Dees_In_October

Just remembered to check the Gaelic results. Armagh was knocked out last weekend at the Quarter Finals stage. So that's a shame, but maybe frees up the Mackins to join AFLW preseason a little earlier than otherwise.

Demonland delivers again with up-to-the-minute insider reporting!

Good point! I'd overlooked that. Good to see some consolidation of venues used, despite there still being some home grounds under development for part/all of the season (Whitten Oval, Punt Rd). Hopefully it means some stability for more teams and fans. https://www.womens.afl/news/120490/aflw-fixture-match-ups-revealed-gf-venues-locked-in The possible Grand Final venues are: * Alberton Oval: Port Adelaide * Norwood Oval: Adelaide * Brighton Homes Arena: Brisbane and Gold Coast * Fremantle Oval: Fremantle * GMHBA Stadium: Geelong * Henson Park: GWS and Sydney * Leederville Oval: West Coast * Ikon Park: Carlton, Collingwood, Essendon, Hawthorn, Melbourne, North Melbourne, Richmond, St Kilda and Western Bulldogs Hopefully similar has been done for the first three weeks of finals...but wouldn't be surprised if they forgot to do that!

Agree that a mix of Casey and Princes Park games is preferable. While we have a big advantage at Casey, I hate to think how much percentage we've squandered there over the years due to poor conditions. I also like that PP attracts a different crowd of Dees fans. We're also undefeated at PP from five starts and it's becoming the preferred finals venue. Melbourne travel interstate 3 times, Brisbane 4, Adelaide 5, North 4 (including Tassie). Perhaps clutching at straws in a 10-week season, but our travel is also nicely spaced out, whereas Brisbane travel 3 times in a 4 weeks and Adelaide have a back-and-forth trend for much of the season. Awarding points as follows (yes, it's a flawed measure): Fixtures ranked "hardest" to "easiest": Disclaimer being that the gulf reflected by these points allocated might narrow significantly or widen; very difficult to predict. Personally, I'd prefer for us to play as many of the contenders during the season. Brisbane has been compensated for their loss of players through the fixture. Not saying it's right, but this is the treatment we can expect (if draft/trade measures/natural decline fail to weaken us) until there is full season.

No worries, not looking for an in-depth binman analysis, just a shout out. Can't rely on the AFL to advertise haha.

On first glance, it's what I expected as reigning premiers in a comp with a huge gulf between the best and the rest. Need to see if the rest of the top 4 have received the same treatment. But if we fail to get amongst it, I don't think it will be something we can blame on the fixture. In terms of travel, we've done very well. The early starts for the Hawks and Cats games are really stupid though. I don't think it's so much of an impact on the players these days, but it's not great for fans. Yes, realistically there weren't going to be many Dees fans travelling down to the Cattery, but local fans who have jobs or kids? Too bad for them, I guess. And then it's like, why bother having that at GMHBA? Mostly just relieved that it's finally (finally!) been announced. And that they've set the Grand Final venues in advance.

I'm sure you guys are snowed under in preparation for another epic podcast - just a reminder to do a quick shout-out for the AFLW fixture release and Melbourne's part in the season opener on Sep 1st. I know you're across it, but also that it's a packed agenda! Don't think there's been a H&A game with more to discuss than that one. As always, love your work and go Dees.

Jack Viney's shorts memorial post RIP (ripped)

Rested and ready to learn some forward craft.

Re: whether Grundy is being omitted, dropped or managed. Assuming that someone is omitted because of team balance, dropped because of poor form or managed due to a need for a rest/niggle (or because of a bigger picture schedule of managing players' loads), I can easily imagine a scenario where all three of those converge. There's too many factors involved for it purely to be one thing most of the time. Sometimes it's splitting hairs anyway. A player out of form might need a rest. Team balance is both a week-to-week thing and a season-long project. Omitting someone for team balance might (through not accident) coincide with a good time for a rest! There's also surely a difference sometimes in how the situation is presented to the player and to the media/fans/opposition. That last group contains a pretty wide array of audiences, with very differing levels of priority for the proper running of a football club - and fans expect a much higher level of transparency than they'll ever realistically get. Edit: I see that "omitted" is the word of choice this time!

If I had the time, I'd keep a record of all the confidently put forward opinions of the main footy pundits for a whole season and then tally up their accuracy. I reckon it'd be about 25%...at best. I don't even know how I'd measure the ones that do a complete 180 every couple of weeks in a knee-jerk reaction to results. Or the ones where they can somehow hold one view of a team for reasons that are completely contradictory to their stated reasons for their view of another. The free range they currently have to just wildly speculate with no accountability is ridiculous. I know it's because they need to fill a huge amount of airtime and get clicks but still. They just say whatever. It's turned me off so much footy media that I've lost track of who the reputable voices left actually are (if any). Well, that just turned into a rant. @Bitter but optimistic was much more succinct!

A little science fiction for Demonland on a Tuesday arvo: The year is 2050. It's late in the third quarter of the Grand Final. Schache Jnr., a number one draft pick who demanded a trade to powerhouse club Melbourne after not being eligible for drafting via the parent-child rule, is having a shocker. The skills are there, the footy IQ is there, he's just lacking that special something, that little bit of beast mode. And the Dees need their forward line firing, in what looks likely to be a close finish against the Tasmanian Pademelons, who are fresh off their first premiership (having entered the league in 2040 after the ribbon was finally cut on their floating stadium off the coast of Hobart). Melbourne has already used its injury sub, concussion sub and tactical sub. But never fear. Because the Demons are about to activate their IPATS (injured player asset transferal sub). Schache leaves the field and disappears into a chrome-plated structure at the back of the interchange area, what is colloquially known as the "phone box" by old-timers. When he emerges, the guessing game begins. Despite the answer being obvious, the commentators are, as usual, flummoxed. Which injured player's asset have the Demons transferred to Schache using their IPATS? There was never any doubt. After all, Melbourne lost three-time premiership hero and father-son steal Silton Oliver to concussion protocols in the lead-up to the finals. Schache re-enters the field of play. Beast-mode activated. Victory for Melbourne!

My brother says he saw the STILL WOEWODIN sign in the crowd on the replay! Was he dreaming? That's some impressive commitment to storage.

Good interview with Tyla Hanks - future captain, I reckon! https://www.womens.afl/news/120478?_ga=2.32986622.1772807141.1688720886-182446412.1688720886 1.07 – The only girl at Nar Nar Goon Auskick 5.42 – The stacked 2018 AFLW Draft 7.23 – Adjusting to playing against women as a small player 10.52 – AFLW Rising Star win in 2021, Hanks' third season 13.10 – That Bunnings ad 14.37 – Developing belief and leadership 17.30 – Season seven premiership 22.20 – The influence of Mick Stinear 24.45 – Life beyond Daisy Pearce 28.00 – Juggling AFLW with teaching year 11 PE 30.27 – Leadership with Hanks

Glad to hear this, after some games for Casey this season. Gets a mention here: https://central.rookieme.com/afl/2023/07/05/aflw-u18s-surprise-packets-allies-vs-vic-metro/

I'm so happy for McNamara! Yeah, the ruck's always been a worry if L.Pearce goes down. Gillard? Or maybe we should just trade in another All-Australian ruck, seems like it's the done thing haha.

Clearly I fell off the bandwagon once finals were out of the picture! Have I become THAT kind of supporter?! For shame! In the interests of completion, I'll finish this off briefly: Casey rounded out the season with a 27-point loss to Box Hill and a stirring 10-point win against Port Melbourne (who went on to finish the H&A season 2nd). A mid-season slump cost our team the chance at finals - by the time they'd regained some form and team cohesion, the bye interrupted the momentum and there weren't enough games left. The strong start to the season, retrospectively clearly aided by some AFLW talent, seems a long time ago! But the Dees did build throughout and found some connection towards the end. Certainly, our players' endeavour and hunger for the contest never wavered regardless of the opposition. A few close results in the other direction and it could have been a different story. It was good to see some stalwarts continue their VFLW careers plus a wide array of new talent including plenty of debuts and other young players who improved week on week. Congrats to all who featured. While there was no Eliza West-esque "get her now" standout, I enjoyed watching players like O'Neill, Hogg, Woolcock and Neal, just to name a few. Danckert is one I can see making it back onto an AFLW list, actually. And it was a highlight to watch the first Demon father-daughter prospect where I remember the father, in Rigoni.

I think they've always done it as a player vote. From memory, it's often announced around photo day. Hore would have to be the front runner. Paxman has stepped away from formal leadership. Birch? Gay?

Absolutely, and it's easy to forget how important a player Colvin was in Season 6 (2022A) before the rise of Gillard. She was our best player in the losing Grand Final. If she can recapture that form, there'll be selection headaches. This is probably the one role that we've never filled successfully on a consistent basis. I'd hoped Duffy was the answer. Perhaps Fitzsimon will find more scoring opportunities. I've got high hopes for A.Mackin too, but obviously it's a big ask - I think we still underestimate how huge her sister's achievements were last season, breaking into the premiership side from another sport. Aimee is building back from injury nicely in the LGAA though: Although I prefer her forward, we could go back to Zanker in there occasionally to mix it up... I'd like Goldrick in there just for chaos, but that's true of pretty much every position on the ground for me! Other teams will be focused on breaking down our ball movement through the middle. We were able to weather that pretty well last season by sticking to the plan and wearing teams down. So it's a matter of if we can improve on that further to counter the improvement of other teams. These are the big ones aside from injuries. I'm less concerned about #1 because I think Daisy was never a "cult of personality" type leader. I'm confident she's planted the seeds for others to step up. The process has been noticeable for a few seasons now, but last season it really felt like Hore was co-captain in all but title.

Haha this is what I always feel when commenting on the men's - it's been said before by the time I get there. Hence why I comment here a lot more!

In better preseason news, I tuned in to watch some Gaelic footy on the weekend, hoping to catch a look our new recruit in Aimee Mackin. And, of course, to see Blaithin in her native sport. Their team, Armagh, were dominant for much of the game before holding off a fast-finishing Laois. Blaithin was a key player in the scoring chain and got a couple of points herself - she loves to have a crack from long range, which is definitely something I see in coming into her Aussie Rules game as she gets more experience. Aimee is coming back from injury and was only subbed into the game near the end. She definitely has a presence and is clearly spoken of with respect by the commentators, which is saying something as they're very understated in how they call the game, it's quite refreshing actually! Meanwhile the rest of the squad were at preseason camp down at Lorne. The winners of some kind of trail running challenge that involved dress-ups were the "pig" team comprising Hore, Purcell, Wilson and Zanker. No surprises - that's a highly competitive bunch.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-06-19/aflw-season-length-still-being-negotiated-incoming-afl-chief/102497688 This from Andrew Dillon is particularly galling as an excuse for not adding an extra two H&A games this season (which is what the AFLPA is asking for): "But we also want to have a three to five-year vision about how we expand the competition." Yeah, that's literally what the players and fans have been crying out for since at least 2019. A plan that lays out how many games will be added year on year, not just a wishy washy end goal. Yet now that lack of a plan is suddenly a reason to hold back on adding a couple of games? Right. 10 H&A rounds in an 18-team competition is frankly ridiculous. The longer it continues, the wider the gulf will become between the best and the rest. Which will lead to more intervention in the draft and trading rules to artificially bring the best back to the pack. Really these are just snowballing problems from the AFL's previous obsession with getting to 18 teams ASAP... Just like the Grand Final venue was flagged as a potential problem MONTHS before they finally made the last-minute decision, the need to get started on these negotiations ASAP was also raised by many straight after last season, foreseeing the current situation. Likely it's more complex being a joint negotiation and needing to wait for TV rights to be sorted, but still. Completely foreseeable.

Round 12 vs. Essendon Bombers Close, but not cigar! Watched this one in a COVID-induced haze, so I'll defer to the match report provided by Ethan Hibbert on the MFC website: https://www.melbournefc.com.au/news/1360457/vflw-demons-leave-it-too-late On a day that had wind conditions more suited to an empty paddock then a football field saw the Casey Demons VFLW team go down to the Essendon Bombers by five points, the finals score 3.7 25 to 4.6 30. It was extremely windy at Casey Fields with the goalposts themselves struggling to stay upright. A tight contest was on display with a Casey side looking to knock off a fellow final’s contender on their charge to a place in the final 6. Given the conditions, the game was extremely contested, and it became a battle of who can win the ball in the stoppage first. Casey were against the wind in the first term and their main objective was to prevent the advantage with the wind that the Bombers would build. Stoppage after stoppage was a story of the game with the Demons midfielders working overtime to allow no time and space on the ball and tackle at every opportunity they could. Essendon didn’t kick their first goal until halfway through the quarter and it was a decent start for the Demons. Another goal followed from a perfect centre clearance saw the Demons concede three for the first quarter. Roles reversed in the second and the Bombers were excellent, not allowing Casey to get the ball forward with the wind at all. Unfortunately, Ciara Burke’s goal was the only major for the term with the home side inaccurate in front of the goal, kicking five behinds. A factor that would prove costly later in the match. The third period for Casey was all about limiting the damage and keeping the margin as small as possible so they could try and claw it back in the final quarter. Also, inaccurate in front of goal, the Bombers kicked four straight behinds and only one goal in the third quarter and would have been worried that they didn’t kill the game. 19-points down, with the wind and Casey had all the belief going into the final term that they could claw back a result. Contest to contest, stoppage to stoppage, Essendon played the conditions perfectly to not allow the Demons opportunities to bring the game back. The Bombers forced the ball wide and out of bounds to kill the clock and make the task grow for the home team. In the hunt for a potential finals place, Casey had all the hope and motivation they needed. A Brooke Borchard goal in the sixth minute gave an even bigger boost of momentum and Casey could see the light at the end of the tunnel. Amber Kinnane converted to make it a one goal game with 4 minutes left. A behind from the centre clearance meant that a goal would be a game winning score for the Demons, but as they had done so expertly throughout the game, the Bombers held on. Flooding the backline with every player on the field and preventing any loose ball, the away side where able to hold on, winning by five points. The loss sees Casey now face an almost impossible chance of making finals. Mathematically, they can still slip in but the job at hand is enormous and requires other results to go their way, for the Demons to have the slightest of opportunities to play finals in 2023. Despite the disappointing outcome, Casey will be sure to play their best football and finish the year on a high for the remaining two rounds. CASEY DEMONS: 0.0 1.5 1.5 3.7 (25) ESSENDON BOMBERS: 3.2 3.2 4.6 4.6 (30) BEST: Burn, O'Neill, Fairchild, Phillips, Proy, Kinnane DISPOSALS: 25 Danckert, 21 Fairchild, 16 Burn, 14 Neal, 13 O’Neill

Obviously some kind of top-secret intel that will hold the key to the Dees' success when she gets back here.