Leopold Bloom

Melbourne has used its final selection in the Draft to secure Isabella Simmons, with the 18-year-old finding her way onto an AFLW list. She’s a classy left footer who has plenty of scope for development in the coming seasons and may be the most athletic young talent drafted this year. At 186cm, Simmons has played the majority of her footy on the wing to date but has the potential to play at either end of the field for the Demons. MFC website

Megan Fitzsimon has been drafted with pick No.35, joining the Demons from Gippsland. The 18-year-old is an explosive footballer who can play through the middle and up forward, and she knows how to kick a goal. Fitzsimon has had a major impact during her time in the NAB League and will benefit from playing alongside some quality teammates at AFLW level.

The Demons’ third selection within the top 20 brings 17-year-old Maggie Caris to the club. She is an elite athlete, starring not only as a junior footballer, but as a netballer as well. At 190cm, Caris will be looking to develop her ruck craft at the Dees, with an ability to hit the ball with both hands and follow up at ground level.

With the club’s second first-round pick, it has drafted talented midfielder, Eliza McNamara. At 18 years of age, McNamara joins Melbourne with an incredible running capacity and can play both on the inside and outside. She’s as ferocious as they come and won’t back down, so expect to see her win plenty of the footy in season 2021. MFC website

Melbourne has drafted Alyssa Bannan with its first pick of the night, identifying her athleticism as a key asset for the team. At 177cm, Bannan is a promising key forward with strong hands, who will pose as a dangerous target inside 50. While the 18-year-old has the ability to push up the field, she will add plenty of flare to the Demons’ forward line with her agility at ground level and ability to hit the scoreboard. MFC website

If true, he’s gone ... don’t expect a contract offer.

Last week we were relying on Hawthorn to do some damage to the Bulldogs and they kicked one goal in the first half. Today, the Hawks have kicked four goals to nothing in the first 8 minutes.

This thread should be pinned!

His 14 touches v Dons is probably a shade short of what’s required. Lauchlan Sholl of Adelaide who got shafted last week picked up 19 possessions v Tigers.

There’s also a terrific game coming up on Friday night when GWS Giants play St Kilda at the Gabba where a win to the Giants will mean that we have the opportunity to overtake the Saints if we can beat the Bombers and make up percentage. It could be a nail biting weekend coming up.

Whoever the chairman is of the Suns, I’m predicting an enormous blast tomorrow morning.

6. Christian Petracca 5. Angus Brayshaw 4. Clayton Oliver 3. Ed Langdon 2. Kysiah Pickett 1. Jake Lever

Thanks all for the explanations. I was starting to wonder what the hell was going on.

Norm Smith was a tough coach. He liked to send messages to players who weren’t in form and, as we’ve seen, even kept debutants on the bench for an entire game. We never see that these days with the four man interchange.

He beat Kreuzer hands down when we played our last game without Max so it’s puzzling why he wasn’t given the opportunity to take on Goldstein. A bit of a mystery given that Goldstein has been good so far this year.

They found a way to score goals against Adelaide.

And that’s a reflection on Carlton. They dominated possession and kicked 1.5 to 3.0 and it could have been another goal and the ¾ time lead to North but for an act of stupidity by Pittard.

I reckon we might move up a bit in trading of players/picks. With so many academy/ fs picks, it would probably be worthwhile to have a selection in the mid teens rather than mid to late twenties which is where we look like being at the moment.

Two of the four charges laid from the weekend involve Hawthorn v Melbourne:- Harley Bennell, Melbourne, has been charged with Striking (Fixed Financial Sanction) Jaeger O’Meara, Hawthorn, during the first quarter of the Round Seven match between Hawthorn and Melbourne, played at GIANTS Stadium on Sunday July 19. In summary he can accept a $750 sanction with an early plea. Based on the available evidence, the incident was assessed as Striking (Fixed Financial Sanction). The incident was classified as a $1250 sanction as a first offence. The player can accept a $750 sanction with an early plea. Ben Stratton, Hawthorn, has been charged with Striking Sam Weideman, Melbourne, during the second quarter of the Round Seven match between Hawthorn and Melbourne, played at GIANTS Stadium on Sunday July 19. In summary he can accept a $1000 sanction with an early plea. Based on the available evidence, the incident was assessed as Careless Conduct with Low Impact and High Contact. The incident was classified as a $1500 sanction as a first offence. The player can accept a $1000 sanction with an early plea.

There’s a proposal for the competition to go ahead with stand alone clubs Coburg, Frankston, Port Melbourne, Werribee and Williamstown will join AFL affiliated clubs Box Hill Hawks, Casey Demons and Sandringham. Expect an announcement shortly.