWS Giants 2 wins At the MCG Melbourne 2 wins GWS Giants 0 wins Past five years Melbourne 3 wins GWS Giants 2 wins The Coaches Roos 0 wins Cameron 1 win MEDIA TV Fox Sports Channel 3 at 3.00pm (live) RADIO - SEN ABC ABC Grandstand THE BETTING Melbourne to win - $1.48 GWS Giants to win - $2.65 THE LAST TIME THEY MET GWS Giants 10.19.79 defeated Melbourne 7.5.47 at Spotless Stadium Round 3, 2014 Bereft of any key forwards and light on for ruck power against a keen opposition in difficult conditions, Melbourne got to within a point early in the final quarter and then simply gave up the ghost against a team inspired by the dominance of Shane Mumford. THE TEAMS MELBOURNE B: Neville Jetta, Tom McDonald, Colin Garland HB: Jeremy Howe, Lynden Dunn, Jack Grimes C: Bernie Vince, Jack Watts, Daniel Cross HF: Viv Michie, James Frawley, Jack Viney F: Dean Kent, Chris Dawes, Max Gawn FOLL: Mark Jamar, Nathan Jones, Dom Tyson I/C: Dom Barry, Matt Jones, Aidan Riley, Christian Salem EMG: Rohan Bail, Jack Fitzpatrick, Jordie McKenzie IN: Jack Grimes, Christian Salem OUT: Rohan Bail, Jay Kennedy-Harris (both omitted) GWS GIANTS B: Adam Kennedy, Lachie Plowman, Heath Shaw HB: Jono O'Rourke, Phil Davis, Matt Buntine C: Devon Smith, Adam Treloar, Toby Greene HF: Rhys Palmer, Adam Tomlinson, Will Hoskin-Elliott F: Joshua Kelly, Jonathon Patton, Tom Boyd FOLL: Shane Mumford, Callan Ward, Dylan Shiel I/C: Tomas Bugg, James Stewart, Mark Whiley, Nathan Wilson EMG: Jon Giles, Tim Golds, Zac Williams IN: James Stewart, Mark Whiley, Nathan Wilson OUT: Tim Golds, Jed Lamb, Zac Williams (all omitted) NEW: James Stewart (Sandringham U18), Mark Whiley (Finley) If anyone believes that I'm suggesting that Melbourne is even remotely considering tanking they should think again. While the "Petracca Cup" might be how most of the football world perceives a game such as this, where the teams are essentially playing off for 16th spot, Melbourne certainly cannot afford to lose a game that would be its seventh defeat on the way to nine losses in a row to end its first season under coach Roos. A win means a lot more to a club which needs to retain membership numbers and hope for the future after eight barren seasons without seeing finals action. Their opposition continues to be propped up by its AFL creator and benefactor and can therefore survive on home crowds of six to seven thousand and little local support but the Demons know that, unless they begin to show significant on field improvement, they will remain on the precipice. Moreover, the draft experts keep saying that there are a number of different candidates for the top four or five draft picks so if it comes down to pick 2 or 3 then it means only that there are some minor strategic differences between success or failure in this game. The common measure among conspiracy theorists on whether a team is "tanking" or not is the number of players for who stumps have been pulled up early and have undergone season ending surgery. While the Giants qualify under this scenario, with almost half their players missing from their round three win over the club, the opposite applies with the Demons who actually have players returning to the ranks. Back in round three, the game was dominated and won by the Giants after three close quarters, by a single player in the guise of Shane Mumford who was simply outstanding with 60 hit outs and who thereby set up numerous attacking moves with his outstanding work around the ground and at the stoppages. The Demons have Mark Jamar and Max Gawn working the ruck this time and whilst one simply mustn't underestimate the work of Mumford for the Giants they now have the opportunity to be at least competitive in an area where they were not when they met earlier in the season. Gawn's major role is expected to be up forward where he will also be partnered by Chris Dawes who is due for a day out after a few quiet weeks. James Frawley will also no doubt play in attack as well. The last time they met he was there for the first time and was the only key in a very undersized, undermanned and dysfunctional attack. If Roos maintains that his team's recent over the top negativity was player driven and not coach driven then surely, against a lesser side like GWS, his charges will have faith in the players he has selected up forward and they will take the game on to go forward the direct way enough times to kick a winning score? The Giants' other advantage when they met at Spotless Stadium earlier in the season was its young, fit, running midfield which is now showing signs of fatigue after a long season. They have plenty of their guns now missing and with two newcomers on the field on Sunday, they cannot be expected to perform in front of what will be a small but hostile pro Melbourne crowd willing their players home. And if they lose the right to Petracca, then so be it. Over the past decade, they have acquired enough first round draft picks for then to be entirely justified in asking, "who gives a Petracca?"

Please people. This is a family fan site and we don't want our young fans to be corrupted by the twin evils of alcohol and gambling

The memory is somewhat blurry but my memory is that we were only a point down early in the last quarter before we were blown off the park in a game in which our rucks were slaughtered and we had no key forwards. GWS had virtually a full side but I suspect that won't be the case this week with the Petracca Cup well and truly up for grabs. GWS GIANTS B: Nick Haynes, Sam Frost, Curtly Hampton HB: Heath Shaw, Lachlan Plowman, Adam Kennedy C: Toby Greene, Adam Treloar, Tom Scully HF: Jacob Townsend, Jeremy Cameron, Dylan Addison F: Devon Smith, Jonathan Giles, Jonathan Patton Foll: Shane Mumford, Stephen Coniglio, Callan Ward I/C: Tomas Bugg, Will Hoskin-Elliott, Josh Hunt, Josh Kelly EMG: Jed Lamb, Adam Tomlinson, Zachary Williams In: Will Hoskin-Elliot Out: Lachlan Whitfield (Inj) MELBOURNE B: Alex Georgiou, James Frawley, Lynden Dunn HB: Jack Grimes, Tom McDonald, Dean Terlich C: Daniel Cross, Bernie Vince, Jack Watts HF: Matt Jones, Jack Fitzpatrick, Jack Viney F: Jeremy Howe, Cam Pedersen, Rohan Bail FOLL: Jake Spencer, Nathan Jones, Dom Tyson I/C: Shannon Byrnes, Michael Evans, Jay Kennedy-Harris, Dean Kent EMG: Dom Barry, Sam Blease, Jack Trengove IN: Michael Evans, Dean Kent, Jack Viney OUT: Viv Michie, Jimmy Toumpas, Jack Trengove

Won't it be the 20th loss in a row (assuming we lose)?

With three rounds to go before the end of the season, the Demonland Player of the Year award now goes in camera which means we won't be announcing the progressive scoring until the winner is announced on Mad Monday. Fortunately, it is still mathematically possible for the leader and dual holder of the award Nathan Jones to be dethroned even though that's highly unlikely. The current points tally - 186. Nathan Jones 146. Dom Tyson 104. Lynden Dunn 79. Jack Viney 75. Bernie Vince 61. Daniel Cross 55. Tom McDonald 45. Mark Jamar 44. Matt Jones 42. Jack Watts 41. James Frawley Neville Jetta Cam Pedersen 38. Jeremy Howe 37. Chris Dawes 18. Jack Grimes 17. Max Gawn 15. Aidan Riley 14. Dean Kent 11. Rohan Bail 10. Jordie McKenzie 8. Jay Kennedy-Harris 6. Colin Garland Alexis Georgiou Jimmy Toumpas 4. Dean Terlich 3. Jack Trengove 2. Shannon Byrnes Jake Spencer

This match report on the Round 20 game between Melbourne and Hawthorn opens with a definitive statement: "Forget about all of this baloney about Melbourne being scarred by tanking talk. That controversy was five years ago, and to raise it now simply smells of a club looking for excuses." The excuse-making and squawking after last week's pathetic capitulation to the Brisbane Lions was hopefully an aberration on the part of Demon coach Paul Roos which will not be repeated. He may not have been aware of it, but his comments would open up old wounds and allow some to approach their soap boxes and raise old agendas that need to be set aside if the club is to progress. Moreover, telling players publicly that they are wounded by a long gone event that happened when only 20% of the current list was at the club (including some of its better players who are by no means haunted by the experience) is likely to be counterproductive. It certainly turned out that way in the game against Hawthorn. The Hawks dominated from go to whoa and at times, toyed with the Demons whose play was still very much defensive and stilted in style and which contained the fair share of hesitation, skill errors and turnovers. Thankfully, some of the changes to the line up necessitated by last week's fiasco, gave the team a harder edge and we saw less of the bumbling and stumbling that highlighted that performance. Of course, that was a necessity given that the Demons were playing the top of the ladder Hawks rather than the lowly Lions of a week before. In the end, Melbourne lost by 50 points but it was one in which it would have succumbed by double that only twelve months ago. The team once again failed to score even ten goals and there was little to suggest any impending improvement in its forward potency. Chris Dawes continues to disappoint as the team's only true key forward. He did have an interrupted preseason but he doesn't seem to be playing with his earlier zest and needs the back up of at least one or two other effective talls up forward if there is to be improvement in this department. Max Gawn's return to the team after a strong month in the VFL was a promising start. Again, quoting from the above article: "Five of Melbournes first seven goals came from direct kicks to the space in front of the goalsquare, and yet that particularly option seemed the one they were least inclined to take. "Instead, there were numerous passages of play where Melbourne second-guessed itself. At one point in the second term Chris Dawes came streaming up the wing, marking beautifully on the lead. His first instinct was to then turn around and kick it 45 metres backwards, prompting booing from the Members Stand." ... and ... "There were even instances where Melbourne players were in the clear within 30 or 40 metres of goal, and rather than taking the shot, they looked to handball to a teammate under even more pressure." Clearly, none of this has anything to do with what might have taken place in the "vault" at the Junction Oval or how a team that lost 11 out of its first 12 games in Dean Bailey's second season as coach and which culminated in an expression of dismay by the tanking accusers that Melbourne had the temerity to lose its last game of the 2009 to top-of-the-ladder St. Kilda. To suggest otherwise is, at best, indulging in fantasy. The Demons were well served by its usual midfield guns in Nathan Jones and Dom Tyson while Neville Jetta continues to shine and demonstrate why he is easily the club's most improved player. As mentioned above, Gawn helped to improve the forward set up and Aidan Riley had a real impact when he was substituted into the game. One expects the club will continue to give its young players every chance for the rest of the season instead of those who have been around, had their chances and failed to deliver in the past. One also hopes that somehow, the team will play with some more positivity when going into attack from now on as it would, at the very least, give the club's success-starved fans something to look forward to for the remainder of the season and beyond. Melbourne 2.1.13 4.5.29 7.8.50 9.11.65 Hawthorn4.4.28 10.8.68 15.8.98 17.13.115 Goals Melbourne Gawn 2 Dawes Frawley, Kennedy-Harris Kent Riley Tyson Viney Hawthorn Roughead 5 Breust 3 Hill Smith 2 Hale Lewis Puopolo Schoenmakers Shiels Best Melbourne Tyson Jetta, N. Jones Howe Gawn Cross Hawthorn Lewis Shiels Roughead Smith Hodge Birchall Changes Melbourne Nil Hawthorn Nil Injuries Melbourne Nil Hawthorn Nil Reports Melbourne Nil Hawthorn J Roughead for tripping D Tyson in the second quarter Umpires Nil Hawthorn Ben Ryan, Jeff Dalgleish, Nicholas Foot Crowd 37,082 at the MCG

SQUAWKING by Whispering Jack This match report on the Round 20 game between Melbourne and Hawthorn opens with a definitive statement: "Forget about all of this baloney about Melbourne being scarred by tanking talk. That controversy was five years ago, and to raise it now simply smells of a club looking for excuses." The excuse-making and squawking after last week's pathetic capitulation to the Brisbane Lions was hopefully an aberration on the part of Demon coach Paul Roos which will not be repeated. He may not have been aware of it, but his comments would open up old wounds and allow some to approach their soap boxes and raise old agendas that need to be set aside if the club is to progress. Moreover, telling players publicly that they are wounded by a long gone event that happened when only 20% of the current list was at the club (including some of its better players who are by no means haunted by the experience) is likely to be counterproductive. It certainly turned out that way in the game against Hawthorn. The Hawks dominated from go to whoa and at times, toyed with the Demons whose play was still very much defensive and stilted in style and which contained the fair share of hesitation, skill errors and turnovers. Thankfully, some of the changes to the line up necessitated by last week's fiasco, gave the team a harder edge and we saw less of the bumbling and stumbling that highlighted that performance. Of course, that was a necessity given that the Demons were playing the top of the ladder Hawks rather than the lowly Lions of a week before. In the end, Melbourne lost by 50 points but it was one in which it would have succumbed by double that only twelve months ago. The team once again failed to score even ten goals and there was little to suggest any impending improvement in its forward potency. Chris Dawes continues to disappoint as the team's only true key forward. He did have an interrupted preseason but he doesn't seem to be playing with his earlier zest and needs the back up of at least one or two other effective talls up forward if there is to be improvement in this department. Max Gawn's return to the team after a strong month in the VFL was a promising start. Again, quoting from the above article: "Five of Melbournes first seven goals came from direct kicks to the space in front of the goalsquare, and yet that particularly option seemed the one they were least inclined to take. "Instead, there were numerous passages of play where Melbourne second-guessed itself. At one point in the second term Chris Dawes came streaming up the wing, marking beautifully on the lead. His first instinct was to then turn around and kick it 45 metres backwards, prompting booing from the Members Stand." ... and ... "There were even instances where Melbourne players were in the clear within 30 or 40 metres of goal, and rather than taking the shot, they looked to handball to a teammate under even more pressure." Clearly, none of this has anything to do with what might have taken place in the "vault" at the Junction Oval or how a team that lost 11 out of its first 12 games in Dean Bailey's second season as coach and which culminated in an expression of dismay by the tanking accusers that Melbourne had the temerity to lose its last game of the 2009 to top-of-the-ladder St. Kilda. To suggest otherwise is, at best, indulging in fantasy. The Demons were well served by its usual midfield guns in Nathan Jones and Dom Tyson while Neville Jetta continues to shine and demonstrate why he is easily the club's most improved player. As mentioned above, Gawn helped to improve the forward set up and Aidan Riley had a real impact when he was substituted into the game. One expects the club will continue to give its young players every chance for the rest of the season instead of those who have been around, had their chances and failed to deliver in the past. One also hopes that somehow, the team will play with some more positivity when going into attack from now on as it would, at the very least, give the club's success-starved fans something to look forward to for the remainder of the season and beyond. Melbourne 2.1.13 4.5.29 7.8.50 9.11.65 Hawthorn4.4.28 10.8.68 15.8.98 17.13.115 Goals Melbourne Gawn 2 Dawes Frawley, Kennedy-Harris Kent Riley Tyson Viney Hawthorn Roughead 5 Breust 3 Hill Smith 2 Hale Lewis Puopolo Schoenmakers Shiels Best Melbourne Tyson Jetta, N. Jones Howe Gawn Cross Hawthorn Lewis Shiels Roughead Smith Hodge Birchall Changes Melbourne Nil Hawthorn Nil Injuries Melbourne Nil Hawthorn Nil Reports Melbourne Nil Hawthorn J Roughead for tripping D Tyson in the second quarter Umpires Nil Hawthorn Ben Ryan, Jeff Dalgleish, Nicholas Foot Crowd 37,082 at the MCG

THE WORST OF TIMES by KC from Casey This weekend proved to be the worst of times for the fourteenth placed Casey Scorpions to travel to North Port Oval to take on top of the ladder Port Melbourne who were already two games clear of the rest of the competition. Casey was coming off an improved patch of form after a disastrous season, having won two of their last three games and narrowly lost the other but they also lost their dominant ruckman Max Gawn to the AFL and their list of Demon players was continuing to shrink as it normally does at this time of year (only nine played, including two rookies). The Scorpions have performed at their worst this year against experienced hard bodied teams which is a perfect match for the Port Melbourne description and the Borough were buoyed by the news that premiership coach Gary Ayres will continue in the job for 2015. The majority of the VFL listed players in the Casey team have played less than a dozen VFL senior games and this week's crop included another two debutants in Alex Carr from Gippsland Power and Sean Corrigan who has spent the last couple of seasons in the development league team. The Casey team lacked the height, the size and the fitness to go with their more seasoned opponents, a factor that was evident all over the ground and in particular the key positions. As a result, apart from an early burst with the aid of the breeze led by two goals from Jack Fitzpatrick and one from Jake Best, the game was a complete mismatch. Port overpowered the Scorpions late in the opening term to take a nine-point lead at the first break but then the game got ugly as the Borough kicked clear with 19 goals to four in the final three quarters to record a resounding 108-point victory. The undersized and undermanned Scorpions received a major blow early in the third term when Alex Georgiou was felled behind the play and was taken off the ground in a groggy condition. He took no further part in the game. The final quarter was a total capitulation for Casey with Port kicking ten unanswered goals until Christian Salem, one of Casey's better players on the day, booted his second goal moments before the final siren. Rookie James Harmes put in a promising display, as did impressive Casey youngster Ed Morris. Jack Fitzpatrick worked hard against the odds and Evan Panozza toiled hard as leader but that was just about it for the day. 2014 Peter Jackson VFL Casey Scorpions 3.2.20 3.2.20 6.4.40 7.6.48 Port Melbourne 4.5.29 10.11.71 13.16.94 23.18.156 Goals Casey Scorpions Fitzpatrick Salem 2 Best Davis Smith Port Melbourne Connors 5 Lange 4 Johnson O'Sullivan 2 Bonaddio Davies Johnston Magner Mascitti O'Sullivan Pinwill Sandilands Thornton Wooffindin Casey Scorpions Rutherford Harmes Morris Salem Fitzpatrick Georgiou Port Melbourne Lange Pinwill Wooffindin Valenti Connors O'Sullivan In the early game, the Borough have thrashed the young Scorps by 112 points after visitors made a promising start in the opening quarter. 2014 AFL Victoria Development League Casey Scorpions 3.5.23 3.6.24 4.9.33 4.10.34 Port Melbourne 1.4.10 9.10.64 16.13.109 21.20.146 Goals Casey Scorpions Fisscher 2 Collins Corry Port Melbourne Prowse 6 Clarke Rowe 3 Breust 2 Hogan 2 Hayes Henderson McKenzie Scipione Woods Best Casey Scorpions Fisscher Jackson Anderson Pears Smith Corry Port Melbourne Muling Prowse Prowse Hayes Johnston McKenzie

This weekend proved to be the worst of times for the fourteenth placed Casey Scorpions to travel to North Port Oval to take on top of the ladder Port Melbourne who were already two games clear of the rest of the competition. Casey was coming off an improved patch of form after a disastrous season, having won two of their last three games and narrowly lost the other but they also lost their dominant ruckman Max Gawn to the AFL and their list of Demon players was continuing to shrink as it normally does at this time of year (only nine played, including two rookies). The Scorpions have performed at their worst this year against experienced hard bodied teams which is a perfect match for the Port Melbourne description and the Borough were buoyed by the news that premiership coach Gary Ayres will continue in the job for 2015. The majority of the VFL listed players in the Casey team have played less than a dozen VFL senior games and this week's crop included another two debutants in Alex Carr from Gippsland Power and Sean Corrigan who has spent the last couple of seasons in the development league team. The Casey team lacked the height, the size and the fitness to go with their more seasoned opponents, a factor that was evident all over the ground and in particular the key positions. As a result, apart from an early burst with the aid of the breeze led by two goals from Jack Fitzpatrick and one from Jake Best, the game was a complete mismatch. Port overpowered the Scorpions late in the opening term to take a nine-point lead at the first break but then the game got ugly as the Borough kicked clear with 19 goals to four in the final three quarters to record a resounding 108-point victory. The undersized and undermanned Scorpions received a major blow early in the third term when Alex Georgiou was felled behind the play and was taken off the ground in a groggy condition. He took no further part in the game. The final quarter was a total capitulation for Casey with Port kicking ten unanswered goals until Christian Salem, one of Casey's better players on the day, booted his second goal moments before the final siren. Rookie James Harmes put in a promising display, as did impressive Casey youngster Ed Morris. Jack Fitzpatrick worked hard against the odds and Evan Panozza toiled hard as leader but that was just about it for the day. 2014 Peter Jackson VFL Casey Scorpions 3.2.20 3.2.20 6.4.40 7.6.48 Port Melbourne 4.5.29 10.11.71 13.16.94 23.18.156 Goals Casey Scorpions Fitzpatrick Salem 2 Best Davis Smith Port Melbourne Connors 5 Lange 4 Johnson O'Sullivan 2 Bonaddio Davies Johnston Magner Mascitti O'Sullivan Pinwill Sandilands Thornton Wooffindin Casey Scorpions Rutherford Harmes Morris Salem Fitzpatrick Georgiou Port Melbourne Lange Pinwill Wooffindin Valenti Connors O'Sullivan Statistics Mitch Clisby 19 disposals 11 kicks 8 handballs 5 marks 4 tackles 86 Dream Team Points Michael Evans 17 disposals 7 kicks 10 handballs 5 marks 2 tackles 61 Dream Team Points Jack Fitzpatrick 2 goals 15 disposals 11 kicks 4 handballs 9 marks 1 tackles 41 hit outs 125 Dream Team Points Alexis Georgiou 7 disposals 5 kicks 2 handballs 2 marks 2 tackles 34 Dream Team Points James Harmes 16 disposals 7 kicks 9 handballs 3 marks 6 tackles 74 Dream Team Points Dan Nicholson 19 disposals 11 kicks 8 handballs 10 marks 1 tackles 80 Dream Team Points Christian Salem 2 goals 1 behind 21 disposals 12 kicks 9 handballs 1 marks 4 tackles 83 Dream Team Points James Strauss 17 disposals 14 kicks 3 handballs 3 marks 2 tackles 66 Dream Team Points Dean Terlich 16 disposals 8 kicks 8 handballs 6 marks 2 tackles 64 Dream Team Points In the early game, the Borough have thrashed the young Scorps by 112 points after visitors made a promising start in the opening quarter. 2014 AFL Victoria Development League Casey Scorpions 3.5.23 3.6.24 4.9.33 4.10.34 Port Melbourne 1.4.10 9.10.64 16.13.109 21.20.146 Goals Casey Scorpions Fisscher 2 Collins Corry Port Melbourne Prowse 6 Clarke Rowe 3 Breust 2 Hogan 2 Hayes Henderson McKenzie Scipione Woods Best Casey Scorpions Fisscher Jackson Anderson Pears Smith Corry Port Melbourne Muling Prowse Prowse Hayes Johnston McKenzie

SQUAWKING by Whispering Jack This match report on the Round 20 game between Melbourne and Hawthorn opens with a definitive statement: "Forget about all of this baloney about Melbourne being scarred by tanking talk. That controversy was five years ago, and to raise it now simply smells of a club looking for excuses." The excuse-making and squawking after last week's pathetic capitulation to the Brisbane Lions was hopefully an aberration on the part of Demon coach Paul Roos which will not be repeated. He may not have been aware of it, but his comments would open up old wounds and allow some to approach their soap boxes and raise old agendas that need to be set aside if the club is to progress. Moreover, telling players publicly that they are wounded by a long gone event that happened when only 20% of the current list was at the club (including some of its better players who are by no means haunted by the experience) is likely to be counterproductive. It certainly turned out that way in the game against Hawthorn. The Hawks dominated from go to whoa and at times, toyed with the Demons whose play was still very much defensive and stilted in style and which contained the fair share of hesitation, skill errors and turnovers. Thankfully, some of the changes to the line up necessitated by last week's fiasco, gave the team a harder edge and we saw less of the bumbling and stumbling that highlighted that performance. Of course, that was a necessity given that the Demons were playing the top of the ladder Hawks rather than the lowly Lions of a week before. In the end, Melbourne lost by 50 points but it was one in which it would have succumbed by double that only twelve months ago. The team once again failed to score even ten goals and there was little to suggest any impending improvement in its forward potency. Chris Dawes continues to disappoint as the team's only true key forward. He did have an interrupted preseason but he doesn't seem to be playing with his earlier zest and needs the back up of at least one or two other effective talls up forward if there is to be improvement in this department. Max Gawn's return to the team after a strong month in the VFL was a promising start. Again, quoting from the above article: "Five of Melbournes first seven goals came from direct kicks to the space in front of the goalsquare, and yet that particularly option seemed the one they were least inclined to take. "Instead, there were numerous passages of play where Melbourne second-guessed itself. At one point in the second term Chris Dawes came streaming up the wing, marking beautifully on the lead. His first instinct was to then turn around and kick it 45 metres backwards, prompting booing from the Members Stand." ... and ... "There were even instances where Melbourne players were in the clear within 30 or 40 metres of goal, and rather than taking the shot, they looked to handball to a teammate under even more pressure." Clearly, none of this has anything to do with what might have taken place in the "vault" at the Junction Oval or how a team that lost 11 out of its first 12 games in Dean Bailey's second season as coach and which culminated in an expression of dismay by the tanking accusers that Melbourne had the temerity to lose its last game of the 2009 to top-of-the-ladder St. Kilda. To suggest otherwise is, at best, indulging in fantasy. The Demons were well served by its usual midfield guns in Nathan Jones and Dom Tyson while Neville Jetta continues to shine and demonstrate why he is easily the club's most improved player. As mentioned above, Gawn helped to improve the forward set up and Aidan Riley had a real impact when he was substituted into the game. One expects the club will continue to give its young players every chance for the rest of the season instead of those who have been around, had their chances and failed to deliver in the past. One also hopes that somehow, the team will play with some more positivity when going into attack from now on as it would, at the very least, give the club's success-starved fans something to look forward to for the remainder of the season and beyond. Melbourne 2.1.13 4.5.29 7.8.50 9.11.65 Hawthorn4.4.28 10.8.68 15.8.98 17.13.115 Goals Melbourne Gawn 2 Dawes Frawley, Kennedy-Harris Kent Riley Tyson Viney Hawthorn Roughead 5 Breust 3 Hill Smith 2 Hale Lewis Puopolo Schoenmakers Shiels Best Melbourne Tyson Jetta, N. Jones Howe Gawn Cross Hawthorn Lewis Shiels Roughead Smith Hodge Birchall Changes Melbourne Nil Hawthorn Nil Injuries Melbourne Nil Hawthorn Nil Reports Melbourne Nil Hawthorn J Roughead for tripping D Tyson in the second quarter Umpires Nil Hawthorn Ben Ryan, Jeff Dalgleish, Nicholas Foot Crowd 37,082 at the MCG

Well, we're 20 rounds in which means after this week our voting goes "in camera". In the meantime, please cast your votes and don't forget the Jones rule applies this week -

I believe we're done with this thread. It repeats ground we've gone over in the past and it's getting us exactly nowhere.