Whispering_Jack

Your assessment of the potential for mystery injuries sounds pretty much spot on. However, I think this week’s reporting has the wrong Smith. Joel was covered last week as available. This week’s list should IMO include Deakyn Smith who was said to have recovered from his recent injuries. Injury List: Round 21 Deakyn Smith - Jaw | Available James Harmes - Concussion | Test Ben Brown - Knee | Test Fraser Rosman - Hamstring | 3-4 Weeks Tom McDonald - Foot | 4-6 Weeks

Everyone knows that I’m skeptical about our club’s weekly published injury list which always seems to throw up a mystery injury of the week at selection time or on game day (this week it was James Harmes with his delayed concussion). Often, predicted return times are also way off the mark so I put forward this item for what it’s worth ~

Just catching up on the National Championships game from last weekend between WA and SA - Bottom-age SA gun shows No.1 potential, WA dasher stars WESTERN AUSTRALIA 4.2.26 7.6.48 9.7.61 15.10 (100) SOUTH AUSTRALIA 3.1.19 5.3.33 8.6.54 12.8 (80) GOALS Western Australia: Cole 2, Dewar 2, Hagan 2, Sanchez 2, Allan, Green, Jones, Livingstone, McDonald, Scaife, Tregenza-Cashell South Australia: Moir 4, Verrall 2, Bennier, D'Aloia, Keeler, Lovelock, Phillipou, Ryan Sandgropers hold off magical Moir for first AFL U18s win WA: R. Ginbey, D. Jones, S. Green, T. Dewar, S. Gilbey, J. Cleaver SA: A. Moir, K. Ryan, A. D’Aloia, B. Dowling, W. Patton, J. Ryan

Tonight’s win over Fremantle marked the first “revenge match” for the club this year, overturning the result of the game that ended Melbourne’s 17 game winning stretch. Next Friday night, the Demons have another opportunity for revenge - this time against Collingwood. The teams when they met last time in Round 13: COLLINGWOOD B: B.Maynard 37 D.Moore 30 N.Murphy 28 HB: S.Pendlebury 10 J.Howe 38 I.Quaynor 3 C: W.Hoskin-Elliott 32 P.Lipinski 1 John Noble 9 HF: J.Crisp 25 B.Mihocek 41 J.De Goey 2 F: J.Ginnivan 33 J.Elliott 5 S.Sidebottom 22 Foll: D.Cameron 14 T.Adams 13 J.Daicos 7 I/C: M.Cox 46 N.Daicos 35 O.Henry B. McCreery 31 Sub: T.Brown 6 Emerg: I.Chugg F.Macrae 18 T.Ruscoe 21 In: J.Elliott Out: R.McInnes (shoulder) MELBOURNE B: C.Salem 3 H.Petty 35 J.Bowey 17 HB: J.Jordon 23 J.Lever 8 A.Brayshaw 10 C: T.Sparrow 32 A.Neal-Bullen 30 E.Langdon 15 HF: M.Brown 38 B.Fritsch 31 C.Petracca 5 F: C.Spargo 9 B.Brown 50 K.Pickett 36 Foll: M.Gawn11 C.Oliver 13 J.Viney 7 IC: J.Harmes 4 M.Hibberd 14 L.Jackson 6 D.Turner 42 Sub: K.Chandler 37 Emerg: O.Baker 33 A.Tomlinson 20 S.Weideman 26 In: K.Chandler M.Hibberd D.Turner Out: T.Bedford (omitted) J.Hunt (omitted) A.Tomlinson (omitted)

In his new book Between the Flags, Ian Munro explores the impact of country zoning and its role in the club’s long period without tasting the ultimate success. Here’s a glimpse of that story from a Football Almanac article:- Country Zoning - its part in our downfall.

More reading - Under the Radar: AFL Draft prospects on the precipice The top of the class, bolters and big questions: AFL draft state of play

Here comes Cal with his Phantom Form Guide ~ Cal Twomey's Phantom Form Guide: Top draft prospects' July ranking

I think it's a fair question but the Suns have clearly chosen this time to give him a game because they're playing the Eagles and also have some lesser opponents coming up which is better than when Melbourne unleashed Jack Watts against Collingwood on QB all those years ago. Let's see what he produces in these games.

I agree with the good luck wishes but it wasn’t just people here who said he wouldn’t play for the first two years of his career, it was nearly every recruiter, including the club that recruited him and most of the draft “experts”. And it wasn’t just how skinny he was (although that was part of it) - it was because he was a very raw talent who needed the time to develop. Kudos to the Gold Coast coaches if they’ve managed to fast track his development in less than a season.

The day of reckoning has come for last year’s premier on the very same ground where they triumphed in 2021.

Yes and no.

We were called Narrm and came into the game with 17 wins in the trot under our belt. Now, we struggle to win two on end. Our key position woes were highlighted here when we lost Tom McDonald through injury, then Steven May went down early and Harry Petty had problems during the game. We ran out of gas after holding a comfortable lead - a precursor for a number of games since then. THE TEAMS NARRM B: J.Bowey 17 S.May 1 T.Rivers 24 HB: J.Jordon 23 J.Lever 8 J. Hunt 29 C: A.Brayshaw 10 J.Viney 7 T.Sparrow 32 HF: B.Fritsch 31 L.Jackson 6 C.Spargo 9 F: A.Neal-Bullen 30 B.Brown 50 K.Pickett 36 Foll: M.Gawn 11 C.Oliver 13 C.Petracca 5 I/C: T.Bedford 12 J.Melksham 18 S.Weideman 26 H.Petty 35 Sub: L.Dunstan 27 Emerg: M.Brown 38 B.Laurie 16 A.Tomlinson 20 In: J.Viney S.Weideman Out: T.McDonald (ankle) E.Langdon (ribs) FREMANTLE B: H. Young 26 A. Pearce 25 G.Logue 2 HB: B. Cox 36 L. Ryan 13 J. Aish 11 C: B. Acres 9 A.Brayshaw 8 J.Clark 6 HF: M.Frederick 32 M. Taberner 20 T .Colyer 33 F: M.Walters 10 R.Lobb 37 L. Schultz 28 Foll: S. Darcy 4 W.Brodie 17 C. Serong 3 I/C: H. Chapman 27 D. Mundy 16 D.Tucker 18 B.Walker 31 Sub: B. Banfield 41 Emerg: N.Erasmus 28 E.Hughes 15 S.Sturt 1 In: D.Tucker B.Walker Out: N.Erasmus S.Switkowski (suspended)

Tackles Inside 50 Melbourne 0 Western Bulldogs 9 Don’t blame umpires. This was not what Melbourne stood for in 2021.

Cometh the hour, cometh the Weideman. No pressure but it’s Sam’s time to shine at night again, as he once did.

I can see another big Dodoro coup coming up … no, wait.

Interesting comments on the Rookie Me Central site - Under the Radar: AFL Draft prospects on the precipice “Finn Emile-Brennan (Dandenong Stingrays/Vic Country)
7/05/2004 | 181cm | 62kg | Defender What he does well: A silky smooth and skilful rebound defender, Emile-Brennan is the first and only club-tied talent on this list. The Melbourne Next Generation Academy (NGA) member will make the Demons sweat, given he could well be considered a top 40 talent, making him unavailable via bidding rules. He can play above his 181cm listing, but looks most potent when surging the ball out of defensive 50 and utilising his booming boot in transition. The knock: While certainly capable of impacting in an aerial sense with his notable athleticism, size works against Emile-Brennan in another sense. He is still quite lean at 62kg and, suffice to say, has some filling out to do. He may well remain that skinner defender, akin to the likes of Kade Simpson, but could encounter some difficulties against bigger bodies at senior level. Sustaining his impact throughout games is another area the young gun can work on.”

Almanac Books: ‘Between The Flags: Making Sense of 57 Years of Heartache’.

I’d wait until I see him running around on Marvel Stadium before I get too excited. How many times have we heard about a player who the club expects to play on a Monday or Tuesday only to be declared unfit at the last minute?

Ed Pascoe has updated his rankings.

Not much change … ROUND ONE 1. North Melbourne 2. West Coast Eagles 3. Adelaide 4. GWS Giants 5. Essendon 6. Hawthorn 7. Gold Coast Suns 8. Port Adelaide 9. St Kilda 10. Western Bulldogs 11. Richmond 12. Carlton 13. Sydney Swans 14. Collingwood 15. Fremantle 16. Brisbane Lions 17. Sydney Swans 18. Geelong 
 ROUND TWO 19. Richmond 20. West Coast Eagles 21. Adelaide 22. GWS Giants 23. Essendon 24. Hawthorn 25. Gold Coast Suns 26. West Coast Eagles 27. St Kilda 28. Western Bulldogs 29. Richmond 30. Carlton 31. Sydney Swans 32. Gold Coast Suns 33. Gold Coast Suns 34. Brisbane Lions 35. Melbourne 36. Geelong ROUND THREE 37. Western Bulldogs 38. West Coast Eagles 39. Melbourne 40. GWS Giants 41. Essendon 42. Collingwood 43. Gold Coast Suns 44. Brisbane 45. St Kilda 46. Collingwood 47. Collingwood 48. Geelong 49. Port Adelaide 50. Gold Coast 51. Hawthorn 52. Geelong 53. Melbourne 54. Geelong ROUND FOUR 55. North Melbourne 56. Port Adelaide 57. GWS Giants 58. GWS Giants 59. Essendon 60. Geelong 61. Hawthorn 62. Carlton 63. Melbourne 64. Western Bulldogs 65. North Melbourne 66. Carlton 67. Sydney Swans 68. Gold Coast Suns 69. Gold Coast Suns 70. Brisbane Lions 71. Melbourne 72. Fremantle ROUND FIVE 73. North Melbourne 74. West Coast Eagles 75. Adelaide 76. GWS Giants 77. Essendon 78. Hawthorn 79. Gold Coast Suns 80. Port Adelaide 81. St Kilda 82. Western Bulldogs 83. Richmond 84. Carlton 85. Sydney Swans 86. Collingwood 87. Fremantle 88. Brisbane Lions 89. Melbourne 90. Geelong

It’s raining Metro! Vics crush Croweaters to stay undefeated Country roads take Victorians home against WA Next Nick Daicos? Father-son talent stars at championships Vic Metro 2.3.15 6.8.44 10.12.72 16.15 (111) South Australia 1.1.7 2.1.13 4.3.27 5.8 (38) Goals Vic Metro: Caddy 3, Hotton 3, Jefferson 3, Watson 3, Drury 2, Ashcroft, Clarke South Australia: Bennier, Blacker, D'Aloia, Lovelock, Phillipou Vic Country 3.2.20 7.4.46 8.10.58 12.11 (83) Western Australia 1.2.8 2.2.14 5.4.34 6.4 (40) Goals Vic Country: Cadman 3, Long 3, Burgiel 3, Clohesy 2, Northam Western Australia: Tregenza-Cashell 2, Dewar, Ginbey, Sanchez, Scaife

Vic Metro slaughtered SA today at GMHBA Stadium with captain Will Ashcroft again dominating. In the second game, Vic Country are doing a number on WA. The two Victorian teams look like being undefeated after this week and are due to meet in the last round of matches in what will effectively be the grand final.

No Clarrie so it’s time for the Captain Jacks to make their stand

Of course, who could forget the Red Fox and the Ron Barassi biography?

The Last Hurrah by Adam Woolcock (our very own Supermercado) and, if you have the stomach for it, The Great Deepression by the same author. Max's book. The Grand Old Flag by Lynda Carroll (she should update it now to include 2021 and maybe beyond) and the classic "100 YEARS OF FOOTBALL. The Story of the Melbourne Football Club 1858-1958" by E.C.H. Taylor.