Tarax Club

Good work joeboy! Clearly at the top of your game.

Should cover most of the possible contingencies.

Some of the chatter coming from Norf's coaching box this evening. Making your footy club marginally relevant again. 1. Hit rock bottom and go to the draft for new blood. 2. 'Resurrect' a former player and champion coach. 3. Develop the new talent assisted by the 'old hands'. 4. After the first rebuild flops reset and go again. 5. AFL inserts new team which quickly compromises draft. 6. Every defeat is now certified as 'character building'. 7. It takes 'time' (eons) there are no quick fixes in footy. 8. There is no guarantee of success just hard work. 9. While the sun is setting on your career keep it 'classy'.

Happy with the four premiership points the rest is just fluff.

Maybe he just needs to prioritise the Paddington bear special Ox edition release. Man who desperately needs a cuddle.

That was potentially a dangerous act, he flew horizontally at velocity with significant force. NRL referees would look at it differently.

Angus Brayshaw is the type of footballer most coaches and players love to have in their sides. Courageous, combative and committed to the team success. Over his career he has provided that in spades. From overcoming earlier serious concussion issues, to running a close third to a surprise Brownlow medal. To the pure grit and determination of his Grand Final performance in Perth in '21. Where he was flying the flag deep into the Doggies' second into third quarter momentum swing. His recent performances continue to to show that determination and resolve by accounting for Jake Stringer against Essendon despite the loss. I thought his performance against Richmond was similarly praiseworthy, absorbing considerable physical pressure, but continuing to repulse Tiger forward forays as the game tightened up. Whilst still being able to deliver quality ball by hand or foot to a team mate.

Seen May play much better footy. Set a very high standard in recent seasons with two All-Australian blazers. Agree his last quarter was more solid but Riewoldt and Co had physically dropped off. At this stage of the season there is plenty of room for improvement, amongst the individuals who make up the team including Steven May.

6 Jack Viney 5 Max Gawn 4 Christian Petracca 3 Angus Brayshaw 2 Thomas Sparrow 1 Edward Langdon Honourable mentions; Alex Neal-Bullen Kade Chandler Brody Grundy Clarence Olivier Jake Lever Jacob van Rooyen From the Director's chair; Happenstance, JVR took flight in the last quarter just before being subbed off. His three goal burst was a match winning contribution. In a tense closely fought battle for supremacy of the hallowed MCG turf. The Demons overcame fierce resistance from the Tigers, to send them back to their Punt Road lair, to lick their wounds. Adjudication; According the DL post-game thread the condemnation of the umpiring performance was almost at universal pariah status. Surprisingly, the difference was only four more frees in favour of the Tigers. The total number of free kicks given was fifty-one. Is the fourth umpire necessary? Supposedly the extra gives greater scrutiny, but fairness goes both ways. The amount of infringements going 'unnoticed' particularly in packs is a blight on the game. Broadcasters; Preferred setting now during the game is a low rumble of crowd noise. Tiring of the oft partisan inanities and vacuousness of many the 'ex'pert commentators.

joeboy must’ve been a jam at the ‘G after the final siren glad you’ve successfully negotiated the traffic /public transport imbroglio to get home. Mostly in concordance with your player analysis except you’re too kind to Steven May and too harsh on Angus Brayshaw*. And Judd McVee looks to be fairly cool under pressure.

Picket as you commence your evening meal of heartily earned pescatarian delights please don't go apoplectic and choke on a fish bone. Looneymove # 1 Tom MacDonald is selected to play Anzac Eve at centre-half forward. Confounds the critics and gives renewed self-confidence to the doubters by a magnificent return to form.

The cliché that big men take time to develop could apply. Saints had him listed as a rookie a few seasons back. So his opportunities and progress may have been stifled by Covid-19. Didn't get the opportunity to play in Casey's premiership team last season with Sam Weideman being preferred. Best all round performance I can recall for Casey from Jack. Not satisfied with just being a tap ruckman, his game is showing definite signs of becoming more rounded. With his clearance work from the centre bounce, boundary throw-ins and ball ups a highlight in this game. Plus he reads the flight of the ball and positions himself well around the ground to assist his team mates, commencing or participating in chains of possession. Kicking that last goal of the match for Casey was the 'cherry on top'. If Jack can maintain this form he will certainly be on the recruitment radar.

Seems like Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde have flipped the script this season. Comfortable at home, woeful away. Is there still time to rectify this onset of travel sickness? Or will demonlanders be reaching for brown paper bags?

All votes are equal some votes are more equal than others. 6 Jack Viney 5 Christian Petracca 4 Clayton Olivier 3 Judd McVee 2 Brody Grundy 1 Harry Petty Honourable mentions; Lachlan Hunter Bayley Fritsch Edward Langdon Angus Brayshaw Angus Neal-Bullen Jack Watts From the director’s chair; Home and away is starting to look like a Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde horror movie. Selections for Anzac eve will reflect Hammer Films Productions, after a no show matinee last Saturday afternoon. Be prepared for some old fashioned blood letting on the casting couch. Adjudication; Dons got some sure goals from the goal square, some justified other soft as Gil’s over buttered cold toast on Sunday morning . Broadcasters; Propaganda courtesy of the Scott brothers. Sticky fingers in everything. Nauseating.

joeboy again consistent with your appraisal on Brayshaw and Neal-Bullen. Back to the naughty corner boys. May; awkward and slow, after school detention! Bowey; poor under pressure straight to matron. Grundy; beaten by duds, six cuts. The rest; straight to bed without supper.

Only if this happens in Rundle St Mall.

Being part of the Demon diaspora don’t get the opportunity to regularly go to the footy like decades back. But did get some continuity over west in the ‘21 finals series. In the preliminary final, Jack Viney ‘live’ set the tone against the sCats. Uncompromising physicality on his attack on the ball on the inside and flair and creativity on the outside. IMHO best on ground that evening. Pleasingly got the opportunity to compliment him personally later after the game. He was gracious and appreciative of what was due praise for that ‘bravura’ performance. With the emergence of so many stars in our terrific football team, Jack still works away in his uncompromising, committed fashion often away from the spotlight. A true team player, who will be duly lauded at the completion of his footy career as a Demon great.

6 Jack Viney 5 Brody Grundy 4 Christian Petracca 3 Clayton Olivier 2 Tom Macdonald 1 Trent Rivers Honourable mentions; Angus Brayshaw Bayley Fritsch Lochlan Hunter Edward Langdon Judd McVee Alex Neal-Bullen Opposition hyperbole; Perennial favourite Jack Darling as the Eagles most experienced tall didn’t deliver. Kept himself goalless, shaded almost effortlessly by Oscar Allen. Jayden Hunt on the other hand was amongst the Eagles best players. Performed like he had a point of prove. The way out west is paved with prolific possessions. From the director’s chair; Harry Petty’s move up forward may still be a work in progress, but he is not anywhere near Neitzian stature at this stage. Looks more comfortable under the Lever-May expert tutelage. Tom MacDonald’s recharge at Casey got him sparking. The Master Chef panel at DL can now breathe easy. Tommy has 🔥’d up the barbecue and is cooking again, rather than been declared ‘cooked’. Bring out the carnivore! Adjudication; Get Optus Stadium’s desire to immediately empty itself of so many undesirables (West Coast supporters). But the rush to declare Bayley’s after the siren goal a point deserves a kick up the behind. So blatantly rushed, undignified and wrong. Broadcaster’s; With Fox’s dreamteam of retiree power forwards. The Demon break-out after half-time must have been a relief. It was almost palpable.

On the e-mailing list, and happily ‘fess up to be an admirer and a poster as the muse takes us. Despite the grind of the weekly rigour, Titus manages to comes up with some ripper observations encompassing all and AFL sundry. Makes taking the [censored] an art form and funny as.

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Cooking not cooked!

joeboy, back to your ‘slightly’ controversial best. Did you mistakenly wear your bottom of the coke bottle specs? With prescription standard correction you’d get clearer 60 60 vision. Respectfully suggest: Angus Brayshaw; battled man fully Alex Neal-Bullen; nibbled not nobbled

Given the history between the Eagles and Demons, the overall head to head is hardly flattering at 37-19. Given our aspirations for the season, relative ladder positions and their outs, expect it’s time for some justifiable correction of the record. Not suggesting a reprise of last year’s visit. No surprises, they’re not the Easter Bunnies. Go in with a winning mentality. Demons to take the Easter chocolates.

Thought the Church of the Latter Day Saints was at 32-60 Linton St Salt Lick City.

T’was born in Toorak according to my original birth certificate but never dwelt there for long. After a spell in the Goulburn Valley returned to the big smoke to live in Port Melbourne. Which back then was not upwardly, demographically, orientated like today. The local primary school was a very tough gig, with a notorious bully and his offsider lurking in the playground. Being the new kid copped it of course, but memorably at great surprise to myself, squared matters in my first school fight. Aided by the courageous intervention of another classmate to even up the numbers. Later settled in Bentleigh which was to become part of Melbourne’s patchwork of suburban zones along with Prahran. Russell Colcott played with Bentleigh in the Federal league after his brief career at the Demons, joined Bob Johnson at Oakleigh in the VFA. Ross Brewer was at Bentleigh High School and later Brett Bailey at St Peter’s. Robert Flower was from the nearby adjoining suburb of Murrumbeena. There were probably some other local players who may have got on MFC supplementary lists? But don’t recall those now. The Bentleigh connection goes back much further than the VFL creation of zones, suburban and rural.* Hugh Dunbar the 1926 Premiership ruckman, famously celebrated the flag win with his teammates at his milkbar in Centre Rd Bentleigh. Which at the time except for the outer beach side suburbs would have probably been the end of the main suburban rail line. One assumes more than milk was on offer. *(Which proved to be a significant cause of inequality amongst the twelve league clubs over time. To perhaps paraphrase Sir Kenneth Luke VFL visionary ‘All zones are equal but some are more equal than others.’) Of course the Demons’ exile and return to premiership glory was of almost mythic rivalry to the Odyssey. So what is the MFC heartland?