Demonland

by JVM and Sam the Stats Man The Melbourne Football Club is at the crossroads as far as its 150th Anniversary Year is concerned. We are three rounds into the new season and the Demons are sitting in last place on a 0 and 3 record but we've been in that place before. In both of the past two seasons, Melbourne had the worst of all possible beginnings to their premiership campaigns but with significantly different outcomes. I defer to our resident Statistician, Sam the Stats Man to take you through those horror starts and to give a statistical insight into what might happen next: In 2006, the club was at a low ebb after opening with three defeats including a 19 point loss at Telstra Dome to the eventual wooden spooner, Carlton and a soul destroying 47 point loss at the same venue to the Bullies. The results were - Round 1 2006 Melbourne 10.12.72 lost to Carlton 13.15.93 Round 2 2006 Western Bulldogs 20.17.137 defeated Melbourne 12.18.90 Round 3 2006 Melbourne 14.13.97 lost to Adelaide 15.12.101 The ladder after Round 3 showed the Bulldogs on top (3-0), Adelaide in sixth place (2-1) and Carlton ninth (1-2). Melbourne was in 15th place with a percentage of 78.0 and ahead only of Richmond. Things looked bleak because the Demons' next game was an away fixture against Sydney but, against the odds, they turned things around and won a thriller by 5 points. They won their next four before losing by 22 points to eventual premiers, the Eagles at Subiaco which was the venue of their next defeat against Fremantle in Round 16. In the interim, they had won 11 out of 12 games. A 51 point victory over the Bulldogs in their return game at the MCG had the Demons well placed in third position but they lost Aaron Davey, Travis Johnstone and Byron Pickett to injury and fell again Carlton the following week. Wracked by injuries, the team limped into the finals and managed to win one against the Saints in a game where Brock McLean came of age, before falling at Subiaco in the following week's semi final. The end result was a fifth placing - the highest of all Victorian based teams that year. The injury curse continued into 2007 when the team once again made a poor start - Round 1 2007 Melbourne 9.8.62 lost to St. Kilda 13.15.93 Round 2 2007 Hawthorn 17.14.116 defeated Melbourne 14.10.94 Round 3 2007 Melbourne 8.9.57 lost to Geelong 15.19.109 All three of Melbourne's opponents were in the top eight on 2 - 1 records: the Cats were 2nd, the Saints 6th and the Hawks were 8th. The Demons were last with a percentage of 67.0. The horror run with injury persisted and there was almost no light in the tunnel although things were looking better with two consecutive wins in Rounds 10 and 11 against Adelaide (the club's ice-breaker for the season) and Collingwood. The club finished in 14th place after the farcical final round game in which Carlton "tanked" in order to win the notorious "Kreuzer Cup". And so we come to 2008 and statistically, Melbourne's start has been even worse than in 2006 and 2007 - Round 1 2007 Hawthorn 23.16.154 defeated Melbourne 6.14.50 Round 2 2007 Melbourne 9.12.66 lost to Western Bulldogs 24.17.161 Round 3 2007 Geelong defeated 16.16.112 defeated Melbourne 12.10.82 This time however, there is little doubting that the Demons have been provided with a tough initiation for their new coach. All three of the opponents to date are undefeated and naturally, they occupy the top three spots on the ladder. Melbourne is last with a measly percentage of 46.4 and hasn't won a quarter of football let alone a whole game. Statistically, there's very little to suggest that the Dees are going anywhere in season 2008 but to the very foot of the table although there are some small glimmers of hope. The result against Geelong was pleasing in that the team improved by at least 10 goals on what might have been the anticipated result in view of its two earlier shellackings. Despite the loss of Paul Johnson with a broken hand, the general trend as far as injuries are concerned is turning around markedly. Every week since the start of the season, the club's playing ranks have been strengthened through the return of key players after injury. Two weeks ago it was Clint Bartram, Lynden Dunn and Colin Sylvia, last week it was Jared Rivers and this week it's Matty Whelan. The number of experienced games missing through injury from players of higher value to the team is dropping at a rapid rate and that means the team's results have to get better. Every week so far, the club has increased by an increment of three, the number of goals it has kicked in a game - from 6, to 9, to 12. It's not beyond the bounds of statistical probability therefore to predict a 15 goals score line for the Demons against North this week which, based on the stats of all games played so far, should see them produce some winning quarters of football at last. There's a strong probability that a further improvement of that proportion will see them fall in by a narrow margin - say 5 points which is the same as the team's winning margin in 2006 against Sydney in the equivalent round. This should start to see a turn around in Melbourne's season, perhaps in the same way as that famous game at the SCG turned its fortunes around two years ago. I'm 50% sure of that! So that's the statistical analysis and, though it probably doesn't mean much, it shows that there's still hope even when you're at 0 and 3. The challenge of course, is to start winning games and that's another ball game altogether. That ball game starts on Saturday. THE GAME North Melbourne v Melbourne at MCG – Saturday 12 April 2008 at 2:10pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall North Melbourne 61 wins Melbourne 83 wins 1 draw At the MCG North Melbourne 30 wins Melbourne 54 wins Since 2000 North Melbourne 5 wins Melbourne 7 wins The Coaches Laidley 0 wins Bailey 0 wins MEDIA TV Fox Sports 1 RADIO SEN 774ABC THE BETTING North Melbourne to win $1.25 Melbourne to win $3.55 LAST TIME THEY MET North Melbourne 19.12.126 d Melbourne 9.8.62, Round 16, 2007, at Telstra Dome This game will be remembered by Melbourne fans for one reason and one reason only. It was the night when Michael Newton soared through the stratosphere and landed on the Telstra Dome turf to claim mark of the year. Every other aspect of this game is shrouded in dense fog and has been erased from the memory banks. THE TEAMS NORTH MELBOURNE Backs Josh Gibson Michael Firrito Drew Petrie Half Backs Daniel Pratt Shannon Watt Jess Smith Centreline Daniel Wells Adam Simpson Ed Lower Half Forwards Nathan Thompson Aaron Edwards Brent Harvey Forwards Ben Ross Corey Jones Matt Campbell Followers Hamish McIntosh Brady Rawlings Daniel Harris Interchange Sam Power Shannon Grant Lindsay Thomas Leigh Brown Emergencies Leigh Harding Eddie Sansbury Gavin Urquhart In Ed Lower Ben Ross Jess Smith Out David Hale (quad) Leigh Harding Andrew Swallow (both omitted) New Ben Ross (Gippsland U18) MELBOURNE Backs Matthew Whelan Nathan Carroll Jared Rivers Half Backs Paul Wheatley Brad Miller Daniel Bell Centreline Brad Green Brock McLean Clint Bartram Half Forwards Cameron Bruce Russell Robertson Colin Sylvia Forwards Aaron Davey David Neitz Austin Wonaeamirri Followers Jeff White James McDonald Nathan Jones Interchange Mark Jamar Chris Johnson Lynden Dunn Cale Morton Emergencies James Frawley Colin Garland Brent Moloney In Whelan Jamar Out Colin Garland (omitted) Paul Johnson (hand) Field umpires TBA ... WHEN YOU'RE ON THE BOTTOM I had a bit of a giggle this week when I read a preview of a game involving a certain AFL team (not Melbourne) that remains without a victory at this juncture. The reason why they weren't winning was (and I kid you not) is that they weren't able to kick a winning score. Go figure? I must admit however, that from Melbourne's viewpoint, the same thing applies. If you're only averaging nine goals a game, it's unlikely that you're going to come home with the four points. This means that the coaching department need to take a long hard look at both the midfield, its supply to the forward line and the forwards themselves. The performance of the midfield last week was a great improvement on the two opening rounds and hence, the improved result. However, things could have been even better had the forward line shown a similar improvement. The key to Melbourne's improvement therefore, is whether its forward line can respond and start performing as expected. Looking around at the other AFL clubs, you find some formidable tall forwards who really have a lot to offer in terms of their potency and the capacity to destroy opposition defences. The reigning premiers have Mooney and Hawkins, the Hawks have Franklin and Roughhead, the Saints Riewoldt and Justin Koschitzke (plus the G Train). On their form to date, the Demons suffer by comparison - Neitz and Robertson have only three and five goals respectively for the season to date. The two have been stalwarts in the forward line and even though it might be argued that the deliver into their region hasn't been too flash, they haven't looked dangerous at any stage this season. Three of Robbo's goals came late in the Hawthorn game when the massacre had already taken place. Both players are on notice and the pressure will be on them to perform this week. Is that a lot to ask of two blokes with more than 500 games experience between them? The competing clubs started the season poorly. North Melbourne's opening round defeat of 55 points at the hands of Essendon was nowhere near as pathetic as Melbourne's 104 point drubbing at the hands of Hawthorn but the Bombers' 99 point defeat to Geelong the following week put that in its perspective. The Kangaroos were lucky enough to come up against a rudderless Richmond in Round 2 but it was last week, against Hawthorn, that saw them really come back to the form expected from them. To lead the rampaging hawks for all but 6 minutes of the game was an exceptional effort although the last few minutes of the game would have been disappointing. Similarly, the gloss was taken off Melbourne's improved form last week by some lapses in red time when kicking with the aid of the wind in the first and third quarters. In any event, both teams are playing with far more confidence than they did in Round 1 and the result of this game might well devolve on whether they can continue that trend this week. I have a hunch that Melbourne has greater scope for improvement in this area than North Melbourne but it still might not be enough to get the Demons off the bottom. On reflection, I think I'll have to disagree with our stats man and select North Melbourne to win by a margin of 15 points in what will, for the Demons of 2008, be a real thriller.

JVM is doing this week's match preview and has supplied the following selected sides for the teams when they met last time in Round 16 2007 - the Kangaroos had a comfortable victory. KANGAROOS Backs Shannon Watt Michael Firrito Daniel Pratt Half Backs Glenn Archer Jesse Smith Scott McMahon Centreline Adam Simpson Brady Rawlings Kasey Green Half Forwards Brent Harvey David Hale Shannon Grant Forwards Corey Jones Drew Petrie Djaran Whyman Followers Hamish McIntosh Daniel Harris Andrew Swallow Interchange Leigh Brown Ed Lower Eddie Sansbury Jess Sinclair Emergencies Leigh Adams Leigh Aaron Edwards Lindsay Thomas MELBOURNE Backs Daniel Ward Nathan Carroll James Frawley Half Backs Paul Wheatley Brad Miller Nathan Brown Centreline Brad Green James McDonald Clint Bizzell Half Forwards Simon Godfrey Russell Robertson Matthew Bate Forwards Colin Sylvia David Neitz Paul Johnson Followers Jeff White Brock McLean Nathan Jones Interchange Simon Buckley Chris Johnson Brent Moloney Michael Newton Emergencies Lynden Dunn Colin Garland Ben Holland

Is North Melbourne in Round 4 of 2008 at the MCG any more difficult a proposition than Sydney in Round 4 of 2006 at the SCG?

And now a pat on the back to our own Whispering Jack who was the first on the net to mention our Aussie (although we're not sure yet about the spelling of his surname). It happened way back in November 2006 when he wrote about the boredom of the off season in THE END OF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT: November 18 2006 "The Tiwi Islanders might not be in AFL star class but they do play such an exciting, running game that it's often mind boggling. And what great cult heroes they're throwing up for the sparse audiences of this little known television station - names that roll off the commentators' tongues like Simon Munkara, Ephram Tipungwuti, Norman Pangirimini, Rupert Pupungameri, Thomas Simon and exciting youngsters Roy Farmer and Austin Wonaeamirra." In posts yesterday, Demonlanders were trying to compare Cale Morton with some of the AFL's stars. It might be a bit early yet but comparisons are being with Hird and Pavlich. WJ said way back in July last year that his play was "reminiscent of James Hird" - THE WILD COLONIAL BOY . He also mentioned Jack Grimes whose placement on the long term injury list allowed the Demons to play Aussie and another Territorian, Cyril Rioli also got a gig (unfortunately, the Hawks got him!) - 15 July 2007 "West Australia's outstanding carnival threw up a few real contenders who could upset the equation of a Northern Knights quinella on draft day. The most obvious improver in the rankings was Larke Medal winner Cale Morton, brother of West Coast's Mitch and Hawthorn's Jarryd. The 17 year old is a tall midfielder at 192cm and is all class. I couldn't detect any weaknesses in his play which was reminiscent of James Hird. The Bomber champion was a bargain when selected at pick # 79 in the 1990 National Draft but Morton won't come so cheap. He is certain to push his way into the top three and could even go at number one - he's that good! "Another player who could figure high in the selections would be Vic Metro skipper Jack Grimes who is a well balanced midfielder and an outstanding leader who has good hands. I've also been told that one can't overlook Tasmanians Tom Collier and Tom Bellchambers or NT's Cyril Rioli." Read about it first on Demonland ...

Scoop Junior has arrived back in Melbourne and his best players are posted in ON THE ROAD BACK With the votes of Geddy Lee and Destroy08 and with our special game rating system, Paul Johnson has retained a slender leader in the Demonland POTY with Brock McLean and Paul Wheatley breathing down his neck. 14.504 Paul Johnson 14.149 Brock McLean 13.764 Paul Wheatley 11.391 Cameron Bruce 10.616 Cale Morton 7.380 Nathan Carroll 4.550 Nathan Jones 4.100 Jeff White 2.925 Brent Moloney 2.770 Brad Miller 2.196 Austin Wonaemirri 2.050 James McDonald 0.732 Clint Bartram 0.650 Colin Garland 0.325 Simon Buckley 0.325 Brad Green

ON THE ROAD BACK by Scoop Junior The trip back up the highway after an outing at Skilled Stadium often an enjoyable one. This ground that is regularly the location of some of Melbourne's poorest performances yesetrday witnessed its best under new coach Dean Bailey. The result was the same as every other competitive match the Demons have played in this year, but this time there was some genuine reason for optimism (as well as a genuine reason to stay beyond three quarter time). While the drive home was in no way joyous, at least Melbourne fans could be proud of their team's effort against the odds. The match began in a fashion not totally unexpected. Melbourne came out hard and fired up after two disgraceful performances while Geelong was inevitably thinking the game would be a walk in the park. Three quick goals unsettled the locals and sprung the Cats into action. Their cause was greatly assisted however by some of the horrendous Demon errors that have been on show far too often in season 2008. Nathan Carroll’s attempted rushed behind was at best a schoolboy error and at worst, well let's not go there, while Nathan Jones’ errant kick across half back gifted Geelong another easy goal. The Cats led by a goal at quarter time, which was a blow to a Melbourne side that had worked hard and played the better football of the first term. As Geelong started to wrest control in the middle and hit the scoreboard early in the second term, it appeared as though the floodgates were about to open. But unlike previous rounds, the Demons held firm and worked their way back. With the defence holding steady, Cameron Bruce, Brad Miller and Lynden Dunn found the big sticks and the Dees only trailed by 17 points at half time. By that time, the small contingent of Demon fans on hand had already seen their team’s best performance yet for the season, though that only underlines how poor Rounds 1 and 2 were. We were resigned to the fact that a solid half of footy against the reigning premiers was probably all we were going to see for the day. However, Melbourne did not intend to follow the script and began the second half like the first, closing to within five points midway through the term thanks partly to two neat goals from Cale Morton. Sensing the boilover of the century, Geelong lifted a cog, rallying late in the term to secure a comfortable four-goal advantage at the last change. In truth, the Demons never really looked like hauling in the Cats but they refused to lie down in the last quarter. A couple of times it seemed as though the home side would run away with a big win but the Dees scrapped it out, kicked a few late goals and kept the margin to a respectable 30 points. While it is another loss and the Demons now sit 0-3, for the first time this year there were some real positives to take out of a game. In fact, more than just a few. Brock McLean returned to form with an excellent performance. His first half was exceptional, gathering 22 possessions, most of them in the heat of the action, before Cameron Ling shut him down in the second half. He was smarter with his ball use this week, dishing off when under pressure rather than trying to break tackles. His hard work at the stoppages kept the ball rolling and helped ensure a competitive display from the Demons. Paul Wheatley played a good game rebounding off the wing and half back. His run and long kicking were features of his game but he did make a few errors which led to Geelong goals. Wheatley’s style suits the modern game and he really should be reaching the peak of his career. He needs to produce more of these types of games rather than them being mere flashes in the pan. Cameron Bruce was another terrific performer, nullifying the dangerous Steve Johnson and running off him to not only link up with team mates but also kick three goals. Bruce is without doubt one of the better one-on-one players in the AFL – he rarely gets beaten in such contests. With the added abilities to read the play and know when to leave his man, Bruce really is ideally sited for a defensive role against mid-sized forwards. I believe his best footy is off a half back flank. Probably the biggest surprise packet for the day (other than the final margin) was Paul Johnson, whose improvement continues each week. Johnson has always been a big man with good little man skills and apart from Dean Cox you would rarely find a ruckman with such clean hands below his knees and pinpoint foot skills. These were on show down at Geelong, as well as strong overhead marking and competitive ruckwork, aspects of Johnson’s game that have let him down in the past. With his rising confidence, Johnson is getting more and more involved in matches and is starting to make more of a an impact. His form has been a rare highlight for the Demons so far this year. The other big positive was the impressive performances of first-year players – first gamer Austin Wonaeamirri and first round draft selection Cale Morton. Aussie displayed a great appetite for the contest and his chasing and harassment helped provide improved forward pressure. He is very clean below his knees and is calm and composed with the ball in hand. Most importantly, he makes good decisions and executes well. He doesn’t have the raw pace and sheer excitement of Aaron Davey, but appears to have more grunt and will hopefully prove a handy small forward for the side. Morton is a natural footballer and displays incredible awareness for such a young player. Like Aussie, he is composed when in possession and makes sound decisions. This bloke has the class; he just needs to put on a hell of a lot of weight. He does need to improve his attack on the ball but this should come with added strength and experience. The return of Jared Rivers was another positive, his calming presence just makes the back line look so much more settled. Clint Bartram displayed some of the form of 2006 with his hard running and tackling a highlight. And the game style was vastly improved, with Melbourne making better use of handball, running in numbers and generally making better decisions. In the end though, as Bailey said, his team lost the game and now sits at 0-3. Despite the encouraging signs, there was still plenty to tear the hair out about (at least for the fans if not the coach). Some of the skill execution at times was woeful, with the Demons missing targets 15 metres away and kicking the ball out on the full despite a lack of pressure from the opposition. Against a quality side like Geelong, you get punished for such mistakes. Russell Robertson's season continues to stall. While delivery to the forward line has been poor, Robbo is becoming too one-dimensional and the fact that players these days need to be able to move around, run and play different roles means that he must be on thin ice on the selection front. Jeff White worked hard and found plenty of the ball but made too many errors for a senior, experienced player. With Johnson’s form, he needs to step up to retain the number one ruck title. Colin Garland is young and inexperienced, but like Issac Weetra he is clearly not ready for AFL football. He seems unsure of himself, doesn't know when to go and when to hold back and just doesn’t have any presence out on the ground. He needs to gain some confidence at a lower level. But without doubt the biggest disappointment of the day for mine was Colin Sylvia. The bloke who was taken at pick three in 2003 has delivered very little in his time at the club. His career is five years in, he had a good pre-season and should be starting to become a more than dependable player for the club but he's anything but that. He simply doesn't work hard enough to get into space or in close around the stoppages, which means his disposal count is always around the 10-15 mark which is simply not good enough for a player of his talents. He only seems to be interested when the threat of a fight breaks out. Someone needs to tell Col to pull his finger out because his career is going nowhere fast. His attitude seems to be a problem and perhaps he needs some time down at Sandy to think about his future. I would challenge him to step up next week against North but if he fails to perform again then he can spend some time in the VFL. What will be interesting is whether this was a flash in the pan competitive performance or whether the Demons are on the road back to resembling a senior professional football side. There's really no excuse not to put in that sort of effort week in, week out. North Melbourne will be another challenging game next week, but if the team can play with the same attitude and keep improving its style of football, then it can regain its lost respect. If that happens then supporters can at least be proud of their team, look to the future with some sense of optimism and perhaps the club might even be able to emulate its feats of two years ago when it picked itself off the bottom after a poor 0-3 start and took part in the finals. Geelong 4.4.28 8.11.59 13.14.82 16.16.112 Melbourne 3.4.22 6.6.42 10.8.68 12.10.82 Goals Geelong Hawkins 5 Johnson Ling Mooney 2 Ablett Blake Chapman Milburn Stokes Melbourne Bruce 3 Dunn Morton 2 Green Miller Neitz Wheatley White Best Geelong Corey Bartel Hawkins Ling Chapman Taylor Melbourne Bruce McLean Wheatley P Johnson Morton Bartram Injuries Geelong Nil Melbourne Nil Reports Nil Umpires Wenn Sully Ryan Official crowd 23,569 at Skilled Stadium.

by Scoop Junior The trip back up the highway after an outing at Skilled Stadium often an enjoyable one. This ground that is regularly the location of some of Melbourne's poorest performances yesetrday witnessed its best under new coach Dean Bailey. The result was the same as every other competitive match the Demons have played in this year, but this time there was some genuine reason for optimism (as well as a genuine reason to stay beyond three quarter time). While the drive home was in no way joyous, at least Melbourne fans could be proud of their team's effort against the odds. The match began in a fashion not totally unexpected. Melbourne came out hard and fired up after two disgraceful performances while Geelong was inevitably thinking the game would be a walk in the park. Three quick goals unsettled the locals and sprung the Cats into action. Their cause was greatly assisted however by some of the horrendous Demon errors that have been on show far too often in season 2008. Nathan Carroll’s attempted rushed behind was at best a schoolboy error and at worst, well let's not go there, while Nathan Jones’ errant kick across half back gifted Geelong another easy goal. The Cats led by a goal at quarter time, which was a blow to a Melbourne side that had worked hard and played the better football of the first term. As Geelong started to wrest control in the middle and hit the scoreboard early in the second term, it appeared as though the floodgates were about to open. But unlike previous rounds, the Demons held firm and worked their way back. With the defence holding steady, Cameron Bruce, Brad Miller and Lynden Dunn found the big sticks and the Dees only trailed by 17 points at half time. By that time, the small contingent of Demon fans on hand had already seen their team’s best performance yet for the season, though that only underlines how poor Rounds 1 and 2 were. We were resigned to the fact that a solid half of footy against the reigning premiers was probably all we were going to see for the day. However, Melbourne did not intend to follow the script and began the second half like the first, closing to within five points midway through the term thanks partly to two neat goals from Cale Morton. Sensing the boilover of the century, Geelong lifted a cog, rallying late in the term to secure a comfortable four-goal advantage at the last change. In truth, the Demons never really looked like hauling in the Cats but they refused to lie down in the last quarter. A couple of times it seemed as though the home side would run away with a big win but the Dees scrapped it out, kicked a few late goals and kept the margin to a respectable 30 points. While it is another loss and the Demons now sit 0-3, for the first time this year there were some real positives to take out of a game. In fact, more than just a few. Brock McLean returned to form with an excellent performance. His first half was exceptional, gathering 22 possessions, most of them in the heat of the action, before Cameron Ling shut him down in the second half. He was smarter with his ball use this week, dishing off when under pressure rather than trying to break tackles. His hard work at the stoppages kept the ball rolling and helped ensure a competitive display from the Demons. Paul Wheatley played a good game rebounding off the wing and half back. His run and long kicking were features of his game but he did make a few errors which led to Geelong goals. Wheatley’s style suits the modern game and he really should be reaching the peak of his career. He needs to produce more of these types of games rather than them being mere flashes in the pan. Cameron Bruce was another terrific performer, nullifying the dangerous Steve Johnson and running off him to not only link up with team mates but also kick three goals. Bruce is without doubt one of the better one-on-one players in the AFL – he rarely gets beaten in such contests. With the added abilities to read the play and know when to leave his man, Bruce really is ideally sited for a defensive role against mid-sized forwards. I believe his best footy is off a half back flank. Probably the biggest surprise packet for the day (other than the final margin) was Paul Johnson, whose improvement continues each week. Johnson has always been a big man with good little man skills and apart from Dean Cox you would rarely find a ruckman with such clean hands below his knees and pinpoint foot skills. These were on show down at Geelong, as well as strong overhead marking and competitive ruckwork, aspects of Johnson’s game that have let him down in the past. With his rising confidence, Johnson is getting more and more involved in matches and is starting to make more of a an impact. His form has been a rare highlight for the Demons so far this year. The other big positive was the impressive performances of first-year players – first gamer Austin Wonaeamirri and first round draft selection Cale Morton. Aussie displayed a great appetite for the contest and his chasing and harassment helped provide improved forward pressure. He is very clean below his knees and is calm and composed with the ball in hand. Most importantly, he makes good decisions and executes well. He doesn’t have the raw pace and sheer excitement of Aaron Davey, but appears to have more grunt and will hopefully prove a handy small forward for the side. Morton is a natural footballer and displays incredible awareness for such a young player. Like Aussie, he is composed when in possession and makes sound decisions. This bloke has the class; he just needs to put on a hell of a lot of weight. He does need to improve his attack on the ball but this should come with added strength and experience. The return of Jared Rivers was another positive, his calming presence just makes the back line look so much more settled. Clint Bartram displayed some of the form of 2006 with his hard running and tackling a highlight. And the game style was vastly improved, with Melbourne making better use of handball, running in numbers and generally making better decisions. In the end though, as Bailey said, his team lost the game and now sits at 0-3. Despite the encouraging signs, there was still plenty to tear the hair out about (at least for the fans if not the coach). Some of the skill execution at times was woeful, with the Demons missing targets 15 metres away and kicking the ball out on the full despite a lack of pressure from the opposition. Against a quality side like Geelong, you get punished for such mistakes. Russell Robertson's season continues to stall. While delivery to the forward line has been poor, Robbo is becoming too one-dimensional and the fact that players these days need to be able to move around, run and play different roles means that he must be on thin ice on the selection front. Jeff White worked hard and found plenty of the ball but made too many errors for a senior, experienced player. With Johnson’s form, he needs to step up to retain the number one ruck title. Colin Garland is young and inexperienced, but like Issac Weetra he is clearly not ready for AFL football. He seems unsure of himself, doesn't know when to go and when to hold back and just doesn’t have any presence out on the ground. He needs to gain some confidence at a lower level. But without doubt the biggest disappointment of the day for mine was Colin Sylvia. The bloke who was taken at pick three in 2003 has delivered very little in his time at the club. His career is five years in, he had a good pre-season and should be starting to become a more than dependable player for the club but he's anything but that. He simply doesn't work hard enough to get into space or in close around the stoppages, which means his disposal count is always around the 10-15 mark which is simply not good enough for a player of his talents. He only seems to be interested when the threat of a fight breaks out. Someone needs to tell Col to pull his finger out because his career is going nowhere fast. His attitude seems to be a problem and perhaps he needs some time down at Sandy to think about his future. I would challenge him to step up next week against North but if he fails to perform again then he can spend some time in the VFL. What will be interesting is whether this was a flash in the pan competitive performance or whether the Demons are on the road back to resembling a senior professional football side. There's really no excuse not to put in that sort of effort week in, week out. North Melbourne will be another challenging game next week, but if the team can play with the same attitude and keep improving its style of football, then it can regain its lost respect. If that happens then supporters can at least be proud of their team, look to the future with some sense of optimism and perhaps the club might even be able to emulate its feats of two years ago when it picked itself off the bottom after a poor 0-3 start and took part in the finals. Geelong 4.4.28 8.11.59 13.14.82 16.16.112 Melbourne 3.4.22 6.6.42 10.8.68 12.10.82 Goals Geelong Hawkins 5 Johnson Ling Mooney 2 Ablett Blake Chapman Milburn Stokes Melbourne Bruce 3 Dunn Morton 2 Green Miller Neitz Wheatley White Best Geelong Corey Bartel Hawkins Ling Chapman Taylor Melbourne Bruce McLean Wheatley P Johnson Morton Bartram Injuries Geelong Nil Melbourne Nil Reports Nil Umpires Wenn Sully Ryan Official crowd 23,569 at Skilled Stadium.

Alpha33 and Whispering Jack lead at the end of Round 3 but the leaders are closely bunched up ... 20 Alpha33 20 Whispering_Jack 19 barpen 19 deanox 19 Demonland 19 No Cigar2 19 The Natural 18 petejh2000 18 Pinball_Wizard 18 rjhrjh 18 Scoop Junior 18 Tim - Go Dees 17 achirnside 17 aronbrandon 17 belzebub59 17 deesthisyear 17 DeMoNiC 17 mo64 17 mpinnell 17 old man rivers 17 Super_Slater 17 The Little Devils 16 BigKev Demon 16 bl3281 16 Davey's sugar daddy 16 great_gatsby 16 Kieranbj 16 slamevil 15 Clyde_Cabbie 15 DEE32 15 glamorizeme 14 BrockMclean 14 CarnTheDees 14 Dappadan 14 DeeReaming 14 demonsflag555657 14 Edorion 14 KrazyJay78 14 stelioss 13 dee'luded 13 Joe_Gutnick64 13 paliosiana 12 -FitZ^ 12 thegoldenmonkey

Votes this week will be given by Scoop Junior who actually was at Skilled Stadium today and who file his match report at some stage soon and two others ... Cast your votes now! Percentage weighting for this week is .7321.

LATE RALLY STOPS THE ZEBRAS by Barry from Beach Road VFL Rivalry Round saw one of the competition's strongest rivalries, that of Sandringham and Port Melbourne, and they fought out a fantastic battle at North Port on Saturday with the home side getting up by a solitary point after snatching the lead in dying moments of the game. Conditions were good for football and Sandy kicked the opening goal but the boys from the Borough were soon on top and looked like taking the game away from the visitors with five unanswered goals before two late goals to the Zebras including one from a free after the siren to Shane Valenti saw them trailing by 12 points at the first break. Port opened the second term strongly but, with Jamar holding sway in the ruck and new skipper Peter Summers together with livewire Valenti and Ezra Poyas leading the way at ground level, Sandringham fought back into the game and took control. Rod Crowe and Nick Sautner were well on top in the key forward positions and the Zebra defence, led by Chris Lamb, Andy Biddlecombe and Matthew Whelan were repelling all attacks. Sandy went into half time leading by a goal but looking well in the ascendency. There was a lot of pushing and shoving as the teams were making their way off the ground at the main break and it threatened to get ugly for a split second but the players eventually dispersed for a well earned break. The third quarter is known as the premiership quarter and while Sandringham held sway for most of this period, its inaccuracy in front of goal ended up costing it dearly. Sautner missed a couple of easy shots but the Zebras seemed to have the game firmly in their control with a nice goal from Tomi Johnston on the run. Sandy had kicked away to lead by 14 points midway through the term and was looking the goods. The turning point however, may well have come when youngster Sam Monaghan picked up a loose ball in the goal square and kicked truly but it was adjudged to have been touched off the boot for a point. Port immediately played on and moved the ball forward for a goal with little pressure and in a matter of seconds. In the context of the game it was a massive goal and it gave the Borough a sniff. As the players went into the final huddle the home side was only 11 points in arrears and still with a chance to win. The Zebras looked well in control in the first half of the final term as the teams went goal for goal and the visitors seemed to be just one goal away from breaking the game open. Unfortunately, they paid a heavy price for some undisciplined acts, gave away a couple of fifty metre penalties and allowed the Borough back into the game. During this frenetic period, Sautner was reported for allegedly charging an opponent. With Stef Martin required on the ball late in the game, the Port forwards were able to take some strong marks and they capitalised kicking two late goals to hit the front in the time on period. The final two or three nerve wracking moments passed with both sides desperately trying to penetrate their half forward lines but to no avail as far as the Zebras were concerned and the siren sounded to give Port the narrowest of victories in a game fittingly described as the best of the VFL’s rivalry round. After two rounds the competition is tightly bunched and the club will be desperate to atone for the disappointment of Saturday's narrow loss as it takes on another rival from the other side of the bay in Frankston next Sunday at the Trevor Barker Beach Road Oval. HOW THE DEMONS FARED The selectors were limited under the VFL's 12:10 rule which applies when teams affiliated with AFL clubs play against stand alone VFL clubs. Sandy was restricted further by the non-appearance of a handful of players named in the team, presumably either injured or on stand-by for Melbourne's clash with Geelong. As a result, Matthew Bate, Jace Bode, Brent Moloney and Michael Newton were missing from this game. Simon Buckley – nothing special from the youngster who made his fair share of mistakes but kept plugging away and tried hard. A couple of his kicks were smothered because he took too long to make a decision as to what to do with the ball (one of them late in the final quarter when a long kick might have saved the game). Despite that he is on a steep learning curve, is well worth persevering with. He should get more opportunities at the higher level. Kyle Cheney - started on the interchange and showed some promise with limited opportunities on the ground. A typical red headed hard nut who seems keen to learn and would have benefited from playing alongside a seasoned defender like Matthew Whelan. James Frawley - a promising display in defence. He was prepared to back himself and while he also committed some errors he showed good football smarts. There is every possibility that he will become a key defender of the highest quality in time. Mark Jamar - led the rucks and played reasonably well but did not dominate around the ground as one would have expected from him. Stefan Martin - a solid tall backman who marked strongly and cleared well. He went into the ruck later in the game when Meesen came off with an injury and looks a player of the future. As a tall defender of the type so sorely lacking at Melbourne, Martin is developing nicely for one who is coming off a basketball background and if he can improve his kicking, he could be an asset at the highest level. Addam Maric - used in more of a midfield role and was in and out of the game all afternoon. Showed some clever skills but needs to get involved in the game a bit more. John Meesen – it's hard to work out where Meesen is at in terms of whether he has a future at AFL level. He was just average when in the ruck and didn't really impose himself on the game. His best word was done when up forward but he was injured in the second half. Shane Valenti – a real ball magnet who put his team back in the game with a lively display on the ball and was also dangerous near goal. Close to his team's best and could be headed for a Liston Trophy. Matthew Warnock – steady in defence but made a crucial error when he gobbed off at the umpire late in the game after a soft free was awarded against him resulting in a late Port Melbourne goal. Isaac Weetra – did one or two nice things but was otherwise lost at sea and struggled. Matthew Whelan – returned to the Wheels of old with a classic best on ground display in defence. He was cool, calm, safe and sure and set up many attacking moves from half back. Should be back in the red and blue next week. Adem Yze – kicked a nice curling goal early that was reminiscent of the old days but he really had no real influence on the game and was just a shadow of his former self. Unfortunately, the Oooze is starting to look more and more like that champion boxer who's been in one fight too many. Port Melbourne 6.2.38 9.4.58 13.5.83 17.7.109 Sandringham 4.1.25 10.4.64 14.10.94 16.12.108 Goals Port Melbourne Bonaddio Cotchett 3 Cain 2 Dalton Fanning Nahas Pearce Pinwill Pitt Robbins Smith Spriggs Sandringham Sautner 4 Valenti 3 Crowe Poyas 2 Jamar T Johnston Monaghan Summers Yze Best Port Melbourne Baird McMahon McGrath Pinwill McGlynn Bonaddio Sandringham Crowe Whelan Valenti Sautner Liddell T Johnston SANDY RESERVES MASSACRE PORT The young Zebras were too strong, too big, too fast and had the edge in talent in the curtain raiser and had a perfect start to their season with a 110-point victory over the Borough. Demon rookie Trent Zomer booted 7 goals and Stuart Cleeve underlined his improvement with four in a team that was well served by a bevy of midfielders who outran a ragged opposition that managed only one goal after half time. HOW THE DEMONS FARED Three Demons were represented in the Sandy Reserves team. Ironically, two of them, Tom McNamara and Trent Zomer, were in the Melbourne Nab Cup team that played the Cats at Skilled Stadium in February. Tom McNamara – a solid and polished performance in defence. McNamara is athletic, a sound mark, has a good football brain and won’t be beaten. Jake Spencer – a big, raw tall man who needs to be nursed along in his football development. Tap ruckwork was good, his marking needs improvement but he was not bad at ground level for one who stands at 203cm. A highlight was when he accepted a handpass from Zomer and baulked around an opponent to kick a nice goal. Trent Zomer – difficult to judge against such weak opposition but seven goals is seven goals. He also had a hand in a few assists. His second quarter was quite spectacular and netted him five goals. As strange as this might sound, I think he will be even better if he increases his intensity as he tends to switch on and off at times. Port Melbourne 2.2.14 3.6.24 4.7.31 4.10.34 Sandringham 5.4.34 11.8.74 14.13.97 21.18.144 Goals Port Melbourne Francis 2 Gilham Sheldon Sandringham Zomer 7 Cleeve 4 McConnell Martyn Waller 2 Curcio Lockwood Shakaib Spencer Best Port Melbourne Mullins Hassett deBruin Francis Dillon Martin Sandringham Tregear McConnell Cleeve B Liddell Gilchrist Zomer

by Barry from Beach Road VFL Rivalry Round saw one of the competition's strongest rivalries, that of Sandringham and Port Melbourne, and they fought out a fantastic battle at North Port on Saturday with the home side getting up by a solitary point after snatching the lead in dying moments of the game. Conditions were good for football and Sandy kicked the opening goal but the boys from the Borough were soon on top and looked like taking the game away from the visitors with five unanswered goals before two late goals to the Zebras including one from a free after the siren to Shane Valenti saw them trailing by 12 points at the first break. Port opened the second term strongly but, with Jamar holding sway in the ruck and new skipper Peter Summers together with livewire Valenti and Ezra Poyas leading the way at ground level, Sandringham fought back into the game and took control. Rod Crowe and Nick Sautner were well on top in the key forward positions and the Zebra defence, led by Chris Lamb, Andy Biddlecombe and Matthew Whelan were repelling all attacks. Sandy went into half time leading by a goal but looking well in the ascendency. There was a lot of pushing and shoving as the teams were making their way off the ground at the main break and it threatened to get ugly for a split second but the players eventually dispersed for a well earned break. The third quarter is known as the premiership quarter and while Sandringham held sway for most of this period, its inaccuracy in front of goal ended up costing it dearly. Sautner missed a couple of easy shots but the Zebras seemed to have the game firmly in their control with a nice goal from Tomi Johnston on the run. Sandy had kicked away to lead by 14 points midway through the term and was looking the goods. The turning point however, may well have come when youngster Sam Monaghan picked up a loose ball in the goal square and kicked truly but it was adjudged to have been touched off the boot for a point. Port immediately played on and moved the ball forward for a goal with little pressure and in a matter of seconds. In the context of the game it was a massive goal and it gave the Borough a sniff. As the players went into the final huddle the home side was only 11 points in arrears and still with a chance to win. The Zebras looked well in control in the first half of the final term as the teams went goal for goal and the visitors seemed to be just one goal away from breaking the game open. Unfortunately, they paid a heavy price for some undisciplined acts, gave away a couple of fifty metre penalties and allowed the Borough back into the game. During this frenetic period, Sautner was reported for allegedly charging an opponent. With Stef Martin required on the ball late in the game, the Port forwards were able to take some strong marks and they capitalised kicking two late goals to hit the front in the time on period. The final two or three nerve wracking moments passed with both sides desperately trying to penetrate their half forward lines but to no avail as far as the Zebras were concerned and the siren sounded to give Port the narrowest of victories in a game fittingly described as the best of the VFL’s rivalry round. After two rounds the competition is tightly bunched and the club will be desperate to atone for the disappointment of Saturday's narrow loss as it takes on another rival from the other side of the bay in Frankston next Sunday at the Trevor Barker Beach Road Oval. HOW THE DEMONS FARED The selectors were limited under the VFL's 12:10 rule which applies when teams affiliated with AFL clubs play against stand alone VFL clubs. Sandy was restricted further by the non-appearance of a handful of players named in the team, presumably either injured or on stand-by for Melbourne's clash with Geelong. As a result, Matthew Bate, Jace Bode, Brent Moloney and Michael Newton were missing from this game. Simon Buckley – nothing special from the youngster who made his fair share of mistakes but kept plugging away and tried hard. A couple of his kicks were smothered because he took too long to make a decision as to what to do with the ball (one of them late in the final quarter when a long kick might have saved the game). Despite that he is on a steep learning curve, is well worth persevering with. He should get more opportunities at the higher level. Kyle Cheney - started on the interchange and showed some promise with limited opportunities on the ground. A typical red headed hard nut who seems keen to learn and would have benefited from playing alongside a seasoned defender like Matthew Whelan. James Frawley - a promising display in defence. He was prepared to back himself and while he also committed some errors he showed good football smarts. There is every possibility that he will become a key defender of the highest quality in time. Mark Jamar - led the rucks and played reasonably well but did not dominate around the ground as one would have expected from him. Stefan Martin - a solid tall backman who marked strongly and cleared well. He went into the ruck later in the game when Meesen came off with an injury and looks a player of the future. As a tall defender of the type so sorely lacking at Melbourne, Martin is developing nicely for one who is coming off a basketball background and if he can improve his kicking, he could be an asset at the highest level. Addam Maric - used in more of a midfield role and was in and out of the game all afternoon. Showed some clever skills but needs to get involved in the game a bit more. John Meesen – it's hard to work out where Meesen is at in terms of whether he has a future at AFL level. He was just average when in the ruck and didn't really impose himself on the game. His best word was done when up forward but he was injured in the second half. Shane Valenti – a real ball magnet who put his team back in the game with a lively display on the ball and was also dangerous near goal. Close to his team's best and could be headed for a Liston Trophy. Matthew Warnock – steady in defence but made a crucial error when he gobbed off at the umpire late in the game after a soft free was awarded against him resulting in a late Port Melbourne goal. Isaac Weetra – did one or two nice things but was otherwise lost at sea and struggled. Matthew Whelan – returned to the Wheels of old with a classic best on ground display in defence. He was cool, calm, safe and sure and set up many attacking moves from half back. Should be back in the red and blue next week. Adem Yze – kicked a nice curling goal early that was reminiscent of the old days but he really had no real influence on the game and was just a shadow of his former self. Unfortunately, the Oooze is starting to look more and more like that champion boxer who's been in one fight too many. Port Melbourne 6.2.38 9.4.58 13.5.83 17.7.109 Sandringham 4.1.25 10.4.64 14.10.94 16.12.108 Goals Port Melbourne Bonaddio Cotchett 3 Cain 2 Dalton Fanning Nahas Pearce Pinwill Pitt Robbins Smith Spriggs Sandringham Sautner 4 Valenti 3 Crowe Poyas 2 Jamar T Johnston Monaghan Summers Yze Best Port Melbourne Baird McMahon McGrath Pinwill McGlynn Bonaddio Sandringham Crowe Whelan Valenti Sautner Liddell T Johnston SANDY RESERVES MASSACRE PORT The young Zebras were too strong, too big, too fast and had the edge in talent in the curtain raiser and had a perfect start to their season with a 110-point victory over the Borough. Demon rookie Trent Zomer booted 7 goals and Stuart Cleeve underlined his improvement with four in a team that was well served by a bevy of midfielders who outran a ragged opposition that managed only one goal after half time. HOW THE DEMONS FARED Three Demons were represented in the Sandy Reserves team. Ironically, two of them, Tom McNamara and Trent Zomer, were in the Melbourne Nab Cup team that played the Cats at Skilled Stadium in February. Tom McNamara – a solid and polished performance in defence. McNamara is athletic, a sound mark, has a good football brain and won’t be beaten. Jake Spencer – a big, raw tall man who needs to be nursed along in his football development. Tap ruckwork was good, his marking needs improvement but he was not bad at ground level for one who stands at 203cm. A highlight was when he accepted a handpass from Zomer and baulked around an opponent to kick a nice goal. Trent Zomer – difficult to judge against such weak opposition but seven goals is seven goals. He also had a hand in a few assists. His second quarter was quite spectacular and netted him five goals. As strange as this might sound, I think he will be even better if he increases his intensity as he tends to switch on and off at times. Port Melbourne 2.2.14 3.6.24 4.7.31 4.10.34 Sandringham 5.4.34 11.8.74 14.13.97 21.18.144 Goals Port Melbourne Francis 2 Gilham Sheldon Sandringham Zomer 7 Cleeve 4 McConnell Martyn Waller 2 Curcio Lockwood Shakaib Spencer Best Port Melbourne Mullins Hassett deBruin Francis Dillon Martin

FROZEN IN TIME by the Oracle Imagine if it were possible to freeze everything and to suspend yourself in a single moment in time? If I could do that I would choose to go back a little more than a year and a half to Round 21, 2006 when the Demons last travelled to the Cattery to take part in an AFL game played for premiership points. If I could narrow the time down a little more, I would select the very moment well beyond the halfway mark of the second quarter when Melbourne was coasting toward victory with a more than handy 38 point lead and with every chance of securing a top four placing on the eve of the finals series given that the last game was to be played against an injury ravaged Adelaide in the final home and away round. In this frozen moment of time, Melbourne should have been further in front against Geelong but for one or two appalling decisions from the umpires but I'll let that rest for now. The Demons had dominated the game to that point and they held sway by such a huge margin because they were playing an aggressive free-wheeling brand of football while the Cats were hesitant and lacked accountability. The home team was virtually down and out sitting in the middle of the road as far a ladder placement was concerned and destined to finish behind Richmond (which in turn, would acquire another wooden spoon by the end of 2007). There was little incentive for the Cats to get themselves off the floor while the Demons had every reason to push hard for a good victory to consolidate third position on the ladder in a battle where every goal was worth valuable percentage in a tight battle for positions at the top of the AFL table. Now let's unfreeze and move on through the rest of the game played on that fateful day just twenty months ago. History tells us that it was Geelong that regrouped, added a mix of desperation, discipline and attack and pushed itself to the limit in order to kick nine of the last eleven goals of the match to peg the margin back and to momentarily take the lead. In the end, the Demons managed to contain the damage by fighting back with a late point in the dramatic final three or four minutes of the game. The second half of the game was a precursor to where the teams would be over the next twelve months and beyond. Geelong added disciple, fitness and confidence to its armoury and, at a point six weeks into the following season, was on its way to a premiership. Melbourne, on the other hand, fell apart. The decline was exacerbated by a serious injury list but the cracks were everywhere. Coach Neale Daniher fell by the wayside. His caretaker coach Mark Reilly, has gone too. Dean Bailey is left to pick up the pieces with a list that has already seen a dozen changes in personnel after one summer and which is being asked to play a different style of game to that which many players have been accustomed for all their football lives. They are struggling and the Cats are purring. They meet each other on Sunday in a game where the bookies are saying that if the Dees get up to win, the bookies will pay out up to a $34.00 dividend. Thirty-four bucks in a two horse race. Think about that. If the match were an even bet they would be offering around $1.85 so that suggests what the bookies think of Melbourne’s chances. The rest of the world thinks the same thing. THE GAME Geelong v Melbourne at Skilled Stadium - Sunday 6 April 2008 at 1.10pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall Geelong 117 wins Melbourne 83 wins 2 draws At Skilled Stadium Geelong 31 wins Melbourne 17 wins 1 draw Since 2000 Geelong 7 wins 1 draw Melbourne 6 wins The Coaches Thompson 0 Bailey 0 MEDIA TV Fox Sports 1 (1.00pm) RADIO ABC 774 SEN KRock MMM THE BETTING Geelong to win $1.01 Melbourne to win $34.00 LAST TIME THEY MET: Geelong 15.19.109 defeated Melbourne 8.9.57 at the MCG in Round 3 2007 The Demons had opened the season poorly with losses to both St. Kilda and Hawthorn and their injury list was growing by the day. They were blown away by the Cats who dominated in virtually every position on the ground. Brad Green, who was moved forward to cover the loss through injury of Neitz and Robertson and kicked four goals, was one of the few Demons who could hold his head high after the game. As a youngster, Green was one of the club's most effective forwards. Perhaps this is where his future lies? THE TEAMS: GEELONG B Tom Harley Matthew Scarlett Josh Hunt HB Darren Milburn Harry Taylor Corey Enright C Cameron Ling Joel Selwood Jimmy Bartel HF Steve Johnson, Cameron Mooney, Paul Chapman F Ryan Gamble Tom Hawkins Mathew Stokes Foll Mark Blake Gary Ablett Joel Corey Interchange James Kelly Max Rooke Trent West David Wojcinski Emergencies Shannon Byrnes David Johnson Brent Prismall In Max Rooke Out Shannon Byrnes MELBOURNE B Paul Wheatley Nathan Carroll Jared Rivers HB Clint Bartram, Daniel Bell Lynden Dunn C Brad Green, Brock McLean Colin Sylvia HF Cameron Bruce Brad Miller, Paul Johnson F Aaron Davey David Neitz Russell Robertson Foll Jeff White James McDonald Nathan Jones Interchange Colin Garland Chris Johnson Cale Morton Austin Wonaeamirri Emergencies Simon Buckley James Frawley Brent Moloney In James Frawley Chris Johnson Brent Moloney Jared Rivers Austin Wonaeamirri Out Jace Bode Isaac Weetra New Austin Wonaeamirri (St Mary's NT) ODD SPOT Just in case you think Skilled Stadium holds any fears in the hearts of the Demons, don't forget that Melbourne hasn't lost a game at Sleepy Hollow since Round 8 2004 when the Cats won 15.11.101 to 12.15.87 [and even on that occasion the Demons had more scoring shots]. UNFURLING SOME SPIRIT AND PASSION The best thing to happen to the Demons for a long time is that they have been invited to attend the premiership flag unveiling at the Cats' first real home game of the year. Melbourne should regard that as an honour and a privilege because it will give all and sundry - the Board, officials, coaches, players and even a handful of supporters - the opportunity to see at close quarters, exactly what a truly successful football is all about. That feeling should resonate with them before, during and after the unfurling of the flag and, with a little bit of luck, some of the lessons gained from the experience will help the club immeasurably going forward. It matters little what the result of the game might be - as long as they play with some spirit and passion and learn from the experience because this year does not look like a year for winning games - at least not this early in the season or against this opposition. It might sound as if I'm writing the Demons off here but that's not really the case. I really don't expect this week to be a total loss; rather a stepping stone to the following weeks with games against North Melbourne and Carlton when the many players whose pre seasons were interrupted will start finding their legs and the team gets some more experience, confidence and accountability into its system. In the words of coach Bailey, this should make them more

by the Oracle Imagine if it were possible to freeze everything and to suspend yourself in a single moment in time? If I could do that I would choose to go back a little more than a year and a half to Round 21, 2006 when the Demons last travelled to the Cattery to take part in an AFL game played for premiership points. If I could narrow the time down a little more, I would select the very moment well beyond the halfway mark of the second quarter when Melbourne was coasting toward victory with a more than handy 38 point lead and with every chance of securing a top four placing on the eve of the finals series given that the last game was to be played against an injury ravaged Adelaide in the final home and away round. In this frozen moment of time, Melbourne should have been further in front against Geelong but for one or two appalling decisions from the umpires but I'll let that rest for now. The Demons had dominated the game to that point and they held sway by such a huge margin because they were playing an aggressive free-wheeling brand of football while the Cats were hesitant and lacked accountability. The home team was virtually down and out sitting in the middle of the road as far a ladder placement was concerned and destined to finish behind Richmond (which in turn, would acquire another wooden spoon by the end of 2007). There was little incentive for the Cats to get themselves off the floor while the Demons had every reason to push hard for a good victory to consolidate third position on the ladder in a battle where every goal was worth valuable percentage in a tight battle for positions at the top of the AFL table. Now let's unfreeze and move on through the rest of the game played on that fateful day just twenty months ago. History tells us that it was Geelong that regrouped, added a mix of desperation, discipline and attack and pushed itself to the limit in order to kick nine of the last eleven goals of the match to peg the margin back and to momentarily take the lead. In the end, the Demons managed to contain the damage by fighting back with a late point in the dramatic final three or four minutes of the game. The second half of the game was a precursor to where the teams would be over the next twelve months and beyond. Geelong added disciple, fitness and confidence to its armoury and, at a point six weeks into the following season, was on its way to a premiership. Melbourne, on the other hand, fell apart. The decline was exacerbated by a serious injury list but the cracks were everywhere. Coach Neale Daniher fell by the wayside. His caretaker coach Mark Reilly, has gone too. Dean Bailey is left to pick up the pieces with a list that has already seen a dozen changes in personnel after one summer and which is being asked to play a different style of game to that which many players have been accustomed for all their football lives. They are struggling and the Cats are purring. They meet each other on Sunday in a game where the bookies are saying that if the Dees get up to win, the bookies will pay out up to a $34.00 dividend. Thirty-four bucks in a two horse race. Think about that. If the match were an even bet they would be offering around $1.85 so that suggests what the bookies think of Melbourne’s chances. The rest of the world thinks the same thing. THE GAME Geelong v Melbourne at Skilled Stadium - Sunday 6 April 2008 at 1.10pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall Geelong 117 wins Melbourne 83 wins 2 draws At Skilled Stadium Geelong 31 wins Melbourne 17 wins 1 draw Since 2000 Geelong 7 wins 1 draw Melbourne 6 wins The Coaches Thompson 0 Bailey 0 MEDIA TV Fox Sports 1 (1.00pm) RADIO ABC 774 SEN KRock MMM THE BETTING Geelong to win $1.01 Melbourne to win $34.00 LAST TIME THEY MET: Geelong 15.19.109 defeated Melbourne 8.9.57 at the MCG in Round 3 2007 The Demons had opened the season poorly with losses to both St. Kilda and Hawthorn and their injury list was growing by the day. They were blown away by the Cats who dominated in virtually every position on the ground. Brad Green, who was moved forward to cover the loss through injury of Neitz and Robertson and kicked four goals, was one of the few Demons who could hold his head high after the game. As a youngster, Green was one of the club's most effective forwards. Perhaps this is where his future lies? THE TEAMS: GEELONG B Tom Harley Matthew Scarlett Josh Hunt HB Darren Milburn Harry Taylor Corey Enright C Cameron Ling Joel Selwood Jimmy Bartel HF Steve Johnson, Cameron Mooney, Paul Chapman F Ryan Gamble Tom Hawkins Mathew Stokes Foll Mark Blake Gary Ablett Joel Corey Interchange James Kelly Max Rooke Trent West David Wojcinski Emergencies Shannon Byrnes David Johnson Brent Prismall In Max Rooke Out Shannon Byrnes MELBOURNE B Paul Wheatley Nathan Carroll Jared Rivers HB Clint Bartram, Daniel Bell Lynden Dunn C Brad Green, Brock McLean Colin Sylvia HF Cameron Bruce Brad Miller, Paul Johnson F Aaron Davey David Neitz Russell Robertson Foll Jeff White James McDonald Nathan Jones Interchange Colin Garland Chris Johnson Cale Morton Austin Wonaeamirri Emergencies Simon Buckley James Frawley Brent Moloney In James Frawley Chris Johnson Brent Moloney Jared Rivers Austin Wonaeamirri Out Jace Bode Isaac Weetra New Austin Wonaeamirri (St Mary's NT) ODD SPOT Just in case you think Skilled Stadium holds any fears in the hearts of the Demons, don't forget that Melbourne hasn't lost a game at Sleepy Hollow since Round 8 2004 when the Cats won 15.11.101 to 12.15.87 [and even on that occasion the Demons had more scoring shots]. UNFURLING SOME SPIRIT AND PASSION The best thing to happen to the Demons for a long time is that they have been invited to attend the premiership flag unveiling at the Cats' first real home game of the year. Melbourne should regard that as an honour and a privilege because it will give all and sundry - the Board, officials, coaches, players and even a handful of supporters - the opportunity to see at close quarters, exactly what a truly successful football is all about. That feeling should resonate with them before, during and after the unfurling of the flag and, with a little bit of luck, some of the lessons gained from the experience will help the club immeasurably going forward. It matters little what the result of the game might be - as long as they play with some spirit and passion and learn from the experience because this year does not look like a year for winning games - at least not this early in the season or against this opposition. It might sound as if I'm writing the Demons off here but that's not really the case. I really don't expect this week to be a total loss; rather a stepping stone to the following weeks with games against North Melbourne and Carlton when the many players whose pre seasons were interrupted will start finding their legs and the team gets some more experience, confidence and accountability into its system. In the words of coach Bailey, this should make them more

WINNING START FOR ZEBRAS by Barry from Beach Road Sandringham opened the season in style with good win against the Casey Scorpions after a strong 14 goal final half negated a second quarter scare that had the Zebras struggling and 20 points in arrears at half time. Sandy was led out for the first time by new skipper Peter Summers and kicked with the aid of a stiff breeze favouring the Alf Beus can hill end. It was a strong contingent with 14 AFL listed players and the team started well with an early goal from young Demon recruit Addam Maric. Two more followed from Ben Holland and the Zebras were now looking chock full of confidence. Mark Jamar was dominating the early ruck duels and Jared Rivers was in imposing form down back, often linking up strongly with Ezra Poyas who surprised the crowd with a new hairstyle - one that actually incorporates hair and not a bald pate. Sandringham was playing a team-oriented game and threatened to break further ahead but Casey regrouped and held its own in the latter part of the quarter kicking their first goal before Nick Sautner chimed in with his first for the season. There was a marked turn around in the second stanza and it was now Casey's turn to dominate and Sandy's turn to struggle. By mid term the scores were locked together at 28 points apiece but the Scorpion midfield started to dominate and kicked the ball long into their forward line to establish a dominant position at the main break. The only excitement for the quarter came when Mark Johnston was hit hard and his opponent Armitage reported for charging. Johnston got up and continued to play after receiving his heavy knock and to his great credit finished up in his team's best players. Johnston's bravery set the example and Sandringham regained its composure during the half time break to produce one of those special quarters of football that the players have become renowned for when their tails are up and the wind at their backs. With Mark Jamar and John Meesen dominating the rucks, the Zebra on ball brigade headed by Summers and new Demon rookie Shane Valenti kept pushing the ball forward and the likes of Sautner and Maric did the rest. Valenti was also damaging when moved forward and by the final break, Sandy was well on top after a stunning nine goal quarter. The Zebras were at their best in the final term with the defence led by Jared Rivers and Matthew Whelan held the Scorpions and, in the end, outscored their opponents by five goals to three to canter away to a fine victory - 18.11.119 to 11.16.82. Sandringham has a tough challenge ahead of it next week when it takes on old rival Port Melbourne at TEAC Oval, North Port. The Zebras will lose some Melbourne players to the AFL as the Demons continue to struggle forcing inevitable changes. The 12-10 rule applies to games against the Borough so a couple more Sandy listed players will come into the team for what should be a close tussle. HOW THE DEMONS FARED Brent Moloney and Ricky Petterd did not take their places in the team; both were reported as carrying minor injuries. Michael Newton came in to the selected side after being replaced by Jace Bode in the Melbourne team that played the Western Bulldogs. James Frawley - was very serviceable in defence without being outstanding but given that he is quite athletic and at a similar stage of his development as Magpie key defender Nathan Brown, he is worth a look in defence for the Demons. Ben Holland - looked set for a big day when he marked strongly and kicked two early goals but went down with a back strain and wasn't seen at all in the second half. Mark Jamar - dominated the ruck hit outs and stood out around the ground where he took big marks and competed strongly. His capacity to come into the Melbourne team is limited by Paul Johnson's excellent start to the season. Chris Johnson - played well and, as usual, looked good at this level. A question mark remains however, as to whether he can produce the goods in the big time. Addam Maric - if there is something that Melbourne lacks at the moment it is a player who carries with him the x factor. In Maric's case, that factor comes with a capital X. He's small but can take a good grab and he's lively, particularly around goals in places where we have rarely seen any player of his size go on the Demon forward line. Oh, and he's a deadly kick for goal. On that basis, an AFL debut for this youngster is beckoning. Stefan Martin - the former basketballer has the height and athleticism and can take a strong mark. He still has some work to do on his disposal skills but is certain to get a call up at some stage during the year. John Meesen - moves well and rucks reasonably well but needs some more time at VFL level. Michael Newton - roamed far and wide and really didn't get into the game as he was often caught in "no man's land". Likely to remain in the VFL for a couple of weeks until he can get his confidence up again. Jared Rivers - a shoe in to return to the Demon line up for the game at Skilled Stadium if his form in this game is any guide. Should also be considered for elevation to the club's leadership group given that a vacancy exists there. Shane Valenti - was more and more influential as the game wore on and got a lot of the ball. His detractors say he is small and slow but he moves the ball quickly and he is a ball magnet. Matthew Warnock - played a dour defender's role but there are a few others ahead of him for a place in the Melbourne line up. Matthew Whelan - played his standard strong game with lots of run and will add a harder edge to the Melbourne side on his return. There is a view that this won't happen for a couple of weeks but he looks ready to me. Austin Wonaemirri - a slippery customer who is on a steep learning curve at the club. Showed some flashes that suggest he will be a player in time. Adem Yze - took a while to settle down but he was certainly influential in the second half and was one of the reasons why the Zebras ended up overrunning an opposition that took it right up to them in the first half. Line ball as to whether he will be recalled to play against Geelong this week. Sandringham 4.3.27 4.4.28 13.8.86 18.11.119 Casey Scorpions 1.2.8 7.6.48 8.10.58 11.16.82 Goals Sandringham Sautner 4 Maric Valenti 3 Holland 2 C Johnson Poyas Summers Whelan Wonaemirri Yze Casey Scorpions Gardiner 3 McQualter 2 Allen Armitage Birss Dunne Goddard Steven Best Sandringham Summers Valenti Poyas Yze Johnston Rivers Casey Scorpions McQualter Gardiner Rix Gwilt Wall Silvagni Reported Sandringham Nil Casey Scorpions D. Armitage (Casey Scorpions) for charging M. Johnston (Sandringham)in the 2nd quarter. The reserves competition starts next week but a practice match was played against the Scorpions and Sandy won easily. A few Demons were on show but there were no stand outs during the time I was present.

Bazza reports it's Sandy leading 16.11.107 to 10.13.73 halfway through the last. Aussie's just kicked his first.

Three quarter time and Sandy leading but Casey have the big wind advantage in the last. Report from Bazza is that Jared Rivers is starring down back, Whelan is solid and Maric has kicked a few but Benny Holland looks likes he's injured a hand after kicking a couple of early goals. Newton playing up forward but doing little. Moloney and Petterd didn't take their places in the team - looks like both are injured. Sandringham 4.3.27 4.4.28 13.8.86 Casey Scorpions 1.2.8 7.6.48 8.10.58

PATTERNS by Whispering Jack "From the moment of my birth To the instant of my death, There are patterns I must follow Just as I must breathe each breath. Like a rat in a maze The path before me lies, And the pattern never alters Until the rat dies" - Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel – "Patterns" I gave up looking for the ultimate answers about life a long, long time ago. I prefer to leave that sort of stuff to the existentialists while I enjoy my family, go to a good movie, listen to my music, discuss and debate politics, eat decent tucker and enjoy my footy. The rest of the time, I work for a living and occasionally do charitable work. I should have been a Saint but I'm a Demon – I can't help it. I think I was born that way. This all means that if you happen to be looking for the ultimate answer as to why Melbourne is performing so badly entering its 150th season, you might have to look elsewhere. All I can do is give my opinion to the effect that yesterday's second consecutive thrashing at the MCG – this time at the hands of the Western Bulldogs by 24.17.161 to 9.12.66 followed a pattern that was set a long time ago. And the pattern is not likely to alter until a certain event happens. Until the rat dies. Yesterday's game followed a predictable course for the most part. That course was set through the pre season and was firmly established last week when the team capitulated to the Hawks by 104 points. Yesterday's game saw a similar result although the opposition was in my estimation, only a middle of the range side that will struggle to make the eight. The Bulldogs did however, have the benefit of entering the game on a high after a last gasp victory over Adelaide the week before. It helps when you come into a game chock full of confidence and with your leaders setting the sort of example that the likes of Brad Johnson and Scott West set for their club. The game itself was not one of two halves but more one of three phases: - Phase 1 – The Competitive Phase The game opened up in positive fashion. Dean Bailey had set the team up well with his best 18 on the ground, a spare man in defence, had discarded one of his talls from the forward line and replaced him with a crumbing forward in Aaron Davey. It worked for most of the first quarter while the players showed some accountability. The midfield won the early clearances and Davey booted the first goal. Had Paul Johnson been more accurate, the Demons could have even opened up a nice early lead. Still, one could notice a tiny bit of passion, aggression and even a flicker of inspiration but sadly, it lasted only a brief moment in time. The mistakes slowly started creeping in and these resulted in a couple of self-inflicted Demon wounds that were the Bulldogs' only goals for the quarter. The competitive phase ended with the siren and Melbourne was unlucky not to have won its first quarter for the season. The Western Bulldogs were in front by a solitary point. The Demons were well served by Nathan Jones who was a terrier in the middle and by defenders Nathan Carroll and Paul Wheatley (the spare man in defence). Phase 2 – The Decline Phase The onset of decline came almost imperceptively. Early in the second term you started to get the feeling that the Bulldogs were going to gradually take control and they did. Again, it started with the help of some own goals on Melbourne's part. When you're in danger of entering the decline phase, you need your leaders to stand up, be unselfish and not fumble or drop marks or handpass direct to the opposition. Let's just say that while they fared a little better than last week, the leaders still failed to live up to the expectation. Despite maintaining control of the clearances, the team was breaking down across half forward. The pattern was set for slow, stop-start football and the mistakes kept coming with greater frequency. This is another part of the pattern that we have to expect because of the presence of several youngsters in a team that's not really playing as a team but more as a group that shows little semblance of passion or unity of purpose. By half time, the Doggies had moved to a 25 point lead but, in my estimation, they were a little fortunate to be that far in front as a couple of their goals came gift wrapped courtesy of fundamental errors by their opponents and at least one from a poor umpiring decision. That's life and you take those advantages when you'e given them. Phase 3 – The Earth Hour Phase The main feature of the pattern is in that the final half of each game the team enters its own "Earth Hour" – an hour in which the power is turned off and the team is completely overrun. There may be some variations to the theme before that event but the final half score line of 15.8.98 to 4.4.28 in favour of the Bulldogs is a pattern that Melbourne fans will have to get used to as the season unfolds. The good news is that this pattern will moderate and things won't always be that bad but for the moment, the Demons are suffering from the fact that so many of their key players had interrupted pre seasons. Too many of them are underdone, a result of not enough hard work and match conditioning. Last week it was Cameron Bruce who came back with limited pre-season preparation, this week it was Clint Bartram, Lynden Dunn and Colin Sylvia. Next week it's likely to be Jared Rivers and possibly Matthew Whelan. Further, there are a few youngsters in the side at the moment, notably Jace Bode, Colin Garland and Isaac Weetra who are clearly not ready for the big stage. All of these factors, with the added problem of an aging leadership group that has shown itself to be unable to get fired up or set an example of accountability to the rest of the side will ensure that the pattern of decline and fade out will continue for a little while yet until the elders either shape up or are culled from the group and the younger players learn what it's all about. That might still take more than a little time so Melbourne supporters will feel some more pain in the months to come. The game was a sad 200th for James McDonald who played his heart out as usual but the good form of Paul Johnson and the continuing improvement of Cale Morton were both encouraging. Less encouraging was the form of Brock McLean, a youngster who has an enormous weight of expectation on his shoulders and is looking decidedly sluggish. He seemed to be running faster and harder when he was being interchanged on and off the ground than while in general play. One has to wonder whether he's enjoying his football these days. I know this business of interchanging and rotation is in vogue at the moment but I just don't get it. If the idea is to keep your players fresh so that they can see out a game of football, why do the Melbourne players look so washed up in that final phase of the game? I don't have the answer to that question and, as I indicated earlier, I don’t have the ultimate answer either. But I've been told that looking for ultimate answers is a little like looking for a black cat in a dark basement at night when the black cat isn't really there. It's an absurd quest and it certainly can't be answered overnight and most definitely not next Sunday when the team travels to Geelong where they will find some real cats. To achieve success from Melbourne's position, it is necessary to bring in a complete sea change and that takes time. To understand that, you only had to watch St. Kilda overrun Carlton last night. The Saints have been learning their style of game for over a year under Ross Lyon and last night, they played a type of game that was not that dissimilar to the one that Melbourne is attempting to play - except that they got every split second decision right while the Demons get most of them wrong at the moment. When they finally get things right, they will have crossed the fine line that you need to cross in order to alter the pattern. At that point, the rat dies. Melbourne 2.4.16 5.8.38 7.9.51 9.12.66 Western Bulldogs 2.5.17 9.9.63 18.13.121 24.17.161 Goals Melbourne Neitz Robertson White 2 Davey Green Jones Western Bulldogs Murphy 4 Akermanis Cross Hill Johnson Welsh 3 Giansiracusa Gilbee Griffen Hahn Wight Best Melbourne Wheatley Carroll Jones P Johnson Morton McDonald Western Bulldogs Cross Murphy Cooney Hill Gilbee Griffen Injuries Melbourne Davey (ankle) Western Bulldogs Higgins (ankle) Reports nil Changes Jace Bode replaced Michael Newton in Melbourne's selected line-up; Tim Callan replaced Nathan Eagleton (ankle) in the Western Bulldogs' selected line-up Umpires Farmer Kamolins Ryan Crowd 27,821 at the MCG

by Whispering Jack "From the moment of my birth To the instant of my death, There are patterns I must follow Just as I must breathe each breath. Like a rat in a maze The path before me lies, And the pattern never alters Until the rat dies" - Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel – "Patterns" I gave up looking for the ultimate answers about life a long, long time ago. I prefer to leave that sort of stuff to the existentialists while I enjoy my family, go to a good movie, listen to my music, discuss and debate politics, eat decent tucker and enjoy my footy. The rest of the time, I work for a living and occasionally do charitable work. I should have been a Saint but I'm a Demon – I can't help it. I think I was born that way. This all means that if you happen to be looking for the ultimate answer as to why Melbourne is performing so badly entering its 150th season, you might have to look elsewhere. All I can do is give my opinion to the effect that yesterday's second consecutive thrashing at the MCG – this time at the hands of the Western Bulldogs by 24.17.161 to 9.12.66 followed a pattern that was set a long time ago. And the pattern is not likely to alter until a certain event happens. Until the rat dies. Yesterday's game followed a predictable course for the most part. That course was set through the pre season and was firmly established last week when the team capitulated to the Hawks by 104 points. Yesterday's game saw a similar result although the opposition was in my estimation, only a middle of the range side that will struggle to make the eight. The Bulldogs did however, have the benefit of entering the game on a high after a last gasp victory over Adelaide the week before. It helps when you come into a game chock full of confidence and with your leaders setting the sort of example that the likes of Brad Johnson and Scott West set for their club. The game itself was not one of two halves but more one of three phases: - Phase 1 – The Competitive Phase The game opened up in positive fashion. Dean Bailey had set the team up well with his best 18 on the ground, a spare man in defence, had discarded one of his talls from the forward line and replaced him with a crumbing forward in Aaron Davey. It worked for most of the first quarter while the players showed some accountability. The midfield won the early clearances and Davey booted the first goal. Had Paul Johnson been more accurate, the Demons could have even opened up a nice early lead. Still, one could notice a tiny bit of passion, aggression and even a flicker of inspiration but sadly, it lasted only a brief moment in time. The mistakes slowly started creeping in and these resulted in a couple of self-inflicted Demon wounds that were the Bulldogs' only goals for the quarter. The competitive phase ended with the siren and Melbourne was unlucky not to have won its first quarter for the season. The Western Bulldogs were in front by a solitary point. The Demons were well served by Nathan Jones who was a terrier in the middle and by defenders Nathan Carroll and Paul Wheatley (the spare man in defence). Phase 2 – The Decline Phase The onset of decline came almost imperceptively. Early in the second term you started to get the feeling that the Bulldogs were going to gradually take control and they did. Again, it started with the help of some own goals on Melbourne's part. When you're in danger of entering the decline phase, you need your leaders to stand up, be unselfish and not fumble or drop marks or handpass direct to the opposition. Let's just say that while they fared a little better than last week, the leaders still failed to live up to the expectation. Despite maintaining control of the clearances, the team was breaking down across half forward. The pattern was set for slow, stop-start football and the mistakes kept coming with greater frequency. This is another part of the pattern that we have to expect because of the presence of several youngsters in a team that's not really playing as a team but more as a group that shows little semblance of passion or unity of purpose. By half time, the Doggies had moved to a 25 point lead but, in my estimation, they were a little fortunate to be that far in front as a couple of their goals came gift wrapped courtesy of fundamental errors by their opponents and at least one from a poor umpiring decision. That's life and you take those advantages when you'e given them. Phase 3 – The Earth Hour Phase The main feature of the pattern is in that the final half of each game the team enters its own "Earth Hour" – an hour in which the power is turned off and the team is completely overrun. There may be some variations to the theme before that event but the final half score line of 15.8.98 to 4.4.28 in favour of the Bulldogs is a pattern that Melbourne fans will have to get used to as the season unfolds. The good news is that this pattern will moderate and things won't always be that bad but for the moment, the Demons are suffering from the fact that so many of their key players had interrupted pre seasons. Too many of them are underdone, a result of not enough hard work and match conditioning. Last week it was Cameron Bruce who came back with limited pre-season preparation, this week it was Clint Bartram, Lynden Dunn and Colin Sylvia. Next week it's likely to be Jared Rivers and possibly Matthew Whelan. Further, there are a few youngsters in the side at the moment, notably Jace Bode, Colin Garland and Isaac Weetra who are clearly not ready for the big stage. All of these factors, with the added problem of an aging leadership group that has shown itself to be unable to get fired up or set an example of accountability to the rest of the side will ensure that the pattern of decline and fade out will continue for a little while yet until the elders either shape up or are culled from the group and the younger players learn what it's all about. That might still take more than a little time so Melbourne supporters will feel some more pain in the months to come. The game was a sad 200th for James McDonald who played his heart out as usual but the good form of Paul Johnson and the continuing improvement of Cale Morton were both encouraging. Less encouraging was the form of Brock McLean, a youngster who has an enormous weight of expectation on his shoulders and is looking decidedly sluggish. He seemed to be running faster and harder when he was being interchanged on and off the ground than while in general play. One has to wonder whether he's enjoying his football these days. I know this business of interchanging and rotation is in vogue at the moment but I just don't get it. If the idea is to keep your players fresh so that they can see out a game of football, why do the Melbourne players look so washed up in that final phase of the game? I don't have the answer to that question and, as I indicated earlier, I don’t have the ultimate answer either. But I've been told that looking for ultimate answers is a little like looking for a black cat in a dark basement at night when the black cat isn't really there. It's an absurd quest and it certainly can't be answered overnight and most definitely not next Sunday when the team travels to Geelong where they will find some real cats. To achieve success from Melbourne's position, it is necessary to bring in a complete sea change and that takes time. To understand that, you only had to watch St. Kilda overrun Carlton last night. The Saints have been learning their style of game for over a year under Ross Lyon and last night, they played a type of game that was not that dissimilar to the one that Melbourne is attempting to play - except that they got every split second decision right while the Demons get most of them wrong at the moment. When they finally get things right, they will have crossed the fine line that you need to cross in order to alter the pattern. At that point, the rat dies. Melbourne 2.4.16 5.8.38 7.9.51 9.12.66 Western Bulldogs 2.5.17 9.9.63 18.13.121 24.17.161 Goals Melbourne Neitz Robertson White 2 Davey Green Jones Western Bulldogs Murphy 4 Akermanis Cross Hill Johnson Welsh 3 Giansiracusa Gilbee Griffen Hahn Wight Best Melbourne Wheatley Carroll Jones P Johnson Morton McDonald Western Bulldogs Cross Murphy Cooney Hill Gilbee Griffen Injuries Melbourne Davey (ankle) Western Bulldogs Higgins (ankle) Reports nil Changes Jace Bode replaced Michael Newton in Melbourne's selected line-up; Tim Callan replaced Nathan Eagleton (ankle) in the Western Bulldogs' selected line-up Umpires Farmer Kamolins Ryan Crowd 27,821 at the MCG

Our nominated vote givers for today's game were:- dees_rule_4eva Maybe next year demondomination dees_rule_4eva has already voted. Maybe next year and demondomination must place their votes on the site by midnight tonight. Otherwise, I will accept the next two serious set of votes for the official counting. As a result of our team's efforts today the weighted percentage for today's game is 41% - a minor improvement on last week.

MEDIA WATCH: THAT SINKING FEELING by Whispering Jack According to Wikipedia, the free on-line encyclopedia, ABC TV’s programme Media Watch is "viewed by some as a watchdog of the Australian media, that investigates and exposes media bias and breaches of journalistic ethics and standards." On what we've seen in the past week or so, we desperately need a media watchdog to monitor some of the information (or should I say misinformation) being fed to unsuspecting consumers of news on matters football and in particular on some of the things that are being written and said about the Melbourne Football Club. The impression given that the Demons are sinking faster than the Titanic is not just wild exaggeration but mischievous sensationalism at its lowest level. Don't get me wrong. I'm not suggesting that we shoot the messenger but we do need to examine some of the things that have been published about the state of the Demons and to expose where errors of fact have been made and why some of the opinions being expressed out there in the media are simply wrong and without any basis in logic or fact. We need a Media Watch to expose some of the untruthful and damaging comments being passed on about the club including the disgraceful statements made to the effect that Melbourne is the next "Fitzroy" - a claim levelled in the past year at both Carlton and the Kangaroos. Now, it's our turn. There has been a need for a media watchdog since the days when man received his news on papyrus but as the information revolution has expanded so the scope for breaches of journalistic standards continues to grow exponentially. There is so much pressure on reporters to get THE story of the day and there are so many reporters who are driven by agendas instead of reporting THE truth that we are seeing more and more examples of the public, wittingly or unwittingly, being fed false and misleading information in all matters of news from war reporting, to finance, social events and yes … even in sport. What's really worrying is that the misinformation often comes from trusted sources such as established newspapers and experienced journalists. The famous newsagency Reuters, one of the main agencies for news on the international stage developed a reputation for dispensing the news honestly for over a hundred years but has recently been beset by criticism for presenting biased news reporting and even publishing doctored photographs of war scenes. Then, in August last year, it was forced to admit that footage it released purportedly showing Russian submersibles on the seabed of the North Pole actually came from the movie Titanic. The mistake was picked up by a 13 year old Finnish schoolboy who contacted a local newspaper to tell them the images looked identical to those used in the movie and, as a result, the story and Reuters' reputation along with it, sank faster than the Titanic. So it pays for reporters to check and recheck their facts before they go to press yet in these days of a media hungry to be the first with a sensational story, that isn't always the case. This applies particularly to the world of sport where competition is tough especially when it comes to our own game of football and the latest victim of that media hunger is the Melbourne Football Club. A club in transition, thirsting for success, and doing it tough is an easy target and, with a few notable exceptions like this one, the sporting media vultures who feasted during the summer months on the supposedly decaying carcass of the Kangaroos, have now turned their attention elsewhere and are circling delightedly around their new prey – the Demons. The club's poor pre-season practice match form and that resounding 104 thumping at the hands of Hawthorn in the opening round just made the club easy meat for lazy journalists looking for a sensationalist story. Still, this doesn't relieve them of the responsibility of reporting with honesty as otherwise, their own reputations will sink like the Titanic - especially when their errors are so obvious that even a 13 year-old could expose them!. Today is the start of the Melbourne Football Club's fight back against this nonsense. The best way to respond to the vultures is of course, on the field with a Demonlike performance against the Western Bulldogs but, since the blame for the club's current woes has been attached to its off field leadership and administration, the first response should rightfully come from the top. And so it will - during the Pre Match at today's Presidents Lunch and a subsequent press conference by club President Paul Gardner. The following document, "The Melbourne Football Club - Fact or Fiction" has been distributed to all MFC staff members and will be distributed to the press today after the President's address. The Demons are fighting back off the field and that should set the stage for the players to join the party. MELBOURNE FOOTBALL CLUB - FACT OR FICTION FINANCES FICTION - The Club has no money FACT The Club has recorded four consecutive years of profit and has reduced debt by over 50% from $5.5m to $2.7m since 2004. The Club recorded aggregate losses of $8.52 million between 1999-2003 (Ave $1.42million/annum). The Club has invested profits from recent years into both debt reduction and football department spending (increased by $500k in 2007 and again in 2008). The Club has increased non-AFL sourced revenue by 35% in last 4 years (Vic Club average 29%). The Clubs annual revenue is approximately $29 million/annum or $552k/week lower than the highest revenue Club (Collingwood). Over time this seriously compromises the ability of Melbourne to be competitive. The financial result for 2007 ($96K profit) was adversely impacted by player injuries ($400K), reduced match related revenue ($550K) and gaming performance ($500k). The Board considered this result to be unacceptable and took appropriate steps. FICTION - "Raise money or sink Auditor warns Dees" (Deborah Gough The Age 23 March) FACTThe Club Auditor has said nothing of the sort. Auditors Ernst and Young have issued the same qualified audit opinion referring to “inherent uncertainty regarding going concern” in every set of published accounts for the Melbourne Football Club since 2001. The qualification refers to the Club’s reliance on ongoing AFL funding and the Club’s net asset position. A similar qualification appears in the Audit opinion of three other Clubs (Carlton, St Kilda, North Melbourne) who also have negative net assets. FICTION The Club is reliant on AFL Funding / Welfare / Life Support FACT Under the current industry-funding model all 16 Clubs are reliant on AFL funding. Without this funding no Club would be viable. In 2007, 3 Clubs (Bulldogs, North Melbourne, Carlton) received more AFL funding than Melbourne. AFL Funding to Melbourne ($8.239 Million) was $32k more than AFL funding to Collingwood ($8.207) in 2007. The competitive balance fund (CBF) was abolished by the AFL some years ago and replaced by the Annual Special Distribution (ASD). Melbourne is one of ten Clubs to participate in the ASD in 2007. MELBOURNE FOOTBALL CLUB - FACT OR FICTION MEMBERSHIP / SUPPORTER BASE FICTION - The Club has no members / fickle supporters FACT The Club’s supporter base (214,000) is the smallest in the AFL. The Club’s membership (28,077 in 2007) is the 2nd smallest. The supporter demographic is ageing. Melbourne FC is seriously under represented in Auskick Club allegiance statistics. Dwindling / ageing supporter base is a legacy of 43 years of underachievement in football. The Club recognises this as a major strategic threat to the future strength of the Club. The Club has grown membership by 36% (20,647 to 28,077) between 2004-2007 (Vic Club average 9%). Melbourne has the highest conversion of supporters to paid up members of all AFL Clubs. 28% or 25,000 of the MCC’s 90,000 members support the Melbourne Football Club. 4000 of these take out membership of the football Club. The remainder notionally support the Melbourne Football Club through the Annual Grant (currently $500K) from the MCC to the MFC. Membership target 30K for 2008. As at 27 March, memberships sold are 22,870 (vs 2007 YTD 24,209 and budget 25,867). MELBOURNE FOOTBALL CLUB - FACT OR FICTION GOVERNANCE FICTION - The Board is the second worst in the AFL / Board instability FACT The Club has a history of bitter divisions and infighting including the merger debate (1996) and contested elections in 2001 and 2003. Since election of Paul Gardner as Chairman 4 years ago, the following has occurred: * No contested elections *Retirement and replacement of 8 (of 11) Directors through seamless and managed succession planning, maximising Board skill mix and providing fresh ideas. *Appointment of past player Andrew Leoncelli and Businessman / MCC Member Peter Spargo in recent months has continued this process. Appointment of 3 female Directors – leading the industry Comprehensive constitutional reform ensuring best practice governance and compliance – 3 years in advance of AFL’s issuing governance guidelines to Clubs. Robust performance management process for Directors and staff. Cohesive and unified Board with no leaks. Effective Finance Audit and Risk Committee MELBOURNE FOOTBALL CLUB - FACT OR FICTION TRAINING AND ADMINISTRATION FACILITIES – THE HOME FICTION - Melbourne is homeless FACT Melbourne has not had an exclusive 52-week training facility for 150 years of the Club’s existence. Prior to 1985 the Club has trained on the MCG in winter and an over in Swan Street in summer. In 1994 the then Club administration signed a long-term lease on Junction Oval. This decision condemned the Club to more than a decade of separation of football department from administration, substandard training / rehab / medical faculties and a training surface available only between April-September. This required the Club to access multiple suburban grounds for summer training. In 2004 the current Board entered into a memorandum of understanding to become an anchor tenant in the $268 million Melbourne rectangular stadium in the Melbourne Olympic Park precinct. Initially the Club was to occupy its new training /admin home in April 2008. Delays in the completion of the project (now estimated late 2009) have been caused by issues relating to other tenants and have been beyond the control of Melbourne FC. In addition to occupancy of the new MOPT home with state of the art administration, training and medical/rehab facilities, Melbourne has commenced discussions with the City of Casey regarding provision of a summer training base in Cranbourne giving the Club access to a new demographic in one of Australia’s fastest growing municipalities. Funding for the MOPT "Home" ($2.7 million total) has been secured by a combination of Club fundraising ($816k raised to date towards target of $1.8 million), State Government ($1 million grant announced 17 March) and AFL. Rather than depicting the Club as homeless, the correct position is that within 18 months the Club will take up occupancy in a state of the art training and administration base, located in the MCG/MOPT precinct for the first time in 150 years. MELBOURNE FOOTBALL CLUB - FACT OR FICTION FOOTBALL FICTION - Melbourne has no credibility as a football team FACT The Club has not won a Premiership since 1964. This 43 year Premiership drought is the 2nd longest in this competition. It explains the disillusionment and cynicism of many supporters which can only be exorcised by a Premiership win. Striving for a Premiership drives every action and decision taken by the Club and is at the heart of our football credibility. Since 1987, Melbourne has played in 12 finals series. This is bettered only by West Coast (17) and Essendon (13). In the same period, Collingwood and Carlton have seen finals action in 9 seasons, Richmond twice. Melbourne will continue to make changes in its Premiership quest. For season 2008, we have a new Senior Coach, two (of three) new Assistant Coaches, two new Development Coaches, a new Football Operations Manager (Chris Connolly) and a new Manager of Recruitment and List Management. There are 8 new additions to our Senior List and 11 introductions to the Club in our expanded list of 44. The Sandringham alliance is the industry "Gold Standard". It has served Melbourne well with development of young players, many of whom have played in Sandringham's four post-alignment VFL Premiership teams. FICTION - The Football Department is under-resourced FACT Training facilities are substandard; this will be rectified by the Casey Fields Project (planned to be available for the 2009 pre-season) and the MOPT home (available late 2009). Football department expenditure ($13 million in 2007) is midrange for the AFL (9th of 16). FICTION - "Dees Cut Coaching Budget" (The Australian, 2 August 2007) FACT An additional $500k was added to the Football department in 2008. Following a further $500k additional investment in 2007. The additional funding was applied to the creation of additional Development Coaching positions (Kelly O'Donnell and Mark Williams), expansion of List Management and Recruiting network (Recruiting Officer based in Darwin) and leadership development through Leading Teams. MELBOURNE FOOTBALL CLUB - FACT OR FICTION MANAGEMENT FICTION - The Club is poorly managed FACT Management of the Club improved significantly following Steve Harris' appointment in June 2004. This improvement will continue with the appointment of new CEO Paul MacNamee, one of Australia’s leading Sports Administrators. Priority areas identified for Paul include staff morale/retention, stakeholder relations (especially AFL and MCC) and brand enhancement. Long term initiatives such as China and Team Melbourne remain as key items on the Club agenda. Embracing broad community issues is a key to the Club’s brand strategy. Melbourne's pioneering of the memorable "Pink Lady" initiative established the Club as an industry leader. FICTION - The Club’s relationship with the AFL is poor FACT The Club enjoys an excellent and supportive relationship with AFL Chairman Mike Fitzpatrick, the Commission, Andrew Demetriou and his executives. The Club meets with the AFL monthly to review Club finances. These meetings have been conducted for the last 4 years and are a condition of ASD funding. The Club and the AFL – in conjunction with the MCC – are collaborating on a new 5 year strategic plan for the Club, replacing the last plan which was comprehensively overhauled in 2004. Notwithstanding the closeness of the relationship with the AFL, the Club operates as an autonomous entity – as much as any other Club – without outside "interference" in our affairs.

by Whispering Jack According to Wikipedia, the free on-line encyclopedia, ABC TV’s programme Media Watch is "viewed by some as a watchdog of the Australian media, that investigates and exposes media bias and breaches of journalistic ethics and standards." On what we've seen in the past week or so, we desperately need a media watchdog to monitor some of the information (or should I say misinformation) being fed to unsuspecting consumers of news on matters football and in particular on some of the things that are being written and said about the Melbourne Football Club. The impression given that the Demons are sinking faster than the Titanic is not just wild exaggeration but mischievous sensationalism at its lowest level. Don't get me wrong. I'm not suggesting that we shoot the messenger but we do need to examine some of the things that have been published about the state of the Demons and to expose where errors of fact have been made and why some of the opinions being expressed out there in the media are simply wrong and without any basis in logic or fact. We need a Media Watch to expose some of the untruthful and damaging comments being passed on about the club including the disgraceful statements made to the effect that Melbourne is the next "Fitzroy" - a claim levelled in the past year at both Carlton and the Kangaroos. Now, it's our turn. There has been a need for a media watchdog since the days when man received his news on papyrus but as the information revolution has expanded so the scope for breaches of journalistic standards continues to grow exponentially. There is so much pressure on reporters to get THE story of the day and there are so many reporters who are driven by agendas instead of reporting THE truth that we are seeing more and more examples of the public, wittingly or unwittingly, being fed false and misleading information in all matters of news from war reporting, to finance, social events and yes … even in sport. What's really worrying is that the misinformation often comes from trusted sources such as established newspapers and experienced journalists. The famous newsagency Reuters, one of the main agencies for news on the international stage developed a reputation for dispensing the news honestly for over a hundred years but has recently been beset by criticism for presenting biased news reporting and even publishing doctored photographs of war scenes. Then, in August last year, it was forced to admit that footage it released purportedly showing Russian submersibles on the seabed of the North Pole actually came from the movie Titanic. The mistake was picked up by a 13 year old Finnish schoolboy who contacted a local newspaper to tell them the images looked identical to those used in the movie and, as a result, the story and Reuters' reputation along with it, sank faster than the Titanic. So it pays for reporters to check and recheck their facts before they go to press yet in these days of a media hungry to be the first with a sensational story, that isn't always the case. This applies particularly to the world of sport where competition is tough especially when it comes to our own game of football and the latest victim of that media hunger is the Melbourne Football Club. A club in transition, thirsting for success, and doing it tough is an easy target and, with a few notable exceptions like this one, the sporting media vultures who feasted during the summer months on the supposedly decaying carcass of the Kangaroos, have now turned their attention elsewhere and are circling delightedly around their new prey – the Demons. The club's poor pre-season practice match form and that resounding 104 thumping at the hands of Hawthorn in the opening round just made the club easy meat for lazy journalists looking for a sensationalist story. Still, this doesn't relieve them of the responsibility of reporting with honesty as otherwise, their own reputations will sink like the Titanic - especially when their errors are so obvious that even a 13 year-old could expose them!. Today is the start of the Melbourne Football Club's fight back against this nonsense. The best way to respond to the vultures is of course, on the field with a Demonlike performance against the Western Bulldogs but, since the blame for the club's current woes has been attached to its off field leadership and administration, the first response should rightfully come from the top. And so it will - during the Pre Match at today's Presidents Lunch and a subsequent press conference by club President Paul Gardner. The following document, "The Melbourne Football Club - Fact or Fiction" has been distributed to all MFC staff members and will be distributed to the press today after the President's address. The Demons are fighting back off the field and that should set the stage for the players to join the party. MELBOURNE FOOTBALL CLUB - FACT OR FICTION FINANCES FICTION - The Club has no money FACT The Club has recorded four consecutive years of profit and has reduced debt by over 50% from $5.5m to $2.7m since 2004. The Club recorded aggregate losses of $8.52 million between 1999-2003 (Ave $1.42million/annum). The Club has invested profits from recent years into both debt reduction and football department spending (increased by $500k in 2007 and again in 2008). The Club has increased non-AFL sourced revenue by 35% in last 4 years (Vic Club average 29%). The Clubs annual revenue is approximately $29 million/annum or $552k/week lower than the highest revenue Club (Collingwood). Over time this seriously compromises the ability of Melbourne to be competitive. The financial result for 2007 ($96K profit) was adversely impacted by player injuries ($400K), reduced match related revenue ($550K) and gaming performance ($500k). The Board considered this result to be unacceptable and took appropriate steps. FICTION - "Raise money or sink Auditor warns Dees" (Deborah Gough The Age 23 March) FACTThe Club Auditor has said nothing of the sort. Auditors Ernst and Young have issued the same qualified audit opinion referring to “inherent uncertainty regarding going concern” in every set of published accounts for the Melbourne Football Club since 2001. The qualification refers to the Club’s reliance on ongoing AFL funding and the Club’s net asset position. A similar qualification appears in the Audit opinion of three other Clubs (Carlton, St Kilda, North Melbourne) who also have negative net assets. FICTION The Club is reliant on AFL Funding / Welfare / Life Support FACT Under the current industry-funding model all 16 Clubs are reliant on AFL funding. Without this funding no Club would be viable. In 2007, 3 Clubs (Bulldogs, North Melbourne, Carlton) received more AFL funding than Melbourne. AFL Funding to Melbourne ($8.239 Million) was $32k more than AFL funding to Collingwood ($8.207) in 2007. The competitive balance fund (CBF) was abolished by the AFL some years ago and replaced by the Annual Special Distribution (ASD). Melbourne is one of ten Clubs to participate in the ASD in 2007. MELBOURNE FOOTBALL CLUB - FACT OR FICTION MEMBERSHIP / SUPPORTER BASE FICTION - The Club has no members / fickle supporters FACT The Club’s supporter base (214,000) is the smallest in the AFL. The Club’s membership (28,077 in 2007) is the 2nd smallest. The supporter demographic is ageing. Melbourne FC is seriously under represented in Auskick Club allegiance statistics. Dwindling / ageing supporter base is a legacy of 43 years of underachievement in football. The Club recognises this as a major strategic threat to the future strength of the Club. The Club has grown membership by 36% (20,647 to 28,077) between 2004-2007 (Vic Club average 9%). Melbourne has the highest conversion of supporters to paid up members of all AFL Clubs. 28% or 25,000 of the MCC’s 90,000 members support the Melbourne Football Club. 4000 of these take out membership of the football Club. The remainder notionally support the Melbourne Football Club through the Annual Grant (currently $500K) from the MCC to the MFC. Membership target 30K for 2008. As at 27 March, memberships sold are 22,870 (vs 2007 YTD 24,209 and budget 25,867). MELBOURNE FOOTBALL CLUB - FACT OR FICTION GOVERNANCE FICTION - The Board is the second worst in the AFL / Board instability FACT The Club has a history of bitter divisions and infighting including the merger debate (1996) and contested elections in 2001 and 2003. Since election of Paul Gardner as Chairman 4 years ago, the following has occurred: * No contested elections *Retirement and replacement of 8 (of 11) Directors through seamless and managed succession planning, maximising Board skill mix and providing fresh ideas. *Appointment of past player Andrew Leoncelli and Businessman / MCC Member Peter Spargo in recent months has continued this process. Appointment of 3 female Directors – leading the industry Comprehensive constitutional reform ensuring best practice governance and compliance – 3 years in advance of AFL’s issuing governance guidelines to Clubs. Robust performance management process for Directors and staff. Cohesive and unified Board with no leaks. Effective Finance Audit and Risk Committee MELBOURNE FOOTBALL CLUB - FACT OR FICTION TRAINING AND ADMINISTRATION FACILITIES – THE HOME FICTION - Melbourne is homeless FACT Melbourne has not had an exclusive 52-week training facility for 150 years of the Club’s existence. Prior to 1985 the Club has trained on the MCG in winter and an over in Swan Street in summer. In 1994 the then Club administration signed a long-term lease on Junction Oval. This decision condemned the Club to more than a decade of separation of football department from administration, substandard training / rehab / medical faculties and a training surface available only between April-September. This required the Club to access multiple suburban grounds for summer training. In 2004 the current Board entered into a memorandum of understanding to become an anchor tenant in the $268 million Melbourne rectangular stadium in the Melbourne Olympic Park precinct. Initially the Club was to occupy its new training /admin home in April 2008. Delays in the completion of the project (now estimated late 2009) have been caused by issues relating to other tenants and have been beyond the control of Melbourne FC. In addition to occupancy of the new MOPT home with state of the art administration, training and medical/rehab facilities, Melbourne has commenced discussions with the City of Casey regarding provision of a summer training base in Cranbourne giving the Club access to a new demographic in one of Australia’s fastest growing municipalities. Funding for the MOPT "Home" ($2.7 million total) has been secured by a combination of Club fundraising ($816k raised to date towards target of $1.8 million), State Government ($1 million grant announced 17 March) and AFL. Rather than depicting the Club as homeless, the correct position is that within 18 months the Club will take up occupancy in a state of the art training and administration base, located in the MCG/MOPT precinct for the first time in 150 years. MELBOURNE FOOTBALL CLUB - FACT OR FICTION FOOTBALL FICTION - Melbourne has no credibility as a football team FACT The Club has not won a Premiership since 1964. This 43 year Premiership drought is the 2nd longest in this competition. It explains the disillusionment and cynicism of many supporters which can only be exorcised by a Premiership win. Striving for a Premiership drives every action and decision taken by the Club and is at the heart of our football credibility. Since 1987, Melbourne has played in 12 finals series. This is bettered only by West Coast (17) and Essendon (13). In the same period, Collingwood and Carlton have seen finals action in 9 seasons, Richmond twice. Melbourne will continue to make changes in its Premiership quest. For season 2008, we have a new Senior Coach, two (of three) new Assistant Coaches, two new Development Coaches, a new Football Operations Manager (Chris Connolly) and a new Manager of Recruitment and List Management. There are 8 new additions to our Senior List and 11 introductions to the Club in our expanded list of 44. The Sandringham alliance is the industry "Gold Standard". It has served Melbourne well with development of young players, many of whom have played in Sandringham's four post-alignment VFL Premiership teams. FICTION - The Football Department is under-resourced FACT Training facilities are substandard; this will be rectified by the Casey Fields Project (planned to be available for the 2009 pre-season) and the MOPT home (available late 2009). Football department expenditure ($13 million in 2007) is midrange for the AFL (9th of 16). FICTION - "Dees Cut Coaching Budget" (The Australian, 2 August 2007) FACT An additional $500k was added to the Football department in 2008. Following a further $500k additional investment in 2007. The additional funding was applied to the creation of additional Development Coaching positions (Kelly O'Donnell and Mark Williams), expansion of List Management and Recruiting network (Recruiting Officer based in Darwin) and leadership development through Leading Teams. MELBOURNE FOOTBALL CLUB - FACT OR FICTION MANAGEMENT FICTION - The Club is poorly managed FACT Management of the Club improved significantly following Steve Harris' appointment in June 2004. This improvement will continue with the appointment of new CEO Paul MacNamee, one of Australia’s leading Sports Administrators. Priority areas identified for Paul include staff morale/retention, stakeholder relations (especially AFL and MCC) and brand enhancement. Long term initiatives such as China and Team Melbourne remain as key items on the Club agenda. Embracing broad community issues is a key to the Club’s brand strategy. Melbourne's pioneering of the memorable "Pink Lady" initiative established the Club as an industry leader. FICTION - The Club’s relationship with the AFL is poor FACT The Club enjoys an excellent and supportive relationship with AFL Chairman Mike Fitzpatrick, the Commission, Andrew Demetriou and his executives. The Club meets with the AFL monthly to review Club finances. These meetings have been conducted for the last 4 years and are a condition of ASD funding. The Club and the AFL – in conjunction with the MCC – are collaborating on a new 5 year strategic plan for the Club, replacing the last plan which was comprehensively overhauled in 2004. Notwithstanding the closeness of the relationship with the AFL, the Club operates as an autonomous entity – as much as any other Club – without outside "interference" in our affairs.

EVERY MAN AND HIS BULLDOG by JVM Even before Melbourne's pathetic capitulation to Hawthorn last Sunday evening, the experts were lining up with their own two bobs' worth to explain everything there is to know about its current malaise. And, as if to justify their "expert" credentials, every man and his Bulldog claimed to have the intimate background knowledge, the authentic reason for the decline of the Demons in the public's lowly perception about the club and his own remedy. The common view among most was that not only was Melbourne the red hot favourite for this season's wooden spoon, it was now THE prime candidate for shipment up to the Gold Coast, the western suburbs of Sydney and if that wasn't an option, they were being consigned to play some of their home games among the cow pats and the market gardens in the wilds of Casey Fields in Cranbourne. There were all manner of explanations for the club's problems, some of them close to the mark but others were quite exotic. The problem was, according to one scribe, the proclivity of some players to drunkenness and unruliness. Others said the club lacked of brand identity and needed a new jumper - as if the Demons don't know who they are and what they stand for! Well, perhaps they don’t these days? One or two commentators even came up with the view that the team was so poor because the players were no good. Fancy that? So this week Melbourne confronts the Western Bulldogs and there are people going around thinking that the club's season is over already; that there is no chance that it can win a chook raffle let alone a game of AFL football. That view is based on a shoddy pre season and an uncomfortably poor first up display against the Hawks who were brim full of confidence and had a tall key forward who could do no wrong. Some people were even saying they hadn't seen a poorer performance from the boys in the red and blue ever in their lifetimes. Now that's a stretch because those people either have a poor memory or weren't around last year for the Richmond v Melbourne game of Round 12. In my estimation, the Demons were just as bad, if not worse, that day as they were last Sunday. We know that this was the game that virtually saw off Neale Daniher's coaching career at the club but a week later in his final game at the helm, Melbourne came just three seconds shy of a stunning turnaround victory against the Bombers at Telstra Dome. And the following week they tasted victory against Carlton! Not long after that they faced off against Saturday's opponent, the Western Bulldogs whose confidence was also at a low ebb and yet, nobody expected Melbourne to win. The fact that the Demons won so handsomely against the Bulldogs in Round 19 of 2007 means nothing in this new season but it does go to show how important confidence can be in this game of ours. In that game, it was the Doggies who were low on confidence and they struggled to match it with the Demons. Rodney Eade's team copped some monumental floggings late in the season so it might be a tad early to measure the significance of their late charge to victory at home against the Crows last Sunday. Certainly that was a better performance than that produced by the Demons later that afternoon but this week Melbourne will field a different tem to the one that fell in such a heap last week. The entire club including its supporters have been the butt of ridicule and disdain and there are questions that need to be answered by the Melbourne playing group. As always in these situations they relate to its resolve, its spirit and its will to win. THE GAME Melbourne v Western Bulldogs at MCG Saturday 29 March 2008 at 2.10pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall Melbourne 83 wins Western Bulldogs 65 wins At the MCG Melbourne 43 wins Western Bulldogs 22 wins Since 2000 Melbourne 10 wins Western Bulldogs 5 wins The Coaches Bailey 0 wins Eade 0 wins MEDIA TV Channel 10 (delayed telecast starting at 3pm) RADIO 3AW 774ABC MMM THE BETTING Melbourne to win $3.00 Western Bulldogs to win $1.33 LAST TIME THEY MET Melbourne 19.15.129 d Western Bulldogs 12.15.87 Round 19, 2007, at Telstra Dome. The Bulldogs were raging favourites despite the fact that they were going through a form slump. The Demons were in an even deeper trough and had nothing to play for but a priority draft pick. That they ultimately failed in achieving that simply task was due in part to the fact that they dominated this game from start to finish. Nathan Jones played a blinder in the midfield and the likes of Holland, Robertson and Davey found the goals enough times for their team to finish seven goals up when the final siren blew. THE TEAMS MELBOURNE B Paul Wheatley Nathan Carroll Colin Garland HB Clint Bartram Daniel Bell Simon Buckley C Brad Green Brock McLean Cale Morton HF Cameron Bruce Brad Miller Lynden Dunn F Michael Newton David Neitz Russell Robertson Foll Jeff White James McDonald Nathan Jones I/C Isaac Weetra Colin Sylvia Aaron Davey Paul Johnson Emerg Ben Holland Ricky Petterd Brent Moloney In Bartram Dunn Sylvia Out Brent Moloney Ricky Petterd Adem Yze WESTERN BULLDOGS B Dale Morris Lindsay Gilbee Brian Lake HB Ryan Griffen Cameron Wight Ryan Hargrave C Nathan Eagleton Scott West Daniel Cross HF Robert Murphy Mitch Hahn Brad Johnson F Jason Akermanis Will Minson Scott Welsh Foll Ben Hudson Matthew Boyd Adam Cooney I/C Josh Hill Shaun Higgins Daniel Giansiracusa Dylan Addison Emerg Tim Callan Stephen Tiller Peter Street No change Field umpires: Farmer Kamolins Ryan THE STAGGERS When the teams last met, the Demons were going through their worst run with injury in recent memory. I wrote at the time that the club was like a boxer who has already been knocked down twice and is staggering on the ropes waiting for the bell to ring and put an end to proceedings. That's not an option at this time of the year. We are still in the month of March and there is time to control those staggers, to straighten up and throw some more punches. This week, we see some new firepower with which to throw those extra punches and we know that there are a number of players in the side who will be out to redeem themselves. Some will be playing for their careers over the coming few weeks. One of the club's veterans in Adem Yze has already paid the price for last week’s performance and others in the club's 30-year plus age group know that they must perform if they don’t wish to join him at Sandringham. Two other players dropped along with Yze are Ricky Petterd and midfielder Brent Moloney. The latter might be a surprise but the club had to do something about its lack of pace in the sense of the ability to run and in the actual movement of the football – an area where it was completely shown up against the Hawks. Their replacements are Colin Sylvia returning from a one-match suspension imposed by the leadership group and Lynden Dunn (who kicked five goals at Sandringham last week) and Clint Bartram after an absence of exactly one whole season. These changes should give the team added mobility but the club also failed last week in its key forward and key back positions. Clearly, the club did not believe that its best defender Jared Rivers was ready to play yet on return from a groin injury that restricted him to three games last year or that another tall option, James Frawley, was ready for the rigours of senior AFL football. Or perhaps it was the belief that the problem in this area might go away by itself because the Bulldogs don't have as many taller options as the Hawks. I think Melbourne's selectors have only gotten it half right and that they have taken too safe an approach to team selection. There should have been at least two more changes to a line up that received a 104-point mauling in the opening game of the season. There are still too many "comfort zone" players in a side whose major problem has been that it was allowed for too long to remain in that self-same comfort zone. At least the Demons will be exposed to a team whose veterans like Brad Johnson and Scott West know how to lead by example. Johnson played his 300th AFL game last week and, at times, was not at his best. He never stopped trying however, and ended the game a hero with three late goals that helped the bulldogs over the line. Let’s hope that James McDonald can do likewise for the Demons in his 200th game this Saturday! Unfortunately, hope is not enough to win games these days and I expect the Bulldogs with their superior pace, commitment and confidence to score an easy victory against a team that still has the staggers. The only good news for the Demons is that come the end of Round 2, they will still only be one game (and a truckload of percentage) out of the eight with still plenty of time for a revival – even though that might be against all the odds. And because the Demons got their team selection half right, I'm tipping that they will halve their losing margin from last week. Western Bulldogs by 52 points.

by JVM Even before Melbourne's pathetic capitulation to Hawthorn last Sunday evening, the experts were lining up with their own two bobs' worth to explain everything there is to know about its current malaise. And, as if to justify their "expert" credentials, every man and his Bulldog claimed to have the intimate background knowledge, the authentic reason for the decline of the Demons in the public's lowly perception about the club and his own remedy. The common view among most was that not only was Melbourne the red hot favourite for this season's wooden spoon, it was now THE prime candidate for shipment up to the Gold Coast, the western suburbs of Sydney and if that wasn't an option, they were being consigned to play some of their home games among the cow pats and the market gardens in the wilds of Casey Fields in Cranbourne. There were all manner of explanations for the club's problems, some of them close to the mark but others were quite exotic. The problem was, according to one scribe, the proclivity of some players to drunkenness and unruliness. Others said the club lacked of brand identity and needed a new jumper - as if the Demons don't know who they are and what they stand for! Well, perhaps they don’t these days? One or two commentators even came up with the view that the team was so poor because the players were no good. Fancy that? So this week Melbourne confronts the Western Bulldogs and there are people going around thinking that the club's season is over already; that there is no chance that it can win a chook raffle let alone a game of AFL football. That view is based on a shoddy pre season and an uncomfortably poor first up display against the Hawks who were brim full of confidence and had a tall key forward who could do no wrong. Some people were even saying they hadn't seen a poorer performance from the boys in the red and blue ever in their lifetimes. Now that's a stretch because those people either have a poor memory or weren't around last year for the Richmond v Melbourne game of Round 12. In my estimation, the Demons were just as bad, if not worse, that day as they were last Sunday. We know that this was the game that virtually saw off Neale Daniher's coaching career at the club but a week later in his final game at the helm, Melbourne came just three seconds shy of a stunning turnaround victory against the Bombers at Telstra Dome. And the following week they tasted victory against Carlton! Not long after that they faced off against Saturday's opponent, the Western Bulldogs whose confidence was also at a low ebb and yet, nobody expected Melbourne to win. The fact that the Demons won so handsomely against the Bulldogs in Round 19 of 2007 means nothing in this new season but it does go to show how important confidence can be in this game of ours. In that game, it was the Doggies who were low on confidence and they struggled to match it with the Demons. Rodney Eade's team copped some monumental floggings late in the season so it might be a tad early to measure the significance of their late charge to victory at home against the Crows last Sunday. Certainly that was a better performance than that produced by the Demons later that afternoon but this week Melbourne will field a different tem to the one that fell in such a heap last week. The entire club including its supporters have been the butt of ridicule and disdain and there are questions that need to be answered by the Melbourne playing group. As always in these situations they relate to its resolve, its spirit and its will to win. THE GAME Melbourne v Western Bulldogs at MCG Saturday 29 March 2008 at 2.10pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall Melbourne 83 wins Western Bulldogs 65 wins At the MCG Melbourne 43 wins Western Bulldogs 22 wins Since 2000 Melbourne 10 wins Western Bulldogs 5 wins The Coaches Bailey 0 wins Eade 0 wins MEDIA TV Channel 10 (delayed telecast starting at 3pm) RADIO 3AW 774ABC MMM THE BETTING Melbourne to win $3.00 Western Bulldogs to win $1.33 LAST TIME THEY MET Melbourne 19.15.129 d Western Bulldogs 12.15.87 Round 19, 2007, at Telstra Dome. The Bulldogs were raging favourites despite the fact that they were going through a form slump. The Demons were in an even deeper trough and had nothing to play for but a priority draft pick. That they ultimately failed in achieving that simply task was due in part to the fact that they dominated this game from start to finish. Nathan Jones played a blinder in the midfield and the likes of Holland, Robertson and Davey found the goals enough times for their team to finish seven goals up when the final siren blew. THE TEAMS MELBOURNE B Paul Wheatley Nathan Carroll Colin Garland HB Clint Bartram Daniel Bell Simon Buckley C Brad Green Brock McLean Cale Morton HF Cameron Bruce Brad Miller Lynden Dunn F Michael Newton David Neitz Russell Robertson Foll Jeff White James McDonald Nathan Jones I/C Isaac Weetra Colin Sylvia Aaron Davey Paul Johnson Emerg Ben Holland Ricky Petterd Brent Moloney In Bartram Dunn Sylvia Out Brent Moloney Ricky Petterd Adem Yze WESTERN BULLDOGS B Dale Morris Lindsay Gilbee Brian Lake HB Ryan Griffen Cameron Wight Ryan Hargrave C Nathan Eagleton Scott West Daniel Cross HF Robert Murphy Mitch Hahn Brad Johnson F Jason Akermanis Will Minson Scott Welsh Foll Ben Hudson Matthew Boyd Adam Cooney I/C Josh Hill Shaun Higgins Daniel Giansiracusa Dylan Addison Emerg Tim Callan Stephen Tiller Peter Street No change Field umpires: Farmer Kamolins Ryan THE STAGGERS When the teams last met, the Demons were going through their worst run with injury in recent memory. I wrote at the time that the club was like a boxer who has already been knocked down twice and is staggering on the ropes waiting for the bell to ring and put an end to proceedings. That's not an option at this time of the year. We are still in the month of March and there is time to control those staggers, to straighten up and throw some more punches. This week, we see some new firepower with which to throw those extra punches and we know that there are a number of players in the side who will be out to redeem themselves. Some will be playing for their careers over the coming few weeks. One of the club's veterans in Adem Yze has already paid the price for last week’s performance and others in the club's 30-year plus age group know that they must perform if they don’t wish to join him at Sandringham. Two other players dropped along with Yze are Ricky Petterd and midfielder Brent Moloney. The latter might be a surprise but the club had to do something about its lack of pace in the sense of the ability to run and in the actual movement of the football – an area where it was completely shown up against the Hawks. Their replacements are Colin Sylvia returning from a one-match suspension imposed by the leadership group and Lynden Dunn (who kicked five goals at Sandringham last week) and Clint Bartram after an absence of exactly one whole season. These changes should give the team added mobility but the club also failed last week in its key forward and key back positions. Clearly, the club did not believe that its best defender Jared Rivers was ready to play yet on return from a groin injury that restricted him to three games last year or that another tall option, James Frawley, was ready for the rigours of senior AFL football. Or perhaps it was the belief that the problem in this area might go away by itself because the Bulldogs don't have as many taller options as the Hawks. I think Melbourne's selectors have only gotten it half right and that they have taken too safe an approach to team selection. There should have been at least two more changes to a line up that received a 104-point mauling in the opening game of the season. There are still too many "comfort zone" players in a side whose major problem has been that it was allowed for too long to remain in that self-same comfort zone. At least the Demons will be exposed to a team whose veterans like Brad Johnson and Scott West know how to lead by example. Johnson played his 300th AFL game last week and, at times, was not at his best. He never stopped trying however, and ended the game a hero with three late goals that helped the bulldogs over the line. Let’s hope that James McDonald can do likewise for the Demons in his 200th game this Saturday! Unfortunately, hope is not enough to win games these days and I expect the Bulldogs with their superior pace, commitment and confidence to score an easy victory against a team that still has the staggers. The only good news for the Demons is that come the end of Round 2, they will still only be one game (and a truckload of percentage) out of the eight with still plenty of time for a revival – even though that might be against all the odds. And because the Demons got their team selection half right, I'm tipping that they will halve their losing margin from last week. Western Bulldogs by 55 points.

Demonology – Demonland Player Sponsorship Yes, once again the twin web sites of Demonology and Demonland have teamed together to support the club with player sponsorship of Clint Bartram for Season 2008. Not only that but we have arranged that the clubs recruiting manager – Barry Prendergast will address the group post season and post draft to give us the "inside" story of our recruits for the 2009 Season. Not to mention all the juicy bits about the goings on at the draft and what the other clubs are up to. For those that have been with us before, we will be arranging a get-together with Clint during the season. In the past this has been before one of the MCG games. This presents problems in itself as it cannot be done if Clint is playing. We remember that in his first year he played 22 games so it meant that we were left waiting for an opportunity that never came. So it may be that we will try to organise something during the week, around his training and recovery schedule. Barry Prendergast has agreed to pick up where Craig Cameron left off, and it is agreed by all who have attended these functions in the past that this is the greatest value for money possible. Ordinary supporters simply don’t get access to the information made available to our group so join up to become one of the privileged!! Whispering Jack and George will also try to organise a 3rd event and we will let you know about this after we kick around some ideas. All members of our group will receive player sponsorship pins in recognition of their support. But most importantly it is the support that you and our sites provide to the player and the club through this scheme. And all for only $125!! To be part of the scheme, simply send a cheque, cash or postal note to: Player sponsorship P.O. Box 394 Port Melbourne 3207 If you could make the cheques to "cash" it would be appreciated, since the organisers have posted the sponsorship monies up-front. Any surplus is always forwarded to the club. Hoping to see you join with us for Season 2008.

I've merged the two threads we had running on this topic. Our nominated vote givers for Saturday's game v. Western Bulldogs are the first three in this thread:- dees_rule_4eva Maybe next year demondomination But you must have your votes placed on the site by midnight on Saturday night. Good luck and hopefully, your votes will weigh a lot more than Sunday's votes!