Whispering_Jack

The first round of the Coates Talent League was played at the weekend with the Oakleigh Chargers and Eastern Ranges playing out the marquee game in terms of high end draft talent. Snapshot: 2024 Coates Talent League – Round 1 Oakleigh take on the Sandringham Dragons in another big game on Saturday afternoon at RSEA Park.

There is a solution and I’m not sure that it’s going to be palatable for everyone but it’s something I suggested a while ago. That is to give him more of an opportunity to develop KFW’s ruck craft by loaning him to a suitable club in the VAFA where he can get plenty of game time actually playing in the ruck. There are some seasoned ruckmen at that level and 80 minutes of time in the ruck is better than 40 minutes stranded in a forward pocket when the ball is spending 75% of time in defence. The idea is not original. A couple of years ago, Collingwood arranged for one of its rookies to play with Beaumaris Reserves in VAFA B Section. I don’t think it succeeded in the end, but the player in question was given every opportunity to develop his craft.

Three broken ribs and a small cracked vertebrae requires a conservative approach. No play over the next month and the earliest we’ll see Steven May on a footy field will be at the Anzac Day Eve game vs Richmond. I also expect that Jake Lever will miss at least one game. They are the best individual assets in our defence. We have to look after them.

I don’t think that delisting him would create a vacancy for the purposes of the mid season draft. I do agree that on his display today, he doesn’t appear to be up to it.

So far, there’s not much joy from a short term point of view. The selectors have some headaches coming up this week. Looking further forward, AMW, Koltyn Tholstrup and Kynan Brown look very promising while the taller youngsters are getting an education and need time.

The Saints need to hire whoever defended Maynard after the Qualifying Final last year. After pulling off a not guilty on that one, this should be easy.

Riley Beveridge and Cal Twomey discuss the No. 1 contenders

… but no Van Dam 😎

Oscar Van Dam Height: 188cm, Weight: 83kg. D.O.B: 20-04-2005 It turns out that North Launceston was coached by Casey’s current coach Taylor Whitford who steered them to back-to-back premierships in 2018-19. Oscar Van Dam was a member of the Tasmania Devils Under 18s team in 2022/3. They were pretty strong last year and he was rated just outside that upper echelon that included high draft picks Colby McKercher, Ryley Sanders and James Leake. He He performed exceptionally well in the preseason, highlighted by a 6.10 two-kilometre time trial result. One match report from the Under 18s said that “the half-back brought plenty of dash and flair to the game with his willingness to take proceedings on. He looked clean below his knees, even when under pressure by the opposition, and made sure to be closely checking his opponent when the Knights looked dangerous inside their forward 50. Despite getting the ball at near top speed, Van Dam kept his composure more often than not, putting the ball out in front of his teammates and giving them the best chance at taking possession.” Sounds promising. Does he get picked for Casey this week?

I was also intrigued but for a different reason. I know nothing about him but he’s not the first player to come to Casey out of North Launceston. A few years ago, the club recruited Jay Lockhart from there and, after a year at VFL level, he was picked up by Melbourne in the 2018 Pre-season supplemental selection period. Lockhart made his senior debut against Geelong in round 2 of the 2019 season. He played 22 games but was delisted by Melbourne following the club's drought breaking premiership in 2021. I believe he went north and played for Southport. Coincidence or is someone in that neck of the woods pointing promising players in our direction? I will do some research into this mystery man and report back.

CODE SPORTS has an online feature by Paul Amy previewing every VFL team for 2024. This is the excerpt for the Casey Demons:- VFL 2024 club-by-club preview: Paul Amy's guide to how every team is shaping up for this season by Paul Amy (link to be provided) “CASEY DEMONS Coach: Taylor Whitford (second season) Last year: 11-7, wildcard round, elimination final The state of play: No team finished last season more disappointingly than Casey, which went into the elimination final against Footscary at Box Hill with a depleted line-up after Melbourne made a string of players unavailable. That the reigning premier suffered a 79-point drubbing was no surprise. Not even VFL champion James "Moose" Munro could lift the undermanned and overwhelmed Demons. The three-time best and fairest and 150-game player left the club a few weeks later, to coach Cora Lynn in country football. The Dees also lost the experienced Matt Buntine and George Grey in the off-season. But they made some key signings in clean-kicking former Saint Leo Connolly, Footscray tall Caleb Lewis, Frankston onballer Mitch Szybkowski and Box Hill Hawk Kai Windsor, as well as Kobe Shipp (Dandenong Stingrays), Brayden La Planche (Eastern Ranges) and Riak Andrew (Dandenong Stingrays) out of the Under 185. Late February brought an outstanding addition in Collingwood VFL co-captain Campbell Hustwaite, who trained with the Magpies for an SSP listing. Oscar Van Dam, who made his senior debut for North Launceston at the age of 15 in 2021, is another signing for the Demons. Put the recruits with returnees Mitch White, Tom Freeman, Roan Steele, Ryan Valentine and Harvey Neocleous, and there's more than enough talent to blend with the Melbourne contingent and reach the finals again.” It’s always hard to predict results of games at this level early in the season but Casey’s practice match form has been anything but outstanding while I believe that Box Hill was impressive against Essendon last week. So I’m tipping the Hawks.

Someone please call the RSPCA …

FWIW - Box Hill have named their squad for this game.

My best memory of VFL Park is my first. It was in 1971 when John “Diamond Jim” Tilbrook made his debut on a wintry day against South Melbourne. He was a big man - 184cm and, dare I disclose this in these nanny days, he weighed a massive 94kg. When he ran out onto the ground in the gloomy conditions, he looked like Superman. He was wearing his Melbourne colours but he might well have worn a cape and had an S on his chest. When he took his first kick, he was on the wing and went bang unleashing a monster 70 plus metres kick that almost sailed right through the big sticks. The Dees won easily and I thought we had a new messiah. Sadly, it didn’t turn out that way.

With the economy continuing to be tough on everyone, how can you justify the spending necessary on nurturing players from the Northern Territory without some guarantee that you, rather than another club, have the opportunity to reap the benefits of your work?

Not the other JB - he was already paired. This is the odd couple. One’s a forward with a great tank and the other’s a backman with a great kick. That’s what makes them an odd combo 😎

He was an All Australian at Under 16 level last year so he is more than "any good". He can play at his father's old club and has the opportunity of learning ruck craft at Melbourne under Max Gawn. Is there anything else that he needs to know?

Ashcroft is a father/son prospect and is here by virtue of the fact that the family moved here from Brisbane a few years ago. Marshall is a Queenslander who came to Melbourne to study at Melbourne Grammar but he remains a Lions Academy member and therefore tied to that club. I agree however, that it’s time to overhaul the NGA rules which provide very little incentive for southern clubs to nurture footballers if there’s open slather for those good enough to be picked in the first 40 in the national draft. That said, watch out for one such player on the MFC list, Andy Moniz-Wakefield, to make his debut with Melbourne in the very near future.

The Coates Talent League kicks off at the weekend and two clubs stand out at this early stage of proceedings. The Sandringham Dragons are aiming for a third consecutive premiership and appear to have great all round strength and depth with three Australian Academy Squad members in father/son prospect Levi Ashcroft (brother of Will and also skilful midfielder, Brisbane Academy member Sam Marshall and Luke Trainor. The Dragons also have good numbers in the Vic Metro squad. They will be challenged strongly by the Oakleigh Chargers who boast the early favourite to go #1 in the National Draft in midfielder Finn O'Sullivan along with the highly rated Jagga Smith, Tom Gross and Charlie Richardson, the grandson of Richmond legend Kevin Bartlett. Melbourne father/son prospect Noah Yze is also in their squad. There are a few Melbourne Next Generation Academy players in the mix as well. Ricky Mentha, who already has his own page on Demonland, is with the Gippsland Power. Another three Demon NGA’s are at the Dandenong Stingrays. Riak Andrew (192cm) spent time with Casey VFL over the off-season and made their development list, returns to the Stingrays as a 19-year-old and shares his brother's athleticism. Also at the Stingrays is indigenous prospect Coren Giliam, a crafty small forward who can impact up the ground while Tarion Ah-Mu, 198cm bottom aged tall from Berwick, is also tied to the Demons' NGA.

He’s a Demon supporter, an author, podcaster and a comic. His weekly Monday Knee Jerk Reaction is always good value. Here’s Titus’ take on Melbourne’s Round 1 victory over the Doggies:- Melbourne (109) v Western Bulldogs (64) Some strange decisions from the Bulldogs, with Caleb Daniel made the sub and the midfield avoiding Aaron Naughton like the plague. That all said, they started strong, and what was most disappointing was how much they dropped off in the dying stages. Melbourne started slowly, but the usual suspects dragged them back into the game. Clayton Oliver, with his unorthodox preseason, delivered 35 disposals and six clearances. I’m not saying every player should take his approach, but I’ve seen worse results. There was a sense of being in a French restaurant at one point as former Dee James Harmes and Steven May got into it, resulting in Harmes headbutting May.

Best news - the W today!

Last night’s performance by the Swans again suggested to me that one advantage to be had from losing to them was that we had the front row seat to witness the direction football is taking in 2024. Let’s see if we’re up to doing what they did last night.

Too early to say at this stage. We need to wait for the start of the Coates Boys League in Victoria and the various State League senior and under age competitions elsewhere.

2024 Coates Talent League Boys Testing Day Results The article reveals the top 10 results recorded by players from Victorian-based clubs at the 2024 Coates Talent Boys Testing Day. 20m Sprint Archie Taylor (GWV Rebels/Cobden) 2.796 sec Julian Callahan (Gippsland Power/Leongatha) 2.863 Kade Dwyer (Murray Bushrangers/Shepparton Swans) 2.872 Jack Gerardi (Western Jets/West Footscray) 2.874 Thomas Legudi (Calder Cannons/Aberfeldie) 2.878 Blake Leidler (Oakleigh Chargers/Surrey Park) 2.879 Taj Hotton (Sandringham Dragons/Hampton Rovers) 2.882 JayDe Varlet (Dandenong Stingrays/Beaconsfield) 2.884 Cody Anderson (Eastern Ranges/Healesville) 2.885 Ben Seers (Sandringham Dragons/Beaumaris) 2.886 Standing Vertical Jump Harley Hicks (GWV Rebels/Lake Wendouree) 83cm Gabriel Stumpf (Northern Knights/Warrandyte) 79 James Allison (Northern Knights/Montmorency) 77 Daniel Snell (Western Jets/Yarraville Seddon Eagles) 77 Luke Trainor (Sandringham Dragons/Old Brighton) 77 Floyd Burmeister (GWV Rebels/Redan) 76 Brady Hall (Geelong Falcons/Colac) 75 Ryan Muir (Eastern Ranges/Wantirna South) 75 Nash Ramage (Bendigo Pioneers/Echuca United) 75 Jack Whitlock (Murray Bushrangers/Shepparton) 75 Running Vertical Jump (Right) Floyd Burmeister (GWV Rebels/Redan) 95cm Nash Ramage (Bendigo Pioneers/Echuca United) 95 Coen Ainsworth (Murray Bushrangers/Wodonga) 90 Finn O’Sullivan (Oakleigh Chargers/Koroit) 90 Gabriel Stumpf (Northern Knights/Warrandyte) 90 Archie Taylor (GWV Rebels/Cobden) 90 Ollie Hannaford (GWV Rebels/Sandhurst) 89 Harry Armstrong (Sandringham Dragons/Ormond) 87 Ned Renfree (GWV Rebels/East Point) 87 Taj Hotton (Sandringham Dragons/Hampton Rovers) 86 Running Vertical Jump (Left) Daniel Snell (Western Jets/Yarraville Seddon Eagles) 102 Ben Rongdit (Geelong Falcons/Colac) 98 Archie Taylor (GWV Rebels/Cobden) 96 Matt Whitlock (Murray Bushrangers/Shepparton) 96 James Allison (Northern Knights/Montmorency) 95 Ned Renfree (GWV Rebels/East Point) 95 Taj Hotton (Sandringham Dragons/Hampton Rovers) 93 Ryan Muir (Eastern Ranges/Wantirna South) 93 Thomas Sims (Northern Knights/Montmorency) 93 Jack Whitlock (Murray Bushrangers/Shepparton) 93 Yo-Yo Jett McLaughlan (Northern Knights/Diamond Creek) Level 22.4 Archie Caldow (GWV Rebels/East Point) 22.2 Josh Dolan (Sandringham Dragons/Beaumaris) 22.1 Jeremy Newsome (Eastern Ranges/Healesville) 22.1 Harry Albon (Calder Cannons/Craigieburn) 21.8 Nedd Bennett (GWV Rebels/East Point) 21.8 Ryan Commandeur (Northern Knights/St Mary’s) 21.8 Liam Farrar (Northern Knights/Diamond Creek) 21.8 Patrick Said (Calder Cannons/Sunbury) 21.8 Zach Travers (Sandringham Dragons/Old Brighton) 21.8 AFL Agility Douglas Kerr (Oakleigh Chargers/Ashburton) 7.724 sec Oskar Taylor (Eastern Ranges/Upwey Tecoma) 7.764 Lachy Dovaston (Eastern Ranges/Blackburn) 7.777 Sebastian Murphy (Northern Knights/Montmorency) 7.787 Ollie Hannaford (GWV Rebels/Sandhurst) 7.788 Taj Hotton (Sandringham Dragons/Hampton Rovers) 7.807 Sam McDonald (GWV Rebels/Ballarat) 7.858 Jake Woodward (Northern Knights/Montmorency) 7.866 Nedd Bennett (GWV Rebels/East Point) 7.876 Thomas Sims (Northern Knights/Montmorency) 7.909