george_on_the_outer

Purcell and West 47 touches between them playing in the middle. Only in their 2nd seasons with us. With KP chipping in with 24 of her own, the mids just look awsome. BOG would have to be Libby Birch, who held everything together against the top line forward line in the competition. Hope Goldy gets back soon, because Libby can't do it all on her own. Gillard looks fantastic and can kick long as well. Very quiet games from Bannan and Zanker, so plenty of upside to be found there.

OK @WalkingCivilWar and others from the Demon Army: the players are doing this after a win: Can the Army start it it the crowd so that it becomes our mark

I am sure that Andy appreciates all the kind thoughts offered by everyone. The fact that he keeps this site going to all of our collective benefit is simply very generous. But it is not just the time ( which is extensive) but it costs $'s to run and maintain. Money that otherwise comes from his pocket. Software, upgrades, hosting fees, equipment for podcasts...all costs. So if you can help with these, take out an annual or lifetime membership, or just donate a little to keep the ship afloat. Any extra left over is directed toward player sponsorhip, so the club benefits as well. https://demonland.com/clients/donations/ Thanks again to everyone, you make this site what it is.......

Once again Ticketek has proven to be useless. 1. They allocate tickets by bay. So the best seats in one bay are not available until the worst in the bay next door are sold. 2. How many times do they have to stuff up to learn you cannot sell all the finals games on the one day at the same time? Small wonder people cannot get on. The first game is 8 days away. 3. They have insufficient staff, so don't try to call them to fix up their mistakes. 4. Any barcodes get a ticket, even if for opposing sides....wait until the Collingwood crowd find out and buy out all the tickets for their next game. 4. The problem is the MCC, not the MFC control who sells tickets. They have contracted Ticketek. Marvel stadium owned by the AFL uses Ticketmaster, and buying tickets through them is a breeze.

Enough said on this matter Thread locked.

I think there are 2 different things here @spirit of norm smith. We are currently not scoring because of a lack of a second tall forward. With only BBB to aim for ( Max and Jackson haven't been marking and scoring) we are dependent upon Kossie, Melksham and Fritsch to score multiple goals to win. It is easy for defenders to nullify any forward entries to stop marking, no matter where the ball is targeted to...pocket or goal square. The second thing is that EVERY team kicks to the pocket. 1. It makes it easier to target, as a leading forward is running at an angle to the ball. Easier to kick to and easier to adjust to be able to mark. 2. If the opposition mark the ball, the corridor is exposed and the risk is the ball then goes end to end. Coaches will have got all the statistics on success or failure of kicking to the pocket v kicking to the top. 3. You are correct. If the ball is not marked by either team, an OOB or a ball up is a likely result. If you are confident you have a side with more likelihood of winning a stoppage then this is again statistically a better option since you are more likely to win the ball which is now close to goal. 4. Players kick from the pockets just as well as in front these days. Who would you back...BBB in the pocket or Max King from direct in front?

The other frightening statistic for the AFL from that table is North Melbourne. Average attendance at Home games 14, 385. We know GC and GWS are basketcases, but even the Saints have managed another 10K average at their Home games.

Double Yep. Not only were Carlton set up, they positioned players in front of the pack ( around the 50m line), with strict instructions to the pack talls to punch the ball forward. It is the same old tactic which stopped FB's kicking up the middle of the ground. The result: the ball lands in the hands of those waiting, who now have a relatively free 50m zone to operate in.

As a practice match this was more of a statement from the girls. No Daisy, Tayla injured before half time, and they just kept on belting the Blues into next week. West and Purcell were brutal and clean in the middle, and the attacking moves all seemed to result in multiple options up forward. Great to see Blaithin Makin score her first goal in this game. As a first hit out, she seems to have the power necessary to play AFL well. The other thing that stood out was our depth of talls. All around the ground we have players standing head and shoulders above their opponents, from Harris to Bannon, Pearce, Gillard, Campbell and Zanker, they must really worry the opponents when they run onto the field. 70 point win to open the account in a game where teams struggle to kick that type of score in 2 weeks of playing, makes the season look promising. P.S. Tayla went down in a tackle just before half time. Physio was working with her during the break, but she didn't come back on. They seemed to be working through ankle, knee, achilles type stretches and exercises, but she was doing all of them, including kicking. Didn't come back on after that.

Fairly good assessment there WSW. It was probably a good move by Ratten to bring in a lot of experience, since the Aints were so bad, and had little talent available. It keeps the fans happy and gives them hope, and keeps him in a job....in the short term! But as you say, Crouch, Jones, Hannebury and Hill are all past their best, and probably the same for Ryder. Plus these players are costing a bucketload. Then when you have Howard, Higgins and Wood in the side, 1/3 of their match day side is "blow ins". Big contrast to what Melbourne did by bringing in only a few older outsiders like Lewis, Cross, Vince, to be able to provide stability while the younger talent develops. Then you bring in one or two ready made players with 5 years plus careers in them, but over a couple of years, and to fill specific roles. May, Lever, Hibberd, Melksham. At the moment those younger Saints players can't get in the side, or St.Kilda don't have the draft picks left to be able to access and develop talent long term. Now they face another cliff as these older players drop off even further. When that happens, I'm with @dazzledavey36...Ratten won't last, and the cycle will be repeated at St.Kilda.

Kozzie heavy strapping, and limping. Laurie running with forwards. BBB not doing much at all, not running in drills.

Thing is he kept doing it in subsequent ruck contests....and the umpires did nothing.

It has happened in a number of games this week: Umpires calling incorrect disposal, when the player has had NO prior opportunity and the ball is merely dislodged. 18.6.2 Holding the ball: Prior Opportunity – Where a Player in Possession of the Football has had Prior Opportunity, a field Umpire shall award a Free Kick if that Player does not Correctly Dispose of the football immediately when they are Legally Tackled. 18.6.3 Holding the ball: Incorrect Disposal – Where a Player in Possession of the Football has not had Prior Opportunity, a field Umpire shall award a Free Kick if that Player elects to Incorrectly Dispose of the football when Legally Tackled. For the avoidance of doubt, a Player does not elect to Incorrectly Dispose of the football when: (a) the Player genuinely attempts to Correctly Dispose of the football (b) the Legal Tackle causes the football to be dislodged from the Player’s possession. It was certainly the case in our game.

We had all best hope North keep losing, if LJ wants to go back to WA. Freo don't have the picks, and probably won't provide players of any value to trade. Eagles offer a bucketload to LJ to come to them, and can pick him up in the pre-season draft, if they finish last. He gets what he wants. They get what they want. We get nothing.

It looks like they are installing the practice cricket pitches a bit early?

How about KISS principles? 1.No sub at all. 2.or 23rd Man, who can be used any time. Coaches would have 10 on the bench if they could. Games used to be played with only an 18th and 19th man.

Rapt.......an abbreviation of rapture, as in " I'm rapt!" Wrapped.....enclosed within., as in "wrapped up a parcel". Rapped....knocking, as in " rapped on the on door"

Spot on. ALL his comments are simply a verbal repeat of the replay after the event, something that anyone with eyes can see. e.g ...." and there is Smith who moves left to kick on his right and score the goal..." No insight as to how or why Smith got the ball, just vision commentary.

Forget any final 9, the damage is done to the main fixture with 19 teams. Just look at the mess that the VFL fixture is with 21 teams.

The AFL imposed soft cap has meant line coaches are doing much more than they were originally hired for. Greg was hired as a ruck coach and he still does that, as well as forwards. Yze does game day tactics and mid-field. No club can hire multiple coaches to perform coaching in individual areas, like they were able before COVID.

....or his manager says you need to explore options at other clubs, because there appears to be little future at the MFC

Yes, that is exactly the case. In our game against Geelong both sides had 70+ turnovers. Disposal efficiency both below 70%. The coaching staff for every club employ these statistics realising that footballers are just not that good at hitting targets. So you go for the option that provides you with better than 70% chance i.e. kicking to a pack when no-one is likely to mark it. That creates stoppage. If you back your team to win stoppages, this is the best outcome. Even if you don't, the ball is 70m away from the goal. This is all about defence not attack. Attack occurs after you have cleared the zone where the opposition are likely to score. It is boring to watch. Everyone prefers to watch their team cutting it up through the corridor....it just doesn't happen all that often. Once again look at the Moneyball scene with all the scouts. It worked for the Oakland A's. They did something which produced definite positive outcomes......."he gets on base". In AFL " it stops the opposition scoring easily"

If you want to see how tough players are today and what their bodies endure, there was a sickening collision between Conway and Deakyn Smith at the 17 minute mark of the final quarter. This was the definition of the "hospital handpass", but to be fair to Jimmy Munro, Conway came off the nearby bench: https://www.afl.com.au/video/795568/vfl-match-replay-r16-geelong-v-casey?videoId=795568&modal=true&type=video&publishFrom=1657281686001

This strategy is all about percentages. See Moneyball again.... While it is frustrating to watch, the coaches and statisticians have worked out that the ball 60m away from the goal, close to the boundary will probably produce a stoppage or boundary throw in more times than not. i.e. the opposition don't score from this position. We then expect our stoppage skills will win the ball...more times than not. It is rare that a mark is achieved, and this is just a bonus if it happens. Other teams may use short kicks initially, but they are looking for the same thing further up the ground. Short kicks are not 100% guaranteed. When they fail ( not often) it results in opposition scores, usually the 6 point variety. Up the middle puts the ball in a dangerous position to counter, particularly if punched straight forward into the 50m area, which oppositions are trained to do if this is employed. Same reason players are directed to kick to pockets in the forward line. It is about percentages and stopping the opposition gaining access to the corridor. More often results in boundary throw in and the stoppage argument comes to the fore again.

Have been disappointed with his progression. He is in a similar boat to a lot of players presently at Casey. Nothing to show during Covid times, and now coming into contract end period. Importantly for Rosman, same as Oskar Baker, is who does they replace ( short of injury) No room in the backline and JJ and Langdon have the wings sewn up for years to come it seems. They have to show a reason that makes them superior to those already playing seniors. AND Hunt and Rivers are presently playing alongside them, with far superior qualities. Same for Laurie...who does he replace in the middle? Sadly, I have seen nothing from McVee and D. Smith which would keep them at the club, especially since they are OOC.