Whispering_Jack

Does anyone else think that this year’s Grand Final Eve Public Holiday is ridiculous? There’s no room for the usual grand final parade or festivities with the game being played in the Republic of Queensland. And besides that, Melbourne in the midst of its Covid-19 lockdown won’t be a place for celebration, especially if the 5k limit is still in place.

Long, long time ago ... MELBOURNE B Jay Lockhart Oscar McDonald Neville Jetta HB Josh Wagner Sam Frost Christian Salem C Jayden Hunt Clayton Oliver Nathan Jones HF James Harmes Sam Weideman Kade Kolodjashnij F Angus Brayshaw Tom McDonald Jake Melksham FOLL Max Gawn Christian Petracca Jack Viney I/C Bayley Fritsch Michael Hibberd Alex Neal-Bullen Corey Wagner EMG Harrison Petty Braydon Preuss Tom Sparrow Billy Stretch IN Corey Wagner Josh Wagner OUT Steven May (injured) Tom Sparrow (omitted) ESSENDON B Aaron Francis Patrick Ambrose Conor McKenna HB Kobe Mutch Michael Hurley Adam Saad C Orazio Fantasia Zach Merrett Andrew McGrath HF Jake Stringer Zac Clarke Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti F Devon Smith Shaun McKernan Mark Baguley FOL Tom Bellchambers David Zaharakis Dylan Shiel I/C Matt Guelfi Dyson Heppell David Myers Darcy Parish EMG Mitch Brown Sam Draper Kyle Langford Jordan Ridley IN Zac Clarke Kobe Mutch OUT Mitch Brown (omitted) Kyle Langford (omitted)

Tomorrow, I will be 100% behind Clarko and the Hawks to pull off the upset of the year.

The Cats led Magpies through the first half of the 1964 Preliminary Final and, but for their inaccuracy in front of goal, would have set up a grand final encounter with Demons. In the end, the scoreboard told the story and the season was over for the 1963 premiers - Collingwood 7.6.48 defeated Geelong 5.14.44. Earlier in the day, it was the Demons’ greater accuracy for goal that saw them into the Under 19s grand final with an 18 point win over the Tigers. 1964 Under 19s Preliminary Final Melbourne vs Richmond Saturday, 12 September Venue: MCG Attendance: 87,091 Melbourne 1.4.10 6.5.41 10.6.66 14.7.91 Richmond 4.4.28 7.7.49 8.11.59 10.13.73 B Bird Millard Stewart HB Adams Brodie Griffith C Rineholdt Feldman Pritchard HF Minton-Connell T Leahy Stone F Jones McNab, Little Foll Russell McNamee Schultz 19/20 Rowarth D'Arcy Emg J Osborne Coutts Lockwood Wight Goals Little 4 McNab Schultz 3 Russell 2, Feldman Jones Best Adams Little Feldman

Is it the end of the line or one more lurch forward to an unlikely redemption?

I have an idea. Why not pick a team as close as possible to the one that represented Melbourne the last time we played at the Gabba? It was against Collingwood and we beat them by 56 points. This was the team:- MELBOURNE FB Michael Hibberd Steven May Jay Lockhart HB Christian Salem Jake Lever Nathan Jones C Ed Langdon Clayton Oliver Adam Tomlinson HF Jake Melksham Tom McDonald Bayley Fritsch FF Christian Petracca Sam Weideman Kysaiah Pickett FOL Braydon Preuss Angus Brayshaw Jack Viney I/C James Harmes Charlie Spargo Tom Sparrow Aaron vandenBerg EMG Mitch Brown Mitch Hannan Jayden Hunt Joel Smith Only three players - Jones, Brayshaw and Harmes are unavailable through injury and I would have Max Gawn in the side instead of Braydon Preuss. The three to add would be Brown, Hannan and Rivers. That makes my changes for this week:- IN Brown Hannan Lockhart T McDonald Spargo Sparrow OUT Baker Bedford Hunt Neal-Bullen Preuss Smith It looks better to me on paper than the team we sent out against the Dockers. Let’s see how it goes on grass.

1 PORT ADELAIDE Played 15, 48 pts, 131.4% TO COME: Essendon Collingwood 2 BRISBANE LIONS Played 15, 48 pts, TO COME Sydney Carlton 122.1% 3 GEELONG Played 15, 44 pts, 145.1% TO COME Richmond Sydney 4 RICHMOND Played 15, 42 pts, 123.6% TO COME Geelong Adelaide 5 WEST COAST Played 15, 40 pts, 115.1% TO COME St Kilda North Melbourne 6 COLLINGWOOD Played 15, 34 pts, 110.1% TO COME Gold Coast Port Adelaide 7 ST KILDA Played 15, 36 pts, 113.9% TO COME West Coast GWS Giants 8 GWS GIANTS Played 15, 32 points, 101.2 TO COME Melbourne St Kilda 9 W. BULLDOGS Played 15, 32 points, 100.3% TO COME Hawthorn Fremantle 10 MELBOURNE Played 15, 28 points, 106.1 TO COME GWS Giants Essendon 11 CARLTON Played 15, 28 points, 97.0% TO COME Adelaide Brisbane Lions 12 ESSENDON Played 15, 26 points, 82.9% TO COME Port Adelaide Melbourne 13 FREMANTLE Played 15, 24 points, 88.7% TO COME North Melbourne Western Bulldogs 14 GOLD COAST Played 15, 22 points, 96.7% TO COME Collingwood Hawthorn 15 SYDNEY Played 15, 20 points, 84.1% TO COME Brisbane Lions Geelong 16 HAWTHORN Played 15, 16 points, 80.7% TO COME Western Bulldogs Gold Coast 17 NORTH MELBOURNE Played 15, 12 points, 74.6% TO COME Fremantle West Coast 18 ADELAIDE Played 15, 8 points, 62.7% TO COME Carlton Richmond

If anyone’s expecting Gold Coast to come to our aid to beat Collingwood in the event that we beat GWS - forget it.

ADELAIDE  In: Sam Berry (Gippsland Power) James Borlase (Adelaide NGA) Brayden Cook (South Adelaide) Ben Davis (prelisted rookie) Bryce Gibbs (®) Jackson Hately (GWS Giants) Mitch Hinge (Brisbane) David Mackay (prelisted rookie) Tariek Newchurch (Adelaide NGA) Luke Pedlar (Glenelg) Riley Thilthorpe (West Adelaide) Out: Rory Atkins (Gold Coast Suns) Ben Crocker (not retained) Brad Crouch (St Kilda) Ben Davis (delisted/moving to rookie list) Jordan Gallucci (delisted) Bryce Gibbs (retired) Kyle Hartigan (Hawthorn) Riley Knight (delisted) David Mackay (delisted/moving to rookie list) Myles Poholke (delisted) Ayce Taylor (delisted) Patrick Wilson (not retained) BRISBANE LIONS In: Connor Ballendon (prelisted rookie) Grant Birchall (®) Nakia Cockatoo (Geelong) Blake Coleman (Morningside) Joe Daniher (Essendon) Tom Fullarton (promoted rookie) Rhys Mathieson (prelisted rookie) Carter Michael (Brisbane Lions Academy) Harry Sharp (GWV Rebels) Henry Smith (Woodville-West Torrens) Deividas Uosis (international) Out: Jacob Allison (not retained) Connor Ballenden (delisted/moving to rookie list) Grant Birchall (delisted/moving to rookie list) Allen Christensen (retired) Cedric Cox (delisted) Matt Eagles (not retained) Mitch Hinge (Adelaide) Corey Lyons (not retained) Stefan Martin (Western Bulldogs) Rhys Mathieson (delisted/moving to rookie list) Sam Skinner (not retained) Alex Witherden (West Coast Eagles) Toby Wooller (delisted) CARLTON In: Eddie Betts (prelisted rookie) Jack Carroll (East Fremantle) Corey Durdin (Central District) Lachlan Fogarty (Geelong) Michael Gibbons (promoted rookie) Luke Parks (Glenelg ®) Adam Saad (Essendon) Zac Williams (GWS Giants) Out: Eddie Betts (delisted/moving to rookie list) Hugh Goddard (not retained) Matt Kennedy (delisted/moving to rookie list) Matthew Kreuzer (retired) Darcy Lang (delisted) Harrison Macreadie (delisted) Callum Moore (not retained) Finbar O’Dwyer (delisted) Matthew Owies (delisted) Fraser Phillips (not retained) Cam Polson (delisted) Ben Silvagni (delisted) Kade Simpson (retired) COLLINGWOOD In: Isaac Chugg (Launceston ®) Jack Ginnivan (Bendigo Pioneers ®) Oliver Henry (Geelong Falcons) Finlay Macrae (Oakleigh Chargers) Beau McCreery (South Adelaide) Reef McInnes (Oakleigh Chargers) Liam McMahon (Northern Knights) Jack Madgen (promoted rookie) Brody Mihocek (promoted rookie) Caleb Poulter (Woodville-West Torrens) Out: Flynn Appleby (not retained) Dayne Beams (retired) Atu Bosenavulagi (North Melbourne) Tim Broomhead (not retained) Lynden Dunn (retired) Tom Langdon (retired) Tom Phillips (Hawthorn) Ben Reid (retired) Matthew Scharenberg (delisted) Jaidyn Stephenson (North Melbourne) Adam Treloar (Western Bulldogs) Travis Varcoe (retired) Rupert Wills (delisted) ESSENDON In: Cody Brand (Calder Cannons) Jye Caldwell (GWS Giants) Dylan Clarke (®) Nikolas Cox (Northern Knights) Josh Eyre (Calder Cannons) Martin Gleeson (®) Nick Hind (St Kilda) Archie Perkins (Sandringham Dragons) Zach Reid (Gippsland Power) Peter Wright (Gold Coast Suns) Out: Josh Begley (delisted) Tom Bellchambers (retired) Dylan Clarke (delisted/moving to rookie list) Henry Crauford (not retained) Joe Daniher (Brisbane) Orazio Fantasia (Port Adelaide) Marty Gleeson (delisted/moving to rookie list) Noah Gown (delisted) Mitch Hibberd (not retained) Conor McKenna (retired) Shaun McKernan (St Kilda) Kobe Mutch (delisted) Adam Saad (Carlton) Jacob Townsend (Gold Coast Suns) FREMANTLE In: Bailey Banfield (®) Brett Bewley (prelisted rookie) Heath Chapman (West Perth) Nathan O’Driscoll (Perth) Lachie Schultz (prelisted rookie) Josh Treacy (Bendigo Pioneers ®) Brandon Walker (East Fremantle) Joel Western (Claremont) Out: Bailey Banfield (delisted/moving to rookie list) Brett Bewley (delisted/moving to rookie list) Isaiah Butters (not retained) Jason Carter (not retained) Hugh Dixon (not retained) Jesse Hogan (GWS Giants) Cam McCarthy (delisted) Brandon Matera (delisted) Tom North (delisted) Dillon O'Reilly (delisted/not retained) Jarvis Pina (not retained) Lachie Schultz (delisted/moving to rookie list) GEELONG Jeremy Cameron (GWS Giants) Shaun Higgins (North Melbourne) Max Holmes (Sandringham Dragons) Shannon Neale (South Fremantle) Isaac Smith (Hawthorn) Nicholas Stevens (GWV Rebels) Paul Tsapatolis (3 year non registered) Out: Gary Ablett (retired) Nakia Cockatoo (Brisbane) Lachlan Fogarty (Carlton) Jacob Kennerley (delisted) James Parsons (delisted) Blake Schlensog (not retained) Jack Steven (retired) Jake Tarca (delisted) Harry Taylor (retired) GOLD COAST SUNS In: Rory Atkins (Adelaide) Conor Budarik (promoted rookie) Alex Davies (GCS Academy ®) Aiden Fyfe (GCS Academy ®) Jarrod Harbrow (prelisted rookie) Elijah Hollands (Murray Bushrangers) Nick Holman (promoted rookie) Jack Hombsch (®) Joel Jeffrey (GCS Academy ®) Oleg Markov (Richmond) Jordan Murdoch (Gold Coast Academy ®) Hawego Pul Oea (international scholarship) Rhys Nicholls (GCS Academy ®) Malcolm Rosas Jnr (promoted rookie) Zac Smith (prelisted rookie) Jacob Townsend (Essendon ®) Out: Jacob Dawson (not retained) Corey Ellis (delisted) Sam Fletcher (not retained) Pearce Hanley (retired) Jarrod Harbrow (delisted/moving to rookie list) Jacob Heron (not retained) Jack Hombsch (delisted/moving to rookie list) George Horlin-Smith (retired) Jesse Joyce (delisted) Rhys Mathieson (delisted) Anthony Miles (retired) Jordan Murdoch (delisted/moving to rookie list) Mitch Riordan (not retained) Josh Schoenfeld (not retained) Zac Smith (delisted/moving to rookie list) Peter Wright (Essendon) GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY In: Ryan Angwin (Gippsland Power) Tanner Bruhn (Geelong Falcons) Jack Buckley (promoted rookie) Matt Buntine (prelisted rookie) Cameron Fleeton (Geelong Falcons) Jesse Hogan (Fremantle) Daniel Lloyd (prelisted rookie) Braydon Preuss (Melbourne) Sam Reid (®) Will Shaw (GWS Academy) Zach Sproule (®) Connor Stone (Oakleigh Chargers) Jacob Wehr (Woodville-West Torrens) Out: Matt Buntine (delisted/moving to rookie list) Jye Caldwell (Essendon) Jeremy Cameron (Geelong) Aidan Corr (North Melbourne) Jackson Hately (Adelaide) Sam Jacobs (retired) Zac Langdon (West Coast) Daniel Lloyd (delisted/moving to rookie list) Shane Mumford (delisted) Sam Reid (delisted/moving to rookie list) Heath Shaw (delisted) Tom Sheridan (retired) Zach Sproule (not retained) Zac Williams (Carlton) HAWTHORN In: Tyler Brockman (Subiaco) Connor Downie (Eastern Ranges) Denver Grainger-Barras (Swan Districts) Kyle Hartigan (Adelaide) Changkuoth Jiath (promoted rookie) Seamus Mitchell (Bendigo Pioneers) Dylan Moore (prelisted rookie) Tom Phillips (Collingwood) Out: James Frawley (St Kilda) Conor Glass (retired) Will Golds (not retained) Ricky Henderson (retired) Harry Jones (not retained) Darren Minchington (not retained) Dylan Moore (delisted/moving to rookie list) Paul Puopolo (retired) Jackson Ross (delisted) Jack Saunders (Norwood ®) Isaac Smith (Geelong) Ben Stratton (retired) Mathew Walker (delisted) MELBOURNE In: Jake Bowey (Sandringham Dragons) Ben Brown (North Melbourne) James Jordan (prelisted rookie) Bailey Laurie (Oakleigh Chargers) Aaron Nietsche (prelisted rookie) Fraser Rosman (Sandringham Dragons) Out: Harley Bennell (not retained) Kyle Dunkley (not retained) Mitch Hannan (Western Bulldogs) James Jordan (delisted/moving to rookie list) Kade Kolodjashnij (retired) Aaron Nietschke (delisted/moving to rookie list) Braydon Preuss (GWS Giants) Oscar McDonald (delisted) Corey Wagner (not retained) Josh Wagner (delisted) NORTH MELBOURNE In: Aidan Corr (GWS Giants) Atu Bosenavulagi (Collingwood) Eddie Ford (Western Jets) Charlie Lazzaro (Geelong Falcons) Connor Menadue (Werribee ®) Will Phillips (Oakleigh Chargers) Tom Powell (Sturt) Phoenix Spicer (South Adelaide) Jaidyn Stephenson (Collingwood) Lachie Young (Western Bulldogs) Patrick Walker (North Hobart ®) Will Walker (prelisted rookie) Out: Paul Ahern (delisted) Ben Brown (Melbourne) Joel Crocker (delisted) Majak Daw (delisted) Sam Durdin (delisted) Lachie Hosie (delisted) Ben Jacobs (delisted) Jamie Macmillan (delisted) Tom Murphy (not retained) Jasper Pittard (delisted) Ed Vickers-Willis (delisted) Marley Williams (delisted) Will Walker (delisted/moving to rookie list) Mason Wood (delisted) PORT ADELAIDE In: Aliir Aliir (Sydney) Orazio Fantasia (Essendon) Tyson Goldsack (Port Adelaide ®) Lachlan Jones (Woodville West-Torrens) Ollie Lord (Sandringham Dragons) Taj Schofield (Woodville West Torrens ®) Out: Joe Atley (delisted) Brad Ebert (retired) Wylie Buzza (delisted) Tobin Cox (not retained) Riley Grundy (not retained) Jake Patmore (delisted) Cam Sutcliffe (not retained) Jack Watts (delisted) Justin Westhoff (retired) RICHMOND In: Liam Baker (promoted rookie) Mate Colina (3 year non registered) Ben Miller (prelisted rookie) Maurice Rioli Junior (Oakleigh Chargers) Samson Ryan (Western Magpies) Out: Derek Eggmolesse-Smith (not retained) Luke English (delisted) Jack Higgins (St Kilda) Oleg Markov (Gold Coast Suns) Ben Miller (delisted/moving to rookie list) Fraser Turner (delisted) Alex Rance (retired) ST KILDA In: Oscar Clavarino (prelisted rookie) Brad Crouch (Richmond) James Frawley (Hawthorn) Jack Higgins (Richmond) Tom Highmore (South Adelaide) Darragh Joyce (prelisted rookie) Shaun McKernan (Essendon) Matthew McLeod-Allison (Calder Cannons) Out: Ryan Abbott (delisted) Logan Austin (delisted) Jack Bell (not retained) Nathan Brown (delisted) Oscar Clavarino (delisted/moving to rookie list) Nick Hind (Essendon) Darragh Joyce (delisted/moving to rookie list) Daulton Langlands (not retained) Jonathon Marsh (not retained) Jack Mayo (not retained) Matthew Parker (delisted) Ed Phillips (delisted) Shane Savage (delisted) SYDNEY SWANS In: Joel Armatey (promoted rookie) Braeden Campbell (Sydney Swans Academy) Malachy Carruthers (Sturt ®) Robbie Fox (prelisted rookie) Sam Gray (prelisted rookie) Errol Gulden (Sydney Swans Academy) Tom Hickey (West Coast Eagles) Logan McDonald (Perth) Marc Sheather (Sydney Swans Academy) Out: Aliir Aliir (Sydney) Zac Foot (delisted) Robbie Fox (delisted) Sam Gray (delisted/moving to rookie list ) Michael Knoll (not retained) Jack Maibaum (not retained) Harry Reynolds (not retained) Brady Rowles (not retained) Ryley Stoddart (delisted) Elijah Taylor (delisted) Jackson Thurlow (delisted) WEST COAST EAGLES In: Harry Edwards (promoted rookie) Luke Edwards (Glenelg) Mark Hutchings (prelisted rookie) Zac Langdon (GWS Giants) Isiah Winder (Peel Thunder) Alex Witherden (Brisbane) Out: Hamish Brayshaw (not retained) Tom Hickey (Sydney) Lewis Jetta (delisted) Mark Hutchings (delisted/moving to rookie list) Mitch O’Neill (not retained) Nic Reid (not retained) Will Schofield (retired) Anthony Treacy (not retained) Zane Trew (Swan Districts ®) Daniel Venables (®) Francis Watson (delisted) WESTERN BULLDOGS In: Dominic Bedendo (Murray Bushrangers) Ben Cavarra (prelisted rookie) Mitch Hannan (Melbourne) Will Hayes (prelisted rookie) Stefan Martin (Brisbane) Roarke Smith (®) Adam Treloar (Collingwood) Jamarra Ugle-Hagan (Oakleigh Chargers) Out: Ben Cavarra (delisted/moving to rookie list) Tory Dickson (retired) Billy Gowers (delisted) Fergus Greene (delisted) Will Hayes (delisted) Sam Lloyd (retired) Brad Lynch (delisted) Lachlan McNeil (Woodville West Torrens ®) Callum Porter (delisted) Roarke Smith (delisted/moving to rookie list) Matt Suckling (delisted) Jackson Trengove (delisted) Lachie Young (North Melbourne)

October 30 to November 6 AFL Free Agency Period November 4 – 12 AFL Trade Period November 25 List Lodgment #1 Nomination of Draft Eligible Father/Son Players Lodged Nomination of Draft Eligible Northern & NGA Academy Players Lodged November 26 AFL Delisted Player Free Agency Period (1) Commences November 29 AFL Delisted Player Free Agency Period (1) Closes November 30 List Lodgment #2 Out of Contract Listed AFL Primary List Players Draft Nomination Form and Player Request for Removal from List Form Lodged with AFL Final date for Primary List delistings December 1 AFL Delisted Player Free Agency Period (2) Commences December 2 AFL Delisted Player Free Agency Period (2) Closes December 3 AFL Trade Period Closes – Selections Only Delisted Primary List Draft Nomination Form Lodgement Non–Retained Rookie Players Draft Nomination Form Lodgement Final Draft Nomination Form Lodgement AFL Father-Son Bidding Nominations lodged with AFL December 9 at 7pm AEDT AFL National Draft December 10 at 12 noon AEDT AFL Pre-Season & Rookie Draft Mid-December Final List Lodgment & Total Player Payment estimates

The Dees were well beaten but at least put up a final quarter fight back to look respectable. MELBOURNE B Jay Lockhart Sam Frost Josh Wagner HB Matt Hore Oscar McDonald Jayden Hunt C Angus Brayshaw Jack Viney Oskar Baker HF Nathan Jones Tom McDonald Harry Petty F Jeff Garlett Tim Smith Christian Petracca FOLL Max Gawn Christian Salem Clayton Oliver I/C Bayley Fritsch James Harmes Billy Stretch Corey Wagner EMG Jordan Lewis Braydon Preuss Charlie Spargo Sam Weideman IN Corey Wagner OUT Alex Neal-Bullen (concussion) GWS GIANTS B Adam Kennedy Phil Davis Nick Haynes HB Heath Shaw Sam Taylor Brett Delidio C Brent Daniels Harry Perryman Lachie Whitfield HF Matt de Boer Harry Himmelberg Toby Greene F Jeremy Finlayson Jeremy Cameron Sam J Reid FOLL Shane Mumford Tim Taranto Josh Kelly I/C Stephen Coniglio Isaac Cumming Jacob Hopper Adam Tomlinson EMG Jackson Hately Lachlan Keeffe Daniel Lloyd Dawson Simpson IN Stephen Coniglio Isaac Cumming OUT Daniel Lloyd (omitted) Zac Williams (hamstring)

It's been put to me that tonight's game is all about whether Melbourne’s players can positively put into effect the learnings that have been pumped into them since they bowed out of season 2018.

He wasn’t invited to the Draft Combine and therefore not likely to be drafted given that lists will be reduced in size next year.

Demon fans enjoying heaven ... Second Semi Final 1964 Melbourne vs Collingwood Saturday 5 September Venue: MCG Attendance: 93,010 B Crompton Massey Tas Johnson HB Anderson Roet Davis C Dixon Williams Adams HF Vagg Jacobs Kenneally F Lord Bourke Townsend Foll Wise Barassi Rov H Mann 19/20 Emselle McLean The strongest rivalry of the 50s and 60s was that between Melbourne and Collingwood and the 1964 Second Semi Final saw the teams evenly matched in the eyes of the football public. The Demons had been the dominant team for most of the season but the Magpies were coming fast. They won the last eight home and away games in a row to set up the match up in the game to determine which side would be first into the grand final. Collingwood jumped out of the blocks early to kick 2.2.14 before Melbourne scored. Bryan Kenneally kicked two goals to put the Demons in front by the narrowest of margins at quarter time but they followed that up with six goals to one in the second term. Melbourne had winners all over the grant and extended its lead to 59 points at the final break and was unrelenting in its dominance in the last. The final winning margin was a massive 89 points, the biggest win to that point of any final in the history of the competition. Rover John Townsend starred with five goals, Kenneally and John Lord with three goals each. Brian Dixon and Hassa Mann joined Townsend in the best three on the ground as the Demons booked their place into their first premiership decider in four years. It was a day for the ages as the rampant Demons put together a string of exciting passages of play that left the Magpies lamenting and licking their wounds and their own fans full of anticipation for an important date in two week’s time. Melbourne 2.3.15 8.7.55 14.13.97 19.20.134 Collingwood 2.2.14 3.6.24 5.8.38 6.9.45 Goals Townsend 5 Kenneally Lord 3 Vagg 3 Barassi H Mann 2 Bourke Best Townsend Dixon Mann Vagg Williams Crompton It wasn’t all bad news for the Magpies as they did taste victory earlier in the day. 1964 Under 19s Semi Final Under 19's Semi Final, 1964 Melbourne vs Collingwood Saturday 5 September Venue: MCG B Bird Millard Jones HB Adams Brodie Griffiths C Rineholdt Feldman Leigh HF Coutts Stone Pritchard F Minton-Connell McNab Wight Foll Russell McNamee Schultz 19/20 Roberts Little Emg J. Osborne Rowarth Lockwood Melbourne led for much of the game but was overpowered in the final quarter. Best for the Demons was Neville Stone. Melbourne 3.2.20 7.5.47 10.7.67 10.10.70 Collingwood 1.5.11 6.8.44 8.10.58 11.13.79 Goals McNabb Schultz 3 McNamee Minton-Connell Stone Wight

1 PORT ADELAIDE Played 14, 44 pts, 128.4% TO COME: North Melbourne Essendon Collingwood 2 BRISBANE LIONS Played 14, 44 pts, 117.7% TO COME Gold Coast Sydney Carlton 3 GEELONG Played 14, 40 pts, 138.7% TO COME Essendon Richmond Sydney 4 RICHMOND Played 15, 42 pts, 123.6% TO COME Bye Geelong Adelaide 5 WEST COAST Played 14, 40 pts, 116.3% TO COME Western Bulldogs St Kilda North Melbourne 6 COLLINGWOOD Played 15, 34 pts, 110.1% TO COME Bye Gold Coast Port Adelaide 7 ST KILDA Played 14, 32 pts, 113.3% TO COME Hawthorn West Coast GWS Giants 8 GWS GIANTS Played 14, 32 points, TO COME Adelaide Melbourne St Kilda 9 MELBOURNE Played 14, 28 points, 108.2% TO COME Fremantle GWS Giants Essendon 10 W. BULLDOGS Played 14, 28 points, 100.1% TO COME West Coast Hawthorn Fremantle 11 ESSENDON Played 14, 26 points, 88.0% TO COME Geelong Port Adelaide Melbourne 12 CARLTON Played 14, 24 points, TO COME Sydney Adelaide Brisbane Lions 13 GOLD COAST Played 14, 22 points, 101.8% TO COME Collingwood Brisbane Lions Hawthorn 14 FREMANTLE Played 14, 20 points, 86.4% TO COME Melbourne North Melbourne Western Bulldogs 15 SYDNEY Played 14, 20 points, 83.6% TO COME Carlton Brisbane Lions Geelong 16 HAWTHORN Played 14, 16 points, 80.5% TO COME St Kilda Western Bulldogs Gold Coast 17 NORTH MELBOURNE Played 14, 12 points, 76.3% TO COME Port Adelaide Fremantle West Coast 18 ADELAIDE Played 14, 4 points, 60.0% TO COME GWS Giants Carlton Richmond

GWS kick the first two goals of the last quarter. Only 3 points down

Melbourne won this game but on the form shown by both of these teams in this round, they would need to lift their game considerably. MELBOURNE B Jay Lockhart Steven May Josh Wagner HB Marty Hore Sam Frost Christian Salem C Nathan Jones Clayton Oliver James Harmes HF Oskar Baker Sam Weideman Jayden Hunt F Mitch Hannan Bayley Fritsch Tom McDonald FOLL Max Gawn Jack Viney Angus Brayshaw I/C Alex Neal-Bullen Christian Petracca Harrison Petty Tim Smith EMG Jordan Lewis Braydon Preuss Charlie Spargo Billy Stretch IN Jay Lockhart Alex Neal-Bullen Harry Petty Tim Smith OUT Jeffrey Garlett (shoulder) Michael Hibberd (collarbone) Jake Lever (knee) Charlie Spargo (omitted) FREMANTLE B Joel Hamling Nathan Wilson Luke Ryan HB Stephen Hill Griffin Logue Brett Bewley C Bradley Hill Nat Fyfe Ed Langdon HF Andrew Brayshaw Brennan Cox Michael Walters F Sam Switkowski Jesse Hogan Brandon Matera FOLL Sean Darcy Reece Conca David Mundy I/C Connor Blakely Taylin Duman Ethan Hughes Darcy Tucker EMG Adam Cerra Travis Colyer Cam McCarthy Lloyd Meek NO CHANGE

As bad as we were in the second quarter, we shot ourselves in the foot in the third. We spent most of the quarter in attack and managed 1 goal 3 to 2 points, a gain of 7 points. A decent side would have had a net gain of 30 points on the basis of the opportunities we had in that term.

So they’ve brought in a tall for a medium midfielder. Interesting.

2020 NAB AFL Draft Combine list (as of September 3) NSW (To be held on Sunday, October 25) Braeden Campbell (Sydney Academy) Charlie Byrne (Murray Bushrangers) Errol Gulden (Sydney Academy) Joshua Green (GWS Academy) Northern Territory (Saturday, October 3) Joel Jeffrey (Wanderers/Gold Coast Academy) Maurice Rioli jnr (Oakleigh Chargers) Brodie Lake (Southern Districts/Central District (SA)/Gold Coast Academy) Queensland (Saturday, October 3) Alex Davies (Gold Coast Academy) Blake Coleman (Brisbane Academy) Carter Michael (Brisbane Academy) Jack Briskey (Brisbane Academy) Max Pescud (Gold Coast Academy) Saxon Crozier (Brisbane Academy) South Australia (Wednesday, September 30) Brayden Cook (South Adelaide) Caleb Poulter (Woodville West Torrens) Corey Durdin (Central District) Henry Smith (Woodville West Torrens) James Borlase (Sturt) Jye Sinderberry (West Adelaide) Kaine Baldwin (Glenelg) Lachlan Jones (Woodville West Torrens) Luke Edwards (Glenelg) Luke Pedlar (Glenelg) Malachy Carruthers (Sturt) Mitchell Duval (West Adelaide) Pheonix Spicer (South Adelaide) Riley Thilthorpe (West Adelaide) Taj Schofield (Woodville West Torrens) Tariek Newchurch (North Adelaide) Tom Powell (Sturt) Tom Highmore (South Adelaide) Xavier Robbins (Glenelg) Zac Dumesny (South Adelaide) Tasmania (Week of Monday, September 21) Jackson Callow (North Launceston) Oliver Davis (Clarence) Patrick Walker (North Hobart) Sam Collins (North Hobart) Vic Country (TBC) Blake Reid (Geelong Falcons) Cameron Fleeton (Geelong Falcons) Charlie Ham (Geelong Falcons) Charlie Lazzaro (Geelong Falcons) Clayton Gay (Dandenong Stingrays) Elijah Hollands (Murray Bushrangers) Henry Sharp (Greater Western Victoria Rebels) Henry Walsh (Geelong Falcons) Jack Ginnivan (Bendigo Pioneers) Jamarra Ugle-Hagan (Oakleigh Chargers) Josh Treacy (Bendigo Pioneers) Nick Stevens (Greater Western Victoria Rebels) Noah Gribble (Geelong Falcons) Oliver Henry (Geelong Falcons) Ryan Angwin (Gippsland Power) Sam Berry (Gippsland Power) Seamus Mitchell (Bendigo Pioneers) Tanner Bruhn (Geelong Falcons) Will Bravo (Dandenong Stingrays) Zach Reid (Gippsland Power) Zavier Maher (Murray Bushrangers) Vic Metro (TBC) Lachlan Carrigan (Sandringham Dragons) Archie Perkins (Sandringham Dragons) Bailey Laurie (Oakleigh Chargers) Campbell Edwardes (Calder Cannons) Cody Brand (Calder Cannons) Connor Downie (Eastern Ranges) Conor Stone (Oakleigh Chargers) Corey Preston (Eastern Ranges) Eddie Ford (Western Jets) Ewan Macpherson (Northern Knights) Finlay Macrae (Oakleigh Chargers) Fraser Rosman (Sandringham Dragons) Jake Bowey (Sandringham Dragons) Josh Eyre (Calder Cannons) Joshua Clarke (Eastern Ranges) Liam McMahon (Northern Knights) Liam Kolar (Northern Knights) Luke Cleary (Sandringham Dragons) Matt Allison (Calder Cannons) Max Heath (Sandringham Dragons) Max Holmes (Sandringham Dragons) Nikolas Cox (Northern Knights) Ollie Lord (Sandringham Dragons) Reef McInnes (Oakleigh Chargers) Will Phillips (Oakleigh Chargers) Western Australia (Wednesday, September 30) Blake Morris (Subiaco) Brandon Walker (East Fremantle) Denver Grainger-Barras (Swan Districts) Heath Chapman (West Perth) Jack Carroll (East Fremantle) Joel Western (Claremont) Kalin Lane (Claremont) Logan McDonald (Perth) Nathan O'Driscoll (Perth) Shannon Neale (South Fremantle) Zane Trew (Swan Districts) Also ~ Dragons, Falcons lead the way as AFL announces 2020 Draft Combine list

The AFL has issued the list of the 94 invitees to the Draft Combine. Boost for Vics as AFL reveals every state's Draft Combine list

So I consulted Titus O’Reilly and he’s very philosophical about the game:- “As for the Swans, their painful season is at least approaching the endpoint, but they always give it a go, which worries me. Why can’t they just give up when things are hopeless? I mean, I give up when things are mildly annoying, but that might explain why I have achieved very little, while the Swans makes finals almost all the time. That’s my big worry in life. That trying is what makes the difference, not destiny and that exhausts me. I’m tipping Melbourne, just to really hurt myself.”

One small step by the Demons ...

"The Saints improved much in 2020. Although we won’t play finals, my boys have been doing a lot this year." Talk about gloom and doom. They currently sit in 7th place with a decent percentage and if they win 2 out of their remaining 3 games, they should just make it. This is the St Kilda equivalent of MFCSS.

Not yet George - and I’m not sure if those outside the recruiting industry ever will. However, there are some resources available such as discussions on bigfooty’s draft boards https://www.bigfooty.com/forum/forums/draft-hub-with-phantom-drafts.284/ Then there’s AFL Draft Central - https://afl.draftcentral.com.au/afl-draft-watch/ The problem this year is that there’s no football happening in Victoria where a majority of the draft pool comes from so recruiters are going to have to rely on scouting in the states where the game’s being played and on 2019 form and a lot of guesswork.