DeelightfulPlay

Made a nice pork and fennel pizza for a late lunch and watched the second half of our AFLW match while eating it!

This whole thread was so nice to read. Especially everyone being so negative about the first half, just like always for Demonland! Feels like things being taken seriously. Also really happy to see people respecting Paxy!! Great start to the season ❤💙 unfortunately this week has been a lot of work so I didn't make it to Melbourne, but have caught up after finally wrapping up some client work. So nice to see the girls flying along early in the season and being responsive to momentum during the game!

Thank you for solving this mystery for me, It's Time for Another!!! I have often walked past and wondered about it. That's my kind of fanaticism!

And included in that you can choose between a tote bag or water bottle! 😁

There's a church (of all things?!) in Surry Hills, Sydney which has a fence painted in red and blue for our guernsey!

I trust in WCW's intel. Mitch Cleary ain't best friends with Momma Fritsch!

I recommend having your phone and your laptop going on the website, since the queue is not actually a queue. It is randomised acceptance of devices to give the opportunity to purchase a ticket within a 10 min window or something like that! (As in the 10 mins (or whatever number of minutes) starts from when you're randomly accepted and given the opportunity to purchase.)

Watched Aunty Donna's Coffee Cafe last night since one of the main actors, Broden Kelly, is a real Dees nuffie Not bad, some of the absurdism really hits the funny bone but other times is an absolute miss

Although the airport train is pretty handy! Especially for avoiding peak time traffic

Here's an update ahead of game day! Strangely, there was a lot of talk about potato cakes vs potato scallops ??? The honking continues...! Nothing would send a shudder throughout the AFL finals teams more than us delivering a comprehensive win against the top 4 demons. It will give us a great mental edge. We are like the Average Joes team in Dodgeball where the team lost but because someone on the other team got tested positive we were in the final tournament by default. Has a feeling of that sort of a season. Fairytale ending please. Response: and the team starts training most nights with longmire throwing wrenches at them! Last week confirmed we are the feel-good story this season, we've already been pencilled in to win the flag. 😍 Has there ever been less interest in a game thread that could bring us a home final? Bless you poppet - but NO - a win will not stop people saying we shouldn't be in the finals. Response: It’ll give us a counter argument at least lol Awful news. The AFL has responded to the Adelaide goal post embarrassment by giving us: Meredith (2016 GF), Gianfagna (corrupt), and Chamberlain (😡). Thereby ensuring we will be absolutely reamed, presumably to appease the Crows and frothing media pack. Response: Razor Ray gonna give us the make up frees after we cop some from Gianfagna and Meredith 😹😹😹 Further response: TBH i don't think the umps love Melbourne that much. Probably one of the strongest sides we have fielded this year, great test against a good side prior to finals. Keen to see how it plays out. A South Melbourne supporter we can respect Screw it. Decided I'm booking flights to go watch buddy's farewell and a good old shellacking of the dees. Should be a ripping game. Much like us, there are plenty of arguments about resting and form So we go in resting 4 players and get flogged by 10 goals. How does that help anyone's confidence going into a final. We've won 6 in a row so as Barry says, "don't flirt with form". I feel like some of you forget that this is not a dead rubber for us. It's a home final on the line. 6th would be useful. Not a time to be resting players. My favourite (from a discussion about Papley's injury) Buddy retired just so they wouldn't play him injured

Guys, Sydee clearly means it is fine... which incidentally is a long way off good or even great 😁 (As a Melbournian relocated to Sydney... you really do have to go out of your way for a proper cup of joe)

Reckon they're trying to make it accessible for city slickers, especially as we have the opener. 7.30 pm on. Friday in Casey probably wouldn't get a crowd (given working commitments etc) Not ideal from a home ground perspective but hopefully it does mean a big crowd to celebrate our girls!

I accidentally sat with the Swans cheer squad two weeks ago when attending the SCG for the first time (despite living in Syd for the past 18 months). Nobody really reacted for the whole game, or followed the squad leaders' chants, until the last quarter. Was a very strange experience! Especially since I was vocally supporting the Suns 😁

The Red and White Online forum seemed to have some more balanced views on the game, but even then...!

Been a busy week at work, sorry for the delay! Here's a bumper edition of comments from not one... but two Swans forums! BBO, LH, please come back and reassume the mantle :') For Swans, they certainly are crowing First Swans-Melbourne game at the SCG since 2019. As ever I think the Swans best can win it, and they have a few positive psychological factors: at home for the last H&A game, on a winning streak and perhaps a good send-off for the retirees Big game and a potential finals rival . Would send a big warning to the rest of the competition if we can knock them off. I don't believe they are playing at their peak , but we will need a 4 quarter effort . I hope we win so we can shut all the people up who are saying we're lucky to make finals ...and if it's not too much to ask for, Adelaide to lose to West Coast. This next post was followed by some well made points but I'm going to cherry pick it out of context anyway! This is an absolute must win game. No point limping into the finals to be eliminated week 1. Some turned the other cheek... I personally dont think this week matters as much. Id put health and availability over the first week matchup. Well let’s be real we’ve had a fair portion of luck to make it to September anything more is a bonus. We win a final from where we were surely that’s a good result It has to be a Dees goal near the end of the game that gets reviewed before the bounce and comes back..... deelicious! I wouldn't be surprised if Melbourne rest players [...] Not saying they'll tank, but I think they'll tank Response: they have a long storied history of tanking... so it makes sense really Some red and white views about some recent controversies... It's amazing that for all the times we failed throughout the season. We were gifted two wins and effectively got a free pass into finals Dane Rampe defence [...] Little did they realise that they would need to roll out this defence again so soon, and in a week when the club is Public Enemy No 1 after we single-handedly ruined the Crows’ rampant premiership thrust. If we weren't already the scourge of the AFL media before this, the knives will be sharpening as I write. Bwahahahaha. Gil will impose another trade ban on his way out the door the way we’re going. I do feel for McAdam, but it was an accident caused by the last second wicked ball bounce and the comparative stature of the players. Magnifique! Now if we can just get our legal eagles on to helping the goal umpire that was stood down back on the active list and shipped to the SCG that’d be great! These ones made me laugh (About JMac being injured) How dare you mention the dreaded 4-6 weeks!! And this close to finals. Wash your mouth out!! I’d just like to see the boys run through a banner that says: “IT HIT THE POST” No one should be re-posting from the Crows board - its against BF rules. But they are going nuts on twitter right now. Its hilarious. [Editor's note: cue a page of gifs aping the Crows board meltdown] Spare a thought for Melbourne though, whose game last week was arguably more intense and difficult than ours. I heard they're so distraught over the Finn Maginness tag on Clayton Oliver that both player and coach might be taking personal leave this week. Watch this space My least fave since Grundy is my fave 🙃 Hope someone remembers to give Grundy a tour of the new training facilities and a couple of good Sydney cafes while he’s in town.

Not too much happening on the Hawks board, mainly focused on their own player movements They don't seem to have HFCSS... We need this scalp because it will instill enormous belief and help drive the preseason knowing we have the measure of the premiership favourites. They had a brutal finals like game so we can only hope they’re a little banged up from it. Let's be honest, if Dee's are serious about contending then they take care of us on Sunday Pondering today how we can win this, and I can't find a way with the expected absentees. Would be happy to kick 10 goals. Could be a nil all draw as Melbourne's forwardine is hardly scary I’m at the stage now where I expect us to win every game lol. Probably getting ahead of myself. These guys tore us a new one last time, so really fascinated to see how our midfield goes this time against a very good, physical one. Gawn usually smashes us around the ground and if we can't avoid kicking down the line at least provide a contest and make him earn it - some unsociable rib massages wouldn't go astray. About some injury rumours for the Hawks... Mind games. Messin’ with the Demons’ heads. Response: Its only fair we rest one or two of them , we want to give the Dees a punchers chance in this one. Further response: Heavy training block My favourite Gawn 200 games this game. FML. Response: We will kick it to him 200 times to celebrate it Further response: Surprised WE dont name him at CHF

Truly so excited for the Sydney game and the various states we'll get ourselves into 😂 I've done too much running around recently and not been able to join in the festivities afterwards, so very keen for next Sunday to kick on! Especially since this time I can't miss my accommodation check in hahaha

If you get your membership sorted, this weekend the seats in M3 (after the volunteering rows WCW mentioned) are unreserved! It's always great fun and everyone's very friendly in the squad 😊

Has this man ever worn a beanie before?! 😂

Deliberately arranged for the bait and switch... it increases in order of Hawkish confidence 😂 except for the accidental inclusion of the one about Brocky, that should be below

According to my colleague who is a WAFL umpire, they have two apps to assist in reviewing performance. The apps have time stamped footage of all the calls from a game made by an umpire with specific comments about the calls made and suggestions for improvement, and also communications about umpiring principles and the like. Assume that AFL would have something similar!

Buckle up, crash helmets on, let's dive through... only 4 pages of content? Guess Hawk fans aren't the most enthusiastic at the moment! Those who are posting seem keen for a win against us It'll be a big challenge, the Dee's have the best midfield and the best ruck in the comp. Walking away breakeven out of the middle would be a massive win in my book. I sense another win incoming. If we get this, it will be the first time we've won 3 games in a row since July 2022. Setting us up to potentially win 4 in a row (in a single season) for the first time since August 2018. (We won our last 3 in 2019 and first game in 2020) Worst top 4 in my lifetime. We’re a big chance again this week. GO HAWKS. I reckon we win this one Response: By plenty. Get the feeling we may now play 4 talls. Interesting times. Also reckon our midfield is keen to take this scalp on the way out. Response: Beating 3 out of the top 4 will give a lot of confidence going into next season. If the reports from the Box Hill game are correct and Brocky couldn't be bothered then we can't reward that behaviour with a game in the 1s just in the hope it might keep a promising player at our club especially against a team like Melbourne. Some discussion about players and the like Lever and May (and Gawn) are very hard to get past. We always seem to kick it straight to them. If the game plan is to bomb long to 4 talls... we will get slaughtered. We need fast, precise ball movement. Use the angles. Keep possession. Ryan should come in for Lewis. We know Lewis is a no brainer.......... Lewis to play high up the ground at CHF roaming at will as lever doesn't like leaving D50 to take intercept marks so have kozi doubling back to lever when in transition. I really like to see that set up and it works best with Ryan more than Denver Re Lewis being out for injury: This bloke is made of tissue paper Someone has been reading Demonland... Hopefully with our new look midfield we don’t spend all game kicking it straight to Gawn. Or the dees just play Grundy as well. He seems to do a fine job nullifying Gawn just by being out there. My fave (for the vocab use) Ryan has had the flu for 5 days now. Doesn't augur well.

I'm not sure if we didn't give enough respect or if we simply had our balance off from various forced and unforced changes. Obviously Clarry is great, but our midfield seemed a little less settled (eg Sparrow seemed less certain of his role), plus the combo of Smith back early and Grundy up forward... altogether seemed to upset us a little. Going to watch the replay tomorrow when sober and see what's what though

On a different note, please can we never put Smith in the backline again. I understand we need to keep Hibbo fresh, but Smith is too unpredictable up back. He is much better off using his athleticism to advantage in the forward line.

Watch by yourself, preserve your sanity Layzie!