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MELBOURNE Kysaiah Pickett (gen forward), Christian Petracca (midfielder), Alex Neal-Bullen (mid-forward), Max Gawn (ruck) A very good soldier, Neal-Bullen is a surprise on this list. But that speaks to the lack of depth in that position. The players who didn’t quite make the cut as mid-forwards were Jy Simpkin, Pat Lipinski and Ollie Dempsey. Neal-Bullen does his job each week but averages just 18.7 disposals and 0.4 goals per game. Petracca hit the games threshold to make it here before his injury, while Gawn is clear as the top ruck according to player ratings. ADELAIDE Mitch Hinge (general defender), Izak Rankine (gen forward) BRISBANE LIONS Dayne Zorko (gen defender), Cam Rayner (gen forward) CARLTON Charlie Curnow (key forward), Harry McKay (key forward), Patrick Cripps (midfielder) COLLINGWOOD Nick Daicos (midfielder) ESSENDON Nil FREMANTLE Caleb Serong (midfielder) GEELONG Max Holmes (gen defender), Gryan Miers (gen forward), Tyson Stengle (gen forward), Jeremy Cameron (key forward) GOLD COAST Sam Flanders (gen defender), Sam Collins (key defender), Matt Rowell (midfielder) GWS GIANTS Brent Daniels (gen forward), Toby Greene (gen forward), Jesse Hogan (key forward), Callan Ward (wing) HAWTHORN Dylan Moore (gen forward), James Sicily (key defender), Massimo D’Ambrosio (wing) MELBOURNE Kysaiah Pickett (gen forward), Christian Petracca (midfielder), Alex Neal-Bullen (mid-forward), Max Gawn (ruck) NORTH MELBOURNE Harry Sheezel (gen defender), Tristan Xerri (ruck) PORT ADELAIDE Dan Houston (gen defender), Zak Butters (midfielder) RICHMOND Liam Baker (mid-forward), Shai Bolton (mid-forward) ST KILDA Jack Sinclair (gen defender), Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera (gen defender) SYDNEY Nick Blakey (gen defender), Tom Papley (gen forward), Isaac Heeney (midfielder), Errol Gulden (wing), Justin McInerney (wing) WEST COAST Tom Barrass (key defender), Jeremy McGovern (key defender), Jake Waterman (key forward) WESTERN BULLDOGS Bailey Dale (gen defender), Aaron Naughton (key forward), Marcus Bontempelli (midfielder), Adam Treloar (midfielder)

2024 NATIONAL DRAFT COMBINE LIST VIC COUNTRY Jasper Alger (Oakleigh Chargers) James Barrat (Bendigo Pioneers) Joe Berry (Murray Bushrangers) Floyd Burmeister (Greater Western Victoria Rebels) Harry Charleson (Greater Western Victoria Rebels) Archer Day-Wicks (Bendigo Pioneers) Jonty Faull (Greater Western Victoria Rebels) Cooper Hynes (Dandenong Stingrays) Lachie Jaques (Geelong Falcons) Sam Lalor (Greater Western Victoria Rebels) Harvey Langford (Dandenong Stingrays) Xavier Lindsay (Gippsland Power) Noah Mraz (Dandenong Stingrays) Finn O'Sullivan (Oakleigh Chargers) Jack Ough (Greater Western Victoria Rebels) Alix Tauru (Gippsland Power) Tobie Travaglia (Vic Country) Rhys Unwin (Greater Western Victoria Rebels) Oliver Warburton (Murray Bushrangers) Jack Whitlock (Murray Bushrangers) Matt Whitlock (Murray Bushrangers) VIC METRO Cody Anderson (Eastern Ranges) Harry Armstrong (Sandringham Dragons) Levi Ashcroft (Sandringham Dragons) Adrian Cole (Sandringham Dragons) Jesse Dattoli (Northern Knights) Josh Dolan (Sandringham Dragons) Tom Gross (Oakleigh Chargers) Taj Hotton (Sandringham Dragons) Isaac Kako (Calder Cannons) Christian Moraes (Eastern Ranges) Harry O'Farrell (Calder Cannons) Harrison Oliver (Sandringham Dragons) Murphy Reid (Sandringham Dragons) Thomas Sims (Northern Knights) Josh Smillie (Eastern Ranges) Jagga Smith (Oakleigh Chargers) Gabriel Stumpf (Northern Knights) Luke Trainor (Sandringham Dragons) SOUTH AUSTRALIA Ned Bowman (Norwood) Ben Camporeale (Glenelg) Lucas Camporeale (Glenelg) Angus Clarke (Glenelg) Alex Dodson (Sturt) Sid Draper (South Adelaide) Phoenix Hargrave (South Adelaide) Jacob Newton (Norwood) Charlie Nicholls (Central District) Charlie West (Woodville-West Torrens) WESTERN AUSTRALIA Bo Allan (Peel Thunder) Cody Angove (Claremont) Jaxon Artemis (South Fremantle) Malakai Champion (Subiaco) Hamish Davis (Claremont) Clancy Dennis (Claremont) Kayle Gerreyn (West Perth) Will Hayes (Claremont) Aiden Riddle (Claremont) Luke Urquhart (East Fremantle) QUEENSLAND Leo Lombard (Gold Coast Academy) Sam Marshall (Brisbane Academy) NEW SOUTH WALES-ACT Cooper Bell (Giants Academy) Joel Cochran (Sydney Academy) Jobe Shanahan (Bendigo Pioneers) Logan Smith (GWS Academy) FIRST INTAKE 2024 STATE COMBINE LIST Benny Barrett (South Adelaide/SA) Hugh Boxshall (Claremont/WA) Evan Bradley (North Adelaide/SA) Charlie Burke (Subiaco/WA) Zane Cochrane (Oakleigh Chargers/Vic Metro) Sam Davidson (Richmond VFL/Vic Metro) Oliver Dean (Tasmania Devils/North Launceston) Josaia Delana (Giants Academy/NSW-ACT) Asher Eastham (Gippsland Power/Vic Country) Tom Gillett (Brisbane Academy/QLD) Lucca Grego (Western Jets/Vic Metro) Kade Herbert (Woodville-West Torrens/SA) Lennox Hofmann (Sandringham/Vic Metro) Damon Hollow (Calder Cannons/Vic Metro) Lucas Impey (Western Jets/Vic Metro) Xavier Ivisic (Geelong Falcons/Vic Country) Zak Johnson (Northern Knights/Vic Metro) Ben Kennedy (Murray Bushrangers/Vic Country) Nash King (Calder Cannons/Vic Metro) Thomas McKay (Glenelg/South Australia) Ricky Mentha (Gippsland Power/NT) Josh Murphy (Murray Bushrangers/NSW-ACT) Jayden Nguyen (Calder Cannons/Vic Metro) Harrison Ramm (Glenelg/South Australia) Tyler Welsh (Adelaide/South Australia)

After losing their last two games in a row to finals aspirants, the Demons’ season has unravelled in the blink of an eye. They take on the Bulldogs on Friday night at Marvel Stadium in what has become a “do-or-die” contest to remain in contention for September AFL action and the reality is that they have been forced into a situation in which they are already thinking in terms of mathematical possibilities despite the fact that it’s still a close race and even with four rounds left to play. The coach and the players are facing their own Demons in what is a situation of their own making. Whether or not you like the term “eight point game”, that’s precisely what every game from now on is to the club at a time where a defeat in any of the remaining games is likely to be fatal to their chances. As I noted in my preview of last week, the gap between their best and their worst is wide both between and during games. Consistency is so important and yet, they were so inconsistent in their game last week against the Giants. They were strong in the opening term but faltered in the second. They kept GWS scoreless in the first twenty minutes of the third quarter but conceded three goals to one in seven minutes, late in the term and four in the space of five minutes early in the next before scoring the last four goals of the game to almost steal the points. The inability to apply constant pressure led to their downfall. Melbourne has had a knack in recent times of coming up against opponents at the exact moment when they are at the top of their game. That's where the Bulldogs are at the moment, particularly with their height advantage all over the ground. It starts with Tim English in ruck and extends to their intercept defenders Liam Jones, Buku Khamis and Rory Lobb and tall forwards Jamarra Ugle-Hagan, Aaron Naughton and Sam Darcy. Let’s not forget their midfield champion Marcus Bontempelli who at 194cm is the same height as Jacob van Rooyen, the Demons’ relief ruckman. And, under the stadium’s closed roof, there is no chance that an unexpected downpour can come to their aid as it did a fortnight ago when their undersized team triumphed against Essendon. The teams met in the opening round when Melbourne prevailed by 55 points at the MCG. They managed to easily subdue the taller Western Bulldogs with their superior fitness and run all over the ground. Max Gawn was too good in the ruck, the Doggies’ forward talls were nullified by the Demon defenders and the forwards had enough supply from the mids to ensure a comfortable afternoon’s work for the team. Recent form has seen a massive turnaround in the fortunes of the respective teams. While we can rely on the tall Demon defensive duo of Steven May, Jake Lever and Tom McDonald to play their role, their midfielders have let them down of late and there are major question marks about the ability of those in place without Christian Petracca and now, young speedster Caleb Windsor, to provide sufficient supply to the forwards who are not performing up to the standards required to win games and make the finals. The only hope for the Demons is the tiredness factor because of the five day break between the Dogs' last game and Friday night's encounter. However, I'm not sure that Melbourne has the ability to play four quarters of consistent, intense pressure football while facing both the Bulldogs and their own Demons. Footscray by 27 points. THE GAME Western Bulldogs v Melbourne at Marvel Stadium Friday 2 August 2024 at 7.15 pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall Western Bulldogs 79 wins Melbourne 92 wins 1 draw At Marvel Stadium Western Bulldogs 11 wins Melbourne 9 wins Last Five Meetings Western Bulldogs 1 win Melbourne 4 wins The Coaches Beveridge 4 wins Goodwin 8 wins THE LAST TIME THEY MET Melbourne 16.13.109 defeated Western Bulldogs 9.10.64 at The MCG in Round 1, 2024 After a slow start, the Demon machine clicked into action with its relentless defence headed by Steven May smashing the Bulldogs which the old firm of Gawn, Oliver and Petracca having a slight edge on the Bulldog midfield as the team cruised to a 55-point victory. THE TEAMS FOOTSCRAY B T. Duryea, B. Khamis, N. Coffield HB L. Bramble, R. Lobb, B. Dale C L. Vandermeer, E. Richards, B. Williams HF A. Treloar, A. Naughton, J. Ugle-Hagan F C. Weightman, S. Darcy, R. West FOLL T. English, M. Bontempelli, T. Liberatore I/C C. Daniel, R. Garcia, L. Jones, L. McNeil, C. Poulter EMG O. Baker, J. Freijah, J. Macrae MELBOURNE B J. Lever, S. May, J. McVee HB J. Bowey, T. McDonald, A. Moniz-Wakefield C E. Langdon, C. Oliver, A. Neal-Bullen HF K. Pickett, J. Van Rooyen, B. Fritsch F K. Chandler, H. Petty, J. Melksham FOLL M. Gawn, J. Viney, T. Rivers I/C B. Howes, T. Sparrow, K. Tholstrup, D. Turner, T. Woewodin EMG J. Billings, B. Laurie, A. Tomlinson Injury List: Round 21 Jed Adams — lung / available Koltyn Tholstrup — concussion / test Christian Salem — hamstring / 1 - 2 weeks Caleb Windsor — ankle / TBC Charlie Spargo — Achilles / season Christian Petracca — spleen / indefinite

Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it

Trac now listed as indefinite. 😱

10 years and 2 days later it was the start of our 7 game run to winning the 2021 flag.

Top-12 mini ladder Played Points (W/L) % 1 Sydney 13 40 (10-3) 133.2 2 Carlton 13 28 (7-6) 103.9 3 Geelong 13 28 (7-6) 103.4 4 Western Bulldogs 14 24 (6-8) 99.8 5 Greater Western Sydney 12 24 (6-6) 99.8 6 Port Adelaide 11 24 (6-5) 95.2 7 Collingwood 13 24 (5-6-2) 93.9 8 Fremantle 11 22 (5-5-1) 105.5 9 Brisbane 11 20 (5-6) 100.2 10 Melbourne 13 20 (5-8) 90.8 11 Hawthorn 12 20 (5-7) 87.8 12 Essendon 10 18 (4-5-1) 88.7

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Apologies. This is for Round 22.

Dees used to own the Coaches Votes Leaderboard LEADERBOARD 94 Nick Daicos COLL 92 Isaac Heeney SYD 91 Caleb Serong FRE 86 Patrick Cripps CARL 81 Lachie Neale BL 78 Errol Gulden SYD 74 Marcus Bontempelli WB 70 Zach Merrett ESS 68 Chad Warner SYD 67 Adam Treloar WB 65 Noah Anderson GCFC 61 Sam Walsh CARL 57 Andrew Brayshaw FRE 55 Hayden Young FRE 53 Zak Butters PORT 53 Luke Davies-Uniacke NMFC 53 Jordan Dawson ADEL 52 Josh Dunkley BL 52 Max Holmes GEEL 52 Jason Horne-Francis PORT

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It was Round One and so beautiful to watch Max Gawn dominate the ruck and Clarrie and CP5 running around and causing havoc. MELBOURNE 4.4.28 8.5.53 10.8.68 16.13.109 WESTERN BULLDOGS 4.3.27 6.5.41 7.7.49 9.10.64 THE TEAMS MELBOURNE B T. Rivers, S. May, J. Lever HB J. McVee, B. Howes, M. Hore C E. Langdon, C. Petracca, C. Windsor HF T. Sparrow, J. Van Rooyen, K. Pickett F A. Neal-Bullen, B. Fritsch, K. Chandler FOLL M. Gawn, J. Viney, C. Oliver I/C J. Billings. B. Brown, T. McDonald, C. Salem, T. Woewodin EMG T. Fullarton, B. Laurie, K. Tholstrup IN B. Brown, M. Hore, T. McDonald, K. Pickett SUB T. Woewodin 
OUT J. Bowey (collarbone), J. Schache (omitted), B. Laurie (omitted), C. Spargo (Achilles), A. Tomlinson (omitted) WESTERN BULLDOGS B L. Bramble, L. Jones, N. Coffield HB E. Richards, B. Khamis, B. Dale C J. Harmes, A. Treloar, H. Gallagher HF R. Sanders, R. Lobb, C. Weightman F R. West, A. Naughton, J. Ugle-Hagan FOLL T. English, M. Bontempelli, T. Liberatore 
I/C J. Johannisen, L. McNeil, L. Vandermeer, B. Williams SUB C. Daniel EMG O. Baker, S. Darcy, J. O'Donnell NEW Ryley Sanders (Sandringham Dragons), Lachlan Bramble (Hawthorn), Nick Coffield (St Kilda), Harvey Gallagher (Bendigo Pioneers), James Harmes (Melbourne)

AFL Gosch's Paddock Thursday, August 1 9:30am - 10:15am Monday, August 5 11:45am - 1:00pm Friday, August 9 Timing TBC Monday, August 12 11:45am - 1:00pm Casey Fields Times will be updated here when available. AFLW Gosch's Paddock Thursdays | 3.30pm-5.00pm Saturdays | 10.00am-11.30am There is no session this Saturday, August 3.

Going to cut the questions off here. Don't forget that we will be LIVE tonight at the NEW earlier time of 7:30pm.

Melbourne fans were put through the wringer on Saturday and ended the night with a sinking feeling as their team suffered a two-point loss to the GWS Giants at the MCG in front of their ailing coach and fell to 11th on the AFL ladder, a game and percentage outside of the top eight. With only four rounds left to play, they must now win every game to advance to the finals. The Demons welcomed back skipper Max Gawn and were off to a flyer as they kicked five goals to one to take a quarter-time lead of 27 points. In the cut throat game that football has become in a year when so many teams are in line for September action, you need to take advantage of every opportunity and whilst they had a handy lead at the first break, it could have been greater with one or two opportunities lost through poor disposal when going forward. The Giants had come back from an even worse position three or four weeks ago against the Blues and they repeated the dose this time kicking 12 of the next 15 goals. They did it by taking control of the midfield, and breaking the Demons’ defensive structures with plenty of run and spread. They kicked with greater accuracy both in front of goal (65% to 52% in scoring shots) and disposed of the ball better in general play where they led by 74% to 66% in effective disposals. GWS also had some luck with a clear 50m penalty missed that could have given away a goal early and a clever drop of the knees by Toby Greene that drew a free kick in front of goal. You need these things to go your way in close results but the visitors earned the victory by taking their chances against a more predictable opponent. They did that to good effect in coming back to within three points at the main break and then weathered the Demons’ storm in the arm wrestle that ensued until time on in the third quarter when held goalless during a period when they were on the back foot. They then changed gears, applied the heat and kicked three goals to one to take the lead by three points at the final break. With former Demon Jesse Hogan on fire, taking marks at will and kicking goals with his stuttering run up, the Giants stunned the embarrassingly small crowd of 16,246 with four goals in the first seven minutes of the final term to open up a 27-point lead, marking a 54-point turnaround since quarter time. The following 25 minutes of time to the final siren were excruciating for Demonkind as their team made a late surge that fell short by two points, their third defeat by less than a goal for the season. Imagine, an extra goal in each of those games, would have put them in second position on the table at this stage. Although the team was beaten in the middle, Clayton Oliver responded to his critics (as if he had to) and Trent Rivers and Jack Viney plugged away for their team. Jake Lever was a stout defender and Ed Langdon added with his drive from the wing. Max Gawn was clearly not at his best after a two week absence with his ankle injury but there were too many others who failed to apply themselves for the full hundred minutes. The irony of Hogan’s match winning goal kicking was not lost on the fans who missed out on similar heroics at their end of the field. The Demons return to action on Friday night when they take on the rising Western Bulldogs who look likely finalists after occupying Melbourne’s current place just a few weeks back. That will give coach Simon Goodwin some pause for thought as he makes his recovery to good health and considers the way to prevent his team from sinking out of the finals picture. We wish him well. MELBOURNE 5.5.35 6.7.43 8.9.57 12.11.83 GWS GIANTS 1.2.8 6.4.40 9.6.60 13.7.85 GOALS MELBOURNE Chandler Fritsch 2 Gawn Langdon Melksham Neale-Bullen Petty Pickett van Rooyen Viney GWS GIANTS Hogan 4 Greene 3 Daniels 2 Bedford Green McMullin Ward BEST MELBOURNE Rivers Viney Lever May Oliver Langdon GWS GIANTS Green Greene Hogan Daniels Callaghan Whitfield INJURIES MELBOURNE Nil GWS GIANTS Nil REPORTS MELBOURNE Nil GWS GIANTS Nil SUBSTITUTIONS MELBOURNE Daniel Turner, replaced Jack Billings at three-quarter time GWS GIANTS Joe Fonti, unused UMPIRES Nick Foot Justin Power Hayden Gavine CROWD 16,246 at the MCG