Whispering_Jack

On this day, we played and beat North Melbourne in Vancouver to finish on top of the world.

We have it slightly differently on our lists as we have James Jordon back as a rookie which is where he started at the end of last year's draft period. This gets us to:- Primary List: 32 Rookie List: Category A 6 At the National Draft we would uplift JJ to the Primary List and presumable draft 3 players and still have room for an A rookie.

The South Australian Combine was held at the weekend and Central District’s Leek Alleer was the star with a national record Combine record in the Running Vertical Jump at SA’s AFL Combine. He registered a staggering 107cm while leaping off his left foot at the University of SA’s Mawson Lakes Campus. The 196cm 20-year-old placed first in all three Vertical Jump categories. Melbourne's NT NGA Andy Moniz-Wakefield was in attendance and placed in the running vertical jump (right foot). COMBINE RESULTS 20m Sprint Player Club Time (Seconds) Harvey Harrison (North) 2.845 Hugh Stagg (Glenelg) 2.910 Jordan Lukac (Eagles) 2.980 Luca Whitelum Central 3.007 Morgan Ferres (Sturt) 3.015 Agility Test Player Club Time (Seconds) Alastair Lord (Norwood) 7.94 Cooper Beeken (Glenelg) 8.07 Ronald Fejo (West) 8.08 Cooper Murley (Norwood) 8.20 Hugh Stagg (Glenelg) 8.24 2km Time Trial Player Club Time (Minutes) Shay Linke (Central) 6.22 Luca Whitelum (Central 6.26 Luke Beecken (Eagles) 6.26 Harvey Harrison (North) 6.37 Alastair Lord (Norwood) 6.48 Running Vertical Jump - Left Foot Player Club Height Leek Allir (Central) 1.07cm (Combine record) Morgan Ferres (Sturt) 85cm Jase Burgoyne (Eagles) 85cm Cooper Murley (Norwood) 82cm Jason Horne-Francis (South) 82cm Running Vertical Jump - Right Foot Player Club Height Leek Allir (Central 90cm Cooper Murley (Norwood) 77cm Zac Becker (Sturt) 77cm Blayne O'Loughlin (North) 75cm Andy Moniz-Wakefield (NT) 73cm Standing Vertical Jump Player Club Height Leek Alleer (Central) 75cm Ronald Fejo (West) 70cm Harvey Harrison (North) 70cm Jason Horne-Francis (South) 66cm Jordan Lukac (Eagles) 66cm

This is such a closely knit bunch that you couldn’t see anyone wanting to give it away at this point. I’d be surprised if he doesn’t continue for another 12 months. The need for some flexibility in dealing with the list and availability of players to come in will probably mean that Hore and Declase will be delisted. One or both could be offered a place depending on how things work out at draft time.

I suspect that in the actual draft there will be more clubs passing and less selections overall. I can see Melbourne taking only 2 or 3 picks in the draft given the number of players it’s retained. Michael Hibberd should take up a one year contract and one of Marty Hore or Kye Declase being the unlucky one to miss out.

Is there a problem with him?

I agree entirely with this and recruiting well, developing and retaining your playing lists is exactly the antidote to what was commonly referred to as “Norm Smith’s Curse”. The real curse for Melbourne was that although we were industrious in building up our list during the first part of the golden era of the 50s/60s, we grew fat and old and failed to work hard enough at recruiting in the early 60s. When the veterans grew old and started to get injured more often and/or retired, their replacements weren’t good enough and we went downhill. We’re at a different stage to all that but recruiting and player development should never lose their importance. It’s interesting that we have threads at the moment on Demonland discussing aspects of the decline of Hawthorn and problems at Geelong. I read today that it’s former Geelong and North Melbourne champion goalkicker Doug Wade’s 80th birthday. Before he started his career at the Cats in 1961, Wade did a preseason at Melbourne under Norm Smith and was sent home. This happened to a few others who we didn’t think would make it. Kevin Sheedy was in our metropolitan zone but we cut him loose. Our dynasty could have lasted a lot longer but we dropped the ball and, as a poster said above, we took things for granted.

The Cats have been a strong side for a long time now and this is one of its legacies. We shouldn’t forget that on this weekend exactly 12 months ago they became the red hot favourites to win the flag after handing out a 40 point flogging to Brisbane at the Gabba. Players like Constable weren’t getting a look in and the club’s response to their eventual grand final defeat was to go to the marketplace and pick up three more experienced players. They became fat cats and neglected their young blood and now the likes of Clark, Constable, Fort and a few others have gone. Sure, the knock on Constable might be his tank but you need to ask why that’s a problem after four years when the bloke has the ability to get his hands on the footy. Anyway, the Cats don’t believe that coaching or the game plan is the issue because they’ve extended Scott’s contract.

My understanding is that clubs have to sign up their wanted players by the end of October when they lodge their lists. Unless this has changed, the club would have to enter into new contracts with the 3 unsigned players or they become delisted free agents. Clubs would then have to decide whether to tell the players that they will redraft them at the National or Rookie Draft as the case may be depending on what happens on the day. We’ve already flagged that we’re offering a contract to Michael Hibberd but there’s be no word on the others. My guess is that there’s a balancing act going on and we’ll find out soon enough.

I’m “stealing” my theme for today from the Mongrel Punt article entitled "Where the Dees get even better in 2022" although I actually came across the idea earlier and from a slightly different perspective. There used to be a saying that the “premiership glow” doesn’t last forever i.e at some stage after a team tastes the ultimate in success, the celebration of the victory comes to an end, at which point it’s time to start thinking of what comes next. You’ve reached the crossroads. The question becomes one of coming down from the high of a premiership with the same hunger that you had in the past, to ensure thad you don’t develop a lot of swollen heads and end up going backwards? And how can you get even better?

Some Demonlanders out there will remember the brief appearance of a group of Melbourne Next Generation Academy players at preseason at Gosch’s Paddock in December 2019. The standout was a strongly built tall ruckman, Deakin Pereira who mixed it with the likes of Max Gawn and Braydon Preuss in the ruck and held himself in good stead against the Demons’ tall timber. We were hoping that the young Pereira would try out for a place in the 2020 national draft but Deakin had a long-held dream of making it in the world of professional basketball at its highest level in the USA. Over the past 20 months or so he’s gone a long way to achieving that dream despite the fact that our world is a far different place than it was back then. I reached out to Deakin’s biggest fans, his parents Kylie and Ryan, and they filled me in on his movements in the interim. They report that he’s made it through the world-wide Covid19 storm and is finishing his last year of high school. He has just achieved his first aim by securing a scholarship to a major division 1 college - California State University, Fullerton which is a leading campus of CSU and which serves as an intellectual and cultural center for Southern California. Sholarships are few and far between and Deakin was good enough to get one. He stands around 6 foot 9 inches tall (206cm) and is looking very strong. He says he can’t wait to go to college where he will beef up even more. If things don’t work out, you never know, he might be back at Gosch’s Paddock battling out with our premiership pair of ruckmen one day but in the meantime, we’re looking forward to seeing him proceed to a different draft in the NBA, possibly to join the growing band of Aussies there. Then it could be on to the Olympics in Paris in three year’s time. We all know now how well Demons go in Olympic years.😀 Anyway, Deakin can rest assured that there’s an army of Demons fans following his fortunes in sunny California. Good luck!

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The problem with ruck prospects is that the cupboard is bare. There’s Mac Andrew who is viewed as a longish term fix as a ruckman at best and there’s the Geelong Falcons’ Toby Conway and very little else. If clubs are desperate to infuse ruck talent, they’re going to have to pay overs. Otherwise, wait till next year.

I’ve been watching some of the replays of matches on the Fox Footy Channel including the mini matches. So far, Dunstan’s kicking hasn’t been as problematic as I anticipated. In fact one of his kicks to Max King was a great pass. There were lots of other examples. It wouldn’t surprise if it gets even better when he’s done a preseason with the team.

I thought very much the same and in fact, believed we were on track earlier this year when we were on the eve of the finals. Fingers crossed for this year that the competition can get a smooth start in January.

The AFL’s official trade period for 2021 is done and dusted but there’s still one commodity that remains open for trading all the way up to and including the two draft nights on 24 & 25 November. That is, trading which does not involve players but rather, draft picks. From Monday until a week before the draft, the AFL clubs will be able to trade their existing picks and they can do likewise during the progress of the actual draft. Collingwood is one club that is actually keen to trade its first pick (#27) according to a report on p88 of today’s Herald Sun by Sam Landsberger entitled “Pies still in trade game” (no link available due to paywall). He’s suggesting that the “Magpies are set to spend the next four weeks hitting the phones – to rival clubs …. ”. No doubt, one of the calls will be made to Melbourne’s list guru who has indicated that he’s keen to improve its list position and, in what appears to be a level draft pool, a deal could lead to the mutual benefit of both clubs.

A little flashback to the not so distant past. This is round 23 v Geelong at GMHBA Stadium and highlights Clarrie’s two goals. The first is quite amazing, like Moses he parts the Red Sea and finds the way to the goals. It’s not as if it’s accidental - he’s done it a few times in the past couple of seasons. How does he do it?

Blake Howes would make a very competent understudy for Bayley Fritsch and could be available for our second selection at 39. Comes from the Sandringham Dragons which has been a strong club over the past decade or so.

I hope the fact that he failed to make the cut at Melbourne hasn’t soured relations between Jeff and the club. He always seemed pretty happy as a Demon.

Kevin Sheehan reveals his top NAB AFL Draft Prospects: Medium forwards

… and 26 to 52

Ed Pascoe has also had a crack at a Phantom Draft. Here’s the first 25 selections:-

@rollinson 65 - are you good for a comeback to manage?

@Ash35 is a long time and respected Demonland poster. He’s also respectful of others and is welcome to post here at any time. And given that this is “The Bobby Hill Thread” he was fully on topic. Thanks.

I’ve never been one to really get involved in the discussion about who won the trade period because it’s such a useless exercise. As we all know, the proof of the pudding etc. and it’s about who you end up drafting and how you develop the players you draft so that we’ll never really know until we’re years down the track. However, I think it’s worth pointing out that Melbourne’s trading effort yielded the player who received more Brownlow votes than any other traded. In fact, 10 more than the player considered by many as the prize of the trade period. Let that sink in.