Demonland

HALF FULL by KC from Casey It was a case of the Casey Demons going into a game with a glass half full in their match up against the Brisbane Lions at Casey Fields on Saturday. As the list of injured and unavailable AFL and VFL listed players continues to grow and with Melbourne taking all three emergencies to Perth for the weekend on a “just in case” basis, its little brother was always destined to struggle. Casey was left with only eight AFL listed players from who to select their team but only two - an out-of-form Lachie Hunter and an out-of-favour Bailey Laurie have match experience at the elite level. The result was that, although Casey managed to get out of the blocks early to hold a quarter time lead of 26 points, which it managed to maintain until deep in the second term, the team was overwhelmed in the second half. Miraculously, it was still in the running for victory close to an end which saw them go down by seven points when the final siren sounded. Still, victory for the Demons would have been highway robbery because the Lions were so dominant all over the ground from midway through the second stanza after strongly built midfielder/forward Oliver Sestan booted his fourth goal of the game. Sestan’s impact early was immense. He opened proceedings with a goal from the back of the pack seconds into the game and followed up with a second from a mark soon after. By the time he kicked his third, Casey Fields had the feel of Fortress Casey from a couple of seasons back. Brisbane however, slowly worked its way back into the game although not on the scoreboard until some defensive lapses by the home team gave the Lions the opportunity to narrow the margin to 19 points in the shadows of half time. Casey’s deficiencies were there for all to see as their pressure and intensity fell to the point where they managed just a single goal in the final hour’s play. There was little tackling and opponents were allowed to cut through the defences with only poor conversion from Brisbane keeping Casey in with a chance. Unfortunately, the much-needed experienced personnel to steady the ship were absent, apart from skipper Mitch White and Roan Steele who again worked their butts off for their team with very little help. Without wishing to labour a point already made often this season, the Demons are missing the players who were highlighters in the midfield last year. To make matters worse, two of their VFL replacements in former Collingwood VFL skipper Campbell Hustwaite and ex-St Kilda lister Leo Connolly are out injured but they are not the equivalent of James Munro’s strong tackling in the engine room which is sorely missed. The next tier of replacement is not even close. Laurie worked hard for his 24 disposals, five marks and five clearances as did Kynan Brown with 23 possessions to a losing ruck although to his credit Will Verrall was persistent to finish with 16 touches and 9 clearances. They were let down unfortunately by Hunter who has struggled since incurring a troublesome calf injury during the preseason. Defender Andy Moniz-Wakefield had a busy day with 28 touches and four marks but might have been better used more up forward. Young key position players Matthew Jefferson and Jed Adams continue to hone their play and learn the trade but were unable to put in four quarter efforts. That will come with experience but the glass at the club is half full and the scarcity of that asset in the line up was again the story of the day for the flagging Casey Demons. CASEY DEMONS 6.3.39 7.5.47 8.8.56 8.9.57 BRISBANE LIONS 2.1.13 4.4.28 7.9.51 8.16.64 GOALS CASEY DEMONS Sestan 4 Jefferson 2 Bell K Windsor BRISBANE LIONS Lloyd 3 Collins Derksen Lloyd Lohmann Robertson BEST CASEY DEMONS Moniz-Wakefield Sestan Steele White Laurie K Brown BRISBANE LIONS Lyons Robertson Tunstill K Dunkley Macpherson Joyce Statistics Jed Adams 10 kicks 3 handballs 13 disposals 8 marks 2 tackles 62 dream team points Jack Bell 1 goal 1 behind 3 kicks 7 handballs 10 disposals 2 marks 2 tackles 8 hitouts 50 dream team points Kynan Brown 1 behind 9 kicks 14 handballs 23 disposals 2 marks 3 tackles 73 dream team points Paddy Cross 5 kicks 5 handballs 10 disposals 2 marks 1 tackles 37 dream team points Tyler Edwards 9 kicks 5 handballs 14 disposals 2 marks 2 tackles 48 dream team points Tom Freeman 8 kicks 3?handballs 11 disposals 4 marks 43 dream team points Max Gregory 6 kicks 9 handballs 15 disposals 2 marks 3 tackles 54 dream team points Lachie Hunter 9 kicks 4 handballs 13 disposals 4 marks 48 dream team points Matt Jefferson 2 goals 1 behinds 4 kicks 5 handballs 9 disposals 2 marks 1 tackle 43 dream team points Bailey Laurie 12 kicks 12 handballs 24 disposals 5 marks 4 tackles 89 dream team points Caleb Lewis 1 behind 3 kicks 2 handballs 5 disposals 2 marks 17 dream team points Andy Moniz-Wakefield 23 kicks 5 handballs 28 disposals 4 marks 1 tackles 95 dream team points Ned Moodie 1 kicks 2 handballs 8 dream team points Harvey Neocleous 1 behind 5 kicks 4 handballs 9 disposals 2 marks 30 dream team points Charlie Peters 7 handballs 7 disposals 2 marks 17 dream team points Ollie Sestan 4 goals 1 behind 13 kicks 2 handballs 15 disposals 5 marks 1 tackle 82 dream team points Kobe Shipp 4 kicks 4 handballs 8 disposals 1 tackle 25 dream team points Roan Steele 17 kicks 8 handballs 25 disposals 5 marks 3 tackles 95 dream team points Mitch Szybkowski 6 kicks 10 handballs 16 disposals 3 marks 3 tackles 59 dream team points Ryan Valentine 7 kicks 1 handball 8 disposals 4 marks 1 tackle 33 dream team points Will Verrall 7 kicks 9 handballs 16 disposals 1 mark 19 hitouts 58 dream team points Mitch White 1 behinds 13 kicks 11 handballs 24 disposals 6 marks 3 tackles 94 dream team points Kai Windsor 1 goals 1 behind 10 kicks 3 handballs 13 disposals 4 marks 2 tackles 63 dream team points

It's Game Day and the Demons have returned to the site of their drought breaking Premiership to take on the West Coast Eagles in what could very well be a danger game for Narrm at Optus Stadium. A win and a percentage boost will keep the Dees in top four contention whilst a loss will cast doubt on the Dees flag credentials and bring them back to the pack fighting for a spot in the 8 as we fast approach the halfway point of the season.

Here is the vision.

AFL Travel Ladder Ranking Club KM's travelled Road Trips (1+ Hour) Flights 1 Western Bulldogs 15340 3 6 2 Carlton 16928 0 6 3 St Kilda 17490 1 7 4 Essendon 18600 0 5 5 Collingwood 18832 0 6 6 Hawthorn 21138 1 10 7 Port Adelaide 23770 0 10 8 Geelong 25150 7 7 9 Richmond 25196 1 7 10 Adelaide 26312 0 9 11 North Melbourne 27016 1 10 12 Melbourne 28394 0 7 13 Sydney 28488 0 11 14 GWS 30736 0 14 15 Brisbane 49616 1 11 16 Gold Coast 59608 1 13 17 Fremantle 73436 0 11 18 West Coast 74136 0 11 CLICK TO VIEW LARGER VERSION OF GRAPHIC

TMac's wonder goal was 2017 and was at Domain Stadium (Subiaco).

Waalitj Marawar (West Coast) v Narrm (Melbourne) at Optus Stadium, 3.20pm AWST WAALITJ MARAWAR In: J.Waterman, A.Gaff, J.Jones, H.Edwards, J.Culley Out: J.Petruccelle (ankle), H.Johnston (omitted) Last week’s sub: Harvey Johnston NARRM In: S.McAdam, C.Salem, A.Tomlinson, T.Fullarton, K.Tholstrup, B.Brown Out: E.Langdon (personal reason), J.van Rooyen (concussion), D.Turner (calf) Last week’s sub: Taj Woewodin

Flashback to 1988

Upcoming Gosch's Paddock sessions Gosch's Paddock Tuesday, May 21 11:45am-1:00pm Gosch's Paddock Saturday, May 25 9:45am - 10:30am Gosch's Paddock Tuesday, May 28 11:45am - 1:00pm Gosch's Paddock

If you're in Perth we'd love a training report or at the very least a couple of observations. Optus Stadium Saturday, May 18 Gates Open: 3:00pm Training: 3:30pm - 4:15pm Signing Session: 4:15pm-4:30pm How to Get There: There is limited parking available near Optus Stadium, public transport is encouraged. Public Transport Info: https://www.transperth.wa.gov.au/Journey-Planner Entry: Via Gate D

As a long term resident of Waalitj Marawar, I am moved to warn my fellow Narrm fans that a danger game awaits. The locals are no longer the easybeats who stumbled, fumbled and bumbled their way to the good fortune of gathering the number one draft pick and a generational player in Harley Reid last year. They are definitely better than they were then. Young Harley has already proven his worth with some stellar performances for a first year kid playing among men. He’s taken hangers, kicked booming goals and even physically taken the mickey out of men a decade and more older than he. It’s not often that a person of such tender age has proven to be a team lifter in professional sport but the Eagles have W’s to show for games at Optus Stadium against Richmond and Fremantle. Those wins were not insignificant and nor was their last up home game effort against the Bombers. For their part, the Demons have been slow starters in recent weeks and that, of itself is a danger sign. Their last four games have produced opening halves of 2, 3, 3 and 3 goals and, as a consequence, they haven’t been convincing when they won and unsteady when they lost. This week, they travel across the continent without two marking forwards in Jacob van Rooyen and Daniel Turner. The team might well be rested after a decent break but we won’t know how affected they are in the wake of two tough encounters within five days. Of course, you might say, that Narrm has the best defence in the competition but then again, it failed to prevent a six goal opening quarter avalanche from Carlton last week. The Blues were exceptional at converting forward thrusts into goals last week as they barged through that much vaunted back line with eight goals from ten scoring shots in a great wet weather first half to lead by 31 points. A few weeks earlier, Brisbane did much the same to them. The big questions loom for Narrm. Is it capable of playing out four quarters of football from start to finish, and if it can’t do so against a bottom six outfit, what are the consequences for when it plays the best of the best? The wet conditions also took their toll on the Demons’ hard-hitting but not overly endowed with pace midfield which needed readjusting and reinforcement. Coach Simon Goodwin nearly pulled a rabbit out of the hat when he moved Christian Petracca into attack. The problem for Waalitj Marawar is that, apart from wunderkind Reid, some of the players who led their charge a few weeks ago, the likes of Elliot Yeo and Jake Waterman have been out injured, along with Oscar Allen. If they can get these players back on the field, this game could be a close contest so team selection will be of paramount importance. The big warning for the coach and his team is that this outfit from Waalitj Marawar should not be taken lightly. I’m going for Narrm but all eyes will be on how the team moves in those opening fifteen minutes or so. Narrm by 9 points THE GAME Waalitj Marawar v Naarm at Optus Stadium Sunday 19 May, 2024 at 6.20pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall Waalitj Marawar 37 wins Naarm 20 wins At Optus Stadium Waalitj Marawar 3 wins Naarm 4 wins Past five meetings Waalitj Marawar 1 win Naarm 4 wins The Coaches Simpson 4 wins Goodwin 4 wins THE LAST TIME THEY MET Narrm 19.12.126 defeated West Coast Eagles 9.12.66 at Optus Stadium in Round 4, 2023 The Demons made short work of a disorganised West Coast outfit and were untroubled to record a percentage booster at Optus Stadium. Clayton Oliver, Christian Petracca, Brodie Grundy and Trent Rivers were the stars and Tom McDonald booted four goals for the visitors. THE TEAMS WAALITJ MARAWAR B A. Witherden, T. Barrass, B. Hough HB T. Cole, J. McGovern, L. Duggan C C. Chesser, H. Reid, J. Hunt HF L. Edwards, J. Waterman. J. Cripps F L. Ryan, J. Darling, J. Williams FOLL B. J. Williams, T. Kelly, R. Ginbey I/C J. Jones, J. Rotham, D. Sheed, J. Williams SUB T. Dewar EMG J. Culley, H. Edwards, A. Gaff IN J. Jones, J. Waterman OUT H. Johnston (omitted), J. Petruccelle (ankle) NARRM B B. Howes, S. May, T. Rivers HB J. McVee, T. McDonald, J. Lever C J. Billings, C. Oliver, C. Windsor HF A. Neal-Bullen, B. Fritsch, K. Pickett F K. Chandler, H. Petty, S. McAdam FOLL M. Gawn, J. Viney, C. Petracca I/C J. Bowey, B. Brown, C. Salem, T. Sparrow SUB T. Woewodin EMG T. Fullarton K. Tholstrup, A. Tomlinson IN B. Brown, S. McAdam, C. Salem OUT E. Langdon (personal reasons), D. Turner (calf), J. van Rooyen (concussion) Injury List: Round 10 Christian Salem — hamstring / Test Josh Schache — Achilles/ TBC Jacob van Rooyen — concussion / 1 week Charlie Spargo — Achilles / 2 - 3 weeks Daniel Turner — Calf / 2 - 3 weeks Marty Hore — Calf / 4 - 6 weeks Jake Melksham — knee / 5 - 7 weeks