Demonland

DIGGING DEEP by Whispering Jack That wily old campaigner Kevin Sheedy had to dig deep into his bag of tricks to come up with a message for this week's game between the fledgling GWS Giants and Melbourne. Instead of informing all and sundry that his team, composed of mainly pimply faced teenagers mixed in with a handful of broken down old hacks and two or three players poached for nothing from other clubs considered it an honour to grace the wonderful ground which really gave birth to our native game, Sheedy couldn't help but go feral by baiting Melbourne fans with stereotypes about visiting the snow and with tales about how his club lured Tom Scully away from the club and into the fleshpots of Rooty Hill. As with much of what Sheedy says and does these days, it's all smoke and mirrors stuff - deception to mask the inadequacy of his team which was put together with the money and influence of a higher power being the AFL. There was no recruiting acumen and no finesse involved. The Giants' recruiters picked heir marks, offered more than their current clubs could possibly pay and had them hook, line and sinker. Clubs whose investments in the game were garnered through a century and a half of the hard slog had players pirated by people using their money. Talk about insult and injury! The truth of the matter is that Sheedy's new franchise is bleeding the AFL of millions of dollars to gain the sport a foothold in a new heartland in the western suburbs of a city that isn't interested the game at all. You only had to look at the rows and rows of empty seats at Skoda Stadium where the visiting Tiger fans almost outnumbered the bewildered looking locals at last week's affair to tell you that it's just not working. The truth is that Sheedy's ploy is a total distraction. An attempt to move the focus away from the fact that there's a game to be played and won and onto personalities like Scully, who jumped ship at the first opportunity to make a bigger buck (and good luck to him if he can get paid for routinely producing less on the field than half a dozen of his pubescent teammates) or James McDonald who, quite frankly, must have been embarrassed by the coach's suggestion that he be made captain for the day just so he could stick it up the fans who supported Junior so well for more than a decade. The first game between Melbourne and Greater Western Sydney Giants deserves much more than the piffling build up and humbuggery of Kevin Sheedy. It deserves to be taken seriously as a game of football for four points and not as a circus. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what Sheedy has made it. Hopefully, Mark Neeld won’t take the bait. THE GAME Melbourne v. GWS Giants at the MCG – Sunday 26 June 2012 at 3.15pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall Melbourne 0 wins GWS Giants 0 wins At the MCG Melbourne 0 wins GWS Giants 0 wins Since 2000 Melbourne 0 wins GWS Giants 0 wins The Coaches Neeld 0 wins Sheedy 0 wins MEDIA TV - Channel 7 & Fox Footy Channel live at 3.00pm. RADIO - ABC774 3AW Triple M THE BETTING Melbourne to win $1.31 GWS to win $3.55 LAST TIME THEY MET Never. THE TEAMS MELBOURNE Backs James Sellar James Frawley Jared Rivers Half backs Daniel Nicholson Tom McDonald Jack Watts Centreline Rohan Bail Jack Trengove Jack Grimes Half forwards Jeremy Howe Lynden Dunn Nathan Jones Forwards Mitch Clark Colin Garland Colin Sylvia Followers Mark Jamar Brent Moloney Jordie McKenzie Interchange Matthew Bate Aaron Davey Joel Macdonald James Magner Emergencies Sam Blease Troy Davis Cale Morton In Rohan Bail Matthew Bate Aaron Davey Joel Macdonald Out Sam Blease Brad Green (hip) Cale Morton Luke Tapscott (suspension) GWS GIANTS Backs Jack Hombsch Tim Mohr Sam Darley Half backs Shaun Edwards Phil Davis Toby Greene Centreline Tom Scully Callan Ward Adam Treloar Half forwards Taylor Adams Jeremy Cameron Rhys Palmer Forwards Nathan Wilson Jonathan Patton Mark Whiley Followers Dean Brogan James McDonald Dylan Shiel Interchange Tomas Bugg Jonathan Giles Devon Smith Luke Power Emergencies Chad Cornes WIlliam Hoskin-Elliot Andrew Phillips In Jonathan Giles Jack Hombsch Nathan Wilson Out Chad Cornes (rested) Andrew Phillips Sam Schulz (calf) THE PERILS OF LONG RANGE FORECASTING Let's face it. The minute the AFL issued its programme of matches way back twhen the full roster of Greater Western Sydney players was far from finalised, we were all smacking our chops in anticipation of what shaped not only as an eminently winnable game for Melbourne but also as a probable crushing of the club we had quickly grown to loathe because of the tactics used to lure Tom Scully away from the club. After all, Melbourne's first encounter in 2011 with that year's debutants from the Gold Coast had resulted in a 15 goal victory even though most judges felt the team didn't even raise a gallop until the final quarter. Surely, this would be another massacre of similar proportions? Well, we've seen some changes since then. Things have not gone well for Melbourne with injuries, loss of form, a slow adaptation to a new style of play and some extraordinary and well documented on and off field events derailing the first half of the club's season. Not even in our wildest nightmares did we expect Melbourne to be on only one win at this juncture. A similar thing could be said of Greater Western Sydney who most expected to go through 2012 winless. Not only did they beat the Suns earlier in the season, but they have been impressive with some real competitive performances, particularly in recent times. It's no mean feat to be on even terms with Geelong on its home turf even if the Cats are seemingly on their way down and the Giants did well last week to be within sniffing distance late in their game against the Tigers. On Sunday, the Giants will experience the MCG for the first time and the big ground should suit them because they run and spread well, a feature which has for the most part been lacking at Melbourne this year. The Demons have loaded up with big bodies in order to exploit the youthful Giants and it will be interesting to see how the game plays itself out. What puzzles me is the GWS decision to omit Chad Cornes who routinely stars against Melbourne and whose form this year had been widely acknowledged as one of the reasons why his team has been so competitive. Last week he had 23 touches against Richmond and whilst not as prolific against Geelong in the game before that, his contribution was significant. In his team's only win this year, Cornes had 28 possessions, took 12 marks and was easily best on the ground. It's hard to believe that he's been rested for this game on this ground and in the heavy conditions anticipated for Sunday. I wouldn't be surprised if this was yet another Sheedy ploy and a late change will see Cornes running out for the game. What Melbourne needs to win on Sunday is a good start. After a couple of weeks of competitive starts against Carlton and Essendon, the Demons were woeful for almost a quarter and a half as they conceded more than eight goals as a result of some sloppy play, loose checking and poor kicking for goal against the Pies on Queens Birthday. A similar start will lead to a day of embarrassment. On the other hand, the Giants will need everything to go their way much as it did last week against the Tigers when virtually every foray into the forward line resulted in a goal while Richmond was extremely wasteful up forward. The result was that the home side needed only fourteen shots to achieve twelve goals while the visitors scored one less goal with 31 attempts in their two goal win. In other words, it was only a matter of accuracy in front of goal that was the difference between a close result and an absolute thumping. These things rarely happen two weeks in a row and, on that basis I believe the time has come for Melbourne to kick off a better half of the season and I'm tipping Melbourne and Black Caviar to make it a double for the weekend. Both will end up saluting the judges. Demon fans - prepare to wave your jackets in the direction of the GWS coaches box at the end of the game! Melbourne by 36 points.

They haven't ...

It refers to the other fan site Demonology (http://demonology.midnight.net.au/) which is experiencing some technical issues that will hopefully be resolved soon.

Let that be a warning to all of you. I was prepared to let my hair down a little and open the welcoming mat but if you guys are going to continue to have an Us v. Them mentality and boast/brag about how your not going to be around here for long due to the fact that you are used to having no moderation then you really aren't going to be here long. I have zero tolerance for smart arses. This thread is now locked. Mingle. Assimilate. Play nice or there's the door and don't let it hit your arse on the way out.

Enjoy the day break from this site to see how serious I am about it.

I don't want to be a killjoy and all the Demonologists are very welcome here as they have always been but there is a code of conduct here and this isn't the wild wild west. Think 1984 on steroids. B) Play nice and obey the rules and you will fit in fine. If not, see you later.

The Melbourne Football Club is doing it tough in 2012 and it was only a fortnight ago that a win against Essendon at the MCG averted the possibility of a ten game losing streak to start the season. Whispering Jack has been doing some research and discovered a year when things were much worse so Demonlanders can relax and ponder about a time when ... IT WAS ONLY ... 1919 The VFL competition was less than two decades old when it was partially interrupted by the First World War. The competition, which had expanded to ten teams in 1908 with the introduction of Richmond and University, was reduced to only four in 1916 when the war was at its height but grew back to eight by 1918. Still missing were Melbourne and University. With the end of hostilities in November, 1918 things started to slowly return to normality. Melbourne was re-admitted but the students, whose pre war record in the VFL had been poor, never returned to the senior competition. Feelers were put out for new clubs and applicants included the Ballarat League, Brunswick, Footscray, Hawthorn, North Melbourne, Prahran and Port Melbourne. For the time being, none of the applicants were accepted. A "second XVIII" competition was introduced with the clubs represented by district teams. Melbourne's last appearance in the competition had realised a long-awaited finals appearance in 1915 (it’s first since 1902) but the club had lost players, casualties of war and retirement, while others had lost their prowess after the long break. The club introduced many new players but 1919 was to prove fruitless and Melbourne went through the season finishing last without a win. The shining light was the debut of Ivor Warne Smith who would go on to win two Brownlow Medals and play in the club's second premiership team in 1926. The club appointed George Haines, a champion rover from Geelong, as its playing coach. He made his debut in round 1 against St. Kilda at the Junction Oval, along with seven others who were playing their first VFL games. Haines, who had changed his name from Heinz because of the anti-German feeling of the day, captain-coached the side in 1919 and remained as a player in the following season. Among those from the club who joined the ranks of the fallen during wartime were respected defender Arthur Mueller "Joe" Pearce who was killed during the landing at Gallipoli. Others who lost their lives were Clifford Burge, Jack Doubleday, Desmond McDonald, Fenley McDonald, Ralph Robertson, Percy Rodriguez and Alfred Williamson. The club was left with an inexperienced line up that was hardly a match for the opposition clubs and, despite some gallant efforts, the Redlegs had to wait until the following season to record the first post war victory after returning to the fold in May of 1919. Round 1, 1919 - St. Kilda v Melbourne Saturday, 3 May, 1919 at Junction Oval, St. Kilda. St. Kilda 3.5.23 7.8.50 9.12.66 12.14.86 Melbourne 2.0.12 3.1.19 4.2.26 9.4.58 Goal kickers George Haines 3, Jack Huntington 2, Gordon Coulter 1, Teddy Johnston 1, Herb Matthews 1, Eric Tonkin 1 St. Kilda took the lead early and by half time led by 31 points. The Saints stretched the lead to 40 points at the last break but Melbourne reduced the deficit by two goals in a final term in which it more than doubled its score. Making their debuts along with Haines who suffered a shoulder injury were Gordon Coulter, Jack House, Con Kenney, Bob Love, Percy Love, John McMahon and Eric Tonkin. Bill McKenzie completed a long wait to play his 100th game and ruckman Bill Allan was Melbourne's best. Round 2, 1919 - Melbourne v South Melbourne Saturday, 10 May, 1919 at MCG Melbourne 0.2.2 2.5.17 3.7.25 3.10.28 South Melbourne 3.7.25 5.10.40 7.13.55 10.19.79 Goal kickers George Haines 1, Percy Love 1, Eric Tonkin 1 Melbourne's return to the MCG was greeted by a crowd of 6,237 in its game against reigning premier South Melbourne who the Fuschias had nudged out of a finals place four years earlier. They had to wait until the second quarter before they would kick their first goal of the new era at their home ground and were soundly thrashed. Still hampered by his shoulder injury, Haines barely made a contribution after the first term. His team's disposal skills were poor, it overused its handball and scored only one goal after half time in a 51 point loss. Allan, McKenzie and Percy Love were the best in a game in which the club introduced another debutant in Cyril Hall. Round 3, 1919 - Melbourne v Richmond Saturday, 17 May, 1919 at MCG Melbourne 2.1.13 4.4.28 4.6.30 7.7.49 Richmond 3.4.22 4.9.33 9.10.64 11.14.80 Goal kickers Eric Tonkin 2, Jack Connole 1, George Haines 1, Jack Huntington 1, Con Kenney 1, Percy Love 1 There were signs of improvement as Melbourne trailed by a mere five points at half time. At that stage, most players were holding their own around the ground but the usually reliable Allan was well beaten in the ruck. The third quarter was a disaster with Richmond piling on 5.1 to 0.2 which was virtually the difference between the teams on the day. McKenzie, Hall and midfielder House were the team's best. Haines returned to form in his roving role and there was some respite ahead for the team with a bye scheduled for the coming weekend. Round 4, 1919 - bye Round 5, 1919 - Carlton v Melbourne Saturday, 31 May at Princes Park, Parkville Carlton 2.2.14 9.4.58 14.8.92 18.15.123 Melbourne 1.3.9 2.4.16 3.4.22 5.4.34 Goal kickers Eric Tonkin 2, Jack Huntington 1, Bob Love 1, Bill McKenzie 1 The week's break proved to be of little value to the team which was thrashed by Carlton after a competitive first quarter. The Blues were relentless for the remainder of the game and it was only due to their forwards failing to hit the target in the final term that the Redlegs managed to avoid a defeat in excess of 100 points. Tonkin was Melbourne's best, and both Haines and McLean won praise in a disappointing performance. Elsewhere that day, Geelong finished goalless, kicking 18 points against St. Kilda. Round 6, 1919 - Collingwood v Melbourne Saturday, 7 June, 1919 at Victoria Park, Abbotsford Collingwood 3.5.23 8.12.60 11.14.80 16.20.116 Melbourne 2.0.12 3.1.19 7.6.48 8.7.55 Goal kickers Eric Tonkin 2, Bill Allen 1, Jack Connole 1, George Haines 1, Jack House 1, Percy Love 1, Alex Salvado 1 The comeback kids were quickly becoming the whipping boys of the competition although one might have thought otherwise when the players received notice in the rooms at Victoria Park for their game against Collingwood that said "The secretary respectfully requests the players to kick as many goals as possible, but those kicking more than six goals will be ordered off the field for selfishness". Needless to say there was no "selfishness" and the team went down by ten goals. There were however, some signs of improvement but there was little teamwork and Collingwood was simply a much stronger outfit. George Walker was Melbourne's best and Gray was applauded for his kick-ins which often cleared his side out of danger. McKenzie and House were also among the best. Round 7, 1919 - Melbourne v Fitzroy Saturday, 14 June, 1919 at MCG Melbourne 3.2.20 3.5.23 4.6.30 6.6.42 Fitzroy 5.2.32 6.8.44 9.11.65 11.12.78 Goal kickers George Haines 3, Bill Allen 1, Stan Huntington 1, Con Kenney 1 The desperate Redlegs introduced three new players for the game against Fitzroy (one of who just lasted the one game) but it made little difference as the onslaught continued in front of 4,085 fans at the MCG. The Melbourne forward line struggled to score goals while the Maroons' focal point, Bob Merrick kicked eight of their 11 goals. The indefatigable Bill Allen was back to his best in the ruck in his 100th game. Other good players were Baquie, Matthews, Haines, Walker and Lilley. Round 8, 1919 - Melbourne v Geelong Saturday, 21 June at MCG Melbourne 3.2.20 3.3.21 7.6.48 7.10.52 Geelong 1.1.7 6.7.43 8.10.58 10.12.72 Goal kickers Eric Tonkin 2, Bill Allen 1, Stan Huntington 1, Percy Love 1, Herb Matthews 1, Bill McKenzie 1 A truly paltry crowd (even by the standards of the day) of 1,327 came to the MCG to watch the competition's cellar dwellers as eight fought for the right to claim their first premiership points of the season. The Redlegs started the campaign well with the aid of the breeze but were swamped in the second term and eventually lost a lacklustre game by 20 points. Eric Tonkin arrived early in the afternoon after catching a train overnight from Sydney and he had a good game kicking two goals. Debutant Leo Little who had previously played VFL football for the now disbanded University team in 1915 was promising. Round 9, 1919 - Essendon v Melbourne Saturday, 28 June at East Melbourne Essendon 4.3.27 7.10.52 11.14.80 16.17.113 Melbourne 2.2.14 3.3.21 5.6.36 6.8.44 Goal kickers George Haines 1, Jack Huntington 1, Gordon Landy 1, Herb Matthews 1, Alex Salvado 1, Eric Tonkin 1 Essendon's home ground was at nearby East Melbourne and Melbourne, with three more newcomers in the team suffered their biggest defeat at the venue. Ex-Carlton recruit Bill Hore was among the best along with Gray and Haines but the hapless Redlegs were never in the hunt after the first quarter. Round 10, 1919 – Melbourne v St. Kilda Saturday 12 July, 1919 at MCG Melbourne 3.2.20 5.3.33 5.4.34 5.7.37 St. Kilda 2.2.14 3.6.24 5.11.41 6.11.47 Goal kickers Eric Tonkin 2, Jack Baquie 1, George Haines 1, Ivor Warne-Smith 1 The round 10 fixture against St. Kilda was played before a small crowd of 3,483 but was significant on two counts. The home side came closer than ever before of winning it's first game since 1915 and, more significantly, the game marked the debut of Ivor Warne-Smith, arguably one of the greatest Demons ever to grace the football fields. The twenty-one year old Warne-Smith joined Melbourne for eight games and two goals in 1919 but moved to Tasmania in the following year. The true all round sportsman returned to the club in 1925 and had a stellar season in 1926 playing in a premiership and winning the Brownlow Medal, a feat he repeated in 1928. He retired at the end of 1932 by which time he had captain coached the team. Warne-Smith played 146 games for 110 goals. Later in life, he was Chairman of Selectors, helping Norm Smith to create the revived Demons as they began their golden era of the 1950s and 60s. Warne-Smith's debut game was played in blinding rain with strong winds that made play difficult. The conditions helped the home side which found itself in unfamiliar territory when it led by 9 points at half time. However, the Saints dominated the third term to take a seven point lead into the last, and while Melbourne had its opportunities to snatch victory kicking with the wind in the final quarter, it couldn't add to it's half time tally of goals while the visitors goalled at one of their few forward forays to win by 10 points. According to a report in the Football Record, it was so cold that the St Kilda players could not untie their bootlaces or take off their uniforms unaided after the match. For Melbourne, Gray and Armstrong were best while Haines and debutant Warne-Smith impressed. Round 11, 1919 - South Melbourne v Melbourne Saturday, 19 July, 1919 at Lake Oval, Albert Park South Melbourne 2.3.15 6.7.43 9.10.64 13.16.94 Melbourne 0.1.1 1.7.13 1.9.15 2.15.27 Goal kickers Herb Matthews 1, Lou Salvana 1 Harry Brereton was a Melbourne champion who kicked 187 goals in his 85 games between 1909 and 1915 and was the VFL's top goal kicket in 1912 but in his first game since the start of World War 1, he lined up against his former teammates and destroyed them with a six goal haul for South Melbourne. The Swans were dominant all day, leading by five goals at the main break and stretching that out to a 67 point win. Little, McKenzie, Walker and Matthews were best for the Fuschias who had now lost all 10 matches of what was turning into a horror season. Round 12, 1919 - Richmond v Melbourne Saturday, 26 July, 1919 at Punt Road, Richmond Richmond 2.6.18 2.10.22 5.15.45 9.18.72 Melbourne 2.0.12 5.3.33 6.3.39 7.6.48 Goal kickers Alec Farrow 2, Archie Grigg 1, George Haines 1, Charlie Lilley 1, Bill Shelton 1, Ivor Warne-Smith 1 The club was desperate to turn things around and added four more first gamers into the mix for their round 12 clash against the neighbouring Tigers. The move seemed to be an inspired one when the team led by eleven points at half time but Richmond turned things around with 3.3.21 to 0.4.4 for the third term and ran away with the game in the last to record a comfortable victory. The following week's bye could not come quickly enough. Melbourne's best were McKenzie, Shelton, Walker and Matthews. Round 13, 1919 - bye Round 14, 1919 - Melbourne v Carlton Saturday, 16 August, 1919 at MCG Melbourne 0.3.3 0.3.3 3.6.24 5.6.36 Carlton 2.2.14 9.6.60 12.10.82 13.18.96 Goal kickers Lou Salvana 2, Gordon Coulter 1, Con Kenney 1, Herb Matthews 1 Only 3,825 fans were in attendance at the MCG to witness another drubbing, this time at the hands of the Blues who kept the Fuschias goalless for the first half to lead by 57 points at the main interval. With the game decided, the second half was an even tussle with Melbourne going down by 10 goals. Jack Baquie was his team's best along with McKenzie, Boddington and Shelton while McWhinney, Matthews and Warne-Smith also won praise. Round 15, 1919 - Melbourne v Collingwood Saturday, 23 August, 1919 at MCG Melbourne 2.0.12 2.1.13 3.3.21 5.6.36 Collingwood 4.4.28 9.12.66 12.24.96 20.25.145 Goal kickers Con Kenney 2, Percy Love 1, Herb Matthews 1, Eric Tonkin 1 The Magpies were in form and heading towards a top of the ladder finish while the Redlegs were winless. The resulting thrashing was inevitable although few would have predicted how badly things would go for Melbourne. In front of a crowd of 3,885, the team crashed to a 109 point defeat which flattered the team because of Collingwood's inaccuracy in front of goal. Nevertheless, the Magpies' score of 20.25.145 was their highest score ever. Unfortunately for Melbourne, the team had yet to reach rock bottom. Round 16, 1919 - Fitzroy v Melbourne Saturday, 30 August at Brunswick Street, Fitzroy Fitzroy 6.5.41 14.7.91 19.12.126 21.16.142 Melbourne 1.2.8 1.2.8 2.3.15 2.5.17 Goal kickers Eric Chisholm 1, George Haines 1 Melbourne suffered it's biggest loss ever at Brunswick Street in a non-competitive display that yielded it a mere two goals for the day. The Maroons, with Bob Merrick kicking 12 goals (at that stage, the second biggest goal haul in VFL history) finished 125 point winners while the hapless Fuschias booted their lowest score since they kicked 0.8 against South Melbourne in 1912. Round 17, 1919 - Geelong vs Melbourne Saturday, 6 September, 1919 at Corio Oval, Geelong Geelong 5.3.33 5.4.34 9.12.66 14.12.96 Melbourne 0.3.3 1.10.16 2.10.22 6.15.51 Goal kickers Harry Selover 2, Bill Allen 1, George Haines 1, Stan Huntington 1, Leo Little 1 George Haines celebrated his 100th game with an improved performance after a poor opening quarter at Corio Oval against the Pivotonians. Indeed, the half time deficit of three goals could have been much closer had the visitors kicked better than 1.7 to 0.1 in the second term. Geelong proved too strong in the second half to run out 45 point winners. Tonkin, Haines, Allen and Selover were Melbourne's best. Round 18, 1919 - Melbourne vs Essendon Saturday, 13 September, 1919 at MCG Melbourne 1.4.10 1.4.10 2.5.17 4.9.33 Essendon 0.3.3 5.5.35 8.5.53 10.7.67 Goal kickers Eric Chisholm 1, George Haines 1, Jack Huntington 1, Percy Love 1 Melbourne's hopes of ending the season with victory was boosted when it held Essendon goalless in the opening term of their final game. However, the Redlegs failed to score in the second quarter and were four goals in arrears by half time on the way to a 34 point defeat. After a long an arduous season, it was clear that some of the players were already in end of season mode even before the game had started. Legend had it that three of them went for a "long lunch" before the match. One broke a window in a cab on the way to the ground and the three were locked inside until suitable compensation was offered. They did manage to make it in time for the game and be named amongst the best three players! At season's end, this was the ladder:- Team W D L % Pts Collingwood 13 0 3 162.3 52 South Melbourne 12 0 4 158.7 48 Carlton 10 0 6 127.6 40 Richmond 10 0 6 118.2 40 ------------------------------------------------- Fitzroy 9 1 6 125.3 38 Essendon 7 0 9 94.6 28 St. Kilda 7 0 9 70.6 28 Geelong 3 1 12 73.4 14 Melbourne 0 0 16 43.0 0 Collingwood went on to win the premiership after beating Richmond in the grand final. Playing List - 1919 Number Player Games Goals 1 Bill Allen 9 4 2 Eric Tonkin 14 14 3 Percy Love 11 6 4 Bill McKenzie 13 2 5 Bob Love 8 1 6 Herb Matthews 14 6 7 Bill Hore 2 0 7 Reg Gibb 3 0 8 Charlie Lilley 14 1 9 John McMahon 3 0 10 Gordon Coulter 8 2 11 Jack Baquie 14 1 13 Lindsay Nichols 1 0 14 Alec Gray 13 0 15 George Haines 14 15 16 George Walker 10 0 17 Con Kenney 9 5 18 Bob Bodington 4 0 18 Stan Huntington 3 3 19 Eric Chisholm 5 2 19 Allan McLean 5 0 19 Jack Huntington 12 6 20 Art McWhinney 9 0 20 Teddy Johnston 1 1 21 Jack House 15 1 22 Bill Brunier 4 0 23 Alex Salvado 5 2 24 Lou Salvana 6 3 25 Alec Farrow 4 2 25 Howard Richardson 1 0 26 Cyril Hall 9 0 27 Jack Connole 5 2 28 Matt Connors 3 0 28 Jack Evans 1 0 29 Charlie Armstrong 3 0 29 Frank Cummins 1 0 30 Bill Shelton 8 1 31 Leo Little 6 1 32 Archie Grigg 3 1 33 Ivor Warne-Smith 8 2 34 Harry Selover 3 2 35 Dave Elliman 3 0 Unknown Gordon Landy 1 1 Melbourne won its opening round game of 1920 against South Melbourne ending a drought of almost five years going back to round 15 of 1915. Five years later with Warne-Smith back in the fold and a team full of many more new names, the Redlegs were back in the finals. A year later, they won their second premiership against Collingwood. FOOTNOTE: In the 45 seasons that followed 1919, the Melbourne Football Club won 11 premierships, a rate of almost one every four years.

The Melbourne Football Club is doing it tough in 2012 and it was only a fortnight ago that a win against Essendon at the MCG averted the possibility of a ten game losing streak to start the season. Whispering Jack has been doing some research and discovered a year when things were much worse so Demonlanders can relax and ponder about a time when ... IT WAS ONLY ... 1919 The VFL competition was less than two decades old when it was partially interrupted by the First World War. The competition, which had expanded to ten teams in 1908 with the introduction of Richmond and University, was reduced to only four in 1916 when the war was at its height but grew back to eight by 1918. Still missing were Melbourne and University. With the end of hostilities in November, 1918 things started to slowly return to normality. Melbourne was re-admitted but the students, whose pre war record in the VFL had been poor, never returned to the senior competition. Feelers were put out for new clubs and applicants included the Ballarat League, Brunswick, Footscray, Hawthorn, North Melbourne, Prahran and Port Melbourne. For the time being, none of the applicants were accepted. A "second XVIII" competition was introduced with the clubs represented by district teams. Melbourne's last appearance in the competition had realised a long-awaited finals appearance in 1915 (it’s first since 1902) but the club had lost players, casualties of war and retirement, while others had lost their prowess after the long break. The club introduced many new players but 1919 was to prove fruitless and Melbourne went through the season finishing last without a win. The shining light was the debut of Ivor Warne Smith who would go on to win two Brownlow Medals and play in the club's second premiership team in 1926. The club appointed George Haines, a champion rover from Geelong, as its playing coach. He made his debut in round 1 against St. Kilda at the Junction Oval, along with seven others who were playing their first VFL games. Haines, who had changed his name from Heinz because of the anti-German feeling of the day, captain-coached the side in 1919 and remained as a player in the following season. Among those from the club who joined the ranks of the fallen during wartime were respected defender Arthur Mueller "Joe" Pearce who was killed during the landing at Gallipoli. Others who lost their lives were Clifford Burge, Jack Doubleday, Desmond McDonald, Fenley McDonald, Ralph Robertson, Percy Rodriguez and Alfred Williamson. The club was left with an inexperienced line up that was hardly a match for the opposition clubs and, despite some gallant efforts, the Redlegs had to wait until the following season to record the first post war victory after returning to the fold in May of 1919. Round 1, 1919 - St. Kilda v Melbourne Saturday, 3 May, 1919 at Junction Oval, St. Kilda. St. Kilda 3.5.23 7.8.50 9.12.66 12.14.86 Melbourne 2.0.12 3.1.19 4.2.26 9.4.58 Goal kickers George Haines 3, Jack Huntington 2, Gordon Coulter 1, Teddy Johnston 1, Herb Matthews 1, Eric Tonkin 1 St. Kilda took the lead early and by half time led by 31 points. The Saints stretched the lead to 40 points at the last break but Melbourne reduced the deficit by two goals in a final term in which it more than doubled its score. Making their debuts along with Haines who suffered a shoulder injury were Gordon Coulter, Jack House, Con Kenney, Bob Love, Percy Love, John McMahon and Eric Tonkin. Bill McKenzie completed a long wait to play his 100th game and ruckman Bill Allan was Melbourne's best. Round 2, 1919 - Melbourne v South Melbourne Saturday, 10 May, 1919 at MCG Melbourne 0.2.2 2.5.17 3.7.25 3.10.28 South Melbourne 3.7.25 5.10.40 7.13.55 10.19.79 Goal kickers George Haines 1, Percy Love 1, Eric Tonkin 1 Melbourne's return to the MCG was greeted by a crowd of 6,237 in its game against reigning premier South Melbourne who the Fuschias had nudged out of a finals place four years earlier. They had to wait until the second quarter before they would kick their first goal of the new era at their home ground and were soundly thrashed. Still hampered by his shoulder injury, Haines barely made a contribution after the first term. His team's disposal skills were poor, it overused its handball and scored only one goal after half time in a 51 point loss. Allan, McKenzie and Percy Love were the best in a game in which the club introduced another debutant in Cyril Hall. Round 3, 1919 - Melbourne v Richmond Saturday, 17 May, 1919 at MCG Melbourne 2.1.13 4.4.28 4.6.30 7.7.49 Richmond 3.4.22 4.9.33 9.10.64 11.14.80 Goal kickers Eric Tonkin 2, Jack Connole 1, George Haines 1, Jack Huntington 1, Con Kenney 1, Percy Love 1 There were signs of improvement as Melbourne trailed by a mere five points at half time. At that stage, most players were holding their own around the ground but the usually reliable Allan was well beaten in the ruck. The third quarter was a disaster with Richmond piling on 5.1 to 0.2 which was virtually the difference between the teams on the day. McKenzie, Hall and midfielder House were the team's best. Haines returned to form in his roving role and there was some respite ahead for the team with a bye scheduled for the coming weekend. Round 4, 1919 - bye Round 5, 1919 - Carlton v Melbourne Saturday, 31 May at Princes Park, Parkville Carlton 2.2.14 9.4.58 14.8.92 18.15.123 Melbourne 1.3.9 2.4.16 3.4.22 5.4.34 Goal kickers Eric Tonkin 2, Jack Huntington 1, Bob Love 1, Bill McKenzie 1 The week's break proved to be of little value to the team which was thrashed by Carlton after a competitive first quarter. The Blues were relentless for the remainder of the game and it was only due to their forwards failing to hit the target in the final term that the Redlegs managed to avoid a defeat in excess of 100 points. Tonkin was Melbourne's best, and both Haines and McLean won praise in a disappointing performance. Elsewhere that day, Geelong finished goalless, kicking 18 points against St. Kilda. Round 6, 1919 - Collingwood v Melbourne Saturday, 7 June, 1919 at Victoria Park, Abbotsford Collingwood 3.5.23 8.12.60 11.14.80 16.20.116 Melbourne 2.0.12 3.1.19 7.6.48 8.7.55 Goal kickers Eric Tonkin 2, Bill Allen 1, Jack Connole 1, George Haines 1, Jack House 1, Percy Love 1, Alex Salvado 1 The comeback kids were quickly becoming the whipping boys of the competition although one might have thought otherwise when the players received notice in the rooms at Victoria Park for their game against Collingwood that said "The secretary respectfully requests the players to kick as many goals as possible, but those kicking more than six goals will be ordered off the field for selfishness". Needless to say there was no "selfishness" and the team went down by ten goals. There were however, some signs of improvement but there was little teamwork and Collingwood was simply a much stronger outfit. George Walker was Melbourne's best and Gray was applauded for his kick-ins which often cleared his side out of danger. McKenzie and House were also among the best. Round 7, 1919 - Melbourne v Fitzroy Saturday, 14 June, 1919 at MCG Melbourne 3.2.20 3.5.23 4.6.30 6.6.42 Fitzroy 5.2.32 6.8.44 9.11.65 11.12.78 Goal kickers George Haines 3, Bill Allen 1, Stan Huntington 1, Con Kenney 1 The desperate Redlegs introduced three new players for the game against Fitzroy (one of who just lasted the one game) but it made little difference as the onslaught continued in front of 4,085 fans at the MCG. The Melbourne forward line struggled to score goals while the Maroons' focal point, Bob Merrick kicked eight of their 11 goals. The indefatigable Bill Allen was back to his best in the ruck in his 100th game. Other good players were Baquie, Matthews, Haines, Walker and Lilley. Round 8, 1919 - Melbourne v Geelong Saturday, 21 June at MCG Melbourne 3.2.20 3.3.21 7.6.48 7.10.52 Geelong 1.1.7 6.7.43 8.10.58 10.12.72 Goal kickers Eric Tonkin 2, Bill Allen 1, Stan Huntington 1, Percy Love 1, Herb Matthews 1, Bill McKenzie 1 A truly paltry crowd (even by the standards of the day) of 1,327 came to the MCG to watch the competition's cellar dwellers as eight fought for the right to claim their first premiership points of the season. The Redlegs started the campaign well with the aid of the breeze but were swamped in the second term and eventually lost a lacklustre game by 20 points. Eric Tonkin arrived early in the afternoon after catching a train overnight from Sydney and he had a good game kicking two goals. Debutant Leo Little who had previously played VFL football for the now disbanded University team in 1915 was promising. Round 9, 1919 - Essendon v Melbourne Saturday, 28 June at East Melbourne Essendon 4.3.27 7.10.52 11.14.80 16.17.113 Melbourne 2.2.14 3.3.21 5.6.36 6.8.44 Goal kickers George Haines 1, Jack Huntington 1, Gordon Landy 1, Herb Matthews 1, Alex Salvado 1, Eric Tonkin 1 Essendon's home ground was at nearby East Melbourne and Melbourne, with three more newcomers in the team suffered their biggest defeat at the venue. Ex-Carlton recruit Bill Hore was among the best along with Gray and Haines but the hapless Redlegs were never in the hunt after the first quarter. Round 10, 1919 – Melbourne v St. Kilda Saturday 12 July, 1919 at MCG Melbourne 3.2.20 5.3.33 5.4.34 5.7.37 St. Kilda 2.2.14 3.6.24 5.11.41 6.11.47 Goal kickers Eric Tonkin 2, Jack Baquie 1, George Haines 1, Ivor Warne-Smith 1 The round 10 fixture against St. Kilda was played before a small crowd of 3,483 but was significant on two counts. The home side came closer than ever before of winning it's first game since 1915 and, more significantly, the game marked the debut of Ivor Warne-Smith, arguably one of the greatest Demons ever to grace the football fields. The twenty-one year old Warne-Smith joined Melbourne for eight games and two goals in 1919 but moved to Tasmania in the following year. The true all round sportsman returned to the club in 1925 and had a stellar season in 1926 playing in a premiership and winning the Brownlow Medal, a feat he repeated in 1928. He retired at the end of 1932 by which time he had captain coached the team. Warne-Smith played 146 games for 110 goals. Later in life, he was Chairman of Selectors, helping Norm Smith to create the revived Demons as they began their golden era of the 1950s and 60s. Warne-Smith's debut game was played in blinding rain with strong winds that made play difficult. The conditions helped the home side which found itself in unfamiliar territory when it led by 9 points at half time. However, the Saints dominated the third term to take a seven point lead into the last, and while Melbourne had its opportunities to snatch victory kicking with the wind in the final quarter, it couldn't add to it's half time tally of goals while the visitors goalled at one of their few forward forays to win by 10 points. According to a report in the Football Record, it was so cold that the St Kilda players could not untie their bootlaces or take off their uniforms unaided after the match. For Melbourne, Gray and Armstrong were best while Haines and debutant Warne-Smith impressed. Round 11, 1919 - South Melbourne v Melbourne Saturday, 19 July, 1919 at Lake Oval, Albert Park South Melbourne 2.3.15 6.7.43 9.10.64 13.16.94 Melbourne 0.1.1 1.7.13 1.9.15 2.15.27 Goal kickers Herb Matthews 1, Lou Salvana 1 Harry Brereton was a Melbourne champion who kicked 187 goals in his 85 games between 1909 and 1915 and was the VFL's top goal kicket in 1912 but in his first game since the start of World War 1, he lined up against his former teammates and destroyed them with a six goal haul for South Melbourne. The Swans were dominant all day, leading by five goals at the main break and stretching that out to a 67 point win. Little, McKenzie, Walker and Matthews were best for the Fuschias who had now lost all 10 matches of what was turning into a horror season. Round 12, 1919 - Richmond v Melbourne Saturday, 26 July, 1919 at Punt Road, Richmond Richmond 2.6.18 2.10.22 5.15.45 9.18.72 Melbourne 2.0.12 5.3.33 6.3.39 7.6.48 Goal kickers Alec Farrow 2, Archie Grigg 1, George Haines 1, Charlie Lilley 1, Bill Shelton 1, Ivor Warne-Smith 1 The club was desperate to turn things around and added four more first gamers into the mix for their round 12 clash against the neighbouring Tigers. The move seemed to be an inspired one when the team led by eleven points at half time but Richmond turned things around with 3.3.21 to 0.4.4 for the third term and ran away with the game in the last to record a comfortable victory. The following week's bye could not come quickly enough. Melbourne's best were McKenzie, Shelton, Walker and Matthews. Round 13, 1919 - bye Round 14, 1919 - Melbourne v Carlton Saturday, 16 August, 1919 at MCG Melbourne 0.3.3 0.3.3 3.6.24 5.6.36 Carlton 2.2.14 9.6.60 12.10.82 13.18.96 Goal kickers Lou Salvana 2, Gordon Coulter 1, Con Kenney 1, Herb Matthews 1 Only 3,825 fans were in attendance at the MCG to witness another drubbing, this time at the hands of the Blues who kept the Fuschias goalless for the first half to lead by 57 points at the main interval. With the game decided, the second half was an even tussle with Melbourne going down by 10 goals. Jack Baquie was his team's best along with McKenzie, Boddington and Shelton while McWhinney, Matthews and Warne-Smith also won praise. Round 15, 1919 - Melbourne v Collingwood Saturday, 23 August, 1919 at MCG Melbourne 2.0.12 2.1.13 3.3.21 5.6.36 Collingwood 4.4.28 9.12.66 12.24.96 20.25.145 Goal kickers Con Kenney 2, Percy Love 1, Herb Matthews 1, Eric Tonkin 1 The Magpies were in form and heading towards a top of the ladder finish while the Redlegs were winless. The resulting thrashing was inevitable although few would have predicted how badly things would go for Melbourne. In front of a crowd of 3,885, the team crashed to a 109 point defeat which flattered the team because of Collingwood's inaccuracy in front of goal. Nevertheless, the Magpies' score of 20.25.145 was their highest score ever. Unfortunately for Melbourne, the team had yet to reach rock bottom. Round 16, 1919 - Fitzroy v Melbourne Saturday, 30 August at Brunswick Street, Fitzroy Fitzroy 6.5.41 14.7.91 19.12.126 21.16.142 Melbourne 1.2.8 1.2.8 2.3.15 2.5.17 Goal kickers Eric Chisholm 1, George Haines 1 Melbourne suffered it's biggest loss ever at Brunswick Street in a non-competitive display that yielded it a mere two goals for the day. The Maroons, with Bob Merrick kicking 12 goals (at that stage, the second biggest goal haul in VFL history) finished 125 point winners while the hapless Fuschias booted their lowest score since they kicked 0.8 against South Melbourne in 1912. Round 17, 1919 - Geelong vs Melbourne Saturday, 6 September, 1919 at Corio Oval, Geelong Geelong 5.3.33 5.4.34 9.12.66 14.12.96 Melbourne 0.3.3 1.10.16 2.10.22 6.15.51 Goal kickers Harry Selover 2, Bill Allen 1, George Haines 1, Stan Huntington 1, Leo Little 1 George Haines celebrated his 100th game with an improved performance after a poor opening quarter at Corio Oval against the Pivotonians. Indeed, the half time deficit of three goals could have been much closer had the visitors kicked better than 1.7 to 0.1 in the second term. Geelong proved too strong in the second half to run out 45 point winners. Tonkin, Haines, Allen and Selover were Melbourne's best. Round 18, 1919 - Melbourne vs Essendon Saturday, 13 September, 1919 at MCG Melbourne 1.4.10 1.4.10 2.5.17 4.9.33 Essendon 0.3.3 5.5.35 8.5.53 10.7.67 Goal kickers Eric Chisholm 1, George Haines 1, Jack Huntington 1, Percy Love 1 Melbourne's hopes of ending the season with victory was boosted when it held Essendon goalless in the opening term of their final game. However, the Redlegs failed to score in the second quarter and were four goals in arrears by half time on the way to a 34 point defeat. After a long an arduous season, it was clear that some of the players were already in end of season mode even before the game had started. Legend had it that three of them went for a "long lunch" before the match. One broke a window in a cab on the way to the ground and the three were locked inside until suitable compensation was offered. They did manage to make it in time for the game and be named amongst the best three players! At season's end, this was the ladder:- Team W D L % Pts Collingwood 13 0 3 162.3 52 South Melbourne 12 0 4 158.7 48 Carlton 10 0 6 127.6 40 Richmond 10 0 6 118.2 40 ------------------------------------------------- Fitzroy 9 1 6 125.3 38 Essendon 7 0 9 94.6 28 St. Kilda 7 0 9 70.6 28 Geelong 3 1 12 73.4 14 Melbourne 0 0 16 43.0 0 Collingwood went on to win the premiership after beating Richmond in the grand final. Playing List - 1919 Number Player Games Goals 1 Bill Allen 9 4 2 Eric Tonkin 14 14 3 Percy Love 11 6 4 Bill McKenzie 13 2 5 Bob Love 8 1 6 Herb Matthews 14 6 7 Bill Hore 2 0 7 Reg Gibb 3 0 8 Charlie Lilley 14 1 9 John McMahon 3 0 10 Gordon Coulter 8 2 11 Jack Baquie 14 1 13 Lindsay Nichols 1 0 14 Alec Gray 13 0 15 George Haines 14 15 16 George Walker 10 0 17 Con Kenney 9 5 18 Bob Bodington 4 0 18 Stan Huntington 3 3 19 Eric Chisholm 5 2 19 Allan McLean 5 0 19 Jack Huntington 12 6 20 Art McWhinney 9 0 20 Teddy Johnston 1 1 21 Jack House 15 1 22 Bill Brunier 4 0 23 Alex Salvado 5 2 24 Lou Salvana 6 3 25 Alec Farrow 4 2 25 Howard Richardson 1 0 26 Cyril Hall 9 0 27 Jack Connole 5 2 28 Matt Connors 3 0 28 Jack Evans 1 0 29 Charlie Armstrong 3 0 29 Frank Cummins 1 0 30 Bill Shelton 8 1 31 Leo Little 6 1 32 Archie Grigg 3 1 33 Ivor Warne-Smith 8 2 34 Harry Selover 3 2 35 Dave Elliman 3 0 Unknown Gordon Landy 1 1 Melbourne won its opening round game of 1920 against South Melbourne ending a drought of almost five years going back to round 15 of 1915. Five years later with Warne-Smith back in the fold and a team full of many more new names, the Redlegs were back in the finals. A year later, they won their second premiership against Collingwood. FOOTNOTE: In the 45 seasons that followed 1919, the Melbourne Football Club won 11 premierships, a rate of almost one every four years.

YOU CAN'T WIN THEM ALL by The Oracle The mantra concerning the Melbourne Football Club has, since the start of the season been midfield, midfield and more midfield. From the time Simon Black and his cohorts from the Lions sliced open the Demons in the middle of the MCG in Round 1, it's been the same story. Opposition midfields simply have more run, greater smarts and are prepared to work so much harder than their one- dimensional counterparts at Melbourne. The result on Queens Birthday Monday was that Collingwood iced the game in the opening minutes by going bang, bang, bang out of the middle and before the midpoint of the opening term they had a four goal plus lead. Thirty minutes later and into the second term, the Pies had eight on the board, the Dees were still goalless and the smell of 186 was starting to permeate through the nostrils. To its credit, Melbourne managed to regroup and almost work its way back into the contest, kicking three on end before the half time break and moving back to within four goals at stages within the third quarter. Things were not helped by the odd self-inflicted gaffe. Turnovers which lead to easy opposition goals can be heartbreaking but the team persisted and refused to wilt. Faced with a similar picture in 2011, Melbourne sank into the oblivion of a near 15 goal defeat but, at least this time it showed some resistance even after the Collingwood midfield opened the last quarter by going bang, bang, bang again and converting a slightly worrisome 26 point differential into a seven goal lead in the space of less than three minutes, a position which it maintained through the shoot out that ensued for the rest of the game. Collingwood kicked nine straight goals in the final term to record an easy 42–point win. Given that they booted the first eight and were so accurate at the end, the result could have been so much worse for Melbourne whose first half record of 1/10 has been positively underwhelming. The midfield statistics told the story. Collingwood, even without Scott Pendelbury had Dane Swan, returning after two weeks from a hamstring injury, with 42 disposals, eight marks and two goals. I got the impression that during his layoff he might not have showered because the Melbourne players weren't too keen on getting anywhere near him and particularly not between him and the leather. Dayne Beams was almost as prolific with 37 touches, Steele Sidebottom was close behind with 36 possessions and Jarryd Blair had 27 with two goals thrown in for good measure. Melbourne's best midfielder, as usual, was Nathan Jones with 30 and it fell away badly from there. Only Jack Grimes with 25 managed to surpass the 20 possession mark. Jeremy Howe continues to improve in leaps and bounds with his strong marking and two goals a feature for Demon fans. Mitch Clark was dangerous with four goals up forward but there was simply too little in the way of forward line support even though the team notched up its highest score for the season. Nathan Jones (30) and Jack Grimes (25) led the way in terms of possessions, but on the whole it was another pretty disappointing day for Melbourne. Tactically, nothing much that Mark Neeld tried actually worked. Having a couple of men behind the ball seemed counter productive. Of course, if your skills are well behind those of your opponents then you're always going to struggle, especially if the minds of some are weak and tired as well. With half the season gone and no chance of any finals action, it's inevitable that Neeld is going to have to look more and more to the future in the rounds to come. Some of those who lowered their colours badly in this game might never be seen again in Demon colours because whilst it's true that you can't win them all, it's also true that if you can hardly win at all with what you've got, then it's time to ring in the changes. There are some young kids performing impressively at the Casey Scorpions. Some play in the middle and some in key positions. Their time is coming. Melbourne 0.4.4 3.4.22 7.7.49 13.9.87 Collingwood 6.3.39 8.9.57 10.15.75 19.15.129 Goals Melbourne Clark 4 Dunn Howe 2 Blease Magner Rivers Sylvia Trengove Collingwood Sinclair 3 Blair Cloke Fasolo Goldsack Jolly Swan Wellingham 2 Beams Sidebottom Best Melbourne Howe, Grimes, Clark, Jones, McKenzie Collingwood Swan, Beams, Sidebottom, Blair, Bellingham, Goldsack Injuries Melbourne Nil Collingwood Didak (groin) Young (ribs) Changes Melbourne Nil Collingwood Nil Reports Melbourne Nil Collingwood Nil Umpires Stevic Nicholls Bannister Crowd 64,250 at the MCG

YOU CAN'T WIN THEM ALL by The Oracle The mantra concerning the Melbourne Football Club has, since the start of the season been midfield, midfield and more midfield. From the time Simon Black and his cohorts from the Lions sliced open the Demons in the middle of the MCG in Round 1, it's been the same story. Opposition midfields simply have more run, greater smarts and are prepared to work so much harder than their one- dimensional counterparts at Melbourne. The result on Queens Birthday Monday was that Collingwood iced the game in the opening minutes by going bang, bang, bang out of the middle and before the midpoint of the opening term they had a four goal plus lead. Thirty minutes later and into the second term, the Pies had eight on the board, the Dees were still goalless and the smell of 186 was starting to permeate through the nostrils. To its credit, Melbourne managed to regroup and almost work its way back into the contest, kicking three on end before the half time break and moving back to within four goals at stages within the third quarter. Things were not helped by the odd self-inflicted gaffe. Turnovers which lead to easy opposition goals can be heartbreaking but the team persisted and refused to wilt. Faced with a similar picture in 2011, Melbourne sank into the oblivion of a near 15 goal defeat but, at least this time it showed some resistance even after the Collingwood midfield opened the last quarter by going bang, bang, bang again and converting a slightly worrisome 26 point differential into a seven goal lead in the space of less than three minutes, a position which it maintained through the shoot out that ensued for the rest of the game. Collingwood kicked nine straight goals in the final term to record an easy 42–point win. Given that they booted the first eight and were so accurate at the end, the result could have been so much worse for Melbourne whose first half record of 1/10 has been positively underwhelming. The midfield statistics told the story. Collingwood, even without Scott Pendelbury had Dane Swan, returning after two weeks from a hamstring injury, with 42 disposals, eight marks and two goals. I got the impression that during his layoff he might not have showered because the Melbourne players weren't too keen on getting anywhere near him and particularly not between him and the leather. Dayne Beams was almost as prolific with 37 touches, Steele Sidebottom was close behind with 36 possessions and Jarryd Blair had 27 with two goals thrown in for good measure. Melbourne's best midfielder, as usual, was Nathan Jones with 30 and it fell away badly from there. Only Jack Grimes with 25 managed to surpass the 20 possession mark. Jeremy Howe continues to improve in leaps and bounds with his strong marking and two goals a feature for Demon fans. Mitch Clark was dangerous with four goals up forward but there was simply too little in the way of forward line support even though the team notched up its highest score for the season. Nathan Jones (30) and Jack Grimes (25) led the way in terms of possessions, but on the whole it was another pretty disappointing day for Melbourne. Tactically, nothing much that Mark Neeld tried actually worked. Having a couple of men behind the ball seemed counter productive. Of course, if your skills are well behind those of your opponents then you're always going to struggle, especially if the minds of some are weak and tired as well. With half the season gone and no chance of any finals action, it's inevitable that Neeld is going to have to look more and more to the future in the rounds to come. Some of those who lowered their colours badly in this game might never be seen again in Demon colours because whilst it's true that you can't win them all, it's also true that if you can hardly win at all with what you've got, then it's time to ring in the changes. There are some young kids performing impressively at the Casey Scorpions. Some play in the middle and some in key positions. Their time is coming. Melbourne 0.4.4 3.4.22 7.7.49 13.9.87 Collingwood 6.3.39 8.9.57 10.15.75 19.15.129 Goals Melbourne Clark 4 Dunn Howe 2 Blease Magner Rivers Sylvia Trengove Collingwood Sinclair 3 Blair Cloke Fasolo Goldsack Jolly Swan Wellingham 2 Beams Sidebottom Best Melbourne Howe, Grimes, Clark, Jones, McKenzie Collingwood Swan, Beams, Sidebottom, Blair, Bellingham, Goldsack Injuries Melbourne Nil Collingwood Didak (groin) Young (ribs) Changes Melbourne Nil Collingwood Nil Reports Melbourne Nil Collingwood Nil Umpires Stevic Nicholls Bannister Crowd 64,250 at the MCG

PINK RIBBON DAY FOR CASEY by KC from Casey Gray skies, patches of drizzle and a big crowd were the order of the day as the Scorpions returned to Casey Fields for the first time in several weeks for their annual Pink Ribbon Day in aid of breast cancer research. In the end, it was a successful afternoon on both scores with Casey, wearing a predominantly pink strip for the occasion, winning the four premiership points on offer in its game against Collingwood as well as achieving the target of $15,000 and raising public awareness for this very worthwhile charity. The win also moved the home team into equal top position on the Peter Jackson VFL ladder after Port Melbourne's shock defeat down at Geelong as they move into yet another bye next weekend. The Magpies were full of running and had the first two goals on the board within minutes of the opening before Casey responded with four unanswered goals from Stef Martin, Rian McGough, Tom Couch and Lucas Cook. Despite kicking against a slight breeze, there was plenty of run in the legs for the Casey boys and they appeared in control although a late goal by the visitors saw the Scorpions up by just six points at quarter time. Casey was winning in the ruck through Jake Spencer and Martin whose dominance allowed Couch and Aaron Davey to turn it on at ground level. The latter was in scintillating form turning the clock back a few years with his brilliant footwork and pinpoint delivery of the football. The result was a goal feast for Martin and Cook who booted his fourth goal late in the second term. By that time the Scorpions were out to a commanding 37 point lead. Casey was winning everywhere and it surely must have been pleasing for coach Brett Lovett that his VFL listed players were blending in so well with their AFL counterparts and that they were led so admirably by skipper Evan Panozza who is in career best form. Luke Tynan continues to impress and he combined well in defence with brother Josh. Lesser known Scorpions such as Michael Riseley, Matt Fieldsend and Ricky Plummer were all important contributors on the day and underline the improvement that Lovett's coaching has brought to the team. The second half opened in scrappy fashion with both sides struggling to kick goals until Martin put his team up by six goals at the eleven minute mark. With Davey off for the rest of the game and Troy Davis, who had been the dominant defender in the game, off under the blood rule, the momentum of the game changed. The Magpies responded with four unanswered goals (the last a booming 70 metre kick from Paul Seedsman) to narrow the margin to 13 points before the lively Tim Smith marked and kicked a crucial goal on the siren. There were some nervous moments for Scorpion fans as Collingwood opened with the first two goals of the quarter before Smith kicked a steadier but the Pies were not to be denied and replied once more to nudge their way back to a seven point deficit with half of the term gone. Hard nut midfielder Couch, who was recruited from the Magpies' VFL side of last year and hasn't put in a bad game this year, was revelling in the tight going against his former teammates in the latter stages of the game. Josh Tynan finally bobbed up for a relieving goal - the last of the game although several tense minutes elapsed before Smith marked fifteen metres out as the siren sounded. Unfortunately, he played on causing the game to come to an abrupt end and his attempt at a third goal didn't count. What did count however, was Casey's eighth win from nine games, an excellent result from a team whose players were recently shunned by selectors when choosing the VFL representative side and currently missing key players co-skipper Kyle Matthews, Danny Nicholls and Wade Lees through injury. The results show that the future looks bright for the Scorpions who approach the halfway mark of the season in the pink. HOW THE DEMONS FARED Jamie Bennell - as always, looked good at this level and produced some classy patches of play but there wasn't enough intensity in his play to suggest he can step up to be a regular in an AFL side at the moment. Lucas Cook - a commanding presence up forward in the first half when he marked strongly and kicked well for his four goals but was held after that. Far more confident than when he first came to the club. Tom Couch - kept going all day adding grunt to the midfield and his stats for the day bore out his contribution. Combined well with others in the midfield mix, particularly Jordan Gysberts and, during the second quarter, with Aaron Davey. Aaron Davey - turned on a real cameo performance of balanced football and precision kicking. Had 15 disposals in one half of football before being removed from the game to maintain his eligibility for Monday's game if required. Troy Davis - the pick of the tall defenders on the ground and he was undeterred by the fact that he was giving away height and weight to his Magpie opponents. He's another potentially classy key defender who should make the transition to bigger and better things in the next twelve months. Jordan Gysberts - in his first game back after returning from a broken jaw, he showed he was not afraid of throwing himself into the fray and shrugged off any doubts about his ability to make a swift return to the top level. Given his limited game time this year, he was interchanged a fair bit but was a more than useful contributor right through to the end. Kelvin Lawrence - was classy in patches but didn't quite do enough. Stefan Martin - a great game as the back up ruckman to Spencer and was dangerous when he went forward kicking four goals. Jai Sheahan - steady in defence without being as outstanding in his earlier games and he made a couple of errors under pressure. Still remains a very bright prospect Jake Spencer - won the ruck duels against the Magpie tall timber and although his kicking action looks awkward, his disposal was surprisingly effective on the day. Joshua Tynan - a real goer who covers a lot of ground and was in the thick of things for most of the game. Kicked a really important goal at the end to virtually seal the result. Casey Scorpions 4.3.27 9.7.61 11.9.75 13.12.90 Collingwood 3.3.21 4.4.28 8.8.56 11.11.77 Goals Casey Scorpions Cook Martin 4 Smith 2 Couch McGough Tynan Collingwood Boland 3 Farmer Ferraro Hahn Mooney Paine Seedsman Witts Wood Best Casey Scorpions Martin Riseley Spencer Fieldsend Cook Couch Collingwood Sundberg Hine Hellier Farmer Yagmoor Seedsman Final stats winners Couch 27 (10 hard ball gets & 8 tackles) L Tynan 26 Panozza (& 7 tackles) Fieldsend 20 Martin 19 (& 18 hit outs) 2012 AFL Vic Development League Casey Scorpions 2.4.16 5.6.36 5.10.40 6.11.47 Coburg Tigers 3.0.18 5.1.31 7.5.47 10.7.67 Goals Casey Scorpions Galvin Williams 2 Clay Johnson Coburg Tigers Hore 4 Jordan Murphy 2 Robertella Turner Best Casey Scorpions Troutman Rosier Williams Cleven Page Clay Coburg Tigers Venditti Bamblett Duhau Robertella Hore Price

PINK RIBBON DAY FOR CASEY by KC from Casey Gray skies, patches of drizzle and a big crowd were the order of the day as the Scorpions returned to Casey Fields for the first time in several weeks for their annual Pink Ribbon Day in aid of breast cancer research. In the end, it was a successful afternoon on both scores with Casey, wearing a predominantly pink strip for the occasion, winning the four premiership points on offer in its game against Collingwood as well as achieving the target of $15,000 and raising public awareness for this very worthwhile charity. The win also moved the home team into equal top position on the Peter Jackson VFL ladder after Port Melbourne's shock defeat down at Geelong as they move into yet another bye next weekend. The Magpies were full of running and had the first two goals on the board within minutes of the opening before Casey responded with four unanswered goals from Stef Martin, Rian McGough, Tom Couch and Lucas Cook. Despite kicking against a slight breeze, there was plenty of run in the legs for the Casey boys and they appeared in control although a late goal by the visitors saw the Scorpions up by just six points at quarter time. Casey was winning in the ruck through Jake Spencer and Martin whose dominance allowed Couch and Aaron Davey to turn it on at ground level. The latter was in scintillating form turning the clock back a few years with his brilliant footwork and pinpoint delivery of the football. The result was a goal feast for Martin and Cook who booted his fourth goal late in the second term. By that time the Scorpions were out to a commanding 37 point lead. Casey was winning everywhere and it surely must have been pleasing for coach Brett Lovett that his VFL listed players were blending in so well with their AFL counterparts and that they were led so admirably by skipper Evan Panozza who is in career best form. Luke Tynan continues to impress and he combined well in defence with brother Josh. Lesser known Scorpions such as Michael Riseley, Matt Fieldsend and Ricky Plummer were all important contributors on the day and underline the improvement that Lovett's coaching has brought to the team. The second half opened in scrappy fashion with both sides struggling to kick goals until Martin put his team up by six goals at the eleven minute mark. With Davey off for the rest of the game and Troy Davis, who had been the dominant defender in the game, off under the blood rule, the momentum of the game changed. The Magpies responded with four unanswered goals (the last a booming 70 metre kick from Paul Seedsman) to narrow the margin to 13 points before the lively Tim Smith marked and kicked a crucial goal on the siren. There were some nervous moments for Scorpion fans as Collingwood opened with the first two goals of the quarter before Smith kicked a steadier but the Pies were not to be denied and replied once more to nudge their way back to a seven point deficit with half of the term gone. Hard nut midfielder Couch, who was recruited from the Magpies' VFL side of last year and hasn't put in a bad game this year, was revelling in the tight going against his former teammates in the latter stages of the game. Josh Tynan finally bobbed up for a relieving goal - the last of the game although several tense minutes elapsed before Smith marked fifteen metres out as the siren sounded. Unfortunately, he played on causing the game to come to an abrupt end and his attempt at a third goal didn't count. What did count however, was Casey's eighth win from nine games, an excellent result from a team whose players were recently shunned by selectors when choosing the VFL representative side and currently missing key players co-skipper Kyle Matthews, Danny Nicholls and Wade Lees through injury. The results show that the future looks bright for the Scorpions who approach the halfway mark of the season in the pink. HOW THE DEMONS FARED Jamie Bennell - as always, looked good at this level and produced some classy patches of play but there wasn't enough intensity in his play to suggest he can step up to be a regular in an AFL side at the moment. Lucas Cook - a commanding presence up forward in the first half when he marked strongly and kicked well for his four goals but was held after that. Far more confident than when he first came to the club. Tom Couch - kept going all day adding grunt to the midfield and his stats for the day bore out his contribution. Combined well with others in the midfield mix, particularly Jordan Gysberts and, during the second quarter, with Aaron Davey. Aaron Davey - turned on a real cameo performance of balanced football and precision kicking. Had 15 disposals in one half of football before being removed from the game to maintain his eligibility for Monday's game if required. Troy Davis - the pick of the tall defenders on the ground and he was undeterred by the fact that he was giving away height and weight to his Magpie opponents. He's another potentially classy key defender who should make the transition to bigger and better things in the next twelve months. Jordan Gysberts - in his first game back after returning from a broken jaw, he showed he was not afraid of throwing himself into the fray and shrugged off any doubts about his ability to make a swift return to the top level. Given his limited game time this year, he was interchanged a fair bit but was a more than useful contributor right through to the end. Kelvin Lawrence - was classy in patches but didn't quite do enough. Stefan Martin - a great game as the back up ruckman to Spencer and was dangerous when he went forward kicking four goals. Jai Sheahan - steady in defence without being as outstanding in his earlier games and he made a couple of errors under pressure. Still remains a very bright prospect Jake Spencer - won the ruck duels against the Magpie tall timber and although his kicking action looks awkward, his disposal was surprisingly effective on the day. Joshua Tynan - a real goer who covers a lot of ground and was in the thick of things for most of the game. Kicked a really important goal at the end to virtually seal the result. Casey Scorpions 4.3.27 9.7.61 11.9.75 13.12.90 Collingwood 3.3.21 4.4.28 8.8.56 11.11.77 Goals Casey Scorpions Cook Martin 4 Smith 2 Couch McGough Tynan Collingwood Boland 3 Farmer Ferraro Hahn Mooney Paine Seedsman Witts Wood Best Casey Scorpions Martin Riseley Spencer Fieldsend Cook Couch Collingwood Sundberg Hine Hellier Farmer Yagmoor Seedsman Final stats winners Couch 27 (10 hard ball gets & 8 tackles) L Tynan 26 Panozza (& 7 tackles) Fieldsend 20 Martin 19 (& 18 hit outs) 2012 AFL Vic Development League Casey Scorpions 2.4.16 5.6.36 5.10.40 6.11.47 Coburg Tigers 3.0.18 5.1.31 7.5.47 10.7.67 Goals Casey Scorpions Galvin Williams 2 Clay Johnson Coburg Tigers Hore 4 Jordan Murphy 2 Robertella Turner Best Casey Scorpions Troutman Rosier Williams Cleven Page Clay Coburg Tigers Venditti Bamblett Duhau Robertella Hore Price

RIPE FOR THE PICKING? by JVM I spent the better part of Sunday between fighting off a self-inflicted headache from the previous late night's celebrations (which included watching a replay of the game) and fending off congratulatory phone calls from friends and acquaintances who have been giving me a hell of a bagging during what has truly been an annus horribilus for Demon fans. The majority of the callers were Bomber fans and this left me wondering whether they were being nice and magnanimous or alternatively, were they getting in first to avoid an almighty ribbing. The Collingwood fans in my circle were noticeably absent from my list of callers. I suspect they were too busy preparing for the twilight game at the G that evening against Gary Ablett and his team of schoolboys where they would witness the only team in the competition to go 0 and 10. Strangely enough, that lot have managed to go through a half season of abject failure with very little media scrutiny and their coach was even re-appointed without an obligatory visit to the psychiatrist's couch. And nobody even said, "boo"? But I digress. The Bomber fans were totally stunned by the resolute nature of the Demon defence and the intensity and resolve of the group. A few came up with lame excuses citing the fact that the Bombers were ordinary in the game before against GWS and they were heading for a fall - ripe for the picking. Now, Melbourne comes up against the traditional enemy in Collingwood which brushed off the Suns like little insects providing nothing more than a minor irritation. It's leader who wears as many hats as he has chins was, as is customary, spending the days following that win talking up problematic issues within a rival club in a clear attempt to destabilise the coach and his team. No problem there but would he be commenting in similar fashion if it was Nathan Buckley who was under the pump? Buckley is fairly safe for the time being because the Magpies have won the last seven games on the trot, are playing with a confidence that borders on arrogance and have established themselves as premiership favourites. They have reached this point despite some serious injury woes with their champion midfielder, Scott Pendlebury, the latest in a long line of victims. So are they ripe for the picking too? THE GAME Melbourne v. Collingwood at the MCG – Monday 13 June 2011 at 3.15pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall Melbourne 79 wins Collingwood 142 wins 5 draws At the MCG Melbourne 59 wins Collingwood 75 wins 3 draws Since 2000 Melbourne 5 wins Collingwood 9 wins 1 draw The Coaches Neeld 0 wins Buckley 0 wins MEDIA TV - Channel 7 & Fox Footy Channel live at 3.00pm. RADIO - SEN ABC774 3AW Triple M THE BETTING Melbourne to win $8.00 Collingwood to win $1.08 LAST TIME THEY MET Collingwood 19.15.129 defeated Melbourne 6.5.41 Round 12 at the MCG The Demons were fresh off a big Friday night win over the Bombers and, given their excellent record against the Pies in both of their matches in the 2010 season, their was a fair amount of enthusiasm for the contest in the days leading up to the game. This dissipated early in the piece when the Magpie Machine applied the press and the Dees wilted. The last quarter was a procession of goals all going the way of Collingwood who recorded their biggest win over Melbourne in fourteen years. THE TEAMS MELBOURNE Backs James Sellar Jared Rivers Tom McDonald Half backs Daniel Nicholson Jack Watts James Frawley Centreline Jack Grimes James Magner Cale Morton Half forwards Nathan Jones Colin Garland Colin Sylvia Forwards Jack Trengove Mitch Clark Jeremy Howe Followers Mark Jamar Brent Moloney Jordie McKenzie Interchange Sam Blease Lynden Dunn Brad Green Luke Tapscott Emergencies Matthew Bate Aaron Davey Joel Macdonald In James Frawley Out Joel Macdonald COLLINGWOOD Backs Chris Tarrant Nathan Brown Heritier O'Brien Half backs Martin Clarke Nick Maxwell Marley Williams Centreline Jarryd Blair Dale Thomas Simon Buckley Half forwards Ben Sinclair Chris Dawes Alex Fasolo Forwards Tyson Goldsack Travis Cloke Dayne Beams Interchange Alan Didak Jamie Elliot Sharrod Wellingham Tom Young Emergencies Paul Seedsman Kirk Ugle Cameron Wood In Darren Jolly Dane Swan Chris Tarrant Out Scott Pendlebury (leg) Kirk Ugle Cameron Wood Umpires M.Stevic (9) M.Nicholls (15) J.Bannister (33) B.Hosking (16) UNLEASHING THE GENIE by JVM Has Mark Neeld been playing around with our heads? The thought came to me when I studied the replay of last Saturday night’s triumphal victory over Essendon and I noticed such a stark difference between the way the team played the game in comparison to its early season performances. Back in round one against Brisbane, they played it hard in the first half and were only a bee’s diaphragm short behind the Lions at the main break. A great deal of the play was being directed towards the flanks and the team was rather one-dimensional in its forward movement. If it didn’t hit the big bloke (Clark) who was often being double teamed in the marking duels, the ball would be repulsed easily. After half time in particular, the Brisbane midfield, led by a rampant Simon Black took control in the heat of the afternoon while their counterparts virtually waved the white flag. They seemingly were unable to run and spread to combat the effectiveness of their opponents. The result was a disaster. In between round one and ten a lot of bad things happened but in the past couple of games there has been a discernible lift in the intent of the players and suddenly, against Essendon, they won the possession count and played with confidence and flair for four quarters. The result was a victory over a team that would otherwise be sitting on top of the AFL ladder. It was as if someone had unleashed the genie from the bottle - a triumph. Of course Bomber fans will tell you that they lost because they were awful, they were sloppy, the conditions were bad and they kicked badly but that doesn’t give enough credit to the strength of Melbourne’s defensive play or the fact that, for the first time this year, they had more than a single effective attacking target. We don’t know yet whether they’ve completely turned the corner but a win is a win is a win. The question now is whether they can repeat the dose against the Magpies and no doubt many would simply laugh at this suggestion. Collingwood is coming off seven successive wins and is, along with the Eagles, the form team of the competition at the moment. And they might be without Scott Pendlebury who has a cracked tibia but they welcome back a handy replacement in Brownlow Medallist Dane Swan – available after a hamstring injury - as well as Chris Tarrant and Darren Jolly. You might recall that the Pies were so cocky about the equivalent fixture last year that the sent Swan off for a couple of week’s R and R in Arizona before he came back and destroyed all before him to win the Charlie. One advantage that Melbourne has is that Mark Neeld should have full knowledge of the workings of the Collingwood midfield. The big question mark is whether he knows how to shut them down because many others have tried and failed in that task. Guy McKenna couldn’t come close even with one midfielder who equalled the world possession record of 53 so the Demons have their work cut out for them. In any event, I don’t think the Demons are ready yet for the back to back stuff and most of us will be happy to see another gritty, determined performance that sees them finish within five goals of the traditional enemy. Collingwood by 29 points.

After we beat Essendon last year, we were quietly confident about the Queens Birthday fixture. After all ... they had a few great midfielders out and we made no change. MELBOURNE Backs Dan Nicholson James Frawley Joel Macdonald Half backs Cale Morton Jared Rivers James Strauss Centrelin Tom Scully Brent Moloney Liam Jurrah Half forwards Jeremy Howe Jack Watts Jordan Gysberts Forwards Jamie Bennell Colin Sylvia Brad Green Followers Stef Martin Jack Trengove Jordie McKenzie Interchange Michael Evans Max Gawn Neville Jetta Nathan Jones Emergencies Clint Bartram Matthew Bate Ricky Petterd No change COLLINGWOOD Backs Leon Davis Ben Reid Heritier O'Brien Half backs Alan Toovey Nick Maxwell Heath Shaw Centreline Tyson Goldsack Steele Sidebottom Sharrod Wellingham Half forwards Chris Tarrant Chris Dawes Andrew Krakouer Forwards Alan Didak Travis Cloke Leigh Brown Followers Cameron Wood Scott Pendlebury Luke Ball Interchange (from) Jarryd Blair Simon Buckley Alex Fasolo John McCarthy Emergencies Brad Dick Luke Rounds Tom Young In Jarryd Blair Simon Buckley Alex Fasolo Out Dayne Beams (foot) Dane Swan (soreness) Dale Thomas (suspended)

Nathan Jones has topped the ton before the half way mark and is the biiiiigggg leader. A good battle going on for second and third ... 107 Nathan Jones 64 Mitch Clark 62 James Magner 61 Jared Rivers 57 Jack Watts 37 Jeremy Howe 34 Jordie McKenzie 29 James Frawley 26 Matthew Bate 24 Jack Grimes 21 Sam Blease 20 Colin Garland 19 Cale Morton 16 Tom McDonald 15 Clint Bartram Jack Trengove 9 Rohan Bail 4 Stef Martin 3 Joel Macdonald Brent Moloney 2 Lynden Dunn Dan Nicholson 1 Aaron Davey James Sellar

YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH !!!!! by The Oracle The strange thing about this game was that it was one of the five that, even before the season began, I had pencilled in for a Melbourne win in the first half of the season. The way it worked, the team would then come home with a wet sail in the latter half of the season to fall into the finals in Mark Neeld's debut season. My plan never included a criminal prosecution levelled against a leading player, injuries and loss of form, racism scandals, the loss of a major sponsor whose CEO used his Facebook page as a hate site or the death of the club President on the eve of the season. I didn't really expect the coach and the football department to be subjected to such viscious and sustained attacks on his ability or character as we've seen over the past several weeks and it is for that reason that I'm glad that he tasted his maiden AFL victory as a coach this week against a premiership contender that would have occupied top spot on the table but for the result of this game. The win means a lot but it's not the be all and end all and this is only the start of the journey for Mark Neeld and the Melbourne Football Club. There are a thousand more miles to travel but the win marks the club's first and most significant milestone - the erasure of the "bruise free" tag with which the team was tarnished in the past, first privately among the ranks of AFL players and then publicly after a shameful performance at the MCG last year against Carlton. You can mark down the date of June 2, 2012 as the day when Neeld's team finally put together four quarters when they attacked low and hard, where they played tight accountable football in the packs and worried Essendon out of the four premiership points on offer for the night. It wasn't pretty at any time and certainly not at the start of proceedings when the Bombers dominated but, apart from the opening goal of the match, they struggled for accuracy when they could have easily had it in the bag. But Melbourne was stoic. It's young leaders Jack Grimes and Jack Trengove brushed aside the criticism that had been harshly thrust at them and led the team with the help of some much improved form from Brent Moloney, the solid Nathan Jones (consistently good under fire all year) and the tough hard nut James Magner and they worked their way into the game and into the unfamiliar territory of a half time lead. The other much maligned Jack was mopping up most of what came his way in the backline as well as freaking out the armchair critics who habitually look for that one piece of play that can be played in super slowmo as an example of why he was undeserving of his status as number one draft pick. For those folk, they should know that Jack Watts is coming on in leaps and bounds and has been playing some bloody good footy lately. Now, Essendon didn't fight it's way into equal premiership favouritism (with about six other teams by the way) for nothing so the push at the beginning of the third term was not unexpected. The Bombers scored the first three goals of the second half and the football world sat back expecting the Dees to collapse in a heap as they have often been doing these days. Melbourne responded initially in much the same way as it had done six days earlier against Carlton. It fought back hard but just struggled in front of goal. Luke Tapscott, normally a thumping kick, failed to score anything from 35 metres out, makeshift key forward Colin Garland's shot went out on the full, Colin Sylvia's shot floated across the face of goals for a point as did a Cale Morton kick a few minutes later. Fair enough, after the Bombers' shocking first half inaccuracy. It finally fell on Mitch Clark to milk a rare forward line free for interference to score the significant goal of the third quarter. His team was only eight points down at the last change and in with a chance. A repeat of last week's no goals to seven was surely not going to happen? It didn't! Colin Sylvia burst out of a packto kick only his second goal for the season and then the unlikely defender turned forward fairytale in the guise of Colin Garland catapulted Melbourne to an 11 point lead with perhaps, ten minutes to go. And what a time for the coach to pull off an inspirational change? We were now sniffing an upset even when Jobe Watson made the difference less than a goal. The thing is Melbourne was now showing exactly what it was being trained to do. It's still early stages but the Demons pressure was intense - several points on the Richter Scale greater than the way it started way back in round one. Fittingly, it was Watts who marshalled the forces and repelled the final Bomber onslaught. Garland missed an opportunity to raise himself to messiah (or at least Buddy) class when he missed a couple of shots from close in before the final siren sounded and we all emitted a gasp of relief, "YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH !!!!!". Melbourne 1.2.8 4.3.27 5.5.35 8.10.58 Essendon 1.5.11 2.9.21 5.13.43 6.16.52 Goals Melbourne Garland 2 Clark Howe Jones Moloney Morton Sylvia Essendon Watson 2 Colyer Davey Hocking Melksham Best Melbourne Watts Grimes Jones Garland Jamar Moloney Essendon Watson Zaharakis Fletcher Davey Injuries Melbourne Sam Blease (hip) Essendon Nil Changes Melbourne James Frawley (foot) by James Sellar Rohan Bail (concussion) by Cale Morton Essendon Cale Hooker (soreness) by Tayte Pears Reports Melbourne Nil Essendon Nil Umpires McBurney Jennings Foot Crowd 42,987 at the MCG

SCORPIONS OVER THE BLUES by KC from Casey The two week break between games had no effect on the Casey Scorpions who had little trouble in dealing with the Northern Blues at Visy Park to run out clear winners by 55 points on Saturday. A highlight of the game was the leadership of Evan Panozza who added to his repertoire by going forward and kicking a couple of goals, the continuing improvement of 2011 reserves best and fairest Luke Tynan in defence and a bright showing from Demon-listed youngsters in rooki Jai Sheahan, Troy Davis and tall forward Lucas Cook who was in strong marking form early, booting three goals in the first half. Casey dominated the early play and scored the game's first three goals. The Blues came back but the Scorps steadied to lead by 14 points at the first break. Kelvin Lawrence opened the second term with a brilliant goal and Casey dominated much of the proceedings scoring four unanswered goals until a late Northern Blues goal left the deficit at six goals by half time. During this period, Panozza was supreme and Davis, Sheahan and a much improved Luke Tynan were impassable. Up forward and around the ground Casey had Cook, Matthew Bate, Ricky Petterd and a seemingly rejuvenated Aaron Davey causing their opponents lots of worries. It was good to see Davey finish the game with two goals and playing with an air of confidence. The Blues lifted their game in the second half but the visitors continued to have all of the answers and by the final break the lead had stretched out to 53 points. Casey continued to make the play early in the final term before the game fizzled out to a dull finish. Coach Brett Lovett who have to be pleased with the performance of his team given the number of withdrawals through injury and to replace players needed to play AFL that evening. The senior team has now taken back second place on the ladder and returns home for the first time since beating North Ballarat by one point on 29 April in round five. The game against Collingwood is the club's annual Pink Ribbon Day Match in aid of the National Breast Cancer Foundation and it is hoped that a figure in excess of last year's number of just under $15,000 can be surpassed. HOW THE DEMONS FARED Matthew Bate - was always in the game and put in a strong performance. Lucas Cook - in strong marking form and delivered three goals in the first half. Tom Couch - another hardworking performance but not as prolific a possession gatherer as in previous weeks. Aaron Davey - played well in what was a good confidence builder for the veteran player. Troy Davis - another very strong game in defence. Jack Fitzpatrick - great pace for a big man but his kicking for goal was awkward and off target. Kelvin Lawrence - kicked a couple of goals but otherwise not prominent. Ricky Petterd - moved well around the forward line and contributed a goal. Jai Sheahan - another classy performance for the youngster who set up attacking moves with great run out of defence. Top possession winner in the game and once again underlined his potential. Jake Spencer - an improved performance in the ruck where he was a clear winner on the day. Casey Scorpions 4.3.27 8.8.56 12.10.82 14.15.99 Northern Blues 2.1.13 3.2.20 4.5.29 6.8.44 Goals Casey Scorpions Cook 3 Bate Lawrence Panozza 2 Davey Fieldsend Fitzpatrick McGough Petterd Northern Blues Mitchell 2 Burgess Jenkins Marcon Visser Best Casey Scorpions Sheahan Panozza Davis J Tynan Davey Cook Northern Blues Marcon Lambert O'Keeffe Bell Visser McInnes Major stats Sheahan 29 Davey 23 Panozza 22 L Tynan 21 Bate 21 AFL Development League Casey Scorpions 3.3.21 7.5.47 10.5.65 14.6.90 Northern Blues 2.2.14 5.3.33 10.5.65 11.7.83 Goals Casey Scorpions Galvin 6 Rosier 2 Bull Clay Johnson McFarlane J Roberts Salton Northern Blues Clark 5 Peterson 2 Coran Coulson Dowse Toman Best Casey Scorpions Rosier Galvin Clay Petropoulos Troutman Hill Northern Blues Toman Clark McCann Valladares Black Lodge

SCORPIONS OVER THE BLUES by KC from Casey The two week break between games had no effect on the Casey Scorpions who had little trouble in dealing with the Northern Blues at Visy Park to run out clear winners by 55 points on Saturday. A highlight of the game was the leadership of Evan Panozza who added to his repertoire by going forward and kicking a couple of goals, the continuing improvement of 2011 reserves best and fairest Luke Tynan in defence and a bright showing from Demon-listed youngsters in rooki Jai Sheahan, Troy Davis and tall forward Lucas Cook who was in strong marking form early, booting three goals in the first half. Casey dominated the early play and scored the game's first three goals. The Blues came back but the Scorps steadied to lead by 14 points at the first break. Kelvin Lawrence opened the second term with a brilliant goal and Casey dominated much of the proceedings scoring four unanswered goals until a late Northern Blues goal left the deficit at six goals by half time. During this period, Panozza was supreme and Davis, Sheahan and a much improved Luke Tynan were impassable. Up forward and around the ground Casey had Cook, Matthew Bate, Ricky Petterd and a seemingly rejuvenated Aaron Davey causing their opponents lots of worries. It was good to see Davey finish the game with two goals and playing with an air of confidence. The Blues lifted their game in the second half but the visitors continued to have all of the answers and by the final break the lead had stretched out to 53 points. Casey continued to make the play early in the final term before the game fizzled out to a dull finish. Coach Brett Lovett who have to be pleased with the performance of his team given the number of withdrawals through injury and to replace players needed to play AFL that evening. The senior team has now taken back second place on the ladder and returns home for the first time since beating North Ballarat by one point on 29 April in round five. The game against Collingwood is the club's annual Pink Ribbon Day Match in aid of the National Breast Cancer Foundation and it is hoped that a figure in excess of last year's number of just under $15,000 can be surpassed. HOW THE DEMONS FARED Matthew Bate - was always in the game and put in a strong performance. Lucas Cook - in strong marking form and delivered three goals in the first half. Tom Couch - another hardworking performance but not as prolific a possession gatherer as in previous weeks. Aaron Davey - played well in what was a good confidence builder for the veteran player. Troy Davis - another very strong game in defence. Jack Fitzpatrick - great pace for a big man but his kicking for goal was awkward and off target. Kelvin Lawrence - kicked a couple of goals but otherwise not prominent. Ricky Petterd - moved well around the forward line and contributed a goal. Jai Sheahan - another classy performance for the youngster who set up attacking moves with great run out of defence. Top possession winner in the game and once again underlined his potential. Jake Spencer - an improved performance in the ruck where he was a clear winner on the day. Casey Scorpions 4.3.27 8.8.56 12.10.82 14.15.99 Northern Blues 2.1.13 3.2.20 4.5.29 6.8.44 Goals Casey Scorpions Cook 3 Bate Lawrence Panozza 2 Davey Fieldsend Fitzpatrick McGough Petterd Northern Blues Mitchell 2 Burgess Jenkins Marcon Visser Best Casey Scorpions Sheahan Panozza Davis J Tynan Davey Cook Northern Blues Marcon Lambert O'Keeffe Bell Visser McInnes Major stats Sheahan 29 Davey 23 Panozza 22 L Tynan 21 Bate 21 AFL Development League Casey Scorpions 3.3.21 7.5.47 10.5.65 14.6.90 Northern Blues 2.2.14 5.3.33 10.5.65 11.7.83 Goals Casey Scorpions Galvin 6 Rosier 2 Bull Clay Johnson McFarlane J Roberts Salton Northern Blues Clark 5 Peterson 2 Coran Coulson Dowse Toman Best Casey Scorpions Rosier Galvin Clay Petropoulos Troutman Hill Northern Blues Toman Clark McCann Valladares Black Lodge

Game's over ... more on post match

So we're still a mathematical possibility?

YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH !!!!! by The Oracle The strange thing about this game was that it was one of the five that, even before the season began, I had pencilled in for a Melbourne win in the first half of the season. The way it worked, the team would then come home with a wet sail in the latter half of the season to fall into the finals in Mark Neeld's debut season. My plan never included a criminal prosecution levelled against a leading player, injuries and loss of form, racism scandals, the loss of a major sponsor whose CEO used his Facebook page as a hate site or the death of the club President on the eve of the season. I didn't really expect the coach and the football department to be subjected to such viscious and sustained attacks on his ability or character as we've seen over the past several weeks and it is for that reason that I'm glad that he tasted his maiden AFL victory as a coach this week against a premiership contender that would have occupied top spot on the table but for the result of this game. The win means a lot but it's not the be all and end all and this is only the start of the journey for Mark Neeld and the Melbourne Football Club. There are a thousand more miles to travel but the win marks the club's first and most significant milestone - the erasure of the "bruise free" tag with which the team was tarnished in the past, first privately among the ranks of AFL players and then publicly after a shameful performance at the MCG last year against Carlton. You can mark down the date of June 2, 2012 as the day when Neeld's team finally put together four quarters when they attacked low and hard, where they played tight accountable football in the packs and worried Essendon out of the four premiership points on offer for the night. It wasn't pretty at any time and certainly not at the start of proceedings when the Bombers dominated but, apart from the opening goal of the match, they struggled for accuracy when they could have easily had it in the bag. But Melbourne was stoic. It's young leaders Jack Grimes and Jack Trengove brushed aside the criticism that had been harshly thrust at them and led the team with the help of some much improved form from Brent Moloney, the solid Nathan Jones (consistently good under fire all year) and the tough hard nut James Magner and they worked their way into the game and into the unfamiliar territory of a half time lead. The other much maligned Jack was mopping up most of what came his way in the backline as well as freaking out the armchair critics who habitually look for that one piece of play that can be played in super slowmo as an example of why he was undeserving of his status as number one draft pick. For those folk, they should know that Jack Watts is coming on in leaps and bounds and has been playing some bloody good footy lately. Now, Essendon didn't fight it's way into equal premiership favouritism (with about six other teams by the way) for nothing so the push at the beginning of the third term was not unexpected. The Bombers scored the first three goals of the second half and the football world sat back expecting the Dees to collapse in a heap as they have often been doing these days. Melbourne responded initially in much the same way as it had done six days earlier against Carlton. It fought back hard but just struggled in front of goal. Luke Tapscott, normally a thumping kick, failed to score anything from 35 metres out, makeshift key forward Colin Garland's shot went out on the full, Colin Sylvia's shot floated across the face of goals for a point as did a Cale Morton kick a few minutes later. Fair enough, after the Bombers' shocking first half inaccuracy. It finally fell on Mitch Clark to milk a rare forward line free for interference to score the significant goal of the third quarter. His team was only eight points down at the last change and in with a chance. A repeat of last week's no goals to seven was surely not going to happen? It didn't! Colin Sylvia burst out of a packto kick only his second goal for the season and then the unlikely defender turned forward fairytale in the guise of Colin Garland catapulted Melbourne to an 11 point lead with perhaps, ten minutes to go. And what a time for the coach to pull off an inspirational change? We were now sniffing an upset even when Jobe Watson made the difference less than a goal. The thing is Melbourne was now showing exactly what it was being trained to do. It's still early stages but the Demons pressure was intense - several points on the Richter Scale greater than the way it started way back in round one. Fittingly, it was Watts who marshalled the forces and repelled the final Bomber onslaught. Garland missed an opportunity to raise himself to messiah (or at least Buddy) class when he missed a couple of shots from close in before the final siren sounded and we all emitted a gasp of relief, "YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH !!!!!". Melbourne 1.2.8 4.3.27 5.5.35 8.10.58 Essendon 1.5.11 2.9.21 5.13.43 6.16.52 Goals Melbourne Garland 2 Clark Howe Jones Moloney Morton Sylvia Essendon Watson 2 Colyer Davey Hocking Melksham Best Melbourne Watts Grimes Jones Garland Jamar Moloney Essendon Watson Zaharakis Fletcher Davey Injuries Melbourne Sam Blease (hip) Essendon Nil Changes Melbourne James Frawley (foot) by James Sellar Rohan Bail (concussion) by Cale Morton Essendon Cale Hooker (soreness) by Tayte Pears Reports Melbourne Nil Essendon Nil Umpires McBurney Jennings Foot Crowd 42,987 at the MCG

Please cast your votes 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1

ENDING THE DAYS OF PAIN by Whispering Jack The media is reporting that one of the Melbourne Football Club's responses to recent intense media criticism in the wake of the team's poor winless record after nine rounds has been to institute a series of meetings for selected supporters where they can question the club chairman Don McLardy, CEO Cam Schwab, Coach Mark Neeld and his assistant Neil Craig on matters relating to all aspects of its performance. I was fortunate enough to be invited to the first of these sessions on Tuesday night and can vouch for the fact that the evening could in no way be described as a "crisis" meeting although that is precisely the impression that many have of the club at present - a club in crisis. It was however, all about the way the club is moving to end the long days of pain it has been experiencing for more than half a decade. From my point of view as a concerned supporter, the one and a half hours were in fact as positive, constructive as they could be in the club's circumstances. The three speakers, McLardy, Neeld and Craig outlined their plans and strategies and made a good fist of reassuring a group of fairly hardnosed supporters that the club is on the right path despite the fact that it sits winless at the foot of the AFL table in a season in which two very young franchises are currently ahead of them (albeit narrowly). I know there are many sceptics but I have to say I was impressed by what the three had to say. McLardy outlined where the club is off the field and this has been well documented. We a positive net asset position despite the loss of a major sponsor. McLardy defended Cameron Schwab and pointed to the red and blueprint which Schwab put together and which has earned praise from the AFL administration. Neeld put together a very impressive presentation. He presented statistics of various indicators to show how his game plan is developing. It's a game plan that's based heavily on defence - not just from back line players but from every position on the field. He pointed out that statistics indicate that only one premiership team in the past three decades hadn't finished in the top four in defensive statistics (Brisbane Lions in 2003 were sixth but in the second half of that season were first). Neeld cited Dean Cox who said the difference between WCE of 2010 and 2011 was that the players adopted and embraced a strongly defensive approach. Needless to say the coach is convinced the tide will turn but it might still take time. Both he and Craig said they were staggered that players were saying they went through their toughest pre season after the new guard took over. They said that in their view, training loads were kept fairly conservatively (to avoid major injuries) and the intensity will be ramped up more during the next pre season. Neeld's view is that many players are brought up with attacking mindsets. The most talented players coming into the TAC Cup system are usually midfielders or forwards. They often remain good attacking players but don't measure up defensively. He found this with many players at Melbourne. He is convinced that the indicators show that his methods are working. Against Carlton, Neeld was happy with the figures both from a defensive and an attacking viewpoint. We were good in a number of areas but during the last quarter when the players were tired, Carlton was able to ramp up the pressure and many of our players reverted to old habits and didn't work hard enough defensively. The easy way to coach would probably have been to follow the same path as Neeld's predecessors, a path that might have brought better results in the short term but would never have given the club a chance to challenge the big boys in much the same way as it struggled against them last year. We all well remember the meaning of "bruise free" and "186" from 2011 even if there were some big moments against the competition's lesser lights. It goes without saying that we can expect changes in the makeup of the team and clearly, the midfield will be the area that gets a fair bit of attention. Craig defended Neeld and his other assistants and pointed to the unbelievable initiation he's had into coaching ranks including the Jurrah situation, the Davey/Mifsud racism furore, the death of Jimmy, the injuries and poor form. Craig also defended Schwab noting that he hadn't seen any sign of interference from the CEO into football department matters (nor McLardy for that matter). Craig was full of praise for the entire leadership group. For all that, Melbourne remains on the bottom of the AFL ladder, and faces Essendon and Collingwood in its next two matches. The days of pain may not be over yet. THE GAME Essendon v Melbourne at the MCG Saturday, 2 June 2012 at 7.40pm. HEAD TO HEAD Overall Essendon 126 wins Melbourne 79 wins 2 draws At the MCG Essendon 63 wins Melbourne 43 wins 1 draw Since 2000: Essendon 10 wins Melbourne 6 wins The Coaches Hird 0 wins Neeld 0 wins MEDIA TV Channel 7 Fox Footy Channel live at 7.30pm RADIO 3AW Triple M THE BETTING Essendon $1.05 to win Melbourne $10.00 to win THE LAST TIME THEY MET Melbourne 15.11.101 defeated Essendon 10.8. 68 at the MCG It was a great night for the Demons as the unexpectedly bested the Bombers in all parts of the ground. It was a big night for Melbourne's young midfielders with Gysberts, Trengove and McKenzie in outstanding form and Scully doing well on return. The problem from Melbourne's point of view is that its goal kickers that night were:- Green 4 Jurrah 3 Jetta Moloney 2 Howe Scully Sylvia Watts How many of these players will be in action on Saturday night? THE TEAMS ESSENDON Backs Cale Hooker Dustin Fletcher Courtenay Dempsey Half backs Ricky Dyson Kyle Hardingham Jake Carlisle Centreline David Zaharakis Jobe Watson Brent Stanton Half forwards Angus Monfries Stewart Crameri Patrick Ryder Forwards Leroy Jetta Michael Hurley Alwyn Davey Followers Tom Bellchambers Ben Howlett Heath Hocking Interchange Travis Colyer Sam Lonergan Nathan Lovett-Murray Melksham Emergencies David Hille Tayte Pears Henry Slattery In Dustin Fletcher Kyle Hardingham Leroy Jetta Out Mark McVeigh Tayte Pears Henry Slattery MELBOURNE Backs James Frawley Jared Rivers Tom McDonald Half backs Jack Trengove Jack Watts Colin Garland Centreline Jack Grimes James Magner Nathan Jones Half forwards Rohan Bail Mitch Clark Joel Macdonald Forwards Jeremy Howe Brad Green Luke Tapscott Followers Mark Jamar Brent Moloney Jordie McKenzie Interchange Sam Blease Lynden Dunn Daniel Nicholson Colin Sylvia Emergencies Matthew Bate Jamie Bennell James Sellar In Joel Macdonald Colin Sylvia Out Jamie Bennell James Sellar THE TROUBLES by Whispering Jack It's hard to fathom that twelve months down the track from their last meeting that the two combatants in this game would be at almost polar opposites to each other and that Essendon would be starting as such an odds on favourite to win. The Bombers are sitting in equal top position on the ladder with just one loss for the season (by a single point to Collingwood on Anzac Day) while the Demons have lost their first nine matches of the season. That's enough to make it a lay down misere that an Essendon brimming with confidence will win and win easily and that's how I'm predicting the game to pan out. Part of the question why is already explained above in some shape or form. The type of game that is being instilled into the Melbourne team is radically different to that which applied in past years and the team is not yet ready in terms of make up and fitness to conquer top eight teams in full flight. In last year's encounter, we caught a glimpse of a better Melbourne midfield. It was headed by Brent Moloney who won the club's best and fairest and polled 19 Brownlow votes. Beamer's form has been well down on that and he would be very lucky to have polled a vote at all to this stage of the season. But the better midfielders that night included Jordan Gysberts, Jack Trengove, Jordie McKenzie and Tom Scully, who all racked up good numbers on their possession counts. Two of those players haven't played this year. Gysberts is injured and Scully jumped ship. The so called "compensation" for the latter won't kick in for a while. Other potential young midfielders on the list also languish with injuries and loss of form. So the club's all important midfield has taken a hit just at the time when it's most needed and much development time is being lost. But if the midfield has taken a hit then there's also the matter of the attack. Even with the changes that Neeld's defensive approach entails, the end game is always to score ... at least more than the opposition in any given game. So here is something that the club's harshest critics seem to have missed. Last year, Melbourne's top three goalkickers were:- • Liam Jurrah 40 goals • Brad Green 37 goals • Colin Sylvia 25 goals That's 102 goals between the club's three most attacking playmakers. These players alone directly contributed almost five goals per game between them and I dare say would have been responsible for setting up a few more goals to others on a weekly basis. It's not unreasonable that we should have expected this trio, Mitch Clark and perhaps Ricky Petterd as well, to do most of the team's scoring. Alas, after nine matches we have had very little from the players we might have otherwise expected to contribute to the scoreboard. Instead, we have this:- • Liam Jurrah 0 goals • Brad Green 2 goals • Colin Sylvia 1 goal Now, if you take the three top goalkicking forwards as completely out of the equation as the above figures indicate, it's not likely that a young team with a completely new style of play to learn is going to show very much, particularly if the midfield is also performing at well below its best. Sure, you might say it's the coach's role to get the best out of his players and that will certainly be the case in the medium to long term but after nine games in these circumstances, there's is no reason to do anything other than to cut him some slack. The troubles are by no means over but there needs to be a much greater understanding of Neeld and his team's plight. When it all starts to click the results will be quite dramatic; the club will be in a much better place and the days of pain will be over. But, I don't think we can expect that to happen this week. Essendon by 34 points.

ENDING THE DAYS OF PAIN by Whispering Jack The media is reporting that one of the Melbourne Football Club's responses to recent intense media criticism in the wake of the team's poor winless record after nine rounds has been to institute a series of meetings for selected supporters where they can question the club chairman Don McLardy, CEO Cam Schwab, Coach Mark Neeld and his assistant Neil Craig on matters relating to all aspects of its performance. I was fortunate enough to be invited to the first of these sessions on Tuesday night and can vouch for the fact that the evening could in no way be described as a "crisis" meeting although that is precisely the impression that many have of the club at present - a club in crisis. It was however, all about the way the club is moving to end the long days of pain it has been experiencing for more than half a decade. From my point of view as a concerned supporter, the one and a half hours were in fact as positive, constructive as they could be in the club's circumstances. The three speakers, McLardy, Neeld and Craig outlined their plans and strategies and made a good fist of reassuring a group of fairly hardnosed supporters that the club is on the right path despite the fact that it sits winless at the foot of the AFL table in a season in which two very young franchises are currently ahead of them (albeit narrowly). I know there are many sceptics but I have to say I was impressed by what the three had to say. McLardy outlined where the club is off the field and this has been well documented. We a positive net asset position despite the loss of a major sponsor. McLardy defended Cameron Schwab and pointed to the red and blueprint which Schwab put together and which has earned praise from the AFL administration. Neeld put together a very impressive presentation. He presented statistics of various indicators to show how his game plan is developing. It's a game plan that's based heavily on defence - not just from back line players but from every position on the field. He pointed out that statistics indicate that only one premiership team in the past three decades hadn't finished in the top four in defensive statistics (Brisbane Lions in 2003 were sixth but in the second half of that season were first). Neeld cited Dean Cox who said the difference between WCE of 2010 and 2011 was that the players adopted and embraced a strongly defensive approach. Needless to say the coach is convinced the tide will turn but it might still take time. Both he and Craig said they were staggered that players were saying they went through their toughest pre season after the new guard took over. They said that in their view, training loads were kept fairly conservatively (to avoid major injuries) and the intensity will be ramped up more during the next pre season. Neeld's view is that many players are brought up with attacking mindsets. The most talented players coming into the TAC Cup system are usually midfielders or forwards. They often remain good attacking players but don't measure up defensively. He found this with many players at Melbourne. He is convinced that the indicators show that his methods are working. Against Carlton, Neeld was happy with the figures both from a defensive and an attacking viewpoint. We were good in a number of areas but during the last quarter when the players were tired, Carlton was able to ramp up the pressure and many of our players reverted to old habits and didn't work hard enough defensively. The easy way to coach would probably have been to follow the same path as Neeld's predecessors, a path that might have brought better results in the short term but would never have given the club a chance to challenge the big boys in much the same way as it struggled against them last year. We all well remember the meaning of "bruise free" and "186" from 2011 even if there were some big moments against the competition's lesser lights. It goes without saying that we can expect changes in the makeup of the team and clearly, the midfield will be the area that gets a fair bit of attention. Craig defended Neeld and his other assistants and pointed to the unbelievable initiation he's had into coaching ranks including the Jurrah situation, the Davey/Mifsud racism furore, the death of Jimmy, the injuries and poor form. Craig also defended Schwab noting that he hadn't seen any sign of interference from the CEO into football department matters (nor McLardy for that matter). Craig was full of praise for the entire leadership group. For all that, Melbourne remains on the bottom of the AFL ladder, and faces Essendon and Collingwood in its next two matches. The days of pain may not be over yet. THE GAME Essendon v Melbourne at the MCG Saturday, 2 June 2012 at 7.40pm. HEAD TO HEAD Overall Essendon 126 wins Melbourne 79 wins 2 draws At the MCG Essendon 63 wins Melbourne 43 wins 1 draw Since 2000: Essendon 10 wins Melbourne 6 wins The Coaches Hird 0 wins Neeld 0 wins MEDIA TV Channel 7 Fox Footy Channel live at 7.30pm RADIO 3AW Triple M THE BETTING Essendon $1.05 to win Melbourne $10.00 to win THE LAST TIME THEY MET Melbourne 15.11.101 defeated Essendon 10.8. 68 at the MCG It was a great night for the Demons as the unexpectedly bested the Bombers in all parts of the ground. It was a big night for Melbourne's young midfielders with Gysberts, Trengove and McKenzie in outstanding form and Scully doing well on return. The problem from Melbourne's point of view is that its goal kickers that night were:- Green 4 Jurrah 3 Jetta Moloney 2 Howe Scully Sylvia Watts How many of these players will be in action on Saturday night? THE TEAMS ESSENDON Backs Cale Hooker Dustin Fletcher Courtenay Dempsey Half backs Ricky Dyson Kyle Hardingham Jake Carlisle Centreline David Zaharakis Jobe Watson Brent Stanton Half forwards Angus Monfries Stewart Crameri Patrick Ryder Forwards Leroy Jetta Michael Hurley Alwyn Davey Followers Tom Bellchambers Ben Howlett Heath Hocking Interchange Travis Colyer Sam Lonergan Nathan Lovett-Murray Melksham Emergencies David Hille Tayte Pears Henry Slattery In Dustin Fletcher Kyle Hardingham Leroy Jetta Out Mark McVeigh Tayte Pears Henry Slattery MELBOURNE Backs James Frawley Jared Rivers Tom McDonald Half backs Jack Trengove Jack Watts Colin Garland Centreline Jack Grimes James Magner Nathan Jones Half forwards Rohan Bail Mitch Clark Joel Macdonald Forwards Jeremy Howe Brad Green Luke Tapscott Followers Mark Jamar Brent Moloney Jordie McKenzie Interchange Sam Blease Lynden Dunn Daniel Nicholson Colin Sylvia Emergencies Matthew Bate Jamie Bennell James Sellar In Joel Macdonald Colin Sylvia Out Jamie Bennell James Sellar THE TROUBLES by Whispering Jack It's hard to fathom that twelve months down the track from their last meeting that the two combatants in this game would be at almost polar opposites to each other and that Essendon would be starting as such an odds on favourite to win. The Bombers are sitting in equal top position on the ladder with just one loss for the season (by a single point to Collingwood on Anzac Day) while the Demons have lost their first nine matches of the season. That's enough to make it a lay down misere that an Essendon brimming with confidence will win and win easily and that's how I'm predicting the game to pan out. Part of the question why is already explained above in some shape or form. The type of game that is being instilled into the Melbourne team is radically different to that which applied in past years and the team is not yet ready in terms of make up and fitness to conquer top eight teams in full flight. In last year's encounter, we caught a glimpse of a better Melbourne midfield. It was headed by Brent Moloney who won the club's best and fairest and polled 19 Brownlow votes. Beamer's form has been well down on that and he would be very lucky to have polled a vote at all to this stage of the season. But the better midfielders that night included Jordan Gysberts, Jack Trengove, Jordie McKenzie and Tom Scully, who all racked up good numbers on their possession counts. Two of those players haven't played this year. Gysberts is injured and Scully jumped ship. The so called "compensation" for the latter won't kick in for a while. Other potential young midfielders on the list also languish with injuries and loss of form. So the club's all important midfield has taken a hit just at the time when it's most needed and much development time is being lost. But if the midfield has taken a hit then there's also the matter of the attack. Even with the changes that Neeld's defensive approach entails, the end game is always to score ... at least more than the opposition in any given game. So here is something that the club's harshest critics seem to have missed. Last year, Melbourne's top three goalkickers were:- • Liam Jurrah 40 goals • Brad Green 37 goals • Colin Sylvia 25 goals That's 102 goals between the club's three most attacking playmakers. These players alone directly contributed almost five goals per game between them and I dare say would have been responsible for setting up a few more goals to others on a weekly basis. It's not unreasonable that we should have expected this trio, Mitch Clark and perhaps Ricky Petterd as well, to do most of the team's scoring. Alas, after nine matches we have had very little from the players we might have otherwise expected to contribute to the scoreboard. Instead, we have this:- • Liam Jurrah 0 goals • Brad Green 2 goals • Colin Sylvia 1 goal Now, if you take the three top goalkicking forwards as completely out of the equation as the above figures indicate, it's not likely that a young team with a completely new style of play to learn is going to show very much, particularly if the midfield is also performing at well below its best. Sure, you might say it's the coach's role to get the best out of his players and that will certainly be the case in the medium to long term but after nine games in these circumstances, there's is no reason to do anything other than to cut him some slack. The troubles are by no means over but there needs to be a much greater understanding of Neeld and his team's plight. When it all starts to click the results will be quite dramatic; the club will be in a much better place and the days of pain will be over. But, I don't think we can expect that to happen this week. Essendon by 34 points.

Crazy, I know but we beat the Bombers when nobody expected - ESSENDON Backs Kyle Hardingham Cale Hooker Dustin Fletcher Half backs Henry Slattery David Myers Nathan Lovett-Murray Centreline Leroy Jetta Brent Stanton Travis Colyer Half forwards Jake Melksham Patrick Ryder David Zaharakis Forwards Angus Monfries David Hill Stewart Crameri Followers Tom Bellchambers Ben Howlett Mark McVeigh Interchange Alex Brown Dyson Heppell Michael Hibberd Sam Lonergan Emergencies Alwyn Davey Kyle Reimers Andrew Welsh MELBOURNE Backs James Frawley Jared Rivers Joel Macdonald Half backs Tom Scully Jack Watts James Strauss Centreline Jordan Gysberts Brent Moloney Jack Trengove Half forwards Cale Morton Colin Sylvia Jeremy Howe Forwards Max Gawn Brad Green Jamie Bennell Followers Stef Martin Nathan Jones Jordie McKenzie Interchange Liam Jurrah Neville Jetta Michael Evans Daniel Nicholson Emergencies Matthew Bate Sam Blease Tom McDonald In Max Gawn Jeremy Howe Tom Scully James Strauss Jack Trengove Out Matthew Bate Addam Maric Michael Newton (foot) Ricky Petterd Matthew Warnock New Max Gawn (Sandringham Dragons) Jeremy Howe (Hobart)