Skuit

Preuss steps in to play a hugely important role in our most critical and convincing win in close to two years. Demonlanders gather around to discuss his trade value.

Peeps have the 2018 vibes. Shock therapy and then on a run. I've also got 2017. We exactly played the Pies and Dogs in rounds 12 & 13 from memory. Beat the Pies (thanks Jack) and mashed the Dogs but mounting injuries and a heavy travel schedule derailed the season. Prevail my beloved. Probably the one and only season where it doesn't matter where you finish in the eight. Get there boys. Tear it up. [censored] yes!. 2020! Will also probably come down to final game. Vs Essondon. We're ready this time.

Dazzle, please. Agree otherwise.

Post-game glow fading. Wish I had little Charlie Spargo next to me so I could ruffle his hair a little bit.

I'll take it.

The girl you ditch before first bounce when you learn she has allegiance to the Pies. What's the sporting equivalent of misogyny?

Part-time girlfriend at half-time wants to switch to the Dees. Told her there would be some sort of hazing/initiation ceremony involved. Over to you Uncle Bitters.

Pre-game mocking us. Kill them Dees!

Ten minutes to game-time. I will bid adieu to the game-day thread now (because y'all complete psychopaths but I still love you all). See you on the other side boys and girls. Go Dees. [censored] the Wobbles!!!

They're pretty easy to fill when you don't actually have a real job.

I started my taxes and finished them in the first 10 mins.

Got too drunk during the day and missed the Gold Coast game. Still adjusting to Australia time. On the border-line now. Need some suggestions how I can fill up one hour of my life until kick-off. Go:

I hope this can stay between me and the few thousand people who post on here. Thanks to [censored] coronavirus I've started dating a new girl who is legacy Collingwood due to an ex. I've nearly flipped her. My last three partners were in the didn't-give-a-[censored] category due to foreign origins. I feel that this match is both crucial for our season and my short-term future sexual happiness. Like if she displayed a Wobbles' scarf on Tinder I would never have swiped right. I feel cheated. Anyway, amusingly, she's missing a couple teeth. She also has a PhD. She's aware of the contradiction. Go Dees.

2018. Got sucked into supporting Ajax again (last time was up until about 1997: Kluivert). MFC + Ajax: young, dynamic confident teams based on high pressure and creative offensive freedom building up steam only to to hit a solid brick-wall. Heart-breaking.

Champion. Thanks AF. Most of those highlights were from HF (I understand the position provides more natural highlights) but loved the tackles.

I've maintained that Christian is always better on the angry pills. Recently scanning the 2017/18 threads on another matter and reflecting on those games reinforces that opinion. A super-tough kid but currently playing like Watts - in the sense that while Watts was a nice kick I always considered it overrated due to Jack commonly taking the short and safe option. Both players are capable of breaking across a line though. Never thought much of Salem as a pure defender (and always considered HF was his go) but he seems to have improved lately. Next step is taking the game on a little more as Hibberd and co. move toward retirement and take up other roles. Edit: where do I find this 100-game highlight package? I switched to some tree-planting search engine and it's lacking somewhat . . .

Yup. Don't get sucked into the contest AmDam. It's a no-win sitch.

A TLDR reiteration from the above. Big congrats to Christian Salem on his 100th match today. Next in the frame for 2020/2021 Petracca: 95 / Oliver: 92 / Brayshaw: 90 / Bennell: 88 / Lever: 85 / Langdon: 78 The received wisdom that players start hitting their straps/feeling like they belong from the 80-game mark on (was that Roos?) comes from a single source from another era as far as I can recall. The big stat in my mind: Oliver and Harmes are now #3 and #4 in consecutive games played. Brayshaw, Trac and Langdon also sit in the top-20. This is invaluable. The core builds and learns together. #dynasty.

The expanded one dozen things I would like to see vs. the Pies: 1. Out and out just a victory please, preferably hard fought against quality opposition to instill genuine confidence and put the competition on notice. Also to shut up Dr. D and co. 2. The victory to be again led by Oliver and Petracca, with both working well in tandem. These two need to be aware and accept that our team’s ultimate fortunes now revolve around them. 3. Weid. Contested marking. I don’t actually care that much if he kicks straight at this stage, but keep taking contested marks and building the confidence one-on-one and in crashing packs. 4. Fritsch on the other hand. Kick straight dammit. If he had converted just five of his 15 missed shots he’d be top six in the Coleman with a game in hand. His kicking motion is mostly fine. (What ifs. But he could be such a dangerous player and difficult match-up if he better capitalised on his chances. In the conversation and opposition commits greater resources. Get mobile.) 5. Pickett with his first bag of three or more. Wouldn’t describe as graceful but another wacky dance move would be a bonus treat. Probably helps that even he doesn’t seem to know what he’s up to. 6. Someone to remind Eliot that Pickett likely wouldn’t be playing for us if Eliot had signed on with Melbourne. Jamie as such to struggle to get near it all day and Lockhart to shine. 7. Pies have won the equal-most first quarters and we’ve won the most final quarters. Let’s flip the script and hold them early or at least tick over our own scoreboard in the first stanza. 8. On that note: come out hard, akin to the intensity vs. Carlton. Hunt in packs. Put in some early hurt on their key play-makers. Paging AVB, Viney, and Preuss. Braydon is a horrible name: seek revenge. 9. Brayshaw/Harmes/Viney. I doubt fans of other teams would spend as much time pondering trading out such attributes/talents. We need to find the balance to fit in all of the above. Do it now. 10. TMac to stay out of the way - some tackles like last week. Melksham to try a bit more. Jones to hit some shots from around the arc. I’m getting sick of wasting my breath and hold little hope. 11. I’m digging Langdon. It feels strange to have a bona fide wingman. I want another one (Hunt should spend all his days learning). On the flip: we need to curtail Sidebottom. Always kills us. 12. Like many on here I have a soft spot for Dunn. Wasn’t happy at his sidelining in favour of Oscar at the time. But there’s some weird anger from our seniors toward Lynden. May it continue please. Bonus shout out to Salem on his 100th. Easy to forget that he’s also had to overcome some adversity. Should maybe be dominating a bit more but is a solid performer with next-level potential. Congrats Christian. A 24-point win will do me.

I'm packing the car to Cairns. Pretty confident I can get into Cazalys with or without a ticket.

On a side note. The Carlton vs Suns match in Darwin sold out in roughly ten minutes. Not sure how many tickets were on sale but the 12,000 capacity has been reduced. Almost no hope of getting into Essendon v Richmond and my brief thought of a road-trip to Traeger (~7,000) to see the Demons is looking shaky. I'm sure our Victorian-based posters on here will have little sympathy though.

Why have they fixtured this as a night game? Not a biggie - and the clubs could have asked for it - but the day matches are glorious and it seems like a lost opportunity to best showcase the region when international eyeballs may still be heightened. They'll have to put a fluoro reflector on the boundary tree so no one runs into it.

Strange commentary. Weid finally starts playing well and hitting his straps. Conclusion: we developed him poorly?

Question: what happened to Jack overhead? I recall him taking some decent contested marks in his earlier years but that seems to have evaporated now. Is my memory wrong?

Anyway. I have no idea why you'd think I'd be looking for a convenient argument. Demonland isn't battle-stations where we pick a side and fight it out. I would really like some solution to what I think is a midfield issue for our team and don't know the answer - and as such I'm interested in hearing all sorts of opinions and ideas. But I'm not convinced Viney can make it as a forward based on the available evidence. You're right though - my argument was far from convincing. I don't always have the energy to dive into the records to back up a statement. In fact - the one game that I can vaguely recall Viney starting forward (somewhere around the middle of 2018 - maybe in Darwin?) he actually did quite well. Just as Oliver has done well once or twice resting forward. But on the entire body of evidence he hasn't got much of it when playing up forward. Maybe an extended stint will change that. I'm not convinced. We will probably never know.