Demonland

I've asked Neil why he thinks this.

THE CASEY Demons have appointed a new VFL Senior Coach, welcoming Rhett McLennan to the role for the 2026 season. McLennan, who has spent the past six seasons at the helm of Gippsland Power, brings a wealth of knowledge to the job, having tallied 23 years of coaching experience. His time with Gippsland, as the longest-serving head coach in the club’s history, has seen him lead the team to three of the last five preliminary finals, and achieve the minor premiership twice. He has also helped develop 32 players who have been drafted to AFL, making Gippsland Power the most successful Talent League program in recent years. McLennan’s playing career also speaks for itself, spanning 22 years, more than 300 senior games and three premierships. Melbourne GM of AFL Football Performance Alan Richardson said the club was thrilled to appoint a highly experienced football person in McLennan. “After a thorough process, we are really pleased to welcome Rhett as senior coach of the Casey Demons for the 2026 VFL season,” Richardson said. “Rhett’s coaching philosophy, character and experience in helping his players reach their full potential made him a standout candidate, and we had no hesitation in offering him the role. “In addition to his VFL commitments, Rhett will also work across our AFL program, with focus on the development space. We’re excited by what he can contribute here. “We look forward to welcoming Rhett and his family to the club, ahead of an exciting season.” McLennan replaces Taylor Whitford in the job, following his elevation to Melbourne’s Head of Development.

Rhett McLennan, newly appointed senior coach of the Casey Demons, will further assist in the development space of the AFL program, while Riley Bonner and Dylan Roberton will continue their support of the VFL program.

MELBOURNE has added to its AFL coaching panel, welcoming three new names for the 2026 season. Jared Rivers, Rory Atkins and Matthew Scarlett will all join Steven King’s coaching mix and don the red and blue next year. A name familiar to Dees fans, Rivers returns to the club he called home for 10 seasons to take on an assistant coaching role, tasked with looking after the backline and team defence. Rivers’ coaching CV includes five seasons at Collingwood between 2015 and 2019, three seasons at Collegians Football Club in the VAFA A Grade competition, and most recently, a stint at St Kilda. Rivers played 150 games in the red and blue jumper – he totalled 194 AFL matches, having joined Geelong after his time at Melbourne – and was inducted as a Life Member of the club in 2015. Melbourne GM of AFL Football Performance Alan Richardson said the club was thrilled to bring a favourite son home. “It’s really exciting to welcome Jared back to the club in an assistant coaching capacity,” Richardson said. “He has an incredibly strong understanding of the game and significant experience, having held coaching positions at the Pies, in the VAFA and with the Saints. “We are excited by what Jared can add to our program, and look forward to welcoming him, his partner Sophie and their children Chloe, Charlotte and Isabella to the club.” Atkins joins the Demons as a development coach, following a 13-year playing career. The 31-year-old, who called time at season’s end having represented Port Adelaide, Gold Coast and Adelaide throughout his journey, will work closely with new Head of Development Taylor Whitford in helping the club’s youth thrive. “We’re looking forward to having Rory on board as part of our development team,” Richardson said. “We think he will have an immediate impact, having only recently retired from the game, and provide some unique insights for our younger players. “We’re excited to welcome Rory, his partner Georgia and their daughter Daisy to the red and blue.” Scarlett is set to bring experience aplenty, with Melbourne adding the former Cat as a specialist coach in a part-time capacity. The Geelong legend, who achieved the ultimate success on three occasions, will work with the Demons’ talls in honing their craft. “We’re really excited to have someone of Scarlo’s calibre with us, to work with our talls,” Richardson said. “Scarlo featured at the top level for 15 seasons, and for our players to be able to learn from him and have his assistance is pretty special. “We look forward to Scarlo getting to work, and welcoming his partner Milla and children Tayla, Charlie, Oliver and Henry to the Dees.” The trio will combine with Troy Chaplin and Nathan Jones, who continue in their respective roles of looking after the forwards and midfield, as well as part-time ruck specialist coach Mark Jamar. Rhett McLennan, newly appointed senior coach of the Casey Demons, will further assist in the development space of the AFL program, while Riley Bonner and Dylan Roberton will continue their support of the VFL program. Combat and grappling coach Max Viney, too, will return for the 2026 season. Melbourne’s AFL pre-season is set to commence in November.

Dees on the way home are either ... or ...

To be fair they would have had to have spent more than they wanted to on Nas (they were always going to have to pay a king's randsom), Windhager and Wilkie but yeah.

lol. We're Dees supporters. We have trust issues.

@Very Jaded changing her username to Extremely Jaded.

🤣

From what little I’ve gathered about his character, he doesn’t strike me as the type to make something like this public unless he absolutely had to. If there was a meeting with the Dees today, I doubt he’d rush to make a statement straight away. He’d likely take some time to think things through and maybe go back to the Suns to plead his case before going public requesting a trade or committing to rocking up to training at the Suns on Day 1. I expect this will play out well into next week. Just my uninformed opinion.

I’ll just leave this here for discussion about the worth of picks (and the exclusion of the Dees and Petracca)

I’ll just leave this here for discussion about the worth of picks (and the exclusion of the Dees and Petracca)

Blues very busy today.

Maybe they took Gold Coast at their word that he is not on the trade table. 😜

If he is unwilling, whatever the reason (and kudos to him for showing concern to his club and teammates), to ask for a trade then I just can't see how GC will be forced to trade him.

Crows list manager ...

Definitely agree but I think this one is a Max Level event. We should be at DEFCON MAX at the moment.