Whispering_Jack

We still have plenty of time to break that record wide open with MCG home games against Port Adelaide, Fremantle and West Coast as well as a home game against Sydney in Canberra. BTW, what crowd did they get at Carrara today?

Does anybody know how Haileybury College and Tom Scully went today? Just curious.

... and bump again ...

by KC from Casey After a slow start to the season the Casey Scorpions have continued to gather momentum and in front of a big crowd at ABD Group Stadium on Saturday they recorded a resounding 42 point win over the Coburg Tigers. The Burgers had a long string of top level AFL players in their line up headed by Ben Cousins, Troy Simmonds, Kane Pettifer, Andrew Raines, Jay Schultz, Jake King and Trent Cotchin but it was the evenness of the Casey combination that won the day. Exactly half of the Scorpions team were AFL listed (three of them rookies) and they included number 1 draft pick Jack Watts for the first time. The Tigers made the early running winning the clearances through Simmonds' strong work in the ruck, which allowed them to control possession all around the ground. They booted the first two goals and were doing most of the attacking but strong defensive work from Alex Silvagni, Kyle Cheney and Matthew Whelan enabled Casey to keep Coburg in check and a fine snap by Watts late in the opening quarter saw them trailing by seven points at the first change. The Scorpions lifted their intensity in the second quarter with Matthews and Valenti taking control of the middle. This allowed the team to play a more free flowing open game and, with Wall having an influence and Newton starting to convert (he added three goals for the term), Casey went into the rooms at the main break holding a narrow lead. Valenti continued to shine with a magnificent third quarter and managed to overshadow Cousins and Cotchin as Casey took control of the contest through the agency of some string marking from Danny Hughes who booted three goals for the term. The siren sounded with the visitors 29 points in front and this heralded an interesting few minutes of pushing and shoving in front of the social club as frustration set into among the Tiger camp. However, if any complacency had crept into the minds of the Scorpions, the home side took just four minutes to sow some seeds of doubt in their minds with two Coburg goals early in the final term. The team-lifter for Casey came when the youngest player on the ground won the ball from a ruck contest, paddled the ball, turned to the left and swung through an amazing snap goal to restore his team's advantage to 22 points. It was Jack Watts' third goal on a very impressive senior debut and was awarded VFL Goal of the Day for Round 4. Coburg was quick to reply but a Valenti leg break sealed the issue. Silvagni continued to produce good work in defence and defender Peter Faulks was playing his best game since coming to the club at the start of the season from the Sydney Swans. Newton came off the interchange to add two goals to make his tally five for the game earning him the ABC award for best on ground. Valenti continued to win the ball and finished with 29 touches and youngsters MacReadie and McGough were impressive. Hard working young ruckman Tim Mohr (24 disposals, 6 marks) improved as the game went on and forward Matt Moore underlined his promise kicking the last two goals as Casey ran out easy winners by 42 points. The Scorpions now have a week's rest courtesy of the bye and resume hostilities in a fortnight's time at home to the Box Hill Hawks. HOW THE DEMONS FARED Rohan Bail (6 kicks,10 handballs, 6 marks) - has good pace, sure hands, reads the play well and makes reasonably good decisions. Needs to work a little on his disposal but looks a likely type. Daniel Bell (6 kicks,12 handballs, 4 marks) - coming back from a badly broken thumb, Bell was right into the thick of things tackling strongly in the midfield and getting involved particularly in the packs, winning a fair bit of the contested ball and dishing it out well. Gave away a few free kicks but all in all, it was a good comeback game for Bell. Kyle Cheney (10 kicks, 11 handballs, 4 marks) - started like a house on fire and was strong and sure in defence all day. Pressing for a return to higher ranks with that display. Jack Grimes (12 kicks, 11 handballs, 4 marks) - the unsung Jack in Casey's team against Coburg, Grimes went about his work with a minimum of fuss but was a very effective player on the day. Creative and efficient, Grimes quietly pressed his case for promotion to the AFL next week. Daniel Hughes (13 kicks, 4 handballs, 8 marks) - continues to work hard in his quest to make up time for lost time after a couple of horror seasons with injury. Had a great third quarter scoring all three of his goals. Jordie McKenzie (8 kicks, 8 handballs, 3 marks) - the young rookie worked hard at ground level, is a good decision maker, kicks well on both sides and has been a real surprise packet at the club this year. Tom McNamara (10 kicks, 10 handballs, 4 marks) - a solid game from the young defender who has had his share of injury worries. Ran forward well and generated options and had a few shots on goal, including a pearler that split the middle from the boundary line in the third quarter. Made good decisions and was sure with this ball handling. Michael Newton (10 kicks, 2 handballs, 5 marks) - kicked five goals (it could easily have been seven) and was one of the best on the ground. Juice was allocated a number of tasks during the game and even did some of the early ruck work. If he can gain some confidence in aspects of his game where he was found wanting at the higher level it could be the making of him as a player. Shane Valenti (21 kicks, 8 handballs, 3 marks) – worked really hard, got a lot of the football and was influential in turning an arm wrestle into a triumph for Casey after half time. Jack Watts (10 kicks, 6 handballs, 3 marks) - Casey coach Peter German was effusive about the youngster when he spoke to reporters after the game: "Jack showed his class, I can't remember him fumbling the ball. "He showed why he was Melbourne's number 1 draft pick." Matthew Whelan (8 kicks, 9 handballs, 4 marks) - all class in defence as he makes his return from injury. Looked a little proppy every time he came off the ground but never once let his team down. Austin Wonaeamirri (5 kicks, 4 handballs, 2 marks) - struggled to get into the game with Jake King wearing him like a glove and niggling him all day long. Still, the main thing from his point of view was to make it through a game after a long lay off through injury. Casey Scorpions 1.1.7 7.6.48 11.11.77 17.13.115 Coburg Tigers 2.2.14 7.4.46 7.6.48 11.7.73 Goals Casey Scorpions Newton 5 Hughes Moore Watts 3 McNamara Valenti Wall Coburg Tigers Hislop Liddle Pettifer 2 Allan Connors Horne King Schulz Best Casey Scorpions Newton Mohr McKenzie Faulks Watts Silvagni Coburg Tigers Edwards Cousins Simmonds Morgan King Caruso The reserves led for most of the day and had to withstand a spirited last quarter comeback from the Burgers to win by two points. Luke Williams was again solid and Augustine Patti showed the benefit of some seniors experience in a good quality reserves game. HOW THE DEMONS FARED Four Melbourne listed players took part with Strauss the pick of them. His disposal was excellent but he was reported during the game. Rhys Healey continued to show good form but needs to improve his kicking. Trent Zomer had an interesting battle against Cleeve Hughes who finished with six goals. On the comeback trail after injuring himself after round 1 in the AFL, Simon Buckley showed some dash. Casey Scorpions 2.4.16 9.5.59 16.7.103 17.7.109 Coburg Tigers 3.6.24 6.10.46 11.11.77 15.17.107 Goals Casey Scorpions Scanlon 4 Vernon 3 Bolton Chivers Healey 2 McLeod Oldmeadow Patti Taylor Coburg Tigers Hughes 6 Browne Clifton Deledio De Sousa Kandilakis Kellett Hislop Polak Rayson Best Casey Scorpions Williams Patti Strauss Healey Chivers Vernon Coburg Tigers Hughes Ambrose Groves Browne Rayson Cattapan

Now that we all know for the third time, I will close this thread.

Matty Whelan showed what a class footballer he is today. He's had a shocking run with injuries the last two or three years. There's no doubt his experience will be a fantastic bonus for the club when he makes it back to the Melbourne side in a week or two.

Lawyers never plead guilty to anything and I'm not going to buck the trend. I'm innocent! This has nothing to do with the fact that I was whacked mercilessly for tipping Richmond by 15 points a couple of weeks ago and I have indeed tipped one of the teams to win so there's no shirking involved at all. However, I've placed my tips in the Demonland Tipping Competition and I don't want anyone copying my selection so you'll have to wait till Sunday night to discover who I tipped to win. To give you a clue, I don't think this game is going to be as one sided as some people think.

And how would you know that?

So allow me to throw a spanner into the works on this discussion. During WW1 the MFC went into recess for three seasons due to the war. The club didn't field a team in 1916, 1917 and 1918. Therefore, I maintain that last year was only the 147th year of the club fielding a team in competition and our true 150th year will be 2011. This sits nicely with me because I believe we'll show dramatic improvement over the next year or two and be primed to do a Hawthorn and really celebrate the 150 in its rightful year of 2011!

I can't really answer on the strength of last night because neither was at my table and I didn't get a chance to speak with them. Stef Martin is highly intelligent - an obvious fact given his sensational VCE results but also because of the fact that he is learning the game so quickly. He harbours a desire to play up forward and I ask myself "why not". Perhaps I should have asked Dean Bailey that question. Still, he's still very young in football terms and I can definitely see the day (perhaps in 2 or 3 year's time) when he will be capable of playing in the ruck (with a little help from the Bulgarian weights coach). On Brock and leadership I'm still a fan and think he'll be our next captain (on the proviso that he doesn't shave his head again). So there's a good chance that come 2012 he'll be receiving the Ron Barassi Jnr Medal from the great RDB himself!

Jaka a lawyer - who would have thunk it?

by Whispering Jack Last night, the Devils Advocates - members of the legal profession who support the Demons - met for a hearty meal and some lively discussion on an important contemporary issue, the progress and development of the Melbourne Football Club. More than 100 lawyers including judges, academics, senior counsel, barristers, solicitors and even a few law students (of which our own Stef Martin is one) were in attendance on a night in which several thousand dollars were raised for the club. A few players other than Martin were there. Cameron Bruce, Brock McLean and Brad Miller (unfortunately without the wife) sat at various tables around the room. A couple of former players in Bob Miller (from the '60s) and Steve Smith (from the '70s and '0s) were among the legal eagles (or should I say legal demons) in attendance. The MC was former board member and media personality Bev O'Connor who controlled proceedings magnificently. She showed her class from the outset in congratulating and thanking the current Board for the work they are doing in revitalising the club: not something that one might normally expect from a member of the outgoing board that was deposed when the Jim Stynes led group took over in mid 2008. This was very much the theme of the evening; that the club is now united and single-minded in the purpose of achieving success. Club CEO Cameron Schwab was first speaker. He spoke of his vision for the club which involves: High performance & high integrity Relationships; Fielding champion teams; the club has a long term focus of building a champion team with all of its components and will not compromise in this aim. It would have been easy to throw a Jack Watts into the fray immediately, to get some crowds in but that would compromise his personal development. Schwab assured the group that Watts' entry to AFL will be totally uncompromised. We're looking long term and the focus is to build a team with all the right components in place; The need to grow; The club is not big enough – it needs to make its way out of the clubs normally considered at the bottom level of AFL clubs. We need to push our image in front of the clubs. The Norm Smith Medal is awarded to the winning coach on AFL grand final day. Schwab is looking forward to a medal honouring Ron Barassi Junior awarded to the winning captain and to the day when it's presented to the Melbourne captain. Then it was Dean Bailey's turn. The club started training on 13 October last year. The idea was to take the players back and to strip them down to the basics. The club employed a Bulgarian specialist weights coach who started off teaching technique for weights. The result was excellent with several players putting on strength. James McDonald at 32 improved and strengthened. James Frawley put on 4kg and is improved, stronger and better able to hold his ground. Jack Watts has put on 6 kg gradually in a controlled programme. The process needs patience as progress takes place in small degrees with young players. Bailey said that despite the club's disappointing results there are still things that excite him and it's not only the improving younger brigade but also the more senior players. Aaron Davey, for instance is just one of the club's senior players who have been important this season. The move to Casey Fields has also been important. This year's pre season was so more efficient than last year. Instead of having to put up with four different venues and players shunting around between them, the players had one base where they could train for four hours on an excellent surface in the mornings. The facilities at Casey are modern and player friendly compared to the Junction Oval where the air conditioning was constantly blowing fuses in the heat and where the possums were in residence. Bailey also mentioned the courage that Clint Bartram showed at the weekend. Clint's father passed away on Sunday morning after a long illness. Nearly all at the club – players, officials and staff, attended the funeral during the week. Bailey found out about the death by sms from Clint but ended up speaking with him for 5 to 6 minutes and ascertained that Clint was made of the right stuff. He wanted to play and felt relieved that his father was no longer in pain. Clint played well for a young man under so much pressure. Question Cross examination time revealed some interesting information: In Kevin Ball, the club has a leading biomechanist and an outstanding kicking teacher; Colin Sylvia received some criticism for stating that he thought John Howard was still Australia's Prime Minister but at the recent television membership drive, he was the best "salesperson" selling 27 memberships. When it comes to visiting patients in hospital Colin is brilliant and is always happy to visit the Royal Childrens Hospital and the like; Bailey believes that the next few years are important for AFL clubs which need to take the right attitude with them because things will be hard for clubs wanting to build themselves. The next 4 or 5 drafts will all strongly favour Gold Coast AFL and then West Sydney AFL; Hawthorn got it right and won their flag last year a couple of years ahead of time. Clarkson not only got things right with drafting of young players but also, just as important was the drafting of players like Guerra, Dew and Gilham. He believes the Hawks could be up for quite a long time; Questioned about Michael Newton and his missed goals against Adelaide, Bailey said that Juice needs to get his mind right. He needs to practice his goal kicking routine; Bailey described Sunday's game as unusual and quite ordinary to not score a goal at all in the first half. However, at half time, they were only four goals behind and still in the game. In the end it was disappointing because the team worked its way into a winnable position despite missing some easy shots for goal. There was also a problem with overuse of handball. The first half total was 119 and it was 195 for the whole game. We also need to improve kicking efficiency to get through zones; The inevitable question came about whether it was in the club's interests to win and Bailey was adamant that he was there to win and not tank games. His job is to develop players who are going to win and doesn't want to accept mediocrity. His main aim is to develop a winning culture. There was one more question and that was about Sunday's game against Geelong. Before I get onto that subject I want to congratulate the organising committee, particularly family lawyer Ralph Glezer who put in an enormous effort to put the evening together and auctioneer Phillip Kingston of Gary Peers whose auctioning technique was not only profitable for the club but also entertaining. If you qualify to be a Devils Advocate and weren't invited, please send me a PM with your details and I'll see to it that you're on the list for the next function. And so onto … THE GAME Melbourne v Geelong at the MCG - Sunday 3 May 2009 at 2.10pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall Melbourne 83 wins Geelong 119 wins 2 draws At the MCG Melbourne 51 wins Geelong 50 wins Since 2000 Melbourne 6 wins Geelong 9 wins 1 draw The Coaches Bailey 0 Thompson 2 MEDIA TV Channel 7 at 3pm (1 hour delay) RADIO KRock MMM 3AW THE BETTING Melbourne to win $14.50 Geelong to win $1.03 LAST TIME THEY MET Geelong 24.13.157 defeated Melbourne 5.11.41 at MCG in Round 19 2008 An undermanned and undersized Melbourne took on the AFL's giants at the MCG in front of a crowd of 34,610 at the MCG in their only Friday night game of the year and they suffered stage fright. The game was over by half time having scored 8.5.53 to nothing. Things didn't get any better after that and by the time the final siren rang and the scoreboard showed the Cats were 116 pints in front, many of the fans were home watching the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games. THE TEAMS MELBOURNE Backs Brent Moloney Matthew Warnock Clint Bartram Half backs James Frawley Stefan Martin Aaron Davey Centreline Jared Rivers Ricky Petterd Brock McLean Half forwards Addam Maric Lynden Dunn Russell Robertson Forwards Brad Miller Colin Sylvia Matthew Bate Followers John Meesen Cameron Bruce James McDonald Interchange Jamie Bennell Paul Johnson Nathan Jones Cale Morton Emergencies Kyle Cheney Neville Jetta Michael Newton In Addam Maric Russell Robertson Out Neville Jetta Michael Newton GEELONG Backs Andrew Mackie Matthew Scarlett Darren Milburn Half backs Joel Corey Harry Taylor Max Rooke Centreline Jimmy Bartel Corey Enright David Wojcinski Half forwards James Kelly Cameron Mooney Mathew Stokes Forwards Paul Chapman Tom Hawkins Steve Johnson Followers Mark Blake Joel Selwood Gary Ablett Interchange (from) Shannon Byrnes Nathan Djerrkura Ryan Gamble David Johnson Tom Lonergan Shane Mumford Travis Varcoe In Nathan Djerrkura Ryan Gamble Tom Lonergan THE LAST AND THE BIGGEST QUESTION ... Dean Bailey was asked this week at the Devils Advocates meeting how does he prepare the team for a game against Geelong who are undefeated and flying at the moment. Bailey said that it would be easy for him to manufacture stuff about the game but the players would see through this and think "that's crap!" His approach would be to go back a few weeks to when Richmond played against Geelong at Skilled Stadium. The Tigers at a low ebb after being crushed by Carlton in the opening round. They had a poor start and, early in the third quarter when Luke McGuane gave away that double goal, it could have become a real blow out. But Richmond worked hard, scored a goal, then another and another. Soon the team had a different attitude and by three quarter time they were in front. You need to be proactive and take the game right up to them. After all, both teams start at 50:50 and that's where I'll leave this preview of Sunday's big game.

DEVILS ADVOCATES by Whispering Jack Last night, the Devils Advocates - members of the legal profession who support the Demons - met for a hearty meal and some lively discussion on an important contemporary issue, the progress and development of the Melbourne Football Club. More than 100 lawyers including judges, academics, senior counsel, barristers, solicitors and even a few law students (of which our own Stef Martin is one) were in attendance on a night in which several thousand dollars were raised for the club. A few players other than Martin were there. Cameron Bruce, Brock McLean and Brad Miller (unfortunately without the wife) sat at various tables around the room. A couple of former players in Bob Miller (from the '60s) and Steve Smith (from the '70s and '0s) were among the legal eagles (or should I say legal demons) in attendance. The MC was former board member and media personality Bev O'Connor who controlled proceedings magnificently. She showed her class from the outset in congratulating and thanking the current Board for the work they are doing in revitalising the club: not something that one might normally expect from a member of the outgoing board that was deposed when the Jim Stynes led group took over in mid 2008. This was very much the theme of the evening; that the club is now united and single-minded in the purpose of achieving success. Club CEO Cameron Schwab was first speaker. He spoke of his vision for the club which involves: High performance & high integrity Relationships; Fielding champion teams; the club has a long term focus of building a champion team with all of its components and will not compromise in this aim. It would have been easy to throw a Jack Watts into the fray immediately, to get some crowds in but that would compromise his personal development. Schwab assured the group that Watts' entry to AFL will be totally uncompromised. We're looking long term and the focus is to build a team with all the right components in place; The need to grow; The club is not big enough – it needs to make its way out of the clubs normally considered at the bottom level of AFL clubs. We need to push our image in front of the clubs. The Norm Smith Medal is awarded to the winning coach on AFL grand final day. Schwab is looking forward to a medal honouring Ron Barassi Junior awarded to the winning captain and to the day when it's presented to the Melbourne captain. Then it was Dean Bailey's turn. The club started training on 13 October last year. The idea was to take the players back and to strip them down to the basics. The club employed a Bulgarian specialist weights coach who started off teaching technique for weights. The result was excellent with several players putting on strength. James McDonald at 32 improved and strengthened. James Frawley put on 4kg and is improved, stronger and better able to hold his ground. Jack Watts has put on 6 kg gradually in a controlled programme. The process needs patience as progress takes place in small degrees with young players. Bailey said that despite the club's disappointing results there are still things that excite him and it's not only the improving younger brigade but also the more senior players. Aaron Davey, for instance is just one of the club's senior players who have been important this season. The move to Casey Fields has also been important. This year's pre season was so more efficient than last year. Instead of having to put up with four different venues and players shunting around between them, the players had one base where they could train for four hours on an excellent surface in the mornings. The facilities at Casey are modern and player friendly compared to the Junction Oval where the air conditioning was constantly blowing fuses in the heat and where the possums were in residence. Bailey also mentioned the courage that Clint Bartram showed at the weekend. Clint's father passed away on Sunday morning after a long illness. Nearly all at the club – players, officials and staff, attended the funeral during the week. Bailey found out about the death by sms from Clint but ended up speaking with him for 5 to 6 minutes and ascertained that Clint was made of the right stuff. He wanted to play and felt relieved that his father was no longer in pain. Clint played well for a young man under so much pressure. Question Cross examination time revealed some interesting information: In Kevin Ball, the club has a leading biomechanist and an outstanding kicking teacher; Colin Sylvia received some criticism for stating that he thought John Howard was still Australia's Prime Minister but at the recent television membership drive, he was the best "salesperson" selling 27 memberships. When it comes to visiting patients in hospital Colin is brilliant and is always happy to visit the Royal Childrens Hospital and the like; Bailey believes that the next few years are important for AFL clubs which need to take the right attitude with them because things will be hard for clubs wanting to build themselves. The next 4 or 5 drafts will all strongly favour Gold Coast AFL and then West Sydney AFL; Hawthorn got it right and won their flag last year a couple of years ahead of time. Clarkson not only got things right with drafting of young players but also, just as important was the drafting of players like Guerra, Dew and Gilham. He believes the Hawks could be up for quite a long time; Questioned about Michael Newton and his missed goals against Adelaide, Bailey said that Juice needs to get his mind right. He needs to practice his goal kicking routine; Bailey described Sunday's game as unusual and quite ordinary to not score a goal at all in the first half. However, at half time, they were only four goals behind and still in the game. In the end it was disappointing because the team worked its way into a winnable position despite missing some easy shots for goal. There was also a problem with overuse of handball. The first half total was 119 and it was 195 for the whole game. We also need to improve kicking efficiency to get through zones; The inevitable question came about whether it was in the club's interests to win and bailey was adamant that he was there to win and not tank games. His job is to develop players who are going to win and doesn't want to accept mediocrity. His main aim is to develop a winning culture. There was one more question and that was about Sunday's game against Geelong. Before I get onto that subject I want to congratulate the organising committee, particularly family lawyer Ralph Glezer who put in an enormous effort to put the evening together and auctioneer Phillip Kingston of Gary Peers whose auctioning technique was not only profitable for the club but also entertaining. If you qualify to be a Devils Advocate and weren't invited, please send me a PM with your details and I'll see to it that you're on the list for the next function. And so onto … THE GAME Melbourne v Geelong at the MCG - Sunday 3 May 2009 at 2.10pm HEAD TO HEAD Overall Melbourne 83 wins Geelong 119 wins 2 draws At the MCG Melbourne 51 wins Geelong 50 wins Since 2000 Melbourne 6 wins Geelong 9 wins 1 draw The Coaches Bailey 0 Thompson 2 MEDIA TV Channel 7 at 3pm (1 hour delay) RADIO KRock MMM 3AW THE BETTING Melbourne to win $13.00 Geelong to win $1.03 LAST TIME THEY MET Geelong 24.13.157 defeated Melbourne 5.11.41 at MCG in Round 19 2008 An undermanned and undersized Melbourne took on the AFL's giants at the MCG in front of a crowd of 34,610 at the MCG in their only Friday night game of the year and they suffered stage fright. The game was over by half time having scored 8.5.53 to nothing. Things didn't get any better after that and by the time the final siren rang and the scoreboard showed the Cats were 116 pints in front, many of the fans were home watching the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games. THE TEAMS MELBOURNE Backs Brent Moloney Matthew Warnock Clint Bartram Half backs James Frawley Stefan Martin Aaron Davey Centreline Jared Rivers Ricky Petterd Brock McLean Half forwards Addam Maric Lynden Dunn Russell Robertson Forwards Brad Miller Colin Sylvia Matthew Bate Followers John Meesen Cameron Bruce James McDonald Interchange Jamie Bennell Kyle Cheney Neville Jetta Paul Johnson Nathan Jones Cale Morton Michael Newton Emergencies Kyle Cheney Neville Jetta Michael Newton In Addam Maric Russell Robertson Out Neville Jetta Michael Newton GEELONG Backs Andrew Mackie Matthew Scarlett Darren Milburn Half backs Joel Corey Harry Taylor Max Rooke Centreline Jimmy Bartel Corey Enright David Wojcinski Half forwards James Kelly Cameron Mooney Mathew Stokes Forwards Paul Chapman Tom Hawkins Steve Johnson Followers Mark Blake Joel Selwood Gary Ablett Interchange (from) Shannon Byrnes Nathan Djerrkura Ryan Gamble David Johnson Tom Lonergan Shane Mumford Travis Varcoe In Nathan Djerrkura Ryan Gamble Tom Lonergan THE LAST AND THE BIGGEST QUESTION ... Dean Bailey was asked this week at the Devils Advocates meeting how does he prepare the team for a game against Geelong who are undefeated and flying at the moment. Bailey said that it would be easy for him to manufacture stuff about the game but the players would see through this and think "that's crap!" His approach would be to go back a few weeks to when Richmond played against Geelong at Skilled Stadium. The Tigers at a low ebb after being crushed by Carlton in the opening round. They had a poor start and, early in the third quarter when Luke McGuane gave away that double goal, it could have become a real blow out. But Richmond worked hard, scored a goal, then another and another. Soon the team had a different attitude and by three quarter time they were in front. You need to be proactive and take the game right up to them. After all, both teams start at 50:50 and that's where I'll leave this preview of Sunday's big game.

Interested to know whether tonight's phone in manages to get us over 30k.

I'll definitely try to sugar coat my next review (due for the Geelong game). There's still some water due to flow under the bridge before that game but I'm looking at ... say ... a 5 goal win. Do you think that's a big enough margin or should I go for 7 goals?

I agree with that. Martin and Frawley are slowly working away and improving in defence as every week goes by. I'm still not sure where Martin is going to finish up - as a defender or a forward or possibly an on baller as he develops. That's what makes these times when the Demon team of the future is developing so interesting.

As far as I know it is.

I simply cannot believe that the Fremantle players have nothing better to do than resort to these antics - Dockers deny Ku Klux Klan controversy . The club is denying that the offending outfits are Klan uniforms ("Malaxos had simply got his description of the costume wrong") but please give us all a break! If the Dockers players are focussing on this sort of behaviour, they're in big trouble.

A nine goal final quarter by Port Melbourne blew away the Casey Scorps. I think the club would have been pleased overall with Jack Watts' debut. He had plenty of game time and looked good. It does however, get bloody cold here at this time of night and it's time for me to say goodbye to Casey Fields and return to the warmth of a nice wood fired oven in the Turkish restaurant the wife's booked us into for the evening. Casey Scorpions 4.4 6.8 9.13 13.14 (92) Port Melbourne 3.2 9.8 10.12 19.18 (132) GOALS: Casey Scorpions: Sykes 3 Hughes 3 Bolton 2 Chivers Watts Schrape Mildren McLeod Port Melbourne: Schultz 4 Hassett 2 Scipione 2 Martin 2 Kennedy 2 Kilpin Sengstock O'Keefe Suckling Irving Neville Edwards BEST: Casey Scorpions: Williams Mazurek Waite Hughes Healey Chivers Port Melbourne: Schultz Wall Sengstock Siciliano Clarkson Scipione

You won't get them. He's at CHF and Port are doing all the attacking.

Hughes back on. Jack Watts took a nice mark close to goal but played on and unselfishly handballed to a teammate in the goal square for a goal but Casey are still behind. Danny Hughes just took mark of the year. I just hope the Ten cameras were still on to take a shot of it because it could win him a car from somewhere just for the effort!

Wheels has what appears to be a corky. I don't think that's career ending. Watts continues to show his skill without dominating and Healey looks good . His disposal has been excellent. Hughes was quiet that quarter and was also in the hands of the trainers. 3/4 time and Casey 9.13.67 trail Port 10.12.72.

Casey Scorpions 6.8.44 to Port Melbourne 9.8.62 at half time. Port dominated most of the quarter. Jack Watts had limited opportunities but has looked composed playing mainly at CHF. Matty Whelan was off from the start of the quarter. His leg was being iced and his right thigh is now bandaged (corky?). Hughes is the pick of the Dees in the first half but Rhys Healey has also done some nice things. With Trent Zomer not playing in this game, I would suggest that he's playing in the ones later in the evening. I noticed most of the Demons in tonight's main game had arrived by half time in the reserves game. Jake Spencer is a big lad. Addam Maric is here but there's no sign of Kyle Cheney which suggests that he's the emergency held back just in case there needs to be a change tomorrow. The other big arrivals are the Channel 10 cameras and Ryan Fitzgerald which suggests it's likely that there will be a cross to Before the Game when that programme goes to air tonight.

At quarter time it was Casey Scorpions 4.4.28 to Port Melbourne 3.2.20. Straight after the break, Watts snagged his first goal in VFL reserves history but only after getting a 50 m penalty because his opponent stepped over the mark. Lucky too because Jack's kick was astray.

Casey off to a strong start. There are four Demons in the Scorps team today - Rhys Healey, Danny Hughes, Jack Watts and Matthew Whelan. There's also a player called Luke Williams but he's not the Luke Williams who played for Melbourne and Sandy a few years ago! Hughes and Whelan are the early standouts for Casey. It's been a quiet start for Jack Watts - just one kick from a free. He also tapped the ball to a teammate for what you would call a goal assist in basketball. Casey 4.4.28 to 1.1.7 halfway through the first term.