demoniac

Over use of the ground I hear is the problem... Casey Seniors and Reserves plus I think Cranbourne FC play Seniors/Reserves/Under 19s... Casey training + not sure if Cranbourne also train on the oval...

Important day for the Dees as we saw the Dees play the best football under Dean Bailey. As I understand it the 'Total Football' concept pioneered by the Dutch in the 70s was inpsired by the idea that every member of the team had to be competent in every role on the pitch because such is the dynamic nature of the game that a player will at times find himself in defence , midfield and attack so has to be able to be effective when in each part of the pitch. For mine Geelong have appropriated the 'Total Football' philosophy to AFL better than any other team. To an extent the modern tactics in AFL with flooding and overlapping and creating mismatchs demands all teams implement a form of 'Total Football' but it is Geelong that has the personnel best able to implement it. Players like Ablett, Chapman, Bartel, Mackie and Kelly are but 5 of the Geelong players who are comfortable in every part of the ground. In the chaos of a game they can quickly reset match ups or can ceate confusion by drifting forward or back to lose opponents. Today as the Dees put out perhaps their best 22 under Bailey we saw a glimpse of a Dees team that as it develops can succeed Geelong as the team with the personnel best able to apply 'Total Football' to our game. And that excites me almost as much as Frawley and Watts' chases on Jetta. On Maric I thought he performed adequately. Has been doing a good apprenticeship in the VFL adding the midfield string to his bow. Good mark for is height and generally a good ball user. His day would have been better had Green not missed 2 marks on the lead from Maric passes. In both cases they were marks he would take more often than not.

Wona is our best small forward when fit. Good footy smarts and good goal sense. Showed it in Darwin when he used his body beautifully to take a mark. Does need to show he can get fit and stay fit but to that end has had good continuity in his football this year. Bottom line though is that a combination of his undoubted talent and the reality of a few years of restricted drafts as GC and GWS means that he will be on our list post 2011. Morton is a classic tall utility equally at home spoiling the ball in the defensive goalsquare or taking a mark in the attacking goalsquare and banging one through. Yep he has done both this year for the Dees. I am happy with Morton being sent back to Casey to work on his defensive pressure skills - all part of a good apprenticeship - but I am pretty confident that he will become an important player for us perhaps as a tall wingman adept at finding space but strong enough in the air to have an impact drifting forward or back and be hard to match up on.

Bail should come in on the wide expanses of Suby after 2 games back from injury for Casey. Appeals as a natural wingman for mine. Runs the lines well and seems to have a knack of finding space in dangerous positions. Joel McDonald can make way.

a rant worthy of a sydney shock jock..and no that is not a compliment... you need to learn that other Demon fans may indeed disagree with you without you feeling the need to be utterly contemptuous towards them...until then please don't feel the need to share your vitriol.

Jack Watts has not turned into a project player he was drafted as a project player.

For mine we are playing too tall in defence. It is no surprise that we lacked run out of defence when we were playing Warnock, Frawley, Garland, Rivers and Joel Mc. Outs - Joel McDonald, Rivers, Bruce, Miller, Jetta Ins - James McDonald, Sylvia, Cheney, Bennell, Wona Dunn to relieve Jamar. Morton to go back if defensive height required.

I thought that when he got the ball today his ball use showed why he was taken at Nm1. His next contract will be in part based on his potential but that is a market reality.I am glad the OP is not our list manager.

My expectation for Year 3 of our comprehensive rebuild was 6 - 8 wins and an improved percentage. After 13 rounds we are on track for that. The reality has not changed. None of our senior players are A Graders though Jamar is threatening to attain that status based on his 2010 form. We are going to have to wait and watch the core of elite young talent we have assembled develop physically and gain experience and unfortunately that cannot be fast tracked.

From what I hear he is very highly rated at Carlton and is regarded as having significant upside. Very athletic for his height and skills are developing. Has been injured for at least part of this year but is now playing for the Bullants. In short would not come cheap in a trade.

We are in development mode. Jack Watts is in development mode. Stays in the team for now to continue that development.

Great list management by the Dees. The kind of decisions that lead to Premierships. Out - Johnstone In - Grimes In - Gysberts Out - Maclean

Team Balance Change In - Spencer Out - 1 defensive support tall (Rivers or McDonald (Garland if injured) So far this season we have generally resolved team balance re Rucks v Talls v Runners by playing One Ruckman to allow an extra runner to play with support in the ruck either coming from a utility in Sylvia/Dunn or a tall forward in Miller. Going forward I would prefer to see Spencer/Martin come in as a Second Ruck and for a defensive tall to go out. Rivers or McDonald for mine though might be Garland if he is injured. This then sees a more traditional structure of Miller and Watts as 2 talls in the forward line, Jamar and Spencer as the 2 rucks, Frawley and Warnock as the 2 talls in defence with support from 2 of Garland/Rivers/Macdonald. We still get to play the extra runner but at the expense of a surplus defensive tall rather than a 2nd ruck or 2nd tall forward. There will be other changes obviously. Ins - Scully, Trengove, Bate Outs - hmmm.. Bennell (has shown what he is capable this year but poor today... rested/dropped?) Rivers (awful today/match up v Carlton?) Joel Macdonald (i am not his biggest fan...match up v Carlton?) ...of course I'd drop Bruce but I don't think I am going to get that wish! Team B Bartram Warnock Garland HB Grimes Frawley Bruce C Scully Gysberts Morton HF Bate Watts Trengove F Davey Miller Green R Jamar Jones Junior Mac Ic Spencer Sylvia Wonaeamiri Jetta Emerg... McKenzie, Bail, Cheney

I am heading along with a few others, runs from 6:30pm - 9:30pm.

nice breeze tonight though!

I am in Darwin and the oppresive conditions really hit you when you arrive. Was still oppresive at game time last night. For that reason I'd say we should play Jamar as the lone Ruckman with Dunn to pinch hit and provide extra running depth.

Flew up today. Great view of a water filled Lake Eyre on the flight up. Spectacular view. Sadly the pilot would not put the plane down for a refreshing and only possible once in a decade swim en route from Melbourne to Darwin. I was having a refreshing beverage at a salubrious establishment called Monsoons when it occured to me that it was 7:40 pm which is when the game starts on Saturday and conditions were still fairly oppressive...maybe the players should play in ice vests rather than just don them when they go off the ground!

Our defensive structure and balance going forward is an interesting issue. If we start with Frawley and Warnock as our key defenders Then add Garland as third tall who can play on mid size forwards or pinch hit on a tall. Whats the balance of the remaining 3? Need 2 running half backs one of which is Grimes Need a quick to cover quick small forwards. Where does Rivers fit in? Have been a fan but am unsure of his role going forward if we are playing Frawley, Warncck and Garland down back. Grimes is a monty for half back so that leaves 2 spots. Does one automatically belong to Rivers?

I particularly appreciated Bruce's 2 attempts to deliver the ball inside 50 in the first quarter under minimal pressure when the tone of the game is set. Have not seen a skew wiff torpedo pass for some time.

Definite Out Johnson - Will never be first ruck so needs another string to his bow if he wants to be in the 22 - specifically he needs to be able to play as a forward. To play as a forward he needs to take a pack mark or bring the ball to ground. Currently its not just that he does not seem to be able to mark over over his head its that he does not seem even to be exert any physicality on the pack when the ball comes in high. Its almost like he has no arms. He needs to be sent back to Casey and told that he won't get picked as second ruck until he demonstrates progress in relation to above. Ins Spencer/Dunn - If we are going to play a Second Ruck then its either Spencer or Martin because we need to get development into both as someone else mentioned. As Martin appears to be injured then Spencer is the option. He impressed me against Coburg with his ruck work and his contested marking. Reads the play well and has some good footy smarts. And as a big bloke should he doesnt mind the physical stuff. Certainly I'd rather Spencer under a high ball in the forward line than Johnson. His kicking does need work. If we want to go with a utility who can pinch hit in the ruck and also provide more run then Dunn is the option. Competitive enough at Bsll Ups/Throw Ins and provides run and a target up forward. Dunn's form has been inconsistent and needs to be more composed when in possesion. Then Morton should come in after 2 games for Casey. If Bruce has a hammy as speculated then a straight swap. Maybe rest Trengove if Bruce comes up. Believer in giving young players an extra week off in addition to the mid season break. Gysberts and Jetta might also come into calculations. Perhaps Bennell to get a rest too.

Saw Gysberts play for Casey on the weekend against Coburg. Composed, smooth mover, good overhead, wins contested ball and uses it well by hand and foot and also runs to create options outside. Listed at 189cm and 82kg so needs to build up a bit but that will come with a few pre seasons and he will be bigger bodied mid he was drafted to be with flexibility to go forward as well. I came away pretty confident that Carlton fans are not going to look favourably at the trade of Brock for the pick used on Gysberts.

We obviously need a clash jumper for the Umpires. An appalling oversight by us. I look forward to the Umpires in the Hawks v Swans 'Kokoda' Game wearing brown and gold fatigues. An absurd and incompetent decision by the AFL. THe most senior of the people at the AFL involved in the decision must issue an apology. Give em hell Dees fans.

Ground dimensions are a factor. The Saints tried to implement their post Roo FloodBall Tactics against the Power at AAMI and on a large ground they found it hard to close off space and could not sustain the running. When they went back to their home ground the smaller Etihad they were able to implement their game style to much great effect. We are starting to progress in the development of our MCG game plan but going forward we do need to work on tweeking it for smaller/larger grounds. The other thing I noticed about Etihad was that the bounce of the ball was a lot higher than at the G. and of course the sub standard surface. thankfully we only have one more trip there against the Saints on July 4..should be a hoot if they FloodBall.

When I heard the news pre game that McKenzie was out and Rivers was in my view was there was no particularly important role for Rivers with the 22 already featuring 4 defensive talls in Frawley, Warnock, Garland and Joel McDonald that justified the loss of running depth. I suppose in this game I preferred we trust our strengths and throw out the challenge to North to try and match us. Geelong will be an interesting test in terms of their structure going forward i season 2010. It was really obvious against Carlton on the MCG that playing 3 tall forwards in Mooney, Podsiadly and Hawkins in addition to a Ruck/Forward in Ottens and a Ruck in Blake cost them plenty in terms of run. Can't really consider Richmond in their current form much of a test of what for mine is a tope heavy structure given the running demands in the modern game. In terms of the Dees we are indeed still in development mode so its no surprise we do not yet have the perfect structure. Though its important to remember that perfect premiership teams are the exception. Most premiership teams have weaknesses. Think of Geelong. They don't have a champion key forward and in general their forwards are innacurate in front of goal. Yet they have won 2 of the last 3 flags. Players such as Martin will be played to help them get used to the speed and structures of the game and to get used to the roles they are expected to play going forward. They may come into the team for a stretch of games and then go back to Casey to work on some areas then come back. Ins - 2 Mids/Runners... McKenzie, Bail first preference otherwise next best from Casey...Gysberts, Maric, Cheney...? Outs - Pettard (Inj) Joel McDonald As for the game against the Kangas I think we are just starting to master a game plan for the MCG. Given thats where we play most of our games thats a good start. We will need to tweak it for a smaller ground like Etihad. Consider how the Saints struggled against the Power at the larger AAMI stadium yet were able to implement their preferred game style much more succesfully back at their home ground Etihad Stadium. We have to get better at adjusting our MCG based game style to larger and smaller grounds going forward. And finally posters really need to respect other posters. We are all Demon fans and yes we will all likely have differing views but getting personal and contemptuous really just makes you look like a child. So if you are an adult post like one please.

As a long term believer in Jamar's ability in the ruck and around the ground it is good to see him finally turning potential into performance. If we play a Second Ruckman Martin is the obvious option playing as a tall forward who can go into the ruck to give Jamar a rest. My read is that Martin is being played at FF at Casey to develop his forward skills and will come into the team in the role of tall forward/relieving ruck. Spencer has undoubted potential but needs time to develop and does not yet really offer enough flexibilty to play as second ruckman given he is not very effective up forward at this stage of his career. For mine while I can see the advantages of having an extra utility in Dunn pinch hitting in the ruck and the flexibilty that provides I don't think it is sustainable to play without a tall forward and Martin offers the flexibilty of being able to play as a tall forward but also pinch hit in the ruck more effectively.