Deeoldfart

6. T.Mac 5. Salem 4. Hibberd 3. O.Mac 2. Jetta 1. Watts Outstanding team effort ........ another dozen unucky. That's brilliant!

Outstanding!! (three goes to type that word, my hands are trembling so much). Go demons, I live ya!!

I have a very strange 'gameday' feeling this morning. Calm and quietly confident that we will put in a good 'four quarter' performance, and be sitting in 5th spot on the ladder at the end of the round. Uncharted waters, but we are building, and will take a lot out of confidence out of last week.

If I go back and 'like' your earlier post, will that make me good too?

Well, on tonight's form to half time, we don't have anything to worry about with either of these two ............ but the qualification is very important.

I'm no doubt 'intoxicated' with optimism after the Queen's Birthday triumph, and went with 13. I'll stick with that and enjoy it until at least next Sunday arvo, when a the beginning of a 'hangover' is a very real possibility.

Agree Drunkn. Very tough and unfortunate initiation for Bull, but he is made of the right stuff. He couldn't be at a better place than the Melbourne Football Club, where he'll be given every opportunity to make it.

I'm exhausted (mentally drained), damn hoarse and very proud to be a Demon tonight. The drive back to Canberra tomorrow will be sweet.

6. Jones 5. Petracca 4. Watts 3. O Mac 2. Hunt 1. Hibberd

Nope. Focus is100% on football today mate. Go Dees!

G'day hardtack. We'll be at the march and look forward to catching up if our paths cross.

Drove down from Canberra to watch this one. Been walking around the streets of Footscray since first light this morning, just to ease the tension and reflect what might be come 6:30 this evening. Amazing to see Bulldogs scarves and beanies still adorning letter boxes and front fences after last year's success. Makes me envious and tells me that occasionally dreams do come true! First steps first. A win today is the first priority. Kill 'em Dees!

I totally agree LH, but once he crosses the white line he's fit and ready to go. Take no prisoners Melbourne!

Unbelievable goals, unbelievable memories (many from a very forgetable era). Thanks for all the hard wwork Ash.

What did Brad Green say that for?? There was a putrid stench about the place back then, and internal power struggles tore the heart out of our Club. I suspect many people were culpable, but we will probably never know the full story. What I do know however, is that each and every one of us loyal supporters were cut to the core. We were foremost amongst the innocent victims! There was no longer any pride in being a Melbourne supporter. It took far too long, but thank christ we have finally left all that behind. Hope has been restored, and with it some excitement and positive expectations. It's good to be a Melbourne supporter again! I can't thank the architects and builders of our revival enough!

Mitch has some x factor to go with his talent (a quality that can separate the top forward lines from the rest), and he's becoming harder to match up on as he becomes more comfortable at the level. I have a hunch that he might become even more dangerous when Jesse returns and is up and firing. A tantalising prospect imo.

I agree re Bugg doing most things right except kicking goals that he is paid to kick. IIRC he climbed back into the seniors on the back of a 5 goal game for Casey, so he has goalkicking somewhere in his repertoire. Just needs to find it!

No, Yes and No from me. At the start of the season I was hoping for 7 and 3 or 6 and 4 at worst, given a favourable first half draw. Given our youth and inexperience, I thought we needed to take full advantage of the draw to stake a strong claim for a finals berth. Who could have foreseen the loss of (arguably) our two most important players for a large chunk of the season so far. In the circumstances, 5 and 5 is only barely a 'pass' from me, especially given 'what might have been' if we had beaten the Dockers, Tigers and Hawks. The win over the Crows did put a bit of credit back into the bank however. Playing our best football consistently, we are finals bound for sure, and maybe even top 4. However, we haven't been able to play the 'consistent card' at this point of our development, and I don't think that's about to occur. This, combined with a tougher second half draw, and the fact that it will probably take Max and Jesse a while to fully hit their straps when they finally get back on the park, makes finals a tough ask for this year imo. Of course I'm still dreaming 2017, but I think we might have to wait until 2018 to play in September.

Not sure I'd be comfortable playing an underdone Hogan and Gawn on Queen's Birthday. Having said that, I'll be very nervous throughout Maxy's first game back, no matter when that might be.

6. Jones - Led from the front and turned the game. 5. Garlett - Excellent small forward game with goals and pressure. Probably best game for the Dees. 4. Hibberd - Has become a mainstay of our defence. 3. Oliver - Another top-notch performance. Not far off being the clearance king of the comp. 2. Frost - Held (arguably) the best KPF in the game and is becoming a weapon off HB. 1. Hannan - X factor and growing in confidence each week. Another tick for our recruitment team. Apologies: Lewis, Melksham, Harmes, Tyson

I generally like your work Wise, but I reckon you are being very generous to Dean on this one. He's teased with the odd cameo, but I can't remember a decent contribution from him when we've been down. The weekend's game was the last straw for me. It will take a string of very good games for me to climb back on his bandwagon, and I don't think he's got that in him.

I once had high hopes for Kent, based on a few cameos and what I perceived as a fair bit of upside and potential. Not anymore! He completely lost me against Norf, with his miserable work rate, and blatent 'softness' when the team needed him to put his body on the line. Missing a chunk of the pre season is not an alibi for having no desire.

I had almost gotten yesterday, and the role the umpires played, out of my system ......... and now we cop this crap! The glaring inconsistencies, with our team seemingly always on the wrong side of the ledger, makes my blood boil (last bit rephrased to avoid a Demonland sanction). Eff'n disgrace!

I'm not in the habit of potting players, but Kent has to go, and won't be welcome back while he shirks the contest. Very, very disappointing!

6. Hibberd 5. Hannan 4. Viney 3. Tyson 2. Pedersen 1. Frost