Demonland

Why not take them to the Elwood Canal and let them loose?

by the Oracle Had I written earlier in the season, that the two combatants in Saturday’s MCG match of the day between Melbourne and Port Adelaide would both be in the top eight of the AFL as the competition began to make its swing into the run up to the finals, I would been accused of stretching the imagination way beyond reality. Surely, I would have been pulling your leg if I made such an outlandish suggestion? But that’s exactly what’s transpired with both clubs – they have come from the clouds and now both are commanding respect and attention. It's been well documented around here how the Demons lost their first three games and how things were looking bleak with an appointment against reigning premier Sydney in round four. But a narrow victory in that game set the stage for the club's great revival and we now find it in fifth place with an 8/4 record after the break. If you've been watching Melbourne’s recent performances – particularly the 47 point demolition of Collingwood – you would be wondering how on earth the team could have played so dismally in going down to Carlton in the opening round of the season. Port Adelaide also did it tough early in the season losing four of its first six matches before it began a four match winning streak that culminated with an emphatic victory against the West Coast a fortnight ago. Suddenly, Port has grabbed eighth spot on the ladder and it is also now a serious finals contender. Again, if you witnessed that stunning 37 point win at AAMI Stadium over the Eagles, you would be wondering again how on earth that team could have lost at home by almost seven goals in round 1 against the Kangaroos. The similarity between the two clubs is that both have introduced fresh blood into their teams since the season started and both have gone on to thrive on a combination of experience and youthful exuberance. Which leads us to the difficult question of which of the two will continue its run when they meet at the MCG on Saturday. And this is where I have no hesitation in relying on the old fallback position for those in the business of making predictions whenever there is any doubt as to the possible outcome of a game – home ground advantage. In this respect history is on Melbourne's side despite the fact that Port Adelaide has won at its last four outings at the home of football. One of the reasons for this is that for some strange reason the Power has managed to avoid playing very often against Melbourne there. Saturday’s match will be only the sixth clash between the teams over the past decade of Port's existence with the Dees undefeated in all five previous games. During the same period, the teams have met once every year in Adelaide so for the first time ever, the Demons won't have to make the trip this year to the City of Churches to play the former SA magpies. Which is handy, because they have fallen victim to some horrible pastings there in recent years. But it's a different story altogether at the MCG where Melbourne remains undefeated for 2006 and where it plays its most impressive football. In addition, I'll add the following factors – 1. The Byron Pickett Factor – there's no doubt that the recruitment of the Byronator has added a harder edge to the Melbourne Football Club. The man who Power coach Mark Williams discarded because he was considered unemployable is having a fantastic season and will no doubt be out to show his former mentor that he was wrong. And why not? This bloke is a dual premiership player and won the Norm Smith Medal twelve months before Williams dumped him. 2. The Brock McLean Factor – with the weather bureau predicting a wet day, what more could Melbourne ask for but the return of one of the competition's best wet weather players – another hard nut and a wonderful performer for the club in season 2006. 3. The Warren Tredrea Factor – when the teams last met at AAMI Stadium he booted five goals. The year before he destroyed Melbourne at the same venue with six majors. The WT Factor will not apply this week because he's out with a knee injury. The fact that the in form Damon White is out could also be significant because it leaves Port short of talls. The predicted rain might limit the advantage Melbourne might gain from Port's loss of Tredrea and White but let's not forget that when the going gets heavy you need big strong bodies. The Dees will have the first two factors in operation so if the clouds open up, they should be in the box seat. There will of course be some classic battles around the ground. Jeff White and Mark Jamar v Lade and Brogan should be a ripper and so should David Neitz v Darryl Wakelin. Aaron Davey and Danyle Pearce might not match up against each other but they will provide pace to burn. And the midfield matchups will be worth going a long way to see and the introduction of another Burgoyne will help the visitors. On the other hand, I wonder how often in the past it could have been said of Melbourne that players of the ilk of Brad Miller, Paul Wheatley and Ryan Ferguson who all played so well last week at Sandringham are unable to break into the team. That's a sign of confidence if there ever was one. So it's a case of home sweet home for Melbourne and I’m tipping a 38 point victory for the Demon juggernaut. May it keep on rolling along! MELBOURNE v PORT ADELAIDE Where & When: MCG, 2:10pm (AEST), Saturday, 1 July, 2006 TV & Radio: TV - Fox Footy (Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane, Sydney), Channel 10 (Adelaide) Radio - 774 Grandstand with Gerard Whateley, Drew Morphett, Stan Alves , Mark Maclure & Peter Brukner Head to Head: Played - 14, Melbourne 7, Port Adelaide 7 MCG: Played – 5, Melbourne 5, Port Adelaide 0 Last time they met: Port Adelaide 20.17.137 defeated Melbourne 11.9.75 in Round 15, 2005, at AAMI Stadium – the Melbourne slump was well and truly on as Port kicked 11 goals to 3 in the first half. Brad Miller was off with a hamstring injury by quarter time and the Demons had few winners on a terrible day in Adelaide. And things were only going to get worse. The betting: Melbourne $1.40 Port Adelaide $2.75 The Teams: MELBOURNE B: Whelan Carroll Holland HB: Ward Rivers C Johnson C: Davey Johnstone Green HF: Bruce Dunn Pickett F: Robertson Neitz Yze FOLL: White McLean McDonald I/C: Bartram Jamar Read Sylvia EMG: Ferguson Godfrey Wheatley IN: McLean OUT: Bate (hamstring) PORT ADELAIDE B: Wilson Wakelin Symes HB: Lonie Chaplin S Burgoyne C: Salopek K Cornes Surjan HF: Dew C Cornes Mahoney F: P Burgoyne Brogan Ebert FOLL: Lade Cassisi Pearce I/C: Motlop Pettigrew Thomson Ware EMG: Thomas Thurstans Walsh IN: P Burgoyne Motlop OUT: Tredrea (knee) White (thumb) Field umpires: Davis McInerney Wenn

by Whispering Jack The AFL National Under 18 Championships currently being played at MCLabour and Skilled Stadiums are showcasing 200 of the country's best prospects. History tells us that about one third of them will have earned a place on an AFL club list – either senior or rookie - by Christmas time. That fact alone enables me to paraphrase the words of some big time television sports presenters and make the claim that this is a big week in football for our elite youngsters. In the space of a few days the likes of Bryce Gibbs, James Sellar, Tom Hawkins, Scott Gumbleton, Leroy Jetta and Lachlan Hansen have fast become household names (well, at least in some households) and endless debate has been sparked about which club will take which of these and countless others on show this week at the forthcoming drafts. But at the same time, one has to be aware that there's an awful lot of hype out there about many of the players running around during the week. In fact, there are so many and varied opinions about the participants that it's difficult for the casual observer to sort out which of these players is the real deal and which is not. And the true answer is often that we will only be in a position to separate the wheat from the chaff a long way down the track – perhaps in two or three year's time or even longer by which time the prospects will have either established themselves in the big time or have found their places on the footballing scrap heap. I decided a long time ago that you need to be wary about some of the claims that are made about certain players at this time of year and while the championships are a good pointer to who will be picked up come draft time, they are not necessarily the be all and end all of ALF recruiting. As an example, I want to look at the National Draft of 2004 and, in particular, at the recruiting approach of the Melbourne Football Club that year. The Demons had a bumper 2004 but fell away late in the season after at one stage holding top spot. After losing an elimination final, they finished in seventh place which put them in tenth position in the draft order. However, three clubs – Richmond, Hawthorn and the Western Bulldogs – were all entitled to priority picks so that Melbourne's first selection came in at number 13. The club temporarily held the number 12 pick when it traded Scott Thompson to Adelaide but then shipped that selection off to Richmond via Geelong in the trade deal that netted Brad Ottens to the Cats and Brent Moloney to the Demons. Another club trade saw it take choice number 15 from Sydney in exchange for Darren Jolly. A low level switch of draft positions saw Peter Walsh off to Port Adelaide and Melbourne had its third pick at number 43. The club surprised many in the football world at the November 2004 National Draft by "going young" and drafting the youngest, second youngest and fourth youngest players in the draft – Matthew Bate, Lynden Dunn and Michael Newton with picks 13, 15 and 43. All were tallish players capable of playing in key positions and all were "bottom-aged" meaning they could have had another year in the Under 18 system. The record also shows that none of the three players selected by Melbourne had taken part in that year's AFL National Under 18 Championships. In fact, the Demons were the only club not to draft any player who participated. The other 15 clubs concentrated very heavily on graduates from the 2004 AFL National Under 18 Championships. Forty-three of them were drafted in the National Draft, one in the Pre-Season Draft and a further 26 were rookied. Many of those drafted in 2004 have already established a niche at their clubs – names like Deledio, Roughhead, Griffen, Tambling, Franklin, Monfries, Travis Cloke, Sherman (all from the National Draft), Betts (Pre Season Draft) and Pearce (Rookie Draft) are regulars these days. All of them played for their respective states in the Championships. Of the top 15 draft choices at the national draft, Bate and Dunn were the only ones not selected to take part in the Championships. In other words, Demon recruiter Craig Cameron took a longer term view and used his selections to take players with a fair bit of upside – players who had the capacity for greater development and who might have been picked at a much higher level had they remained in the system for another year. And that's how it seems to be working out for the Demons. Matthew Bate, from the Eastern Ranges, spent most of 2005 playing in the VFL with Sandringham and was a member of its premiership team. After showing great promise in this year's pre season nab Cup, he was introduced into the AFL in round five and the young utility with the penetrating left foot has played in every game since with the exception of the match against the Eagles at Subiaco when he was emergency. He is yet to play in a losing Melbourne team and has been super impressive in most of his games. Lynden Dunn, who spent last year going back and forward between the VFL reserves and seniors, came on strongly in the new season and won his club guernsey a week after Bate. He too, has impressed with his sharpness up forward, holding down a key position in a winning team and scoring at least a goal in every game. With every passing week, the young Demon pair continue to show promise and to gather accolades from the football world. But what of the third man in this equation? Selected at number 43 from the Murray Bushrangers, Michael Newton was a slightly different proposition to the other two draftees who came from metropolitan Melbourne and were members of opposing TAC Cup Under 18 Grand Final Teams. Newton, from the small country club Whorouly in Victoria's northeast had been picked in the Vic Country Under 16 team in 2003. He was lightly built but known as a good mark and a player who could play forward or back but wasn't considered by many as a major target in the 2004 draft. Most thought 2005 would be his year. After being drafted by the Demons he spent the whole year with the Zebra reserves and started there in 2006. He is slowly working his way up and has played a couple of highly encouraging cameo roles with the senior side in the past month. There are big wraps on Newton and some feel that he has every bit of talent as fellow key position forward Dunn. However, coming from the bush, he will need more time to acclimatize and develop his football. Another draftee that year, Matthew Warnock came up the hard way from the Sandringham Dragons, into the Zebra reserves, from where he gradually claimed senior status and impressed the Demons enough to be listed along with another Murray Bushranger in Brendan Van Schaik in the rookie draft of 2004. So despite all the hype that surrounds the National Under 18 Championships, Melbourne's policy of looking beyond the square and outside the impressive list of players who contest that competition, looks like paying dividends. Certainly, this is not necessarily the template for all future recruiting policies but given the fact that the club's early choices were outside the top ten, it was a worthwhile exercise in risk taking – although Craig Cameron would probably say that he wasn't taking risks with selecting the likes of Bate and Dunn. After all, Bate was the 2004 TAC Cup Morrish Medallist and Dunn a premiership player with the highly respected and successful Calder Cannons. Another consideration that year was also the depth of the draft. Like 2005 and unlike the current crop, the playing strength of the group at the 2004 championships was not considered as deep as this year's group.

by Barry from Beach Road Sandringham fought hard to overcome a determined Bendigo Bombers outfit by 29 points at Trevor Barker Beach Road Oval on Saturday to record its eighth win of the season and maintain its hold on second position of the VFL ladder. With no AFL games on during the weekend and conditions generally fine, the match attracted a big crowd and the game was worthy of the attention it received. Although the final margin might give the appearance of a comfortable victory, it was not as clear cut as it looked. The game was a hard fought struggle in which the Bombers never gave up and kept coming back on a number of occasions when the Zebras appeared to have taken control and it was Sandy's superior game style, the potency of its forward line and greater accuracy in front of goal that got it comfortably home in the end. Sandy has a quite a few people to thank for that. Firstly, its dominant forward line including two six goal forwards Nick Sautner and Ezra Poyas and a centre half forward Nick Smith who booted three in a stunning final quarter after being unsighted for much of the rest of the game. Then there was the midfield led by a dominant ruckman in Shane Neaves, on ballers Peter Summers, Simon Godfrey and youngsters Nathan Jones and Shane Valentil. Together with Paul Wheatley who controlled his wing all day, they kept up a constant source of supply deep into attack throughout the game. The defence was its usual solid self capably led by Ryan Ferguson. The Bombers were assisted by the inclusion of Scott Camporeale and Paddy Ryder who both played for Essendon last week and were given permission to play by the VFL because of their earlier layoff time with injury. Although placed second last on the VFL ladder, the Bombers were able to field a strong team that included 14 AFL listed players. Camporeale in particular, was a useful inclusion amassing 35 touches and he, along with fellow regular AFL Bombers Dyson and Lovett, helped make the game an interesting and at times exciting contest after Sandy had edged away to a four goal break by the end of the first quarter. It took Bendigo just seven minutes of constant attacking at the beginning of the second term to grab a narrow lead, before the Zebras, with Sautner starring at full forward, struck back to regain control at the main break. Sandringham’s defence led by the courageous Ryan Ferguson, his sidekick Matty Warnock, the enforcer Brad Miller, the dour Andy Biddlecombe and the safe and steady Chris Lamb gradually got on top of the Bombers allowing the Zebras to stretch their led to almost five goals before a flurry of late goals from the Bombers. An early final quarter goal brought the visitors to within striking distance but Sandy, again well led by the courageous Chad Liddell stood firm. It was now Smith’s turn to show his marking prowess and his several strong marks inside 50 netted him three goals and put the issue beyond doubt. Poyas, who was the star of the game, put the icing on the cake with a brilliant goal (his sixth) from a pocket after being denied what would have been his eleventh mark in a dazzling 26 possession display. Sandringham faces some big tests in the coming weeks but none will serve as a better pointer for the remainder of the season than Sunday’s big game at Trevor Barker Beach Road Oval against ladder leader, the Northern Bullants in what should be the VFL match of the year so far. HOW THE DEMONS FARED Daniel Bell - not one of his better games. Was off by three quarter time with what is apparently a recurrence of the groin problem he's had since earlier in the season. Ryan Ferguson - a close to best on ground performance in defence where he let nothing through and provided an afternoon of his usual courageous and death defying aerobatics. Nineteen touches at centre half back is a solid game in anyone's language. Simon Godfrey - a strong, hard and tough midfield performance from Godfrey that was supplemented with some good work around goal. A useful back up player for the Demon midfield if required. Daniel Hughes - useful in his limited time on the ground. Took some strong marks and showed versatility with some good ground play as well. Nathan Jones - a balanced performance from the hard working midfielder who showed that he is on the brink of a long AFL career. He would, in all likelihood, have made his debut at the top level if he was at most other clubs. Brad Miller - provided a hard edge to the defensive unit and, although possible overshadowed by Ferguson, also put forward a strong case for inclusion in the Melbourne team to take on Port Adelaide this coming weekend. Shannon Motlop - did a few useful things but was a bit too hot and cold for my liking. He should be more consistent in his performances at this level. Shane Neaves - apart from a case of brain fade when he was called to play on late in the game and got caught holding the ball, he was the best big man on the field in yet another excellent performance. Michael Newton - due to the composition of the team, he was restricted to a few minor cameos in which he showed glimpses of his potential. Still getting an education in the game and supporters will need to have patience. Nick Smith - had a super final quarter after a quiet first three quarters. If only he can consistently dominate in the way he did in the last! Matthew Warnock - a nice, quiet and unobtrusive game in defence where he backed up his team's key position players well and formed part of a winning defence. Paul Wheatley - a welcome return to form after a few quiet games following a lay off with a groin injury. Picked up 26 disposals on a wing ran hard and deep into the forward line and was generally pinpoint accurate with his disposal. Sandringham 7.4.46 11.5.71 17.8.120 22.10.142 Bendigo Bombers 3.4.22 9.6.60 14.9.93 17.11.113 Goals Poyas Sautner 6 Godfrey 3 Smith 3 Corp Gallagher Liddell Summers Best Poyas Summers Ferguson Wheatley Godfrey Biddlecombe When Sandringham reserves took on the Bendigo reserves at Windy Hill a month ago they were untroubled to beat the home team by 15 goals. Things were different this week when significantly different Sandy lineup took on the same opposition at home. Without their two leading goalkickers for the season in Tom Mentiplay and Michael Newton (who kicked eight goals at Windy Hill), the home side struggled after wasting a number of opportunities in the first quarter. Mark Corrigan, who is recovering after serious knee injury, was Sandringham’s best and is pressing for promotion. The Zebras will be desperate to keep their finals hopes alive with a win over fifth placed Northern Bullants this Sunday. Sandringham 1.6.12 4.8.32 6.13.49 10.16.76 Bendigo Bombers 3.3.21 8.6.54 11.10.76 15.13.103 Goals Taranto 4 Paule Turcarelli 2 Corrigan Gianfagna Best Corrigan Paterakis Paule Lockwood Taranto Johnston

MELBOURNE'S TOUGHEST TEST FOR 2006 - THE BYE by Randy M.M. Savage Dejavu! It's almost nine months since I left the country to do some valuable work for my country offshore (and for viewers of Prison Break - no, I have not been in Irak or in jail!) and, for the second time in three years, I arrive back home, the appetite whetted for a decent game of footy live in the flesh only to find out that the Demons have taken their annual leave this week. Being jet lagged makes it hard to get up at some ungodly hour of the night to watch a game of soccer and besides, there was plenty of that where I've been and I'm sick of nil all draws and the sight of grown men fainting in broad daylight for no apparent reason at all. So I take myself off to the local newsagent where I buy every available newspaper - especially Inside Football - where I discover that lo and behold, we're eight wins, four defeats and poised to grab a spot in the top four. Well, based on that information and what little video action I manage to catch since my return, I reckon they don't need a break at all and neither do I because who needs to spend their first weekend back home mowing the bloody lawn? And contrary to the image of the stereotypical Demon fan, I don't even know how to ski let alone how to locate Falls Creek or Thredbo, even with the aid of my outdated edition of the Melways. I've spent the week enmeshing myself in the happenings of the season to date and I come to the same conclusion as I did last year and the year before that - Melbourne's biggest challenge is to get over the bye and to perform better after the break than before. Really, that's what the premiership teams generally do. You only need to look at the 2005 premiers, the Sydney Swans. Prior to their bye last year they were sitting in sixth spot with seven wins and five losses before winning eight out of the last ten home and away matches to finish third. During that period their percentage soared from 98.9% to 116.4%. The rest of course is history. The mid season break has been the bane of Melbourne's existence in recent years. Back in 2003 when the team was going through the doldrums, it travelled to Adelaide before the break and was flogged mercilessly by 73 points giving it a 3-9 win-loss ratio and a percentage of 77.1, ahead only of the Western Bulldogs. The Demons returned refreshed to surprise St. Kilda by 7 goals at the G and Carlton by 7 points at Optus Oval but failed to win another game and finished 14th, thereby earning the priority pick that netted Colin Sylvia in that year's draft. Essendon was the only team outside the eight to break into finals action replacing the Kangaroos. The following year saw Melbourne in second place at 10-3 after their 26-point victory over Essendon (ironically, they beat the Magpies on Queens Birthday a week earlier). They were just one game behind the pacemakers St. Kilda. After the break, the Demons faltered against the Crows, which had just sacked Garry Ayres as coach replacing him with the virtually unknown Neil Craig. The 12-goal defeat at AAMI Stadium saw Melbourne's percentage drop from 124.8 to 116 but it recovered with a 57-point victory over the Saints. After that however, the Demons were unconvincing against some of the lowly teams but they still managed to grab top spot after 18 rounds before going into free fall and losing their remaining five games for the year including am elimination final against the Bombers. On their way down, they slipped to fifth after the home and away series and seventh after the finals. Fremantle was the only top eight team at the break to lose its place when the Eagles grabbed a finals berth with five wins on end late in the season. Last year, the Demons were again in second place at the break with 9 wins and 4 losses having gone down by 15 points to the Eagles on the MCG, just five days after playing winning against the Pies on Queens Birthday. Before the West Coast game Melbourne had 36 premiership points and a percentage of 121.5. Seven defeats later they were still on 9 wins and their percentage had dropped to 94.4 after a horror run that saw them drop as low as tenth. A few last gasp victories saw them back into the eight but injuries took their toll and they were eliminated from the race by Geelong. Of the teams outside the eight after the break, only the fast finishing Saints made the finals displacing Richmond. So what now? I'm told that there's been something different about the Dees in 2006. I'm a believer so I'll go along with the theory put forward by many of the experts at Demonland and agree that this year the team will not falter, that it will win more than it's share of games for the remainder of the season and that it will finally have a big crack at winning the flag in September. In the meantime, I'm that desperate for some footy that I'm going to turn up at the G on Sunday just to watch the grass grow on my favourite paddock. After all, I spent my hard earned cash on a membership ticket and have yet to watch the boys in action. Here's my preview of this week's bye: - THE GAME Bye at M.C.G on Sunday, June 25 2004 at 2:10pm AEST HEAD TO HEAD OVERALL Byes 11 Melbourne drawn 11 AT THE MCG Byes 11 Melbourne drawn 11 THIS CENTURY Byes 6 Melbourne drawn 6 THE COACHES Played 6 Neale Daniher drawn 6 WANT A BET? Even money. Each of 2 THE MEDIA TELEVISION - Channel 31 watch the fish and/or the pensioners go round. RADIO Radio Moldova will be playing martial music followed by three hours of silence while the technicians attempt to effect repairs during a scheduled equipment breakdown. RECENT HISTORY Melbourne has done it a bit too easily when they have had the bye in recent years. Neale The Reverend Daniher will use all of his wily skills to motivate his charges for this week's inactivity. LAST TIME THEY MET I seriously can't remember last year's bye. It must have been pretty uneventful. THE TEAMS Melbourne - not selected at the time of writing Umpires attending seeing eye dog training school all weekend. THE TACTICS Because of the bye, things will be very low key. The coach will not do any spruiking at all over the weekend, players will not be available for interviews with the media and Caroline Wilson will refrain from slagging off at any AFL club other than the one she supports and Sammy Newman won't complain about the umpires or about how the game has deteriorated since he retired. SHOCK FACTOR The AFL is always full of surprises. I wouldn't be surprised in the least if one or two of the clubs decided to sack their coach on the pretext of the team's failure to reach the required standard during the week of the bye. THE TIP Stay home, borrow tapes of all of the Demon victories so far this season, watch them and then check if you have enough fly buy points to book a flight to Brisbane in a couple of week's time. [Demonland: there is a game on in town on Saturday. Sandringham v Bendigo Bombers at the Trevor Barker Beach Road Oval Sandringham at 1.10pm. The game will be televised on the ABC and broadcast on SEN. At least a dozen Demons will be in action. MFC members might get a discount as visiting members so bring your membership card. Demonland will bring you reports of all the action from Barry from Beach Road.]

by Whispering Jack I felt a lot of empathy for the good folk of Essendon on Sunday. They must have been seeing red as they spent the afternoon watching as their team dominated the first quarter and a bit of the game against Melbourne, hold their own in the second term and the early part of the second half and then they folded like a bad poker hand - very quickly and without a whimper. The Bombers should have had a good lead at the main break. They did not thanks to some poor fionishing in front of goal and some dubious umpiring decisions - instead they trailed by a point. After that, it was all Melbourne and in the end, the Demons probably should have won by a lot more than the final six-goal margin. Why the empathy? Because the game reminded me so much of the way the good sides would often treat Melbourne when it was a bad side. The Dees of twenty years and more ago would, on the odd occasion (i.e. once every 3 or 4 weeks) play their hearts out, promise so much and then die a slow and embarrassing death. The fact was they were simply not good enough to play out four quarters under pressure. That is where the Bombers are now. At the end of a long day for them, their losing streak was stretched to eleven and they were stone motherless last on the AFL ladder, their season virtually over. The pendulum has swung against them and they, along with another former power in Carlton, are in for some hard times in the coming years. Well, at least a top draft pick or two (or even possibly three). On the other side of the ledger, we have Melbourne looking ominously like a modern day version of the Essendon teams that Kevin Sheedy developed in the early eighties - strong, skillful, resilient and able to rise to the occasion when required, as they were in the second half. That was the story of an otherwise humdrum affair that never rose to any great heights and would be best forgotten by all participants. The fact that the Demons were on such a downer and still won by six goals is probably indicative of their superiority over the bottom side and coach Neale Daniher was correct when he said after the game that his team would get beaten if it started in the same manner when it tackles Port Adelaide on Saturday week. The game also highlighted the way in which Melbourne's style has changed in the past couple of seasons. The Demons are now a better team on the big grounds where the majority of finals are played and particularly at the MCG where they are undefeated this season. They have struggled recently at the Telstra Dome and have not played well there since the win over Richmond a little more than 12 months ago. The smaller ground, the substandard surface with its uneven bounce and the general lack of atmosphere simply don't suit the Demons as much as the MCG does these days. Still, there were some fine performances, none of them better than that of James McDonald who is the best kept secret of the Demon midfield. He may not be on the same level as Scott West of the Bulldogs but he's closer than most of the pundits would allow. Yes, he's that good! Close behind him were Travis Johnstone who had a quiet first half and then stormed the barricades in the second, Brad Green and Cameron Bruce who were solid, dependable and often brilliant through the game. Russell Robertson was the hero of the attack in the first half while skipper David Neitz had the honours in the second. Aaron Davey was always on the brink of being dangerous, even when his mentor Byron Pickett left the field with a corked hip. Nathan Carroll continued his superlative form in defence aided by Jared Rivers and Ben Holland who controlled the opposition forward line after that slow start. Lynden Dunn impressed at centre half forward but still has a lot to learn and a very big upside, Clint Bartram did his job nicely and showed that he can take a nice grab while Matthew Bate, playing his first AFL game away from the MCG and Colin Sylvia were both subdued. The Demons now have a week's break to freshen up for the business end of the home and away series. They have an opportunity over the next three weeks against three middle tier sides that will be desperate for wins to keep their finals aspirations alive. None of those games are easy but the run home appears to be a lot easier than that which they faced at the corresponding stage of 2005 when the team went into that well documented collapse after winning nine of the first twelve games. Melbourne is also far better equipped than its counterpart of last year, as is attested by the number of quality players outside the current 22 who will be available for selection when the season resumes on the first day of next month. Melbourne 2.3.15 5.7.37 12.10.82 16.15.111 Essendon 2.8.20 4.12.36 7.13.55 10.15.75 Goals R Robertson 4 D Neitz 3 C Bruce L Dunn 2 C Bartram A Davey T Johnstone P Read C Sylvia Best J McDonald T Johnstone C Bruce B Green R Robertson N Carroll B Holland J White Injuries B Pickett (corked hip) C Sylvia (ankle) Reports Nil Umpires C Kamolins C Hendrie M Ellis Crowd: 35,019 at Telstra Dome FOOTNOTE: The AFL's handling of the yellow armband controversy is a complete and utter disgrace. The imbeciles running the organisation were wrong to refuse Essendon permission to wear yellow armbands to highlight the Cancer Council's campaign for greater awareness about the disease that affects thousands of Victorians and their families every year. The game was billed as the Clash for Cancer and the idea behind the wearing of these armbands was for charitable - not commercial purposes. The AFL has commercialised the game to the hilt but this intrusion into a worthwhile charitable effort form one of its clubs crossed the red line (the AFL also wrong when they refused Melbourne permission to wear pink armbands in aid of breast cancer awareness earlier this year). The AFL probably had no alternative in the end to impose a fine when Essendon players correctly decided to defy the ban as a mark of respect to their cancer stricken teammate Adam Ramanauskas but the situation should never have arisen and the decision to pass on the fine to the Cancer Council is a pathetic gesture from a bunch of heartless, mean spirited and dumb bureaucrats who have shown they don't deserve our confidence to run our great game. I urge all supporters to contact the Cancer Council [http://www.cancervic.org.au/] to make a donation to the cause. For my part I'm buying a yellow wristband and hope to wear it for the rest of the season as a show of support for this worthwhile charity as well as a sign of contempt on my behalf for those in control of our great sport for their miserable conduct in this matter.

by Whispering Jack A little under twelve months ago, two young midfielders were starring for the Victorian Metropolitan team that won the All Australian Under 18 Championships. They were both measured at around 178cm in height, both were prolific possession gatherers during the series and both achieved All Australian status. Thanks to Foxtel and my VCR, I watched them playing in one of the opening championship games against Western Australia. Needless to say, both starred. Along with blond key forward Beau Dowler, I judged Marc Murphy and Nathan Jones as the best three players on the ground. It would have been a difficult task assessing who was the best of the three and I'm glad it wasn't my job although, in the end I might have even plumbed for Jones because he was the tough in and under player who are so hard to find these days - the type Melbourne badly needed at the time if the club was to make its move into the upper echelons of the AFL. Foxtel and my trusty VCR came in handy again on grand final day when I recorded the TAC Cup curtain raiser to the biggest show on the football calendar. The brightest star on the day was Jones who played a defensive role but also had his share on runs on the ball. He excelled with 36 touches in a losing team showing fantastic strength, toughness and endurance, great hands and excellent decision-making ability. I was impressed. A couple of months later, the Vic Metro trio were all selected in the 2005 AFL National Draft. Murphy went at number 1, taken by Carlton. Dowler went to the Hawks at pick 6 despite suffering a serious injury (pelvis) as a result of a car accident some weeks before the draft. Jones was taken at 12 by Melbourne – it's only selection in the top fifty thanks to the decision to recruit Byron Pickett with its second round pick and an adjustment of other lower selections (one of these was pick 60 which the Demons used to draft Clint Bartram but that's a story for another day). I'm a big fan of internet drafting guru Colin Wisbey so I looked forward to his assessment of Jones on The Extreme Black and White Bullet In Board. His views vindicated my earlier enthusiasm for the Jones boy:- "Indestructible, indefatigable self-made tank who runs hard all day, never gives up, is very clean, and drives the ball forward relentlessly. Ultra-consistent, running, inside ball magnet with great work rate. Routinely runs hard and smart to get, to link and to apply pressure. Hits the contest hard and with purpose and efficiency. What you are buying is not just a hard working genuine footballer with physical presence but an impact player - impacts for 4 quarters each and every week like clockwork. And a quality kid with leadership potential." Not a bad wrap even if he compared Jones to a "Ute" rather than a Rolls Royce which might be an apt metaphor for the number one draft choice. As I read the Wiz' assessment I thought I was visiting a used car yard, "Clean. Low km. Extra bull-bar. Current RWC". Whatever! I looked forward to seeing Nathan Jones during one of my irregular visits to Melbourne pre season training and then in the Nab Cup and my enthusiasm didn't wane. The only problem was that he wasn't selected in the early games while Carlton chose their first round pick straight off for the opening game of the season (and he looked pretty good too)! But then I thought, "what the hell, he's young (about six months younger than Murphy)" and the Demons had other young midfielders who were entitled to priority. Jones would just have to wait. His time would come. We fast forward to the halfway mark of the 2006 AFL season and Murphy has established his place in the Carlton team having played all eleven games to date including some impressive performances in the Blues' midfield. He was an early Rising Star nomination and is one of the favourites for that coveted award. Meanwhile, Dowler has recovered and played a handful of games with the Box Hill Hawks and Jones has spent his first half season on an AFL list playing in the VFL with Sandringham. This week he was named as an emergency for the Demons' clash with Essendon at the Telstra Dome. He's getting closer. The question arises as to which player is better off – the one who has been pushed up and is already an AFL regular or the one who is learning the ropes at the next level below. It's a question that cannot really be answered in the short term. On the face of it, you'd say Murphy by a long way at the moment. He's already established himself, has the experience in top company and will surely hold down a regular spot in the Carlton team for many years to come. I think however, that Jones' development is not being hurt by spending this time at Sandringham under the eye of a number of coaches who will help make him a more complete footballer. Last week, I saw him put in a best afield performance on the windswept Casey Fields in front of perhaps a thousand spectators. It would have been a great experience for him to strut his stuff in front of eighty times that number but it doesn't really matter for now. He showed us that he is learning fast. He might have been an young ute when he came to the club six or so months ago but, in the not too distant future, he is going to prove to be of vintage quality in a strong team. That's what matters in the end.

by The Demonland Team A Demonland newcomer Jonathan Seagull praises Sheeds ... I think it's high time we recognised the magnificent contribution to football of Essendon coach Kevin Sheedy. The guy had a long career as a player with Richmond after being recruited from VFA club Prahran in 1967 and he recorded 251 games of hardness and quality until his retirement at the end of 1979. He was a best and fairest winner, a State representative, club captain in 1978 and a member of three Tiger premiership sides in 1969, 1973 and 1974. After a year in the media, Sheedy took over as coach of Essendon where he has served continuously since 1981. During that time the Bombers have won four premierships (1984,1985, 1993 and 2000), as well as finishing runner-up three more times. They were also stiff to miss out on a couple of grand finals when they lost by the narrowest of margins on the penultimate day of the football year. On Saturday, he coaches his team in its 602nd VFL/AFL game, behind only the great Collingwood coach Jock McHale, who apparently coached forever a long, long time ago. Sheedy also successfully coached the Australian International rules team to victory over the Irish at the end of last year. His public persona has been marked by his quirky antics, his outspoken nature and that wry sense of humour. His jacket waving when his team beat the Eagles in a close game, the infamous "windsock incident" and his obtuse references to "Martians" and "marshmallows" have endeared him to the football public. He has been honoured with an Order of Australia and is also a part owner of a successful racehorse. His promotion of our indigenous footballers and opposition to racial vilification has earned him praise throughout the community. I also remember him for the Seagull incident when he snapped one day after one of his players was felled unnecessarily. That’s Sheeds, a character to the end. And unfortunately for the great man, the end is nearing as far as his coaching career is concerned. I do not speak of the end as in next week or even at the end of the year but the end is coming inevitably nearer. The football team that he coaches isn't travelling all that well at the moment and he's been showing signs of strain. His attack on the "basketball" style of play that won the Tigers a game against Adelaide was a classic in terms of deflecting pressure when your team is down and almost out. There is a distinct possibility that Sunday's game between Melbourne and Essendon might be the last time we see Sheedy leading his side out to battle against the Demons. A possibility only and not by any means a certainty because the great man has managed to extricate himself and his team from many a tight situation in the past and he has the full support and loyalty of everyone at Bomberland - and so it should be with this coaching legend who also happens to be the mentor of Melbourne coach Neale Daniher. The influence of Sheedy and the fact that he publicly gone on record to say that his charges would beat the Demons this week has caused me to view this week's game with some trepidation. On form, there is no way known that Sheeds will be waving that decrepit brown jacket of his come 4.45pm on Sunday. But he sounded so confident when he made his announcement of Essendon's impending victory, the fact that James Hird is supposed to be back and the extra three day's break is making me nervous. I’ve had nightmares all week about alien beings arriving at the Telstra Dome on Sunday, about a teeming horde of sniping seagulls infiltrating the closed roof of the Telstra Dome and raining their stuff on Melbourne's parade just when we thought the Demons would triumph against our old tormentor in Sheedy. I have even had visions of the man making a slashing motion with his fingers at his throat. It's that damned scary! Will somebody please tell me I'm wrong and assure me that the great master has psyched me out and that the real Essendon is the team that was walloped to the tune of 23 goals by the Crows and that Melbourne will not falter against that side this Sunday? Sam the Stats Man assures Jonathan that there's absolutely nothing to worry about … Poor Jonathan is so paranoid about Sunday's game against the Bombers that he can't see the forest for the trees. The statistics never lie and what they're telling us is that this Demon side is building momentum and has developed much greater depth than the one that failed badly in the second half of 2005 - a year in which they beat the Bombers on two occasions, once at the start of the home and away matches and once at the end. There's no better time than now - the halfway mark of he season - to take another look at the Melbourne list to see where each individual stands. The following list of players is in alphabetical order and it sets out where they were during VFL Round 11/VFL Round 10 (9 senior and 8 reserve grade games played) and it clearly highlights the club's improved depth (note there is a split round in the VFL and there are no Sandringham games this weekend): - MFC - BARTRAM, Clint - AFL 11 games, 3 goals - a young tagger who has played every game of the season at AFL level. Keeps on collecting some impressive scalps and improving week by week. Our # 60 pick at the 2005 National Draft even has a Rising Star Award nomination. MFC - BATE, Matthew - AFL 6 games, 4 goals, VFL 3 games, 3 goals – performing every week and it makes you wonder why it took the selectors so long to pick him at AFL level after he dominated early with Sandringham. MFC - BELL, Daniel - AFL 6 games, 0 goals, VFL 1 game, 0 goals, VFL Reserves 1 game, 0 goals – troubled by a groin injury early in the season but worked into the team and given some tough assignments. However, you couldn't say that he's settled into the team just yet. INJURED - BIZZELL, Clint VFL Reserves 2 games, 0 goals – his comeback from injury seems to have stalled. VFL BYE - BODE, Jace ® - VFL Reserves 6 games, 0 goals – injury and suspension have not helped his cause although he was named on the extended interchange for Sandringham seniors last week. INJURED - BROWN, Nathan - AFL 5 games, 2 goals, VFL 1 game 2 goals – has missed a few games with a bad hamstring injury and will have to come back through the VFL after this week's bye. MFC - BRUCE, Cameron - AFL 11 games, 15 goals – if the club best and fairest was held right now he would win hands down. Consistently brilliant and excelled as stand in skipper earlier in the season. VFL BYE - BUCKLEY, Simon - VFL 7 games, 1 goal, VFL Reserves 2 games, 1 goal - another youngster who missed most of the pre season and has gone back to the reserves at Sandy after a couple of promising displays. MFC - CARROLL, Nathan - AFL 11 games, 1 goal – has overcome a slow start to the season with some brilliant performances in the key defensive position. Such is his improvement that some are talking him up as a possible All Australian full back. MFC - DAVEY, Aaron - AFL 11 games, 19 goals – has stepped up another level since the arrival of Byron Pickett. Another brilliant game against the Magpies on Queens Birthday. MFC - DUNN, Lynden - AFL 6 games, 8 goals, VFL 4 games, 9 goals - is being eased into AFL and is fitting in well. Has kicked at least one goal in every game so far and has impressed all and sundry with his skills. VFL BYE - FERGUSON, Ryan - AFL 2 games, 0 goals, VFL 3 games, 0 goals - biding his time at Sandringham where he has played three solid games after returning from a broken ribs and a punctured lung incurred in round 2 at the Telstra Dome. VFL BYE - GIANFAGNA, Andre ® - VFL 1 game, 0 goals, VFL Reserves 7 games, 5 goals – pacy footballer who did well in his debut for the Zebra seniors last Sunday. MFC - GODFREY, Simon - AFL 8 games, 1 goal - VFL 2 games, 2 goals – eyebrows were raised when he was selected to play against the Swans but has held his place in the side with some encouraging performances. His place might however, be under pressure this week. MFC - GREEN, Brad - AFL 11 games, 6 goals – now a regular midfielder who is often given run with roles. Green is having a consistent year and has been a good leader and a valuable contributor every week. MFC - HOLLAND, Ben - AFL 4 games, 0 goals - VFL 3 games 2 goals, VFL Reserves 2 games 3 goals – a revelation as the bigger bodied key defender in the past fortnight when he subdued Fraser Gehrig and Anthony Rocca in successive matches. VFL BYE - HUGHES, Daniel ® - VFL 8 games 10 goals, VFL Reserves 1 game 3 goals – a high marking flanker whose best efforts were his six goals against Tassie and a strong performance last week against Casey. MFC - JAMAR, Mark - AFL 10 games 6 goals – a more than capable back up for Jeff White, Jamar is developing his ruck skills and can take a strong mark around the ground and up forward. MFC - JOHNSON, Chris - AFL 4 games 0 goals, VFL 4 games 1 goals – had a slow start but some brilliant performances at VFL level paved the way for his return to the AFL and his last three matches have all been promising. INJURED - JOHNSON, Paul - AFL 2 games 2 goals, VFL 2 games 0 goals – recovering from that shoulder injury sustained in round 4 against the Swans. Should be back in the VFL after the break. MFC - JOHNSTONE, Travis - AFL 11 games, 7 goals – simply magnificent ball skills and well and truly living up to the promise he had when he went #1 at the 1997 National Draft. MFC - JONES, Nathan - VFL 9 games, 4 goals – this hard at the ball inside midfielder is close to breaking into the Melbourne side. Impressed with a best on ground effort against Casey Scorpions last weekend. MFC - MCDONALD, James - AFL 11 games, 1 goal – the unsung hero of the Demon midfield, he leads the competition in tackles and rarely lets the team down. INJURED - MCLEAN, Brock - AFL 8 games, 5 goals - was starring in the Demon midfield before incurring a hamstring injury at training before the Collingwood game. Expect him back after the bye. SUSPENSION SERVED - MILLER, Brad - AFL 8 games, 1 goal – that jumper punch against the Eagles cost him a two week suspension and he misses this week because of the good form of others who replaced him. INJURED - MOLONEY, Brent - AFL 7 games, 1 goal – was just starting to come good after an injury plagued pre season when he succumbed again, this time to a groin. Like a good few others, should be back after the bye. VFL BYE - MOTLOP, Shannon - AFL 1 game, 0 goals, VFL 9 games, 11 goals – hot and cold in the VFL and will struggle to gain promotion on current form. VFL BYE - NEAVES, Shane ® - VFL 7 games, 2 goals, VFL Reserves 2 games, 0 goals – a player who is showing steady improvement in ruck at this level and promises more for the future. MFC - NEITZ, David - AFL 9 games, 27 goals – has all the club records and continues to shine with some big hauls in front of goal. VFL BYE - NEVILLE, Heath - VFL Reserves 7 games, 0 goals – another who missed the bulk of the pre season and is being eased in slowly in defence at VFL reserves level. VFL BYE - NEWTON, Michael - VFL 5 games, 5 goals, VFL Reserves 5 games, 14 goals - starting to get some game time with the Sandringham seniors. Showed a bit at his last start. INJURED - NICHOLSON, Alistair - VFL 1 game, 0 goals – has been out for ten weeks with a foot injury. Some are beginning to ask, "Alistair who?" MFC - PICKETT, Byron - AFL 11 games, 7 goals – continues to be a major factor with his strength and aggression instilling fear into the hearts of the opposition. Has shown great skill and goal kicking flair at important times in matches. MFC - READ, Phil - AFL 1 game 0 goals, VFL 8 games, 5 goals – some good form at Sandringham saw him finally break into the Melbourne line up for his first game of the season against the Magpies. MFC - RIVERS, Jared - AFL 9 games, 2 goals, VFL 1 game, 0 goals – continues to stand up at centre half back after coming back from that elbow injury. MFC - ROBERTSON, Russell - AFL 11 games, 19 goals - a nagging knee injury hampered him throughout the season. He was almost back to his best against the Eagles and will surely appreciate a week's rest after the weekend's game. VFL BYE - SMITH, Nicholas - VFL 9 games, 14 goals - has been a consistent performer in a number of positions at VFL level and would be considered unlucky not to have gained promotion to the VFL. MFC - SYLVIA Colin - AFL 6 games, 2 goals, VFL 2 games, 4 goals – his 2006 campaign stalled after a bright start when he suffered a rib injury. Working his way back after a couple of games with the Zebras. MFC - WARD, Daniel - AFL 4 games, 0 goals, VFL 6 games, 4 goals – broke back into the team with a strong performance in defence against the Pies and held his place this week. VFL BYE - WARNOCK, Matthew ® - AFL 2 games, 0 goals, VFL 5 games, 0 goals – managed a couple of games with the Demons on return from a broken thumb. Back at Sandy but pushing for AFL selection. VFL BYE - WHEATLEY, Paul - AFL 4 games, 1 goal, VFL 3 games, 0 goals, VFL Reserves 1 game, 0 goals - missed a few weeks due to a hamstring injury sustained against the Kangaroos. Form with the Zebras has been indifferent. MFC - WHELAN, Matthew - AFL 9 games, 1 goal – missed through injury last week but will be welcomed back into the Demon defence if he passes the final fitness test before Sunday's game. MFC - WHITE, Jeff - AFL 11 games, 6 goals – second in the competition in total hit outs behind Big Cox. Sharing the workload with Mark Jamar and is reaping the benefits of the partnership. MFC - YZE, Adem - AFL 11 games, 15 goals – this versatile Demon has been damaging up forward in a few games but seems to bob up just about everywhere during a game. Whispering Jack praises Seagulls … Melbourne has gone too far to falter or stall at this stage of the season. As the great writer, Richard Bach once wrote, "Seagulls, as you know, never falter, never stall. To stall in the air is for them disgrace and it is dishonor." The fact is that to beat Melbourne on its current form, you need a very good side, one that’s fit and strong and without too many weaknesses. That's not what the Demons are coming up against this week. Kevin Sheedy must really be struggling if he brings in James Hird after several weeks on the injured list at this point in time given that there’s a bye next week. If he was concerned about his player's longevity in the game, he would be resting his former captain. The same probably goes for Camporeale. It seems to me a sign of desperation that he’s bringing those two oldies into the side when, a few weeks back, he was trumpting on about giving his young players a go. There was even talk of delaying Laycock's operation so that he could play this week. Bad body language in my opinion. On the other side of the ledger, Neale Daniher has selection problems of a different nature. He just can't fit in enough good players into his 22. One of his team leaders in Brad Miller has done his penance for that jumper punch against the Eagles and can't fight his way into the team. Colin Sylvia and Matthew Whelan are named on the extended interchange bench but who do they replace? The likely players to go would be Phil Read and Simon Godfrey but both have been going along nicely. Tough decisions will have to be made at selection level and that certainly makes for good team performance. No player will falter or stall because to do so, will almost certainly mean the loss of a place in a very good side. Scoop Junior on giving the Bombers back some of their medicine … I have mixed feelings - one part of me just wants to get the four points and go home, while the other wants to give the Dons a bit back for the last 20 years of dominance over us by handing out a bit of a pasting. I don't know about Read and Godders both playing again this week. The coach has been fantastic so it's hard to criticise anything, but I don't think it's the right decision playing both of them together. Read was very hungry last week and played about as well as he possible could but I don't know if he can repeat the performance and even if he does against the bottom side, I'm not sure he will be able to do it against better teams on a regular basis or when the chips are down. Phil Read might stay in until Brock comes back - he will provide some hardness and run. Godders isn't in the same class as some of the better midfielders. Daniel Ward is a real goer and I like his attitude, but Whelan should replace him if he is fully fit and ready to go. The Oracle sums up … Like Jonathan Seagull, I would never underestimate the power of Sheedy or the Essendon Football Club – even when they're stone motherless last. However, the Demons will have too much class this week, even at Telstra Dome where they struggled earlier on in the season. I suppose the Dees will also be wearing their away strip for this game and I reckon that's a good omen because I don't think they've lost a game while wearing the red guernseys. Which reminds me of another Essendon distraction in their annus horribilus - the alternative jumper controversy. What a furphy that one is? So for this Sunday, I’m tipping Melbourne to make things even more annus and more horribilus for the poor old Bombers. Demons by 52 points. ESSENDON v MELBOURNE Where & When: Telstra Dome, Sunday 18 June 2006 TV & Radio: Fox Footy Channel, Triple M, 3AW, ABC Head to Head: Played - Played 201 Essendon 123 Melbourne 76 Drawn 2 Last time they met: Melbourne 13.17 (95) d Essendon 12.13 (85), Round 22, 2005 at the MCG The betting: Melbourne $1.12 Essendon $5.25 ESSENDON B: Welsh Fletcher Solomon HB: M.Johnson McPhee Lovett-Murray C: Stanton J.Johnson Bolton HF: Hird Hille Lucas F: Reynolds Johns Monfries FOLL: Ryder McVeigh Heffernan I/C (from): Bradley Camporeale Dempsey Lovett Peverill Slattery Watson IN: Bradley Camporeale Hird Lovett Ryder Slattery Watson OUT: Winderlich (leg) Laycock (knee) Dyson Nash MELBOURNE B: Whelan Carroll Holland HB: Ward Rivers C.Johnson C: Bruce Johnstone Green HF: Davey Dunn Pickett F: Robertson Neitz Yze FOLL: White Read McDonald I/C (from): Bartram Bate Bell Godfrey Jamar Jones Sylvia IN: Jones Sylvia Whelan

by Whispering Jack Melbourne went on a mission to the MCG on the Queens Birthday. A win would see it complete the first half of the season with a well earned place as a contender for one of the highly coveted positions in the top four – in the AFL heavens among the elite of the competition. A defeat would have it battling for a finals berth against the teams in the next ranking tier and in the same familiar places it inhabited for the past two and a half seasons. So winning the match and overwhelming the Magpies emphatically to the tune of 47 points has gained it a place in the big show among those playing in the football firmament. Mission accomplished - but only for "now" because as we all know so very well, football is a fickle sport and we have to take things one week at a time (ouch!). The game's fickle nature was amply demonstrated by the vanquished team of the day. A little over a week ago they were riding high on the crest of a wave, dancing circles around most of their opponents and crushing the life out of most of them with devastating bursts of football, mainly in the latter halves of their matches. Collingwood has been a settled side all year but the cost of that has been that its depth has barely been tested. Then injury struck without warning last week - just as it was about to be confronted by a rampant Melbourne lying in wait for its prey. For the record, the Magpie injury woes are no more devastating than those of the Demons. The teams' respective injury lists have by now been well documented and closely compared. The difference is that in Melbourne's case, its reserve strength managed to pass the test easily while that of Collingwood failed miserably. Furthermore, it was the Demon stars who stood up to be counted while the much vaunted Magpie leaders, especially men like Buckley, Rocca, Tarrant and Fraser who missed large slabs of 2005 on the sidelines and were among the main components of their 2006 improvement, who went missing. More appropriately, the Demon machine totally and utterly subdued them and to say otherwise would be to demean the performance of its coaching panel and its negating players who fulfilled their roles so magnificently. This Melbourne victory was well planned and well executed. The team was well structured, contested the ball hard from the outset and had all the answers. Starting with a dominant two tiered ruck of Jeff White and Mark Jamar which carried the centre bounces to a hard hitting midfield that won the majority of the clearances, the Demons were methodical in the way they moved the ball into the forward fifty, contesting the ball hard whatever the circumstances. It was the relentless pressure all over the ground that brought the Magpies undone forcing them to constantly be second to the ball and, when they did manage to get their hands on it, forcing them into countless skill errors. On top of that Melbourne had a special combination of football magic in the guise of Byron Pickett whose hardness at the football was matched by his skill, run and deadly disposal and Aaron Davey who ran rings around a befuddled opposition, taking spectacular marks and weaving around the park with the speed, balance and grace of a flamenco dancer locked in what was a deadly dance for the Magpies. Then there was the dominance of James McDonald, the brilliant persistence and endurance of Cameron Bruce who made Tarrant irrelevant and picked up a swag of possessions all over the place later in the game, the leadership of Brad Green, the skills of our own Socceroo Adem Yze and the silky smooth soft shoe shuffling of Travis Johnstone who had us in awe with his brilliance. And you can add the stunning footwork and skills of young Matthew Bate for who a Rising Star nomination surely beckons, if for nothing else, then for that running goal from outside fifty that brought the house down and put a dagger into the hearts of the black and white army. A special mention to Phil Read, maligned in some quarters and staring at football oblivion when reported for an indiscretion in the VFL a couple of weeks ago (a rap that he beat), who played out a special game in front of his old coach in Mick Malthouse. We need especially to sing the praises of defenders like Nathan Carroll who has raised own his game through the stratosphere this year easily taking out Nathan Buckley this week and Benny Holland who has destroyed the G Train and Rocca Bye Baby in successive weeks. The stats sheet shows that Rocca failed to take a single mark in four quarters of football. In fact, he finished the day with just three possessions including one single solitary goal - all courtesy of the yellow men who were allegedly in control of the game (don't worry, I'm getting to them). We shouldn't underestimate the grace and style of Jared Rivers who not only defended grandly but managed to burst forward a couple of times, finally scoring his maiden AFL goal and then another. And how good is Clint Bartram's debut season? Just 18 years old and fresh out of the AIS from last year, he knows no fear and just keeps on wrapping up opposition playmakers forcing them into skill errors and subduing them week in, week out. The attendance of just under 80,000 would have been a little disappointing given the occasion and the opposition. Still, it was the biggest crowd for a Melbourne game since the MCG redevelopment and the Demons did it justice, soaking up the atmosphere and adding to the excitement of the day. One group of people in respect of who the word "justice" would be a misnomer were the three yellow clad blind mice whose performance was, shall we say, more than somewhat confusing. I don't have a problem with bad umpires making bad decisions - we put up with that every week - but for heaven's sake, at least they could be consistent in their interpretations. I've already provided the example of how they gave Collingwood's Rocca the world but what on earth did the Demon forwards have to do to earn free kicks in the face of the numerous pushes, jumper grabs and various other infringements they were subjected throughout the afternoon? It was only when a Magpie heavy literally impaled himself on top of Robbo that one of the yellow maggots discovered that he was free to blow his whistle in favour of someone in red and blue colours - the only such occurrence in the Demon forward line in a torrid day of football. It wasn't much different elsewhere on the ground so why do I bother with these clowns? Melbourne won comfortably despite their efforts which simply prevented the game from turning into a total blow out in its favour. I live in hope that I will have nothing more to say about the yellow maggots again for the season. As I said early in this piece, it's a game of fluctuating fortunes. On form, Melbourne should easily dispose of bottom side Essendon this weekend. However, we should always remember how they started this AFL season – with a loss to last year's bottom side. The Demons have the momentum. They need to continue playing hard, inspirational football in the coming weeks to ensure that, by season's end, they're still dancing with the stars. Melbourne 4.2.26 10.3.63 17.7.109 22.9.141 Collingwood 2.5.17 5.7.37 9.8.62 14.10.94 Goals Yze 4 Davey Neitz Pickett 3 Bruce Rivers 2 Bate Dunn Jamar Johnstone Robertson Best Bruce Davey Johnstone Carroll Pickett Holland Rivers Green McDonald Injuries B McLean (hamstring) replaced in selected side by P Read, M Whelan (hip/buttock) replaced in selected side by D Ward Reports Nil Umpires McBurney James Stevic Crowd 78,773 at the MCG

by Barry from Beach Road Sandringham prevailed over freezing cold, the loss of players promoted to play AFL and to injury to achieve a famous victory over the Casey Scorpions at Casey Fields in Cranbourne yesterday. It was the first time in the very brief history of the new venue that the locals lowered their colours to a visiting side and the Zebras managed to achieve this feat with a five goal win after a brilliant final quarter saw them pile on seven goals to two despite having the bare 18 fit men to see out the game. Casey Fields is an inhospitable place when the chill winds come in direct from the south and bring with them occasional showers of drizzle in dimming light. Your fingers freeze together and your mind is numbed. It’s a place of contradictions; where a year ago only cows grazed but yesterday it was as if hell had frozen over, a place where the only dry area was the wet area under cover of the brand new grandstand. The game was, for the most part, as dull as the weather conditions on this bleak Sunday afternoon. There were plenty of mistakes from all participants including those officiating (on balance that helped the visitors on the day but well, it happens doesn’t it?) and these involved some undisciplined play from members of both teams that saw a number of goals given away by means of the dreaded fifty metre penalty. Sandringham was unbalanced before the game as it lost three Melbourne emergency players who were presumably called up for duty in the AFL. This paved the way for the senior VFL debuts of two youngsters in former Sandringham Dragon Peter McGettigan and Demon rookie Andre Gianfagna and the return of Andy Biddlecombe from a broken jaw incurred behind the play in Tasmania a month ago. The Zebras were fast out of the blocks despite kicking into a biting southerly wind that was sweeping in from the Antarctic. Shane Neaves was in control of the rucks and Nick Smith was in strong marking form up forward as he opened the Zebras account. Halfway through the opening stanza he had his second and Shannon Motlop had also notched a major from outside 50 as the visitors were nicely placed holding a two goal lead. The Scorpions regrouped and started to use the wind and the ground better and, with the aid of a couple of late goals, managed to nudge their way to the front by quarter time. Sandy made hard work of it for most of the second quarter, but with Smith in fine marking form and Jones winning the ball well at ground level, they took advantage of a five minute purple patch to take four goal lead as time on approached. Casey lifted just before half time to narrow the gap to 19 points at the break. The third term was Casey’s best as the Scorpions took advantage of their local knowledge to peg back the Zebra lead. They hit the front before the 20 minute mark of the quarter thanks to some strong contested work in the packs but Sandy, already under fire on the injury front, regrouped and fought back to hold the home side in the vital last ten minutes of the quarter to trail by just three points at three quarter time as the heavens opened up, not for the first time in the afternoon. Normally, you would be confident coming home with the aid of a strong breeze but on this day, it seemed that the football gods were against the Zebras. As the afternoon had worn on, one Zebra after another had gone down with injury and as they went into the huddle it was clear that four of them - Peter Summers (hip), Chad Liddell (eye), Ezra Poyas (thigh) and Guy Rigoni (ankle) – were spent for the day. The last quarter began with an early Sandy goal but the Scorpions replied with a magnificent goal of their own from deep in the forward pocket at a convenient moment when the wind seemed to drop and the entire region suddenly seemed becalmed. The Zebras were under the pump but it was time for the midfield, headed by Jones and first year player Shane Valenti to lift as did the wind. So too did the courageous Biddlecombe who, with Chris Lamb tightened up the defence. David Gallagher, who earlier had let himself and his team down with some undisciplined play giving up a couple of goals through 50 metre penalties, atoned for his indiscretions with some inspired football. Colin Sylvia, who was hot and cold all day, turned up the heat with some devilish tackling and a strong pack mark for a goal, Demon rookie Danny Hughes was strong on a flank and, another Demon youngster, Michael Newton, relishing the role of third tall on the forward line, kicked a couple including one from a step ladder high mark that had to be seen to be believed. The Zebras ran out comfortable winners in the end and go into the split round in second place and with the knowledge that their next two games are to played on home territory in sunny Sandringham. Coach Mark Williams would no doubt be pleased with the strong performance of his team when it was under fire. Particular mention must go to a couple of youngsters in Valenti (9 games) and defender Daniel Corp (six) along with Rod Crowe and Andy Biddlecombe who steadied the ship when the team was in danger. Coming back from a broken jaw, Biddlecombe set the tone with his courage and his attack on the ball near the fence in the third term would have served as inspiration for his team at the very moment when the game was in the balance. It is not for nothing, that Sandringham has been a pace setter in the VFL for the past two or three years. HOW THE DEMONS FARED (with thanks to Axis of Bob) Ryan Ferguson - played at CHB for the most part of the day and was effective enough, especially in the middle parts of the game. His disposal at times let him down, but was solid defensively and typically courageous. Andre Gianfagna - had limited game time and got into the action later in the game. Appeared to have the role of curbing the dangerous Matthews in the last quarter and was reasonably effective. Daniel Hughes - played much further up the ground this week as Sandy lost run in the middle through injuries. Won his fair share of the ball, playing the wing like a flanker. It would be beneficial for his development to play more footy up the ground, and he showed that there is something to work with here. Nathan Jones - impressive in the midfield winning a lot of the ball. Showed very clean hands where others fumbled in slippery conditions, which was impressive. Used the ball very well, including an excellent left foot goal from the boundary. Shannon Motlop - probably not his best day, as he had limited impact, aside from a couple of goals. Needs to win a lot more of the ball to push his name in from of the MFC selectors, rather than the cameos that he is playing now. Shane Neaves - continues to improve and again showed excellent signs. Took several strong marks, showed some good tap work, worked hard and delivered the ball very well. Certainly looks to be showing an increased willingness to get involved around the ground, which, combined with good tap work, form an exciting prospect. Michael Newton - limited game time early but showed out in the second half with a wonderful little cameo. Gave the Zebs the spark they needed in the third and final quarters that got them going after the game appeared to be plodding along. Took a ripping hanger in the last. Nick Smith - started like a house on fire out of a forward pocket, and did some damage on the scoreboard. Looks to be presenting much more ferociously at the ball and took some excellent pack marks under pressure. Was a real focal point, although he did fade a little towards the end. Colin Sylvia - did some very good things, but didn't dominate. Took some very strong grabs and won some good, hard possessions, but didn't win a great deal of the ball. Copped some heavy knocks, but still managed to finish off the game well which is a positive sign. Paul Wheatley - had his colours lowered on the day when playing deep in defence, being exposed at times in one on one contests. Moved out to half back and was much more comfortable there in the last quarter. Sandringham 3.2.20 8.7.55 11.8.74 18.12.120 Casey Scorpions 3.4.22 5.6.36 11.11.77 13.12.90 Goals Smith 4 Gallagher Newton Sautner Sylvia 3 Jones Motlop Best Corp Lamb Valenti Gallagher Smith Crowe RESERVES STRIKE Sandringham reserves atoned for last week’s debacle at the hands of ladder leader Williamstown when they stormed home with the wind in an eight goal final quarter to record a comfortable 53 point victory. Scott Lockwood and Daniel Turcarelli were the mainstays of the victory and the club would also be pleased with the return to form of Mark Corrigan, Guy Martyn and Tom Paterakis who have all been dogged by injury and have now strengthened the team’s stocks as it enters the second half of the season outside the top five on percentage only. HOW THE DEMONS FARED (with thanks again to Axis of Bob) Jace Bode – a good game from half back, providing plenty of run as well as using the ball well in very trying conditions. Showed clean hands and class when winning the ball in defence, especially push out to the wings. Simon Buckley - won a fair bit of the ball from a wing, and used the ball very well, as we know he can. Still will need time, however, to move up the ranks as there are parts of his game that require fine tuning. Heath Neville - played out of a back pocket and, while he was very solid defensively and took some very good marks, he isn't giving great amounts of run from defence. This is understandable given that he is only just getting back into footy after OP. Very good one on one and was very cool with the footy. Sandringham 3.1.19 8.6.54 9.7.61 17.12.114 Casey Scorpions 2.4.16 4.4.28 9.6.60 9.7.61 Goals Corrigan Martyn 3 Fletcher Lockwood Mentiplay Turcarelli 2 Buckey Johnston Tsindos Best Lockwood Turcarelli Corrigan Johnston Paterakis Bode

by J.V. McKay A long, long time ago the strongest rivalry in our game was that which existed between Melbourne and Collingwood. For a decade between 1955 and 1964 there wasn't a hotter ticket in town than the one that got you into a game between the Demons and the Magpies. The newspapers would build it up as a gigantic clash between the silvertails and the working classes but it was much more than that. It was THE clash of traditional rivals and the crowds would come to their games in their droves. All of those who are old enough to remember will nod their heads and agree, saying "wasn't that a time?" If you're too young or just can't remember, consider this: - The two rivals contested five grand finals during that decade including the one in 1956 when Melbourne beat Collingwood in front of a then record crowd of 115,802 to win the premiership flag for a second year in a row, they attracted a home and away record crowd of 99,346 on Queens Birthday, 1958. It's a record that still stands today. Between them, the two sides won 7 out of the 10 premierships on offer. They had some wonderful players too – men like Ron Barassi, Brian Dixon, Laurie Mithen and Frank "Bluey" Adams and Ian Ridley were the Demon heroes while Murray Weideman, Bill Twomey and Ray Gabelich were Magpie stars. "Wasn't that a time?" However, for the past four decades, the old rivalry has been overshadowed by others. Carlton and Richmond, Essendon and Hawthorn and more lately teams from the other states have taken the mantle. The crowds now flock to see other rivalries - even games in other codes. After all, the biggest crowd at the MCG so far this year was achieved when Australia played Greece in a "friendly" just the other week. You can rest assured that nothing between Melbourne and Collingwood can ever be regarded as a "friendly". These two are traditional rivals from way back. They even played out a match for the premiership eighty years ago in 1926. That goes even further back than the rivalry of the other two traditional rivals who are meeting on the same date at the weekend, albeit across the world - Australia and Japan - but that's nothing compared to the emotion that Monday's clash at the MCG will evoke. The two sides have certainly gone through a number of twists and turns since the last met each other at the MCG on Queens Birthday 2005. The Pies were struggling then although their recent form indicated some improvement. A win over the previously undefeated West Coast had inspired a new flicker of hope. A good first half that saw them ahead of Melbourne at the main break, saw that hope burn even brighter but Demon forward Adem Yze doused the flame and sent the Magpie Army packing. End of season for them. The same Queens Birthday game also turned into a significant turning point in Melbourne's season. It's well documented how the Demons lost seven games in a row and found themselves out of the top eight until a couple of last gasp victories against the Cats and the Dogs an a narrow let off against the Bombers saw them across the line for another very brief appearance in the finals. This year, the Magpies have gone through rejuvenation with a full list to choose from for most games and they now sit in third spot with eight wins, their only two losses being to the Eagles at Subiaco and to Adelaide in Round 1. Melbourne is in sixth place with six wins but their only defeat since Round 3 was also away to West Coast. These are the form teams of the competition. Collingwood has lost a few with injury this week - Dane Swan (hamstring), Nick Maxwell (fractured leg), Blake Caracella (fractured vertebra) and Brody Holland (achilles). Fortunately, it has Tarrant and Thomas coming back this week. Melbourne has a reasonable deep injury list with Brent Moloney (groin), Paul Johnson (shoulder), Nathan Brown (hamstring), Clint Bizzell (leg) and Alistair Nicholson (foot) all out again this week and a cloud over the fitness of Matthew Whelan (hip/buttocks) while Brad Miller still has a week's suspension to serve. The experts are all saying that Collingwood has had a charmed run, that they haven't beaten one of the stronger sides, that they haven't yet come up against a strong tough outfit, that their depth hasn't been tested. Well, perhaps this is the week when they will be tested. They are certainly coming up against a leading team that's in form. It's going to be a great contest. As is the case most weeks, the outcome of the game will depend greatly on the centre clearances. A few years ago, Michael Malthouse used to attack Jeff White by double or triple teaming against him, often leaving Josh Fraser to ruck rove and win plenty of the ball around the ground. This time I think they are more likely to go head to head and each will also rely on his deputy to help out. Mark Jamar is an improver but needs to do more around the ground when he's on. Guy Richards is a hot and cold player who has been in reasonable form. The onballers will have an interesting tussle and I see Melbourne coming out on top here because of the depth of different types and styles beginning with the AFL's leading tackler James McDonald, the silky smooth Travis Johnstone, Cameron Bruce and Brad Green. The injured Brock McLean's replacement will come from Phil Read or Colin Sylvia - both are strong and hard in their attack on the ball. Throw Byron Pickett and Matthew Bate into the mix and you have a group that can match up favourably against Collingwood's Licuria, O'Bree, Didak, Lockyer, Burns and Davis. They will miss their Holland. The pundits are saying that the Magpies will win because their defence is stronger than that of the Demons. I don't think the pundits have been looking all that closely at Melbourne's defence these days. Perhaps it's the belief that the Dees are missing names like Nicholson, Miller, Ferguson, Miller and co that causes them to underestimate their defensive stocks. They forget that Jared Rivers is an exceptional defensive talent, that Nathan Carroll has been as mean and nasty as a defender can be this year and that Benny Holland did a number on the G train last week. Daniel Bell is no slouch either and he might be given a big job in taking on Nathan Buckley. It will be a tough ask but I think the Melbourne defence can prevail. At the other end of the ground Melbourne have plenty of forward aces. David Neitz probably won't have a day out as he did last week but we have Russell Robertson and Aaron Davey ready and primed to kick a few this week. And Adem Yze is still giving those Magpie fans nightmares. At the time of writing there is a story going around whereby Mick Malthouse has let it slip that one or two more of his players might not saddle up on Monday due to injury. It’s probably just another ruse from the man who once announced to the world that "the ox is slow, but the earth is patient." I don’t know what that means and I’ll bet that Mick doesn’t either. Nor did Confucius. But if Micky thinks he can pull the wool over The Reverend’s eyes, then he’s got another thing coming. That's why I'm tipping the Demons to win the match. Further I believe it will turn out to be a game worthy of the great rivalry of yesteryear. Given good weather, they'll do it in front of 90,000 fans. If the weather's bad, then the crowd might be down but the result will remain the same. Irrespective, there will be lots of thrills, spills and positive high scoring football. Fans can then go home and watch the other traditional rivals bore the pants off a few thousand spectators and fight out a nil all draw. Melbourne by 12 points Thank you very much. MELBOURNE v COLLINGWOOD Where & When: MCG, 2.10pm, Monday 12 June, 2006 TV & Radio: TV & RADIO: Channel Ten, 3AW, Triple-M, ABC Radio, NIRS Head to Head: Played - 217, Melbourne 77, Collingwood 136, Drawn 4 Last time they met: Melbourne 17.15.117 defeated Collingwood 10.12.72 in Round 12, 2005, at MCG The betting: Melbourne $2.10 Collingwood $1.68 The Teams: MELBOURNE B: C Johnson Carroll Holland HB: Bartram Rivers Whelan C: Johnstone McDonald Davey HF: Robertson Dunn Yze F: Bruce Neitz Pickett FOLL: White Green Bate I/C: Bell Godfrey Jamar Read EM: Sylvia Ward Warnock IN: Read OUT: McLean (hamstring) COLLINGWOOD B: Johnson Prestigiacomo H Shaw HB: Lonie Clement Morrison C: Lockyer Burns Thomas HF: Licuria Rocca Davis F: Didak Tarrant Buckley FOLL: Fraser O'Bree Pendlebury I/C: T Cloke Iacobucci Rowe Wakelin EM: J Cloke Davies Egan IN: T Cloke Iacobucci Rowe Tarrant Thomas OUT: Caracella (neck) Holland (achilles) Maxwell (leg) Richards Swan (hamstring)

by the Demonlanders (Alpha 33, Chelly, deeboy, dees_rule_4eva, Demon Head, Fan, Old55, Roger Mellie, Rumpole, Spirit of the Demon and Whispering Jack) Melbourne record breaker David Neitz emphatically stamped his name in the club record books with an 8-goal haul against St. Kilda at the MCG on Sunday. The match winning performance was befitting of the club's champion skipper who broke the previous record of 272 games held by another Demon great in Robbie Flower. Despite the dominance of the skipper and the strength of Brock McLean and James McDonald in the middle, the Saints fought back valiantly in the second half after the Demons took a 6 goal lead into the main break. Brushing off the scare, Melbourne steadied to win the game 15.13.103 to 13.12.90 to set up a blockbuster game on Queens Birthday against an old foe in Collingwood. First blood of the game went to the Saints when Schwarze snaffled the ball as it fell from a pack in the goal square but the Demons dominated most of the rest of the quarter. Jeff White controlled the rucks and Brock McLean was strong inside, gathering plenty of clearances. Melbourne's tackling was relentless and it soon paid dividends. Neitz was strong at full forward kicking a long goal after a worm burning pass from Brock McLean followed by two more in short succession. Aaron Davey ran forward to kick what might have been a World Cup sizzler but it hit the post and a poor defensive error then let St. Kilda in for a late goal. The Dees led by 14 points at the first break but it should have been more. The second quarter opened with a great pass from Harvey to Dal Santo for a goal and the deficit was just 8 points. But the Demons kept up their relentless pressure and began forcing errors. St. Kilda's Gram kicked into a team mate and Cameron Bruce goaled after picking up the rebounding ball. Brendon Goddard lost it and gave away a 50 metre penalty after a perfect tackle from James McDonald brought him down and Neita just kept on kicking goals. He had six by the half and Melbourne led by that number of six pointers. All those sixes were positively devilish in the eyes of those Saints. The mandatory quiet beer at halftime chatting to your mates when your team is well in front and comfortably in control of the game can often be illusory. But surely not when the captain is putting on an exhibition and the team is giving all the indications of wanting to honour his moment in the sun with a sensational performance? And so it seemed when the skipper kicked number seven early in the third to extend the lead to 41 points. The midfield was committed and the defence was holding tight but then, all of a sudden, a change came over the game. Whether it was Melbourne's attempt at playing the dreaded "tempo" game, a lift in intensity from St. Kilda, the loss of Matthew Whelan and Clint Bartram to injury or simply a wish on the part of the team to once again test their hearts and those of their supporters with another tense affair, we'll never know. The Saints took control of the midfield battles thanks to Dal Santo and Ball to hit back strongly and get within 8 points shortly before the change when Lyndon Dunn finally kicked a steadying goal from a strong pack mark, having missed a sitter on the run only moments before. Melbourne went into the last change with a lead of only 14 points. I put down the beer and reached for the valium in anticipation of yet another close finish. The final quarter is now something of a blur to me. I remember feeling a little under pressure and a few moments of anxiety as St. Kilda threatened to make a surge towards victory but it didn't eventuate. While the Dees appeared to have very little petrol left in the tank after last week's long trip west, the Saints didn't have the ability to take advantage of the fact that Dal Santo and Ball were getting on top in the middle. Travis Johnstone, who had been held early, came out of his shell and created many opportunities with his deft disposal and it was Byron Pickett whose brilliant run and pass to Matty Bate for a goal that put the game beyond doubt. That, and the feeling of elation felt by players and supporters alike together with Neita's triumph at the end, is all I remember about that part of the game. Well almost, because I also recall hearing a Demon supporter shouting loudly, "Stop fricken' around and kick it up the guts!" each time the players retained possession in the backline. And that brings me to an interesting aspect of the game that is reflected in some of the statistics:- MFC - - - - - - - - - STKFC 26 Clearances 33 44 Inside 50s 55 2.9 Inside 50s Per Goal 4.2 43 Rebound 50s 27 43 Contested Possessions 40 327 Uncontested Possessions 279 87 One per centers 67 38 Errors 48 Despite being well beaten in the clearances and Inside50s, Melbourne won the match comfortably. What happened? St. Kilda's efficiency inside 50 was way down on Melbourne's because its players bombed away to Riewoldt and Gehrig who were well held by Holland and Gehrig with able assistance from Rivers. How many times were these crude attacks safely repelled? Look at the rebound 50 stat; Melbourne absolutely pantsed them there. The Demons fought hard to win just as much hard ball and tackled them harder too; their one per centers were well up protecting their players with the ball - they worked too hard to gain possession to give it up easily. And because they spotted up free targets they made less overall errors. When there was a chain of free players deep into 50 they went that way, when the Saints clamped down and built a wall in midfield the Dees simply refused to give up possession blindly. Perhaps the Saints took the advice shouted by that Demon supporter a little too literally themselves? Melbourne 4.4.28 10.9.69 12.10.82 15.13.103 St Kilda 2.2.14 5.3.33 10.8.68 13.12.90 Goals Neitz 8, McLean, Dunn, Robertson, Bruce, Whelan, Bate, Pickett Best Neitz McLean McDonald Yze Carroll C Johnson Injuries Whelan (buttock) Bartram (arm) Moloney (groin) replaced in selected side by Godfrey. Umpires McLaren, Meredith, Wenn Reports - Goddard (St Kilda) reported by field umpire McLaren for striking McDonald (Melbourne) in the second quarter Crowd 41,665 at the MCG This review is dedicated to 'betty_spaghetti' (Bianca) All at Demonland wish her a speedy recovery and we look forward to seeing her cheering on Neita and her Demons in the not too distant future.

by Ice Station Zebra A resolute and determined Sandringham, clearly stung by last week’s shock loss against the Cats and fully aware that another loss could see it sliding out of the top four, bounced back after with a strong 31 point win over traditional rival Williamstown after Sunday’s high scoring shoot out at Trevor Barker Beach Road Oval. The visitors were packed with players listed with their AFL affiliate Collingwood, fielding 15 Magpies including all three Cloke brothers and there was a large Collingwood presence there to support them with the previous night’s hero Nathan Buckley among the faces in the crowd. Sandy had twelve Demons in the line up but a couple like Colin Sylvia and Paul Wheatley were clearly underdone, and spent long periods on the bench. The Zebras were well served by a couple of tough nut on ballers in Phil Read, who worked tirelessly all day applying pressure in the packs, and youngster Nathan Jones, who burrowed in constantly all day. Heading a strong and consistent group of VFL players was full forward Nick Sautner who rebounded from a poor game last week to boot seven goals and regain the lead on the goal kicking ladder with 35 goals for the season. He was given great support by seasoned players in David Gallagher, Ezra Poyas and the evergreen Guy Rigoni who supplied their spearhead with plenty of the ball throughout proceedings. Conditions were cold and crisp and a slight breeze favoured the social club end to which Williamstown kicked in the opening quarter. The Zebras wore their traditional striped guernseys against the old rivals and rose to the occasion, coming out of the blocks with a tough brand of football and giving no quarter to the Seagulls. They won the all-important early midfield clearances and, as a consequence, took a handy 16 point lead at quarter time thanks to their direct, long kicking brand of play. Williamstown however, worked hard to get back into the game when it kicked against the breeze in the second term and got back to within three points going into time on before some undisciplined football cost it dearly with Sandy scoring the last four goals of the first half to take a 28 point lead into the main break. The umpires earned the displeasure of the crowd at times - particularly the Williamstown supporters and at one stage, the ball had to be recalled from one end of the ground to the other because the all clear had not been called after a Zebra point. To its credit, Sandy maintained its composure well and remained focused on the ball right through the game. The Zebras withstood great pressure when proceedings resumed after the main break and to their credit, again finished the quarter strongly to lead by 32 points at three quarter time. The game continued to be of a high standard and Williamstown came back again to narrow the gap in the last quarter, but Sandy was not to be outdone and steadied to run out the winner by 22.13.145 to 16.18.114. Sandy was well served by the experience of Daniel Ward whose form was outstanding. He ran through the lines and set up many scoring opportunities. The Zebra rucks were well on top with Shane Neaves continuing his learning curve. He is showing good improvement every week and was again well supported by Nick Smith was in superb marking form. Matthew Warnock played his best game since breaking a thumb during the AFL pre season competition. After the game, coach Mark Williams was full of praise for the team's effort saying, ..."it doesn't matter how many aligned players you've got, it just depends on how you play as a team. You can't tell the Melbourne fellas from the senior fellas, that's how well we gel, and we think we have a really good alignment and it's showing on the scoreboard." Sandringham’s next assignment sees the team travel to the new VFL venue of the Casey Scorpions at Casey Fields, Cranbourne. The local population has taken to the Scorpions who will be hard to beat at the multi million-dollar sporting complex. The match starts at 2pm with the reserves kicking off at 11.10am. The ground is located at 161 Berwick-Cranbourne Road, Cranbourne (Melways reference 134 D7). Sandringham 7.2.44 13.6.84 19.8.122 22.13.145 Williamstown 4.4.28 8.8.56 13.12.90 16.18.114 Goals Sautner 7 Motlop 3 Smith Ward 2 Crowe Liddell Neaves Newton Poyas Read Rigoni Sylvia Best Read Warnock Jones Smith Neaves Ward HOW THE DEMONS FARED I gladly took on the job of reporting on the game last week with the help of the Demonland editorial staff but I'm not all that familiar with the Melbourne players so please forgive me if I don't go into too much detail or follow the usual format when one of the Demonland aficionados reports on a game. I didn't see all that much of Ryan Ferguson, Daniel Hughes, Michael Newton, Colin Sylvia or Paul Wheatley. The latter two spent time on the bench which was understandable as they are coming back from injury. Sylvia and Newton kicked a goal each. As mentioned above, I was very impressed with a couple of hard in and under footballers in Phil Read and Nathan Jones. In the case of Read, he might one day thank the VFL Tribunal for reviving his career because a holiday this week would have robbed him of the opportunity to show his meanness, his hard it peskiness, the tackles and the pressure football that ruffled a few Seagull feathers. I don't know if his style would be appreciated in the AFL these days - suffice to say that if I played football at that level I wouldn't like to be caught in a sandwich between Read and Byron Pickett. Nathan Jones is equally hard as Read and has a fair bit of skill and talent. He will have to bide his time for the moment as the Demons are traveling well. However, he was in everything whether on the ball or going forward and is definitely a future prospect. Another prospect - perhaps a little longer term - is rookie ruckman Shane Neaves whose enthusiasm, mobility and marking around the ground were excellent, as was his rockwork. Given time, this big lump of a lad could become a top ruckman. His partner in crime in the big man department was Nick Smith who consistently provided a target for the players further downfield. He has had an impressive month at this level and must be close to promotion. Daniel Ward was a fantastic attacking defender and the Demons would be grateful to have him as a back up in case of injury. Shannon Motlop was his usual self, going in and out of the game and finishing with three goals in an elusive crumbing role. Matthew Warnock was also good, picking up lots of the ball and kicking long and direct. I missed the reserves thankfully but understand that Clint Bizzell had a bit of a run coming back from a broken leg. As you can see from the score and the brief report below, it wasn't the type of game in which anybody wearing the Zebra colours stood out. RESERVES THRASHED The Sandy Reserves were simply outclassed by undefeated ladder leader Williamstown and were never in the hunt. In one fell swoop they dropped out of the top five and also lost significant ground in percentage to their nearest rivals for a finals position. Peter McGettigan was again the Zebras best and is pushing for promotion. Sandringham 1.1.7 2.1.13 2.3.15 3.4.22 Williamstown 5.0.30 11.2.68 17.7.109 26.12.168 Goals Gianfagna Lockwood Turcarelli Best McGettigan Johnston Gianfagna Corrigan Fletcher Martin Reported B Hall (Williamstown) for allegedly striking A Fleming (Sandringham) B Hall (Williamstown) for allegedly striking T Paule (Sandringham)

by The Oracle Saints' coach Grant Thomas has achieved a great deal since he took over at the helm of the St. Kilda Football Club. He has introduced a whole raft of expressions from parts other than the football world and applied them to the organization he oversees in both a coaching and management capacity. He has treated it like any other corporate body in a world of high capital, profit margins, stakeholders and wrapped it all up in the concept of the brand. His players, at least those who Training Services permits to run out on the ground at the weekend, are merely pawns in the game. The coach switches them around the ground, pulls on some toggles and "voila", a big percentage earner for the club's investment group. Groan. Oh, for the days of fair dinkum football, when you player for the jumper and not the brand and when a team plays with passion, like it's having fun and wants to win, not for corporate profits or for a trade mark registered brand name. I'll give you the news. That's the difference between Melbourne and St. Kilda at the moment. Neale Daniher has his charges playing an exciting brand of footy - especially at the MCG where it's been a winning brand so far in 2006. Otherwise, the two teams appear to be very much on par. Both have five wins from nine matches with the Saints in fifth place and ahead of the seventh-placed Demons only on percentage. The winner will move a step closer to the top four, the loser will come precariously close to dropping out of the eight. For Melbourne, that's not an appealing thought given that its next venture is a clash with Collingwood on Queens Birthday weekend. Both teams have had their injury woes this year but the good news for Melbourne is that its problems are diminishing every week while the Saints problems are getting worse every week. St. Kilda has now lost star midfielder Lenny Hayes who had a knee reconstruction this week. That's bad news for them because Hayes has been their main man in 2006. He leads the Saints on just about every statistic other than the goal kicking stats. He would have been second to Chris Judd in Brownlow favouritism this time last week. Add him to Justin Koschitzke (fractured skull), Aaron Hamill (knee), Raphael Clarke (quad), Xavier Clarke (hip) and James Gwilt (leg) and there's a mighty big gap in their lineup. You can add Stephen Powell to the list because he was rubbed out for four weeks after committing an indiscretion or two whilst playing for the Scorpions in the VFA last week. Well then, you might nod your head and say, "yes but they still have Nick Riewoldt" and you'd be right. He is a danger man but you might also recall that Riewoldt kicked 9 goals against Melbourne when they met on the MCG two years ago and the Demons still won by 53 points! Melbourne's injured players are Clint Bizzell (leg), Alistair Nicholson (foot), Paul Johnson (shoulder) and Nathan Brown (hamstring). Brad Miller is on the sidelines after accepting a 2 week suspension for a jumper punch at Subiaco last week. I understand that the jumper that was punched ended up all the worse for wear in some Perth Laundromat on Sunday night but fair go! He was only standing up for his brand, er, his team mates and it's ridiculous to say that this sort of thing was behind the play. You have to show your colours somewhere. The "outs" are not nearly going to hurt Melbourne much this week with the exception of Doggie. If I recall Big Al's performance on Fraser Gehrig last year correctly, his absence this week might not be a problem at all. It certainly, isn't going to hurt as much as the loss of Hayes, Kossie and Hamill! Getting down to Sunday's game, it's fair to say that the Demons are the surprise favourites. The bookies have put them ahead despite the fact that when they last met in Round 18 last year, the Saints walloped them to the tune of 88 points and showed no mercy beating them in front of the faithful at their own home ground. So what's changed? Well, for starters, when last year's game was played Melbourne was imploding. It was suffering from injuries, loss of form and confidence and St. Kilda was pushing hard to consolidate a top four position. As I've already mentioned, this time around, the Saints have been harder hit by injury and the key is the man who has been the most important player for their brand - Lenny Hayes, a prolific ball winner, strong tackler and the team's prime mover. Who will replace him in that role? An ageing Robert Harvey? An ailing youngster in Luke Ball whose groin could barely allow him to stand up after a game a fortnight ago? No. I think not. Melbourne has a midfield that has just tested itself against the might of the West Coast Eagle on ball machine. It didn't dominate but it held its own but I would suggest that against the Saints, it will have too many trump cards with Brock McLean, James McDonald, Travis Johnstone, Cameron Bruce and Brad Green all in good form. And another big difference since this time last year is that the Dees have the Byronator and the Saints don't. There's no Brent Guerra at the Saints who can be sent in to apply a deft tackle on an unsuspecting midfielder. The Demons will be buoyed by the fact that skipper David Neitz will break Robert Flower's club record of 272 games. The high charged emotion and excitement of achieving this milestone at the MCG will give them a break that can't be overcome by men in pinstripe suits who spend their days number crunching and checking out the stock market to see how their brand is going. That's why I'm tipping that when the going gets tough, it will be the Demons who will be doing the damage this time. They will impress their brand so hard on the Saints that they might have to call a special general meeting of stakeholders to explain why their football stocks are drowning in a sea of red. Melbourne by 62 points. MELBOURNE V ST KILDA Sunday June 4 at the MCG, 2.10pm AEST TV & Radio - TV Channel 9 Melbourne (4pm), Perth (3pm) Fox Footy Channel -- Adelaide (1.30pm) Radio MMM TAB Sportsbet Odds Melbourne $1.75 St Kilda $2 Head to Head Played 194 Melbourne 116, St Kilda 77, Drawn 1 The last time they met St Kilda 27.14 (176) d Melbourne 13.10. (88) at the MCG, Round 18, 2005. The Teams MELBOURNE B Carroll Rivers Whelan HB Bartram C Johnson Bell C Johnstone McDonald Davey HF Robertson Dunn Yze F Bruce Neitz Pickett FOLL White Green McLean I/C Bate Holland Jamar Moloney EM Godfrey Smith Ward IN Bate Holland OUT Miller (suspended) Godfrey ST KILDA B Baker Hudghton S Fisher HB L Fisher Maguire Gram C Goddard Ball Montagna HF Thompson Riewoldt Voss F Milne Gehrig Schwarze FOLL Blake Harvey Dal Santo I/C Ackland Fiora McGough Peckett EM McQualter Murray Rix IN Fiora OUT Hayes (knee) Field umpires: McLaren Meredith Wenn

by Cyclops Whenever the classic pub footy talk question "who is the greatest player you have ever seen?" is asked I answer Graham "Polly" Farmer without hesitation. Imagine my delight when, who do I see standing in the departure area of Perth airport on Monday afternoon but the great man himself? "Too good an opportunity" I say to myself so I go over, introduce myself and shake his hand. I mention that I was over for the WCE game and that he was the greatest, thanks for everything etc. He was utterly charming and revealed something that I don't believe is common knowledge in the football world. He told me that he was nearly a Demon himself. Polly" said that East Perth played a post season game in 1956 between the VFL and WAFL premiers which Melbourne won by a mere 5 points. In the aftermath of the game, the Demons' coach Norm Smith and club secretary Jim Cardwell (whose job description in those days included everything including recruiting officer) made a sustained and concerted effort to have him sign with Melbourne. He was 21 years of age at the time and had just completed his fourth season with the Royals. He was the reigning Sandover medallist and had also won the Tassie medal that year. He explained that he was seriously attracted by the approach but eventually decided against signing as he believed that he would not obtain a clearance. He went on to play 176 games for East Perth before choosing Geelong from a (by now) long list of Clubs seeking his signature and joining them at the beginning of season 1962. It's now history that Graham "Polly" Farmer played 101 games for the Cats between 1962-67 including the 1963 premiership and won B & F's in 1963 and 1964. He returned to the west in 1968 as captain coach of West Perth where he played a further 79 games including 2 premierships and won the Simpson medal at the 1969 Australian Championships. He was inducted into the inaugural Australian Football Hall of Fame in 1996 as a "Legend", and then into the West Australian Football Hall of Fame in 2004. He even has a freeway named after him in Perth - the Graham Farmer Freeway which includes the Northbridge Tunnel linking East Perth to West Perth (as per his playing career) that is colloquially known as the "Polly Pipe". I was already aware that Melbourne had once signed Darryl Baldock on a Form 4 in 1958 (before he went to St. Kilda and became a champion player there) and that Doug Wade trained with the club in the 1959 pre season and was told he wasn't good enough by Smith before he was signed by the Cats to go on and become their greatest ever goalkicker. So what about the salivation factor of the thought that Farmer, together with Baldock and Wade might all have been Demons during the 1960's. Perhaps our great club's fall from grace after the 1964 grand final might have been delayed or avoided altogether!!!

by Ice Station Zebra Sandringham paid a heavy price for an abysmal lapse of concentration when it conceded seven goals in less than half a quarter during the second term of its encounter with Geelong at Skilled Stadium on Sunday. The Zebras started well with Shannon Motlop goaling and Nick Smith, who is growing in stature at this level with every passing week, booting two nice goals from centre half forward. By the first break Sandy had every reason to be confident as it doubled the home side’s score to hold a 14 point lead at the first break. Sandringham went into the game without Guy Rigoni, Matthew Bate and Colin Sylvia from the team selected on Thursday night but was still expected to have sufficient talent to overcome an improving Geelong – even at the Cattery and even when coming off a bye which has always been a danger sign for it in the past. However, nothing could have prepared the hardy group of Zebra fans in attendance for what was to come at the start of the second term. The Cats with Blake dominating in the ruck, took control of the midfield and brushed aside their Zebra counterparts to boot seven unanswered goals within a 13 minute period in which the ball rarely went to the Sandy forward line. Such was the frustration of the onslaught that Phil Read found himself reported for allegedly striking one of the Cats as things were going from bad to worse. The Zebs regrouped slightly to boot a few at the end of the quarter but the damage to their spirits was done. A lacklustre third term in which they kicked just five solitary points to 3 goals 1 behind left them in deep trouble 40 points adrift of Geelong at three quarter time. Smith in ruck, Peter Summers and David Gallagher all worked hard. Shannon Motlop kicked a few at the end and youngsters in Matthew Warnock, Danny Hughes, Shane Valenti and relative newcomer Daniel Corp worked hard but, in the end, the task was too great and Geelong finished worthy winners by 22 points. For their part, the Zebras were particularly disappointing. Leading goal kicker Nick Sautner spent the last quarter on the bench and a number of Demon senior list players did little to enhance their prospects of promotion to the AFL team. Sandy held on to second spot but will need to improve enormously if it is to be a serious contender for its third straight VFL title. This week both seniors and reserves (who had the bye at the weekend) meet tough opposition in Williamstown at Trevor Barker Beach Road Oval and a different attitude is required from the team. HOW THE DEMONS FARED Like their Sandy counterparts, the Demon listed players had a bad day at the office. The only ones who could hold their heads high were Nick Smith, rookie Danny Hughes and Shannon Motlop for his four goals but even his performance was nothing to write home about. Fan braved the elements and provided some of the comments for this week's HTDF segment. Simon Buckley – an outside player who has struggled to have an influence in recent weeks. Started on the bench and came on quite late in the first, looked good when he had the pill but it wasn’t enough. Query over his decision making which need some work. Ryan Ferguson – coming off a reasonably lengthy break so we’ll cut some slack here. Had only a few possessions, showed a bit of courage at times but is well behind the three defensive talls in the Melbourne side at this stage. Ben Holland - started down back and was ordinary and then when Ferg came on in the second was moved forward and took a couple of good marks. Not a great game from Dutchy, just went. Danny Hughes - a handy game from a young player who seems to be coming back to some form. Played around half forward most of the day and presented well but still has a long way to go. Nathan Jones - disappointing in that he hasn't dominated a game at this level in the same way that Brock McLean did in his first year and might struggle to play this year for the seniors. Started forward and just didn't find it early but as soon as he was moved onto the ball he did a bit but not enough. Shannon Motlop - looked good early, went missing when it got difficult and came back quite well in the last with a couple of goals when the game was lost to bring his game goal tally to four. Shane Neaves - looked quite good around the ground where he found space and disposed of it quite well – particularly early. However, Blake was just to good for him in the ruck which I guess you'd expect. A prospect but will need a few years at Sandy to develop. Michael Newton - was given precious little time on the ground and, as a result had few possessions. His one good piece of play came where he seemed to be going half pace but found space despite himself and missed what would have been a very good goal. Spent too much time on the pine which is a pity after his eight goal effort in the reserves last week. He is clearly a talented seed in an arid wasteland at the moment but he will learn little sitting on the bench. Phillip Read – disappointing, undisciplined, lacked purpose and failed to hurt the opposition. Nick Smith - this was the best I've seen him play for Sandy (although I missed the game a few weeks ago when he was named the best). Started in the forward pocket next to Sautner, marked well and kicked two first quarter goals. He was good further up the ground and I was impressed. He replaced Neaves in the ruck and helped to stem the flow for a while taking some more good marks and rucking quite well. Not certain however, whether it was enough to get a game at AFL level but with Brad Miller out for the next fortnight, you just never know. Daniel Ward - a good game spoiled by some bad turnovers. Ran, marked and attacked the ball really well and is far to good in all those respects at this level, but just can't finish reliably. I would have liked to see him go into the square in the second to stop the run on. Needless to say he didn't, and we didn't. Matthew Warnock – couldn't believe it when I saw that he was named first in the Sandringham Football Club official list of best players. Struggled early but worked his way back into it without doing anything particularly impressive. Paul Wheatley - nowhere near the impact that one would expect from Wheaters at this level. Was out muscled by a no name in the goal square and just seemed to jog around and pick up the odd possession. Sandringham 4.4.28 8.5.53 8.10.58 13.17.95 Geelong 2.2.14 12.7.79 15.8.98 18.9.117 Goals Motlop 4 Smith 3 Summers 2 Gallagher Holland Hughes Read Best Warnock Gallagher Summers Smith Corp Hughes Reported P Read (Sandringham) for striking N. Batchelor (Geelong) in the 2nd Quarter.

by the Oracle I hate it when the pundits say that your team was "gallant in defeat" or that it "put up a valiant effort". It generally means that it might have had the opportunities to win, it was beaten by a better side and that it really wasn't good enough in the end and perhaps even should be pitied for its failure. That is certainly what can be said about Melbourne after its 22-point loss to the West Coast Eagles yesterday. However, in my view, this time the defeat meant something more than that. This time we saw the blossoming, admittedly in its very early stages, of what is possibly the Demons' first real chance in several decades to achieve something great. It's easy to get carried away with your performance when everything's going right and you beat a Fremantle by 59 points on your home turf or a Hawthorn by 75 points when their tempers are flaring, their discipline is weak and you're on a roll. But when you face what is arguably the best team in the land on its patch with the best footballer in the competition absolutely on fire and when some of your own best are down and you can still match it with them for three and a half quarters… You know that they're not all that far away from getting it right. Melbourne came to Subiaco with a handy combination of young and old. Some of the old let their teammates down. Some of the young like Brock McLean, Chris Johnson and Clint Bartram really showed something. There was the strong tackling, the commitment and the passion of youth. There was also another game of revelation from Nathan Carroll and there was the sheer desperation of James McDonald. It all started well for the Demons who jumped out of the blocks to lead by 3.3.21 to nil halfway through the first quarter. Russell Robertson was on fire up forward, Lynden Dunn chimed in with an opportunistic goal and it could so easily have been a bigger lead but for an inexplicably missed chest mark to Robbo in front of goal and a missed shot from Brent Moloney. Then things went awry for ten bizarre minutes when the Eagles mounted their own counterattack. A series of fluffed kick ins from Travis Johnstone and Adem Yze before the Eagles finally got a free in front for a goal and then another and, all of a sudden, it was back to almost level pegging at quarter time. The Demons had learned lesson number one about giving the opposition a break when they nearly had them nailed – and much of the damage was self-inflicted. The Eagles' midfield took over for most of the second term aided by a couple of errant boundary thrown ins that suited Big Cox and resulted in goals but the Demons came back late and then again missed an opportunity when Cameron Bruce streamed into goal with seconds to go in the first half. He must have been well and truly stuffed because his kick from thirty-five metres was stopped by Glass as the siren rang. How different might things have been had the team gone into the main break with their noses in front instead of five points down? The Eagles drew first blood, the Demons came back, the game ebbed and flowed. Their midfield was creaming ours but we dug deep and came from thirteen points down to be within a point at the final change. The game was up for grabs and so it stayed with each team kicking a goal and it was almost 10 minuted into the last when the Eagles finally assumed control and held onto it until the end. Melbourne ran out of steam. Some of its leaders were well beaten. Neitz' game was disappointing especially in view of the fact that this was a club games record-equalling day. Jeff White was beaten by Cox. Aaron Davey was quiet, Byron Pickett's impact was diminished, Adem Yze was well covered and Robbo couldn’t do it all by himself. For all that, Melbourne did well to remain in the hunt for so long in hostile territory without its big guns firing. Kudos for that must go to Brock McLean and James McDonald and a special performance for the continually improving Clint Bartram. Brad Green and Travis Johnstone enjoyed the wide open expanses of Subiaco while in defence Nathan Carroll and Chris Johnson were great. But in the end it was a case of missed opportunities and a learning curve. I hope the players don't feel good about being gallant or valiant and that rather, that they learn from the day so that when they come back to this ground later in the year, they will be ready to take control of their own destiny and that they won't miss any further opportunities. Melbourne 3.4.22 5.6.36 10.8.68 11.9.75 West Coast 2.8.20 5.11.41 9.15.69 13.19.97 Goals Robertson 4 Bartram 2 Bruce Dunn Green Johnstone Pickett Best McLean Johnson Johnstone Robertson Carroll McDonald Injuries Nil Reports Nil Umpires Meredith Woodcock Goldspink Crowd - 41,032 at Subiaco Oval

by Whispering Jack There was a time in the early days of the West Coast Eagles when a strong rivalry was developing between the new team from Perth and the oldest team in the land - the Melbourne Football Club. The Eagles contested their first ever finals game against the Demons at Waverley in 1988 and it was a memorable contest. Melbourne trailled early and had to come from behind to snatch a thrilling win. The exciting finish saw Earl Spalding miss after a mark taken close to goal at the thirty minute mark of the final quarter followed by a brilliant handball from David Williams and a Garry Lyon snap for the winning goal with less than a minute to play. The last kick of the game was from West Coast's Murray Wrenstead who missed a shot on the run from 40 metres out as the siren was about to sound. West Coast went on to turn the tables when the teams next met in a semi final in 1990 and again the following season when it again knocked the Demons out at AFL Park. By 1994 the Eagles were making a habit of beating them, this time in a Preliminary Final in Perth when they were on their way to their second AFL Premiership. In those days, the teams played in some memorable games that were chock full of incidents - the stuff of which famous rivalries are made. Like the infamous Chris Lewis finger bite on Todd Viney and Allen Jakovich's kiss planted on brother Glen's cheek when the mercurial Demon forward kicked a goal against him at the MCG. There have been some classic contests between the teams since then, such as the day an injury depleted Melbourne scored a famous victory at Subiaco in 1998 and more recently, when the club sealed a place in the 2002 finals with a six point Round 19 victory at the same venue. That win was the last time a Victorian club beat the Eagles on their home turf. However, it would be fair to say that the early rivalry has diminished since the mid '90's although there are signs that the days of big interstate blockbuster games between these clubs are returning. Last year, when they were occupying the top two spots on the ladder, the teams played out an epic battle at the MCG. Certainly, the Eagles were in control for most of the match after Phillip Matera ran riot early but Melbourne kept plugging away and fought its way back to within striking distance only to fall short by 15 points. It was an impressive display from the losers because they were undermanned, bereft of their skipper and other key players and were coming off a five day break while the Eagles were refreshed having not played since a relatively easy Friday night game at home eight days earlier. The Dees were clearly stuffed at the end of the game but if you can call a losing performance “admirable� then this was the one. For Melbourne that MCG game against West Coast became an unfortunate milestone in a season that went pear shaped from that day onward. Despite a late resurgence and a few narrow victories at the end of the season, the Demons couldn’t regather the form that had made them the Eagles’ most likely rival for the premiership flag. Melbourne stumbled again at the start of the season but has regrouped with five successive victories and now faces West Coast in a game that could well fire up old rivalries. It's a much different Melbourne side to the one that played in their last encounter. The Demons have ironically benefited from the spate of early season injuries suffered at the club. In the absence of Alistair Nicholson, Clint Bizzell and Ryan Ferguson we have seen Nathan Carroll, Jared Rivers and Brad Miller settle into the main defensive positions. Paul Wheatley's injury paved the way for Daniel Bell. Nathan Brown's loss is adequately covered by the revelation of 2006 in Clint Bartram. Matty Whelan missed out a few weeks back but is now holding firm again in the Demon defence. The forward line lost David Neitz and Lynden Dunn came in to fill the breach. And Byron Pickett is firing on all cylinders providing much needed aggression all over the ground. Brock McLean, Brent Moloney and James McDonald are adding a harder more solid edge to the team. Five successive victories and this is now the form team of the competition. That is not to say that Sunday's game against West Coast is going to be at all easy. Far from it when one considers the game is virtually a season defining one for Melbourne - an opportunity to crack a leading side on its home turf and in reasonable form. If you aspire for a top place and a premiership, that's exactly what has to be done. A win would most likely put the Demons just outside the top four on percentage but a loss sees them back with the pack and facing tough games against St. Kilda and Collingwood just to hold their place in the race for a finals position. One thing that can be said with some surety is that the team will cross the Nullarbor without the usual trepidation felt by visitors from Victoria in recent years. Of course, there's talk about how on earth will we hold a tremendous midfield made up of the likes of Judd, Cousins, Kerr, Fletcher and Stenglein but equally, the Eagles need to worry about how they will nullify McLean, Moloney, McDonald, Johnstone and Bruce. That's what rivalry is all about and that's why I consider the game in Sunday as one that could assume enormous importance when we look back at it in future times. I have such great faith that I'm tipping Melbourne to revert back to type and win by 5 points in a titanic struggle that will only be decided by the sound of the final siren. WEST COAST EAGLES V MELBOURNE Sunday May 28 at Subiaco, 2.40pm. AWST 4.40pm AEST TV & Radio TV - Channel 9 (Perth) Fox Footy Channel (Melbourne, Adelaide, Sydney & Brisbane) Radio - 6PR ABC TAB Sportsbet Odds West Coast Eagles $1.35, Melbourne $3.00 Head to Head Played 34 West Coast Eagles 21 Melbourne 13 The last time they met West Coast Eagles 15.15.105 d Melbourne 13.12.90 at the MCG, Round 13, 2005 The Teams WEST COAST B Graham Glass Wirrpanda HB Nicoski Hunter Stenglein C A Embley Cousins Braun HF Waters Hansen Chick F Kerr Lynch Staker FOLL Cox Judd Fletcher IC Banfield Rosa Seaby Selwood EM B Jones R Jones Priddis In Banfield Out Hurn New Matt Priddis (Subiaco) MELBOURNE B Miller Carroll Whelan HB Yze Rivers Bell C McDonald Bruce McLean HF Robertson Dunn Davey F Green Neitz Pickett FOLL White Moloney Johnstone IC (from) Bartram Godfrey Jamar C Johnson EM Bate Holland Read In C Johnson Out Bate Field umpires Meredith Woodcock Goldspink

by Barry from Beach Road After seven rounds of VFL football, Sandringham's quest for three successive premierships is on track with five wins and one defeat and second placing on the VFL ladder. However, the enormity of its task is becoming more apparent with each round as we see the resurgence of some of the less "fashionable" clubs in the competition which the experts had previously not considered likely challengers for high honours. Coburg Tigers, Frankston, North Ballarat and Casey Scorpions have been showing good form and winning matches and last year's wooden spooner Geelong is also putting some excellent performances on the board. No team can be taken for granted and this week's game against the Cats at Skilled Stadium is definitely a danger game for the reigning premiers as they come off the bye and face a team that had an emphatic away win over Werribee on Sunday. Sandy has again been well served by a very handy mix of VFL players comprising mainly of home grown locals with some excellent recruits and, of course, the Melbourne AFL listed group. Together they have been a successful force in the competition for some time - one that other clubs seek to emulate. Full forward Nick Sautner has been a revelation thus far into the season as he leads the competition goalkicking with 29 goals. The new look Sautner has trimmed down considerably from last year and looks as fit as a fiddle as he wreaks havoc with opposition defenders. David Gallagher and injured defender Andy Biddlecombe have also been having great seasons. The signing of former Demons Guy Rigoni and Chris Lamb has added experience to the Zebra list while young Shane Valenti from the Sandringham Dragons has shown great maturity with his prolific midfield play. The Zebras also have Rod Crowe, Ezra Poyas, Peter Summers and courageous skipper Chad Liddell among their senior contingent making them the envy of most other clubs. The team has managed some good victories against strong opposition and has shown it is capable of winning on even the most hostile territory as evidenced by strong wins at Werribee and in Tasmania. The latter game ended amid some controversy about the home side's alleged strong arm tactics which resulted in a break to Biddlecombe's jaw, the suspension of a Tassie player and a VFL investigation which proved fruitless. The Zebras have another tough task this Sunday when they travel to Skilled Stadium to take on a resurgent Geelong team which thrashed Werribee at Werribee last week. Sandringham convincingly won both of its 2005 games against the Cats - by 84 and 49 points but they are a different proposition this year. Another factor is the fact that the Zebras are coming off a bye and they lost twice after coming off byes in their last two premiership seasons. On the whole however, coach Mark Williams should be pleased at the way the team is traveling at the present time as everything is on track for another top four finish. VFL Seniors Ladder NORTHERN BULLANTS 20 SANDRINGHAM 20 COBURG TIGERS 16 WILLIAMSTOWN 16 NORTH BALLARAT 16 CASEY SCORPIONS16 FRANKSTON 12 TASMANIA 12 Geelong 12 Werribee 8 Box Hill Hawks 4 Bendigo Bombers 4 Port Melbourne 4 Games - Seniors 6 - BUCKLEY, Simon CROWE, Rod JONES, Nathan LAMB, Chris MOTLOP, Shannon POYAS, Ezra READ, Phillip SAUTNER, Nick SMITH, Nick SUMMERS, Peter VALENTI, Shane 5 - BIDDLECOMBE, Andy GALLAGHER, David HUGHES, Daniel RIGONI, Guy 4 - DUNN, Lynden JOHNSON, Chris LIDDELL, Chad NEAVES, Shane WARD, Daniel 3 - BATE, Matthew CORP, Daniel FLEMING, Andrew WARNOCK, Matthew 2 - GODFREY, Simon HOLLAND, Ben JOHNSON, Paul JOHNSTON, Marc NEWTON, Michael 1 - BELL, Daniel BROWN, Nathan NICHOLSON, Alistair RIVERS, Jared Goals - Seniors 29 - SAUTNER, Nick 9 - DUNN, Lynden HUGHES, Daniel 6 - CROWE, Rod SUMMERS, Peter 5 - SMITH, Nick VALENTI, Shane 4 - GALLAGHER, David 3 - BATE, Matthew JONES, Nathan MOTLOP, Shannon POYAS, Ezra READ, Phillip 2 - BROWN, Nathan GODFREY, Simon LIDDELL, Chad WARD, Daniel 1 - BUCKLEY, Simon HOLLAND, Ben JOHNSON, Chris NEAVES, Shane NEWTON, Michael Best - Seniors (based on published best players) 13 - JOHNSON, Chris 12 - GALLAGHER, David HOLLAND, Ben SAUTNER, Nick 10 - BIDDLECOMBE, Andy 9 - SMITH, Nick 6 - JOHNSON, Paul JONES, Nathan WARD, Daniel 5 - HUGHES, Daniel LIDDELL, Chad VALENTI, Shane 4 - LAMB, Chris SUMMERS, Peter 3 - BROWN, Nathan CROWE, Rod DUNN, Lynden MOTLOP, Shannon 2 - BATE, Matthew READ, Phillip 1 - POYAS, Ezra After a slowish start to the season, the Reserves are gaining some momentum and are currently in fifth place. In recent weeks they have provided some young talent in Daniel Corp, Andrew Fleming and Marc Johnston and it would not surprise to see the likes of half forward Peter McGettigan and ruckman Stephen Ott gaining promotion in the near future. Mark Gibb, Thomas Dean. Leigh Fletcher and Kenton Hall have all pressed their claims. Last Sunday saw the successful return from injury of Mark Corrigan, Guy Martyn and Tom Paterakis and they will further strengthen the Sandy list once they fully settle back into the game. The Reserves have also benefited from the relationship with Melbourne. In addition to youngsters like Heath Neville, Jace Bode and Andre Gianfagna adding to the talent pool, the team has also benefited from the presence of experienced players like Clint Bizzell, Ben Holland and Paul Wheatley in recent matches along with sensational young forward prospect Michael Newton who kicked 8 goals against Bendigo matching Tom Mentiplay's performance in the opening round against Frankston. Another highlight of the successful association between the clubs has been the recruiting via the rookie draft of Matthew Warnock (now senior listed) and Danny Hughes who kicked six goals from a flank against Tasmania. Both players came through the ranks and started with the Sandringham Dragons TAC Cup team before joining the Zebras. The Sandy Reserves have their second bye for the season this Sunday. VFL Reserves Ladder WILLIAMSTOWN 24 BOX HILL HAWKS 20 FRANKSTON 16 NORTHERN BULLANTS 16 SANDRINGHAM 16 Coburg Tigers 16 Werribee 8 Casey Scorpions8 North Ballarat 4 Port Melbourne 4 Bendigo Bombers 4 Games - Reserves 6 - FLETCHER, Leigh GIANFAGNA, Andre GIBB, Mark HALL, Kenton LOCKWOOD, Scott MCGETTIGAN, Peter MENTIPLAY, Tom OTT, Stephen TURCARELLI, Daniel 5 - DEAN, Thomas JOHNSTON, Marc NEVILLE, Heath NEWTON, Michael 4 - BODE, Jace FROST, Andrew GOOLD, Adrian MARSTON, Nick PAULE, Thomas SEMMELL, Ryan 3 - CORP, Daniel EVANS, Vaughn FLEMING, Andrew GULLIFER, Will HEYWOOD, Ryan McKENZIE, Ewen PATERAKIS, Tom 2 - HOLLAND, Ben NEAVES, Shane TARANTO, Andrew 1 - BELL, Daniel BIZZELL, Clint CLEEVE, Stuart CORRIGAN, Mark HUGHES, Daniel MARTYN, Guy WHEATLEY, Paul Goals - Reserves 15 - MENTIPLAY, Tom 14 - NEWTON, Michael 5 - HEYWOOD, Ryan MCGETTIGAN, Peter 4 - GIANFAGNA, Andre JOHNSTON, Marc PAULE, Thomas TURCARELLI, Daniel 3 - HOLLAND, Ben HUGHES, Daniel SEMMELL, Ryan 2 - FLEMING, Andrew GULLIFER, Will LOCKWOOD, Scott 1 - BELL, Daniel CORP, Daniel CORRIGAN, Mark FLETCHER, Leigh MARSTON, Nick MARTYN, Guy TARANTO, Andrew Best - Reserves 17 - JOHNSTON, Marc MCGETTIGAN, Peter 14 - OTT, Stephen 12 - NEWTON, Michael 11 - CORP, Daniel 10 - NEVILLE, Heath 8 - GIBB, Mark 6 - DEAN, Thomas FLETCHER, Leigh HALL, Kenton 5 - FLEMING, Andrew 4 - HEYWOOD, Ryan 3 - GIANFAGNA, Andre TURCARELLI, Daniel 2 - HOLLAND, Ben 1 - MENTIPLAY, Tom SEMMELL, Ryan ODD SPOT - DEGREES OF SEPARATION Whenever a VFL team has a bye or players are not selected, they can nominate a club a "local interchange" club of their choice to which the player can be cleared to play. Last weekend Guy Rigoni made a special trip back home to join his brother Chad at his original club Myrtleford in the Ovens and Murray League. "Gus" kicked a goal but was upstaged by his brother who booted two and gained best on ground honours in a 15 point win for the Saints. A few weeks ago, Peter McGettigan played for St. Bedes in the VAFA C Grade competition when the reserves had a bye. Last Sunday, he lined up in the same team as experienced Demon paid Ben Holland and Paul Wheatley. It's a fascinating aspect of the game that one week, a player can be rubbing shoulders on the same ground with the elite and in another, they join suburban and bush footballers in the pursuit of their favourite sport! Whispering Jack joined me for last week's Sandy Reserves game and provided this HOW THE DEMONS FARED:- Clint Bizzell - no show. I guess the non-appearance will be a bit of a mystery until the official injury list is published on Monday evening. It's premature however, to suggest that his career is over based on the fact that he didn't play in a reserves game for Sandringham. Andre Gianfagna - a slow start but when the team got going in the second half, he got better and ended up with two goals. Ben Holland - a reasonable performance for someone who normally plays well above this standard. Took a few good marks, kicked a goal and generally coasted around the ground trying his best to look interested. As an aside, he would be one of the few people ever named as an emergency for an AFL team to line up 24 hours later in the VFL reserves. Michael Newton - too good all day and particularly so after half time when he went to full forward and kicked 7 of his 8 goals. The first nine minutes of the second half were bizarre. Sandy ruckman Ott was killing them, the midfield got the ball out time and time again and Newton marked everything that came his way kicking 5 goals 1 behind (the behind was definitely kickable too!). Then the Bomber coach put a 175cm dwarf on him and I thought, "geez, he's going to break Fred Fanning's record in one quarter" but he ball stopped coming down with as much regularity, the dwarf positioned himself in front and the other Bombers crowded the general area. Newton finished with just one more for the quarter. Heath Neville - disappointed me really. Played down back, had a slippery little opponent who he struggled with at times and was probably trying too hard. Missed the pre season with OP and has a fairly serious amount of work to do at the moment. Paul Wheatley - went off before quarter time and headed straight to the rooms for treatment for a corkie Sandringham 4.5.29 9.9.63 18.12.120 23.14.152 Bendigo Bombers 1.1.7 4.2.26 6.6.42 9.8.62 Goals Newton 8 McGettigan 3 Gianfagna Heywood Lockwood Turcarelli 2 Corrigan Fletcher Holland Martyn Best McGettigan Ott Newton Johnston Hall Gibb

by Scoop Junior These days, it seems that every game is a "test" of some sort in terms of a footy club's season. In Melbourne's case, the Sydney game tested its ability to bounce back and to show steely resolve after three losses. The Kangaroos match tested the capabilities of the team to confront a side desperate to show some form and spirit. The Geelong game was a test of playing a hardened, strong contested team on the big stage and the Fremantle encounter tested the ability to beat a side high on confidence that seemingly had "the wood" over them at the MCG. So what was the test against a Hawks outfit apparently on the decline after a flying start to the season? Well, it was actually pretty clear: a chance to eat away at the theory that the Demons have a habit of getting comfortable with themselves and consequently drop games they should win (see Round 1). Using prior contentment as a motivating tool is an interesting concept, yet it served them well on the night, as they demolished an ordinary Hawthorn side by 75 points. Possibly the most encouraging aspect of the win was the response of the team in the first quarter to Hawthorn's aggressive tactics. The Hawks got the jump on the Dees and dished out plenty of physical aggression with Aaron Davey the prime target as Brown and Bateman tried handing out some treatment. In the past, this could have rattled a Melbourne side not known for its ability to stand up to such physicality. And with a strong Demon influence in the Hawks' coaching box, it does not take much genius to understand what their thoughts involved when it came to unsettling the Demons. However, rather than get rattled, the boys in red and blue absorbed the pressure, settled, slowly got their game going and piled on six goals to lead at quarter time. Byron Pickett's presence would have undoubtedly helped calm the Dees. The Hawthorn players were well aware when Byron was in the vicinity and Flash would have felt very safe with Pickett just metres away looking after him. The Demons simply weren't going to be intimidated and this frustrated their opponents, who proceeded to give away undisciplined free kicks and 50m penalties. At quarter time, you just got the feeling that Hawthorn had thrown everything at Melbourne and there wasn't much more to give. That theory proved correct as the Dees dominated the second term, with only wayward kicking early in the quarter keeping Hawthorn in the game. A five-goal half time lead was maintained in the third quarter before the Demons lifted another cog in the last and recorded an avalanche of goals. The Hawks simply dropped their heads. The skipper had a great night. He booted six goals on Dawson and Jacobs and broke the legendary Norm Smith's long-standing club goal kicking record. His contested marking was strong and he moved well when leading. As is so often the case with David Neitz, when the first few shots go through, he doesn't know how to miss. Six goals straight was the result. His apprentice Lynden Dunn also played a nice game working hard across the half forward line and kicking two goals, the second at a very important stage in the third term. While his presentation and work rate in pushing up the ground is reminiscent of Brad Miller, he has the added bonus of being able to make an impact when deep inside 50m as he runs to the right spots and generally finishes neatly. There is a touch of class about him that is evident even at this early stage in his football career. The midfield was beaten in the clearances against a powerful centre square combination. Everitt had dominant patches in the ruck against White (particularly early) and provided Hodge and Mitchell with plenty of opportunities. The Russian fared better in the ruck against Everitt and was a dangerous proposition up forward, especially in the last term when he took two powerful marks on the lead. While the clearance count favoured Hawthorn, the Melbourne midfield dominated when the game opened up to the outside. Through superior class, skill and deeper rotations, the Demons made Hawthorn look second rate at times. Brock McLean and James McDonald were keys in tight, winning plenty of ball at the stoppages, while Cameron Bruce, Travis Johnstone and Brent Moloney provided great drive. Bruce was quiet in the second half, while Johnstone seemed to go opponent-less in the last quarter and picked up touches at will. McLean was our best midfielder in my opinion, as he regularly spotted up leading forwards with precise delivery and was better than Johnstone when the heat was on early. Melbourne's defence continues to improve. Nathan Carroll and Jared Rivers are forming an excellent partnership, with both players comfortable in leaving their men to assist other defenders. Carroll did an excellent job on Williams while Rivers cut off a number of Hawk attacking thrusts. Rivers' importance to the back line and the side in general is enormous. Daniel Bell was beaten early by Dixon but bounced back to take the honours in the second half, while Miller was solid defensively but let himself down with some costly disposal errors in the third term. On the whole, the back line was cohesive and well organised and there appears to be few spots available for the likes of Nathan Brown, Clint Bizzell, Ben Holland and Paul Wheatley. Only Brown would be considered a likely inclusion in the current team. The Demons' other 18-year-olds – Matthew Bate and Clint Bartram – were quiet but played a role. Bartram had a few tagging jobs and again displayed excellent closing-down and tackling skills, while Bate found a bit of footy in the last quarter after struggling to get involved earlier in the game. While the last quarter was junk time, it was important to gain some percentage and show a ruthless edge. Seven goals to nothing was about as dominant a display as you could see, but such luxuries will not be afforded when the Demons travel west to take on the top-of-the-ladder Eagles at Subiaco on Sunday. West Coast has not lost to a Victorian team at Subiaco since the Dees knocked them off in 2002 – that's a long time between drinks. A super effort will be required to beat them, but at least the Demons will go over with confidence from their five wins on the trot. Would it be fair to say that next week will be a good test of where Melbourne is at? Oh…there’s that word again… Melbourne 6.4.40 10.10.70 13.13.91 20.16.136 Hawthorn 5.2.32 6.4.40 9.7.61 9.7.61 Goals Neitz 6 Bruce Davey Dunn Jamar White 2 Godfrey Green Johnstone Robertson Best McLean McDonald Neitz Johnstone Moloney Rivers Injuries Carroll (hamstring tightness) Robertson (jaw). Umpires Goldspink Stevic Vozzo Crowd 42,985 at the MCG

by The Demonland Team The Oracle's discovery ... When I realised we were already a third of the way through the home and away season I was quite taken aback at how quickly the season was moving along. After giving it some more thought however, it dawned on me that there have been so many developments packed into the early stages of this year's marathon race for the AFL Holy Grail that there really is no reason to be surprised at all. The Demons made a poor start to their 2006 journey but have managed to claw their way back into some sort of contention. Putting it in long distance running terms, they stumbled at the gun, fell way behind the pack in the first few kilometres built up some momentum as they passed the 10-kilometre mark and now, approaching 13 kilometres, they're stringing back the lead runners ... Melbourne's four wins on the trot have been eye opening. The team is improving with each week. It's showing more durability, greater resolve and more depth. We've seen the emergence of the younger group and an extra bonus with the introduction of the Byronator. Pickett joined the club after enjoying premiership success at North Melbourne and Port Adelaide and, in his brief time here, has already given the team a harder edge. The younger talent introduced in the first seven weeks - Clint Bartram, Matthew Warnock, Matthew Bate and Lynden Dunn - is demonstrating more than just the word "potential". This new look Demon side has picked up some handy scalps in the past month and things appear to be on the up and up. But not so fast! After all, this is a marathon race. We haven't reached half way mark and recent experience should warn us that, as we move deeper into the race, hidden dangers lurk behind every corner. Then there's "the wall" - that impenetrable barrier that often emerges at the most unexpected of times and delivers a sledgehammer blow to unsuspecting runners. We've hit the wall before. It came from almost out of nowhere in Round 19 of 2004 after Melbourne had grabbed top place on the ladder and again, after the Queens Birthday victory over Collingwood last year and yet again in this year's warm up race in Adelaide. In every instance, the team had been travelling along nicely before hitting the wall and dashing our hopes and of course, our enjoyment of the game. The chances of hitting the wall again cannot be discounted. The side that the Demons put on the park last week had 10 players with less than 50 games AFL experience; three of them were 18 year olds. They might have been impressive but, as Garry Lyon pointed out in the Herald Sun this week, it's unrealistic to expect young players in the early stages of their careers to sustain a high level of performance consistently in their formative years at this level. And before we get too carried away, let's not forget that the win against the Dockers was the team's first in eleven months by a margin of more than 10 points! When you have a young players coming through into the senior ranks, it's important that they are handled properly and not overextended physically. It's interesting to note how promising newcomers Matthew Bate and Lynden Dunn have been managed by the club in terms of their introduction into the senior team and then in time on the ground in these early matches. There's a plan and a purpose to the way every individual is managed in modern football. We are dealing with a team game and each playing unit is made up of a number of different members who are all working together to achieve specific aims. Proper list management is so important in this day and age but even with all that, form can be a very fickle thing and we only need look back to last year when the Demons played the Hawks in the corresponding Round 8 at the MCG. Melbourne held second place on the ladder with a 5/2 win loss ratio and a percentage of 118.2 while Hawthorn was 15th with just one win and a percentage of 88.3. The problem from the Demons' point of view was that they approached the game with the expectation of an easy victory against a lowly opponent. At least that's how it looked from my vantage point! The result was that they were taken by surprise and smashed by a determined group that took control of the rucks and the midfield and before you knew it, they trailed by six goals at the first break - a large enough deficit to force it to play catch up football without much success for the rest of the day. The game can hurt you badly if you take your opponent for granted. The Melbourne team of 22 players that runs out tomorrow night will have a much different look about it to the one that succumbed to Hawthorn last year. When you reflect on it though, in a team sport, it's not just the personnel who run out on any given week who are important. It's your entire list and a whole team of people in the background from the coach to the bootstudder who help achieve success over the long journey. Sam the Stats Man figures it all out ... Let's take another look at the club's list to see where each individual stands. The following list of players is in alphabetical order and it sets out where they were during VFL Round 7/VFL Round 6: - MFC - BARTRAM, Clint - AFL 7 games, 1 goal - a young tagger who has played every game of the season at AFL level. Has collected a few impressive scalps, gets better with every game and now has a Rising Star Award nomination. Not bad for a #60 pick at the 2005 National Draft! MFC - BATE, Matthew - AFL 3 games, 2 goals, VFL 3 games, 3 goals - has fitted in well at AFL level where he will be a fixture after dominating early with Sandringham. MFC - BELL, Daniel - AFL 2 games, 0 goals, VFL 1 game, 0 goals, VFL Reserves 1 game, 0 goals - hampered early by a groin injury but has come up the hard way and was impressive in defence against the Dockers. SFC RESERVES - BIZZELL, Clint VFL Reserves 1 game, 0 goals - played half a game with Sandy reserves last Sunday after a long lay off with a calf injury that took its time healing. SFC RESERVES - BODE, Jace ® - VFL Reserves 4 games, 0 goals - has had mixed reviews in his four reserves games but has also been hampered by injury. Misses this week through suspension incurred in the reserves against North Ballarat. INJURED - BROWN, Nathan - AFL 5 games, 2 goals, VFL 1 game 2 goals - was working his way back into some form when he strained his hamstring, a serious injury given his history. Will probably miss two more games and is might have to return through the Zebras. MFC - BRUCE, Cameron - AFL 7 games, 9 goals - has carried on after a stellar start to the season and, is the early favourite for the club champion. Excelled when he had the leadership role for the Kangaroos game. SFC - BUCKLEY, Simon - VFL 6 games, 1 goal - impressed early with his pace and skills at Sandringham after missing much of the pre season but has been subdued lately in the tougher conditions. Still a fair way off winning an AFL appearance. MFC - CARROLL, Nathan - AFL 7 games, 1 goal - had some tough assignments to date and continues to grow in stature as a key defender after a so-so start. MFC - DAVEY, Aaron - AFL 7 games, 14 goals - had a very good start, was subdued for a little while and has blitzed in recent games. Leading the club's goalkicking. MFC - DUNN, Lynden - AFL 2 games, 3 goals VFL 4 games, 9 goals - is being eased into AFL and is fitting in well. In his limited time, he has performed like a seasoned campaigner rather than a raw, inexperienced young forward. INJURED - FERGUSON, Ryan - AFL 2 games, 0 goals - his healing is progressing better than expected after colliding with Colin Sylvia and sustaining broken ribs and a punctured lung in Round 2 at the Telstra Dome. The latest club injury report suggests he'll be back in a week or so. SFC RESERVES - GIANFAGNA, Andre ® - VFL Reserves 5 games, 2 goals - very much an outside player with great pace who has been pressing for senior selection at Sandringham MFC - GODFREY, Simon - AFL 4 games, 0 goals - VFL 2 games, 2 goals - a shock selection for Melbourne against the Swans after some uninspiring form with the Zebras, Godders has yet to play in a losing team this year. Hasn't really done much for the Demons but must be considered a lucky charm or something. MFC - GREEN, Brad - AFL 7 games, 4 goals - is having a good season after being tried in a doing well in a number of different roles including as a tagger. Captained the side to that great win over the Cats. INJURED/RESTED? - HOLLAND, Ben - AFL 2 games, 0 goals - VFL 2 games 1 goal, VFL Reserves 1 game 2 goals – outstanding for Sandringham in two senior and one reserve game on comeback from injury. Just went at AFL level and dropped back to the VFL last week but did not take his place in the team. SFC - HUGHES, Daniel ® - VFL 5 games 9 goals, VFL Reserves 1 game 3 goals - a jumping jack whose strong marking is creating an impression in his first rookie season. His six-goal effort against Tasmania a fortnight ago was special. MFC - JAMAR, Mark - AFL 6 games 3 goals - is getting more and more game time in combination with numero uno ruckman Jeff White and is beginning to look and feel more at home in this company. SFC - JOHNSON, Chris - AFL 1 game 0 goals, VFL 4 games 1 goals - after disappointing against the Bulldogs, went to Carrara as an emergency and then returned for some game time to the Zebras where he has been absolutely brilliant. INJURED - JOHNSON, Paul - AFL 2 games 2 goals, VFL 2 games 0 goals - failed to impress in Round 1 but fought his way back with some good form at Zebraland only to sustain a bad shoulder injury at the SCG. Currently recovering, he is said to be 3 weeks away from playing again. MFC - JOHNSTONE, Travis - AFL 7 games, 4 goals - shows greater maturity these days and is slowly working his way up to his best form and that spells "danger" to all opposition teams. SFC - JONES, Nathan - VFL 6 games, 3 goals - a hard at it inside midfielder, Jones is getting his education in the game at Sandy and it’s only a matter of time before he gets his opportunity at the higher level. MFC - MCDONALD, James - AFL 7 games, 1 goal - hardworking, unspectacular but so important in the midfield. MFC - MCLEAN, Brock - AFL 5 games, 4 goals - has been super impressive after an injury plagued pre season and is reinvigorating the midfield with his solid unrelenting attack on the football, good foot skills and excellent decision making. MFC - MILLER, Brad - AFL 6 games, 1 goal - has been moved between CHF and CHB without setting the world on fire although showing signs of steadier form. MFC - MOLONEY, Brent - AFL 5 games, 1 goal - was plagued by injuries through the pre season and has not replicated last year's form. SFC - MOTLOP, Shannon - AFL 1 game, 0 goals, VFL 6 games, 3 goals - has lost form after a promising pre season and is languishing in the VFL. SFC - NEAVES, Shane ® - VFL 4 games, 1 goal, VFL Reserves 2 games, 0 goals - steady in the ruck after being called up to VFL senior ranks. MFC - NEITZ, David - AFL 5 games, 10 goals - a hip flexor injury slowed his assault on a couple of important and long standing club records. A welcome return last week when he was workmanlike but if he can hit some form and hold more of his marks, the team’s prospects would be enhanced considerably. SFC RESERVES - NEVILLE, Heath - VFL Reserves 4 games, 0 goals - missed the entire pre season with OP and has only shown glimpses of potential in his four games at VFL reserves level to date. SFC - NEWTON, Michael - VFL 2 games, 1 goal, VFL Reserves 4 games, 6 goals - slowly starting to make an impression at Sandringham although still very much a project player. INJURED - NICHOLSON, Alistair - VFL 1 game, 0 goals - fast becoming the forgotten man at the club after a foot injury struck him down in Sandy's first game. Due to be tested this week but might have to come back through Sandringham reserves as their seniors have a bye. MFC - PICKETT, Byron - AFL 7 games, 2 goals - has had a major influence in the past month with his strength and aggression instilling fear into the hearts of the opposition. MFC - READ, Phil - VFL 6 games, 3 goal - more than useful at Sandringham but unable to break into the Melbourne line up. MFC - RIVERS, Jared - AFL 5 games, 0 goals, VFL 1 game, 0 goals - superb in defence after coming back from and an elbow injury. MFC - ROBERTSON, Russell - AFL 7 games, 12 goals - a nagging knee injury held him back early but he appears ready for a big game in the very near future. SFC - SMITH, Nicholas - VFL 6 games, 5 goals - has played ruck and in key forward and defensive positions and impressed the most on the ball. INJURED - SYLVIA Colin - AFL 6 games, 2 goals - has only shown glimpses of the form that made him such a highly rated recruit a couple of years back. Goes in hard and suffered bruised ribs against Geelong. Will miss again this week. SFC - WARD, Daniel - AFL 3 games, 0 goals, VFL 4 games, 2 goals - another who is doing well in the VFL but finding it hard to break back into the AFL team. SFC - WARNOCK, Matthew ® - AFL 1 games, 0 goals, VFL 3 games, 0 goals - possibly gained his promotion a little too early after a thumb injury. Now playing steady football for Sandy. INJURED - WHEATLEY, Paul - AFL 4 games, 1 goal - missed the first round with injury and was just starting to hit his straps when his hamstring went against the Kangaroos. Due back in the next week or so. MFC - WHELAN, Matthew - AFL 6 games, 0 goals - our underrated star still hasn't shown his absolute best but has been very good lately. MFC - WHITE, Jeff - AFL 7 games, 4 goals - a patchy season to date but is starting to show the benefits of a lighter workload as his offsider Mark Jamar takes on a greater share of the rockwork. MFC - YZE, Adem - AFL 7 games, 11 goals - after struggling early has come back to top form with a vengeance. Has shown his value as a forward with 11 goals. The Oracle says it's another 8 pointer tomorrow night ... What seems obvious from the above - and we accept that it's by no means a deep and probing study of the list - is that Melbourne is getting better equipped to handle the ups and downs of football at elite level. There are some handy footballers currently not in the main side; some good players out injured or cooling their heels at Sandringham. The added player depth means there is greater competition for places in the team and this alone could ensure that the team does not fall away in performance as it did, for example, in last year's game against Hawthorn. Tomorrow night is yet another vital eight pointer for Melbourne. A win puts the club into top four contention while a loss means a struggle to hold a place in the top eight. It's that vital a game - one simply cannot contemplate defeat this week given that the team's following game happens to be against the Eagles at Subiaco. Scoop Junior looks at the danger men ... I'm looking forward to tomorrow night. Melbourne-Hawthorn games are always unpredictable and the underdog has often won in the past. Last year's game was lost in the first term so preventing that flying start is important. I think we can expect them to be Williams-centric and direct many attacks through him. He was a lone hand last week and has looked their most dangerous forward the whole year. I've seen this bloke a fair bit - no one is going to stop him if he gets out in space and the ball is delivered well. The only way to stop him is to: (1) pressure the ball carrier to ensure he doesn't receive a good kick out in space. (2) have Jared Rivers or another defender zone off to block up the space. We've done this well in recent weeks so there's no reason why we can't do it again. Because no one is going to beat him if the above isn't achieved, I'd rather us go with Carroll to ensure he gets no cheap marks one-on-one. Whelan is not good enough in the air and Bell may just lack a bit of defensive nous at the moment. Carroll is a much better one-on-one negator. Despite his selection, it's uncertain whether Crawford will play and if he does, will he be fully effective given his shin injury? I think the midfield focus will probably be on Mitchell and Hodge. I'd start Mark Jamar in the ruck and get him to jump into Everitt a few times. Hodge has excellent core strength and can shrug tackles, so we need a strong tackler on him - perhaps Macca. Would consider starting Byron Pickett in the middle to give some extra strength/grunt in there. Another player who has slipped under the radar has been Guerra. Can hurt with his foot skills so I'd be mindful of him. He has found quite a bit of the ball this year. Hawthorn is pretty strong around the ball, so hopefully we can match them in that department and get the ball to the outside. They don't have the raw talent of some our outsiders and this is where we can hurt them. The game ... HAWTHORN v MELBOURNE THE TEAMS HAWTHORN B: Jacobs Dawson Sewell HB: Smith Roughead Guerra C: Bateman Mitchell Vandenberg HF: Clarke Boyle Brown F: Dixon Williams Miller FOLL: Everitt Hodge Crawford IC: Birchall Campbell Kane Ladson EMG: Lewis Ries Taylor IN: Crawford Jacobs OUT: Lewis Young MELBOURNE B: Bate Carroll Whelan HB: Yze Rivers Bell C: Green Bruce McLean HF: Robertson Miller Davey F: Jamar Neitz Pickett FOLL: White Moloney Johnstone I/C: Bartram Dunn Godfrey McDonald EMG: C Johnson Holland Read NO CHANGE Field umpires: Vozzo Kennedy Stevic Where & When: MCG, 7.40pm, Friday 19 May 2006 TV & Radio: Channel Nine, 3AW, Triple-M, ABC Radio Head to Head: Played - 145, Hawthorn 72, Melbourne 73 Last Time they met: Hawthorn 19.14.128 defeated Melbourne 13.11.89 in Round 8, 2005, at The MCG The betting: Hawthorn $3.25, Melbourne $1.30 Whispering Jack has the final say ... We'll win and win well.

THE PLAYER SPONSORS EVENT by George on the Outer Well for those who didn’t make it along…bad luck….you missed out on an absolutely first-class event, which was the opener for a day of highlights. Around 20 of the group met at the Mountain View Hotel to listen to the guru of the draft – Craig Cameron give us insights into his role, his assessment of the performances of those players recently drafted, their future prospects, their shortcomings, and just in a small way what the club is looking for in the future. The group could have listened and questioned him for hours, and if you really want to get to hear the true inside running story about the draft, the why’s and why not’s, then you have to listen to Craig speak. Your next chance will be at the U18 Championships and then at the post-draft get-together for the group. Unfortunately, Craig had to leave in time to get down to Victoria Park for an U18 game, and given the recent successes that he has had with Bartram, Bate and Dunn, we weren’t going to stand in his way…But to give you a snippet, he considers that Michael Newton who is yet to make an appearance at senior level, to be the most gifted of the 2004 draftees. Our MC for the day – Whispering Jack introduced our next guest in Paul Wheatley. Paul was very generously a last minute stand in for Clint Bartram, our sponsored player, who could not make it due to some commitment he had at 2pm. Some story about stopping a Bell ... Paul was absolutely fantastic and warmed to his task of surviving the hard questions from a group of Demon fanatics. He gave the group insights into what was expected of a player, in particular a new recruit. And he told of the work that was required to play at AFL level, and the intensity of medical recovery following injury, like his current hamstring strain. He gave us insights into the playing group, and how the arrival of Byron Pickett has added a toughness not seen before, and how this enables the players to “stand a little taller� in his presence. Paul spoke of his preferred position on the field and why that was the case, but if you want to hear the whole story…then you will have to join the group. However, he also provided one insightful snippet which we will share with you. He works very hard at doing his job, and knows the importance of weights room training. After a couple of years he had got to being able to bench press 110kg. He thought he was pretty pleased with this until two young 17 year olds in Brock McLean and Colin Sylvia arrived and on their first day did the same weight, but half a dozen times in succession. We wish Paul a speedy recovery, and the group wish to extend to him our heartfelt thanks. It was only on short notice that he attended, and we do appreciate the expectations placed upon our players. Paul was a true credit to his club, and a charming role model for all, as well. If you still want to join up with the group, we would be pleased to have you on board. The Craig Cameron post-draft night is worth every cent of the contribution alone, and to be honestly truthful, there is nothing like this offered through the club to any other group. There are either threads on the various sites or links to the sponsorship group, to find out the details. You can read George's match reviews every week on DEMONOLOGY http://demonology.midnight.net.au/

by Barry from Beach Road Sandringham overcame a sluggish start at Trevor Barker Beach Road Oval yesterday when it overran second placed North Ballarat in the second half to record a convincing 47-point win. The Zebras were able to grab top spot on the VFL ladder in the process after the surprise loss of the Northern Bullants in their game at Casey Fields. The slowness of the start could have been due to the greasy conditions which led to some scrappy football, to Sandy's overuse of the ball or simply to the fact that North Ballarat were on song and on target. Perhaps it might even have been due to the controversial circumstances of the preceding week in which the VFL announced an investigation into the game played against Tasmania at Bellerive Oval in Hobart. Zebra defender Andy Biddlecombe had been left with a broken jaw after an incident behind the play and a Tassie player was suspended for four weeks as a result. Star full forward Nick Sautner also appeared to be carrying some evidence of the close attention he received from his opposition defenders. Whatever the case, it was the Roosters who were first out of the blocks to hold a handy 17 point lead at the first break. However, as conditions cleared, things improved for the home side and it gradually pegged back the North Ballarat lead, hitting the front in time on and eventually taking an 8 point lead into the main break. Sandy then consolidated that lead in the third term before Sautner put on a show to personally boot six goals in the final quarter which netted the team 8 goals 5 behinds. But for the Roosters' amazing accuracy in front of goal, the final margin would have been far, far greater. North Ballarat's first behind for the day was scored half way through the third quarter and remembering that Tassie kicked 9 straight in the final quarter last week, it was a long time in between kick outs at full back. The Zebra defence was well on top for most of the day. Sav Rocca who managed double figures when he last played against Sandringham in mid 2005 for Port Melbourne was contained to just four goals, two of them late in the game after having been thrown on the ball. Chris Johnson played a fine defensive game on Rooster Nathan Saunders beating him all ends up and running off him to set up countless attacks. Rod Crowe and David Gallagher were winners all day and young midfielder Shane Valenti belied his inexperience and caused a great deal of damage around the ground and in front of goals. Ezra Poyas was in everything after half time and constantly mopped up in defence and Daniel Ward ran through the lines with strength and vigour. On that front Phil Read was his usual self and proved to be a real pest while young ruckman Shane Neaves continued to show improvement on the ball and around the ground. Sautner's eight goal effort against a strong and experienced opponent in Moloney was a testament to the fitness he has gained since the end of last season. He leads the VFL goal kicking table by seven goals and should hold that lead through next week's bye. The reigning premiers have deserved the rest with their only glitch to the season so far coming in shocking conditions a few weeks ago at the hands of Frankston. HOW THE DEMONS FARED Clint Bizzell, recovering from a calf injury, was originally selected on the extended interchange bench but ended up playing in the reserves. I haven't as yet received any reports on the Demons who took part in the reserves game (Jace Bode, Andre Gianfagna and Heath Neville as well as the Bizz). Ben Holland was selected at centre half forward but failed to take his place in the side. The Zebra seniors had a fine balance of 11 AFL and 11 VFL listed players. Here is Fan's assessment of how the Demons fared:- Simon Buckley - had little impact on the day and spent a fair bit of time on the bench. Danny Hughes - was good early with some strong marking but faded out. Moves well and kicks nicely but is not as clean below his knees as he needs to be. Chris Johnson - CJ has been knocking on the door for sometime but in this game, he stopped knocking, got out the barge pole and knocked the whole door down. He was really, really good. He played full back on a much bigger opponent in Saunders and beat him pointless. CJ was able to stop him marking with good body work, was far superior in reading of the play and then just run off him. It was rather fun watching him running up the ground with his opponent watching. In the last quarter, he played further up the ground and was very good with clean ball handling, precise long kicking and good use of options. What else he can do to get a senior berth? Nathan Jones - was very quiet in the first half and had no more than a half dozen touches to halftime which included some bench time. His second half was much improved and he worked his way into the play and kicked a class goal in the last quarter. Clean hands and took some good options during play. Shannon Motlop - did some nice things but if he wants a spot in the seniors he needs to do a heap more. Shane Neaves - played pretty well in the ruck where he worked hard and won a lot of taps. He found the ball around the ground a bit and dished it off well. He's a very good size and I liked what I saw. Michael Newton - played cameos of probably about 10 minutes a quarter. Took the mark of the day (it was really good, a hanger running back) and at one stage from a free for deliberate out tried to get round an opponent who just got him but not before he dished off a 25 metre bullet like pass with his left foot onto the chest of a leading Sandy forward. I reckon it would be the source of extreme frustration to the Melbourne footy department that he is not getting more time to develop. This kid has it and is worth persevering with. He may not make it, or it may take five years, but if he does he has a touch of something pretty special. Phil Read - a good solid game from Read. His problem is that he doesn't really stand out and at this stage can only be looked at as a good backup in the case of injury. Nick Smith - played mainly forward and spent a small amount of time in the ruck. I was hoping to see more of his good recent form but it was not to be on Sunday. Daniel Ward - a class above VFL level with his pace and good ball handling at this level. Not a game where he dominated but solid. Kicked a wonderful goal in the second on the run. However, with the current situation at Melbourne it's hard to see where he fits in other than depth. Matthew Warnock - played on a good player in Watt and did well. He didn't get all that much of it but stopped Watt from being any sort of player for North Ballarat. Sandringham 2.1.13 7.2.44 11.8.74 19.13.127 North Ballarat 4.0.24 6.0.36 8.2.50 13.2.80 Goals Sautner 8 Crowe Motlop Valenti 2 Jones Liddell Smith Summers Ward Best Gallagher Sautner Johnson Crowe Summers Valenti The Zebra reserves had a big half time lead against the Roosters who, unlike their senior counterparts, were shockingly inaccurate allowing the home side to record a 14-point victory which was enough to grab a spot in the top five. Sandringham 5.2.32 10.3.63 12.5.77 13.7.85 North Ballarat 1.4.10 4.7.31 6.17.53 9.21.75 Goals Mentiplay 3 Heywood McGettigan Paule 2 Gianfagna Marsden Semmel Turcarelli Best Ott McGettigan Johnston Turcarelli Fletcher Gibb For photographs from the game go to - http://www.sandringhamfc.com.au/default.as...play&aid=106563

by The Oracle Melbourne's season continued to build in momentum on Saturday when it scored an emphatic 59-point victory over the much vaunted Fremantle Dockers who, before the game were being looked upon in AFL circles as the "real deal" after scoring wins in consecutive weeks over St. Kilda and West Coast. There were a number of lessons that we learned from the Dockers' ordeal at the hands of the Demons, the first of which was that it's easier for them to win matches at Subiaco and at AFL House than it is at the MCG against a rampant Demon combination whose confidence and team unity is growing weekly. Secondly, that Freo is probably the only AFL whose away strip is more pleasing to the eye than its home gear and yet both versions are utterly execrable. Watching them run around in their almost all white guernseys was reminiscent of watching a team of umpires going about a training drill. It was pretty nauseating stuff. But who cares about the Dockers anyway? These Johnny come latelies who have been on the AFL scene for literally a minute haven' endeared themselves to anybody recently with their whining and objecting to time honoured rules and their supporters over in Perth were disgraceful last week when they booed Chris Judd on his being awarded the Ross Glendenning Medal. Well, they got their comeuppance this week and I hope they enjoyed watching from afar as their team was demolished totally. And now to the winners. The 59 points represented Melbourne's biggest winning margin since it defeated Carlton by 105 points in Round 6, 2004. It was the club's first victory by more than 10 points since last year's Queens Birthday match against Collingwood and it was a win that returned the side to the top eight and positive territory in terms of win/loss ratio and percentage for the first time this year – something that seemed such a long way off when that goal umpire adjudged Aaron Davey’s long shot for goal at Carrara as having been touched on the line. But it was more than the statistical facts of the victory that impressed all and sundry in the football world and made them sit up and take notice. It was the way they went about winning that was significant. The Dockers were out of the blocks quickly with two early goals but the Demons fought back and the game became an arm wrestle for the balance of the first quarter. After that, Melbourne gained control and simply overpowered Fremantle to finally break its run of narrow victories with its first percentage booster for the season. Although statistically the team did not win the majority of clearances, it did control the important midfield battles beginning with a dominance in the ruck duels which was expected in view of the absence of Freo big men in Sandilands and Longmuir. The unexpected part was that it would be Mark Jamar who would dictate the ruck and not Jeff White whose workload was significantly reduced as a result of Jamar's good play. The Russian was also dangerous up forward with some strong marks and is finally progressing at a fast rate confident in the knowledge that he has established a place in the side. The beneficiaries of the Demon ruck dominance were many and varied. Brock McLean is becoming a powerhouse midfielder with a great work ethic and he was supported by an array of talented midfielders from the attacking Cameron Bruce and Travis Johnstone to the brilliant taggers in James McDonald, Brad Green and Clint Bartram and the magical Aaron Davey, Byron Pickett and Adem Yze. We also saw some cameo performances from the likes of Matthew Bate and, late in the game, from Simon Godfrey. Together they form a well balanced unit that plays with toughness, talent and a sense of purpose and on Saturday, they moved the ball forward with a real sense of purpose giving their key forwards plenty of opportunities to score. That forward line was so difficult to hold because it now has such variety. Ten different goalkickers including a contributions of two from David Neitz on return from injury and working the ground from centre half forward leaving newcomer Lynden Dunn and a resurgent Russell Robertson and a bevy of crumbers coming from downfield to do the damage. It all had the Freo defence pretty much confused - they simply had no answer as, at various times, different players would bob up to score goals. The evidence of Melbourne's new game plan was there to see from the way the team covered the danger men who were responsible for Fremantle's victory in the shootout of Round 6 last year when the Dockers won a high scoring game by 14 points. Jeff Farmer booted seven goals in Matty Whelan's absence that day while Luke McPharlin and Matthew Pavlich were also damaging up forward. This time around Melbourne was able to significantly shut down their supply through James McDonald putting a stop to Freo danger man Josh Carr and newcomer Clint Bartram holding Peter Bell to just six kicks. Defenders Jared Rivers, Brad Miller and the improving Nathan Carroll held a tight rein on the bigger forwards for most of the day and they were helped by the visitors' need to put Pavlich into the engine room to help out their midfield. As a result, Pavlich got a fair bit of the ball but it was in places and at times that didn't hurt the Demons enough. Daniel Bell ran the ball strongly out of defence in a promising performance. It was supposed to be Jeff Farmer's day with his 400th AFL goal which he duly scored with his first kick of the day but it was really his indigenous brothers in red and blue who provided the highlights. Whelan had the clear honours over the Wizard keeping him to just one further goal but only thanks to a well staged niggle and dive in front of goal that managed to sucker the umpies for a free kick. Aaron Davey demonstrated to the football world that he was ready to take the magician's mantle away from Farmer and Byron Pickett was simply destructive whenever he was near the ball. He made his teammates stand tall and his opponents cringe. He can be most damaging around some of today's new breed of athlete footballers who simply don't have the awareness to know when he's nearby. His perfectly legal hip and shoulder on the Dockers' Crowley was a perfect example of this. When opponents were aware of his presence, they seemed often seemed to look to self-preservation more than anything else. Pickett's influence is strengthening his team’s resolve as every week goes by – it's contagious! It appeared after the game that the Demons had made it through without injury for the first time this year. This augurs well for the club with a series of battles looming against some of the leading clubs in the competition. Next Friday night's clash against the Hawks is yet another eight-point game and a win will place the club in a position where it can start to press its top four claims. Bring it on! Melbourne 3.3.21 9.8.62 12.11.83 17.15.117 Fremantle 2.3.15 3.7.25 7.8.50 8.10.58 Goals Davey Green Johnstone McLean Neitz Robertson Yze 2 Dunn Jamar Pickett Best Yze Davey Johnstone McLean Pickett Green McDonald Robertson Injuries Nil Reports Nil Umpires McLaren Quigley Woodcock Crowd 23,368 at the MCG

by J.V. McKay The term "purple prose" usually applies to the sort of language you come across in romance novels. Basically it consists of words and phrases that sound stilted, overly descriptive, or cliché. Well, there's no love or romance involved when it comes to those boorish louts from Fremantle but the colour purple and the use of clichés is just perfect for Saturday’s game at the G because guys like Matthew Pavlich and Jeff Farmer will match perfectly the pink theme of the day. And when it's all over, I'm tipping they will be blushing a bright pink or perhaps even a reddy hue as they stand by helplessly watching their team being destroyed by the resurgent Demons in the red and the blue. In a way I think I'm very brave to select Melbourne to win. Forget your Adelaide's and your Collingwood's. Fremantle has to be the form team of the competition at the moment. In consecutive weeks they have beaten the two AFL sides reputed to have the best lists in St. Kilda and West Coast. Admittedly, both victories have been by the proverbial bee's diaphragm but, as we Demon fans are getting used to saying, "a win's a win" and four points is four points. These Dockers also have a sensational record against Melbourne at the MCG. The last time they lost to the Demons at the home of football was in Round 16, 1998 when their score of 13.5.83 was 23 points shy of the home side's 16.10.106. The tables were turned in Round 10 the following year with Fremantle scoring 22.12.144 to Melbourne’s 13.12.90. Tony Modra kicked 10 goals in his best game for his second club, which recorded its first ever win at the MCG. That score remains a record for the Dockers at the home of football (one point better than last years score in the shootout – see below). The teams didn't meet at the MCG again until 2003 when the visitors were too good and too accurate in front of goal 16.5.101 to 10.11.71 and Justin Longmuir went ballistic in the second half to finish with 6 goals. Then came last year's shootout at the G which saw Jeff Farmer kick an arrogant seven goals against his old club while Matthew Pavlich and Luke McPharlin added to Melbourne's embarrassment by outmarking and outplaying almost anyone who came near them. So now that I've established the Dockers are not only the form side of the competition but the MCG is like a second home to them, why on earth am I going for a Melbourne win? Good question. I just like the team spirit and the hardness Melbourne is showing at the moment. The Demons are also a much improved side at the coalface (the clearance battles) where most games of AFL football are won these days. The two guns in this area are Brock McLean and Cameron Bruce, two very different types of footballers but together in the midfield they are proving to be very effective. Then there are Travis Johnstone and Brad Green who are capable of causing a lot of damage to the opposition. All of the abovementioned are team leaders in their own way and they are rejoined this week by two other leaders in David Neitz and Brad Miller, not to mention Matty Whelan who is a leader in the back line. The Dockers aren't slouches in the midfield either with players of the ilk of J Carr, Peter Bell and Haselby but they aren't winning the clearances and are not likely to in the absence of their head ruckman Sandilands (head ruckman because he's a head taller than anyone else). They do have some dangerous tall forwards in Pavlich, McPharlin and Polak and those two little pests in Farmer and Medhurst who led the Demon defence a merry dance during last year's shootout. I have little doubt however, that Neale Daniher has done his homework and learned the lessons of last year's thriller at the MCG and, as a result, that he will have different strategies in place this year. He said so this week and who am I to argue with The Reverend? I'm confident therefore, that the Demons will acquit themselves well. I would have been happier with a wet weather forecast like the one we had last Friday night against the Cats but the Bureau of Meteorology (why meteorology? – after all it's about weather not meteors!) has forecast a fine day and 15 degrees. That'll still do me and I reckon that the boys from the west will be begging to hear the sound of the final siren this week as they go down in a screaming purple heap to the tune of 40 points. Incidentally, this will be just enough to nose the Demons' percentage ahead of the Dockers and push them into the top eight with every team in the competition to play every other team once before the end of the home and away season. A win will set up Melbourne's season and I'll be in the pink. Thank you very much. MELBOURNE v FREMANTLE THE TEAMS MELBOURNE B: Bate Carroll Whelan HB: Yze Rivers Bell C: Green Bruce McLean HF: Robertson Miller Davey F: McDonald Neitz Pickett FOLL: White Moloney Johnstone I/C: Jamar Dunn Bartram Godfrey EMG: Holland C Johnson Read IN: Neitz Miller Whelan OUT: Brown (hamstring) Sylvia (bruised rubs) Holland NEW: - FREMANTLE B: Thornton Johnson Parker HB: Schammer Grover Mundy C: Black J Carr Walker HF: Headland Pavlich Medhurst F: Farmer McPharlin Longmuir FOLL: Polak Hasleby Bell I/C: M Carr Duffield Dodd Warren EMG: Cook Crowley Peake IN: Longmuir Farmer Warren OUT: Sandilands (fractured jaw) Crowley Peake NEW: Michael Warren (Claremont) Field umpires: McLaren Quigley Woodcock Where & When: MCG, 2.10pm, Saturday 13 May TV & Radio: Fox Footy (Vic, Qld, NSW, SA), Ch 10 (WA only), ABC, 6PR Head to Head: Played - 17, Melbourne 9, Fremantle 8 Last Time they met: Fremantle 15.11.101 d Melbourne 11.10.76 in Round 17, 2005, at Subiaco Oval The betting: Melbourne $1.65, Fremantle $2.10