Deespicable

Love the detail from a committee perspective. Certainly in my initial pre-amble I was not suggesting Goody was less involved in the development process, merely suggesting that Roos oversaw (in tandem with Jackson and Mahoney and quite possibly Tammy) a significant cultural change and at the same time he always banged on about getting quality non-football time outside the club which he felt was necessary. Not sure how that would have worked in the past two Covid years though. What I personally noticed straight away on Roosy's arrival was that the length of most traning sessions jumped up to 150mins - in keeping with actual game time and the sessions were usually broken up into their three teams (defense/mids/forwards) with a mix of skills that changed regularly until most sessions finished with match simulation. There was way more structure put into training than in the days of Bailey and Neeld. I think the arrival of guys like Ben Matthews and Jade Rawlings helped improve the quality of these sessions - although you can well and truly argue that Yze and Chocco and Chaplin have taken to to the next level under Goody. Goody, with Mahoney's help, made some exceptionally tough calls on Watts and Hogan and clearly they look even better decisions now. I never get caught up in guys saying they love their coach - that's what they have to do if they want to stick around. For example I have a Richmond insider who insists that Trac and others absolutely hate Goody and I take that comment with a grain of salt as all our top players have re-signed so they must like something about the club and I'm pretty sure they would all know that our facilities at Gosch's are among the worst in the AFL. So basically I prefer to think that Roosy started the process with some astute observations and Goody has enhanced it. Doing my top 40 now. May v Sean Wight, Lever v Hardeman - I know my current answer but it may change in two more years.

Part 3 – Top 100 Demons of the past 50 years 41-60 It’s interesting thinking that our success this year came from a time when the majority of players were homegrown talents, nurtured and developed after being claimed via the draft – a big thank you to Paul Roos who installed some genuinely good assistants and started progressive training structures that Goody has continued to follow. In the past we had been guilty of trying to buy our flag, a similar process to the way Carlton continues today with its outlays for Williams and Saad and Cerra. While there is no coin comparison with today, we paid record fees for Diamond Jim Tilbrook (around $20,000 to Sturt plus $5000 a year in 1971), Big Carl Ditterich ($62,000 from the Saints in 1973) and our Brownlow-winning pair Peter Moore and Kelvin Templeton, the duo came across reputedly on a combined $1 million in 1983. Of those players only one – Peter Moore - made my list and with just 77 games for us, he is hardly a club legend, although some of his games in 1984 were phenomenal. That’s why it’s so hard ranking players – how do we assess loyal servants who always chipped in for many years like James McDonald and Tony Sullivan against stars who shone brightly for short periods like Moore and Allen Jakovich. The other tricky conundrum is deciding where to rank players who still have many more years to go in their evolution – I ruled out our three youngsters Jackson, Kozzy and Rivers on a game infancy basis but others like Salem and Fritter and Lever still have key years ahead of them so may rise up my rankings in time. Finally we all have memories of great games by the club and that colours our thinking. For me, given that I had a few best mates who barracked for Hawthorn, there was no greater game than our win over the Dawks at Princes Park in 1984 – a bit like our breakthrough win over them in 2016. I almost put Peter Tossol in my top 100 list, based on this game, but to be fair, without watching that game, he’d be lucky to be in our top 200 of the past 50 years. It was great finding a video of that game recently – well worth a watch for Demonlanders. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JzmtCfS5X_Y 41 Peter Moore 83-87 77 games One of only six Brownlow Medallists in our history, Moore came to the club at the end of 1982 with fellow Charlie winner Kelvin Templeton as Barassi tried to evoke a similar scenario to the 10-year rule that helped North’s rise. But given Moore was captain of the Pies in 1981 and 82 it was huge and when he lined up against his old side in Rd 1 of 83, a banner in the crowd read “Moore Filth”. The Pies predictably won by 10 points that day, Weid’s dad Mark had possibly his best ever day kicking five goals. Moore’s hamstring issues seemed to abate at the Dees (we probably had a better medical team than them back then) and we started to again see the athleticism of the 198cm tall ruckman, who was really more of a mobile ruck-rover. With his confidence back, he regularly tallied 20 disposals or more in 1984 on top of a few marking hot spells where he’d drift in like his son Darcy does now and just read the flight so much better than everyone else. The issue I have with the Brownlow is that game against Hawthorn in 1984. He got three votes that day, yet was beaten badly by an inspired Michael Byrne, a former Dee. Watch the replay and tell me how Gerard Healy didn’t get three-votes. The following week we were mauled by Essendon at VFL Park and I always blamed Moore for not really standing up and getting physical as many ruckman did in those days. But really I think I’m being a bit unfair with that memory as Moore just wasn’t that type of player – he was a beautiful runner who went on to become a lawyer. He had back issues early in 1987, so missed our final series revival. 42 Ross Brewer 72-78 121 games 196 goals A lanky 188cm half-forward from our then zone in Bentleigh, he topped our goalkicking three times and had a day out kicking seven goals against the Dogs in 1978. I have been desperately trying to find which game he scored a memorable soccer goal on a fast break. It was bucketing rain and so instead of picking it up just past the outer wing, he chose to soccer it and run after it. He was then about 35m out and soccered it again and then with his opponents rushing after him he opted to kick it off the ground once more and it slid through the big sticks. With his size he was very handy as the third tall, and later on even played a bit as full-forward before a knee injury in 78 led to him being offered up for trade to the Pies for Phul Carman and Wayne Gordon. I suspect that his much older brother Ian, a 1958 Pies premiership player, had gotten in his ears. Once he was fit, he played some pretty handy games for the Pies as well as two grand final losses to Carlton. 43 Greg Parke 68-73 119 games, 169 goals My first Melbourne jumper had No.26 on it – the reason Greg Parke. Parke was our star centre half-forward in 1972 kicking 63 goals, but he should have kicked many more – he just wasn’t a reliable kick like Peter McKenna or Peter Hudson. But boy could he mark it – he took 24 in one game in 1970. He had the most amazing sticky fingers and with blonde locks, would have been a favourite with the ladies as well as nine-year-old boys like me. One of the first games I attended was against the Swans at the MCG and he took 14 marks. He kicked seven on John Scarlett down at Kardinia Park that year. I don’t really know why he left for Bulldogs in 1974, I imagine it had something to do with payment given that most Melbourne players back then got little more than their MCC membership paid for and Parke was a full-time policeman like Rex Hunt in those semi-professional days. Sadly he died on September 25, 2021 – the same day that we beat the Bulldogs. 44 James Frawley 07-14 139 games Chipper was similar to his uncle Spud in lots of ways – I mean they both were hard to push off, they both were tough as nails and they both weren’t mega kicks. But there was one key difference for our Chip - he was pretty damn quick for a big bloke. That’s why after a rookie season playing mainly on the wing he was soon sent to defence and in 2010 was so effective that he took down Jonathan Brown and Brendan Fevola in a memorable win against Brisbane at the MCG. The All-Australian selectors were clearly impressed. Surprisingly though the 21-year-old didn’t go on to win any more AA gigs. Part of that was because of a serious pectoral muscle injury and part was caused by his disgust at looking the fool playing in the AFL worst defence for several seasons under Bailey and Neeld. As a result he was happy to switch to the Hawks in 2015 as a free agent – just in time for their final flag – a game in which he kept Josh Kennedy goalless in his prime. 45 Glenn Lovett 87-99 127 games, 74 goals I remember thinking back in the late eighties that G.Lovett might be the worst wingman we’d had in my time of watching the Dees. He just seemed so off the pace and error prone. But thankfully I was way wrong and the club was bang on the money giving him the No.6 as come 1991 he’d developed into a clever, strong tackling, precise kicking centreman who you wanted in the side. Given his dicky hamstrings (I reckon he had skins before anyone except Don Scott) he missed quite a few games, but when he played, we generally won – because he was ahead of his time in summing up a short kick to Schwarter or Lyon. His game in our semi-final win over the Dogs in 1994 was huge and he won our B&F in 1992. 46 Neville Jetta 09-21 159 games There are two Nev Jetta’s that played for Melbourne. The first was an innocuous small forward who played for five largely forgettable seasons before being delisted. The second Nev Jetta was spotted by Paul Roos, reinstated, and sent to play down back at a time when his accurate short kicking and evasive skills was a godsend. For the next four years, Nev was an icon at Demonland and his battles with fellow indigenous star Eddie Betts were legendary. Such was his popularity that the calls for his elevation to All-Australian status came every week throughout 2017 and 18 as he majored in shutting down opponents, but he had to settle for being an All-Star, our only representative in the pre-season 2020 game. 47 Greg Healy 84-93 141 games, 167 goals The younger, smaller brother of Gerard could match him with skills and looked destined for similar stardom when he began in 1984 and racked up six wins and 14 goals from his first seven games. But unfortunately, we copped Essendon at their meanest the next week and after an impressive first half by the teenager, Roger Merrett made sure he wasn’t a factor. Sugar also was caught up a bit in his brother Gerard’s departure to Sydney in 85, but he responded by winning the club B&F in 1986 – a year where he kicked 35 goals when resting in a pocket. He followed that up with a handy 1987, including a 40 disposal game in our loss to the Saints at Waverley – along with Robbie I suspect he was used by coach as an example of courage by Swooper, because that’s where our run to the 87 finals started. With Robbie retiring, he was made skipper in 1988 as a 22-year-old and his form started to peter out a bit with a dodgy Achilles not helping – even being dropped in 1990 before the decision was made to go with Dollars as skipper. 48 Graeme Yeats 84 -95 182 games, 45 goals Yeater was a lively little back pocket that we picked up from Prahran who was in and out of the side for his first three seasons and one who loved the punt – I think there were rumours he spent more time listening to his tranny at halftime than to the coaches. But in 1987, with Allen Johnson out with hamstring issues, Northey moved him to the wing and it proved a coup with his tank as good as any and his defensive discipline top class. He drifted forward and snagged a couple of goals in our semi-final win over the Swans, but sadly is best remembered for being one of three players (Simon Eishold and Tony Campbell were the others) to run into open goal in the preliminary final and miss sealers from about 35m out. He did get some compensation at Springvale in 1996, kicking the winning goal in the VFA grand final. 49 Bernie Vince 14-18 100 games Such was his popularity among fans in Adelaide, it’s said he was in tears when told he was being sent to Melbourne at the end of 2013. And if not for a bromance with Jack Watts, he may well have walked out after his first few training sessions. But Bernie, regarded as a bit of a lad in his early days at the Crows, quickly showed he was a great character and got down to business showing why they made a huge mistake. He regularly picked up 30 possessions (even a memorable 42 against the Pies in our 2016 QB win) but it was his duels with Patrick Dangerfield back in Adelaide that won over every Demon fan. I mean how good was he copping the local barrage and giving it his all to Danger. Roosy loved him and after a stellar 2015, he joined a very elite group having two B&F’s at two different clubs. His lack of pace and Olly’s rise, meant he was sent down back for much of his final two seasons under Goody, where his long-kicking made him ideal for our kick-ins, although he missed our 2018 final series with a shoulder injury which is a shame as he certainly deserved more reward for his efforts. 50 Lynden Dunn 05-16 165 games, 97 goals You only had to attend a few of our training sessions to get an appreciation of how important Dunny was to our line-up. He had a booming boot, but it was his booming deep voice that stood out and the manliness of it was even more important under Roosy given our youth policy. He’d taken a while to warm into my heart and I’m sure yours as his early years saw him struggle as a forward and the occasional stint as a tagging midfielder. But under Roosy his value rose and he was fourth in our 2014 best and fairest and made vice-captain. He was always slow but he seemed unfairly punished and put in the naughty box after our loss to St Kilda at Etihad in 2016. And it only riled me more when his replacement Oscar Mac was possibly the slowest AFL player we’ve had since Spud Dullard. The Pies realised Dunny’s kicking skills were elite and offered him a lifeline and he’d probably have a flag at the Pies to his name if not for injury late in 2018. 51 Jeremy Howe 11-15 100 games We were laughed at when we plucked him from Dodges Ferry in Tassie with pick 33, but like Robbo he became a human highlights reel and with our side so incompetent back then, the weekly Howey hanger watch became a must-do for Demon fans. He won our goalkicking in 2013 with 28, but Roosy wanted him more in the game and sent him to the wing and then half-back, and his papers were stamped “defender” where he turned on an intercept show in a shock win against Richmond that year. He spent five seasons with us before heading to the other side of the Olympic Park precinct, apparently to play forward under Bucks. But the Pies soon realised he was their best kick and only injuries have prevented him from becoming an AA defender. 52 Jesse Hogan 14-18 71 games, 152 goals There was something different about Jesse from the moment he walked through the door after being taken from Claremont as a 17yo in the 2012 mini-draft. He wasn’t allowed to play AFL that year but the hype built as he impressed in NAB Cup games and he won Casey’s best and fairest after kicking 39 goals in 15 games. Roosy arrived and suddenly had a wunderkind on his hands but bad luck in the form of a back injury meant we had to wait another year for Jesse’s debut. But when it finally came in 2015, it was worth the wait. He kicked 44 goals to win our goalkicking that year and his game on Anzac Eve against Alex Rance had to be seen to be believed. A four-gamer tearing apart a champion. With Angus also in action, it was exciting times even if we barely won. Jesse had that Allen Jakovich-style mystique too and walked around with the swagger of Wayne Carey. He was a beautiful mark, but he was never a great kick (barely making it 50m) and he was desperately unlucky in life with testicular cancer in 2017 on top of his father dying and then a navicular stress fracture ending his 2018 season early – a year in which he played some of his best footy early and was a key part of our six-game winning run that set up our finals breakthrough. With smoking issues and other off-field allegations, the club took a strong stance on what they perceived was a problem child and traded him to Fremantle. It turned out a smart move. 53 Angus Brayshaw 15- 119 games It’s been an unusual journey for our BBQ onion chef. An amazingly popular winner of our best first-year player in 2015, it looked like his career was over by 2018 as every bump to his head sent him to the dark room. His mum must have driven Goody insane with all her texting. But after emerging OK from a collision with Koby Stevens in late 2017 and with an improved tackling style that reduced contact issues, he became a major player in our 2018 revival, starting off half-back, moving to a wing and then by finals, Angus the midfielder was in full stride. Such was his rise that he came third in the Brownlow that year. Since then it’s been a bit tricky with the debate on whether he’s a pure mid or a wingman only overshadowed by the number of times on Demonland it’s been suggested he be traded to Freo to join his brother. The turning point came in our win against the Dogs in Round 11 when he stopped their outside run on numerous occasions and he repeated it in the granny – that’s why so many of us had him in the Norm Smith pole position at three-quarter time. 54 Brent Moloney 05-12 122 games A lot of Cat fans were devastated when Little Buddha departed for the Dees in 2005 as part of the Brad Ottens deal and it wasn’t hard to see why. A big-bodied midfielder he joined forces with Brock McLean and Col Sylvia to give us a tough, but youthful look that was tipped for greatness. Sadly he had shoulder and groin injuries in 2006 and missed our finals win against the Saints and by the time he returned, Neiter, Yze, White and Robbo were almost done. He continued to do a large part of the grunt work under Dean Bailey until that infamous trip down the highway in Rd 19 of 2011 turned things on their head. Beamer felt ill pre-game and did not play, a blessing of sorts given the 186-point loss. After winning the B&F and polling 17 Brownlow votes that year, he understandably would have thought captaincy of the club he supported as a kid was next. But Mark Neeld had other ideas, overlooking both he and Nathan Jones to go with generation next – Grimes and Trengove. But he did fire up on occasions in 2012 and I well recall the way he lifted us to one of our few good wins that year – against Essendon at the MCG. He was happy to join the Lions the next year. 55 Tom McDonald 11- 193 games Ok, he’s about to become a 200-gamer and it’s fair to say that he might be ranked a tad low by me. I mean how many above him could snag goals from the boundary like he did against Richmond and Port Adelaide in 2021. He was highly regarded as a backman under Roosy before kicking 53 goals in 2018 when Goody sent him forward in desperation. And he is a dead-eye dick most of the time, even from around 50m. But there have been hiccups along the way. His low-skimming passes from defence gave all Dee fans the sh..s and once turf-toe cut out his fitness advantage in 2019, he suffered a shocking fall from grace by the end of 2020, being shopped around with ANB. Thankfully there were no takers and after working his butt off pre-season and aided by a couple of injuries to key forwards, he was back in the ones and firing on all cylinders. A back injury cruelled his finals campaign but he battled on and stuck to his role. But as with many key forwards, especially one that Jeremy Howe enjoys using as a stepladder, there are some serious doubts on his longevity. 56 Ray Biffin 68-79 170 games 131 goals Everyone loved Biffo. Blessed with a beer gut, the Launy boy used to unflinchingly charge at the ball from full-back for almost a decade and every now and then would launch a torpedo from the kick-in goalsquare that would go 70m or out on the full. Then in 1976, Skilton sent him up the other end in desperation against the Saints and as a forward he proved a masterstroke – nailing 47 goals in the next 13 rounds as we suddenly looked like finalists. For the next three years injuries took hold, but when he played, he scored – even snagging five goals in his final game against the Pies in 1979. 57 Danny Hughes 84-90 124 games He was 20 when he came across from Port Adelaide in 1984 and is it too nasty to say he was a meat and potatoes footballer. Basically he was your typical tight-marking, give your opponent a clip over the ear type who could kick a pretty nice, long drop punt to clear the pressure down back. He played every game as our full-back in 1985, including a few spells in the ruck, and despite not cracking 20 disposals in any game won the best and fairest as the club unravelled under Barassi. Ask Gerard Healy, who averaged close to 25 touches every game that year why that happened? Anyway Hughes was mega dependable, albeit quite slow, and that’s why Swooper made what will go down in history as the most amazing tactical blunder in the 1988 GF, switching our man off Jason Dunstall pre-game and sending our lively wingman Steven Stretch back there. Danny ended up with just three kicks and two hitouts that day – I doubt he has watched the replay. He was back at full-back in 1989 and resolute for two more seasons before deciding to head home and be part of the new-born Crows side. 58 Rod Grinter 85-95 134 games 57 goals He spent the first two years as a lanky half-forward before Swooper sent him to defence where he made his name in the 1987 final series. Blessed with a thumping kick, he was more noted for his thumping white line fever style, dished out via the bump (Chris Mew will attest to that) or the swinging arm (Terry Wallace still probably has his lawyers on to it). He was the tough edge that most sides had, but one that we’d been missing and I’m sure that’s why his rise coincided with a successful period, albeit one without a flag. 59 Tony Sullivan 67-79 191 games If not for a goal against the Pies in 1970, the St Pat’s (Redan juniors) Ballarat recruit may have been in a rare 191-game goalless club. You can probably guess that he wasn’t a flashy, long-kicking half-back, but my childhood memories are that our No.4 was as reliable as they come, it’s just that it was mega hard to get his Scanlen’s footy card (I never really liked chewing gum anyway). Tony played for Victoria and was 188cm, which in those days made him ideal to play on the third tall. I think Big Carl, in his second stint, wasn’t a huge fan so he ended up playing in the VFA. 60 Andrew Obst 90-97 149 games The obstetrician took a couple of years of convincing before he left Port Adelaide, but when he came was just so professional in his tactics that he was quickly a fan favourite. He played every game in the shortened 1990 season and was one of our best in our memorable win over the Hawks in the final round. For the next seven years, he was always hard at it for a skinny bloke and was third in our 1996 B&F. A few nagging injuries saw him return home after ’97 and he won a couple of SANFL flags for Port in 98 and 99.

In the second part of his series on his top 100 players of past 50 years, regular Demonlander Deespicable ranks 61-80 So now we are getting down to the guys who were damn fine players on their day but were just a tackle, smother or a matchwinning goal away from being regarded as outright stars. The three hardest to rank were the three ruckman from 63-65 on my list. It’s amazing as bad as we were at times throughout the past five decades, we have always been able to produce high-quality ruckmen. In fact we are the only club with five All-Australian tappers – O’Dwyer, Stynes, White, Jamar and Gawn. On top of that Peter Moore won the Brownlow for us in 1984 – albeit being overlooked for All-Australian selection to Simon Madden and Andrew Purser that year. Of course just as some old-timers like me argue about whether Woey or Graham Teasdale or Tony Liberatore were worthy Charlie recipients, a case could be made about how Strawb and the Russian actually got an All-Aussie gong. That’s not me being denigrating, it just that Madden and Aaron Sandilands were the clear No.1 in the years that our boys saluted and you wonder why they bothered to choose a back-up. But they did and as a result I am left wondering whether I have the duo high enough on my list. Feedback please. 61 Jack Watts 09-17 153 games, 143 goals So is he a great? Or a great waste of talent. It’s hard not be cruel about our infamous No.1 pick of 2008 who is clearly one of our most skilled players ever – right up there with Robbie and Dollars and Trapper. Sure we’d have rather have had NicNat, but if we did, we wouldn’t have taken Max Gawn the following year. Maybe it was the way we gifted him the Queen’s Birthday game to bump up our home crowd, but he always seemed more happy in his role as our No.1 promotions officer than he did nailing tackles. And as a result he became synonymous with what’s wrong with Melbourne, rather than someone who should have been properly developed from day one – the Dogs have a similar problem with Ugle-Hagan right now. After Roosy tried to restore his confidence, Goody, some might say to his credit, seemed to realise that he was a bit of a trainwreck and sent him packing to Port. But here’s the thing. Hands up if you got out of your seat to cheer the loudest you ever have when he converted after Alex Rance manhandled him on Anzac Eve in 2016? Or when he waltzed down the wing and kicked the sealer against the Pies in 2017. And which player would you like to have a beer with most of all. A great man I reckon. 62 Peter Giles 79-87 124 games, 32 goals Like Watts, another player given Norm Smith's No.4. He was recruited from Sandringham as a forward, but he had this awkward kicking style and at 187cm was hardly going to split packs, so we turned him into a defender. He played tight at full-back and used his body well like Hibbo does, but we were so bad back then that he copped a few batterings. He played on Michael Roach in 1980 when he kicked nine goals to bring up the ton. But the one that everyone remembers was when he was KO’d in the second quarter by Leigh Matthews at the MCG in 1982 - the second of four Dees the lethal champ sent to La La Land over the years. Once he woke up, Gilesy came back on as a forward and kicked three goals to inspire a comeback, including I think a go-ahead goal from the boundary, but Lethal then stepped up to spoil the story. But Gilesy got some redemption with a super game in a memorable win over the Hawks in 1984 at Princes Park. 63 Garry Baker 74-81 127 games, 112 goals Recruited from Footscray who had Gary Dempsey marking everything, he wasn’t quite as tall (just 193cm) but did a pretty good Garry 2.0 impersonation with similar sticky fingers – he took 17 marks one day against the Cats’ Jeff Fehring, which was probably more than the number of hitouts he ever won given his size. He was good for a goal in the resting ruck role most games as well and had a beard that Maxy would be proud of today. He even won our B&F in 1978 before a knee injury in 1980 curtailed his movement and he wasn’t that quick beforehand, so Barass sent him packing. 64 Mark Jamar 02-15 155 games, 56 goals I had a lot of trouble deciding where to rank the Russian. I mean before this year he was one of only a handful of Dees to make an All-Australian line up and he did kick five goals against Carlton one day. But you’d be hard-pressed to view him as a great, although he was clearly a handy, humble servant, putting his body on the line for more than a decade, often down at Casey. Only once in his 14 seasons did he play every game – in 2010 when he had an impressive 643 tap-outs and finished third in the Bluey Truscott and sat on the AA bench as back-up for Aaron Sandilands. And unlike Woey and the Brownlow, he hasn’t copped it for being one of the least qualified AA selections of all time. For us though, as a ruckman, he’s in a battle with Strawbs and Bakes for our fifth best tapman of the past 50 years – such has been the quality we have produced in the rucking area. He started off playing third fiddle to Jeff White and Darren Jolly and finished up as our third wheel behind Gawny and Pencil. 65 Steven O’Dwyer 87-91 84 games, 45 goals Big Strawb will long be remembered for missing the 1988 GF when suspended but the feisty redhead was also unlucky to miss our breakthrough night premiership in 1987. He’d just made his debut against St Kilda and impressed against Alan Sidebottom but copped a two-week suspension that ruled him out of the night granny. By 1988 he was a huge presence and a John Northey favourite, so much so that he won our B&F that year. His absence against the Hawks proved telling with it forcing some major positional tinkering that proved catastrophic. With Jim Stynes developing rapidly, the club seemed to lose a little faith in Strawbs after 1990 and the umps weren’t fans of his style either - he gave away seven free kicks against Geelong in a 1989 final. But at the time he was very good at winning the hitout, even if his groundwork was a long way short of Gawny or Jimmy. 66 Jared Rivers 03-12 150 games After an inaugural season spent primarily developing at our then VFL affiliate Sandringham, the Adelaide defender was outstanding in his first full season and with his intercept marking skills on show and he quickly became Rising Star favourite, pipping teammate Aaron Davey in a year that frankly was a bit light on – no Sam Walsh’s on the horizon with Adam Cooney a slowish starter that season. After winning it he lost his way a bit in 2005, but was back taking aerial risks in 2006, helping us to the finals. Injury took its toll for the next two years and I reckon ultimately he just didn’t have the body strength to manage the power forwards. Certainly he frustrated Mark Neeld (but who didn’t) and with T-Mac being developed as a defender, Rivers was sacrificed and sent forward. He even snagged four goals against GWS that year. But having endured the club at its worst, he knew his time was up and headed to Geelong where he played three more years and quite a few finals. 67 Matthew Whelan 00-09 150 games A Darwin lad who had impressed in the SANFL, Wheels burst on the scene in 2000 where he showed amazing courage to often fly back into approaching packs for intercept marks and his pace made him a weapon at Marvel Stadium of all places. He wasn’t a thumping kick (he was a small after all), but he was clever and disciplined in the Nev Jetta style and his absence through injury during finals campaigns in 00 and 02 proved costly. When he eventually got to play a final in 2004, it was memorable, shirtfronting James Hird. He also inadvertently injured Nathan Brown in a tackle and in 2008 got suspended for striking Brendan Fevola – so the big names didn’t worry him and he kept wearing his No.45 even when low numbers were available for an upgrade. 68 Earl Spalding 87-91 109 games, 63 goals One of my favourites, the Duke arrived at Melbourne from the west as part of the “give Robbie a taste of the finals” recruiting spree that landed Todd Viney and Warren Dean. He started as a lanky CHB and he always looked a tad unco-ordinated, particularly when kicking for goal. But he could mark it like Greg Parke and as a result we sent him forward and alongside Lyon, Stynes and eventually Allen Jakovich, we had aerial superiority over most teams. He actually only played with us for five seasons before Swooper felt his errant kicking and apparently, lack of toughness, was too much and shipped him off to Carlton. Four years later he was a key member of their almost invincible 1995 flag side, so he was definitely one that got away. 69 Andy Lovell 88-95 121 games, 146 goals Dad Greg was a world wood-chopping champion, so he arrived from Glenorchy as a teenager in 1988 with the nickname Chopper. He was a thick-set but classy small forward who also played as a mid and was still attending Melbourne High when he made our 1988 GF side and with Steven Febey was one of two Tassie teenagers in our line up that day. He had plenty of good days, snagging eight against a lame Tigers in 1993, but I reckon his five-goal game against the Roos at the MCG in 1994 was probably his best. Not sure why we sent him to West Coast at the end of 1995, but he was a lot more handy for them than exchangee Craig Turley was for us. 70 James Harmes 14- 122 games One of those lifeblood of the club type players. He’s been criticised heavily by almost every regular Demonlander for his at times errant disposal, yet it was his pin-point pass to Fritter that got us going in the grand final. He was third in our breakout 2018 B&F and his antics when he stood up to Joel Selwood in the elimination final make every Dee fans must-watch list. He didn’t quite cope with the switch to defence in 2020, but he was back to his best when he returned as a close-checking midfielder against the Swans in 2021. 71 Michael Hibberd 17- 89 games Good old Hibbo came across to us after the Bombers’ supplements saga and made an immediate impact with a huge game in our unlucky Anzac Eve loss to Richmond. Despite missing the first four weeks with a hammy, he ended up making the All-Australian team as a dashing, tough left-footer. The best thing about Hibbo is that he uses his body so well. Go back and watch a replay of the first quarter of the granny and you will see just how valuable he is, just ask JJ who came off second best. 72 Jack Grimes 08-16 100 games As with Trenners, how do you assess our former captain who almost didn’t make the 100-game club. Regarded as a draft steal at pick No.14 in 2007 (aren’t they all), a back-related stress injury delayed his rise and he played in eight losing sides before the club downed West Coast by 20 points. He took 16 marks and had 29 disposals off half-back at the MCG that day along with three Brownlow votes and a star was born. The following year the tide seemed to be turning our way and he became a fan favourite until round 14 when he hobbled off with back stress recurrence. The next year it was a navicular foot stress injury, but despite all that, he was promoted to the captaincy for 2012 under Mark Neeld having played just 32 games. To his credit, he managed 21 games the next year and he was always honest and humble – hard not to be some might say given he ended with a token 100-gamer and retired to the suburban leagues with just 22 wins to his name. I like to remember him for that fist on a Patrick Dangerfield lead during our upset win in Adelaide in 2014. I suspect if he was 5cm taller and at the right club, he would have been just like his three-time premiership winning brother. 73 Anthony Ingerson 96-01 121 games Some Demonlanders will tell you that Ingo was our best full-back (period) but having seen Sean Wight in his prime that just isn’t correct. But after being let go by Adelaide, he gave us six good seasons until knee injury. A bit of an ugly left-footer, his main strength was diligent and courageous manning of his opponents that included the master of the flop Matthew Lloyd, whom he kept relatively quiet in the 2000GF (four goals). 74 Andrew Leoncelli 96-03 146 games Another slow-burner who tried out at Carlton but it wasn’t until a super season at Old Xavs in 1995 that Melbourne came calling and his AFL debut came soon after his 22 nd birthday. A bit like Trac with the media, the No.36 was a regular by 1998 playing mainly as a high half-forward with occasional stints on the ball. He was a clever ball user and his 2000 season (fifth in B&F) was impressive although like many mates, he didn’t see much of it in the granny. 75 Peter Rohde 88-95 163 games Another Carlton discard who found his way to Melbourne and became a lock off half-back during the Swooper Northey period when we were pretty competitive. From memory he had quite a few hamstring issues, but when fit he was a nice long kick. He had a memorable Queen’s Birthday game in 1993 being sent forward and snagging three in our win against the Filth. 76 Brad Miller 02-10 133 games, 89 goals Drafted from Mt Gravatt in Qld, he always looked the part, but never really took the game by the scruff of the neck. He stats in 2004 when we won six straight to briefly top the table, were hardly flattering but as a CHF, he made good position and took a big out to allow Neiter more room. Arguably his best game was against Freo in the second week of the 2006 finals where he took 14 marks. He topped our goalkicking in 2008, but by then we needed him to be Wayne Carey for us to win games. 77 Matthew Febey 87, 90-00 143 games The draft was only just getting started when the Dees punted on the Tasmanian Febey twins from Devonport. While Steven enjoyed instant success, Matthew had to do it the hard way, even being delisted and re-rookied along the way before getting a gig on the left-side wing in 1990. As with his brother, he was extremely fit and that’s why he was a regular under Balmey and the Reverend until injuries in 2000 brought on his retirement. 78 Daniel Ward 97-07 136 games Another of the Reverend’s hard workers, he began as a rookie half-back from Fitzroy reserves and ended up having a go in our midfield where he provided a bit of dash and courage, although he probably wasn’t a natural in the give-and-go, in and under caper. Got into strife with gambling late in his career, but he was a reliable No.10 for 10 seasons, even if he sprayed the odd kick. 79 Paul Wheatley 00-09 135 games He burst on the scene in 2000 when Dustin Fletcher and Ben Graham were the kings of the long ball and wasn’t that far off getting a gig in the granny that year. He often took the kick-ins and anyone who marked a ball around the 50m mark looked to dish it off to him as he could kick it 60m off one step. And if the NAB Cup nine-pointer had made its way into the AFL, then he probably would have played 200 games. But to be honest, he was just a tad slow to be a star and not quite tall enough to be a key defender in those days. 80 Clint Bizzell 02-07 88 games Kicked 77 goals as a flamboyant forward at the Cats before crossing to the Dees in 2002 and becoming a regular under Daniher. Blessed with a nice leap and looks for TV, he was the first of our breed of intercept defenders, invariably drifting across to make life hard in the air for the opposition’s focal point. A back injury and broken leg ruined his last two years, but he quickly found his post-football niche as a travel show host. Link to 81-100

Over the next five weeks, Demonland regular Deespicable will count down his version of our top 100 players since 1972. THERE'S always a fine line at the end of any list with a few tricky decisions on those who do and don’t make the cut. Firstly I had a general rule that you had to have played 50 games for us, although I did break it for three players, two of whom are in the 81-100 category – Mark ‘Whacko’ Jackson and Sean Charles. One of our most expensive recruits Kelvin Templeton played 34 games and kicked 99 goals for us and his eight-goal game in our win down at Kardinia Park on Anzac Day in 1983 has to rate among our best ever individual performances – but sorry Kel, not enough red and blue blood spilt for mine. Secondly I had to rule out a large number of highly serviceable stars who played their best footy in the 60s. Frank Davis was still captain in 1972, but by then was more a dour half-back flanker and the former No.6 never really rocked my boat as a kid. Ditto Barry Bourke. Thirdly, how do you draw a line between levels of serviceable players, which let’s face it, most of those in the 81-100 category are. I mean Simon Godfrey (105 games) had less kicking talent than most Demonlanders, yet he tagged with intent (just ask Shane Crawford). Paul Hopgood (113 games) and Darren Kowal (105) had genuine hops, but both never really cemented a spot in eras that weren’t exactly flushed with success, while Marcus Seecamp (89) always looked the part in defence, but never dominated. But I suspect my biggest omission is Peter Walsh (104 games), a gutsy redheaded defender who tied for 15th in the 2001 Brownlow with 11 votes. He came on the scene via the rookie list along with Daniel Ward and always put in and I reckon quite a few would want him, just as Port did in 2005 when he was traded and went on to play played finals for them. So re-instate him in my 81-100 list as you see fit, it’s just that all of these guys have solid cases too. 81 Graham Osborne 66-77 146 games One of my earliest memories was watching Ozzy fly off the backline, take a bounce and then lose the ball all in the blink of an eye. He was mega quick which gave him a huge advantage in those days, but unfortunately he couldn’t quite put it all together, although he did have a pretty good year in defence under Skilts in 1976 – even polling 18 votes in the Brownlow that year under the two-umpire voting system. Sadly he was injured early in 1977, so maybe he was the factor in why we didn’t kick on as expected that year. 82 Nathan Brown 98-07 146 games OK, he was a Collingwood six-footer (180cm), who often struggled to roost it more than 40m and he wasn’t exceptionally quick. But our Nathan Brown (as distinct from the Dogs forward) was a real livewire rebounder who’d run all day and put his body on the line off half-back. He had a few ripping battles with Stephen Milne and during his prime was one of the Reverend’s automatic selections. 83 Jake Melksham 16- 83 games Unlucky not to play for us in 2016, Melky had a tricky baptism when Goody initially tried to turn him into a defender. Eventually he found his way to our forward line where his booming delivery was hugely important in our 2018 campaign and his left-footer on the run from 50m in our finals win over the Hawks was huge. Tom Sparrow’s rise probably ultimately cost him his spot in our premiership team, but there was a time in 2018 when he was talked about as an AA such was his importance. 84 Peter Keenan 70-75, 81-82 131 games I’ll never forget trying to imitate Crackers hunched over stance like a warring buffalo at ammo level and finding myself victim to every kid’s attempted screamers. But as a ruckman he was a workhorse, who could take a pretty strong mark – he took 14 grabs one day against South Melbourne in 1975 and it was that prowess that saw him snaffled by Barrass at North in 1976 to solve his ruck woes. He played in their flag against the Pies in 1977 and was nice enough to return to us in 1981 with Barassi. He was often suspended but racked up 30 more games for us, albeit for just five more wins. 85 Mark Jackson 81-82 41 games 152 goals Amazingly whacko Jacko contributed 152 goals in only two seasons. Recruited from Richmond’s U19 – they already had Michael Roach and Brian Taylor on their books, few players have been more watchable or selfish as the Energizer. He was actually a pretty accurate kick and could even snap a goal across his body. But he preferred to just snap – whether it be at umpires, at opponents or even the club skipper. Those from 82 reckon he just had to go the day he belted Robbie Flower at training, apparently peed off that Tulip kept beating him to the ball. He was less successful at St Kilda but Geelong persisted with him for a while and the Neville Bruns/Leigh Matthews incident came about largely because of his stirring antics. But while he was never quick or clean with his marking, his combination with Gerard Healy in 1982 was amazingly prolific for us. 86 Steven Icke 82-87 78 games Sticky was recruited from North with Allen Jarrott, part of Ron Barassi’s plan to steal the smarts from his old side – he did also steal Mad Dog Brent Crosswell around then, although that seemed more about getting in someone who could beat him at chess. But Icke was very serviceable as a CHB who could go forward on occasions when things weren’t working. He didn’t take hangers, but he was a nice mark all the same. 87 Henry Coles 75-80 77 games, 106 goals For three years in the late seventies, Henry was our No.1 rover and a pretty handy one, being particularly dangerous when he rested in the pocket as rovers did before the interchange came in. He snagged 33 goals in 1978, including a memorable six in our win over the Cats and won a Vic guernsey that year. He gave up his No.13 when another Pie Wayne Gordon arrived at our club, a bad omen for him as he did his knee in Round 4 in 1979 in the No.3 top and never really recovered. A run in with Big Carl in 79 didn’t help either. 88 Brock McLean 04-09 94 games Taken at No.5 in the 2003 draft, Brocky was the son of Blues hitman Ricky and was as tough as they come. His flowing mullet (no Bailey Smith perm) made an immediate impression and he played in our losing elimination final side to Essendon in ‘04. By 2006 he was virtually best on ground for us when we downed the Saints in the first week of the finals and was again among our best the following week in our loss to Freo. In 2007 he injured his foot in Rd 1 and by the time he returned we were 0-8 and it was a whole new club. He lifted us to a huge QB victory that year but he, and we, were never the same, even stooping to tanking late in 2009. Disgruntled by that philosophy, he agreed to be traded to the Blues for pick 11. 89 Ricky Jackson 86-91 80 games, 131 goals Sported the No.45 like Matty Whelan and came to us in 1986 after a failed stint at Richmond who felt that at just 170cm he was too small to make it. But ‘tricky’ Ricky had explosive pace and loved taking on defenders and for six year did his Kozzie Pickett forward-pocket role with aplomb. He even won our goalkicking with 43 majors in 1988. He kicked five goals against Carlton in the preliminary final that year and made the Big V side in 1990. I still don’t know why we traded him to Footscray in 1991, but he badly broke his leg pre-season at the kennel and never played for them. 90 Darren Bennett 89-93 74 games 215 goals Discarded by West Coast who had Peter Sumich, the thumping right-footer arrived at the Dees a couple of years before Allen Jakovich. Given our battle to find gun forwards in the 70s, it’s hard to believe we had a plethora to choose from in John Northey’s era. He had a few knee issues, but boy could he kick a long goal and his foot extension matched that of Tayla Harris - which is why he went on to make more money in America as a professional punter than ‘Dollars' Lyon made from us. He kicked 87 goals in 1990 (only Fred Fanning and Norm Smith have kicked more) and nailed four in our breakthrough elimination final win against the Hawks that year. But it was his five goals after halftime in our amazing comeback win at Windy Hill in 1990 that was the stuff of legends. 91 Russel Richards 83-87 81 games How good was it watching the Rhino in full flight charging off half-back like Adonis. He almost won the 1985 Grand Final sprint. Sadly he was a bit like Sam Frost – unable to turn his excitement into a game-breaking play but for a while we all thought he was on his way to greatness. A couple of minor injuries and the growing star status of Sean Wight and Rod Grinter meant that he struggled to get games in 1987 and by the end of 88 he was sent off to Prahran. 92 Alex Neal-Bullen 15- 105 games After five years of being the Demonlanders whipping boy, ANB endured an even darker 2020 and was seemingly out the door. Goody, who had spotted his work rate early in 2016 and pushed Roosy to play him as a small forward, seemed to have sided with the critics and written him off. After eight weeks watching from the sidelines in COVID 1.0, he returned for the clash with Adelaide and the club failed to even lodge a complaint when he copped four weeks for a dangerous tackle on a young Crow - the same that Shaun Burgoyne and others did virtually weekly. At season's end he was offered up as trade bait. Thankfully there were no takers. Bet he’d have quite a few now after a year when he played every game and constantly provided link work, tackle pressure and the occasional goal in a premiership side. Here’s the thing - Nibbler has always been is our hardest worker at training - bar none. And that’s why it’s so nice that he got some reward for all those efforts. 93 Dom Tyson 14-18 94 games Dommy’s best years were pre-Clayton when he was our big-bodied midfielder alongside Jonesy, Viney and Bernie. In his first year under Roosy in 2014 he even snagged 16 goals and he was second in our B&F. He was clever at times by hand and would lean back and hammer a left foot to our non-existent forwards back then. But by 2018, Goody was worried about his lack of pace (he’d always had knee troubles) and sent him to the wing - the same one the club had offered Jack Grimes and Jack Trengove on their way out. He was useful in the 2018 finals but it wasn’t a surprise when he was offered up to North to lure Braydon Preuss. Some will say that we should never have given up pick No.2 in the 2013 draft for him, but without splitting that pick, we wouldn’t have attained Christian Salem. 94 Alistair Nicholson 97-06 110 games Big Nick was recruited as a ruckman from Claremont but was never quite tall enough to make it as Jimmy’s replacement and once we had Jeff White we didn’t need him in that role anyway. So Neale Daniher sent him down back and he played on all the resting ruckman including Steven Alessio in the 2000 Grand Final. I was always a bit dirty that he didn’t belt a few blokes that day, especially after Brad Green and Troy Simmonds had been felled, as he was built like a proverbial brick sh..house, but he’s probably too nice a bloke at the end of the day. He’s been pretty successful off field representing our cricketers in legal battles, before more recently looking after the coaches group. 95 Jack Trengove 10-17 86 games The victim of one of our most whacky decisions when Mark Neeld decided he didn’t like his senior squad on arrival at the club and upgraded the 20-year-old from country South Australia to the leadership in tandem with Jack Grimes. The pressure on the then 37-gamer must have been intense, especially given it was before we had a good support coaching network. Jack had a nice baulk and became so team-oriented under the weight of being skipper that it seemed to stifle the initial flair he’d shown in his first two seasons. He had good endurance (like his sister Jess) but was never blessed with pace so when he kept getting stress-related foot issues, any chance of him utilising his smarts on the wing were minimal. 96 Guy Rigoni 98-05 107 games A late-comer to the top level after having no luck at Hawthorn, Riggers was a hard-at-it Myrtleford mid who could thump a long bomb in the Neiter direction and was a regular in both 98 and 2000 when he played in the granny against Essendon. He had a night out against the Roos in 2000 in a one-point loss at the Docklands amassing 37 disposals, but back issues limited his career after that. 97 Sean Charles 92-97 46 games, 60 goals A favourite of mine and just about everybody’s in 1994. He was recruited from Tatura in 1992 and kicked five goals on debut as a 17-year-old but from then he was hit by a mix of injuries and complexities from his indigenous background. He had electric speed and Melbourne was so sure of his abilities that Balmey arranged for him to be helicoptered in to training Brian Peake style mid-season. He was a key part of the exciting forward mix alongside Schwarter and Lyon in 1994 and his five-goal game in our finals upset of Carlton that year was a career-high. Broke his arm badly pre-season next year and spent more time in the medical room than on the field. But along with Liam Jurrah, one of our most talented players ever - you just wonder what he could have been if Neville Jetta was around to guide him then. 98 Colin Garland 07-17 141 games I always felt that Col was a little unsure of his abilities and doubtless that came from beginning his career in an era when our assistant coaches and support network were not a patch on today. A Hobart boy, he was quick, had a pretty good leap and could kick a long goal, as he did in the Queen’s Birthday draw against the Pies in 2010. As a defender he never really became the star interceptor that he should have been. But until Frosty came on the scene, I always felt he was in our best 22. 99 Tony Elshaug 79-83 66 games 92 goals It’s amazing how many of our players back in the 70s and 80s won flags at other clubs and Tony was another being a clever forward pocket/rover in Essendon’s 1985 premiership side. At the Demons the Bentleigh boy progressed from our fourths and got a couple of senior games late in 1979. But his 1980 year was arguably the best of his career and he very nearly won our goalkicking with his 29 tally second only to Brent Crosswell’s 31. He was also pretty handy in the Grand Final sprint but I reckon after three years of Barassi and a win/loss record that Cale Morton would relate to, he realised a switch to Sheedy’s Bombers was the best way to actually use his pace on the footy field. 100 Anthony McDonald 97-02 104 games A bit like Guy Rigoni in that he didn’t actually play his first game until he was 24, having unsuccessfully tried out at Carlton and Hawthorn. He was a superstar at Old Xavs though, so we gave him a go and the left footer became a pretty handy midfielder who was among our most reliable players during the 98 and 2000 seasons. Along with older brother, Hawthorn No.1 pick Alex and our future captain Junior, the McDonalds became only the third set of three brothers to play 100 games behind the Morwoods and Danihers. No relation to Edenhope’s Tom and Oscar, these ones hailed from a nice farm just outside of Ballarat. Next week: 61-80

Yes and do you think Bevo will say, sorry but we have to keep Schache or Martin on the ground if they are playing poorly because they are not technically injured. It is the grand final. The rule will be exploited if required.

Word is it that we are sticking with the same combination, including James Jordon as the sub. Here's my view on why Jayden Hunt should be named in that role ahead of JJ. 1) The sub role in the GF is different to the role required throughout the season - it requires an impact player. For 22 weeks plus the finals to date, the sub role was there to cover significant game-ending injuries and the coaches honored the AFL request to use it in that manor. But the grand final is different. Sure it might be activated early if a club sustains a serious injury, but this time there is a guarantee that the side that is trailing at three-quarter time will try and use it like they did during the short-loved sub era from 2011-15. And the Dogs will almost certainly name the pacey Anthony Scott or small forward Laitham Vandermeer for the role, allowing them the chance to take off one of their talls (Martin, Scache or English if they are getting beaten) to help provide spark. Perth Stadium is a big ground and that injection of pace could be crucial if it's a close game. James Jordon is a hard-working mid who is a great prospect - but he ain't going to provide a lively role up forward and he has had no training down back. Jayden Hunt is electric, even if his pre-2021 reputation is that he's somewhat erratic, and he is experienced in playing both down back and up forward. 2) The sub role should help with covering a key injury and ideally should have the potential to help with our two players under injury clouds - May and Spargo. Clearly the only player on our list (other than Tomlinson) that can try and fill the May void is Joel Smith. But he is also under an injury-cloud so would be a poor choice as sub. If May was to tweak his hammy further, the most likely scenario is that either T-Mac is sent back to play on English or Schache or Hibberd would be moved on to Schache and shifted off minding Roarke Smith and Bontempelli when resting. In both scenarios Hunt can provide value in being able to cover Hibberd's role down back or add forward pressure if sent up there in a quasi T-Mac role. Hunt also could switch into Spargo's small forward/tackle pressure role if Spargs ankle proves worse than thought. Jordon can do neither - he is best suited in the middle and would be ideal back-up if Angus, Trac, Olly or Viney get injured, although not crucial because Harmes, ANB and Sparrow can play more mid if needed. 3) Is it unfair to drop JJ after he's been in the 23 all season? I think JJ has been the sub for the past five weeks and we all should respect the fact that he is developing fast and has shown admirable courage. But he's been the sub - his omission does not alter team balance. All season he has won plaudits - but let's face it, he is a development player and his best years will be ahead. Will he feel aggrieved? Of course. Every player who narrowly misses will feel disappointed. Jayden Hunt must feel mega frustrated that after finally establishing himself as lockdown defender who links up well and playing every minute of our first 19 games before getting injured that he has been overlooked for a 19-year-old and a 20-year-old, albeit two very talented ones. Anyway to me it's clear cut - Jayden Hunt should be the sub. Just as the Dogs will try and inject pace late in the game, we need to be ready to do so as well. Hopefully the sub issue will be a non-issue and we have the game in our keeping anyway, but what's your view?

Love the fact that Cerra wants to come to us, but like many here I just can't see the deal getting done. And the big reason is that last year we traded out Josh Mahoney - the best wheeler and dealer in the business. In fact I very much doubt we will see any side deals of note this year because of his absence.

I think the only time we played to this level was at the end of 1987. Suddenly that team believed and they were doing everything for Robbie and the side had so many guns - Flower, Wilson, Sean Wight, Brett Lovett, Stretch, Danny Hughes plus some amazing youngsters - Lyon, Viney, Stynes - and our best back pocket ever Alan Johnson was out injured for most of the season. Guys like Yeats, Spalding, Dean, Jackson, Campbell stepped up come finals. But the argument would be that they weren't a gun side for much of the year - only hitting form in early August.

The mail I have is that there will be no change which is in keeping with the overriding finals philosophy that you don't change your finals line-up, unless you lose or have a star to recall. Our only missing player is Jayden Hunt, but whether or not he's regarded as a star is the question. Certainly if he's fit he plays and most of us get that Joel Smith or Bowey or even Rivers would miss, but it's a tricky decision especially in light of last week. What I found extraordinary, and I'm surprised most of you aren't noting it already, was the big call last week to play Joel Smith in preference to Hibbo and to change what has been a stable back seven on the eve of the finals. Just about every Demonlander has been hammering Joel since 2017 - claiming he didn't have the nous to play at this level etc. Goody's concerns about him have also been noted - he was after all only offered a one-year deal. Injuries have cost him a chance for much of his career and meant he missed the start of our highly successful campaign this year. He apparently has been training well, but to wait until round 22 to play him shows Goody's reluctance and reticence of his abilities and to then keep him for the clash against Geelong when May was back is huge. It shows two more things. 1) Smith has incredible potential as a quick negater who can play on tall and small, even though Goody and us DLers have some reluctance about him; 2) Hibbo is no longer rated so highly by Goody. The Hibbo thing comes as a bit of a shock to me especially as his left-foot skills provide a lovely balance for our backline and he's still tough and courageous even if he's slowing a little with age, but we all have commented for a long time that Melky and Hibbo are Goody's pets being part of his Essendon evolution. It's hard to comprehend but what may happen now is that our four most senior players on our list - Jones, Jetta, Hibberd and Melky - are all overlooked for finals. Extraordinary. Time will tell if it is a good gamble, but nonetheless it is a shock to me and I think most of you and I imagine, in turn, some of the players. But if Smith and Sparrow play well against Brisbane, that misgiving will soon be overridden by the wisdom of Goody's selections - which after all has been the case pretty much all season. We are not alone in our election revamps however. Essendon has got all cagey on Tipi leading into the finals; the Dogs have chopped and changed forward structures all year and have gone off English in an amazing way; the Cats were back to blaming Stanley for everything after losing to the league No.1 ruckman after halftime; the Swans have mysteriously been playing hardball with early-season star Warner; Power axed SPP last week and the Lions have to decide if they will rejig their back seven to include Adams, Andrews and Gardiner plus upset someone to get Robinson back in. So all side do funny things around finals - just ask John Northey about his decisions before the 1988 Grand Final. If Hunt is fit, then you can easily make a case for Bowey (too young), Smith (too inconsistent and injury-prone), but I reckon one of my favourites Rivers could also be a possible out. That's finals for you.

6 Oliver: I have been critical of Ollie in the past because I felt he just had scope for so much more, whether it be his kicking or his handballing backwards. But that game showed what he has been trying to achieve since midway through last year and was Chris Judd-esque. Did you hear the Cats imploring players to mark Ollie on the coverage? He was that good and he needed to be with Trac down. 5 Gawn: How good was it that he got his redemption against the Cats at the same ground that Zach Tuohey buried us after the siren a few years back now. He was frustrated early but he lifted and even if we hadn't won, he had shown again his resolve. 4 Lever: Quiet early and beaten during the 2nd term onslaught, he started winning the ball back late in the second term and kept going for the rest of the night. He's a major reason why we are good this season. He talks and he walks and he can even baulk. But it's his sure hands and clever mind that are critical - 12 intercepts. 3 Viney: This was like a final and as you'd expect, the hardnuts comes to the fore. Couldn't stop Selwood early but boy was he working. 2 Harmes: Same story as Viney. You have to have these guys in the trenches and he is just so fit. 1 Salem: After a quietish few weeks he asserted himself a bit more and with a young running defence around him (Bowey, Rivers, Smith) he was the smarts all night.

Effectively finals have come a week early for us along with Port and the Bulldogs. And with no clear indication on the finals bye positioning, the complexities for Goody and his selectors are even more paramount. One thing about finals is that you rarely change the side, except for injuries, so this week is the last chance for any slight tweaks and also to get our best 22 on the park. Effectively we are picking our GF side, should we get that far, because as I said, you don't mess with structure in finals and you back your best. But what is our best 22? The big thing this week is that three of our best 22 are most likely back - Viney and May certainly, T.Mac most likely. That means a decision of the three outs is also way more meaningful as normal. The obvious one is May in for Joel Smith. Yes Joel played well until Hibberd smashed him and for once the anti-Joel lobby didn't move into overdrive - but unfortunately he's up against an All-Australian in May. He remains a very handy back-up for our three tall defenders, but he's not getting the gig now unless one of Lever, Petty or May is injured. The other two are tricky. Viney is clearly in and T.Mac will be if he's fit, but which of Sparrow or Jordan or Bowey or Melky misses? To me until Jaidyn Hunt returns, Bowey's spot is safe. We could move Angus back into our defensive seven but I wouldn't. We need Angus to continue on the wing and negate and provide safety. Sparrow is a more attacking player with a better kick, but he is yet to really assert himself on a game. Down the track he may become a regular, but he's not quite there yet, so he's out in my view, although I'd be happy with him being the sub through the finals because he can offer more options with his size and his willingness to take the game on. Then it gets down to Melky or JJ. JJ's issue is that with Viney back, he's forced back out to the wing more and he's not a natural there. JJ is a quick release handball offensive conduit. He's not confident yet with taking the game on when he's in a mark/kick scenario which happens more often on the wing, but he's brilliant with his handball and he works his butt off defensively. He's the safe option, but he's not the best option at this stage of his development. Melky's issue is that once T.Mac returns, we already have seven forwards who have served us well all season. So where does Melky play. He has to go back into the midfield rotation and spend some time on Angus' wing as well. We know he has a weapon with his kicking, but is he quick enough still to play on the wing and is he enough of a team player - does he work hard to get back, to pressure like ANB and Spargo do innately. His advantage is that for his size he's good in the air with body positioning and provided he doesn't give away 50m frees, he is way more dangerous than Sparrow and Jordan in this role. He could still play primarily as a forward but that means ANB or Spargo have to become more mid/forwards, something that we've seen a bit of lately anyway. So ultimately it gets down to Melky or JJ missing out this week and most likely missing out on our finals series as a result. Which one would you go? I'd play Melky. Sorry JJ.

Why is Adelaide not being seriously considered to host all finals? I get that the MCG is not going to happen with crowds and I get that the spectacle is just so much better with crowds. But I am sorry I don't quite get why Adelaide is not ahead of Perth in likelihood of staging the finals. Adelaide, like Perth, has practically no cases Adelaide, like Perth, has proud footy traditions which means that all games will be close to capacity even without the local sides playing, although Port are guaranteed to be playing in at least two of the nine finals. Adelaide, like Perth, has a relatively new stadium that has won rave reviews. Crowd capacity is 53,500 as opposed to Perth's 60,156 - a slight difference but not massive enough to be a critical factor. Then there's the advantages: Adelaide is less distance for other teams to travel (ie Brisbane). Adelaide is more accessible for us Victorians if we make the granny. and while government policy changes, the one state that has been saying 'No' to any foreigners throughout the Covid era is WA. I also get that holding the finals in Adelaide would give Port considerable clout, but as with the Lions last year, even though the umps will favour them, if you aren't up to it, you still aren't up to it. So why Perth?

Forecast is for a nice warm 18 day at MCG, so it would be hard to use the wet excuse on Weid this week so he's in IMV. Then it's a choice of either Joel Smith or Hibberd for Hunt's spot. I think given it's so close to finals I'd be going the experience of Hibbo, although I get the temptation to give Smith one last shot at it. As to who comes out for Weid, it should be Melky (even though he was terrific last week), as we already have three smalls, one medium (Fritta) and with Weid (three talls) up forward. But Melky's already in the 18, so I imagine ANB and Spargo will get a bit of time up the ground and Fritta on the wing. That means the choice for the final bench spot is between Jordon, Sparrow and VDB - tough decision that one and whoever gets it is also the most likely omission when Viney comes back a week later. Personally I'd go VDB, but I reckon they will go JJ. And even if they don't pick JJ, it's been a great season by the youngster.

Delighted to hear talk (rumour) that we are after Brayden Maynard - who probably played his best ever game last Monday. He's still only 24, is a left-footer which we need, and as with Hibberd, loves playing on quality smalls or three-quarter talls and is tough as nails. He has an association with us via his dad and brother and significantly is part of the 2014 Victorian TAC group that we have put our faith behind - Trac, Angus, Lever. I would imagine we'd have to offload the Weid plus picks 33 and 38 to get this done - but what a perfect recruit if it can be achieved. I had been of the view that Hayden Young was the best fit for us in that role going forward, but Brayden is a here now quality player and given that Collingwood is in a rebuild phase, may be willing to switch.

Deespicable’s 2021 Mid-Year Player Rankings I almost didn't do the rankings this season. I mean it's not like everyone has a markedly different view anymore - we all know why Goody rates some players highly and there's not a collection of hard-done by players being left out in favour of Oscar McDonald. And team changes on Friday are almost a thing of a past - with injuries the only rational for most. Tell me which player you aren't happy with getting a game now ... that's right, aside form the odd 'Melky is Goody's BFF' line, it's been almost complete silence. We as a club have become so boring - boringly good that is ... at least until our Queen's Birthday loss. Sure there will be odd change as a result and clearly our high-priced recruit Ben Brown will be back along with Jack Viney. But it's been a pleasure to be a Dees supporter this year and there's been just so much to love about this season. It makes such a difference when you have genuine stars of the game to go with all our role players. This year Clayton Oliver has taken his game to a new level that makes him a competition heavyweight along with Max Gawn and last year's revelation Christian Petracca. In fact I'd argue that you'd have to go back to West Coast of 2006 to find a better trio in the engine room - that threesome had Brownlow Medallists Ben Cousins and Christian Judd plus the best ruckman of the naughties in Dean Cox. But with any side, it's not just the quality at the top, it's the depth of good players and their willingness to be selfless. And based on recent mid-year All-Australian rankings by many commentators that had up to nine Dees in the mix, then we have that covered. The hard thing for me was deciding who out of our top three to give the No.1 this year and whilst I know he won't win the Brownlow, I have got to say Gawny again. His game in our abysmal loss to the Pies was typical of his year - when he had to lift, he found a way to do it. It's too early to tell how far we will go this year and I'm sure I won't be the only Dee fan biting his nails this September. Here's my annual list at mid-year. Links to my previous years are at the bottom. 2020: One to 44 – Rating our list (last year’s rank in brackets). 1 Max Gawn (1) There's no 'i' in Max, or Gawn for that matter, and that's been the message for the whole club this year. As our captain and most recognisable player (hard not to be when your are 208cm with a beard almost down to your knees), Max has a presence that goes way beyond the norm. In 30 years time Max will still be remembered by most AFL fans - and as such he's our brand. And it's not just what he says about our 'team first' philosophy which even comes through with the renaming of his Captain's Run podcast to the Gus and Gawny show (note which name comes first), it's more the way he is playing on the field. He's way keener this year to bring others into the game with a quick handball give or a shepherd or marking block. And his ground skills for such a big bloke are pretty damn good, invariably linking up with Olly or Trac with a one-two through the midfield. As for his snap goal against Lions, well that's a new one. You sense that he's accepted that he won't win a Brownlow, he'll just be happy to rack up the All-Aussie spots - he's on track for his fifth AA, which will see him join Garry Lyon as our highest ever - although I suspect RDB would have won seven or more if the honor was around in the 50s - it began in 1982. 2 Christian Petracca (2) What I like more than anything about Trac this year is that he seems to have more of a steely resolve in the big games. His second-half againt the Tigers was huge, he was on from the outset against the Cats making sure Olly was protected as well, he was ferocious against the Bulldogs nabbing Bont whenever he could and poor old McCluggage is probably still sore from Trac nailing him against the Lions. But his game versus the Lions was even more than that - he was all class and awareness - his third-quarter goal was one even Dusty would have applauded. I almost gave him the No.1 rank because of that Lions game such was his impact. He's also like a big brother to Olly, which is mega important as side's will spend more time now trying to negate their influence. 3 Clayton Oliver (4) Why is it that I still get frustrated by Olly? I mean he's cleaned up his “hot potato” act and is using his phenomenal pace to break lines like Chris Judd and he's now deservingly regarded as high-end elite as his Brownlow odds suggest. And yet I watched his facial expressions when he lined up for goal from about 40m against Brisbane and I knew he wanted to give it off, rather than own it. Eventually he was forced to have the shot and not surprisingly, given his fear, he made a meal of it. I think it's because with the close ups on TV we all see the emotion etched on his face. And his fraility came through big-time, just as it did when Matt deBoer tagged him in Rd 3 and he went into his shell. Trac helped him through against the Cats O'Connor the next week, but I bet he'll have a lot more tagging attention come finals and it's up to him to work his way through it - maturely. Maybe a chat with Juddy pre-finals about shrugging tags would be timely. And if he does learn to cope with the extra attention, then we win the flag - he's that important. Ask yourself which other player can win the hardball, then choose between a quick congestion give or a line-breaking run at such velocity. 4 Steven May (5) In 10 weeks time Maysie will win two honours - his first All-Australian top and his first finals gig. How lucky are we to have a decent key defender at last - one that you know will be up to any task and one who provides offence as well with his main weapon - his left-foot. His effort after halftime against the Lions when he got on top of Daniher and Hipwood and started taking marks was huge. And even better there's no frills about his play. Two more years like this and we may just have to decide if he's Melbourne's best full-back ever, even after less than 100 games. Sorry in advance to the relatives of the late 'Tassie' Johnson. 5 Jake Lever (7) A few commentators said recently it was time to start tagging Lever. But I just don't get how you do it. Firstly he does already man a tall forward, even if he sags off them a bit to cover the corridor, and it's not his run and dash that other side's need to negate. It's his smarts - his positioning is incredible as is his courage in the air which makes intercepts not just possible, but likely. So how do you tag that? All you can do is ask your forward to make him accountable in the air, just like Goody tried with Weid in his battle against Harris Andrews and Darcy Moore. But even then, I'd back in Lever nine times out of 10. 6 Ed Langdon (6) It took half a season for his teammates to figure out he was a viable panic release option for them last season and now everyone knows it, his stats are going through the roof. Sadly though, MCC members wouldn't know it because Lingers plays the far-side (non-interchange gate) wing as he does at every ground. That's largely because his coach knows that he doesn't need to come off - he's an everyready battery. As an MCC member, I'm a little peeved that I miss seeing his work close up but at least I can see it when I watch the Kayo replay. This year he's added goals to his repertoire (he only kicked two last year) and he thanks Chocco for improving his field kicking but the net result is that he's now being talked about as an AA. 7 Christian Salem (11) Finally Demonlanders have reached a consensus. No longer does every third DL request 'SayLo' to play through the middle. He's not the incredible hulk after all, his best asset is that he slices and dices with his left foot. He's not a thumper like Maysie, but he hits more targets than Arsenal did this season. He's also mega effective at shutting down his opponent and significantly was missing when we lost to the Crows. Richo and the club kept mum of the reason using the "general soreness' card but I suspect he may have a bit of groin tightness coming on and needs a week or two more off, which should happen now over the bye period. 8 Kysaiah Pickett (17) Most of us DL knew what lay ahead for him last year. But now every Tom, [censored] and Harry claims to have had an inkling what the competition's new Cyril can do. And how lucky are we to have a player who can turn a match with just nine touches, as he did against Brisbane. The draft swap with Freo that saw us also claim Rivers will go down as our best piece of recruiting since the days of Jim Cardwell. The value of Kozzy should not be unerestimated. His ability to lift the side when struggling against GWS (rd 3) and North (rd 7) and then against Brisbane (rd 12) is now the stuff of legend. In previous years we would have persisted with high and aimless forward entries and been unable to break through. Now we just dial up Kozzy and defenses crumble and goals happen. 9 Tom McDonald (18) OK, hands up if you wanted him out. Yep I was one. After a few injuries (turf toe/knee soreness) in recent years it seemed to me (and many others) that he was just too slow to have any hope of getting back to his 2018 days. But I suspect he was back to leading our 200m reps with ANB (Joel Smith would have ben injured) - apologies but I never saw those drills in my four trips pre-season to Casey. Tom’s never going to be a speed demon and as such I doubt the wing experiment would have worked, but he has a huge tank and his ability to continually work back and forward and his renewed confidence with his trickery (yes, he loves a baulk more than Bernie Quinlan) has seen him labelled as the AFL's comeback player of the year. As for the goal on the run against the Blues from a Kozzy pass, well you needed to be there to appreciate what it meant. Barring injury, he'll win our club goalkicking (sorry Fritter). 10 James Harmes (14) If not for a broken hand, which he played through, in rd 1, I reckon Harmsey would be challenging T-Mac for the comeback player of the year. He's just such a goer in the Liam Picken or Mitch Robinson mould. He's never going to be an All-Australian, but I've said every year that he'd be one of my first players picked. He just does the one percenters and team things so well and is a huge reason why Olly and Trac have been dominating. I get that Goody wanted to try him as a defender last season, but we all know now he's better suited to the midfield where his run and passion for the contest is first rate. How good was his first game back against the Swans or his game nullifying Libba? Even the most niggardly (nice way of saying stupid) of DLers now realise why he's in the side. Yes he'll get caught on occasions, yes he'll butcher the odd kick and yes he will be bringing the blue-collar work ethic to our side come finals. And I love it. 11 Jack Viney (3) It's easy to say we don't need him at the moment. But come finals, he's one I want almost more than anyone else. He's our raging bull and he'll run through anybody. The only difference is that this time when he comes back from injury he has to remember that his courage and hardness must be tempered by the fact that Batman and Robin (Trac and Olly) are the main act and he needs to get on board that structure. His role is to mix his desperate deeds with tackling, bumping and grinding the opposition midfielders. Ultimately I suspect we will have to get past the Cats, Dogs and Tigers and to do so we need him to form his own tandem negating act with Harmsey. And if one our gun trio of small forwards gets injured, then I'd play him in that role as well. 12 Angus Brayshaw (8) Last year I said that Gussy is the Ringo Starr of our Fab Four and that he's got to find a way to beat the drums at any venue or in any spot and that includes the wing. And based on his game against the Dogs he's done it. Go back and look at the replay and have a look at the ferocity and awareness of Gus every time the Doggies tried to go down his wing. It was super stuff and with SPE(Ed) on the other wing, we now have a stellar combination that is the envy of many sides. His aerial work is also top shelf. And I just have a sneaky feeling that he might go up another level come finals with 50m goals on the run part of his pressure equation. And it's great that he's taken on cricket's Nathan Lyon role with our club song. 13 Bayley Fritsch (13) Injuries early meant that for the first six weeks Fritter had to play as a tall and to his credit his leading and aerial work was as good as anyone's and does seem to be at home playing out of the goalsquare. Sure he still missed the odd set shot, but his six goal game against the Roos just showed how far he has come from the spindly Casey kid who could take a hanger. Being just 188cm, he's a three-quarter tall forward and in this current AFL era that's not an easy task. Aside from Liam Ryan, Toby Greene and Jake Stringer - name me another lead-up medium forward capable of having a regular impact in a game. In fact since Brad Johnson, they have been something of a dying breed with bigs and smalls the only way forward. That makes him an imprtant POD, but he has to remember that his role includes tackling and chasing. It's for that reason why Melky is no longer regarded as our goalsquare option. 14 Michael Hibberd (10) A late start to the season meant poor old Hibbo had to wait four weeks to get a go down back ad he was immediately at his attacking best against the Hawks. The following week though it was back to his down and dirty Frankston best, niggling and harassing Dusty and the ferocity of his tackling needed to be seen to be believed. Aside from stopping our opponent's best medium tall, Hibbo's left-foot is crucial for our balance. It's why we need to sign him up again for '22, or move heaven and earth to lure Hayden Young away from Fremantle. 15 Charlie Spargo (31) As someone who has been dubious about Charlie's tenure in the AFL for two years now, it was quite a surprise to see him dominate training pre-season. The 2021 version of Charlie is much stronger and his tackles now stick. He also seems more confident with kicks in the 40-45m category, not that that is where he's been doing his best work. It's his short slick passes of around 25-30m that have hit targets and done the damage. I've always said his smarts and skills were very apparent, but this year he's become a man - albeit a vertically challenged one. And he seems to be loving every bit of that challenge - his aerial tap to T-Mac as we charged back into the contest against Brisbane was worthy of six footers. He's now a lock in the side and if anything, this rank may still be doing him an injustice. 16 Trent Rivers (25) I said last year that there’s a bit of Corey Enright in the way he goes about it and that early assessment is still on the money. He has great closing speed, is safe in the air, is a lovely kick and seems to be getting better with each game. My favourite thing about him is that he has the balls to run with it and take a bounce or two on occasions. And as for getting him with pick 32, that's just crazy stuff. 17 Luke Jackson (19) Browny and Riewoldt love raving about Dogga and there's no doubt he's developing well. But come on, let's get serious, he's still a fair way off being a star - just have a look at how many times he gets pushed off a ruck contest by a mature-bodied opponent. The good news is that he's got quite a good leap which means that, even at 199cm, down the track he may become a Brodie Grundy clone. With such a good work rate and willingness to try and win ground balls, he's already mega useful in that he allows Gawny to go forward and provide a mismatch. His third quarter against the Roos when Gawny was having an off day against Todd Goldstein and his effort against the Pies were highlights and so long as he keeps presenting when up forward, then I'm willing to excuse his mullet and his awful song playlist. 18 Alex Neal-Bullen (24) As with T-Mac, ANB was nearly shown the door at the end of last season. But rival clubs must have been reading all the disparaging remarks about him on DL and chose not to bite. Goody, in his Kozzy excitement, also seemed to have moved on. But a desire to go three talls, three 'hard-working' smalls and one hybrid meant that ANB was re-classified. As always he was among our best trainers pre-season and got another chance Rd 1 and some pretty handy games against the Saints and Cats, followed by a vote-catching display against the Tigers have seen him rack up the games with his 100th likely about Rd 20. At his best, he's like Robbie Gray, but I reckon he still needs a breakout game where he kicks five or sets up his talls like Spargo has been doing to secure his spot for the finals. 19 Adam Tomlinson (20) Big Tommo knew immediately the enormity of his knee injury - the second it happened down in Tassie. Finally after 160 games across 12 seasons, he had nailed down a spot. He'd taken on TomaHawk and Riewoldt and emerged with his repuatation enhanced and after six straight wins, was loving it at the Dees as our third tall defender. He's too nice a big bloke to not be cheering us on come finals, but you can tell it hurt. He'll be back next year though and at least now he knows he can play on the best and prevail. 20 Jayden Hunt (26) I said last year there was no more exciting time than when he used to springboard us off half-back in Roosy’s last season and Goody seemed to like him too initially before deciding that he wasn’t reliable enough with his kicking. As with Nibbler, he seemed on his way out and would have been had a club or two made more than a fleeting request. Thankfully the only coach who seemed keen on him as a defender was Chocco Williams. And so Jayden 2.0 has arrived. His renaissance also means that we have a player with the leg-speed to match the likes of Rioli and Castagna and that has really helped Say-Lo, who no longer has to chase the quickest small forward or be chased down by him. He's not the messiah, but he's been really good at closing down space, which is a role that often goes unappreciated. And as for excitement, there's been a couple of times where he and Lingers have been off to the 'handball races' on the far wing with devastating effect. One more thing, how many times have we heard opponents comment that the Dees are way quicker than we used to be. Wonder why! 21 James Jordon (NR) I still reckon he's a tad predicatable with his kicking and doesn't have any tricks to rave about but I'm warming to him. He's quick with the hands and he's a good tackler. His games against the Dogs and Lions were AFL-worthy and with Trac and Olly running the show, we need role players and he's one. What JJ's rise this year does show is that we have a much better development system than at any stage in the past. Credit Ben Matthews (2019-20) and Adem Yze (2021). After a lengthy Michael Tuck-style apprenticeship, he lined up in Round 1 and quickly showed his schooling in off-the-ball work and snagged a key goal in the third term against Freo. I'd still like to see him go back to the VFL and completely dominate a game before the finals, but I know I'm now in a minority on that score. 22 Harrison Petty (NR) After a year off with OP, it was nice to see Harry being settled back into defence and he was mega-impressive in the simulation matches that I saw at training. And as yet I've got to say he's been pretty ordinary in the real stuff compared with what I saw pre-season. His match against the Hawks lacked confidence and he's struggled pretty much since replacing Tommo in Round 8, although his game against the Dogs was promising. But he is only 21 and hopefully he's a slow burn as we need him to man the resting rucks and talls. There's really only two other options - sending T-Mac back there or our old mate Joel Smith, who is finally over injury .. at least until the next one. You could argue Majak could play there, but he hasn't trained there (yet) and ditto Mitch Brown. 23 Ben Brown (NR) Wow. If you believe the rumours he's fuming at his lack of chances and is considering a trade already. While he presented well against the Swans, I suspect a couple of errant handball gives against Carlton hurt his case and warranted the swap with the Weid, who has better mobility and ground work. But the Pies loss changed things. Brown is a marking presence and draws defenders and he's now had a few more weeks to get comfortable with his knee injury and improve his ground work. He also needs to mix up his long run-up kicking skills with the occasional quick link-up. And if he plays finals, then the trade talk is sure to bite the dust anyway. 24 Jake Melksham (12) Melky will turn 30 just before the finals. If everyone is available, does he get a guernsey ahead of JJ or ANB? Here's the thing. Melky has a weapon - he can thump the ball 60m to break a line and come finals that will be way more important than ever. Against that is the fact that as many DLers state, he's not working hard enough without the ball. And that's why his likely return to the VFL next week will be super important. He has to change his ways a little, show he still has the desire to make it and rack up the tackles. 25 Sam Weideman (9) After a breakout year last season, the Weid has had a few setbacks this season with a stress-related hip injury ruining his pre-season, making him a late starter. And with T-Mac on fire and Ben Brown initially preferred he had to do time in the VFL. A few big bags made it nigh on impossible to select him, but three goals in five AFL games since his recall is hardly making a statement, although to be fair, he's been a nearly-man every week. He gets his hands to it but just can't quite clunk it. So too his kicking. One positive is that he's still pretty handy at ground level, but his failure to stop Darcy Moore marking on Monday means he will surely be back in the VFL in rd 14. Then it's a race to see if he can get back in vogue for the finals. After last year he knows he can do it. The issue is whether it's at the Pies next year or with us in September. 26 Tom Sparrow (29) It was nice to see our VFL game against North televised and it gave all of us a chance to see how much Tommy Sparrow has improved. He's kicked a couple of good goals at AFL level now, so he's getting comfortable with the step up and he does have the tools to make it being a good kick and pretty quick. But he'll have to keep working his butt off, because right now he's probably about our 25th player when picking our side for the finals. 27 Nathan Jones (22) You have to hand it to the club for the way they got Jonesy to 300 this year and quickly made a call that even after playing in seven successive wins, that may be it. He's been a great and loyal servant and who knows he may yet get another chance as I'm sure his VFL form will be super impressive when the comp resumes. I won't make a call on the AFL finals, but I will say this, if Jonesy, Vanders, Melky, Jetta, Lockhardt and Joel Smith are all available, then we will win the VFL granny this year. 28 Jay Lockhart (16) Early indication were that Jay was going to play Rd 1, but his pelvic injury against the Dogs in the AAMI series cost him the spot. And by the time he was fit and raring to go again, Hibbo, Hunt and Rivers had established themselves as our running defenders. He's a huge plus for Casey, but with Jake Bowey aslo waiting in the wings for the role, it means we may already have seen the last of Jay at AFL level. Which is a shame because I reckon he offered a lot and I'd be pleased if we offered him another year. 29 Jake Bowey (NR) In previous years Jake would have five or six games up already. And just for a tick after our loss pre-season to the Dogs - a game in which he won a few useful touches - he looked a prospect even for Rd 1. But Goody stayed loyal to his senior players this year and it's paid dividends. And that means our pick No.21 has had to wait in the wings. I reckon he would have played when Salem was injured in rd 10, but he hurt his ankle in that week's VFL game, meaning Nev got the spot. He's a nice mover and disposer but he's a tad on the small side at 176cm, so he probably needs another year to develop his physique anyway. And he's a redhead which usually means one thing - he's tough as nails. 30 Aaron vandenBerg (15) The longer quarters this season would have gone against Vanders. Given that when's he's fit he can still only train a couple of times a week, it makes it hard to justify playing him for his gruntwork. And except for the Pies game, we've been the intimidators, although I'd certainly like Viney back before the finals. As I said with Jonesy, I really hope he finishes up the year on a good note, with a very deserving VFL flag. 31 Joel Smith (27) Am I now the only member left of the SOS fan club. Well here's something that will surprise you, I reckon Joel is still a big chance to be playing finals for us this year. Yep our No.1 rehab group member, only needs an injury to one of our defensive talls, Rivers or Hibbo and he's in. Don't be surprised if you see his name read out as an inclusion in the next few weeks in his own rights. Don't worry DLers, a more likely scenario is that he will be back in the rehab goup before the finals. Read my comments from last year and you'll know why I rate him. 32 Kade Chandler (NR) There's been two memorable moments so far for KC this year. The first was his breakout game against Richmond pre-season including a check-side banana goal on the run. The other was the Gatorade soap bath he copped when he played in his first win for the club - against Carlton - thankfully Trac stepped in to save him but his eyes would have been stinging that night. It wasn't his finest day - he'd earlier inadvertently spoilt Weid near the goalsquare. But he's shown enough this season to warrant another year and he'll be a key player in the VFL grand final. 33 Mitch Brown (32) He again showed what a reliable player he is when called up to replace Fritter against the Hawks. But ultimately he plays the same sort of hard-running lead-up role as T-Mac. And right now T-Mac is king. So that doesn't leave much room and at 31 by season's end, it's time to use his spot on a young project forward. 34 Neville Jetta (23) I was a little surprised when we kept Lord Nev on this year, but he's such a man of honor and integrity – that I reckon the club felt having him around was worthwhile. And Nev did get to play the first four weeks for four wins and a fifth game against the Crows, so it's hardly been a wasted extra season for him either. As I said last year, a great story of perseverance and credit to Roosy for saving him from an early exit in 2014. 35 Oskar Baker (17) Our other everyready battery got a chance to show his stuff pre-season and had a proper chance to stamp his name on the wing spot against North Melbourne in Hobart, and while he didn't do anything wrong, he just didn't do anything that was so classy you had to keep picking him. He's got good toe (but he's not electric like Jayden) and his skills are solid, but I suspect after four years it's probably time's up at season's end. 36 Bailey Laurie (NR) He looked pretty classy in the sessions I saw pre-season but needs a year of muscle before we can make a judgment. Whether he can put on bulk, given his dad was pencil-thin during his career at Fitzroy, is the big question. A fractured eye-socket kept him out of most of our VFL games, but he should be right to go next week when the comp resumes (hopefully). 37 Toby Bedford (34) I know there's a few DL'ers who love Toby, but I'm a little more reserved on his abilities - I mean his work ethic is good, but Spargo and ANB have better application, and I've been more impressed with Chandler's development than Toby's. IMO, he'd have to play out of his skin in the VFL finals to justify another year. 38 Majak Daw (NR) A good supplemental rookie selection, especially given we had a tall shortage at the time and he has experience in all three key big positions. We haven't need him yet, but he has offered good security and is a bonus for Casey. But as with Mitch Brown, I can't see us keeping a 30-year-old on the list. 39 Deakyn Smith (NR) As an NGA academy member from last year, we gave him a go pre-season and he looked quite classy in his role as a small defender, so we rookied him. The issue is that we now have a host of defensive smalls, so there's a lengthy queue. But the VFL finals will be a good chance to see if he can take his game up to another level. 40 Fraser Rosman (NR) Our super tall, super fit, long-kicking left-foot wingman looked the part at training throughout summer, prompting excitement by most observers, but the reality is he's very raw and will need a couple more years to make it. 41 Austin Bradtke (NR) I've seen enough of him at training now to know he's a tad slow and he's too nice a guy to make it, so I reckon he needs to drop the footy now and pick up the basketball again. With all his weight work, it may not be too late for him to play in the paint for United or Phoenix. No ratings Marty Hore (NR) His unlucky run continued this year when he ruptured his ACL joint, but he's back running and some say he could even be back in time for the VFL finals. Aaron Nietschke (NR) He again looked handy in December and again his season was over by February with his third ACL. As with Marty Hore, it's hard to justify another year when you can now just wait and draft them mid-season if their back playing VFL and prospering. 2020 rankings https://demonland.com/forums/topic/48748-deespicables-2020-mid-year-rankings/ 2019 rankings https://demonland.com/forums/topic/46363-deespicables-2019-player-rankings-mid-year/?tab=comments#comment-1717879 2018 rankings https://demonland.com/forums/topic/44154-deespicables-2018-player-rankings/ 2017 rankings: http://demonland.com/forums/topic/42181-2017-player-rankings/?tab=comments#comment-1413791 2016 rankings https://demonland.com/forums/topic/40708-rating-or-list-from-1-44/#comment-1294469

Yep and if so Melky either plays or we bring back Chandler as well and ANB becomes and even higher half-forward.

The logic of what Turner is suggesting is fine - at some point we need to bring Bowey in so he gets a taste and the longer he and Ben Brown go without games is a worry and will make it that much harder for them. The other thing is that I suspect Salem will have the Pies game off to give him a chance to get over his injury and it's time either Bowey or Lockhart got a game instead of Nev. If Hunt's injury is more serious than I suspect then both could play. As to the other changes, Ben Brown should come in for Weid. It's been frustrating watching how close Weid has gone to really nailing his marks and he should be brought back in again in a few weeks, but big Ben needs another shot - that's why we recruited him. Finally Langdon has to play and there's only one underperforming player - so Melky has to go. As with Weid, Melky should come back in down the track, but he needs to go back and lay some tackles when VFL comp resumes hopefully the week after next.

6 Petracca - was vibrant all night and his third-term goal was vintage Dusty. 5 Gawn - crumbed a goal and was our best at half time with plenty of clever kicks and handballs, but Trac took control in third. Age has early deadlines, reporter probably didn't see the second half when Trac got even better. 4 Oliver - lifted after half time with amazing run and carry and is getting closer to being the complete player. Set shots a problem - you can tell he doesn't think he'll convert them in his face. 3 Spargo - what a game from this guy. Check replay of his tap to I think T.Mac for a goal in third. 2 T.Mac - may have been reading Robbo's bathwater up to halftime, but was just so prominent and clever after the break. 1 May - Some major marks after the long interval and shut down Daniher and Hipwood at times after the break.

I am actually hoping that both Viney and Jackson aren't rushed back and we get them ready for the Dogs game, which will be our second 6-day break in a row and we will need fresh legs. I also want to see how Weid and Chandler go again. Chandler was uber-impressive against the Tiger pre-season and has stepped up at VFL level. He got pinged in a tackle early and it was one of those days where nothing went right for him - even the Gatorade drenching post-game. But he did keep working hard on covering players (Saad, Docherty etc) and deserves another shot. Weid had to get used to a predominantly new roaming forward/ruck position (aka Jacko), which was very different to last year's main man role. His first real big chance, where he shrugged off his man saw Chandler spoil him, which was a shame - but that's football - it doesn't always work out. I am also hopeful that one of our mids is given a break so that Tom Sparrow gets his chance to see if he can get closer to dominating after two mega impressive VFL games.

Exceptional hey. So where does Luke Jackson sit if BBB is exceptional - on another planet. Try this: BBB has some limitations at ground level which are expected given he is 200cm tall. PS: Nic Nat says high all the way from Neptune as well.

Ok, I have five big changes that have helped our team this year on top of the key one from last year. What I'd love to know is who was responsible? Should Goody get all the credit? I'd love to say I know the answer, but I put my calculated guess at bottom of each move. Interested to hear your views on who is responsible. 1) Loyalty to senior players In the past Goody has got excited with his new toys (I remember his glee at seeing Oliver play even when Roosy was boss) and promoted players ahead of their time. He was behind the Oscar Mac ahead of Dunny move, he promoted Spargo as an 18yo and kept him in throughout the finals, he pushed Sparrow in for Rd 1 of 2019, he was all over Kossie and added Toby Bedford in at Rd 1 of 2020 for good measure. This year, however, he stuck fat with Jones and Jetta early when almost all of us had them written off, he played ANB over Chandler for Rd 1 and he stayed loyal to Harmes as a mid. In previous years Bowey would have played 5-6 games by now, but not this year. Person responsible for making Goody see the light: I reckon he listened to Yze or Chocco on this - my tip is Yze because up until this year the Hawks stuck with senior men and mature bodies. I also reckon Goody's own off-field issues may have helped him see the importance of staying loyal and giving first shot to your senior players. 2) Giving Hunt another go down back Ok, so under Roosy, Goody used to love watching Jayden chase back or provide run. Then early in 2018 he decided that Hunt and Frost weren't reliable enough kicks and wanted to follow the Hawthorn/Geelong precise ball movement way. Jordy's influence I suspect. They were banished with Jayden given the occasional lifeline as a pacy forward. You could see him trying to improve his kicking efficiency, often with a two-handed ball drop to ensure its accuracy. Gone also was any notion of a torp, which he unleashed so successfully in Darwin four years ago. This year someone decided that having Hunt down back again would mean Salem did not have to play on the opposition's quickest forward and as a result would have a fraction of a second more time to set things up. They also saw that under the new rules, Hunt could usually set off and break lines at will if allowed and that assisted our chances of catching other teams over the back. And I don't have the stats, but I reckon his efficiency is pretty high this year. We'd all like him to do a bit more, but his closing speed has helped with our manic pressure on opponents. Person responsible for making Goody see the light: I reckon it was Chocco who spotted early that Hunt's kicking may not look a thing of beauty, but is just as effective as his teammates. Chocco also used to love run and carry defenders at Port, so maybe he sat down and said, we are too slow down back, Hunt's your man and Goody listened. 3) Going back to ANB ANB was another one of Goody's love childs six years ago when he identified that he was better as a hard-working high half-forward than as a midfield bull (partly because he isn't actually a bull). ANB has always been our No.1 trainer, he works his butt off, but eventually, like most Demonlanders, Goody lost sight of the hard yards he does in games and started counting his turnovers. The result was he was dropped after being one of our best three against Carlton in Rd 2 last year and when he eventually came back in and was over-exuberant in a tackle, the club left him high and dry to cop a four-week dangerous tackle penalty with no appeal. This year Goody decided to reward his training excellence again and, apart from the Roos game, Nibbler has rewarded everyone with his persistence, his tackle pressure and with a rise in confidence his clever vision plays have mounted (he's not a Robbie Gray and probably never will be, but he's definitely best 22 material) and even the most niggardly of DL'ers now can see why he's been kept on and not delisted. Person responsible for making Goody see the light: I reckon this one might have actually been Goody himself. He did love ANB when he was a youngster and Goody himself wasn't a beautiful player, but he was a hard-worker and got better and more reliable as he aged. 4) Returning Harmesy to the middle There was some logic in trying him down back. In 2020 the club could see Trac had to play more in the middle and with Viney and Oliver, not to mention Angus, in the mix, Goody decided that Harmesy was expendable in the core and might be able to provide run and tightness down back. Harmesy has always been one of our vibrant players - he bumps, he blocks, he has little digs at opponents and he gets caught with the ball (a lot). But he also gets out of trouble (a lot) and he also is almost always the first on the scene of any scrum-style formation and we already know from 2018 that he loves tagging and is not scared of big names. His game against Freo (half of it with a broken hand) was mega courageous and his game and intensity against Sydney was exceptional. He's our Liam Picken - he's quick, he can mark pretty well for his size and he works his butt off. In one sense, Viney's injury is a blessing as it's allowed the move back in the guts to happen without mucking up rotations. He's not a matchwinner, but he's probably our most important role player. Person responsible for making Goody see the light: I am sure Harmesy was keen to head back into the middle and I reckon Yze may have made Goody more aware of how other sides hate playing against him and what he bring to the table with his ability to get quickly to contests. 5) Playing three talls up forward and down back This one is still a bit of a work in progress, but I reckon Goody stopped toying with alternate formats (remember how Goody went five smalls up forward against WC in Rd 1 last year) and decided three bigs up front and down back was the go. He was forced to modify this a bit because of injury and classified Fritter as a tall for the first six weeks, but now has a more even mix. Jacko's mobility has helped negate the groundball issues that three talls can create anyway. And May's kicking skills mean he has a tall defender that can break lines as well, so we can get away with what appears a top-heavy set up. Person responsible for making Goody see the light: Once again I am not sure if it was Chocco or Yze's knowledge of other programs that forced him to see the light on this. But we can all see it's working down back with Lever and May backed by a regenerated Tomlinson (until injury) and hopefully Petty grows in confidence (he was exceptional pre-season) on the resting rucks the more he plays. Finally I'd just like to add that the biggest and most crucial change occured last year and it clearly has helped our entire group feel more worthy and at home. 6) Making Gawny captain You have to remember that Goody annointed Viney and that Jack was the son of a great and was everything you could (normally) want in a leader with his desperation and courage and fearless hard work at training and in games legendary. But Jack, for all that, is a bit of an individual. He's smart, he's got a good life with a very supportive family. But he couldn't unify the guys and he didn't have the whole side's ear. Gawny may have been a knockabout but he's jungle smart and way more approachable on any number of issues. The umps love him and his banter (so he has their ear as well) and and I think we all underestimate how courageous the big bloke is, partly because he's a big bloke and you expect it. He loves all the old blokes (not just the smart ones) and it is that ability to make everyone at ease that has made him a super leader on and off the field. And if you watch his games, he steps up even more when he's needed. Closely tied into this is that he has advocated the word of Goody that the players have to be more selfless and work for the team, not as individuals. Person responsible for making Goody see the light: This happened last year and I think the players actually finally got a say and Goody felt under pressure from the media and partners after such a poor 2019 that he had to make the change.

It's hard to see any changes, but there's at least four players who they need to get a game into - Chandler, Sparrow, Weid and Bowey. Hard part is figuring a way to do it when you are winning. As to those who started the drop Harmesy jibber, you seriously need to understand football. His best game since 2018 finals.

A surprisingly tricky selection night coming and with wait on Fritter and maybe Brayshaw. Six players have good cases to come in - Harmes, Sparrow, Weid, Chandler and Bowey and Petty. The obvious outs are Tomlinson and Jones (he was 23rd anyway) and then it's a question of whether they want to pull the trigger on Baker and Melky or rest up a player for balance. Great to see so many people have finally cottoned on to the fact that ANB provides something, although clearly he went from riches to rags in this game. Can't see him missing though and that means Chandler has to wait. Could be sub. There's also no obvious spot down back for Bowey at moment, so he has to wait. Could be the sub. Harmes and Sparrow clearly come in and Baker probably didn't do quite enough and his absence allows Brayshaw to move back to the wing. As for Petty, does he come in for T.Mac, who didn't do anything wrong down back in an impressive second half against Roos. So I'd say we have to play T.Mac at this stage and if he goes back to his low-kicking turnover days then Petty comes in. Then it's whether we want to ditch Melky to make room for Weid and a reshuffled offence. I would, because so far this year Melky hasn't provided enough pressure, so playing an extra tall won't hurt us. But against the quicker Swans I could well understand if we want to go with more pace and if that's the case then Chandler comes back into the equation for Melky. If Fritter is out then Weid definitely plays. Tough choices and nobody is right or wrong on this one at this point. Out: Tomlinson, Baker, Melky, Jones In: Harmes, Sparrow and Weid or Chandler.

6 Fritter 5 May 4 Salem 3 Jackson 2 Kossie 1 Oliver

I certainly get the logic of not changing a winning formula and reading Goody's comments today he's decided he won't alter his line-up also with Brown and Weid to play North's VFL side on Thursday. And I also get that anyone who suggests a change against that philosophy at the moment is going to be howled down. But I am sorry, I just reckon that now is the perfect time to trial our planned new-look forward set-up which was halted in early Feb when Weid and Brown went down with injuries. I certainly understood the logic of staying loyal last week against Richmond and it paid off in droves. But there is no logic in keeping an elite footballer like Brown (my understanding he's our fifth highest paid player) in the twos simply because we are winning. I mean let's say we win against North (which you have got to say is mega likely with our odds $1.01 at Sportsbet), then what are you gonna say to him - sorry I don't want to change a winning line-up. And what say we win against the following two weeks - home games against Sydney and Carlton - sorry Browny, you have to keep playing with Casey? Let's say it was Oliver who had been injured, would we be willing to make room for him or tell him he has to play VFL until we lose. Ultimately we have to confront and trial the three-headed monster and delaying the inevitable is just poor planning. Let's find out if it works and what tweaks need to be made to it well before the finals.